When my friends went to Tanzania last year, my imagination went wild as far as worrying about them. Not really sure why. From thoughts about them catching a deadly virus to losing a cell phone reception and disappearing in the middle of nowhere, or rather, in the middle of savanna, my head was full of black scenarios. Funny enough, none of these scary thoughts would even cross my mind ten years ago, in my fearless (or clueless) twenties. Back then, adventure was the only travel guide. Have I missed my window to visit Africa? As a thirty-something parent, I have a long check list to pass before I decide on a destination and my husband’s list is even longer. In other words, it might take a while before my family goes on safari. But in the meantime, we can always watch “Madagascar” and read books, can’t we?
“We All Went on Safari” is a typical counting rhyme, but instead of duckies, children get to count the wild beasts if savanna. Together with Akeyla, Watande, Zalira and their Tanzanian friends, the readers learn 1-10 numbers as they count hippos, warthogs or elephants in the colorful pictures by Julia Cairns. The story is followed by very useful fact sheets about Tanzania, the animals featured in the rhyme, the Maasai People, Swahili names and numbers. This engaging addition makes the book appealing even for children beyond counting read-alouds. And even parents can learn a thing or two from the story. For example, that there are more than 100 tribes in Tanzania or that Ngorongoro Crater was once a volcano, that was higher than Mount Kilimanjaro.
The more I read, the more I want to go to this exotic land. Perhaps I can start with visiting the golden sand beaches of Zanzibar? After all, as someone wise said, ou shouldn’t stop yourself from doing something just because you are scared of doing it.
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