Twenty eight hours after leaving our beloved Africa, Matt & I are home safe & sound. We're trying to get back into our daily routine, but it's tough. When I came home from the grocery store this morning, I was stunned that no one was there to greet me with a lavender scented hot towel & a glass of champagne. Talk about bursting your bubble.
Thanks to all of you for your positive comments on the blog. So many of you mentioned getting emotional & crying at the descriptions & the pictures. I'm glad I'm not the only one who was in awe of our experiences. I was moved to tears countless numbers of times, & I'm glad that came across to you as well.
No offense to my dearest friends whom I typically spend New Year's Eve with --- Dawn & Fred, Cindy & Dave, Donna & Todd, Kevin, Donna --- but honestly, I wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else in the world but Nairobi to usher in 2011. We were set to leave for the airport at midnight to catch our flight at 3:40 AM, but we spared a few minutes to celebrate New Years. Most of our group had already gone to the airport earlier to catch various flights home, but the stragglers included me & Matt, Joe & Diane, Lucy & Bob, Marta & Cecilio, Margaret, & our Tour Director Eric. We were in one of the hotel's ballrooms where there was a band & lots of people partying. We were given flutes of champagne mixed with watermelon juice. We were all singing "I Got A Feeling" by the Black Eyed Peas (you know the tune ... "Tonight's gonna be a good night ...."), then the countdown began ("10 ... 9 ... 8 ..."), confetti exploded from the ceiling, then it was time to yell HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! We'd only knew each other for a couple weeks, but the way we were all hugging & kissing each other, you'd think we'd been best buddies for years. Such a joyful moment, & I don't know the last time I was this happy.
But it was a bittersweet moment. After whooping it up, it was time to leave all the merriment as our driver was waiting to take us to the airport. Happiness turned to heartache as we all said our goodbyes. And Eric is the Scarecrow to my Dorothy ...... I think I'll miss him most of all.
Flying home First Class sure took the sting out of our vacation coming to an end. I never even HEARD of Turkish Airlines in my life, but their First Class seating is INSANE. Everyone gets their own CUBICLE. Yes, I said cubicle. It's not just a plush leather seat anymore. It's chairs that tilt all the way back & turn into a flat bed for sleeping, Do Not Disturb signs, a massage option for your chair, TV screens that fold out in front of you with about 25 different movie choices, slippers, a newspaper, roses & L'Occitane toiletries in the bathroom ...... I mean, what the heck???
Don't get me started on the food service. Oh, OK, I'll tell you about it. First of all, the chef --- YES, an honest-to-God chef in a chef's hat comes out & offers you canapes. They set up a place setting in front of you with linen napkins, chilled silverware, & fancy drinks. You know when you go to a fancy-schmancy restaurant & they make a Caesar salad for you tableside? WELL, THEY DO IT ON THE PLANE TOO. When I aksed for a chicken Caesar salad, they tossed it right in front of me. One of the different options on the menu was a pan fried sea bass, which I ordered. But they mistakenly brought me lamb chops instead. WHAT THE HELL IS THIS??? The princess is MOST displeased!!! Get the chef out here to rectify this mistake IMMEDIATELY!!! OFF WITH HIS HEAD!!!!!!
The time went by very quickly. There wasn't even a peep out of Matt, & you know how horribly bored he gets during long flights. The bad part of this experience is, we're now spoiled & absolutely cannot sit in the back of the plane again. We CAN'T. We WON'T!!!
The flights were all on time, everything ran smoothly, & here we are nestled back in Bethel Park. A big, fat THANK YOU to my dear brother-in-law Bill for sending a Town Car & driver to get us from JFK to Newark. It worked out like clockwork, & we appreciated your offer. We picked our dogs up from Fuzzy Paws Pet Villa & Spa, & it's nice to have the whole family reunited again. Even though Charm & Mitch are the worst dogs in the world, these jackasses have sweet faces & they melt my heart every time.
Even though Matt returned to work & I'm running around for hours on end catching up on errands, emails, phone calls, etc., we are still basking in the glow of our experiences in Dubai & Africa. We wonder ...... what trip can possibly top this one? Well, stay tuned, & maybe one day we'll find out together.
