Masai Mara

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A bit chilly this morning but warmer than it has been.  We started our morning drive to a see the flamingos -- what a marvelous sight.  We also came upon some spoonbills and a maribu stork our for his morning constitution.  

Back at the lodge, we had breakfast and gathered our things. I took one more picture of the zebras at the watering hole in front of the pool. Checked out and we were back on the road by 9am.  This was the worst road yet! I still had the New York Times Sunday crossword puzzle from last week (I always bring the puzzle when I leave).  So we passed the time filling in the boxes - which we did and successfully finished. We only made one stop for gas and facilities.  Turned down the offer to stop at the gift and coffee bar.  They are all the same with people hovering over your every move to buy something.  It's heartbreaking to see and even more heartbreaking to turn people away.  

We arrived at Enkorok Mara Camp at around 2pm. This place is more of a camp than the lodges we have been staying in.  The advantage is that you are much closer to the reserve. And believe when I say the less you have to drive on these roads, the better you are.  There are many Maasai settlements  in this area. They are easy to spot with their very colorful blankets they are wrapped up in.  Their huts are made of mud and straw and is the dwelling for the whole family and probably one cow.  Our tent is very comfortable.  Had a bit of a plumbing problem but that has been fixed so we are all good.

There were four of us at the pool today after lunch.
  Stayed for a swim. It was 4o'clock before we knew it and we were back in the jeep heading for the Masai Mara Reserve.  WOW!! What an afternoon.  Within two hours we saw a small pride of lions, a leopard, a cheetah, and to top it off a couple of ostrichs.  It was truly remarkable. The funny looking tree is called a Sausage Tree. Stayed for sunset before heading back.

We are here for one more night.  Tomorrow we go on an all day safari so we get up a bit later.  Till then...

Next time... Masai Mara Day Two

Lake Nakuru

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No morning game drive today - just breakfast and back in the jeep.  It was a long and bumpy ride. We saw some animals on our way out of the park.  Once outside the reserve, we saw close to 30 white rhinos on the other side of the fence as we drove down the town road. Never have I ever!! Stopped for one break and then at another waterfall. This one didn't require a hike to see.  It was pretty busy with rides for the kids and plenty of people trying to sell you stuff.  Drove through several towns until we finally arrived at Lake Nakuru Lodge.

The lodge sits near the lake.  It's nice but showing it's age.  Time for lunch and then out to the pool.  Finally got to swim a bit.  Either the water is getting warmer or I'm starting to get used to these frigid pool temperatures.  We are still pretty high up altitude speaking.  When we had had enough, we packed it up and went back to room.

Four o'clock we met  up with Paula and J.  Juma was waiting for us in the parking lot to go on our afternoon drive.  This time to see the flamingos.  Passed by the pelicans first and then lo and behold a lovely lady lion snoozing in a tree.  Made it to the flamingos as the sun started setting.  A very pretty site. It was exceptionally bumpy and dusty this afternoon.  We even had to stop on occassion to let a dust storm pass.  Back to the lodge for dinner.  Food was good - nothing like Sweetwaters however.  Time to pack in it.  Another early morning followed by another long and bumpy ride to Masa Mara.  Fortunately we are staying there for a couple of nights.  It will be good to stop moving.  

Enjoy the Super Bowl.

Next time... Masa Mara

Sweetwaters

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Woke up and ran down to watch the sky brighten over the watering hole.  The elephant party was already there.  We heard lots of noises in the night and Paula is convinced it was an elephant giving birth.  Maybe, maybe not. Look at the pictures and decide for yourself.  There is one baby that does look like it just arrived.  We headed down to the "bunker" to get some closer shots.  Very cool place. Ate breakfast, took some last minute photos and met Juma. 

The Ark gets an A for wildlife viewing and the staff were extremely friendly and accommodating but on the negative, the food was not very good at all and the rooms were more like a hostel.  There was also no introduction to the place.  We stumbled on things as we went.  Since we were only there for a night it would have been nice to know a little more about how to navigate the facility.

