Safari - Mara Pt 2

Being in a far away land, we are not as in touch with the news in America as normal. Likewise, we are more aware of the news here in Kenya. There is a trial going on at the International Criminal Court in the Netherlands concerning the violence following the 2007 Kenyan elections that is broadcast live on tv, although the video quality looks like that of a webcam. The trial involves several top government officials, and we even saw part of the testimony of Uhuru Kenyatta, son of the founding president and currently the vice-prime minister, and head of the opposition party. Even though it is on every TV in Kenya, not sure if anyone in the US is following it. But we do know that some people in the US, particularly parental types in Ohio, are following the news regarding recent violence in northern Kenya. In two separate incidents, armed Somali gangs, crossed the border, kidnapped (and killed) European tourists, and turned over the hostages to Somali pirates. One of the attacks occurred on Manda island, where Lamu airport is located. We were planning to go to Lamu and were in the process of paying for the trip. Lamu is supposed to be a very cool place to visit, with beautiful beaches and a preserved old town, similar in many respects to Zanzibar. It is now a UNESCO heritage site and everyone who knows of it has recommended it. But, as unique as the opportunity to meet Somali pirates may be, and the fact that accommodations in Lamu must be a bargain now, we have decided that we would prefer a beach town much further from the Somalia border. We now have plane tickets to go to Malindi instead. Meanwhile, the Kenyan government may invade southern Somalia, without US or European support, but with military aid from the Chinese. // Meanwhile, back to the main story. 1-1/2 days in the Masai Mara reserve, and just too many experiences, such as a beautiful sunrise.


There were lots of lion encounters.





And now that we've shown you both females and males, you probably want to see some cubs.


These cats were hanging on a hillside with a great view of a water buffalo herd and a wildebeest herd, which are the black dots in the background.


We also got to see the animals we see commonly, like the zebra, do things we hadn't seen before. Who knew zebra's liked a good dust bath so much...


... And the young zebras, with brown stripes that turn black as they mature, nursing from their mothers.


Not often are the hippos spotted fully on dry land.


These hippos are getting ready to head out for dinner, after a "stressful" day sitting in the water. A common consensus among guides, and tourists as well, is that hippos really have the good life. They hang out in the water all day and maybe play with a family member, they have no real predator, except humans, and their only challenge is finding a good spot to sleep at night when they come onto land. They are actually very vocal as well. If we could post audio clips on the blog we would, because it is really fun to listen to them groan and grunt to each other.


With our trip to the Masai Mara over, it was time to head to Tanzania. In the morning as we left our hotel, our guide told us that the hotel had run out of fuel before he had a chance to fill up. We stopped at some other "nearby" locations, but they were also out. So we headed out hoping for the best, with our driver no longer feeling a desire to go slowly. Keep in mind our previous post about quality of the roads and African massage. At some local village, our driver begged a motorcycle repair shop to sell us 10 liters (2.5 gallons) and the fuel was delivered in plastic water bottles, looking like it had been siphoned. Now on our way, our driver was concerned about timing and really sped things up. Well, in his haste he managed to get us stuck in the mud two times, requiring help from others. We finally got more fuel, started driving faster and eventually got a flat tire. But, he did have a working spare. And then finally, we arrived at the border, a couple of hours late, anxious to meet our next guide for the Tanzania portion of our safari. We thought we were happy to be here after 5 hours of driving adventure, but in reality, the true "adventure" was just beginning.

Safari - Masai Mara National Reserve

We had a very early morning departure from Lake Nakuru because it was going to be a long drive with lots of time for "free massage", to quote our guide Bedan. Free massage is code word for very bumpy, uneven gravel roads. We have heard some other guides use the same term, so I don't think our guide can take credit. After seven hours of free massage, and feeling more stiff than loose, from gripping our chairs in order to not fly out of them with each bump, we finally arrived at our hotel in the Masai Mara. Truthfully, the roads into and out of the Mara are terrible - these roads are the reason people often fly from place to place. But, it's all an adventure to us. We must also add that each of our hotels on safari has greeted us with a chilled scented towel (think Halls Menthol-lyptus) and a glass of fresh juice upon arrival. The towel was especially appreciated today. It has also become a bit of a joke between us who can correctly guess the the type of juice we will be served. There has not been a clear winner yet. Passion and mango blends are the most prevalent. //. Our visit started off in the way you'd want a safari to be... A family of warthogs - the really tiny ones are cute...


A giraffe sitting down, which even our generally unimpressed guide was happy to see (and these are Masai giraffe, which is the only subspecies we should be seeing here and when we go to Tanzania)...