With much love to all of you,
Clara
Monday, January 3, 2011
Friday, December 31, 2010
FAREWELL TO AFRICA
Well this is it; the end of our adventure. We are sitting in the Nairobi Serena Hotel (once again) awaiting our farewell group dinner and the inevitable trip to the airport. We are not due to leave the hotel until after midnight, so we will celebrate the New Year in the lobby with some of our fellow travellers. We'll have an 8 hour head start on you, but there is still one more blog to post before the fun begins!!!
After the adventure with the cheetah yesterday morning we had a bit of a rest in the afternoon. Since I thought the cheetah was so cool I'm including one more picture of it here along with pictures of the hyena and jackals we saw that morning. (That is one of the bonuses of this hotel---fast internet connection.)
After a bit of lunch and some napping we took off from the hotel at around 5pm for what we thought was an afternoon game drive. Instead we got a catered cocktail party with roaring fire in the middle of the Masai Mara, complete with armed guard in case any wild beasts decided to crash the party. In Africa they call these "sundowners", a chance to have a few drinks and watch the sky light up with brilliant colors. You have to pay close attention because here at the equator the sun rises and sets in a matter of seconds. One minute it is there; the next it is gone. It was a great time sitting around the fire with a cold Tusker beer reminiscing about all the great times we had over the past two weeks. We took a few group photos and headed back to the hotel for dinner. A great ending evening to our time in the Masai Mara.
This morning we got to sleep in late (7:30am!!!), have a little breakfast and then head to the airport (aka, air dirt strip) for our flight to Nairobi. We are back in the hotel in which we spent Christmas Eve and being treated like royalty once again. I am busy re-packing all of the suitcases while Clara----you guessed it----gets some well deserved beauty sleep!!!
Before I sign off on the blog I'd like to introduce everyone to the 18 friends we made (okay, that Clara made) during the past two weeks:
Margaret, Alexandria, VA, who, by the end of the trip, I couldn't make eye contact with without laughing about something that happened over the past two weeks no matter how "stupid" it was; Here she is with Clara and some other guy who might have been in charge of cleaning our port-a-potty; but that was Margaret, she was such a people person and told me that was the main reason she booked the trip---to be around people!!!
Bernie and Betty, from somewhere near Austin, TX, the elders of the group; Betty celebrated her 80th birthday in the Serengetti and a few days later they celebrated their 42nd (?) wedding anniversary;
Susan and Katie, life long friends from Minnesota. We got to spend the last few days (finally) riding with them on the game drives and had a blast with them;
Harvey and Barbara, formerly of Chicago and now loving Scottsdale, married 54 years and both look younger than I do!!! They were our first game drive partners and Clara & Barbara were singing show tunes with each other by the end of the trip;
Gennady and Margarita, from New Jersey by way of Israel and Russia, who, even though they were delayed a few days in joining the tour, fit right in with the rest of the group. I always thought I was a bit of a wild card, but "Gene" had more energy than anyone else on the tour. And Margarita provided the great narrative on Clara's lion video;
Bob and Lucy, now of Wilmington, NC, who were the ying and the yang of how to view the animals; Bob was armed with just binoculars (and never picked up a camera) and Lucy delighted in taking pictures of everything whether it was animal, or mineral or vegetable; I'll always remember first meeting Bob at the Serena Mountain Lodge when he was putting forth on the virtues of the drying capabilities of the "plastic underwear";
Joe and Diane, Long Island and Hackensack, who were an even younger couple than Clara and myself (damn them, we wanted to be the youngest!); Joe was my golf partner at the Mt Kenya Safari club and I thank him again for joining me on that, shall we say, pleasant round of golf;
Belva and Randi, the mother and daughter duo from opposite ends of Canada; No fireworks here as they proved to us that mom and daughter can travel without armed escorts. Randi wins the unoffical prize for being the youngest on the tour, and she also won the "sketch" prize (aka, you mean that stupid drawing?);
Cecelio and Marta, from Puerto Rico, who had to spend the first 7 days of the trip with no luggage---and they did it in such style as evidenced by Marta's pajama dress the one night at dinner;
And last, but not least, our wonderful Tauck Tour director, coming to you from somewhere in the hitherlands of Canada, Mr. Eric Croft; Gotta Go, Gotta Go. Here he is dressed as Santa Claus on Christmas Day with his new best friend Clara. Thank you Eric for a wonderful two weeks in Africa.
And so that is it for our little adventure. One final thanks to Clara for putting the whole thing together and for helping me to enjoy life like this instead of sitting home like a crabby old man!!!
