On Safari

Tim, Chris and his girlfriend Sarah arrived and we set off on the Safari trip we had arranged in England. There were two mini buses with the six of us in one and an American family of four plus two single thirtyish men in the other. First we visited the game reserve at Maasai Mara where we saw four of the “big five”, lions, leopard, elephants and buffalo. Just listing them like this gives no feel of the magic of seeing crouching lions appear before your eyes or of a herd of elephants with their babies walking very close to the track and watching you suspiciously as they protect their young. Perhaps though the highlight was seeing a leopard in a tree with a warthog it had just killed as leopards are one of the hardest animals to spot and we had an excellent view. Many of the Maasai people retain their traditional dress and way of life and look very distinctive in their colourful draped clothes and masses of bright bead jewellery with men carrying spears, clubs and swords whilst herding their livestock. Two Maasai men kept watch all night at the campsite to protect us from wandering animals which was fine but quite disconcerting to emerge from your tent in the middle of the night for a loo visit to see a tall figure in the dark confronting you!

Christmas Day saw us travelling from the Masai Mara to Lake Nakuru where we celebrated in the eve by having wine instead of beer with our eve meal and our guide producing a small artificial Christmas tree. It felt right and in keeping with our surroundings and companions. The next day we saw the fifth of the big five – the rhino and also flamingos, pelicans and lots of other birdlife.

Amboseli was next which was different again, a game park with a more open feel and a large swamp which provided us with great views of elephants and hippos. Finally an evening game drive and overnight stop in Tsavo where our guide assures us a lion came near his tent in the night – fortunately we had been warned not to venture out of out tents!

All four game reserves were very different so we saw different animals in different settings. We saw masses of game but each time there was something new which meant the magic stayed with us although by the end we were getting blasé about zebras, giraffes and gazelles even though the former two were among our collective favourites. The scenery and landscapes were extraordinary, with the acacia tree as the most outstanding African symbol. Some of the the views across the reserves in the early evening, often with a lone acacia tree, were breathtaking.

The guides and drivers were great. They were informative, fun and helpful. One surprise was the quality of the food, which was very good. The cook, a man in his late sixties, was amazing. He managed to cook for sixteen people on the ground with an iron grid on charcoal with few facilities, and no running water and produced three substantial meals a day. We had delicious varied food with several choices of dishes and vegetarian options. The group all got on very well and the evening meals were lively and entertaining. We camped for much of the time, which was a bit of a struggle for the oldest member of the party (KD), and some of the facilities were pretty basic with one campsite having no running water for two days. However, some of the showers were better than some of those in the smart hotel we ended up in in Mombassa. What sort of hotel describing itself as having world class services runs out of water in the afternoons and has only very occasional hot water?

Mombassa is more diverse and more interesting than Nairobi with an interesting old town/Islamic area, and we experienced the first really hot, humid weather of the trip. New Year in Mombassa was spent in a smart holiday resort on the coast. It was a hot balmy evening and we ate an excellent Indian meal in the open downing lots of cocktails overlooking the Indian Ocean, with traditional dancing, acrobats, and a few fireworks. The six of us and a couple of hundred Indian people. It was a bit bizarre, but quite beautiful, and wonderful all being together in such a setting.

Chris, Joe and Sarah have now left us to return to the UK, leaving Tim with us for another week. It was hard saying goodbye to them for six months.

Now we have a camera we plan to insert some photos but because of poor internet connections Tim will do this on his return. Hope you enjoy looking at them.