Jan 21, 2012

Take a look at this fantastic safari lodge, which is well hidden at the Wami river of Saadani National Park, in Tanzania… 

We have worked here for more than a year with Vula so that we can say this is home for us. I remember we were somewhere in Australia, during our RTW tour, when Costas Coucoulis, our good friend sent us some 3D designs – that looked like real pictures – from a new lodge he wanted to created right on the shores of Wami river, a spot we knew from 2002, when we had visited for the first time Saadani.

It was 2009 and we had a long way to go on our trip. Saadani River Lodge was only a dream in sketches then. On December 2010, as if it was destiny, we were right there to take over and run this fantastic place. Saadani River Lodge was an incredible reality into the lush jungle. A well hidden, fantastically constructed lodge with 19 suites of wood and thatching grass, all overlooking the scenic river. This seemed to be a crazy dream came true and an engineering feat at the same time, that had cost a lot of money and effort of more than 180 hard working people to build it. How all these materials arrived from that muddy path that made life difficult to the sturdiest 4×4?

The lodge was apparently prepared but we needed six more months to make it work. The rooms should be equipped, the swimming pool to be filled with water, the show kitchen to be installed, all the systems, internet, fire alarm, internal com, were not ready yet. We felt very creative for that period till we opened to accept our first guests on June 2011.

I remember that day because it was an adventure for everybody working here. The previous day the lodge stores were empty, no food and drinks at all. Even some housekeeping stuff arrived dramatically at the last moment on a wooden dhow that sailed for 9 hours all the way from Bagamoyo.

Let me explain you for the previous three months, the lodge was practically on an island. The road from Bagamoyo was completely flooded and no car or… tank was capable to arrive and supply us with the necessary goods. After we opened, things started rolling much better. We had few but very good guests from all over the world and some of them were real friends. What was the first reaction of everybody arriving here? “Oh God, you guys live in paradise”, that was the most common phrase we could hear.

Saadani River Lodge is paradise. It looks to be close to Dar es Salaam but in reality is far far away; minimum three hours by car, if the road is completely dry. There are no villages around. The closest one is Saadani, which lies on the north, on the other side of Wami. The closest town is historical Bagamoyo, 55 km away. In between, there is only coastal Savannah with several small settlements of nomadic tribes like Mangati, who stroll in the middle of nowhere with their malnourished cows and goats.

The path to the lodge is a dead end as there is no bridge over Wami river at that point. The lodge is pretty close – 3 kms – from the river mouth that feeds the Indian ocean with millions of tons of mud every year. For this reason, the so called Swahili was never exploited or “refortified”. For this reason, Saadani was kept a hidden, unapproachable place and for the same reason it became a national park in 2004.

Why should you go to Saadani River Lodge? Just to meet each other, right? But even if we are gone from there, and we should be gone before the rainy season of 2012 (April-May), you try this place. It is an exclusive retreat, located fantastically on an unspoiled river. Your suite offers 5 star amenities apart the fantastic view but more than this, the unique, remote feeling of the place is what makes the difference. At SRL you are into a safari, you don’t need to go anywhere to meet the wildlife. Blue monkeys, black & white colobus monkeys and baboons, monitor lizards, crocodiles, hippos and hundreds of bird species surround you any time of the day. You just need to take your time, relax, watch and listen. Then you will understand why 350 USD per night is nothing for an once in a lifetime hospitality like this…_A.Temperidis

More information about Saadani River Lodge on www.saadaniriverlodge.com

Jan 20, 2012

Fundu Lagoon is not for everybody. Its only for those people who search for the ultimate beach experience on earth!

Aug 2, 2011

There is a Greek biker, Elias Vrohidis, whom we had met at Amritsar, three years ago. Elias was born in Thessaloniki but seemed to be a restless soul since he was 5 years old, when he left his grandma’s house and was found on the other side of the second biggest Greek city. Elias grew up and decided to follow his heart, hitting the road on his bike. He did it and in the end he enjoyed 27 months in central Asia on his small enduro Honda XR250.

When Elias returned to Greece he was dedicated to sailing but in the meantime he published a very interesting book where he tell all the story of his trip.

The book is entitled “27 full moons in the East” and is written in Greek. Good news for Greek speaker is that reading this book you feel as if Elias takes you on his bike and gives you a rough, breathtaking ride in central Asia and in the Indian sbcontinent.

Thank you for sharing all this mate!

Jul 13, 2011

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[en]

When I was a kid my favorite food was an omelette mixed with french fries. I had my father Socrates preparing it from time to time and the portion was never enough for me.

May 19, 2011

This morning I woke up excited and left Costas and Vula in our rooms to go for diving with Spanish Dancer Divers at Nungwi. It was great to dive again in two coral reefs not far from the beach despite it was very bumpy on the surface and despite the limited visibility (5-8 mts.) underwater.

Dec 21, 2010

Rainbow Cruises has a fleet of 20 standard and premium houseboats in Alleppey, with one to four bedrooms each, a living room, verandas, kitchen and a qualified crew.