Africa

Day two: Wednesday

Off to the Masai Mara

Jackson and our tour company host, James, meet us around 8:00 am and we are off to the smaller regional airport. We have repacked our bags in case we are over-weight, but even though the plane is a small fourteen seater, we are good to go. There are two other family “groups” waiting for our plane and David, always interested in his surroundings, turns to me and says, “Montreal … Jewish.” Well, as it turns out, the one family not only lived in Beaconsfield (attended our high school, BHS), but lived in a house that was previously owned by a close friend of David’s. It never ceases to amaze us, just how small a world it can be.

The flight takes us over low mountains and savannah where we can see farms - small enclosures with huts and what looks likes cattle – though hard to say. After about forty minutes the plane descends, banks, and lands on a dirt runway. We come to a stop in front of a few thatched huts with waiting jeeps and half of our fellow travelers disembark. Then, just as quickly, we are off again.

Ten minutes later we land on another dirt runway – more mud this time. When the plane comes to a full stop, George, our driver/guide, meets us for our stay at the Masai Mara. Unlike most of the other vehicles – 4WD jeeps – George drives a rear wheel van. As we set off the mud rises to the running boards ... the ruts, the washouts, are unbelievable. And yes, we get stuck! A jeep behind us pulls us back out of the hole we are in and George guns it one more time. I don't know how, but we are moving again ... slipping and spinning sideways around another turn ahead.

The van finds solid ground and George speeds up, his eyes on another jeep off-road in the distance. Not to be expected so soon, but a lion has been spotted in the tall grass, only a few feet from the jeep. George debates turning on to the muddy track but rather than risk being stuck again we carry on. Then all of a sudden zebras, a baboon, Thomson's gazelles, impalas, topis, lots more zebras ... all the while climbing above the savannah, up an escarpment, on a road so rough that words can not describe. Perhaps it is like driving up one of the rocky trails on Maine’s Mt Katahdin! I expected rough roads but ... well, I can only say, we are amazed when we arrive at the lodge, the Masai Mara West, in one piece.

After a glass of juice and a quick introduction to the rules of the lodge we are shown to our "luxury tent" perched on the edge of the Oloololo Escarpment overlooking the Mara as far as the eye can see. Small herds of grazing zebra, gazelles, and impala dot the landscape and just below the deck a young boy is herding a large flock of goats. My eyes tear up … I cannot believe I am actually here.

The rectangular luxury tent is indeed both a tent and luxurious. The floor and frame are wood and the door glass but the sides and roof are canvas. The screen windows have roll up flaps, just like the tent I had as a child. There are two netted beds (one for us, one for Smooch) and some comfy chairs tastefully highlighted with African fabrics. Across one end three walls are stone – the bathroom, complete with a large walk-in shower – separated from the bed-sitting room by curtains. We are told the power comes on in the morning from about 5:00 to 7:00 and in the evening from about 6:00 to 10:00. Outside our tent sits a wood-fired boiler and it will be lit at 5:00 in the morning and again at 5:00 in the evening for plenty of hot water.

We are also told that under no circumstances are we to walk alone at night. We are given what appears to be a walkie-talkie that will connect us to the office to request a Maasai escort to and from the dining room.

No time for a nap yet as lunch is waiting: potato salad, primavera pasta, and what appears to be a cake mix carrot cake. We are hungry and enjoy every bite. Our first game drive will be at 4:00 but George will not be taking us – instead a driver from the lodge with a sturdy jeep. Mathew and Katherine, a young African couple from Nairobi will accompany us. They are evaluating our driver/guide, John, and hence, need some “tourists” for him to guide. We will have just enough time to clean up, put a few clothes away, and lie down for half an hour before we are ready to go.

The jeep skids and slides back over the mud-water-filled-rutted path that follows the line of the escarpment to the non-road we came up on from the savannah, not four hours earlier (which becomes known as the “awful” road). We pass Maasai huts, cattle and goat herds (lots of baby goats scamper out of our way), Maasai men in their red robes, barefoot women and young children washing clothes in what appears to be muddy ponds, drying clothes draped on the low bushes (I think this is how our laundry will be done if we don't wash it in our sink), and more zebras, gazelles, and impalas.

We are tossed left and right and hang on for dear life as we descend over the boulders, across ravines, and maneuver around enormous holes. I think George gave us a smoother ride with his van! Finally we are through the park gates and travelling along another muddy trail criss-crossed with rivulets between the deep ruts. We are here at the end of the rainy season so not only is there still a lot of water everywhere, but the almost daily rain drains down from the escarpment to the savannah.

The migration of wildebeests and zebras* has already passed this way – the animals having fed on the rich grasses sprung from the rainy season. But with their passing the savannah is again lush and now provides lots of food for the elephants, giraffes, impala, topi, gazelles and other grazers. And we see them all on our drive. Our road becomes a river as we traverse through wetlands – looking, we think, for rhinos. We see some hippos and many incredible birds - egrets, cranes, raptors, vultures, herons and a myriad of smaller brightly colored birds. (* George tells us the following day that some zebras do not migrate, thus there are always herds of “resident” zebras on the Mara, but not wildebeests.)

We are out for several hours before we turn around and begin to again climb the “awful” road in the almost dark. I would be lying to say, I am not just a little anxious. Once or twice I am sure we will tip or fall into a ravine. But we make it back before total darkness surrounds us and just in time for dinner. Tonight David is brave and samples the fish offering but I stick with more pasta, a little bland but good just the same. When we finish, we are escorted to our tent by a Maasai man, complete with spear and bow and arrow. He does not speak much English but we understand he is there to protect us from roaming animals. We are not within a fenced compound and no, this is not Disneyland!

The hot water is very hot and feels so good after our drive. We close the mosquito net around our bed and listen to the shuffles, snuffles, and rustlings coming from the night darkness. Dogs are barking, we assume, from the Maasai village, and once or twice we hear some loud grunts beyond our screened window … but do not know what it is or care to find out …