Also while my father was here, he was generous enough to take me on a three day safari while he was here to the Masai Mara game reserve. I hadn't been on a 'safari' for quite a few years, and was curious to relive one of those childhood experiences I remember being so much fun if not a bit scary (with sambo behind the wheel).
After a short, but tumultuous, plane ride in a 13 seater (the smallest plan I've been in) we arrived at our accomodation, the Mara Safari Lodge, my stomach rumbling, to find a cool, minty towel and fresh mango juice awaiting us. Despite the experience consisting of sleeping in 'tents' (a very loose definition of the word) the Mara Safari Lodge would prove to be the nicest place I've stayed on this trip, with excellent food and wonderful people.
After dropping our bags we hopped into the Toyota Land Cruiser for our first drive, where we quickly saw a few lions, elephants, and an abundance of zebra and wildebeast, a fortunate trend that would continue for the next two days over the course of which we also saw lions eating a kill, a leopard and her cub roaming around on the ground (a rarity), and a bevy of other animals, only missing out on the cheetah. While the game driving was certainly a lot of fun, by the end of the second day I was definately safaried out, and tired of the clouds of ultra-fine dust continually wafting through the window to settle in my lap, mouth, eyes.
The Mara Safari Lodge also hosted a different cultural event each night after our return from a day of driving: a nature talk (did you know that hyenas are the only mammals capable of digesting bone?), a masai dance, and a masai cultural talk ( Masai meaning 'the ma speaking people' and mara meaning 'spotted plains'). The weekend was a great, relaxing, 'vacation' experience, but perhaps a bit too touristy for me at this point in my travels, despite which I still took the opportunity to snap a healthy number of obligatory animal photos; my photo numbers paled in comparison to the others in our vehicle: quality not quantity, I hope.
Photos: Masai Mara
After a short, but tumultuous, plane ride in a 13 seater (the smallest plan I've been in) we arrived at our accomodation, the Mara Safari Lodge, my stomach rumbling, to find a cool, minty towel and fresh mango juice awaiting us. Despite the experience consisting of sleeping in 'tents' (a very loose definition of the word) the Mara Safari Lodge would prove to be the nicest place I've stayed on this trip, with excellent food and wonderful people.
After dropping our bags we hopped into the Toyota Land Cruiser for our first drive, where we quickly saw a few lions, elephants, and an abundance of zebra and wildebeast, a fortunate trend that would continue for the next two days over the course of which we also saw lions eating a kill, a leopard and her cub roaming around on the ground (a rarity), and a bevy of other animals, only missing out on the cheetah. While the game driving was certainly a lot of fun, by the end of the second day I was definately safaried out, and tired of the clouds of ultra-fine dust continually wafting through the window to settle in my lap, mouth, eyes.
The Mara Safari Lodge also hosted a different cultural event each night after our return from a day of driving: a nature talk (did you know that hyenas are the only mammals capable of digesting bone?), a masai dance, and a masai cultural talk ( Masai meaning 'the ma speaking people' and mara meaning 'spotted plains'). The weekend was a great, relaxing, 'vacation' experience, but perhaps a bit too touristy for me at this point in my travels, despite which I still took the opportunity to snap a healthy number of obligatory animal photos; my photo numbers paled in comparison to the others in our vehicle: quality not quantity, I hope.
Photos: Masai Mara
1 comment:
Hi Seth,
It was nice meeting you and your dad in the Mara. I like your photos and yes in quantity i beat you but in quality i don't think so.
Enjoy the rest of your trip.
Geetings from Holland,
Jet and Jack
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