Samburu, Kenya - Day 2
Monday, June 6th, 2005Today started out very slow, and I was seriously having doubts about making my plans with Planet Safari. I was told at the airport by Sammy that I would be picked up at 9, and the drive to Masai Mara would start at 9:30. I woke up all early and stuff to make sure I had enough time to have a full breakfast, check my email etc. 8:55 I was in the lobby, all checked out and good to go.
9:15 … 9:30 … 9:40 … no sign of a Planet Safari car. I’m standing outside convinced that I’ve been jipped by some con-artist, and that if I were to head back to the airport, I wouldn’t even see a Planet Safari office. Finally, around 9:50, this young lady walks upto me and introduces herself as Peggy from Planet. *PHEW* The car, if you can call it that, was so small and beatup, I thought it was an old, washed up Matchbox antique. We bumped along and the driver squeezed the car into such a small space, even Calista Flockhart would be hardpressed to fit in!
The building was a typical building you’d expect - rundown, paint cracking on the walls, a million signs pointing in every direction to indicate the offices in the 9 story building. We took the elevator upto the 8th floor, and had to use the stairs for the last flight, and we entered the Safari offices. A very simple, very sparse office with 4 big brown desks, and a few people chatting idly. I walked in, and was promptly seated and presented with a few forms to fill, along with a guest book. About this time, a guy came upto me and said that my itinerary had changed slightly and that my trip was reconfigured. So now I’m thinking … great, I don’t get to goto Masai Mara. But it really wasn’t a big deal - he just told me that because of the way the traffic was going, I would start my trip backwards - Samburu, Nakuru and then Masai Mara. I was actually happy to hear that, since the Mara is the place to be apparently.
I was told that the driver was on his way and we’d depart shortly. I walked around the office, enjoying the pictures on the wall, and reading the wealth of brochures for every kind of hostel, camp ground, hotel in the country. Just then, a lady walked up behind me and politely said “Have you just come back from the Mara?” I said no, I’m just starting out today, yourself? She had just gotten back a few minutes ago and immediately gushed forth with how amazingly gorgeous the reserve is, and what all she saw, etc. We started talking, and I found out that her name was Israela, from … you guessed it … Israel.
She was a delightful lady to talk to, and inevitably, our topic turned to the sad state of events in the region. She was lamenting that politicians really need to get a clue and take some action to reach a permanent peace in the region. She identified herself as Palestinian and said that she counts Muslims as some of her closest friends, all hoping to live in peace. I learned some interesting things about the Hasidic branch of Judaism - Hasidic Jews can be considered akin to the Ultra Orthodox Muslims in Saudi - strict to the point of being brittle. See … Jews and Muslims have so much in common!
We exchanged emails … I was off to a good start. My aim, especially since I was travelling alone, was to befriend as many people as possible - force myself to talk to people I didn’t know, and not come off as a snob. I know … it was quite the challenge.
Around 10:40, Peggy rushes me out the door and we’re in the crowded streets again, dodging cars, crossing streets until we get to our ride … what the hell is this?!? The car is a 1844 station wagon … if a fly sneezed on it, this thing would fall apart. The driver was this old grandpa guy, and I was again having nightmares about Planet screwing me over. Just as we’re leaving Peggy is running towards us with another guy tagging along. The guy turns out to be Peter, the cook for the camping grounds at Samburu. This is when I found out that the 3 others I would be meeting up were doing the camping thing.
Finally around 11:15, after stopping so Peter could pick up some meat and eggs, we get underway. But not for long … a massive traffic jam is waiting for us right outside downtown. The scene was awesome … cars just scurrying around in every direction trying to get ahead. That created even more problems. Imagine this: it’s raining, the sides and centers of the 2-way roads are mudpits, cars are diverting into the muddy ditches, some skid, some hit other cars, some get stuck in the bog. Very comical. After 2 hours sitting in that mess, we got back on track towards the small town of Nanyuki, on the base of Mt. Kenya.
The drive was amazing! When I had imagined Africa, this beauty definitely was not part of that vision. The country side is lush with greenery of every shade, outlines of endless mountains grace your periphery with the sun shining brightly thru the beautiful clouds. It was the kind of scene which I always refer to as the “Angels are smiling down” effect … the sun rays filter thru the clouds, like something holy is concentrating on that spot.