THE END.
After the adventure with the cheetah yesterday morning we had a bit of a rest in the afternoon. Since I thought the cheetah was so cool I'm including one more picture of it here along with pictures of the hyena and jackals we saw that morning. (That is one of the bonuses of this hotel---fast internet connection.)
After a bit of lunch and some napping we took off from the hotel at around 5pm for what we thought was an afternoon game drive. Instead we got a catered cocktail party with roaring fire in the middle of the Masai Mara, complete with armed guard in case any wild beasts decided to crash the party. In Africa they call these "sundowners", a chance to have a few drinks and watch the sky light up with brilliant colors. You have to pay close attention because here at the equator the sun rises and sets in a matter of seconds. One minute it is there; the next it is gone. It was a great time sitting around the fire with a cold Tusker beer reminiscing about all the great times we had over the past two weeks. We took a few group photos and headed back to the hotel for dinner. A great ending evening to our time in the Masai Mara.
This morning we got to sleep in late (7:30am!!!), have a little breakfast and then head to the airport (aka, air dirt strip) for our flight to Nairobi. We are back in the hotel in which we spent Christmas Eve and being treated like royalty once again. I am busy re-packing all of the suitcases while Clara----you guessed it----gets some well deserved beauty sleep!!!
Before I sign off on the blog I'd like to introduce everyone to the 18 friends we made (okay, that Clara made) during the past two weeks:
Margaret, Alexandria, VA, who, by the end of the trip, I couldn't make eye contact with without laughing about something that happened over the past two weeks no matter how "stupid" it was; Here she is with Clara and some other guy who might have been in charge of cleaning our port-a-potty; but that was Margaret, she was such a people person and told me that was the main reason she booked the trip---to be around people!!!
Bernie and Betty, from somewhere near Austin, TX, the elders of the group; Betty celebrated her 80th birthday in the Serengetti and a few days later they celebrated their 42nd (?) wedding anniversary;
Susan and Katie, life long friends from Minnesota. We got to spend the last few days (finally) riding with them on the game drives and had a blast with them;
Harvey and Barbara, formerly of Chicago and now loving Scottsdale, married 54 years and both look younger than I do!!! They were our first game drive partners and Clara & Barbara were singing show tunes with each other by the end of the trip;
Gennady and Margarita, from New Jersey by way of Israel and Russia, who, even though they were delayed a few days in joining the tour, fit right in with the rest of the group. I always thought I was a bit of a wild card, but "Gene" had more energy than anyone else on the tour. And Margarita provided the great narrative on Clara's lion video;
Bob and Lucy, now of Wilmington, NC, who were the ying and the yang of how to view the animals; Bob was armed with just binoculars (and never picked up a camera) and Lucy delighted in taking pictures of everything whether it was animal, or mineral or vegetable; I'll always remember first meeting Bob at the Serena Mountain Lodge when he was putting forth on the virtues of the drying capabilities of the "plastic underwear";
Joe and Diane, Long Island and Hackensack, who were an even younger couple than Clara and myself (damn them, we wanted to be the youngest!); Joe was my golf partner at the Mt Kenya Safari club and I thank him again for joining me on that, shall we say, pleasant round of golf;
Belva and Randi, the mother and daughter duo from opposite ends of Canada; No fireworks here as they proved to us that mom and daughter can travel without armed escorts. Randi wins the unoffical prize for being the youngest on the tour, and she also won the "sketch" prize (aka, you mean that stupid drawing?);
Cecelio and Marta, from Puerto Rico, who had to spend the first 7 days of the trip with no luggage---and they did it in such style as evidenced by Marta's pajama dress the one night at dinner;
And last, but not least, our wonderful Tauck Tour director, coming to you from somewhere in the hitherlands of Canada, Mr. Eric Croft; Gotta Go, Gotta Go. Here he is dressed as Santa Claus on Christmas Day with his new best friend Clara. Thank you Eric for a wonderful two weeks in Africa.
And so that is it for our little adventure. One final thanks to Clara for putting the whole thing together and for helping me to enjoy life like this instead of sitting home like a crabby old man!!!
THE END.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
UBANGI? UBETCHA!
Grtohgt570jbjpay9o7howoy!!!!!!
This is exactly how I felt when I checked into the Fairmont Mara Safari Club. Travel & Leisure magazine just printed a list of the Top 100 Hotel Destinations worldwide. This was #3. Don't ask me what #1 is because I don't know. But this is a doozy.
