Yes it’s true we missed our first day of our long awaited African Safari after we were screwed around by Kumuka and Best Flights- buyer beware! As a result of our tour having left early we decided to go out for dinner in Nairobi to the world famous Carnivore. Up until two years ago they supplied game meat including giraffe, antelope, african buffalo and zebra. The menu has changed slightly since then with chicken, turkey, lamb, beef, ostrich balls, chicken gizzards, crocodile and chicken liver now on the menu. With an all you can eat philosophy and a whit flag to signal your surrender we got stuck in. While we made a valiant attempt to eat as much as possible Sahra let the team down as we gave up quite early due in part to her sweet tooth. Sahra’s favourite was the honey basted ribs- while I really enjoyed the chicken gizzards.
Carnivore is an institution in Kenya- recommended by Lonely Planet and in the top 50 restaurants in the world. While ‘probably the best…… in Africa’ is a commonly used phrase- in this case I have to agree. There were an abundance of staff who delivered the meat fresh to your table- I should also mention that we enjoyed our first alcohol since departing the fine shores of Australia- Tusker- Not a bad drop.
At 6.30 am our taxi driver picked us up and took us on the journey back to Naivasha to meet up with the tour (which ironically we drove past yesterday on our way to Nairobi). Meeting the people on the tour for the first time was daunting but they all seem really nice. Some have been traveling through Africa for the past two weeks spending the majority of their time in Uganda doing the Gorilla trek.
Our first stop was Masai Lands where we camped overnight. Our first day was a six hour long haul drive which despite the cramped nature of the vehicle was enjoyable. The countryside was beautiful and seeing the small communities which dotted the sides of the roads was nice. Sahra didn’t get sick so all in all a good start.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Update with Details to Follow
In the last twenty-three days we have travelled from Nairobi to our present destination Livingstone, Zambia. During this time we have visited the Masaai Mara National Park (Kenya), the Serengeti National Park (Tanzania), Arusha (Tanzania), Dar Es Salaam (Tanzania), Stonetown-Zanzibar (Tanzania), Lake Malawi and Victoria Falls (Zambia).
It has been extremely exciting however we have had no mobile reception and little internet access (or electricity in general). We have spent many 10 hour days on the big blue Kamuka truck with our tour group, consisting of an irish couple, two English girls, five Aussies and one Kiwi. Aidan has been keeping us entertained on the truck by hosting 'Name that Tune' competitions and I definitely think I am winning... We have also entertained/disturbed many local towns as we passed through them singing Queen songs at the top of our lungs! We thought this was particularly appropriate in Tanzania - the birth place of Freddy Mercury.
We have spent every night thus far in our trusty tent despite the allure of upgrading to lovely rooms with a bed. The campsites have varied greatly between each country, but most have a bar/communal area, dodgy toilets and if we are really lucky we get a hot shower about twice a week.
The highlights so far have been seeing the big 5 (lions, elephants, buffalo, leopard & Rhinos), relaxing on Zanzibar Island and seeing Victoria Falls. We spent 5 days on the beautiful sandy shores of Lake Malawi but as the lake is home to many parasites, crocodiles and hippos we decided not swim. Aidan will do more detailed blogs on our adventures soon, but for now we are heading to Zimbabwe to walk with the lions. I should mention that we just got some Zimbabwean currency and we are officially trillionaires- 600,000,000,000,000 to be exact. This should buy us at least two cokes (this is not a typo)!
It has been extremely exciting however we have had no mobile reception and little internet access (or electricity in general). We have spent many 10 hour days on the big blue Kamuka truck with our tour group, consisting of an irish couple, two English girls, five Aussies and one Kiwi. Aidan has been keeping us entertained on the truck by hosting 'Name that Tune' competitions and I definitely think I am winning... We have also entertained/disturbed many local towns as we passed through them singing Queen songs at the top of our lungs! We thought this was particularly appropriate in Tanzania - the birth place of Freddy Mercury.
We have spent every night thus far in our trusty tent despite the allure of upgrading to lovely rooms with a bed. The campsites have varied greatly between each country, but most have a bar/communal area, dodgy toilets and if we are really lucky we get a hot shower about twice a week.
