4 Days Safari - Tsavo East, Tsavo West and Amboseli

After Mombasa came a 4 day safari through 3 parks all the way back to Nairobi. The landscape was amazing and varied.

On the way we stopped by a curio shop - of which there are many - and bought some Kenyan souvenirs and took some pictures with the wood carvers.

Tsavo East

Here the soil is red and the park is quite flat, making for some great game viewing. 

We managed to see 4 of the big 5 on this day (leopard, cheetah, lion and buffalo)! Alfani, our guide, told us that we were his first clients to see 4 in one day. 

We stayed at a lodge in the middle of the park, right by a watering hole, so the elephants were our neighbours! The elephants in the park are as red as the soil - it's really a wonderful sight! 

Tsavo West

The views in Tsavo East are amazing, the park is quite hilly, but also full of trees and bushes, making it difficult for viewing. 

The lodge hangs some bait every night for a leopard to come and feed on it. This has apparently been done at this lodge since the colonial days and has become a tradition that is continued. Obviously it also makes the tourists happy, as it is at least a guarantee of seeing one leopard during the stay at Tsavo West. There is also a "fake" watering hole right next to the terrace and I saw elephants and buffaloes coming for a drink and shower there. 

The park also contains a Rhino Sanctuary, but it is so full of bushes and trees that although there are more than 50 Rhinos in it, we did not see a single one! Oh well... we saw them at Lake Nakuru. 

We had to wake up at 5:30 to make the drive to Amboselli - Papa woke up for some reason thinking it was 10:10 and shocked me to only then realise it was actually 8:10 or something - which was still not correct and then realising it was 4:20. Obviously after that shot of adrenaline it was not easy to sleep for another hour or two - rather amusing in hindsight, but really not the way one expects to be woken up!

On our way to Amboseli, we passed by the Mzima springs, where a lot of the tap water which goes to Mombasa originates. The water flows through the volcanic rocks that act like sponges and gets cleansed that way. At the springs we saw lots of different vegetation, some hippos, fish and a crocodile. 

Amboseli

Amboseli is much flatter - a savannah. The elephants here are grey and seem larger with longer tusks. There are a lot of Masaai walking around the park, clearly they're not afraid of the wild animals. They come into the park when there is not enough water outside it for their cattle. They seem like very friendly people. We didn't go to their village because it does seem rather odd to go there and get a show put on for you and actually one is watching people like we watch animals in a zoo - not really my kind of thing. 

From Amboseli we had an amazing view of the Kilimanjaro! The snow does seem to have melted quite a bit and is only present at the tip; it will probably only be a few more years until it's completely gone. We saw so many hippos here! And during the game drive this morning we were lucky enough to see a pride of lions, they were so cute, hiding in the grass trying to find some shade! 

Mombasa

Mombasa is a culturally mixed city, with lots of Indian and Portuguese influences that can still be seen in the architecture and the people still living there (many Indians/people of Indian descent). It's a shame that the buildings are so run down as some of them are quite impressive. Our driver/guide did tell us that people were renovating them, but honestly I didn't see very much of that going on, so even if it were the case it would take many years until this could be evidenced!

We did go to the fort in Mombasa (Fort Jesus) and had a driver take us on a quick tour of the city. The fort looks out over the Indian ocean and is one of the main tourist attractions in Mombasa. It was called Fort Jesus after the Portuguese who conquered the city came sailing under the flag of the Order of Christ, thus making it a fitting name. The people at the fort also said that the fort was built in the shape of Jesus - which is a bit difficult to see - although with a lot of imagination one can maybe understand where this theory comes from.

On our way to the temple we passed a huge street party (I'm guessing for entertainment during Easter). The people in Mombasa seem quite relaxed and happy, although the city itself is, as previously mentioned, quite run down.

We also saw one of the two main Hindu temples in Mombasa. We obviously had to take off our shoes to walk around inside. It was very colourful and had some gory depictions, though some were quite modern; for example, a guy being robbed with a gun and the consequences of this act in the afterlife. I found it rather amusing that a gun was used in the picture.