Peter gave me good company, telling me small tidbits about the areas we were passing thru. He was a young man of 24, belonging to the Kikiyu tribe. The Kikuyus are the biggest of the 42 tribes in Kenya, and also have the reputation of being the least honorable. However, everyone I met from the Kikuyu tribe was wonderful. The others must be jealous.
We rode into Nanyuki at around 2:30 and was told to go eat lunch in the small restaurant across the street. This is the kind of place I’ve heard my dad talk about from his days as a young surveyor in India. Small, dirty, cramped. I never imagined that I could ever, ever, ever eat at a place like this, let alone walk into one. The waitress handed me a smeared menu and I wanted so badly to get up and leave. I could stay hungry till the evening. But I thought it would look extremely rude, so I tried to find the least “they-can’t-screw-this-up” dish I could find on the menu … that meant it had to be vegetarian. Aha! Found it … vegetable jalfreezi with rice. I must say the food was very tasty, although a little watered down. I ate whatever was given to me, paid my 180 Shillings and went outside to wait for Peter and the driver to show up. All the little kids would walk by me, sneaking quick glances and giggling among themselves.
About 3, a big Land Cruiser rolled up in front of the restaurant and Peter and the driver jumped out. The driver, also a Kikuyu, introduced himself as Mynah. He looked no more than 26, but I later found out he is 37!!! Mynah quickly disappeared trying to find the other 3 folks so we could reach Samburu in time for our evening game drive. In the meantime, Peter loaded the car with all his goods, my luggage and told em to get in so we wouldn’t have to wait. 5 minutes later, Mynah came back with the 3 travellers. Let me introduce them:
All 3 were very nice, and very open. We made some idle chat, and then we were on our way again. Gino is a camera freak. If given the option, I think he’d sleep with the camera glued to his eyes, so he doesn’t miss that next great shot 
He kept clicking way at everything - he must have some amazing shots from the Mara. The roads got bumpier and bumpier as we went thru smaller and smaller villages before finally entering Samburu National Reserve. A wierd board greeted us here - “Welcome to Samburu … Where Nature Defies Itself” and then there was a picture of a lioness and a gazelle sitting together. We would find the meaning of what this meant a few days later.
It was very close to sunset, so we did a little pseudo-game drive, and since our lodge/camp was deep within the park anyways - we had no choice. We saw a herd of zebras and a flock of blue ostriches, but it was so dark and they were so far away, we couldn’t really enjoy the view with much clarity. Taking pictures was useless, since none of our flashes was strong enough for that kind of a distance.
As we rode along the grassy roads, with waist high reeds lining the sides, the scene was breathtaking. The top of our 4×4 was down, and we were all standing up enjoying the cool breeze, watching the moon rise. It seemed so bright and so clear. The sky was filled to overflowing with glittering stars. I couldn’t believe there were so many. I thought things were so sharp and clean when we moved to Ashburn, but wow - this was WOW. It felt like the neon sticky stars you can buy for kids and then you buy a few extra packs … so the entire wall is just stars at night.
The Samburu Lodge is nestled deep within the reserve itself, and it’s like you’re the animal caged in with the wildlife looking at you. There are no real fences, gates or barriers to keep out the animals … the only defense mechanism are the local tribesman who patrol the lodge 24-7.
The lodge looked so relaxing and peaceful as I entered, and it was made even better by the extremely welcoming staff. It really feels like they’re happy to see you there, and want to make your stay enjoyable. I was shown to my room … room 27 … and the steward introduced me to every feature in the room like this was the first time I had been inside a fully walled apartment. “This is the bathroom, you can take a shower here … this is the knob for the cold water, and this one will give you hot water” Oooooh … so you’re telling me that I was wrong for showering in the dining room for all these years?!? You learn something every day.
Anyhow, it was time for dinner and after washing up … in the BATHROOM … I walked over to the open atrium serving as the dining area. The staff was at your every call and beckon, sometimes 2-3. They had a nice table setup for me, and a nice, hot bowl of cream of vegetable soup helped to reenergize me. The soup was followed by a salad, some dinner rolls, a very tasty chicken dish, and an even better selection of desserts. I lounged in the dining area for about an hour, feeling the light breeze, watching the other patrons come and go, and listening to the various birds, and watching the occasional monkey try and steal something from the table.
It is now 9:30, and I am sitting in my bed writing this up before I goto sleep. Tomorrow will start bright and early at 6:30. It’ll be my first chance to see the animals in their habitat. I am so excited.