showing our kenya to a friend - february 23 to 27, 2009
Once again, our intrepid friend Carolyn
traveled to Africa to visit us. After arriving late on a Sunday night,
Wendy dragged her off the next morning to show off
a few of our favorite places in Nairobi and Central Kenya over the week.
We introduced her to friends, made her feed a giraffe, treated her to an
up-close meeting with a baby rhino and elephants, and taught her about Tusker
Beer and Dawa cocktails (not pictured).
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Bright & early on her day one in Kenya, off we went on a 3 hour
drive over Kenya's great roads. Our 1st stop was Crescent
Island off the edge of Lake Naivasha. (Above Far L) we took a boat to this private reserve that had been created as the movie backdrop for Out of Africa. Besides that, we got to walk for about 2 hours to view animals quite closely: (Above L) a giraffe stares at us, (Above C); warthog family runs away; 2 large waterbucks (Above Far R in both corners) tell us to mind our own business. |
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enter the community-operated Lake Elementaita Park (Above Far
L) to see the some of the water coated with flamingoes (Above L &
C). We may think they mostly sleep, but they continually flap their wings, take off or land, and search for food. We learned that flamingoes sleep on 1 leg in case they get stuck in the mud (very shallow alkaline lakes) but need to take off quickly. Village children (Above Far R) gather the feathers left on the ground to create jewelry to sell. |
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(Above Far L) About 3:30 p.m. after the heat of the day, we enter
Hellsgate National Park, know for its deep, narrow chasms, thermal
shower and flash floods. (Above L) Our guide explains how the water leaches sulfur and other natural compounds from the rocks. (Above C & R) Different chasms off the main one. (Below Far L) We catch up with flowing water that we must now climb down into then walk in (Below L & C) to reach the thermal shower (Below C) only a short distance from the end where we overlook (Below Far R) Masaai pastoral land where our guide lives. |
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(Above Far L) A baboon keeps us company as we view the plains that
are part of Nakuru National Park. Besides the unusually dark Masaai giraffe (Above L) we get closely inspected (Above C & R) by a flat-lipped rhino , various antelope, some rock hyraxes (Below Far L who thinks if he doesn't see us we won't see him!), among other critters. We guess we were supposed to be impressed by the baboon's body display (Below L) while he was saying good-bye! But we were much more impressed by the wingspan of a kori bustard (Below C) the largest flying bird) and the dignity of the maribou stork and his friends! |
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Back in Nairobi, David (our TechnoServe friend/taxi driver) drives
us to Langata Giraffe Sanctuary for Rothchild giraffes so Carolyn
(Above Far L) can experience the sticky blue tongue for herself. We arrive just ahead of busloads of school children of all ages (Above L to R) who are taught about giraffes as local animals then get to feed them, though only a few are brave enough! |
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Friday's last activity before dinner with friends was our personal
visit to Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage to see Adrian's adoptee Shimba
and Diana's Lempaute. While we waited for the troops to return from their normal day in the park, we were surrounded by a warthog family (Above Far L) who ignored us to get to the water. THEN, we both fell deeply in love with the 2-month old rescued rhino (Above L & C) who was also returning to his new shelter for bed (Above R). He had been a premie near death with his mother dead (probably from giving birth) when Sheldrick received him at 2 weeks old. Now look at him! Finally, the "big kids" were returning, including Lempaute in the middle of the pack (Below Far L)--Shimba had been released the prior week into his new Tsavo transition home (yes, a half-way house where 2-year old elephants are slowly introduced into wild herds). But we got to spend quality time near other 1 to 2 year olds (Below L to R). Carol adopted Kimana (not pictured) with whom we played though he bit Wendy's hand. It was Wendy's fault for not noticing his insistence of viewing her pale arm and pink fingers for the nipple of a bottle from which he was determined to get milk! |
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