Up and at 'em at 530. But it's ok because today's SAFARI DAY!
We had a delicious breakfast with eggs, toast, beans, fruit, fresh squeezed juice and tea before being picked up by David, our safari driver. Mark, David and I then set off on our 6 hour drive to Masai Mara. Don't worry, I made sure David knew that if he got tired I was happy to drive his 8 seater off roading jeep on the other side of the road while using the steering wheel on the opposite side. That's what Christmas families do for one another, and David was our Christmas family. You're welcome, David. Unfortunately, even though the roads became quite muddy, quite wet and quite filled with holes, David did just fine and never once needed my assistance. Anyway, I thought we saw some slum parts of Nairobi yesterday but as we drove out of town today I saw the real slums. Even when living in absolute poverty, slum children still learn three languages, their village dialect, Swahili and English. So many people from so many places want to come to America for the opportunities it offers yet it doesn't offer its own youngsters the opportunity to learn more than one language in school. Instead of other countries wanting to be like America all the time, maybe America should want to be like other countries every once in awhile.
Anyway, the drive to Masai Mara was mostly on paved roads that were heavily trafficked because everyone was heading out of the city and into the country for Christmas. Most people would be gone through New Year's visiting their families in various villages. We stopped twice during our 6 hour excursion, once to enjoy the view of the Great Rift Valley (minus the dinos) and another so David could check in with the other drivers regarding road conditions of the mud and clay paths we'd be taking once the paved roads ended. Both stops included small shops with lots of handmade trinkets and lots of Christmas wishes. Again, my biggest takeaway is that all of the Kenyan people we meet are so friendly!
After ooohing and awwing over the views from our tent we went to the main campsite for lunch. There was a delicious buffet with new foods, like cassava root and three tomatoes (not spelled right I'm sure!) in addition to a variety of hot and cold dishes.
It started pouring rain right as we were finishing lunch so Mark and I spent some time in the oversized, thatched roof camp before making a run for our tent. When we arrived nothing inside was wet (which was nothing like any camping trip I've ever been on!) We watched the rain fall on the savannah and enjoyed the calming sounds of Kenya from the shelter of our tent. Mark had some work to do and and a nap was calling my name so we were both startled when one of the campsite workers showed up to our tent with an umbrella and told us it was time to go. We quickly gathered our things for a game drive and met David near the van. Unfortunately there had been a miscommunication. "Where've you been?" He asked. We tried to find him after lunch to ask about a night drive but we couldn't find him so we figured we weren't having one or he'd find us when he was ready. Instead, he had told one of the workers to let us know to be ready for a drive at 4. Well, no one had found us and told us that. It was now 445 and raining, but we were ready. David then asked, "Do you have your passports?" Ummm no. So away we went back through the rain to our tent to get our passports. By this time it was 500 but we were still ready. We barely made it past our campsite when our jeep got stuck in the mud. And not a little stuck. Like majorly tipped sideways hunkered down for a long winter's nap stuck. The tires weren't even rolling when David laid on the gas. Never fear. This must happen often because our driver just stepped out of the truck and out of thin air (it seemed like) appeared 3 or 4 big Kenyan men and a group of little boys. The little boys were mostly interested in Mark and I but the older boys got right to work. Mark and I tried to help with the pushing, pulling and lifting, but it was no use. All the men went as quickly as they'd come. One of the other safari drivers came to get Mark, David and I to drop us back at camp. Then they headed back out with chains or a tractor or something (lost in translation) to get the jeep unstuck. We offered to help but David just shook his head. Silly Americans. David made sure to confirm with us that we needed to be ready for a game drive, with our passports, at 730 the next morning before taking off. I guess we'll find out tomorrow if the jeep ever made it out of the mud....
With nothing but time on our hands (and mud on our clothes) Mark and I decided to do some exploring around our campsite. We gave the binoculars a try and managed to find a person running between the trees in the distance. Not exactly the species we were expecting, but at least we learned how to focus the binocs. Back to our tent we went to open up our complimentary Christmas wine that had been left for us. Cheers to all and to all a good night. 🥂
At 720 there were flahses of light and knocking on our tent. We unzipped the flap to find a young man with a toothy grin and an umbrella offering to walk us to dinner. It was POURING rain. Mark and I huddled under his umbrella. He dropped us at the main camp and then went back out, I'm assuming to collect more people from their tents. There was a big buffet, complete with a meat carving station. During dinner we had the pleasure of listening to one of the boys play guitar and sing covers of English songs. After dinner, 8 local Kenyans from the Masai tribe, dressed in traditional clothing, came in and celebrated with us by singing/chanting and dancing. They even pulled up members from the audience to join in the fun, and Mark was chosen.
After their performance, one of the waiters, Elijiah, came to our table to talk with us. He is from the Masai tribe so was able to explain what many of the dances and chants meant. For example, when the boys jump up and down again and again it is practice for their wedding. Higher jumps=less dowry paid so in effect a free wedding. When the Masai move in lines about the room they must follow their leader. The leader of the line is the one who has killed the lion, which is a very special honor. Elijiah went on to explain that in Masai culture each year all of the 10 year old boys from the village are sent into the wilderness for 40 days. They must survive, but they must also kill a lion and return wearing its skin. Only the bravest are able to slay the lion, because the weapon used is a spear. Elijiah admitted that he was not brave enough to kill the lion, but that out of his 5 siblings he was the smartest, so he was able to attend school and learn to write poetry in English and Swahili. He continued through high school and is now attending University in Nairobi. He is studying to become a doctor. So far he is two years into his education, with five to go. Currently he is back in Masai working to make money for his next term. He explained that Masai does not have a doctor, only a medicine man, so he plans to be the first in his village, no matter how long it takes him to finish school. His parents are very proud. He then explained that a medicine man travels to many villages with basic remedies to help those who are ill, one of which is cow's blood (please don't let me get sick here!) I couldn't believe how fun our evening turned out. Traveling at Christmas is bittersweet- I miss my family at home so much, but somehow I've always managed to stumble upon someone or multiple someones who want to make my Christmas special and become my home away from home family. In Thailand it was New who organized a Christmas Eve grab bag, decorated our hostel with a tree and sent us on an elephant excursion, while in Budapest it was the young couple we met on our beer tasting cruise who then joined us for dinner afterwards and here it was the staff at Ekenrok Camp who dressed up as Santa, decorated the main campsite, gave us complimentary Christmas wine and sang and danced the night away with us. It'll be a Christmas to remember for sure!
Wow, Wow and Wow. no words what a a memorable trip...still have more to read....
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