After the Hindu temple we went back to the hotel and managed to go for a swim and had some time to relax in the sun before an early start the next day for a 4 day safari!

Nairobi to Mombasa

Friday, our last day in Nairobi, was a relaxing day during which we planned to organise a bus to Mombasa. By coincidence a friend contacted me via facebook to let me know he was actually in Nairobi as well! I hadn't seen him for over a year, so it was great to meet him again, and after having bought the bus tickets to Mombasa, we spent a nice day in town.

Saturday we got to the bus station early and boarded the bus to Mombasa. I would have taken pictures of the hustle, but didn't really feel comfortable/safe taking out my camera there. The drive to Mombasa took 8-9 hours but was relatively comfortable. It seems that the whole of Nairobi was on its way to the coast for Easter. It is crowded everywhere. The drive was very interesting, passing through a lot of greenery and agricultural land. There seems to be soooo much unused land in Kenya, which with the right irrigation system could make it quite an agricultural hub.

I must say that I am not so impressed with Mombasa (at least not from what I have seen so far). We may still go to the fort today, and maybe the area around there is more interesting. What I have seen so far are many dilapidated buildings and the other extreme being huge hotels etc. The weather is warm and humid, although quite cloudy today, as it is the rainy season.

The hotel in Mombasa in on the north coast, and is quite standard and decent, though nothing luxurious, but on the sea front.

In any case, we have managed to book a four day safari starting tomorrow and ending in Nairobi. I will upload more pictures from there. 

Lake Nakuru National Park

We had an amazing day yesterday - I was living my Lion King dream! We drove to from Nairobi to Lake Nakuru National Park, where we saw loads of animals, amongst others flamingoes, buffaloes, white rhinos, lions and even a leopard! I'd never been on a safari before, so for me this was a wonderful first experience.

Our guide George was a great guy with a sense of humour and who was very knowledgeable. The drive took us through the Great African Rift Valley, where we stopped at a lookout point to get some amazing panorama pictures.

 The drive then took us through some villages, where we could observe Kenyan life. It's amazing how much of the life seems to take place on the streets and outside.

Once we reached Lake Nakuru the day really began, in terms of taking pictures - I think I may have gone a bit overboard! We had lunch at a lodge and then continued our game drive.

In the evening we got stuck in some Nairobi traffic - returning to the hotel at about 8 p.m. after an amazing day. We then went for dinner with some friends and were introduced to the Nairobi night life - again taking place outside! A really worthwhile experience, with there being several bars, a club and a food place in a side street of a side street of Nairobi.

First Impressions of Kenya

Jomo Kenyatta Airport - this must be one of the ugliest airport buildings I've ever seen. But, everything went very smoothly - getting Visa and luggage went without any problems whatsoever, we were out within 30 minutes.

The drive to the hotel was fine, we were picked up by a friend. I noticed that the streets were relatively quiet, I somehow expected there to be more noise - cars honking, people shouting etc.

 

In the garden of the hotel. A very relaxed place and quiet place, the rooms are clean and comfortable with mosquito nets on the windows. 

Had a couple GTs in real colonial style, before coming up to the room to rest and write this. 

Bye Bye Wien!

Here is the first of the long-awaited pictures of me with a backpack - doesn't look too bad does it?

I'm now sitting at Doha airport, with quite a few hours layover until my flight to Nairobi. The flight to Doha went smoothly and without any incidents. We arrived here and the temperature was 26 degrees celcius at 22:30! And it smells like Egypt - I did enjoy that :)

One day to go...

Tomorrow is the big day! The first leg of the flight to Nairobi and of the entire trip! I'm really excited and also quite anxious - I think I'm starting to realise what I'm getting myself into! :) In any case, you should soon be seeing amazing photos and reading about adventurous experiences; watch this space...