Safari Part one

It seems illogical to try to sum up the most amazing things I've seen in my entire life in one blog posting. Furthermore, choosing a practical sample of the 900 pictures I took to put in one blog posting would short enough to allow me to do something other than blog makes it seem like the best Idea to break up the Safari Blog into 3 parts. I'll Post the first one today. To sum it up, when the Safari was going, It was easily the most amazing experience of my life. When we had problems, the wheels were really falling off the wagon. I'll get to that.

The first day of the safari was spent driving from Mombasa to Nairobi, a city which we had heard few good things about. I don't mind long car rides and the drive passed quickly. During this leg of the drive we pass through the Tsavo East and Tsavo West National parks. Just near the gates for the respective parks this very oddly shaped building stands dormant all by itself. It looks like it was an observation point or rest stop at some time in the past.



I feel good about the picture considering it was taken going full speed down the highway. We never really figured out what it was.

When we arrived in Nairobi it was really cold. I can never remember feeling the sensation of cold since arriving in Kenya 2 months ago. Nairobi is much drier also. The prospect of having to put on a jacket seemed picture worthy. Grace especially was overjoyed, as you can see.



We walked to a South African Burger joint called Steer's for dinner. It was by far the best burger and fries I've had in Kenya. It seemed ironic to be eating a South African rendition of an American food in Kenya. They did a pretty good reproduction in my opinion.

The next morning we woke up early and met the driver who would drive us for the remainder of our Safari. It had only been twenty minutes when we passed signs for the Rift Valley View Point. For some reason, I had expected that the Rift Valley would be more than a short drive from the largest city in Kenya. It was a hazy morning but the view was amazing.



If you look you can see one spot of sun that had crept through the clouds.



Despite the fog you can see how green it was. The morning was cold but not as cold as what was yet to come.



After taking a few minutes to take pictures, we took off for the valley floor. There was a small town just at the bottom of the hill but then nothing except cattle and goats for as far as your eyes could see. All of the sudden, we came around a corner in the road and saw these enormous satellite dishes. Its interesting to me that much of the infrastructure here seems to have been built in the 70's. These satellite dishes are a great example. There is something that looked very Soviet about them, much as the random structure in the first image above had. I would guess that they were 3 or 4 stories tall and looked like they had fallen into disrepair.



As we got into the car in the morning, we noticed a box in the back seats. When we asked the driver what was in the back. "The radiator" he replied in a very nonchalant manner. We weren't as relaxed. When we inquired further, he said that the radiator in the car was too small and that it overheated some times. As we made the first climb out of the Rift Valley he pulled off to the side and you could hear the radiator (in the engine bay [which is under the front seats {I know right???}]) boiling quiet loudly. We took the opportunity to get out and snap some photos of the other side of the valley.



The next few hours of the drive fits into the category of "what in the heck does the Kenyan government do with its tax dollars?" Pretty much every drive we have ever taken that extends more than 15 miles out of town fits this bill. As we drove to Narok the road was kidney pulverizing. I don't get how commerce can happen in a country where goods are transported either by trains that derail (no seriously) or on roads where the trucks have to go 20-25 MPH because the roads are so bad. Just when it seemed that we were passed the bad sections of road, we pulled of onto a dirt road as rough as any of the backwoods 4x4 roads I've seen in Mexico. The driver hopped out and paid the toll to use the road to members of the Masai tribe. For some reason I had expected a little more formal toll booth than this. I've learned to abandon expectations in Kenya as I've realized they often lead to disappointment.

Huts similar to those below dotted the land around the Masaai Mara. Most of the people that live around the area are farmers or ranchers. The huts are very old fashioned with thatched roofs and mud walls. This was the biggest village we saw. The fence surrounding the corn in the foreground was an electric fence. These were surprisingly ubiquitous. Go figure, mud walls... electric fences; who knew?



As we continued our TORTUROUS scenic drive into the park we started to see more and more game along the way. We wondered why the driver wouldn't stop to put up the tops so we could take pictures of the animals like this male Impala. I eventually just concluded that it was because there was no shortage of game to see.



When we arrived at Olare Lodge we were all smiles. Partly because we were tired of the bumpy drive and also because the "Luxury Tented Camp" was more luxury than I had expected. I know, luxury tented camp seems drastically paradoxic, but it was far nicer than anywhere we've stayed in Kenya. There was hot running water in the tents and all of the other amenities one would expect from a luxury tent. The beds were covered with Masai blankets and were very comfortable. This is obviously me sitting in the tent.



The tents were as sturdy as they were spacious. It was nice to sit out on the porch and just relax looking across the nearby creak to endless hills. I had forgotten what nature really smelled like.



The luxury feeling of the camp was really solidified when we went to lunch and were fed a lunch that would have cost no less than 20 dollars a plate at home. The presentation was as amazing as the taste. It was stake on a cake of mashed potatoes both served on a bed of spinach. It was SO AMAZING.