The highlights so far have been seeing the big 5 (lions, elephants, buffalo, leopard & Rhinos), relaxing on Zanzibar Island and seeing Victoria Falls. We spent 5 days on the beautiful sandy shores of Lake Malawi but as the lake is home to many parasites, crocodiles and hippos we decided not swim. Aidan will do more detailed blogs on our adventures soon, but for now we are heading to Zimbabwe to walk with the lions. I should mention that we just got some Zimbabwean currency and we are officially trillionaires- 600,000,000,000,000 to be exact. This should buy us at least two cokes (this is not a typo)!
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Lake Nakuru NP
At 7.00am we left the orphanage and travelled the 15km's to the Nakuru NP which is home to an abundance of Africa's most recognisable and endangered species. Immediately on our arrival we were greeted by a mass of Vervet Monkey's including some babies which were extremely small. Once we entered the park we encountered a vast array of animals, the highlight being two Spotted Hyena's working their way through a carcass (see our photo's for this picture). Some of the smaller animals that we spotted also gave us tremendous satisfaction, in particular the rock hyrax which we spotted at Baboon Cliff and the Lilac Crested Roller- a parrot like bird. Of the big five animals- the Lion, Elephant, Leopard, Rhinoceros and African Buffalo, we were lucky enough to see the Rhinoceros and the African Buffalo.
It was amazing to see just how alive the park was- on one occasion- We spotted no less than 15 Rothschild Giraffes grazing on the plains. The animals were not particularly wary of vehicles or people which helped with taking photo's. It was great to see the smile on Sahra's face because she had been looking forward to her first encounter with the wildlife- particularly the Rothschild Giraffe. Other animals that we spotted during the day included- Thomson's Gazelle's, Helmeted Guinea Fowl's, Greater and Lesser Flamingo's, Plains Zebra's, Impala's, Olive Baboon's, Warthog's and another favourite for me the Black and White Colobus. This was a particularly good spot as they were high in the treetops.
As the day drew to a close we met Mary in the city to finalise our assistance with a family introduced to us by Mrs Pastor. The single mother has two 15 year old daughters but can only afford to send one to school. Petrolina and Thelma help their mother run a small fruit and veg stand. All the produce is sourced from the markets then re-sold to the general public. Each piece sells for 5 shillings or 0.7 cents AUD. It was clear when we met them at their home that any assistance would have a big impact on their lives. Their home consisted of a single room divided by a curtain to distinguish between the living room and bedroom. The living room was just big enough for a single two seater couch and coffee table. To assist the family we bought Thelma the necessary school books and uniform as well as paid for her first semester tuition fees- All in all a busy but eventful day.
It was amazing to see just how alive the park was- on one occasion- We spotted no less than 15 Rothschild Giraffes grazing on the plains. The animals were not particularly wary of vehicles or people which helped with taking photo's. It was great to see the smile on Sahra's face because she had been looking forward to her first encounter with the wildlife- particularly the Rothschild Giraffe. Other animals that we spotted during the day included- Thomson's Gazelle's, Helmeted Guinea Fowl's, Greater and Lesser Flamingo's, Plains Zebra's, Impala's, Olive Baboon's, Warthog's and another favourite for me the Black and White Colobus. This was a particularly good spot as they were high in the treetops.
As the day drew to a close we met Mary in the city to finalise our assistance with a family introduced to us by Mrs Pastor. The single mother has two 15 year old daughters but can only afford to send one to school. Petrolina and Thelma help their mother run a small fruit and veg stand. All the produce is sourced from the markets then re-sold to the general public. Each piece sells for 5 shillings or 0.7 cents AUD. It was clear when we met them at their home that any assistance would have a big impact on their lives. Their home consisted of a single room divided by a curtain to distinguish between the living room and bedroom. The living room was just big enough for a single two seater couch and coffee table. To assist the family we bought Thelma the necessary school books and uniform as well as paid for her first semester tuition fees- All in all a busy but eventful day.