Back in the jeep and on the road to Sweetwaters.  Juma made a stop so that I could finally get the SIM card.  Got to the park at about 10:30 and right out of the gate (and I mean that literally) we saw about five white rhinos, lots of zebra, impala, and various other wildlife.  No cats, however.  We did take the stupid tourist pics at the Equator line. Plus we visited the grave sites of all the white rhinos who had been poached and killed which came from the original two rhinos.We hoped to find some on the afternoon drive.

Got to our tent site inside the reserve.  This place is absolutely fantastic!  The tents are fully equipped, there is a very nice watering hole right outside.  In fact a white rhino came out to greet us as we were schlepping out luggage across the path.  There is a pool - which I immediately inhabited directly after lunch.  Which brings us to the food -- simply outrageous.  

Geoff and I hung out at the pool for a bit.  The water was absolutely freezing.  G dove in but I only made it about half way up.  The wind picked after a while and slowly made our way back to our tent.  We sat on our "porch" and watched the view.  Went to meet Juma at 4pm for our afternoon drive.   We paid a visit to the Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary, established with the help of Jane Goodall.  After which, we paid a visit to the black rhino sactuary, where they were housing one black rhino rescued in 2008 who is blind.  He is very gentle and lets you caress him.  It was back on the hunt for cats.  No luck there - we see a very cool secretary bird taking an evening walk. Caught a good shot of sunset before returing to the lodge.

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Got back to lodge to enjoy the sax player, a warm fire, and a nice cup of tea before heading to the dining room.  Ahhhhh - life is good.  didn't disappoint.  After which, we talked with Juma about tomorrows excursion.  We are all sorry we have to leave here so soon.  By the way, this was the upgrade that Alex had mentioned on day one.  Boy was it ever!  Tomorrow is up early, breakfast and on the road at 7am for a 5 hour drive to Lake Nakuru.  All in all -- best day so far!!  

Oh, another hot water in bed tonight.  Wonderful!

Next time... Lake Nakuru

Aberdare

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We were all ready and at the door when Juma showed up this morning.  Only snag was when Geoff checked out and showed me the bill, I noticed a $50 USD charge for the 15 minute ride from the airport yesterday -- this was to be included in our tour.  Showed the bill to Juma and it was back to the reception desk to sort out the confusion.  Geoff got his money back and we finally got on the road, albeit a bit later than planned.  

Even though we were driving north away from the inner city of Nairobi, there was still plenty of traffic and lots of folks getting ready to start their day.  This was a four hour jeep ride with a short stop at a gift and coffee bar.  Ran into a jeep full of military police -- sorry not allowed to post their pictures here.  We were back on the road for another 2 hours climbing higher and higher. Finally we reached our lunch destination.  The grounds were beautiful - spotted some giraffes and a few other creatures. 

After lunch it was back in the jeep for another 2 hour ride to a waterfall. Took some shots of some of the wild life we saw.  Hiked down to the bottom of the waterfall took the stupid tourist pics and it was back in jeep for the 2 hour ride to our lodging -- The Ark.  Built liked Noah's Ark it sits on a wonderful waterhole Sat and watched the elephants, water buffalo, and various other creatures.  Going to dinner now.

After dinner we discovered that the lodge puts the lights on out by the watering hole.  We sat and watched the elephants and water buffalo for a while before retiring for the night. Got into bed and found a nice hot water bottle heating up the mattress - nice touch.  It is cool up here in the hills. Hope we get to explore this place a little better in the morning before we head out.  Juma is meeting us at 8am.  Not as long a drive to the next lodging and more game drives ahead.  Till then.

Next time...Sweetwater

Waking Up in Nairobi

4:50am the alarm goes off.  This is the start of another adventure.  By the time we had a cup of coffee and did all our last minute checking, our ride had arrived.  A bit early at 6:15 but no problem we were looking forward to having breakfast in the Delta Sky Club.  Picked up the Meeres in Marion and it was off to Logan.  Made it through the traffic and got to Logan with plenty of time to enjoy breakfast before boarding.  

A quick 40 minute shuttle flight to JFK and a hike through the terminal - because of course our connecting flight is on the other side of the terminal.  But at least it is the same terminal. We landed early giving us lots of time to get to the gate and grab a quick lunch bite at the Delta Express Lounge.  We are now very comfortably sitting in first class enjoying the room and champagne.  So far so good - everything's been on time.  We only hope the luggage is with us.  I'm pretty sure it is but these days you never know.

