This African trip update, sent by Kyle on 7/24/12, is what I had termed the missing update in introducing Kyle's 7/26/12 update. As usual, Kyle writes with insight and humor.
Fam,
After Keoni and Kyle landed us safely into Grass Runway International, we were
picked up by our Samburu guide Mark and spotter Malakai. While we went
from South to Central (but not South Central) and finally to North Kenya, it
was nice to find that the Masai and Samburu are cousins and spoke the same
language (so we could continue adding to our vocabulary).
Sarara was noticeably warmer which was a nice change of pace in the early
mornings. There is one camp in the entire area and Jeremy and Katey were
the Ricardo Mantoban and Tattoo if you will of this Fantasy Island.
The camp was beautiful with native wood and rock used to make wonderful tent
cabanas (not obviously tents or tent feel). The shrubs and trees provided
privacy from the other cabanas (it should be noted that this is a small camp
with probably less than 8 cabanas but with a large lounge and dining area that
overlooked a fresh water pool for the guests to swim). Really well done
and built green and on solar.
Our cabana was just above a watering hole so we'd sit on our patio and watch
baboons, elephants and other animals come in for a drink. We had our own
outdoor loo and shower (we had one indoor too) which was fantastic.
Jeremy's father worked very closely with the Samburu to develop their trust and
then the conservancy. Jeremy (who is 30ish) and his older brother grew up
in Sarara and of the 3 camps, this seemed the most dedicated to the cause of
the people and the area.
Our first safari was in the late afternoon and Mark (he said he was 42 but the
Samburu don't really know when they were born and I'd estimate his age at 50)
and Malakai told us that Leopards were prevalent in Sarara. He also made
mention of a pack of wild dogs that live in a nearby mountain which we
immediately wanted to see.
Mark told me that the brushy area that made up Sarara used to be grasslands
which was filled with elephants and rhinos. Sadly poaching of ivory and
rhino horn took a terrible and massive toll on the area. The rhinos were
completely wiped out while the elephants were largely eliminated although they
have made somewhat of a comeback. Without these big grazers, shrubs were
able to grow and thusly the ecology of the area changed. Mark is hoping
that 20 black rhinos will be brought in to the conservancy although he said
that poaching was still an issue (like Sirikoi and I assume in the Mara,
wardens have the authority to shoot poachers on the spot). The guides
blame Somali's for the poaching but it is hard to believe that there isn't any
local involvement.
The first night we spotted a leopard out hunting and it was very cool.
What a sleek, graceful and stealthy cat!
The food was again awesome and like every evening, cocktail hour started with a
Dawa (sp?). Basically a glass of vodka with crushed lemons or limes, ice
and honey. Very tasty Kenyan drink that was enjoyed every night!
Our only full day in Sarara started with a walk (my request). The animals
that we were warned about from the get go in Kenya were elephants and Cape
Buffalo (and black rhino in Sirikoi) as they do kill humans when they feel
threatened. Like hippos (the other seemingly friendly Ollie Hardy like
animal who kills), they are vegetarians but can cause real problems.
We set out with Mark and a ranger carrying an assault rifle. The trick
isn't to have a gun since I don't know how good of a shot he is or if his
compensation/dedication is enough to risk his in such a situation. Like
the other guides, Mark grew up walking and reads the tracks (type of animal and
direction along with their stride, running or walking), the dung (yes, he
touched it to see if it was warm/recently deposited), the type of brush/trees
(different animals favor varying plants), the wind (to know where our smell is
being sent), the reaction of animals and birds, the warning/scared chirp of
birds, etc... The goal is to simply avoid these animals because if one
had to be shot, the guides would see it as our failure and not the animal's.
We walked 4 km and it was wonderful being out stretching our legs and learning
about the wildlife. At times it was somewhat unnerving/exciting when Mark
would stop us so he could investigate something that got his attention / caused
him worry and then make a sudden change of direction to avoid potentially
grumpy company. See attached photos of us walking and also of Mark
investigating.
We arrived back for breakfast and the plan was to visit the singing wells.
I asked how far away this was and they said 6 km. Diane was quite
the trooper as we headed off into the bush on foot again.
Other than Diane's head being on a constant swivel and my "isn't this
amazing?!?!" comments, the walk was largely uneventful. It should be
noted that animals were abundant and evidence of their existence was everywhere
but easy to step over with the exception of the elephant piles.