Lord Egerton
Lord Egerton Castle is one of the more random tourist attractions in Kenya. Located about 20 min from Nakuru it was built by Lord Egerton in the 1940's. When I say built by him I actually mean 100 red Indians imported from the US. The story of this amazing building was told to us by the the caretakers of the castle who lived with the late Lord Egerton. His story was translated by one of the MIA employees, Martha, who is getting married at the castle in April this year.
As the story goes Lord Egerton brought his Fiance' to Kenya who upon arrival mocked the 'birds nest' of a house he was living in . The result of her taunts is an exquisite, if slightly run down castle with an amazing ball room complete with grand fire place, parquetry flooring, winding staircases, terraces and amazing gardens. It appears that Lord Egerton after the departure of his fiance' went a little crazy. The caretaker in formed us that the Lord enacted four rules that were to be followed at all times on the compound-
Rule 1: No live chickens to be on the grounds
Rule 2: No dogs to be on the grounds
Rule 3: No men in uniform to be on the grounds; and
Rule 4: No women whatsoever to be on the grounds.
Amongst other oddities Lord Egerton kept a safe in the castle for the safe storage of eggs and money to buy eggs. He used the terrace for his own interests including playing soccer with himself everyone morning at 10am in full kit- he also used this space for riding his bike. The terrace I should let you know is not that large.
Lord Egerton's distaste for women extended beyond the grounds- those working for him would pay money to local women to ensure that they were never in his presence. In 1958 Lord Egerton died unmarried but had an adopted son Preston who carries on the family name. The castle is now owned by Egerton University and is available for weddings costing 10,000 ks or $140 AUD.
As the story goes Lord Egerton brought his Fiance' to Kenya who upon arrival mocked the 'birds nest' of a house he was living in . The result of her taunts is an exquisite, if slightly run down castle with an amazing ball room complete with grand fire place, parquetry flooring, winding staircases, terraces and amazing gardens. It appears that Lord Egerton after the departure of his fiance' went a little crazy. The caretaker in formed us that the Lord enacted four rules that were to be followed at all times on the compound-
Rule 1: No live chickens to be on the grounds
Rule 2: No dogs to be on the grounds
Rule 3: No men in uniform to be on the grounds; and
Rule 4: No women whatsoever to be on the grounds.
Amongst other oddities Lord Egerton kept a safe in the castle for the safe storage of eggs and money to buy eggs. He used the terrace for his own interests including playing soccer with himself everyone morning at 10am in full kit- he also used this space for riding his bike. The terrace I should let you know is not that large.
Lord Egerton's distaste for women extended beyond the grounds- those working for him would pay money to local women to ensure that they were never in his presence. In 1958 Lord Egerton died unmarried but had an adopted son Preston who carries on the family name. The castle is now owned by Egerton University and is available for weddings costing 10,000 ks or $140 AUD.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
A Day in the Life of...
Our mud hut at the orphanage is great, it has a shower, toilet, kitchen and a gas cooker, but unfortunately no dishwasher (maybe that's why Aidan brought me). We have an amazing view over Lake Nakuru and the city. Each morning the African sunrise is a spectacular display of burnt orange, flaming red and gold. And, if we are lucky we wake to the sound of chirping birds and not screaming children.
Caring for the children is really hard work but I absolutely love it. They are so full of energy and are happy to sing songs, listen to a story, jump on the trampoline or just look out the window and watch the tractors and horses go by. Aidan is hilarious with the children, particularly when he can smell poop, he alerts me and waits for my immediate action. I laughed so hard when he picked up little D (nicknamed the vaccum cleaner because he can be found under the table after every meal eating the scraps) who had "crapped his dacks" in semi-solid and liquid form, which subsequently ran down Aidan's arm. Aidan assures me that the pungent stench could not have come from a human. His frantic search for soap, disinfectant, hand sanitizer and any other chemical to wash himself with, left me to wash and change little D.
The volunteers have a weekly roster that roughly equates to 8 hours work a day. The daily duties include caring for the children, working in the school, assisting the cook in the kitchen, working in the yard and the dreaded laundry duty, which includes hand washing 80 dirty nappies a day! When we are not on duty we take walks to nearby villages, play soccer with the locals and play scrabble on the very dodgy hand made board we purchased from the Nakuru markets.