We finished lunch and went on our first scheduled game drive. Animals were everywhere. Within five minutes we arrived at a pool with two hippos swimming in it passing five or ten other types of animals on the way. They seemed a big agitated with our presence which didn't deter us from snapping pictures of the one hippo who decided to stick around for a picture or ten.



Soon it was time to take off and we drove off in search of more animals. The road was bumpy but no one wanted to go back to sitting in the seats we had just spent six hours in so we all stood.



After five minutes we came upon a group of elephants. At this point everything was new and interesting. We just sat and tried to process the concept of being so close to animals we had only seen in zoos or on TV. They seemed unconcerned with us and just carried on eating. Our driver said they eat 100 kilos of food a day - about 220 pounds.



We left the animals and drove further. We started seeing animals grazing everywhere. We saw more animals than you can list. The Zebras were the most common. From a distance, Zebras are harder to see than their brightly patterned skins would imply. They never ran when we approached. They just continued to eat. They are incredible animals.



As we drove we saw some people in the distance. I hadn't seen a village in two hours and I felt very surprised to see people in an area that seemed so raw and wild. They aren't supposed to let tourist get out and walk around. As the legend goes, a Masai man must kill a lion before he is allowed to marry and our driver said that lions will run away form Masai men in their traditional clothing like the man on the left is wearing. Its really an amazing culture, which has changed little in centuries.



These Hyenas were the first carnivores we saw. They look like really ugly bears with dogs legs. Although Hyenas tend to hunt in packs, this mother and cub were all alone. The two were kind enough to pose nicely for a few pictures and we drove off.



As the first day came to a close it started to get cold and the beauty of the area really started to set in. "I can't believe I'm here, I can't believe I'm here" I kept telling myself.

The day ended with a dinner as incredible in taste and presentation as our lunch. It was a stuffed chicken breast served with a medley of vegetables and rice if my memory serves me correctly. After dinner one of the staff gave us an astronomy lesson. He showed us the southern cross (amazing) and most of the constellations used in astrology. During the lesson I had to put on another jacket on top of the four layers I was already wearing. It wasn't just cold for Kenya... it was COLD!!!

Mash Up

This will probably be my last blog before the safari. I'll do the same as the blog before my last trip where I upload some pictures that are a bit of a mishmash. This time many of the pictures are from other interns. We back up everyones pictures on a small hard drive I have, just in case. I hope you enjoy.




This should go without much need for a definition for anyone that has visited a third world country. The glass keeps you from hopping the wall. I don't know if its effective or not, but its really pretty in the sunlight anyway.











Sam took this picture in Lamu. This is one of our favorite restaurants right after our respective sea food dinners had arrived.















This is a beach near Lamu. I love that the trip cost me 100 dollars. Even with the mosquitoes it was worth every cent.













This beach was on Manda Island next to the ruins we visited. The guide pointed to his left and said "thats Somalia," then to his right and said "thats Mombasa." I think I know what he meant.












I don't think this is the same company. But the driver told me last month when the picture was taken that he had a hot tip. I leaned over and he said "Richard K. is stepping down next month." Turns out he was right.









In other news, I've lost more weight. This will probably make my mother nervous and friends at home jealous. I love this Kenya Diet. I'll bottle up a bit and bring it home. Just have your check books ready kids. I'll see you after the safari. Oh, I also finished my major summer project ahead of schedule. It was really validating to see how glad my boss was that I had it done. I showed him how I can turn the manual into a PDF and he was even more happy. So life is good.

Australia, You can do it!!!!!

Australia remains the only continent I haven’t had visitors from. Maybe my Google bomb technique will work for that
too?We’ll have to see.  This will be short and sweet, I had a few pics that I had told my friend Andy about and I figured
I’d let the rest of you see them.  This first one is another one for my OSHA folder. Using a chisel to demolish the rooftop
you are sitting on top of must be 10,000 times worse than painting yourself into a corner of a room. I thought it was
really funny.  They hadn’t finished by the time we left work and when we got back after Lamu the new roof was up so I
guess it worked.




This next picture was a really oddly placed donation box at a school in Shella on Lamu.
The school was on one of the busier streets in the town so many tourists probably walk
past there.




This last picture is admittedly really really random.  A bunch of Donkeys were walking
around the ships during low tide and I thought that it made an interesting picture. It looks
like the donkeys are walking on water if you cross your eyes slightly. Just kidding, but I'm
glad some of you tried it anyway.





Thats all for now folks. Thanks for reading. Sorry for the crazy font changes. Blogger was
Giving me no love tonight.

4th of July

This is my third 4th of July spent outside of the US. The holiday takes on a different tone when u celebrate it privately. You think more about what it means in the absence of fireworks and bbqs. This year has been a bit different, for reasons I may right about tomorrow, having nothing to do with geopolitical location.