...herds of zebra... and another new antelope species, the topi. Betsy was very confused when she overheard another guide saying that a lion seemed to be watching the turkey. She didn't know there were wild turkeys here in Kenya. But actually the guide said the lion was watching the topi. Ah, the beauty of foreign accents. // We then came to the Mara river and there were animals everywhere! There were 7 female lions "eating" a wildebeest that they had just killed.


Within 30 yards was another wildebeest dead in the water, with a crocodile nearby, either guarding it or using it as bait to lure more prey. And another 30 yards away were three hippo in the water watching the whole scene. And then we had to look the other way, on our side of the river, because a male lion with a large mane showed up. Where to look and what to photograph - Truly, we were really enjoying our visit to the Mara. //. Later, an episode that was really enjoyable was watching a hippo who wanted to exit the river, but there was a lion sitting near the bushes where he wanted to exit. The lion kept scaring him back into the river. But then the hippo had enough and just came out and walked directly towards the lion, who decided she'd be better off backing up. Slowly, but surely, the hippo took command of the territory until the lion walked off. King of the jungle, ha. //. And, this is October in the Mara, which means the great migration is here. A couple million wildebeest have arrived from the Serengeti and are enjoying the fresh grass before going back next month. It is hard to capture in a photograph, but imagine there are about 100,000 wildebeest around you, with a few thousand zebra, walking, munching on grass, wandering aimlessly, and the herd stretches to the horizon.


// We always like to see the different species mixing together


We had a picnic lunch by the riverside, and saw some smaller wildlife.


We also noticed by all of the bones that we were not the only ones to have eaten here.


At one point in the drive, our guide wanted to show us how close we were to Tanzania, so he took us across the border. Although marked, there was no one there to stamp our passports. After a couple of minutes, we came back to Kenya and continued our trip.

Location:Kenya

Safari - Lake Nakuru

We are usually a day or two behind in posting to the blog after an experience. This blog entry was ready several days ago, but we have not had Internet for quite awhile. More details later, and we will be catching up with the posts soon. //. Lake Nakuru is famous for the half a million flamingos who supposedly live here. However, I think you see more flamingos during the opening credits of the old tv show Miami Vice than we did here. Regardless of that disappointment, there were a ton of birds to see and some other great wildlife experiences for us. For instance, we saw our first leopard! We have now seen all of Africa's "Big Five", having seen elephant, rhino, lion, african buffalo, and now leopard. We were not that close, but it was cool. You may not be able to tell that well from the photo, but it's in there (left side of tree).


We got to see the colobus monkey, which is a threatened species, and kind of unusual coloring. Our guide spotted these guys in the tree as we were driving by. So many of our guides continue to amaze us how they spot hidden wildlife, while maneuvering windy gravel roads at the same time. Both of us are pretty much in agreement neither of us would make very good safari guides.


We again got to be close up with rhinos. These guys were having a snack on the side of the road when we drove by, munching in the wet grass.


We saw a third subspecies of giraffe, the Rothschilds giraffe: notice the white "socks" and spot pattern.


We went up to a lookout point and had great views of the lake. There were lots of baboons up there and despite multiple signs asking people not to feed them, there was a group of Chinese tourists feeding them. We saw a huge male baboon, but also a little baby one climbing on the picnic bench.


We had more lion experiences, seeing one sleeping in a tree ......


three of them just hanging out......


and another one eating ...a babboon! So cool!


I am pretty sure it wasn't one of the baboons we saw earlier at the lookout. There were also more zebra, some jackals, and lots of birds to see at the ark. Each of our hotels on safari so far have been interesting lodges, especially the way they make the hotel fit the landscape. Our hotel at Lake Nakuru had lots of little chalets on a hillside that overlooked the lake. Very pretty. The food on safari has generally been really good. However, a lot of meals have been buffet and we have not been doing well with portion control - add that to sitting in a car all day, and we are both starting to feel quite round. //. Now that we've had Bedan as our driver/guide for a few days, we have a better understanding of his driving technique. The first day was painful how slow he was going, and this continued for the first half of day 2. But then things picked up. Our first time on unpaved roads the speed seemed to increase. Then he actually was driving fast (well, normal speed) on pavement on day 3. We now believe that his driving speed is based upon his intended arrival time. He slows down if he thinks we will get somewhere too early. For instance, the first day at Aberdares/ark we had a timed tour and we were the first to arrive, an hour early. Luckily, the timing thing seems to be less of an issue now.

Location:Kenya

Safari - Sweetwaters Tented Camp

We departed Samburu, passed back over the equator, and headed to the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, known for it's large numbers of both white and black rhino, being home to a chimpanzee sanctuary that was helped started by Jane Goodall, and is active in conservation for many species. An American TV company actually made a mini TV series about this place, called the Ol Pejeta Diaries, following the wildlife rangers of the park. The conservancy used to be a private ranch and our camp was located on the grounds of the former owner. When on safari, there are two types of accommodation - lodges or tented camps. But these are not your average tents, and even if you don't like camping, you would love sleeping in one of these luxury tents.They are just like a nice hotel room, but instead of locking your door, you just zip up the canvas door. We are really roughing it here.