Nukuru city is about 16 kilometers from the orphanage. It is a bustling city with hawkers on every corner trying to sell you something "madam would you like a tie or a bookmark? Maybe a paper necklace? I will give you a good price... $2000 Kenyan shillings ($30 AUD!). We come to Nakuru about once a week to use the internet and do some grocery shopping. On average we spend about $30 AUD on groceries which buys 2 loaves of bread, 6 bread rolls, 1 doz eggs, pasta, rice, tin tomatoes, fruit, veg and 2 minute noodles. This works out to be quite cheap, but if we were to shop at the markets we could buy a bucket of tomatoes for $1.00 AUD. It would be a lot cheaper for us to shop at the markets but it would also involve a lot of 'negotiation'. As soon as the Kenyans see a Wazungu (white person) the price automatically doubles, even at the chemist I was charged double for some cough syrup.
Friday, February 12, 2010
New Photos
Check out some of our new photos at http://s912.photobucket.com/home/kenya2cusco we will upload more this weekend.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
The Orphan Epidemic
The scale and tragedy of Kenya's battle against diseases including AIDS and HIV is only just beginning to dawn on us. Where we are located in Nakuru there are no less than three similar orphanages- one build by a British couple another by a German man and a large American built orphanage. Most of the children at the Orphanage have lost their parents from diseases but there are those who are the exception. M a beautiful little girl with 4 pigtails is at the orphanage with her brothers F and N after they witnessed their father murder their mother. It is my understanding that their father is in gaol. Despite the trauma these children have experienced the smiles on their faces are unbelieveable- especially with their sparkling white teeth.
Some children are not in fact orphans but choose to leave home of their own volition as things are so bad at home that a life on the streets is preferable. Others are dumped and may end up becoming dump kids which means they fend for themselves at the local rubbish tip. It is sad to confirm what we already know and that is that many of the children in Kenya die of preventable diseases. We visited the local dispensary on our first day where a boy was bitten by a rabid dog on his head and face- rabies is still prevelant in Kenya and most people die without the relevant course of drugs. His mother couldn't afford the 1000ks approx $15 AUD required for the injection. Sad but a reality when people live on less than a few dollars a day. Volunteers at the orphanage who heard about this boys plight will help the family get the shots they need.
Their are countless other examples that we have come across in the short space of time we have been here. There are various other institutions which have been set up for those with disabilities, deafness and other such physical ailments. A lot of good work is being done but you have to ask yourself- this is the situation in Kenya, one of the stable countries in Africa, what is it like in the rest of Africa?
Some children are not in fact orphans but choose to leave home of their own volition as things are so bad at home that a life on the streets is preferable. Others are dumped and may end up becoming dump kids which means they fend for themselves at the local rubbish tip. It is sad to confirm what we already know and that is that many of the children in Kenya die of preventable diseases. We visited the local dispensary on our first day where a boy was bitten by a rabid dog on his head and face- rabies is still prevelant in Kenya and most people die without the relevant course of drugs. His mother couldn't afford the 1000ks approx $15 AUD required for the injection. Sad but a reality when people live on less than a few dollars a day. Volunteers at the orphanage who heard about this boys plight will help the family get the shots they need.
Their are countless other examples that we have come across in the short space of time we have been here. There are various other institutions which have been set up for those with disabilities, deafness and other such physical ailments. A lot of good work is being done but you have to ask yourself- this is the situation in Kenya, one of the stable countries in Africa, what is it like in the rest of Africa?
Community Visits and the PM Shift
Our first rostered shift at the orphanage was to undertake the PM shift with the children. Prior to this we went with one of the founders of the orphanage to do some community visits including providing clothing and food to those in need. There are so many children that genuinely require assistance- we stopped in on one family whose father recently died and the mother is struggling to care for her five children. The eldest child who is just 16 has just had her own child which complicates things even further. Sahra took great delight in giving the children biscuits to nibble on- the smiles on their faces were amazing. We left some clothes and grain for the family, perhaps Sahra and I will revisit them before we leave and provide some further support.
