Maasai Mara, Kenya

Yes it was indeed a whirlwind of an adventure! During our 12 days on safari we visited seven parks . . . four in Kenya and three in Tanzania. When folks head out to Africa, there is an expectation of seeing "the big five" (Elephant, Rhino, Lion, Cape/African Buffalo and Leopard) and we were no different. Amazingly, we got to see four of the five during our first park, a three day visit to the Maasai Mara, home of "the greatest show on earth" - the migration of herds from Tanzania to Kenya in search of greener pastures and food.

Because of the vastness of this park, I was glad that we had three days to observe the animals in what would set the standard for game viewing for the rest of the trip. Unfortunate however, because as our guide said, winter in the Mara is a time for feast for all. The wildlife was abundant and in good health. The cycle of life in full swing as hunters hunted and scavengers waited. Grazing animals had plenty to eat and were healthy enough to sustain those who depended on them for their next meal.

We did not have an opportunity to witness an active hunt or kill here in the Maasai Mara, but there were plenty of chances to see animals enjoying the fruits of their labor. None was more spectacular than seeing a pride of 16 lions early one morning dining on a wildebeest kill on the hillside before us.

We did not get to see the much anticipated migration of the wildebeests as they crossed the Mara River. While at the river's edge, we did see what seemed to be thousands looking for the right spot to cross. Unfortunately, some self-drive safari folks decided to drive between the herd and river bank, sending all of the animals away from the crossing points. While not the most famous aspect of "the migration" that people come to see, we were able to see the migration in progress in the Mara several times.

Cheetahs were a very common sighting at the Maasai Mara, including what was believed to be these three young males, most likely brothers. They were seen a couple of times during our game drives, often just lazing away the afternoon under the protection of shade. In this photo it was especially interesting to see how they positioned themselves so as to have a full 360 degree view around them. Perhaps they were scoping out the area for supper.

My time spent in the Mara was not without some harsh reality too. This young lion was obviously injured, as his walk had a noticable limp to it in spite of no outward appearance of injury. He walked ahead of our safari vehicle for some distance before making his way atop a termite hill. There he sat, scanning the area as though to be searching for something. He then began to vocalize a low tone puffy like roar. After doing this for a few minutes, out from the brush about 50 yards ahead, came a beautiful lioness. She responded to his vocalizations with her own very loud and what seemed to be grumpy response. It was an amazing interaction between the two, as though nobody else was around. I felt blessed to have been witness to them.

Reflections on my Journey

Safari
1890 (attested from 1860 as a foreign word), from Swahili, lit. "journey, expedition," from Arabic, lit. "referring to a journey," from safar "journey" (which is attested in Eng. as a foreign word from 1858).

While initially I wanted to be able to blog on a more frequent basis while out in the bush, I now reflect back and am glad that I was not able to do so. I'm afraid my reports would have been more caught up in what I had seen that day in terms of the animals and game parks, or perhaps how great the accommodations and meals were, without being given the appropriate amount of time to really reflect and consider all that I experienced that day.

Yes, my safari was a journey; a journey of not only witnessing the greatness of the cycle of life as experienced by animals in the national parks and conservation areas visited, but also of mankind in an area of the world that is still underdeveloped and struggling. The day-to-day challenges faced by the wildlife is not unlike what the people of Africa also contend with. The search for sustenance as well as providing for their young, both man and animal must continually be on the move to assure a future for their species.

I am certain that this reality would have been lost on me had I not had an opportunity to step back after the fact, upon my return to my cozy little home in Wisconsin, to really reflect on what I experienced and how I feel about it.

My safari journey was 12 days/11 nights and during that time, our travel group of four faced several unexpected and in some cases, undesirable surprises. Some were a matter of inconvenience or comfort, others that of money. The good news is that through each of them, we survived. Nothing was of serious enough consequence like "life or death".

I cannot say that however, about those living in the areas of Africa that I had the privilege of visiting. Our safari was in fact, a microcosm of the very culture that I sought to experience. Sure the bathroom situation was deplorable by American standards and yes, I was inconvenienced and a bit unnerved by having to pee out in the wild. I did not like having to pee standing up over a pit much either, but you know what, I survived it. At the end of the day, it was not that big a deal.

One of my favorite movie lines is from "A League of Their Own" when team manager Tom Hanks tells the girls on his baseball team that "It's supposed to be hard. It is the hard that makes it great. If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it." Well that is a bit of paraphrasing, but I'm pretty darn close to the actual lines spoken in the movie.