Sweetwaters camp surrounds a water hole and from your tent you can watch any animals coming by for a drink. After the disappointing waterhole at the Ark, we weren't sure what to expect, but this one was pretty good. Lots of warthogs, antelope species and birds. We were told though that this waterhole isn't "needed" as much as it is in other places (like Etosha) because part of the conservancy is wet marsh lands. However, During breakfast, we spotted these rhino coming in for a drink.


We spent the afternoon exploring the different species being protected at Ol Pejeta. The chimpanzee sanctuary was started in order to give orphaned chimps, from all over eastern Africa, a safe place to go and today it is home to about 85 chimps. Each chimp has a different story - some were orphaned because their parents were killed, some were abandoned by owners who had them as babies and simply let them go once they got too big, and some were rescued from retails shops, where they were used as a lure to get customers. A second and third generation of chimps is now being born at the sanctuary, as the original population is having babies. This little guy is just 3 months old.


There is a rhino here named Baraka who lost an eye in a fight while in the wild, and then developed a cataract in the other eye that vets were unable to successfully treat, so he is now blind. Since blind rhinos don't fare that well in the wild, he has come to rely on the conservancy staff and has become domesticated, so much that guests like us can feed him.


There is a hippo viewing spot which it is easy to spot the hippos. The hippos were quite active, hiding in the water and then jumping out, splashing around, before ducking under again. // While cruising around we saw a herd of impala, all bachelors and we were wondering where all the ladies were. A couple of minutes later we saw another herd, with about 25 females and one lucky stag. He decided to try and show us what he has going on, but the ladies were not letting him mount successfully while we were around.


In Kenya's National Parks, they do not allow night game drives. But since this is a private game reserve, it was available. Hugh went on the game drive alone (If Lynn is reading this, then he did this without leaving Betsy). It was promoted as a way to see some nocturnal animals, but in general it turned out to be more of a continuation of a daytime drive, seeing water buffalo, elephants, antelopes, hyena, etc. Did catch some zebra mating action, which was a bit more successful than the impala earlier that day. However, up until this point, the lions we've seen have generally been resting. On this night drive, we first spotted a female lion drinking water, and then followed her for about 10 minutes as she was hunting. She did not have much success, but then again, with two cars following her and shining lights on her, I imagine the impala were not caught by surprise.


The conservancy's land straddles the equator and they had the appropriate signage to let us know. While on the road leaving, we saw several signs letting us know that we were crossing the equator, every few miles, suggesting that we stop to take pictures and visit their curio shops. Even though we are not familiar with the roads here, it didn't seem possible to cross the equator that many times. The thrill of crossing has now warn off.

Location:Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Kenya

Safari -Samburu NP

We arrived in Samburu National Park and the landscape had changed - this is the Kenya we were expecting. The abundance of animals and variety of species were great. Part of what makes Samburu special is that there are some different animals, or subspecies, that are typically not seen elsewhere. For instance, we've seen zebra elsewhere but here are Grevy's zebra, with narrower, darker stripes, and whiter bellies. (Obviously helping answer the question of whether zebras are black with white stripes, or white with black stripes).


We are still fascinated by giraffe, and Samburu has a subspecies, the reticulated giraffe, which has darker and more defined spot patterns than the common giraffe.


There were tons of the different antelope species, some of which we've seen before, including impala - Betsy thinks this guy lost a fight, Hugh thinks we need to see what the other guy looks like.


Dik diks were plentiful here - they are antelope, but quite small, about the size of a jack Russell terrier. And another antelope species, apparently only in Samburu, is the gerenuk, which has a really long neck and will stand on it's hind legs to reach taller branches.


So far, we've seen very few lions in the wild, and only females. At Samburu, we saw our first male lions. They were juvenile and so didn't have a full mane yet.


But the highlight were the cheetah. Our guide was impressed, because cheetah are typically solitary and you might get lucky and see two, or possibly three together, but we saw 5 at once. Apparently, a mother and her two adolescent cubs were being harassed by two males. (you won't really see the two juveniles that well in this photo, who are on the left behind mom and the bush).


Eventually, the cheetah had to clear out of the area as a group of elephants came walking through, and the elephants pretty much always have the right of way. There were also warthogs, crocodiles, ostrich, and more. And not to let you think we don't care about the smaller stuff, like all the birds, here are a picture of guinea hen, who because of it's name, never sounded like it would be pretty. We saw two varieties - helmet'd and non-helmet'd; these are without helmet.