Before I dive in I just want to say that I've seen the pictures that the others took and the trip and they're amazing. The links on the right will take you to Sam and Blair and Graces blog both sporting some sweet pix of the trip.

This weekend was our trip to Lamu. The trip started off swimmingly; we got on to our bus without any issues at 7 am, I saw giraffes and baboons on the bus ride down, and although the 160 mile ride took 6 hours, it flew by. The high point was when the buss stopped for a moment to load and unload passengers and among the people selling mangos and peanuts ran up a woman selling LIVE CHICKENS!!!!!!!! Ya, LIVE chickens. I thought there is no way in H E double hockey sticks someone will buy one of these with 5 hours left on our ride. No sooner had I thought this than she booked it out of my sight and ended up selling the chicken to the people across the isle from Grace and I. All of the sudden there was a chicken which had been flapping its wings fifteen seconds earlier lying completely still on the floor. Needless to say we freaked out. I was sure she had killed the thing. Grace tried to snap a pic of the (we thought) dead chicken. Not sure If she posted it - you can see the links to her blog on the right. Once we got off the bus, we crammed 55 people 23 chickens, and goat on to this boat.


If you look closely, there is a guy getting off the boat holding 4 chickens (alive in his hands) along with all the other passengers. Things were still going well, we meet Sam and Blair with no mishap, and as we headed through the alleys of the 14th century city all seemed well. This unfinished house had become a barn and everything was new and interesting.



As we walked Blair and Sam told us that they had chosen a different hotel, which was cheaper than the one Grace and I had planned on staying at that was just as nice. It sounded good, and I try not to rock the boat. Then the world came crashing down:



Most of the hotels in Lamu are more """"Guest houses""""- if they even qualify for that flattering of a title- and ours didn't really look like what I had envisioned in my minds eye for our "vacation from vacation". I took a second to lie down and let everything process and once they brought sheets for the "beds" I felt better. We quickly set out to see the town and get some lunch. One of the high points of Lamu were the milkshakes served at all of the seaside cafes. The were a bit unconventional in that the flavors were all tropical fruits and there wasn't any ice cream. In a word, they were amazing. Passion fruit, and mango were my favorite flavors, and I probably had ten of them during the trip. After lunch we parted ways and I decided I would walk the 3Km to Shela at the other end of the island. As I walked I heard loud drumming coming from the street/trail/donkey path ahead of me. As I approached I thought I saw kids in a fight -which looked exciting - so I hurried up to the site where a small crowd had gathered. As I got closer I saw that it wasn't a fight per se' although there were men in a circle hitting one another with long sticks. I tried to blend in to the growing crowd. A repetitive drum beat which sounded like drum and bass filled the air. I sat and watched for an hour feeling really fortunate to be part of some cultural event that we are usually unable to see, let alone understand. As I watched for the next hour some things became clear. It was some kind of traditional wedding celebration, and this party was mainly for the men.



If you look you can see very few women in the crowd. I cant really explain the game other than one guy hits another guys stick and wins the the competition somehow and a new competitor enters the match. In the back ground you can see a bunch of men dressed in white with a table covered by a green table cloth where the groom sat. I think the men in white were fathers, or clerics of some kind. They were obviously respected in the community at large. I posted this picture because it seemed like a tender father son moment. The older man with a beard playing with (I think) his son. They both were beaming. It was truly one of the more unique experiences and indicative of Lamu as a hole. Its deeply communal and very cultural. The island is 95% Muslim and seems very close knit.

The evening wound down quickly, and had some great sea food then headed to bed. I must admit that I am a huge baby about mosquitoes. I also must admit that I am a bit of a baby about trying to sleep when it is really warm. Given that both of these conditions existed the first night In Lamu made me about lose my mind. It took every ounce of self control to not leave the island at 3 AM as I lie in bed talking myself down and telling myself I could make it and that the trip would improve.

In the morning I realized that there were holes the size of tennis balls in my net all round the bottom of the bed. I felt better after getting two or three quality hours of sleep. We had breakfast as a group and then went to meet our Dhow for a day of fishing and exploring etc. I had told the group that I don't love killing things and wasn't sure that I would be fishing but wanted to go for the BBQ and other events. Once we got there, I decided I may as well make the most of it and ended up catching 3 of the 9 fish caught by our group of 9. I was the only one in the group of interns that caught more than one and the irony was a little humorous, I must admit.

After the fishing, the dhow sailed to this island where we meet another boat of friends which had fished in another spot.


We ate on the Island of Manda which as you can see is not densely populated. It was one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. It all felt very surreal to be sitting on a beach under a tree while some strangers BBQ'd the fish we had just murdered caught. We swam in the warm ocean water while they finished lunch.