Yes going on safari can be hard. The distances are far and road conditions terrible; the food bland and not very tasteful; and all around you there are deplorable living conditions. As Americans we are blessed in so many ways and take so very much for granted. I am glad that I was able to make this journey and take a safari of self-discovery that I believe will make me a better person.

What an Amazing Experience

As I sit here in the Nairobi Airport waiting for my journey home to begin, I wanted to let folks know that I had an outstanding safari experience in both Kenya & Tanzania.

Because I was without internet for most of my time here, and for the two days that I did have it there was simply too much to write or post in the limited amount of time I had . . . I will have to post a more detailed blog of what we did and saw during our 12 days/11 nights here.

I hope to start documenting on Monday (Labor Day), complete with photos.

Today - Just Photos

I thought I'd just have time to post a few photos to highlight the places I went today . . . Kazuri Bead Factory, David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (yes again) and the Nairobi National Park.

First Day in Nairobi - Sunday 8/21

I cannot say enough about the Ngong House and their outstanding staff. I have never had such attentive service. My accommodations are perfect, the food to die for and a location that is nothing short of an oasis in the foothill of the Ngong Range. They also provided me with a car & driver to go and do whatever I wished during my stay.

On Sunday, my itinerary got changed up a bit with the delay in my luggage. I was not able to go visit the Ajax Football Team, nor was I able to take soccer balls with me for my visit at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust for the orphan elephants. with that said, I still got to get out and do some great things including a visit to the Giraffe Centre and the Karen Blixen House both in Karen.

At the Giraffe Centre the animals were pretty far away from the main viewing area where visitors (mostly kids) feed the giraffes. Lucky for the children there was one who was hungry and willing to gobble up all the pellets given her. They do have one baby here at their centre, but again, really too far away to see with binoculars or to photograph.

From there I went to the Karen Blixen Home. The original house where she lived and what was used at the set for the movie "Out of Africa" is located on only a small fraction of the original 6,000 acres of her coffee farm. The house was restored for the movie back in the 1980's and has since been kept up as a National Landmark of Kenya.

When I arrived a young lady provided me with a brief tour of the single level home, complete with stories about Karen Blixen and her life in Kenya. No photos were permitted inside, so this exterior shot is about as good as I can provide here.

After lunch I enjoyed a visit at the elephant nursery that is operated by the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust just inside the Nairobi National Park border. Every evening at 5:00pm, donors and foster "parents" of the elephants and rhinos may make an appointment to visit for their return from the bush for their bottles and bedtime.

Elephants are milk dependent until around three years of age, and must eat every three hours. A couple of the babies laid right down for sleep, this one is Sities, an 18 month old that was orphaned at a mere seven weeks of age when her mother was killed for her ivory (illegal in Kenya and I believe all of Africa). Poaching is a big issue here, and results in many orphaned elephants and rhinos.

Arrived Safely!

It is shortly after midnight local time on Saturday night and I'm comfy relaxing at the Ngong House in the Nairobi suburb of Karen. My travel day (which was actually more like 36 hours from the time I left home until my safe arrival here) was fast paced and not very relaxing . . . and touch n go as to whether or not I would even make here today or not.

My flights into Dulles and lunch with my sister Pam were very nice and uneventful in a good way. Scheduled to depart Washington, DC at roughly 6:30pm, we had a 2+ hour delay due to thunderstorms. With a 4 hour layover, I felt confident I'd be alright, only to later find out that had it been another 30 minutes I would have missed my connection in London to Nairobi. With just one flight a day, such a miss would have delayed my arrival by a full day!

Flights on British Airways were nice. I flew in World Traveler Plus which is essentially coach plus with wider seats and a tad bit more personalized service in the cabin. Unfortunately, my arrival into Nairobi did not go well as my two checked bags apparently did not make the connection. I was told they had located them along with about 20 other bags still back at Heathrow.

Not so bad for me, as I'm scheduled to be in Nairobi for three nights although not have my personal toiletries and change of clothes for tomorrow will be unpleasant. I do have baggage delay insurance as part of my package for this trip, so I could go out and buy an outfit or two tomorrow if anything is open. I'll see how I feel in the morning about that. For some of the other folks with delayed baggage, they are scheduled to head out on safari in the morning and were told it would take 3 or 4 days to get their suitcases out to them since they won't arrive into Nairobi until 9:00p (scheduled time) tomorrow.

