Infinity, And Beyond

Linda Lou Burton posting from Lake Manyara Serena Safari Lodge, Lake Manyara National Park, Tanzania– It was 4:40 when our lead vehicle left the pavement. The sign said Lake Manyara Serena Safari Lodge – that way. We got wiggly; energy sprouted out of our weariness; we were almost THERE, just a dusty road away. Two boys waved, we waved back; then just past that, our leader turned again; and stopped. Willy pulled beside. A small white building there, surely not our Lodge? What in the world? “This is a museum,” Willy said. “Ben wants you to learn about tanzanite. It’s a gem found in Tanzania.” WHAT? Everyone but me got out; grumbling about this No Warning stop. I was thinking of our Lodge, the infinity pool overlooking the lake, on the very tip edge of the escarpment a thousand feet above the Rift. I was thinking of lions that sleep in trees, and tuk-tuk rides on a banana farm; of lunch in a Swahili canteen. So many things to do in this unique and lovely place; just one night here; so little time. Ben walked to my window, in line with the glare in my eyes. “Lois and Mike have a reservation for a bike ride around the lake this afternoon,” I said in Mama Bear tone. “Oh, I canceled that,” was his reply. “You should go inside, there’s lots of pretty jewelry you can buy.”

It was 5:40 when we reached the Lodge, down the steps past the lily pool, into reception, the complimentary juice, the room assignments. “There’s entertainment by the pool at 6,” we were told. I looked at my watch. 6:05. Ben was handing off the keys. “Cottage 1 for you and Rick,” he said. “The closest! Downstairs!” Close, yes, but 16 rocky steps up hill, no rails. Our thatch-roofed rondavel was charming; twin beds-mosquito nets-a patio. Dark almost here; I changed my pants (remember why), grabbed my camera, headed for the pool. Cane got me down the 16 steps; I found a seat at the edge of the edge. Our entertainer was breathing fire. And so was I.

Lake Manyara Serena Safari Lodge, https://www.serenahotels.com/lake-manyara

About Tanzanite: The Blue Gem. The world’s only source of tanzanite is located on a small patch of land at the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro. The myth is that a local Maasai saw a bolt of lightning come down from the sky and strike the ground turning all the rocks to a shimmering blue. The geological story is that about 585 million years ago as continents shifted, and the Great Rift Valley was created, minerals morphed together to create (what is now known as) tanzanite. The commercial story is that in 1967, when the first stone was “discovered” and determined not to be sapphire, Tiffany & Co christened it “tanzanite” and launched a marketing campaign proclaiming it “the new must-have.” Reasons: it is a thousand times rarer than diamonds, and it is a “single-generation” gemstone due to its limited supply – with the current mining rate, there are only 20 more years of tanzanite in the ground. Hurry up and invest! Tiffany says: Tanzanite can be found on only two places on earth – Tanzania, and Tiffany’s. The Tanzanian places to buy: The Tanzanite Experience, with stores all over – from Arusha to Serengeti to Zanzibar. And Lake Manyara.

The Tanzanite Experience https://www.tanzaniteexperience.com/tanzanite-knowledge/

A great Tanzanian MINING story, in 2020 a Tanzanian subsistence miner was awarded a government check for 7.74 billion Tanzanian shillings ($3.35 million) for the two largest tanzanite gemstones ever found. Each stone was about the size of a forearm; they were discovered by Saniniu Laizer in one of the tanzanite mines in the north of the country; the mines are surrounded by a wall to control cross-border smuggling of the gemstones.