The Samburu people like the Masai are herders who have cattle, goats and sheep
and their lives revolve around keeping them fed and hydrated. As the
rainy season had ended months ago, the main river dried up so the people go to
the riverbed where they have wells dug. As the water table drops, they
need more levels of people standing on platforms in the well to hand up the
bucket of water. The top person pours the water into a trough from which
their animals drink. Right now there are 2 people in the well but before
rainy season comes again, there will likely be 6.
In each well, the people sing a tune of about 3 lines over and over which their
animals seem to recognize (each family has a slightly different tune).
There are other helpers on top making sure that the animals remain
orderly as they drink from the trough. In the area of the dry river bed
where we were, there were 4 wells going.
Amazingly, these people can not read or write and after the rainy season comes
and goes, they will go back and dig in the exact spot to reuse their well (the
walls over time have become cement like so better to not have to start from
scratch). I asked Mark how they do this and he replied that they just
like up different fixed points and then know. I said, "just like
GPS" and he replied "global positioning samburu".
I was not allowed to take photos as Jeremy made it clear that they feel the
camera takes from their soul and he felt strongly to not overcome this and
commercialize the people. As he said, they will be friendly when we
arrive to visit but will mainly focus on their business as they have for the
hundreds of years before. It was clear that they weren't really concerned
with us except many of the kids were interested in Keoni and they stared at
him.
Mark said they were a bit startled when we greeted the people with a
"Sabo" which means hello and as we left, a "Ashioleing" or
thank you. He said that they are not used to hearing that from white
people.
When Jeremy said hundreds of years, I questioned him and he said that there is
a theory that the Masai/Samburu are one of the lost tribes of Israel. The
thought is that the tribe came across to Africa and met a tribe of nubians and
inter-married. They celebrate passover and carry some traditions which
are remarkably similar to that of Jewish people. Jeremy insisted it was
more than a coincidence but didn't think there had been DNA testing yet.
Diane noted immediately in the Mara that the nose and facial features of
the people were more European (or in other words similar to me). "MY
PEOPLE," I proclaimed to Diane. She agreed that this made sense but
also said, it was "too hot for your people" and she definitely had a
point until I reminded her that Uncle Gene and Aunt Eleanor had endured many
years in the desert that we know as the Valley.
I also reminded Diane that Mormons think Native Americans (her) are descended
from a lost tribe of Israel so we may be cousins. The Masai/Samburu
theory makes more sense although "Book of Mormon" is worth seeing...
After the visit to the wells which was like being in a time warp, I asked Mark
if he was up for a walk back. Diane said, "I knew it" and then
"I'm taking the car" which Malakai had thoughtfully driven over.
It had taken us an hour and a half to get here and Mark said it would
take longer since the grade was more up on the way back. I said
"great, let's go"!
Keoni also joined and as if Mark and our Ranger had said, "okay M.F., you
want to walk, then let's go Samburu pace," they picked it up. When
we got to within the last km, Keoni was done and complained about a thorn that
got him in the leg so our little man was quickly picked up and whisked away by
Malakai. All told we made it back to camp in less than 1 hour and it
should be noted that I never asked them to beat the 1.5 hours.
After lunch and fulfilling a promise to Keoni to swim in the refreshing pool,
we were surprised during afternoon tea (yes, I am now an English gentleman who
enjoys the proper trappings) by a Samburu blacksmith who had scheduled to come
by and demonstrate his craft. Jeremy said this was the first time he'd
ever seen it and even though the Samburu use metal (knives, spears, clubs,
etc...), the blacksmith is the lowest strata of anyone in the village, almost
an outcast who passes the trade on to his children who are already outcasts
because of their father's lot in life. He was very nice and he and his
brothers made 3 bracelets (1 for Keoni) which he personalized and has a nice
black finish of burned kudu horn. As per usual, Jeremy asked that we not
pay the man and that he would work it out and let me know (I think the next day
they charged me $8 which I was told was a good amount of money for him).
After the blacksmith show, we visited a Samburu village. This was much
like the Masai village except there was no singing/dancing greeting and they
weren't selling any wares. Again, no photos but it was really
fascinating. No electricity, no plumbing and the huts were feet away from
their livestock. It seemed totally unsanitary and when we entered one of
their huts, I was amazed at how nice, warm and comfortable it was.