We're staying in huge, luxurious tents. Yeah, I know, I know. Those of you who know me are laughing yourselves silly because I'm am NOT a "tent" kind of gal. But this is different. Believe me, we lack for nothing & aren't roughing it. We're situated on the Mara River & hippos are constantly floating around right outside our door. When we got back from our game drive yesterday, there was a monkey sitting on our porch. When I tried to befriend it, it threw a nut at my leg & ran away. Damn demon monkey. As we drift off to sleep at night, we hear the hippos roaring & snorting, & we can hear monkeys running across the roof of our tent. I mean, people ...... CAN YOU FRICKING IMAGINE THIS?????? Matt & I can barely take in all the wonder. The new friends we met on our tour, & especially our Tour Director, are constantly making fun of me because I get teary-eyed everyday. I do not take this for granted. I realize how very lucky we are to tour a Masaai village, or watch a baby giraffe drink its mother's milk, or have the King of the Jungle pass right in front of our jeep, or ride over a herd of wildebeests in a hot air balloon, & yes, even witness a leopard kill a topi (a kind of antelope). When we get back to the hotel after a game drive & are given our hot towels soaked in eucalyptus, a few people approach me & jokingly use their towels to wipe the tears from my face. But I'm so very moved by what I'm seeing --- it touches my heart.
I just wanted to put my two cents worth in here. Matt is doing a fine job giving detailed descriptions of our day. Everyday is another joyful experience, & I can't tell you the pain I feel that it's about to come to an end. I knew this trip would be unforgettable, but it has surpassed every expectation I ever had. This place has changed me, & I already yearn for the day when I can return.
- Clara
I just want to do a quick piggy-back on Clara's post. This morning we were driving around and came across this cheetah. If you'll remember from about a week ago I posted a "picture" of a cheetah we took in Serengeti NP which was taken from over 125 yards away. In the Masai Mara we drove right up to where the cheetah was napping a took photos from only 10 feet away. Here are two of the great photos:
This is exactly how I felt when I checked into the Fairmont Mara Safari Club. Travel & Leisure magazine just printed a list of the Top 100 Hotel Destinations worldwide. This was #3. Don't ask me what #1 is because I don't know. But this is a doozy.
We're staying in huge, luxurious tents. Yeah, I know, I know. Those of you who know me are laughing yourselves silly because I'm am NOT a "tent" kind of gal. But this is different. Believe me, we lack for nothing & aren't roughing it. We're situated on the Mara River & hippos are constantly floating around right outside our door. When we got back from our game drive yesterday, there was a monkey sitting on our porch. When I tried to befriend it, it threw a nut at my leg & ran away. Damn demon monkey. As we drift off to sleep at night, we hear the hippos roaring & snorting, & we can hear monkeys running across the roof of our tent. I mean, people ...... CAN YOU FRICKING IMAGINE THIS?????? Matt & I can barely take in all the wonder. The new friends we met on our tour, & especially our Tour Director, are constantly making fun of me because I get teary-eyed everyday. I do not take this for granted. I realize how very lucky we are to tour a Masaai village, or watch a baby giraffe drink its mother's milk, or have the King of the Jungle pass right in front of our jeep, or ride over a herd of wildebeests in a hot air balloon, & yes, even witness a leopard kill a topi (a kind of antelope). When we get back to the hotel after a game drive & are given our hot towels soaked in eucalyptus, a few people approach me & jokingly use their towels to wipe the tears from my face. But I'm so very moved by what I'm seeing --- it touches my heart.
I just wanted to put my two cents worth in here. Matt is doing a fine job giving detailed descriptions of our day. Everyday is another joyful experience, & I can't tell you the pain I feel that it's about to come to an end. I knew this trip would be unforgettable, but it has surpassed every expectation I ever had. This place has changed me, & I already yearn for the day when I can return.
- Clara
I just want to do a quick piggy-back on Clara's post. This morning we were driving around and came across this cheetah. If you'll remember from about a week ago I posted a "picture" of a cheetah we took in Serengeti NP which was taken from over 125 yards away. In the Masai Mara we drove right up to where the cheetah was napping a took photos from only 10 feet away. Here are two of the great photos:
IN THE JUNGLE, THE MIGHTY JUNGLE, THE LION.......POSES FOR PICTURES??