We picked up Mamma Agnes a respected community elder who then guided us through the rabbit warren of streets to get to our next family. This family has endured the death of two children in the last month- one from cancer and the other from a heart condition. The mothers eyes were really expressive of the grief that she felt inside- her youngest daughter arrived home from school just as we were leaving- she was beautiful.
When we returned to the orphanage I did some manual labouring before the PM shift started while Sahra provided assistance in the kitchen. At 4.30pm we started our shift- the children are beautiful and they each have their own personalities, some are cheeky and as you can imagine with 43 kids under one roof their manners need some work. They love to sing and dance and always want a hug. Watching over so many children with only three people on watch requires some serious juggling. They need to be fed, bathed and changed each night before bed- the whole exercise takes several hours and did I mention they're all under seven, I've lost count of the amount of times I've been asked "what's your name' and I left out the thirty minutes of worship which they have each evening. The orphanage has a strong religious influence which adds an interesting twist. Overall the children were great but it was an immensely long day but very rewarding- off to bed at 9.30pm- Sahra's been asleep for an hour.
We picked up Mamma Agnes a respected community elder who then guided us through the rabbit warren of streets to get to our next family. This family has endured the death of two children in the last month- one from cancer and the other from a heart condition. The mothers eyes were really expressive of the grief that she felt inside- her youngest daughter arrived home from school just as we were leaving- she was beautiful.
When we returned to the orphanage I did some manual labouring before the PM shift started while Sahra provided assistance in the kitchen. At 4.30pm we started our shift- the children are beautiful and they each have their own personalities, some are cheeky and as you can imagine with 43 kids under one roof their manners need some work. They love to sing and dance and always want a hug. Watching over so many children with only three people on watch requires some serious juggling. They need to be fed, bathed and changed each night before bed- the whole exercise takes several hours and did I mention they're all under seven, I've lost count of the amount of times I've been asked "what's your name' and I left out the thirty minutes of worship which they have each evening. The orphanage has a strong religious influence which adds an interesting twist. Overall the children were great but it was an immensely long day but very rewarding- off to bed at 9.30pm- Sahra's been asleep for an hour.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Welkom naar Zuid Afrika
Well after 35 hours of travelling including a brief stop in Johannesburg we have finally arrived at Nakuru. The flight from Sydney to Johannesburg was a neat 12 hours and we had the rare experience of entering Antarctic waters flying directly alongside one of Australia's remotest territories, Herd Island. I was able to take some amazing photos of the island which was entirely covered in snow.
Once we arrived in Johannesburg we managed to locate some accommodation near the airport which charged by the hour (Calm done Bone). We went and refreshed, had a quick nap before returning to the airport to catch our flight to Nairobi. We arrived in Nairobi at 5.30am where we were met by our taxi driver Hezron.
The drive from Nairobi to Nakuru took about two and a half hours- the traffic was fairly chaotic for 5.30am- apparently successive governments have promised to address traffic congestion in the city but nothing has been done. The locals hold out faith that the next election in 2012 will bring some resolution to the issue.
On the drive to Nakuru I took in the scenery from the back while lady muck in the front (aka Sahra) played spot the wild animals- her first monkey was spotted in Nairobi city and about 10kms out of the city came her first Zebra. As we passed Lake Naivasha we could also see Flamingo's en mass.
Will let you know about Nakuru and Mission in Action in our next post.
Once we arrived in Johannesburg we managed to locate some accommodation near the airport which charged by the hour (Calm done Bone). We went and refreshed, had a quick nap before returning to the airport to catch our flight to Nairobi. We arrived in Nairobi at 5.30am where we were met by our taxi driver Hezron.
The drive from Nairobi to Nakuru took about two and a half hours- the traffic was fairly chaotic for 5.30am- apparently successive governments have promised to address traffic congestion in the city but nothing has been done. The locals hold out faith that the next election in 2012 will bring some resolution to the issue.
On the drive to Nakuru I took in the scenery from the back while lady muck in the front (aka Sahra) played spot the wild animals- her first monkey was spotted in Nairobi city and about 10kms out of the city came her first Zebra. As we passed Lake Naivasha we could also see Flamingo's en mass.
Will let you know about Nakuru and Mission in Action in our next post.
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