I grew up watching Discovery Channel and National Geographic because my dad is a nature freak so I became an animal lover. Going to Kenya was a dream come true! Whatever you think Kenya is like, it’s even better!
I arrived in Nairobi City and took a shuttle through traffic to the local airport to take my flight to Maasai Mara. I flew out on AirKenya and said goodbye to the city and civilization. It was exciting flying over the vast African land because I could see herds of animals below. I landed on the Mara Serena Air Strip and I got an idea of how the rest of my trip would be as I dragged my luggage through the reddish dusty gravel – wild, free, and covered in dust! My destinations would be Maasai Mara and Amboseli for my Kenyan trip.
Safari
Every day, our guide would take us out on a game drive in our jeep. We would do 2-3 game drives a day; morning and afternoon, always returning to the lodge for a meal. I spent around 10 hours of the day in the jeep, which sounds boring but was actually incredible and exciting. These game drives were my opportunity to see the animals and find the “Big Five”; Elephant, Rhinoceros, Buffalo, Lion, and Leopard. I felt like I was in a discovery show because I even found the same pride of Cheetahs that were filmed in a documentary on BBC. My favorite moments of the trip was when I’d spot a mother elephant with a very tiny baby. It was amazing to see them together roaming the land for food and water. We were also lucky when we found a Leopard in a tree on our 3rd day, it was such a beautiful and elegant animal. One of the top moments of the safari was when the sun was going down and we found a beautiful pride of lionesses with cubs. The light was no longer harsh and provided a romantic setting for the experience, and I was able to get beautiful shots.
After seeing the big five, my next goal was to see a predator kill an animal. I know it sounds wrong, but in Kenya it’s nature being natural. I saw lions kill a zebra and feed their cubs and pride. There was a drought in the area, almost no plants in sight, and part of this was due to the large amounts of herbivores. The lions are a key part of the ecological balance.
I was happy to discover that Kenya wasn’t as hot as I thought it would be. The mornings and nights were cold and the afternoons were hot. If you plan a trip to Kenya and wonder what clothing to bring, please read my blog “What to Wear in October in Kenya” to get some ideas.
I thought there would be areas where I could walk around in the safari but I was sad to discover that we could never leave the vehicle, our guide said it was dangerous and against rules. I questioned why I couldn’t exit the jeep in an area that seemed open and safe. A moment after I had this thought and as we were driving with no view of animals, a ditch showed up on the side of the road, and inside the ditch was a very large hyena hiding. I thought to myself, “Oh! That’s why.” And realized I probably shouldn’t be strolling around freely here because one bite from that hyena could kill me, and that wasn’t the largest predator out there. We had to return to our lodges before dark in case we came across poachers.
I brought my Canon 70D camera to capture as many animals possible. I wished that my lens was longer and promised myself that the next time I go on a safari in Africa, I would have an extremely long lens and take National Geographic level photos! Instead, I always had binoculars around my neck to get a better view of the animals in action. I can’t imagine anyone going on a safari without binoculars, it would be so frustrating!
The Maasai
Nearing the end of the trip, all of my personal problems and stress seemed to dissipate. Nothing seemed important anymore and I felt extremely relaxed and happy. I never thought that all I needed to have a clear head was to go, see, and experience what real struggle is in the real world – The circle of life.