This morning (Wed Dec 29th) we got our earliest wake-up call of the trip, 4:30am. But it wasn't an ordinary wake-up call; the hotel arranges for someone to come bearing what ever beverage of choice you wish when they come "knocking" on the tent zipper. So we were awakened with a couple of glasses of iced tea, so it wasn't too horrible. At 5:15am we left the hotel, and at 6:15am we were taking off over the Masai Mara in a giant hot air balloon heading due west while the sun rose behind us in the east.
The pilot would take the balloon up about 100 feet, catch the prevailing winds, and then settle into a valley at about 5 feet off the ground just watching all the animals scatter around you. Then back up we would go to look around at all the giraffe, wildabeest, zebra, antelope, etc, and back down we would go racing along only a few feet above the ground. Again, my words are pretty inadequate for this one. Our group had two balloons in the air and the other balloon provided some good perspective for the shots.
We did this for about an hour and then landed in the plains. We got into the trucks, drove a few miles, and, volia, catered champagne breakfast in the middle of the Masai Mara. This is a really tough trip, and I know all of you continually feel bad for me. Thank you for all your concerns; they mean a lot to me. Cheers!!!
We then headed back to the hotel, and most people headed for a quick nap. We had lunch, blogged a little bit, and then headed out for a late afternoon game drive. We were in search of the exotic, and we were not disappointed. If you'll remember, here in the Masai Mara we drive right up to the animals if we can. Well, first we came across this pregnant lioness napping in some shade. Even with 4 trucks looking at her she was quite bored with us. I did catch her rolling over which made for a nice shot.
Next someone spotted a male nearby which might have been her mate. He was a grizzled old veteran and we knew this because we drove about 10 feet from him. With close up shots you could see all the scars on his face and it looked like he was missing parts of his ears. I caught him in a big yawn, but it looks like a big growl!!!
Not to be undone we saw another male and female wandering in the valley below. By the time we got down to them there might have been 5 other trucks in the area. The lions couldn't have cared less. They slowly got up and just passed right by the windows of our truck. Two of the women in our truck got a wee bit nervous because we had the windows wide open. (You can hear one on the video below.) I swear if you were stupid enough you could have reached out and run your hands through his mane!!! But no one tried this stunt. Clara got a ton of video and I put one of the better ones on her, especially the commentary. I would have put more but I don't have all afternoon to wait for videos to upload; there are more animals to see!!!
Wow is all I can say for this game drive.
Until next time.
The pilot would take the balloon up about 100 feet, catch the prevailing winds, and then settle into a valley at about 5 feet off the ground just watching all the animals scatter around you. Then back up we would go to look around at all the giraffe, wildabeest, zebra, antelope, etc, and back down we would go racing along only a few feet above the ground. Again, my words are pretty inadequate for this one. Our group had two balloons in the air and the other balloon provided some good perspective for the shots.
We did this for about an hour and then landed in the plains. We got into the trucks, drove a few miles, and, volia, catered champagne breakfast in the middle of the Masai Mara. This is a really tough trip, and I know all of you continually feel bad for me. Thank you for all your concerns; they mean a lot to me. Cheers!!!
We then headed back to the hotel, and most people headed for a quick nap. We had lunch, blogged a little bit, and then headed out for a late afternoon game drive. We were in search of the exotic, and we were not disappointed. If you'll remember, here in the Masai Mara we drive right up to the animals if we can. Well, first we came across this pregnant lioness napping in some shade. Even with 4 trucks looking at her she was quite bored with us. I did catch her rolling over which made for a nice shot.
Next someone spotted a male nearby which might have been her mate. He was a grizzled old veteran and we knew this because we drove about 10 feet from him. With close up shots you could see all the scars on his face and it looked like he was missing parts of his ears. I caught him in a big yawn, but it looks like a big growl!!!
Not to be undone we saw another male and female wandering in the valley below. By the time we got down to them there might have been 5 other trucks in the area. The lions couldn't have cared less. They slowly got up and just passed right by the windows of our truck. Two of the women in our truck got a wee bit nervous because we had the windows wide open. (You can hear one on the video below.) I swear if you were stupid enough you could have reached out and run your hands through his mane!!! But no one tried this stunt. Clara got a ton of video and I put one of the better ones on her, especially the commentary. I would have put more but I don't have all afternoon to wait for videos to upload; there are more animals to see!!!
