While working in the lab at the clinic, Jim heard this little girl crying so he gave her his giraffe. 
"She was waiting with her mother and a friend to see a doctor. I am not sure what her problem was other than she was not feeling well. She did stop crying after I gave her the giraffe however."
Don't forget...
This lion couple was sunning along one of the roads in the Ngorongoro Crater.
There were at least six lions all lounging in the field together.
This guy seemed to be the king of the pride, as the others were all lionesses.
This gal looks just like my cat sleeping in the warm sun.
Sitting up from her nap...
A big yawn before laying back down.
When we first got to the village the Maasai women invited some of the gals from our group to join them in a traditional dance while others chanted.
Here they are all in a line, some hand in hand.
The women from our group were given the traditional beaded necklaces to wear during the dance.
The men were on the other side of the common area and they were getting ready for the Adumu (Jumping Dance). Each young man will take turns to jump as high as he can while the others stand in a circle and sing. The voices of the men get higher as the jumping increases. The belief is that the higher you jump the greater man you show yourself to be.
Freddie and Jerod joined in the jumping dance.
The huts of the village are built from sticks and dung
This young man showed us the interior of the traditional hut and how he and his family live.
Don and Tom truly enjoy the Maasai experience.
What a majestic people and an experience most of us will never forget.
At the Maasai village there was a simple building made from sticks and dung just outside the fence around the huts.
The building was a one room school house for the village children.
Cindy led the kids in singing the "Alphabet Song".
The building is partly open, maybe to allow for ventilation and light.
Here is the teacher, who was very patient as our group disrupted her class.
We stopped at a Maasai Village near the entrance to the Ngorongoro Crater. The bright colors of their attire, their beautiful beadwork and their distinct features make the Maasai so interesting. Click here for more information about the Maasai.
This wonderful shot of a giraffe, and the others in this post are pix that Jim took at Arusha National Park. 
A nice close up.
Not everyday you can have your picture taken with a giraffe standing in the background.
Thanks Jim for sharing your pix.
Congratulations to Bruce on his 30th work anniversary. Bruce was the hero of our "Walking to Tanzania" fundraiser as he used the walk to gain his own strength back after surgery and chemo, and the monies from his sponsors to benefit the projects done in Tanzania."Labor Day will be a holiday for celebration and thanksgiving. I am back on the job after almost six months of short term disability and Friday marks the 30th year that I have worked for Hallmark. I have been blessed with a job that I enjoy and that has supported our family - truly a gift from God."
It is now the beginning of September and the start of the rainy season in Tanzania. We hope to have another update from Paula about the progress of the roof of the eye clinic soon.
Benedict and the gang from his safari car - Kari, Cindy, Brooke, Kurt, Don and Sherlyn."Benedict was our remarkable safari driver...quiet, gentle-spirited, kind, and always chuckling at Cindy "Doolittle" talking to the animals - or laughing at our staple Swahili phrase, "Twende, tafadahli - Asante!" (Let's go, please -Thank you!). We each had a particular word we would say and poor Benedict heard that phrase over and over and over again!
Benedict has worked for JM Tours for over 14 years and loves what he does. He says that he never gets tired of taking people on safari since you never know what you may see. His personal favorite is the cheetah.
He has a wife, 3 boys, and a daughter and he strives to be able to pay for his children's education. He grew up in Moshi close to Mt. Kilimanjaro and his mom still lives there and is a coffee farmer. He is Catholic and drove with the Virgin Mary right on his windshield.