En route back to camp, I invited Keoni to ride up with me on the roof of the
car which I had been doing on the rides. Diane who refused the fresh
aired view up with our spotter wasn't pleased that we were both up there as we
drove around on the bumpity bump dirt roads. That said, the sights were
unobstructed, the sounds clear and the smells of the wild was all around.
Keoni like his dad, held on tight and enjoyed the ride.
The next morning, we set out early to see the wild dogs who lived in a nearby
mountain. They won't bother humans but are very efficient in tracking,
encircling and killing. They are like hyenas but they do their own
killing whereas hyenas usually like to finish what other have killed (not
always). Mark and Malikai spotted a couple that were high up on a
mountain and we were able to track them into the valley. Yours truly
re-spotted them running through some brush and we were able to take some great
photos. As we'd seen the big 5 animals and many more, this was a cool
find. The hardest to see (which we didn't) is the ardvark. If you
find them, it is supposed to add 7 years to your life and their poo is
considered lucky. You spread it around the area surrounding your home for
good luck (told you the village seemed a bit gamey).
With that, we had breakfast, did another walk back to the singing wells,
returned for lunch and just a spot of tea. While relaxing, I pulled up
the news for the first time and noted the tragic and senseless shooting outside
of Denver. I mentioned this to Diane and said, "look what's going on
back in civilization". She quickly and rightly pointed back with,
"which is civilization"?
After spending time and asking endless questions from really fine
representatives of these tribal and seemingly primitive cultures, I was
reminded about my new found respect for their way of life along with their
respect for each other and the environment. They also never eat processed
foods.
Not long after, we were met by pilot Charlie from Tropic Air who flew in to
take us out. We had a nice (albeit choppy and rainy at times) flight to
Nairobi where Top Gun certified Keoni flew until he fell asleep. Odd to
see your co-pilot's head bobbing around until it rests on the side window.
Once in Nairobi, we were picked up by Matthew who was to drive us to the
elephant/rhino rescue/orphange. The traffic was incredibly bad and he
explained that the Chinese were making the road a much bigger highway.
This was yet another time I had seen and heard about the Chinese making
very big improvements to the Kenyan infrastructure. When I asked why the
Chinese were being so generous (I almost always got a chuckle and all except
one said it was for oil and/or natural resources - the other heard that the
Chinese had too many people and would be sending a bunch over since Kenya had
open land). Bottom line is that the Chinese (I saw a sign announcing the
partnership between the governments with a Chinese construction company) are
investing in Kenya.
We finally made it to the rescue. Almost all of the approximately 20
elephants and 2 rhinos had been rescued as very small babies because their
mothers had been poached. The goal is to save them, nurse them to health,
raise them for a few years and then slowly introduce them (over a few more
years) back into the wild.
Diane found a small one that didn't seem to social as she stood in the corner
and looked at us wearily. A creature who appreciated her privacy. Yup,
perfect and she adopted her.
Keoni latched on to a baby (a few months old) elephant that was asleep on a
pillow and under her blankets. That made sense and he adopted him.
When walking around and admiring the elephants, we noted one who was a bit
larger (he is almost ready to be brought to a conservancy) and he faced away
from everyone while resting his back leg on a stump (as if to say
"whatever people"!). I was intrigued and walked over (since
most of the other visitors were focused on the smallest of elephants) and as I
approached the digesting of a large lunch came over him and he growled at me
from the back end. Diane and Keoni thought it funny, said that he is
perfect for me and basically adopted him on my behalf. See photo of his
front side along with Keoni and me attached.
The adoption is $50 per elephant and we'll get monthly updates for a year upon
which we will be invited to renew our adoption. I thought this very
reasonable and also how I would significantly raise that price along with
providing a photographer and some private time if I ran the rescue operation.
That said, I'm simply the proud adoptive father of a poor mannered
packaderm and I suppose adoptive grandfather of another.
We went out to eat at a recommended restaurant (apparently the NY Times
proclaimed it the maker of the best Dawa in Kenya) and had a great meal.
We took a cab to our hotel in downtown Nairobi and I must say that I've
never encountered more security when trying to enter than this. They
checked our cab including the trunk before opening up big metal gates and then
we were escorted to metal detectors for our persons and baggage. Once
inside, it was nice but we were reminded that we weren't in the bush, Western
Europe or the US.
Up early and out to the airport. I write this to you from our flight to
London/Shannon. We came to Africa with the highest of expectations and
they were surpassed.
Time to find a Leprechaun and his lucky charms!
Best,
Kyle
No comments:
Post a Comment