28 - 30 OCTOBER 2011
MASAI MARA, KENYA
Up and packed, but Ribbons tea is appalling this morning –
there seems to be an oil slick on top.
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| A safari VAN?? |
I head out around the corner to the
nearby taxi stands where I get a fab cup of tea, piping hot watching the
morning news. The morning news consists of a chap standing at a table leafing
through the daily papers reading articles of interest. Back to Ribbons for a
great Spanish omelette with chappatis, drop off my key with their promise that
“yes, you can get a room on Sunday, good bye madam”, before getting picked up
for the tour. We drive to a hotel to pick up the safari van? and my fellow
tourists. They are a couple from Canada – Kara and Joshua. Having arrived in
Kenya direct from a week at a resort in Sharm el-Sheikh resort, to volunteer at
a children’s home/orphanage a week ago, they found the volunteering opportunity
turned African.
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| I love elephants |
They were threatened
with deportation if found working there whilst the US based director had
assured them that as volunteers they only needed tourist visas. So with their
plans now in disarray, they are planning to travel within Kenya for the time
being as their friends and family had made bookings to join them at various
times over the next few months. We meet our driver, Mike and then we’re go headed
towards Narok then south to the famous Masai Mara Park – our safari vehicle
being a Nissan Urvan complete with a roof that lifts up for game viewing. No
4wd?? It takes the best part of four hours to get to the camp and by now I am a
little suspicious that we are not at the Sekanani Gate that I had booked for.
Sure enough, when I ask Mike tells me we’re at the Oloolamutiek Gate, which is
right on the far eastern edge of the park – far away from features that I
wanted to be near. To mention that I am a little upset about this is an
understatement and there is absolutely nothing I can do about it – I am stuck
here on a PEGA tour. Conned again! My phone doesn’t have enough credit to make
the call to Crater so Mike kindly lends me his phone and when I speak to them, they
promise to ring me back. Knowing that I have no hope of getting back to Nakuru
from here, I have no option but to swallow my grumpiness, settle in here and save
up my arguments for Monday when I will certainly be looking for some kind of
refund, even if my receipt says ‘Absolutely No Refunds’. The tents here at Mara
Pega Camp are ok – self contained with comfy beds but certainly on the budget
side. Francis the camp manager is very friendly and both he and Mike and I are
very embarrassed about my tantrums but both understand that I am stuck here and
we all have absolutely no choice about it. But it is VERY ordinary here – both
the camp and the surrounding Masai village.
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| Here kitty, kitty, kitty |
Back in the van after lunch for a
late afternoon game drive, through the park gates to start spotting an
occasional gnu or antelope, zebra and lion. ho hum – where are the herds of
animals I had been looking forward to? After a couple of hours driving, we
return to the lodge for a yummy dinner and good company with a large group of
Swedish student teachers travelling with some of the uni staff. Two have been
here for a few months living in Nakuru, others just arrived a week ago with
three weeks to go and a couple of others have a whole semester in Nakuru ahead
of them. Along with the Canadian couple and myself, we make for a very mixed
bunch. Soon enough I make a discovery that the beer here is warm –ughh, what a
disappointment!
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| awww so cute |
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| PEGA TOURS off road driving on the Mara |
And down comes the rain, continuing intermittently through the
afternoon on our drive back through the park. But we still see more lions and
another cheetah for more highlights. Eventually back to the camp with an offer
to visit the Masa Marai village but most of us decline on the basis of reports
that it’s all a bit sad and expensive. I make an effort to walk out the gate
just to stretch a blasted muscle spasm that I am suffering but keep being
called back by blokes in blankets – Masai who advise me against walking on my
own because of the wild animals. Now its 5pm, still light and there are plenty
of other locals walking back and forth, so I venture onwards. One Masai makes a
big effort running after me – madam, a man was killed by an elephant just near
here. OK I relent and turn back with him until it dawns on me – there is no
elephant poo nor broken trees around here, so no elephants. I tell him this, and
turn back to walk down to the village and he gives up his last ditch effort.
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| Hungry vultures dining on leftovers |
Good dinner and a busy night at the powerboard, for everyone
to charge up while the generator is going. One of the swedes has the Yahtzee
game – only dice, scorepad and not a lot of skill needed to play it which makes
for a great travel game. While we play,
they recount how they were taken to where a tourist was killed by an elephant
very nearby. I tell them that there really must not have been any elephants
here for ages judging by the environment. They recount with ‘oh it was eleven
years ago and there is a sign there.” AND these tourists paid money to be told
this. Lucky Masai! 
That’s why they were so persistent with me in the hope that
I would pay/tip for them to walk with me. Next day is Sunday, our last day here
in the Masai Mara here and an early start for a last game drive spotting more
animals including being driven straight to where there are two lions mating and
again it’s off road. In the face of human curiosity and the want to see
everything there is to see, I understand that the pressure must be on the
driver guide to ‘produce’ wildlife for the tourists. And with this in mind it
should also garner him a decent tip at the end of the safari if the tourist is
happy. BUT at what cost? While the Masai Mara park is big (1510 Sq. Kms), the
off road tracks are badly eroded and the expectations of tourists to see
animals will always remain undiminished. We are never satisfied. After an hour’s
drive we head back to the gate for another lovely cooked breakfast together
before packing up and making the long drive back to Nakuru with the highlight for
me being lentils for lunch, but obviously not everyone’s favourite. We get to
town just in time for another massive downpour that floods Nakuru – memories of
arriving here last week.
FACT: Police are
hunting for criminals after they escaped from Eldoret Prison. The chief
Inspector said that the six inmates cut the ceiling board of their cell on
Wednesday night and escaped without the knowledge of the warders. “They are
hard core criminals and we have intensified the search.” He went on to say that
the inmates were able to cut through the ceiling because it is made of
cardboard. You don’t say????
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