Wow is all I can say for this game drive.
Until next time.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
HAKUNA MATATA!!
Today (okay, actually yesterday) (Tues Dec 28th) we left our grand hotel, the Mt Kenya Safari Club, for a short airplane ride to the Masai Mara National Park
We spotted some mongoose and monkeys, and then the drivers headed towards the banks of the Mara river. They then let us do something unusual; we got out of the trucks to get a better look at a mass of hippos wallowing in the river below. We also spied a crocodile swimming nearby, but the croc was no match for the hippos so he just drifted away.
We got back in the trucks and headed out for the plains. One truck had spotted a leopard dragging some type of kill into the wooded area so we headed there. The leopard had killed a topi (a rather large antelope) and it was lying about 50 ft inside the treeline. We could see the leopard through the thick bushes, but he was scared off by all of the trucks assembling nearby and wasn’t coming near the kill yet. Since we had to check into the “hotel” we only stayed a few minutes and off we went.
All along our tour director Eric has been telling us that this was the primo property of the tour, and man he didn’t let us down. We are staying at the Fairmont Mara Safari Club and words once again can’t describe the setting or the accommodations. The whole complex is built on the banks of the Mara River Mara River Mara River
When we checked in, Masaai warriors greeted us upon arrival with this dance:
We had a quick bite for lunch, unpacked our duffel bags, and then headed back out for more animals. We went back to the scene of the topi kill, but the leopard still was not comfortable enough to come out and start snacking. So it was on to the giraffes, and they were everywhere, standing, sitting, walking and even trying to bite their tails.
Next we drove through herds of gazelle, zebra, and other antelope type creatures whose names I forget. When we got to a certain place on a hill, the trucks all stopped and again we all got out of the vehicles. We were asked to be very quiet, walked about 100 feet up the hill, and there were 5 white rhino just grazing in the road. Since these guys are on the endangered species list and almost extinct they are monitored 24 hours a day in the Masai Mara by park rangers. Because of this the drivers know where they are all the time. Even so it was breathtaking to be standing 20 feet away from these giants. A few times the rangers had to move us to safer ground because the rhino are known to charge people just for the hell of it. I know I say this all the time, but it is just too hard to describe the beauty of the experience.
We had a quick bite for lunch, unpacked our duffel bags, and then headed back out for more animals. We went back to the scene of the topi kill, but the leopard still was not comfortable enough to come out and start snacking. So it was on to the giraffes, and they were everywhere, standing, sitting, walking and even trying to bite their tails.
Next we drove through herds of gazelle, zebra, and other antelope type creatures whose names I forget. When we got to a certain place on a hill, the trucks all stopped and again we all got out of the vehicles. We were asked to be very quiet, walked about 100 feet up the hill, and there were 5 white rhino just grazing in the road. Since these guys are on the endangered species list and almost extinct they are monitored 24 hours a day in the Masai Mara by park rangers. Because of this the drivers know where they are all the time. Even so it was breathtaking to be standing 20 feet away from these giants. A few times the rangers had to move us to safer ground because the rhino are known to charge people just for the hell of it. I know I say this all the time, but it is just too hard to describe the beauty of the experience.
Back into the trucks and next up were a herd of the Cape Buffalo, another member of the Big 5. In this herd there were even some baby buffalo which were about 6-8 months old. We drove into the middle of the herd, turned off the engine, and just listened to them munch on the grass. It was the perfect end to the game drive.
Until next time.
GOLFING IN AFRICA
(This post was originally scheduled for publication on Monday December 27th)
We had a nice easy day for once on our non-vacation. After sleeping in until 8am we had another nice breakfast with a few special guests. Check out the plumage on this guy who was just wandering around the omlette station when we came to breakfast. Beats a pigeon any day.
After breakfast we headed out for a tour of the local woman's organization called "Spinners and Weavers". This is a local outfit which was started in 1977 to try to provide divorced and widowed women a chance to make a living for themselves by spinning wool and weaving shawls, sweaters, rugs and the like. Everything used on the premises was created by hand, from the spinning wheels to all of the plants and bugs used to dye the wool. If you would like more info check out their website at www.spinnersandweavers.org
After the tour we headed back to the safari club for an afternoon of leisure. Joe (a fellow Tauck tour member) and I decided to check out the 9 hole par 3 golf course on the property. Because, how many times can you say that you golfed in Kenya, Africa? The course, to put it bluntly, needed to be bulldozed over and used for additional rooms. But besides the poor tees, fairways, rough and greens it was very playable. We each rented clubs and we were given caddies. On the first tee the caddies asked us if we needed golf balls and then proceeded to sell them to us for $1 a piece. The most exciting part of the course was the troop of baboons who were hanging around the green on one hole.
