Wrapping Up Kenya
Sunday, August 7th, 2005Sorry for the long delay between posts. (I’m talking like anyone is still reading this!)
It seems pointless to complete the Kenya trip blog now, but I’ll spend a few minutes to complete the trip. I ended my detailed account on Day 2, when I was still in Samburu. We spent another day and a half there, and then Mynah took me to Lake Nakuru. On the way there, we stopped again at Nanyuki to drop off Gino, Karmen and Jenica. I did the Nakuru leg of the trip by myself, and it was excellent. I told Mynah to stop virtually every 5KM. I don’t want to spend too much time on each destination, but I really cannot convey the absolute calm and peaceful feeling that comes over you as the gorgeous Lake Nakuru comes into your view.
It is surrounded by a beautiful landscape, varying from searing mountains at one side, to green plains on the other, with rolling hills in between. The sight of hundreds of thousands of flamingoes in the lake is beyond words. The pictures don’t even come close to capturing the beauty. Mynah took me to the top of the mountain for a scene I will not likely forget soon. I was trying to look everywhere at once, creating a mental wide-angle shot. From Lake Nakuru, we headed towards our final destination – Masai Mara. On the way, we were supposed to pick up two more passengers, who turned out to be:
Susan and I hit it off pretty well right from the start, and it really made the bumpy ride more bearable, and definitely made the time fly. Lee … now that’s another story. I have yet to meet a weirder, and stupider, person in my life. I hate to be so mean, but man, she was getting on my absolute last nerve! During the 3 days in Masai Mara, Susan and I shared a lot of laughs imagining the lions enjoying a satisfying meal of Lee, but alas, it wasn’t to be!
Masai Mara – the famed National Reserve of Kenya. What a place. The park covers an area in excess 1,500sqkm. To get a sense of how big that is … imagine going from DC to Boston, and then west from Boston the same distance, and then back to DC. The area of that square is smaller than the size of the Mara. It reportedly takes over 2 months to explore the entire place, and even then you haven’t really seen all that you can. To make a long story short – the place is HUGE! It was again one of the most humbling sights I’ve seen. An absolutely vast expanse of undisturbed land, completely oblivious to your presence. Even the animals could be least bothered to acknowledge you. Especially the lions. They are truly so spectacular.
I think if I really wanted to, I could write a book about the 3 days in Masai Mara alone. We saw Simba, Nala, Sarabi, Mufasa, Timon, Pumba, Rafiki … everyone! We even saw cheetahs, jackals, hyenas, zebras, wildebeest, hippos, giraffes, elephants, numerous birds, and so much more. The most amazing sight was seeing 2 lions go for their kill – a baby giraffe separated from his pack. Immediately following the kill, a host of vultures swooped in and were waiting impatiently on the nearby barren trees. The cheetahs impressed me the most – the most beautiful, and graceful animal. Their faces look so small and innocent, you’d think how something so adorable could be so vicious.
Speaking of cheetahs let me recount one of the many tales of Ms. Lee. So we’re sitting quietly in our car, about 6 feet from 2 cheetahs, resting in the bush. Now, Ms. Weirdo, like she has been doing for the past 2 days, is having a fit because she wants to mingle with the animals, after all, she says, she spent all this money to be able to touch the animals. Mynah, quietly and patiently, tries to explain that a cheetah can rip her to shreds in no time. “I will run very fast” Hearing this, Mynah starts cracking up “You? You’re going to outrun a cheetah?” “Yes, I was in my schools track team” “Lee, cheetah is the fastest animal on the ground” “But he won’t hurt me, he looks so cute!” So Mynah firmly says no, you cannot. Start whining again. Susan and I are looking at each other, both of us thinking we could easily toss her from the roof, and give the cats a free meal. A few minutes later, Lee says she needs to use the bathroom. Mynah starts the car, ready to move out. Lee quickly suggests that she can just go a little ways from the car and do her thing. Mynah, visibly mad, tells her that we are in the wild, this isn’t the backyard of some zoo – this is the real deal! Lee … adamant!
So finally, Mynah gets to the point where I think he was hoping the cheetah would kill Lee, so he says, ok you can go out. This girl jumped out of the car faster than a bullet leaves the barrel. Duuuuuuuuuumb woman, runs around the car right in front of the cheetahs. For a second, the parent cheetah was about to pounce on her face, until Mynah start shouting loudly. The gorgeous animals ran away, much to our chagrin. We were all so extremely mad at this stupid woman – what the hell were you thinking? Have you lost your mind? She’s still confident that she could outrun the cheetah, had the need arose. Surprising thing was, this girl is over 30, and a nurse on top of that. I really feel sorry for her patients.
Let me wrap up Kenya on a positive note: I will return in the near future. I am going to do the hot air balloon ride the next time, inshallah. If I’ve said it a thousand times, I haven’t said it enough – Kenya is by far one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to. The people are wonderful, and the sights and sounds even more so. If you get a chance, let the sounds of Africa wake you up, it’s magical!