Lake Nakuru NP pictorals

Lake Nakuru NP

YAY! So I finally made it to Nakuru National Park! I wasnt sure whether or not to go, but then decided it would have been criminal had I not, its too close to miss out on and its like Kenyas 2nd most visited park or something. So, not getting my hopes up, I was making calls to try and arrange something, and finally decided that there was no way I could go cheap so settled for the next best offer.

It was extremely hot today, totaly toasting in dry heat, but it was perfect! Once again though, we had car trouble, but at least it was at the START of the journey, and just one time :) It was making a horrendous noise and so we got it checked out and turns out it was dust, I cant believe dust can cause this type of damage! but we had it cleaned and were on our way :)

When we got the park, i was determined to get a discount, so psyched myself up to argue, but it was really easier than I thought, the guys looked willing to let me pay student rate, then of course, they had to confirm with a lady, and ladies are for some reason alot tougher, and she was so tough, she just didnt want to hear it.. so in the end, i had to pay the full 50.40 euros (exchange rate was BAD!) but anyway, after paying 10 euros in Masai Mara I wasnt too upset.

Driving in, all I can say is WOW, it was so beautiful. The lake was the first thing to view and you could already see it littered in pink from all the masses of flamingoes. Coming here was like completing my 'big five' list.. we saw here:

Flamingoes, buffaloes, pelicans, (tonnes more birds i cant name, Nakuru NP is famous for birds and is a bird watchers haven), zebras (yawn.. hahah just joking, we even saw brown ones!), gazelles, waterbucks, impalas, warthogs, ostriches (this time male AND female), baboons, those small monkeys, LIONS(!! yaaaaaaaaaay!), the hint of a leopard (it was really far away and we could just see the skin if you squinted and concentrated hard), rhinos (white AND black!!) and giraffes.

so i have now seen lions, rhinos, bufallos, a leopard (albeit very very unclearly in a tree) and elephants... I will call that 4.5/5 :) but im very very satisfied!

the thing i like about these places, once someone sees something thats hard t osee, they radio it to the main gate and it gets around, so you always know there is something good either when there is a HUGE convoy, or when you see vehicles zooming to get somewhere.

On top of the beautiful lake (it really is spectacular) we saw the Makalia falls which was not as big as Thompson falls, but still a cute area :)

then we went for lunch/dinner and i had a buffet, nice to get some good good food (mix of kenyan and western) but something is happening to me, i could only manage 2 plates ;)

PICTURES TO FOLLOW :)

Nairobi fly

gross... so there is this hard shelled bug that i have noticed alot recently (i didnt see them before) but they are red and black and they fly. And i noticed them alot on the ceiling and they just drop on you, its so gross... i tried to squish one (sorry) with my finger and it escaped because it has such a hard shell.
So i asked about it and its called the Nairobi fly, and they dont sting or bite, but if you kill them and get any of their juices on you then its a toxin which can dmamge the skin!

Apparently, its not good to squish them or to slap them when they are on your skin. anyway, just wanted to share this with you.. they freak me out!

Masai Mara

Ok, i am DEFINITELY coming back to Kenya! The Masai Mara was just so great, i loved it. So we left on Friday and in the day the staff at the college were having their elections for the new board of some committee members within the college. OK, chaos doesn’t even begin to describe it! They decided they needed someone who was neutral, ie. Not staff, so i was appointed as chairman. It was impossible to control them! Everyone has a strong opinion and everyone is talking at once. I was trying to come up with some kinda list that would be the rules that we would all agree on, it was ok making the list, but no one stuck to it, so then there were arguments amongst themselves and it went on for hours! But it was interesting. The Kenyans are all politicians and they all have a strong opinion. Here in the pictures you can see me "chairing" the chaos, and the new elected members, none of which were happy about it!

I was happy to leave there in the end. Our driver arrived at 3pm (was meant to be 2, but hey) and even though i told everyone we were leaving at 2pm, no one was ready! So in the end, i think we left Molo at 4pm. The drive was nice, i was sat at the front and there were 5 people in the back hehe! Surprisingly the weather everywhere was just hot, it was really unexpected. And we stopped in Kericho, the town famous for its tea, i love tea. Everywhere was really really green and tea everywhere with women in the fields picking leaves with children on their backs, just like in the books! We arrived at the place we would stay overnight, called Mulot which was close to Narok (the main town before the Masai Mara). But it turned out Mulot is actually closer so that was good news!

