Our first stop on our Tanzanian Safari was the magnificent plain and  Rift Valley escarpment bordering Lake Manyara National Park. Some of  the first creatures to greet us were a trio of the Lake's majestic giraffe.

We were thrilled to see a tiny giraffe with its mother and another larger adult on the shores of this seasonal alkaline lake. 

It's also home to a transient population of Greater Flamingoes which  feed constantly on tiny crustacea and are paler than their algae eating Lesser cousins.

The lake surrounds host a wide variety of fauna  - from myriad birds including the Southern Ground Hornbill, to  baboons, cape buffalo, wildebeest and big cats. The escarpment  provides wonderful landscape views and the lake at dusk, washed in  mauves, blues and the pinks is breathtaking