Blogs from Lake Nakuru NP, Rift Valley Province, Kenya, Africa
Making our own mark in the safari
Published: September 27th 2011Africa » Kenya » Rift Valley Province » Lake Nakuru NP
September 27th 2011
It is hard to compete with Masai Mara but these two National Parks gave it a good shot. After an endless drive from Masia Mara we arrived to the Lake Nakuru Nation Park and stayed just outside the entrance for the night so we could get in nice and early. One main thing we were hoping to see here is some Rhino which we were not able to locate in Masai Mara and to our luck within the first thirty minutes we were eye to eye with a mother and baby white (indeed they are just white on the nose but have a light gray body) Rhino. This park has a good number of both black and white rhino, main difference is the white are eating grass mostly and black are eating branches from trees. Each ... read more
Dunno, do Germans like a good Safari?
Published: March 9th 2011Africa » Kenya » Rift Valley Province » Lake Nakuru NP
March 9th 2011
Yesterday was my birthday, it will definitely be one to remember. Up at the crack of dawn and off to Lake Nakuru National Park for SAFARI :) So I spent my birthday with Alice, Phil the driver here, Ann- the most lovely woman ever, also works at Sure 24, our guide Miriam as well as flamingos, pelicans, rhino, giraffe, lions, water buffalo, impala's... you know the usual birthday gathering! Also visited a lovely hotel in the game park, for some lunch and swimming. Luckily the last meal I had before upset stomach take 1 was a good one! After a good 8 hours of safari fun, tanning unevenly through the car windows and various hilarious photos as well as some arty animal shots obviously, we came back to Sure 24 to find all the boys sat ... read more
March 8th 2011
We departed the Savuka guesthouse in Nairobi around 9 am in the morning and headed to Lake Nakuru. We met our friendly safari guide Peter and found out that no one else booked with our group so it was just the two of us!! It was our first time outside of Nairobi and we were immediately in awe of the changes that take place once you leave the city. The small shacks, people waiting along the side of the road, kids playing football (soccer) in the school yards… and the list goes on. We both decided that the “small village” feel was our preferred viewpoint of Africa and it made us very excited for our volunteer placement with the Maasai. On the way to Nakuru we stopped at a viewpoint to witness the breath taking Great ... read more
The Wildlife of Lake Nakuru
Published: July 24th 2010Africa » Kenya » Rift Valley Province » Lake Nakuru NP
July 12th 2010
We are now on a safari camping tour and having a ball. At the moment, there are 16 of us, a nice mix of people from around the world. Most people finish their tour in a couple of weeks with only a handful continuing past Uganda. Our tour leader, Will, is a fabulous cook so we will not starve and with fresh fruit and vegetables everyday our diet looks much more promising than previously and our driver Rhino from Zimbabwe, with his infectious smile, makes sure we arrive safely at our destination. Luckily for us the tents are easy to put up and really strong. The first test of their waterproof capacity came in the evening of the second day where it absolutely poured with rain, we have never seen so much rain fall so quickly ... read more
June 11th 2010
I've been trying to think of what to write in order to sum up my experience here at IDP Pipeline, and so far I've been drawing a blank. There have been so many moments, stories, experiences, challenges, emotions.... where to begin??? So, while I reserve the right to post later on about my experiences here, for now I'm just going to put up a few more pictures! ... read more
Kenya: The tour begins!
Published: May 30th 2010Africa » Kenya » Rift Valley Province » Lake Nakuru NP
May 27th 2010
Nairobi We flew out of Addis Ababa and into Nairobi on Friday 21 May, leaving behind our independent travels for a few weeks to join an ACACIA overland tour. We had decided due to the great distances to travel and timetable, it would be easier to do this part of the journey with a tour. We stayed at the Hotel Boulevard the night before the tour departure, meeting all our fellow bus/truck (it's still being debated!) mates the night before. From previous experiences, Brent said a tour can be made memorable for very different reasons depending on who you travel with, whether you have a good group of likeminded people and a great tour leader. So we were very pleased to find ourselves with a great group of really genuine friendly people. We started in Nairobi ... read more
May 26th 2010
I’m halfway through my time here at the Pipeline IDP camp, and I’ve realized I haven’t even posted one thing about the projects I’m involved with! So here we go… First of all, I’ve been working at Aberdare Ranges Primary School, a school built by the NGO I came with, which was completed just a week before I arrived. The school currently has 124 Form One (First Grade) students, however they are one teacher short, leaving two teachers with 62 students each. Not fun. So in order to assist until the last is hired, I’ve been teaching various subjects including English, Math, Social Studies, and Science. The children speak very limited English (Swahili is their first language) which makes communication difficult, however I’ve mastered the art of facial expressions, hand gesticulations and a few (effective) Swahili ... read more
How Many Goats Am I Worth?
Published: May 26th 2010Africa » Kenya » Rift Valley Province » Lake Nakuru NPMay 26th 2010
A couple weekends ago Grace and I went to Nyahururu, the highest altitude town in Kenya and located right on the equator. Of course the trip required a few bumpy, cramped, long matatu rides, but the sight of Thompson Falls just outside of town made it all worthwhile. The most interesting part of the trip - or perhaps I should say funniest- wasn’t the hike down the gorge to the bottom of the falls, or hearing the hippos grunting away along the river (actually spotting them was another matter altogether), or the city-wide blackout on the second night, but the number and variety of proposals I received in one day. It was a new personal record! I’m not saying this to brag since I’m not naïve enough not to realize the men see me and think ... read more
May 14th 2010
Yesterday I headed into town so I could go to the internet cafe and pick up some more water and a few groceries; nothing exciting, or so I thought..... For the past couple days I've heard that the Kenya police have been pulling over the matatus heading into Nakuru - for the pupose of extorting the drivers for more money. Unfortunately it's caused a lot of delays for people trying to get into town and they've even blocked off some major roads. I'd thought it was over, but of course 5 minutes after I'd been picked up, we were flagged over by a group of cops. One policeman came over, the driver got out out and went over to the squad car, spoke with them for a few minutes then got back into the matatu and ... read more