We also took the opportunity to see a village of the local indigenous people. In this village, two tribes, the Samburu and the Turkana, were living side by side. They performed some songs and dances, told us about their culture, showed us some children in "school" (under a tree), their homes, etc.


It was interesting that their livelihood is raising cattle and goats in the middle of an area with predator cats, but they have been doing it for several centuries. It was a good visit but the trip ended with us having to walk a shopping gauntlet - a narrow pathway through about 40 women on their blankets selling jewelry and other crafts, all talking to us at about the same time - It was a bit overwhelming. //. It was during our time here that Betsy started a new fascination - taking pictures of trees, which our guide finds amusing. Since there are already a lot of photos in this posting, we will skip them for now, but you may start seeing some of those in the future. But just so you know that neither one of us has been fed to the lions, here we are having dinner.


Our time at the beach allowed us to go for a run a couple of times a week, but in Nairobi and here in the national parks, surrounded by large cats and other predators, there really isn't any safe running territory. So Betsy opted for a nice safe swim in the hotel's pool.

Location:Kenya

Safari - Aberdare National Park

One story of Nairobi we forgot to include: for our last night in town, we decided to eat at a middle eastern restaurant since we were given the impression that it would be good here, and we had been looking forward to it. We were recommended to go to the Phoenician, a restaurant that has been in Nairobi for awhile but moved to a new upscale location. We arrived and found that they had made some changes - they are now a Lebanese and sushi restaurant, but for a few weeks, they were not serving Lebanese food until another expansion was completed. Sushi was so far from our plan of middle eastern, and we did not like the idea of raw fish in a country that we occasionally had concern about eating raw vegetables, so we ended up next door at an Italian restaurant, which actually was pretty darn good. We began our two week safari through Kenya and Tanzania by heading about 4 hours north of Nairobi to Aberdare NP. Our first challenge was just getting out of Nairobi, as it took almost an hour because of AM rush hour traffic. However, it actually seems like it is always rush hour in Nairobi. We are traveling in a 4WD Mitsubishi SUV with our driver/ guide Bedan, but we were told we'll be switching cars in a few days due to the weather we'll have later on in our trip. We are not quite sure we believe this story, but our current car is nice and comfortable, and as it is just the two of us on our safari, there is plenty of space. Also, it took about 4 hours but it should have taken 2.5 even with the bad traffic, because our driver went so slow, even the donkey carts were passing us. Usually, tourists in third world countries are worried about their safety due to high speeds and alternate driving techniques; we were not. Our first views of the Kenyan landscape were not what Betsy had imagined. Instead of arid, desert like land, it was lush and green, full of palm trees, rolling hills, and a variety of farms - corn, coffee, tea, wheat (somehow the wheat in Kenya looks prettier than in Ohio), flowers, etc... Hugh claims he knew Kenya had good farming because of his extensive research, i.e. watching "Out of Africa". //. The first stop was at the Aberdare Country Club for lunch. From there they drove us to the Ark, their hotel in the middle of the park. It was a beautiful building in a beautiful location.


The all wood building had lots of No smoking signs, lots of fire extinguishers, detailed fire escape maps, and outside, a prominent "assemble here during fire" sign - we weren't sure whether to be happy that they were so safety conscious or nervous about sleeping in a tinderbox. Fortunately for us, there was no chance of serious fire since it rained when we arrived at the Ark, canceling most of the activities including the afternoon bird feeding/watching. Also, the hotel is built next to a watering hole with several levels of balconies, for game viewing in comfort. With the rain, very few animals were interested in coming to the water hole, and so even though there are some lights for night viewing, it was a low yield of animals (and certainly nothing like the amazing water hole experience at Etosha in Namibia). We did see lots of the African water buffalo, which we were surprised to see boss around the solo elephants who came by.


The Ark also has a watcher who is spotting the animals that come to the water hole while we sleep. If he sees something interesting, he rings and a buzzer sounds in our room (which can be turned off). At 3 am, when the buzzer sounded 4 times indicating something unusual, Hugh got up and saw two porcupines while Betsy slept. Now, they were large and cool looking porcupines, but they were still porcupines. //. Moving on, we continued to drive north and we passed the equator, both of our first times driving across the equator. Of course, at the sign were several "guides" who wanted to show us the "water draining in different directions" trick, and visit their curio shop, but we decided to skip these offers.

Location:Kenya

Extra Zanzibar photos

We enjoyed Zanzibar so much that we decided to post some more pictures without specific stories. Sorry to post out of order (Zanzibar was before Nairobi).


On the terrace of the Zanzibar museum


View of the bay


House of Peace (under renovation)


Random house in Stone Town


Random terrace in Stone Town


Flowers at the spice farm


Cocktails at sunset, the beach near Stone Town.

Location:Zanzibar