Hakuna Matata!

Yes, I know, it's a cheesey title, but it is actually Swahili - for "No Worries", which generally seems appropriate for me.

I'm currently in Nairobi, having just returned from 3 days in the Maasai Mara. We've seen elephants, giraffes, hippos, crocs, elands, haartebeest, wildebeest, buffalo, vultures, jackals, hyenas, gazelles, cranes, storks, and a whole shedload of goats, cows and donkeys. Oh yeah, and some lions and a pair of cheetahs. So, a fairly uneventful few days.

Have now been with my tour group for those 3 days, and all seems okay. It's pretty much the Commonwealth Club, though, as we're Brits, Aussies, Kiwis and Canadians, with SAfr guides. 24 of us, so still getting to know people, though I've at least got all the names etc down now.

I'm on a bloody slow net connection, so not sure how long I can make this (I will pause for the sighs of relief out there), but I'll try and cover at least a little ground.

Got into Nairobi on Friday night, went to hotel, grabbed some food and beer, and crashed out. Went out on Saturday and got scalped by the market traders in Nairobi. Have had to learn to be much ruder about just saying "No". Met up with some of the group in the evening, though about 1/3 of them had not yet arrived (getting in late off the flight from LHR). More surprisingly, nearly half the group had already been together for 2 weeks, going into Uganda to see Gorillas, so there was a teeny bit of awkwardness to start with as the old hands and the newbies settled in. Seems to be ironing out, though.

Sunday morning we went off to the Mara, though in minivans rather than the Truck (this section is sub-contracted out to a local Kenyan safari company). Kenyan roads are what you might call variable. Starting off from average, going through mediocre and on to downright shocking, but you get used to it. We've even got to the point where we can sleep as we head over the bumps, using it to "rock us to sleep".

These first few nights were in a tented camp, with things set up for us already. We newbies have been advised to enjoy this while we can - today, back in Nairobi, we were introduced to our tents, and shown how to put them up (they're bell-tents and piss-easy). I must admit to having never encountered a tent with a toilet in before, which means I won't forget the Sunshade Safari Camp in a hurry!

That afternoon we headed off to our first game drive, and almost immediately saw buffalo and elephant. So that's two of Africa's "Big 5" we'd seen inside about half an hour! We were still in the Nissan minivans (they are absolutely bloody EVERYWHERE!), but with the roofs popped up. This led me to spend a good deal of the next couple of days standing up with my head out the roof, doing my best "dog in a speeding car" impression. I've also already churned through 100-odd photos, even after getting rid of some of the duff ones, so backing up will be necessary at some point. Ah well, better that than having seen nothing. The highlight of Sunday's drive was either when an old bull elephant decided to cross the trail between two of our vans, or when we came across a pair of cheetahs eating after their kill. We could actually see them ripping into the stomach...

Yesterday we had an uber-long game drive, heading down to the Mara river, where we saw the crocs and hippos. On the way was also when we saw the lions, though they were bloody hard to pick out to start with, hidden in the long grass (as it's just pre-migration up here, the grass is really long - when the wildebeest and zebra arrive in their 100,000s in the next coupel of months, then it'll get trimmed back). This was also our first real experience of the "pack mentality" of the minivans - because people radio in when they find something exciting (e.g. a lion or ten), they come in from all over the neighbourhood, to the point where there were about 14 minivans clustered around the lions.

Unfortunately, I had forgotten my hat that day, so have a sunburnt scalp as a reminder, but I'll get over it. This morning, we went out for an early game drive (leaving at 6:30...) and saw more elephants, giraffes, etc. Highlight of the day, though, was when we flushed a couple of hyena from cover. Evil-looking creatures. We actually had a hyena come sniffing around the camp on the first night, but the guards scared it off (apparently by shooting it with a bow-and-arrow!). By late morning, we were back at the camp and had packed up, ready for the long drive back to Nairobi. Which is where we are now. So I shall sign off, until the next time I am near an internet cafe (possibly in Arusha after we got to the Serenh\geti Plains and the Ngorongoro Crater).

Hope all is well with all of you! Take care and have fun,

Pat