We have been ruined for all vacations, for the rest of lives.

Our honeymoon to Tanzania and Dubai was literally the Ultimate trip. It was all made possible by the kindness and generosity of you, our friends and family. We can’t thank you all enough for helping us experience the perfect getaway.

Starting with our departure from the SFO airport, everything was beyond amazing. As soon as we checked in for our Emirates flight, we were notified of a surprise upgrade to business class, compliments of our friends, Mushtaq, Fatima, and new friend, Sumudu! From SFO to DXB (dubai), our flight was 15 hours, but we would have been fine on that flight for 30 hours. Gourmet foods, REAL silverware, cheese carts, premium whisky and wine, seats that fold out flat with a sleeping mattress, were just a few of the many perks of our flight. Leading up to the trip, we were told and read to inform Emirates that we were on our honeymoon. All the flight attendents knew we were on our honeymoon, and made us feel like V.I.P.s with personal service and a special honeymoon cake. So all you honeymooners out there, don’t forget to tell Emirates you are on your honeymoon, you don’t know what extra perks they may throw your way.

The luxury did not stop there.  From our suites at the Minna A Salaam and Ritz Carlton in Dubai, to the our various luxury tents in the Serenghetti, we felt like royalty.

Lions and Tigers and Bears… Oh My!

What a strange saying. You would never find all those animals together in the wild. The only place to see all those animals in the same place would be in a zoo and where we were was far away from any zoo.

As we started to fly lower over the airstrip in Grumeti (Tanzania), we could see many interwoven and worn pathways on the ground that appeared to be made by tons of black creatures moving in line. Imagine what it would look like if ants were to leave a trail behind them as they trek across a picnic blanket from the grass to the food. The black creatures that looked like ants from miles above were herds of wildebeests on migration following the rain and grasses northward. Face to face, the wildebeests no longer looked like ants, but as Dave says, “horses with ugly masks on.” it is true that they are not pretty, but just the shear number of them on the Serengeti plains was amazing.

After disembarking the small airplane, we we’re met by our safari guide, Wilfred, and then on our way through the wilderness. Five minutes along our way we came to a watering hole and saw elephants, crocodiles, hippos, and more wildebeests. I was amazed to see so many different animals in the same place, some watching their prey, others watching the predators. How naive I was, thinking that this was so amazing. There was so much more to come.

Some of my most favorite things were seeing the baby elephants run after their mommies with theirs ears flapping behind, and learning about and visiting some of the locals and villagers along the way.