Nairobi-First Stop in Africa

---

These photos are all taken in the Maasai Mara, Kenya. You can see the giraffes on the horizon of the sunset picture.

The flight to Nairobi stopped in Cairo to change crew and we arrived at the Nairobi airport at 4:30 AM. I hadn’t booked a hotel and was too tired to argue with the guy at the tourist information booth so I ended up staying two nights at the Hilton. It blew my budget but I wanted to get my bearings and I knew it would be safe. Before coming here, all you hear about is how dangerous it is in “Nairobbery” so I was looking for peace of mind. My aim was to find a safari outfit and make plans to get out into the bush.

As soon as you venture out into the city you are approached constantly by touts who want to sign you up on their safari or take their taxi or sell you something. It’s a constant battle to remain polite and say “no thanks”. They are all struggling to make a living. One guy actually followed me around for several blocks. When I turned, he did too, or if I crossed the street he would be there, always a half block behind me—and this was in broad daylight! Finally, I darted into the Stanley Hotel and hid for a while before exiting on a side street through a shop.

The first safari company I went to was the one I signed up with. I wanted out of Nairobi and they had one leaving the next day. This was a basic camping safari where we would sleep in tents. We would visit the Maasai Mara, one of the premier sights for viewing of animals and the wildebeests were now migrating to that area. Then we would travel north to Lake Nakura where a million flamingos reside. The next phase would be south to Amboseli where there are many Elephants and if lucky, you can see Mt. Kilimanjaro on a clear day.

My traveling companions were father and son ranchers from Montana and our guide was Joseph, an older yet still very energetic man. He was a great driver and did his best to find us good sightings as the Montana guys had a full list of what they wanted to see.
















Maasai Mara was beautiful and the golden grasses were as high as four feet. The scenery was just like you imagined with those lone flat topped acacia trees that are in every quintessential African landscape. We each marveled at being in Africa. Each night the sunset was a brilliant red circle descending with the waving golden grasses, the lone tree and sometimes a couple of giraffes silhouetted along the horizon. It was magical.

With only three of us in the safari van, we all had room to move around and great vantage points for stand-up viewing from the raised top of the van. Right away Gilles (father age 60) and Antoine (son age 28) saw things from a rancher’s point of view. They imagined how their cattle would do on these ranges and what cows would fare best there. I kept wondering why anyone would want to mess with a good thing.

It turns out that Gilles has been coming to Africa since he was in the Peace Corps in 1968 and later under work contracts with USAID. He’s a specialist in livestock development in Africa. Antoine was visiting Africa for the first time at the culmination of his Dad’s last contract.

By the end of the first afternoon, we had seen many animals--giraffes, zebras, wildebeests, antelope, elephants, lions, wart hogs, dik diks, Thompson gazelles, ostrich and more. It wasn’t always easy to find them and there is a lot of driving involved but Joseph knew where to look and drivers check with each other often for sightings. By the end of the next day we had seen hippos, crocodiles, buffalo, more types of antelope, hyenas, jackals, mongooses, a leopard and several more prides of lions up close. The lions are usually sleeping and barely give you any notice even when you’re almost on top of them—which we were a few times. The giraffes were some of my favorites. We only saw a couple of elephants at the Mara.

Our campsite was basic but the tents were set up with mattresses in them so it was a comfortable sleep. The main downside for me was that the toilets were a couple hundred feet from the tent. Due to some kind of amoeba I picked up, I needed to use them in the middle of the night and our Masai guide would shine his flashlight along the path for me while listening to all the animals out there. Our meals were prepared by a crew who lived at the camp. Let’s just say they won’t be featured in any gourmet articles on African cooking. I didn’t have much of an appetite anyway and the food filled our stomachs.

Gilles thought I probably had picked up giardia and suggested getting some drug at the local chemists. You don’t need prescriptions to buy most things so we found the stuff at the first town we came to after leaving the Mara. We were now heading north to see Lake Nakura another game park famous for all the flamingos that live on the lake. We saw white rhinos there. They have been reintroduced there. The black rhinos eluded us.

The roads in Kenya are horrible. Years of corrupt governments have kept intended monies from getting to road improvements and other projects. Many roads are unpaved, rutted and the paved roads are almost as bad with the pot holes. Only a small number of roads near Nairobi are decent and not by much. The conditions of the towns we passed were awful as well. There were little shanty store fronts with only dirt in front of them. Overpopulation is putting a strain on all the resources of Africa and people were sitting in the dirt or selling their produce or wares on tarps on the dirt. Everything is dusty, littered and grim. The faces on the children were the bright spot. They always threw up their arm in a big wave and a bigger smile. They wanted a similar response so we did a lot of waving. By the time the kids were older, they were indifferent and young men looked solemn with the depression that comes with a lack of gainful work. Unemployment is pervasive in Africa. Many have come to the cities but life isn’t better there.

The highlands in this area are covered with crops—especially corn, cabbage, carrots and potatoes. At one time this was all forested land but ranches, the need for firewood and crops has caused massive deforestation. Also premier woods have been harvested for years. All in all, the high country here is very green and pretty —much more so than any of the towns or cities. It’s also very cool and most people were wearing jackets and warm clothes. Nairobi has had pleasant day time temperatures but early morning can be quite cool considering it’s only a couple of hundred miles south of the equator.

Lake Nakura Reserve was nice and quite different from Maasai Mara. The large lake is the main feature and is surrounded with woodlands that are very green. We walked out on the sand and were turned off by the smell of all the flamingos. Many were dead and rotting on the water’s edge. The surrounding area was pretty and we saw reintroduced white rhinos and elephants. At the end of the day we got a good look at a beautiful leopard draped over a fallen tree.

That night we stayed at a local hotel whose staff seemed awkward with how to handle its guests. Service was a bit of overkill and we were greeted with more help than we knew what to do with. The next day over breakfast I had a change to talk with some of the staff and they were so energetic and eager to please. They all wanted to know what I thought of Kenya and it was important to them that I liked their country.

We drove back to Nairobi and each of us had decided to upgrade from camping to lodge accommodations at Amboseli Nat. Park. This was another long dusty drive to the southern part of Kenya where we all hoped to see the peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest Mt. in Africa at over 19,000 feet. On the last morning before our departure, we got our wish and the clouds cleared long enough to take a few photos. The glacier on top is melting but you can still see it.

Amboseli was neat because the area is usually a huge shallow lake. It had all but dried up by this time of year so the animals were concentrated near the remaining water holes. We saw many elephant families and they even came into our camp. All our meals were provided and the food was OK. Loads of Italians were there. They are everywhere in August. We also saw our first cheetahs here—there were two of them.

This is Maasai country but there is a large Somali settlement as you turn off the main road to drive to the park. The Somalis fled their country when the war was going on a few years ago and are everywhere in Africa but especially throughout Kenya. The Maasai try to sell you trinkets as you enter the park. The women are especially persistent. It’s a good chance to see them up close with their elongated ears created by years of putting spacers in. They wear very colorful beads and are always draped in red plaid cloths—even the men.

By the end of the trip I am tired and ready for a change of pace. It has been a lot of long hard bumpy driving with plenty of dust. But it has been very satisfying to see so many animals in their elements. They did not disappoint.

---