Sunrise in the Serengeti

For some people, the day begins when the train passes by in the distance or a high-pitched alarm pierces the early morning quiet. They get moving with a cup of takeaway coffee, absent-mindedly scanning the morning paper, getting stuck into their email inbox or dodging traffic on the way to the office.

The mornings at Singita are a little bit different. The drone of cars, the ping of cellphones and the whoosh of the espresso machine are replaced by the chatter of birds and the far-off cry of a scavenging hyena. The resident Cape buffalo grunts with contentment as he scratches against his favorite rubbing post shortly before sunrise, then slips away quietly to find a shady spot to rest for the day.

Ambling to the main lodge with the cool morning air in your face, damp earth disturbed by little paws and fresh spoor on the road is the only evidence of evening visitors. Arriving at the lodge one normally finds a scrub hare getting the last of his fill on the dew-spangled lawn before dashing to the lavender bushes to hide for the day.

The well-rested guests faces are filled with anticipation as they chat excitedly on the veranda while the sun peeps over the horizon in the east, a million miles away from the hustle and bustle of city life. The babblers and hornbills hop about the lodge, signalling that it is indeed time to rise and shine. When the vervet monkeys start stretching their legs on the lawn playing rough and tumble, our guests set off in the open game-viewing vehicles to enjoy a slow bumble across the plains.

Brad Murray, Lodge Manager at Singita Sasakwa Lodge in Grumeti, Tanzania, describes an average morning for him and his team. Stylish and graceful, the turn-of-the-century manor house and private cottages at Singita Sasakwa Lodge are a blend of authentic European style and East African influences, and surrounded by breathtaking vistas of the Serengeti plains.