Kenya, Day 1 - Nairobi National Park and Ostrich Farm

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Our flight landed early in the morning and within two hours we were seeing the amazing African wildlife! So, there were about 14 of us on this 3-day weekend to Kenya. I knew a few from other trips, but the rest I had never met before. We landed and got through customs .... well, not so quickly. But we got outside to meet our guides. Instead of the planned breakfast we had expected, they said we would be going directly to our first game drive, so everyone got a coffee (I got juice) for the road. We loaded up into three vans and were on our way. Driving out of the airport was interesting as there were pretty cool sculptures of various African animals along on the side of the road.

Nairobi National Park

After about a 20 minute drive, we arrived at the Nairobi National Park. The park was established in 1946 on land previously set aside for conservation and became the first national park in Kenya. Some Masai were relocated initially, but now they work with the Kenyan wildlife services to use some of the funds from the park for the local people. In each of our vans, our drivers lifted the center section of the roof leaving a gap of about 18" for us to observe the wildlife from the safety of our cars.

We saw animals as soon as we entered the park, the first being ostriches with the city skyline in the background. We continued on and could see giraffes wandering far in the distance, but instead of turning right towards them, we turned left. We saw gazelle and impala at various locations throughout the day. Additionally, we saw our first giant African buffalo wandering nearby. A couple of impala were seen in the distance. We also saw so many zebras! I was so excited about this because in my previous African adventures (Zimbabwe, Namibia), I only would see zebras a couple at a time and rarely. Here they were often in groups of about 8-15, even more, at multiple locations. We even saw a few babies! I also loved how they just co-existed side by side with the gazelle and impala. Just a bunch of animals chilling in Africa.

The best encounter was the white rhino family that we watched for about 15 minutes. We first saw the papa rhino grazing, with birds sitting on his back or following him as he walked - they seemed to enjoy when he peed. I guess the birds help eat ticks and warn rhinos when there are predators. Based on our safari in Zimbabwe in 2019, I knew that while rhinos can be aggressive, they are also almost blind, so the warning from birds is useful. After watching the father for a few minutes, we moved just a little further up (once the group in front had moved on) for a closer view of the mama and baby. So cute. I think between us, we had thousands of photos in our group. After about 10 more minutes, they all wound up walking away from the road together, a nice little rhino family. We later saw them as we were were leaving this area and they were hanging out in the distance.

We kept going and drove a few passes around this one area where there was supposed to be a lion/lioness, but due to the time of day and the hot sun, the guides said they were most likely resting in the tall grass and our chances of seeing them were very slim, so we moved on. We stopped at a parking area (I did NOT use the bathroom - ew), and then we took a short hike along the little river here with an armed guide. He explained to us a few of these little areas beneath the trees were black rhino nests, but they were more nocturnal, so we probably would not see them. We continued for our real mission: Nile crocodiles. On the way, we saw terrapin chilling on a bank across the river. We also heard a giant splash below us, knowing that was a crocodile. We came upon a curve in the river and across the way, we could see two huge crocodiles sunbathing on the bank. Yikes.

We kept going, seeing some giraffe grazing on trees in the distance, but they were not all that close to us. We saw some warthogs and some very interesting birds in some places. We approached a large pond and saw a huge African buffalo just relaxing on the ground while dozens of birds were nesting near the water's edge. As we drove closer, there was a giant crocodile just sunbathing on the bank there. Crazy!

One of the best parts was the three school buses full of children who were on their own game drive - they were so cute always yelling and smiling when they passed.

At the end of the tour, near the exit, where the president ordered the burning of 12 tons of seized ivory in 1989. This act was intended to remove the items from the black market and send the message that the ivory trade would not be allowed, making poaching less desirable. This also shows Kenya's drive for conservation. There was an artistic installation near the entrance of this area of metal elephants, then signs in a few locations describing the burning as well as details of elephant tusks and rhino horns. There were two pits showing where the ivory was burned.

Galaxy Resort

We then drove a couple hours south of Nairobi two the Galaxy Resort where we were staying. In general, the highways were in good condition, but then towards the end, we turned down a gravel road that was very bumpy. Thankfully, it was only about a 20 minute drive before we reached the resort. The staff were so incredibly nice. They had a lunch set up in an outdoor courtyard for us. While everyone else was rushing to get their room keys, I started with my lunch - just some chicken, rice, vegetables and juice. It was ok, not the best, but hit the spot. Then I got my key, found my room in a maze of buildings, and it was not too bad. It was very basic, but had some nice thoughtful touches (shampoo, toothbrush and toothpaste, tea kettle, etc). We each had our own room, which was great and it was large with a pretty nice bathroom with a huge shower. I actually slept pretty well here - it was clean, quiet, and cozy.

Ostrich Farm

We only had about 90 minutes total to rest before heading off to the ostrich farm. I am not a fan of flamingos... However, ostriches look very interesting to me - they are so unique - but I had zero desire to approach and definitely to ride them. It was going to be interesting to watch the rest. We got a tour of the farm, which seems to have been family run for a long time. There were multiple large pens with ostriches at various ages and they demonstrated how huge the ostrich eggs are. When we got to the back, there were a few fully grown ostriches, including one who I guess was doing a bit of a mating ritual towards the female ostrich in the next pen. This guy was very attention seeking and was selected to be the one to offer rides. I know some people are against this and I get it, but I had no issue with anyone riding him. They limited the weight to 75kg and the guy seemed to be fine. In fact, he seemed to be very curious about us. I think four people wound up riding him. The rest of us watched and got some selfies. The tour was good and the guide super nice, but I'm just not a bird fan.

After this, we returned to the resort where we got some more rest. I was supposed to join some people for drinks at the very interesting bar, complete with DJ, and no one else. But I was full on exhausted. I think my months of travel had caught up to me at this point! I even skipped dinner and slept until early morning.

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Nairobi
You've really been getting around the world lately. Living the dream! I love safari.

[lexispence10]

Very busy!
I am taking a bit of a travel break right now. And catching up on the blogs!! :)