They served the Fish whole and again, like the fishing, I figured I'd just dive in head long rather than beat around the bush. On my plate, you can see the head which you remove prior to eating the fish. Looking closely you can see the tail of the fish in my right hand. it was good and easier to eat than expected.



After Lunch we headed up the channel towards some ruins on a different part of Manda. My mom will be mad about the shirtless pic. Sorry mom, 'ma holla at 'cha. I'm looking skinnier and darker people keep telling me. I have a mega farmers tan which is really funny. Its nice to see that I do indeed have cheek bones still.



The ride to the ruins was interesting. Sand bars don't pose as much of a problem as the Mangrove trees lining the route. It felt like a canal ride more than a ride on a sail boat because the sail would make the boat faster than could be controlled through the narrow channel.



Another shirtless one which is only remaining because it shows the awesomeness of my farmer tan. Fear the Farmer Tan!!!!



I've no realized that I wore one of the ugliest outfits ever orchestrated on the trip. Once we got to the ruins I got a picture next to a Baobob tree similar to the one I posted earlier in the trip. You get a much better perspective of just how big the trunk is relative to the height of the tree. They're so thick its amazing.




Compared to Gede, the ruins were quite a let down. This picture is inside the mosque and is probably a bit sacrilegious... though I really hope not.


The roosters that they had were huge and really unique looking near the ruins. This one loved the camera and really worked it for the camera. It looked very velociraptorish in my opinion.

We got back to Lamu Just in time to shower and head to dinner at "Hippie Ali's" house. He's a man that has been hosting guests at his home for over 35 years. He's a very jovial man and a great host.



We meet him in town and walked for what seemed like an eternity threw the narrow alleys to his house. We sat on the floor and took a bunch of pictures as he prepared dinner with his wife and daughter. The food was great and he sat and talked with us as we ate an interesting though somewhat smaller than advertised dinner. Following dinner they played some songs for us as a family with some guest musicians one of which was an albino black man. I've never seen and albino black person in real life but they are here a lot. I haven't seen any albino women, just men and this was the first time that I felt comfortable taking a picture. They have blond hair and skin that is whiter than any of the the white people in our group. He was an amazing drum player. Its hard to see from the angle of the shot but he was playing two drums at the same time.



I slept much better after dinner that night. I got a freezing bottle of water that I snuggled up to and I duct taped over the holes in the mosquito net which covered the two major problems from the night before. The 3rd day was mostly exploring town. We shopped, and saw the sites. I may have mentioned before that all the transport is done with donkeys including movement of construction materials like these carrying sand to sum unknown destination.



The main square in town is next to a fort and is a big gathering place for the locals. You don't see many white people east of the square but like the rest of Lamu, it doesn't feel dangerous there. It felt like the safest place we've been in Kenya. I walked around a lot after dark and never felt unsafe at all even in the dark alleys which make up basically every square inch of Lamu. In the square this tree was growing out of the window of a building. It seemed really mind blowing that A. it could grow out of a building, and B. that whoever owns the place has never cared to remove it from the window. It looked really cool regardless.



This picture is a good indicator of most "major streets" in Lamu. You can't usually see much more than 15 feet in front of you and you can touch both walls to your sides with little effort.



This is the fort that is adjacent to the square. It has been turned into office space although the structure was mostly maintained really well. Grace insisted that I posed and this is the least horrible of the poses.



The fort was a little lackluster, but the views were amazing. We got a vantage that allowed us to take pictures of things that I wanted to photograph but didn't really feel that it would be appreciated.



This lady selling chickens is a great example. Each of the baskets in front of her had 5-10 live chickens under it. Not the grocery store we're used to at home. She obviously has some customers though. Good for her.



This is looking down on a market that sold spices and vegetables and other foods. I think it was mainly an impromptu area that had just been taken over by entrepreneurial minded people who seem to congregate well here in Kenya.



These three sinks are everywhere. I don't really know what they do or what they symbolize but they are really common.



This building is east of town and really cool looking. They were really upscale apartments as far as I can tell, but they appeared to be for sale of something. You never really know here. Signs are really not accurate.




Muslim women, fully covered walking on a beach. nuff said.



This was what we eventually dubbed "Gotham City Power Plant". Black exhaust billowed out of the the generators in the back ground and this oil/diesel/pollutants just sat out side spilling over the sand and into the sea. Like a lot of things in Lamu it just seemed to fake to be real. I keep thinking that things in Kenya look like Disneyland which has made me respect the park more than I did before. They do a decent job making the jungle ride look like the jungle etc.



I was glad I had gotten my fade tightened up before going to Lamu... the DUDU barber didn't sound like a great place to have my hair did. Joking aside I think that DU DU means pest in Swahili. I could be wrong though.



The moon, some boats, and Grace with the dock in the background.