Bring a washcloth - the omitted post

Goodbye to Mario

We departed from Keekorok at 7:30 AM with a 4-5 hour drive ahead of us back to Nairobi. We retraced our steps through Narok and onward for the first 3 hours, and then took a right turn that took us up the escarpment and once again into very lush growth at the high elevations over 8000 feet ASL, stopping to take a picture of the Rift Valley far below. Once we reached Nairobi, we stopped at a shopping mall for several in our group to buy some safari shoes, and then went on a city tour, past old British colonial buildings, newer government buildings, including the offices of both the President and the Prime Minister, and finally past the burial site of Jomo Kenyatta, the first Kenyan President, across the street from our Intercontinental Hotel.

After numerous pictures with Mario, we paid him and said “Goodbye” and all thanked him for his excellent service. It is always a pleasure to watch someone perform who’s good at his job. He cared about all six of us, wanted to be sure that we had what we wanted and needed, and made the extra effort to see that his mission was successful, whether it was to find the Big Five for us or maneuver the van to get the best angle for a picture of the bird or animal as the case may be. If anyone wants to book a tour of Kenya or safaris in Kenya, they couldn’t do better than to contact him as he can book the tour directly. If so, let me know and I can get you his email address.


Miscellaneous observations, instructions and advice:

1. Bring a washcloth - although the hotels meet you upon arrival with wet washcloths to wipe your hands and faces of dust, you won’t get one in your room.
2. You see very few dogs. The Chinese who are building the roads are buying them up and eating them.
3. Right now, there are about 76 Kenyan shillings (Ksh) to a $1.
4. You may not take any pictures of police, military personnel, or motorcades, and as I learned today, not of anything on City Hall Way or the street where Kenyatta is buried (across from our Intercontinental Hotel).
5. When you see “Hotel” on a small building in the villages we pass through, it means “Restaurant.”
6. There are churches everywhere, at least in the Christian areas, with names such as “Jesus Winner Church.”
7. The road up the escarpment from the floor of the Rift Valley was built by Italian POW’s from Ethiopia in 1942.
8. The difference in elevation between the floor of the Rift Valley and the escarpment to the east is about 1000 meters (over 3000 feet), with the floor being about 5500 feet above sea level.
9. Hard to believe from what we passed through, Narok is one of the richest cities in Kenya - the ground is very fertile there.
10. When we stop and Kenyans selling their wares surround the van, if we won’t buy anything, they want us to give them pens - so bring plenty of pens.
11. Hakuna matata (sp?) - “no problem” and, just like any other language, a common phrase.
12. Charcoal is made from acacia trees, which are cut down, cut into pieces that are put on a fire, then covered with dirt for it to smolder, and then later cooled and sold in big sacks by the side of the road for about 1000 Ksh.
13. The Kikuyu are the largest ethnic group, hold most of the power, were the leaders of the Mau Mau rebellion resulting in the imprisonment of about 1.5 million Kikuyu by the British in the 1950’s.
14. The weather has been fantastic - cool nights in the 50’s and low 60’s, fair days without exception and temps in the 80’s and low 90’s, with only a sprinkle or two in the early evenings before clearing for the night.
15. We finally found the Southern Cross.
16. Masai Mara, if I haven’t told you, is 7200 feet above sea level, the same altitude as Santa Fe, where Dave and Jackie live.
17. The Masai people are allowed to cross back and forth into Tanzania without passport formalities, as the Masai Mara National Reserve is located in Tanzania as well as Kenya.

Sorry to hear about the weather back home, and also caught the news for the first time in a week. It’s amazing to be so out of touch, but nice too to be able to concentrate just on this new experience. What a joy. I love Africa (or at least South Africa and Kenya) and its people. It’s a very exciting place to be. I would really like to be able to fly here - I could fly into Keekorok. It has its own airport, with an open-air “terminal” (actually a 6’ by 12’ roof on 4 posts next to the dirt runway on hill nearby).

Off to bed in Nairobi with visions of new wonders in my head. What will Tanzania be like? The Ngorongoro Crater? Kilimanjaro and the Serengeti? Stay tuned.

Love, Nat, Dad, Matt and Tall Man (and sometimes Cheese Man)