We were staying with the sister of one of the women who joined us, and it was a big complex for religious people or something, so it was huge and there were loads of rooms. I was extremely tired at this point, for some reason, being in a car in the heat and travelling for 3 hours makes you really exhausted! So we just sat and waited until dinner then after that went to bed. I shaared a room with the other woman who came with us and her daughter. I just couldn’t sleep! It was a mixture of excitement and fear from the sound of a mosquito circling around me, i couldn’t tell if it was in the net or outside of it, so i was spraying myself with mosquito spray excessively haha! And then i was kept awake by the sound of loud snoring from the lady... !!

The thing with this place was that there was no running water, it has been too long since i have been in a situation where the toilet has to be flushed using a bucket and water and also showering from a bucket too. It was really awkward to brush my teeth and wash my face.. i have been spoiled too much i think.

So anyway, after about 4 hours sleep we woke up at 5am because i really wanted to be there as early as possible. The drive was so great, the road was just not a road at all, so you are really vibrating and bouncing from side to side, it woke us up for sure! I think we werer on that road for about 2 hours! On the way, we passed so many of the Masai tribe people, they are really interesting. They are exactly how you see them on tv and in books, mostly they wear red shawls (men and women) and wear alot of jewellery, and the way you can spot a Masai man is from the fact that he is dark, very tall and very slim, i think i didn’t see one man who was different from that! And they have very very disciplined cattle, when we are crossing their path in the car they don’t even touch it! They are right next to it, but they know to stay away, its amazing!

So then we arrived at the gate, and this was the part i was fearing, because the $60 entrance fee (although worth it) for foreigners was a bit much for me, but i don’t know how, but they decided to charge me local fee, so i ended up paying 10 euros instead :) !!

So then the whole day w as spent driving (you aren’t allowed to come out of your car at all). Although in only saw 2 of the big 5 i was still very very satisfied! In all, we saw:

Thomsons gazelles, Gerenuks, Buffalos, Elephants, Zebras (i don’t ever want to see another! The place is saturated in them!), Hippos, Crocodiles, Velvet monkeys, Ostriches, Warthogs, Some sort of bright lizard, Mud fish, Mongoose, Jackals, A huge snake, Vultures (always circling areas!), And of course the wildebeest which were hard to miss! (the main reason i went was for the wildebeest migration, meant to be the 7th wonder of the world :) )

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The wildebeest were everywhere! Just close to us and far, at one point we were driving through and suddenly a whole load just ran infront of the car to the other side! Was so nice to see! And then in the distance you can always see the landscape is just covered in these black dots which are just hundreds and hundreds of wildebeest, its quite amazing to see!

Then it was time to leave (we were only to spend one day). So, along that crazy road we got a puncture so we stopped to change it, i tried to help but i have no muscle it seems! So i sat and basked in the sun :) then we were ok for a while until the indicator was showing that the water was low, so that needed topping up, a nice Masai man helped with that (he had those huge holes in his ears!). and then we went to drive more and then again noticed overheating, so this time when we stopped, some more Masai men helped the driver and they noticed that the fan wasn’t working, but these people are so resourceful, with a cigarette in his mouth the one just fixed the wiring! Using his teeth the break through the plastic of the wire and then connecting others, all with the cigarette in his mouth haha! But then that was fixed and he said it would last for the rest of the journey. SO then we were on our way again, then of course... more water is needed, at tthis point we are tired and frustrated with the car, so we head to Narok to get it looked at.

At narok we get some chips and snacks while the car is being looked at (overly priced snacks might i add!) and then i have to fork out a further 30 euros for fuel and tyre changing (in the end i spent the 40 euros that i saved from the entrance fee!).

Then we head away again and what happens? Of course, the water is gone again and there is overheating and there is clearly something wrong with the electrical connections because the indicator lights are uncontrollable, they are doing their own thing even when they are switched off! So we have to stop again, fill up, blah blah blah, same routine.. this happens now about 4 more times before we finally reach home! And at one of the stops i wanted a drink very badly so i thought i would take a shortcut to the shop but it was through barbed wire, so i get caught in it, and to make things worse, i step in some sort of thick black oil and my whole shoe (Tai’s walking shoe, sorry!) is covered in black so ihave to travel barefoot!

Then en route, twice the car just rolls to a standstill, just runs out of power, in the middle of the road.. not any road, these dangerous, potholed, dark dark roads where lorry driver carrying petrol speed in the centre of the road.. not good. And to top it off, there is heavy heavy rain and the brightest lightening i have ever seen! But somehow, we make it back safely, i was first to be dropped of (thank goodness!) so i could wash my hands of anything else that may happen!

When i got back i saw myself in the mirror, i was black from dirt! Seriously it was unreal! I thought i was having a skin problem then realised its dust and dirt from the road, but a sign of a good time :) i have to go back there, the lodges are also really beautiful (so i have to save up BIG time!)