After the round of golf it was cold beer, dinner and off to the room where a nice roaring fire awaited us. I was able to watch some CNN about all the snow which NJ and NY got, but it really didn't interest me that much. Sorry, but I'm on vacation!!!!!
Until next time.
We had a nice easy day for once on our non-vacation. After sleeping in until 8am we had another nice breakfast with a few special guests. Check out the plumage on this guy who was just wandering around the omlette station when we came to breakfast. Beats a pigeon any day.
After breakfast we headed out for a tour of the local woman's organization called "Spinners and Weavers". This is a local outfit which was started in 1977 to try to provide divorced and widowed women a chance to make a living for themselves by spinning wool and weaving shawls, sweaters, rugs and the like. Everything used on the premises was created by hand, from the spinning wheels to all of the plants and bugs used to dye the wool. If you would like more info check out their website at www.spinnersandweavers.org
After the tour we headed back to the safari club for an afternoon of leisure. Joe (a fellow Tauck tour member) and I decided to check out the 9 hole par 3 golf course on the property. Because, how many times can you say that you golfed in Kenya, Africa? The course, to put it bluntly, needed to be bulldozed over and used for additional rooms. But besides the poor tees, fairways, rough and greens it was very playable. We each rented clubs and we were given caddies. On the first tee the caddies asked us if we needed golf balls and then proceeded to sell them to us for $1 a piece. The most exciting part of the course was the troop of baboons who were hanging around the green on one hole.
After the round of golf it was cold beer, dinner and off to the room where a nice roaring fire awaited us. I was able to watch some CNN about all the snow which NJ and NY got, but it really didn't interest me that much. Sorry, but I'm on vacation!!!!!
Until next time.
PLAYING BRANGELINA IN AFRICA
(This post was originally scheduled for release on Sunday December 26th.)
After our wonderful first night at the Mt Kenya Safari Club we had breakfast and headed out for our morning of game driving in the Ol Pejeta Conservancy which includes the Sweetwaters Preserve and the Jane Goodall Chimp Sanctuary. There are currently 41 chimpanzees housed at the sanctuary in two separate groups (27 in one group and 14 in the other group). All of the chimps here have been rescued from lives as pets or tourist attractions, and sadly they will never be released into the wild because they could never adapt to life there. They have just spent too much time in cages or chained to trees to survive if left on their own. They are also suffering from a lot of “mental” issues and are not the most stable animals. When we got to the end of our little tour of the grounds there was of course a place to make donations. It took Clara only about 2 seconds to get to the head of the line, and we are now the proud foster parents of a chimp named Poco. We actually got to see him, and he makes anyone with ADD seem like a cloistered monk. He ran up and down the fence line with a stick making as much noise as he could. He knows the fence is electric, and that is why he uses the stick---so he won’t get shocked. He was kept in a small cage for 9 years as a roadside attraction, but still loves the attention of humans.
When we left the sanctuary we headed out in search of animals. There were lots of antelope and gazelle around, and at one point we spied a lioness in the distance walking through a herd of zebra. Every animal stopped and just watched. We were too far for pictures, but the driver tried to parallel her path hoping we would see her again, but to no avail. Then I got this great picture of a zebra rolling in the road I assume scratching his or her back.
Right when we were about to head back to the hotel we came across 5 giraffe munching on trees right beside the road. We snapped a few photos and then just watched them through the binoculars. It was amazing to see them eat the thorny bushes with their huge tongues working around all the hazards in the trees. Again, these are just truly magnificent creatures.
We got back to the hotel, had a quick bite to eat, and I headed out with a few other folks on a horseback ride through Mt Kenya National Park. It was very relaxing but I think my back will pay for it tomorrow. The one amazing animal we did spot on our ride was an albino zebra. (Again you’ll have to zoom to get a good look because I didn’t bring the “big” lens on the horseback ride.)
Then it was back to the hotel to relax and have a few cold Tuskers. And, as you might have guessed, Clara is back in the room snoring away. This vacationing is tough work!!!!
Until next time.
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