The BIG 5 plus 1

We're back from the Safari and it was wonderful. We took a matatoo (cab) in from Tenwek to Masai-Mara and it was a treacherous ride in! The matatoo is like a little hatch-back Mazda and it was doing some serious mudding'! Bethany had to ride in the front seat b/c it was the only place in the car that had a seat belt to strap her car seat into. She looked so funny b/c she was on the driver’s seat side of the car since the driving is on the left side here! The first 45 minutes are on a paved road but the final 75 minutes were all on a dirt/rock road. Besides the road conditions it was a nice drive.
West Kenya is nearing a state of famine b/c of the lack of rain. The cash crop is maize (corn) and it is the livelihood of many families, but the lack of rain has caused failure for the crop. We passed fields of partial and total crop failure. The families must now rely on their dairy animals for survival. Dairy herding is the main skill/means for the Kipsigi and Masai people that we work with. Maize is only harvested once a year so there is no hope for more maize until next year.
Once we got there it was wonderfully luxurious. We stayed in a "tent"; it was nicer than a lot of hotels I’ve stayed in, on the river. The hippos were sun-bathing all day right outside our tent. They made the loudest noise though and it woke me up every morning at about 4 AM. Bethany slept in the bed with us so she was all hyped up every night b/c she never sleeps with us at home. So between the hippos and Bethany I didn't get much sleep!
The Safari was great. We could do two rides every day, one in the early morning and one in the late afternoon. They were 3 hrs long. We only did the late afternoon ones b/c it was hard in the mornings with Bethany. Our first ride was good we saw plenty of wildebeest, zebras, giraffes, and a cub leopard all on our first ride! I had no idea that many of the missionaries have been on numerous safaris and never seen the leopard! We then met a pride of young lions and one was having a small gazelle for dinner. It would growl anytime another lion got near! It was pretty cool b/c they were only feet away from us. We were pretty amazed. It's wonderful to see God's beautiful mind in his creations. The next day we went to the hippo pool and saw probably fifty hippos and two crocs. We then went to the Masai village where we PAID to go in! The fee was for a school and we could take as many pictures we wanted and shop at the "duty-free" market inside the village! They were so primitive yet savvy to all lingoes that would draw in tourist! We were greeted by this particular clan’s son of the chief, Jackson. All the Kenyan's we've met so far have two names, their Kipsigi or Masai name and a Christian name. I'm not sure why it is a Christian name b/c several aren't biblical they just sound American, example, Jackson. I later met several more of the chiefs sons b/c he has 39 children and 12 wives! Jackson allowed me to ask anything and we spoke about the beliefs. Jackson was a Christian and had only one wife. While I was browsing the duty-free market Joey was speaking with two young guys, Patrick and William. Joey later told me they were very curious about how many cattle that he had to give for me before marriage. They were interested that he gave no cattle or goat for me! Patrick and William had both went away to boarding school for high school, this is customary in Kenya, and wanted to live more modernly than how they grew up. They were both waiting until the girls they intended to marry finished school before they left their village. Bethany ran around with the Masai children and was soaked up all the attention from the Masai's. Like I said earlier, all Kenyans she has come into contact with treat her like a princess!
Later that afternoon we went for our second game drive and it was by far the best! We saw the big five in one drive! The big 5 are lions, leopards, elephants, buffalo, and rhinos. We were able to get out of the jeep and walk next to the Rhinos. There were two full grown ones and a baby. A few antelope came running towards us and the keepers had to chase them off b/c they can irritate the rhino. Once all this started to happen I got nervous and walked back to the jeep with Bethany. We then found another leopard by the creek. This one was full grown and more aware of our presence than the cub. He didn't stay long before he took off down the creek. We then found a herd of elephants and this was my favorite. The elephants aren't like any of the other animals; they will just walk right up to you. The herd was in front of us and went then came herding pass us on all sides of the jeep. I could have reached out and touched them! There were about 3 babies in the herd too! One looked right at Bethany and me and flapped its ears to scare us! We later met up with a herd of buffalo which can be easily irritated and most likely to charge the jeep. Our last sighting was a large pride of lions with two big males. They were waiting for night to fall to hunt! Our final surprise coming in was a very big troop of baboons! The safari was great and the food and service were wonderful! We ate lunch by the river and the hippos would come grace us with their presence! If it had not been so cool we would have went swimming in the really nice pool but it was too cold. We were one of a few guests. It was very private. Evidently this was the clubs busy season but many people cancelled b/c of the post-election violence. My friends at the club asked me to tell my American friends that everything was fine and to please come to the Masai-Mara.
Oh, and the big five plus one!!! I almost forgot! We got one more bonus at the Fairmont Safari club, Terri Hatcher!!!!!!!!!!!! I know all my Desperate Housewife friends are freaking out right now! Terri was there with her daughter, Emerson, and a few other family members! She was shooting some promotional thing. The Kenyans are so funny b/c they told us everything! Our driver got a call from his radio telling everyone she was there and he told us. Then our cleaner apologized for his late service b/c he was cleaning her tents and then told us the tent numbers! I didn't get the nerve to go speak to her but had the chance several times. I also felt like the resort was so quiet and she must have been enjoying the low profile of her stay. I did speak to little Emerson about her Safari ride. She was a sweet and shy girl.
All in all our safari was a once in a lifetime deal but I hope I have the chance to do it again!
I have so much more about my Thursday out with community health and also my Sunday afternoon in the pediatric ward. I'll update later though.