For now, I have a change of shirt that I had planned on making this morning upon arrival at Heathrow but with little time to freshen up or change, that turns out to be a blessing in disguise.

Once I got through the process of obtaining my VISA and clearing immigration, I was met by Lucy from the Ngong House. She was very pleasant and helpful, concerned about my luggage situation. The drive from the airport was an adventure of its own. (Note to David . . . round-abouts in Kenya are insane!)

The drivers seemed to all be in a hurray at 10:30pm, many cars did not seem road worthy and a safari vehicle or two were down right frightful. I cannot imagine seeing one of those old beat up vans pulling up on Tuesday to pick us up to head off into the bush for 12 days.

Once out of the city proper, it was clear we were heading out into the African bush. Nairobi National Park is adjacent to the city limits. I recognized it as we drove by the tall fences on the city side of the park to keep lions and other predators from wandering the streets of Nairobi.

The final couple of roads into the Ngong House were very rough, making me wish I had taken the time to make one last bathroom stop before leaving the airport. It wasn't unbearable, only worth mentioning for others who may want to consider this before heading out.

At the Ngong House I was immediately greeted by Paul who had a refreshing glass of freshly whipped pineapple juice to hand me. He offered dinner, but at such a late hour I couldn't think about eating a full meal and yet, with only a couple of mediocre airline meals during the day, I was pretty hungry.

He had the kitchen prepare a chicken sandwich with was served on some sort of multi-grain bread. A little mayo, lettuce and tomato and it was the perfect before bedtime snack. I enjoyed my dining experience with "Diamond" one of their many dogs. She looked to be an older yellow lab or retriever mix with gorgeous black eyes and nose. Very friendly, I got the feeling she's used to being fed by the guests but I avoided her puppy eyes only giving into her for pets and a good ear rub.

Well that's about it for now; time for bed. I have my clock set for 7:30a which seems a shame, but I'm pretty sure I'll be awake by then anyway. I am looking forward to get out and about here on the property to take some photos which I'll post in my next entry.

Lodging Accommodations

One of the things I am looking forward to is the opportunity to enjoy the hospitality and culture of an area of the world I have only dreamed of while watching television shows and movies. It will be through the lodging and food that much of my cultural submersion will occur.

When I arrive in Nairobi on 20August, I will be greeted at the airport by a representative of my host at Ngong House in the suburb of Karen. Located on 10 acres with views of the Ngong Hills made famous in the movie Out of Africa, this seemed like the perfect place to get into the head space of being in Africa and going on safari! (Check out the photos of their tree house accommodations.) They have been very helpful in providing me with a private car & driver for my two days of exploring some of what Nairobi has to offer visitors.

After my first two nights/days in Kenya, I will move to what is the starting point for our group of four the Sarova Stanley Hotel in downtown Nairobi. Long in history (more than 100 years), I anticipate staying here may take visitors back to when Kenya was still a British Colony. The staff offers a historical tour of the hotel which includes photos and artifacts from that era.

During our 12 day/11 night safari, we will be staying in a variety of safari lodges including a couple of tented camps. Each lodge was chosen by our tour operator MICS Tours & Safaris for the close proximity to the game parks/reserves and the value provided to guests. In addition to great locations, all provide all inclusive meals during our stay.

In three locations (Masai Mara, Amboseli and the Serengeti) we will be overnighting for more than one evening, allowing for some additional free time lounging and enjoying the amenities of the lodge. I'm especially looking forward to the swimming pool at the Oltukai Safari Lodge with their stunning views of Mt. Kilimanjaro.

In the "Mara" we will be spending two nights in a traditional safari lodge and a third at the Sarova Mara Game Camp, a tented camp providing guests with a more authentic old world safari experience. In looking at the photos and reviews, however, it hardly looks like roughing it!

Overnights at the Lake Nakuru Lodge and the Voyager Ziwani Safari Camp will round out our time in Kenya.

While in Tanzania, we will be staying at the Serengeti Sopa Lodge, Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge and Lake Manyara Serena Hotel. Each provides a unique vantage point from which to start the day with tea and an early morning game drive. They say the view overlooking the Ngorongoro Crater at sunset is unmatched by any other lodging choice in the area.

With my African Adventure beginning in just a week, I can hardly wait! Look for updates along the way as my Internet connection allows.