So now we sit back and relax for the next 13 hours or so and hopefully find Alex waiting for us in Nairobi.

Landed early in Nairobi.  Got a bit of sleep on the plane.  Much more civilized when you can stretch out.  We are all a bit weary though.  Customs was a breeze  but no Alex waiting outside.  I knew it was a bit of a long shot.  Instead we had a very nice man from the hotel holding a Paul Meer sign for the Eka Hotel - close enough.  A short drive, checked in, found our room, and I was at the pool before you could say splash.  This place is nice - nothing too fancy but a nice pool and plenty of services.  Paula and J joined us before long.  We spent most of the afternoon chatting with a lovely women from Canterbury England who has been to this part of the world several times.  Soon we were joined by a woman from outside of Toronto. So nice to talk to new people.  I love hearing about the different places they live and have been to.

We were all having a lovely quiet down time. However, we had yet to hear anything from our guide/driver for this excursion.  I immediately contacted Alex.  After a bit of a back and forth, he told us he injured his leg playing soccer.  Glad we brought him 4 soccer balls.  Maybe I haven't mentioned the gifts yet -- Alex wanted something from Boston.  I picked up a Red Sox hat and some sea glass from our beach.  Then he called wanting soccer balls for a small club that he coaches.  Paula was tasked with clothes for his 3 year old girl.  I learned a lot about soccer balls and Paula had lots of fun buying clothes for a little girl plus a very cute doll!  Anyway, I digress.... Alex said that Juma will be at the hotel soon.  That was at 2pm - he showed up at 5pm.  

We discussed plans for tomorrow and took a look at the vehicle we would be living in for the next couple of weeks..  After that got sorted, Juma phoned Alex and put me on the phone.  Alex said that he has upgraded some of our accommodations - or at least that is what I think he said..  We'll see what that means.  Meanwhile, we are now going to get ready for dinner - probably go to the hotel restaurant.  

Just back from dinner which was lovely.  Time for bed. Early start tomorrow.  Juma says we should be on the road by 7am.  We'll see.

Next time.. Aberdare National Park

Apologies

Geoff just informed that the email notification for the blog was different than usual plus it had ads.  I am so sorry for that.  Since I haven't used this blog in the past three years, Google has made it all better by taking away the email notification.  I used a third party but I am not very happy with their product.  So until I can find a better app, I will not be sending out any notifications.  

However, I will continue to post.  So if you are curious about where we are and what we are doing, just go directly to the site:  https://sunfishtravels.blogspot.com/

Sorry again - Susan

On The Road Again

Let the countdown begin.  We have been planning this trip for months and it is finally here.  Eight more days!  Take off is Wednesday, February 8th, landing in Nairobi on the 9th.

It's been over three years since I have been in an airport.  It's been even longer for Geoff.  Although we used our pandemic time wisely and kept busy, it was definitely time to hit the road again.

We were thinking of where to go when I got a text from our friend Paula who asked if we wanted to join her and J on a trip to Kenya.  After not too much thought or discussion, we said "Sure!".  We have been to South Africa and to Tanzania before but never Kenya.  

For most of our adventure, the four of us will be in the hands of a private guide provided by Mamasavana - operated by two brothers.  John in Kenya and Alex in Tansania.  We have been dealing with Alex for about the past six months. He's been nothing but patient and always there to answer any questions we may have.  There is a lot to take care of before traveling to Africa.  Applying for visas and figuring out the right vaccinations head the list.  Alex helped us through it all.

Our itinerary is pretty simple.  We land in Nairobi and stay in Kenya on safari and visitng game lodges for a few days.  Then it is down to Tanzania to experience the migration. After which, we re-enter Kenya with a safari stay at Tsavo National Park. For the most part, our safari accommodations will be a combination of lodges and "glamping".  We spend our remaining days at a small boutique hotel on the beach in Mombasa before making the long trek home.

Having traveled with Paula and J before - primarily biking group trips, we are looking forward to sharing this amazing journey with them. Needless to say, we are very excited to be on the road again.

Next time.... Waking up in Nairobi