Samburu Simba Lodge (Buffalo Springs) July 13-14

Safari Essentials:
1. Extra wide rear end to cushion all the bumps.
2. The ability to sleep in an upright position sans bobblehead.
3. A bandana to cover your nose & mouth, and goggles to protect your eyes from the massive amount of dust.
4. A double supply of Q-tips and Kleenex for dust accumulation in appropriate orifices.
5. Extra Kleenex and/or small roll of TP and/or pilfered paper napkins from the buffet table for emergency bathroom stops.
6. The ability to get up before the crack of dawn on a daily basis.
7. The ability to wake, pack and ship out in 15 minutes or less.
8. The ability to consume massive amounts of food & drink beyond your capacity.
9. Adult diapers or Depends for extended pit stops - because there is no getting out of the vehicle when wild animals could be lurking anywhere.
10. The ability to withstand bodily trauma, especially bruising, whenever angling for that perfect Kodak moment.

This morning we met our driver/safari guide, Njoka, at 8:30 AM and headed north toward the equator through the central highlands. We decided to name our group and each individual since we were going to be together for the entire Kenyan adventure. Because of our respective ages of 56-70, we dubbed ourselves Team Post Menopausal (TPM). Our motto was, "Been there; done that." Code names include: Iris, age 56 (alias SCUD - what can we say, she works at Raytheon. She wanted to be Silent but Deadly, but we all voted that that was way too much to remember); Barb, age 58 (alias Tusker - named for her favorite Kenyan beer so far); Terry, age 65 (alias Titanium - you guessed it, she had a knee replacement); Bonnie, age 68 (alias No Head - story of that one later in this post); and Judy, who turned 70 on July 14th (alias Chili Pepper - because she likes them - hey, she's 70, cut her some slack). Njoka, by far the youngest of our group at age 38, was named General Tracker, because he was the master when it came to spotting game.





General Tracker in action.









SCUD, Titanium, Tusker, Chili Pepper and No Head.







I prepare myself to do battle with the wildlife.







We passed several small towns, lots of outdoor flea markets, numerous public and private schools, lots of walkers (there are no obese Kenyans), 2 separate car accidents + 1 overturned truck, a huge DelMonte pineapple farm, quite a few rose greenhouses (roses are exported to Europe in almost greater volume than coffee & tea). We continue to be amazed by the amount of clothing Kenyans wear. I'm guessing it was 75-80 degrees - we had on shorts & T-shirts; they had winter coats, wool stocking caps and heavy sweaters!



Motorcycle taxis wait for their fares outside a flea market stall.





We could see Mt. Kenya on our right for many miles. Our first stop was a Curio Shoppe filled to overflowing with souvenirs - wood carvings, batiks, masks, coasters, etc. We wanted to buy to support the community cooperative, but they were too intent on ripping us off. The young men working there were hard sell, engaging you in conversation then following behind you with a shopping basket at the ready. I felt like I had an attached twin trailing behind me as I wound my way through each aisle. Almost everyone in our group left without purchasing anything because the shop owners refused to bargain that much.

Our second stop was at a trout farm for an incredible lunch in a giant tree house. We enjoyed fresh avocado slices, fresh trout right from the farm's many ponds - served with spinach, potatoes & fruit salad. When asked if she wanted her trout served with or without its head, Bonnie emphatically stated, "NO HEAD!" Of course we all started laughing, and hence she assumed that nickname. I tried Pilsner - very light compared to Tusker, but also served in a large bottle holding the equivalent of 2 beers.


The tree house bar. Don't know why there were stirrups hanging from the ceiling above the bar stools - they must have some wild parties there!
After lunch, we drove to Samburu National Reserve in Kenya's semi-desert, rugged northern frontier. We had our first game drive on the way to our next lodging, Samburu Simba Lodge. What a thrill!!! Team Post Menopausal and General Tracker popped the van top up; stood up & went hunting for those Kodak moments, which were numerous.


The first animal we spotted was the elephant (1 of the Big 5); followed by the reticulated giraffe, gerenuk, guinea fowl (or guinea hen), oryx, impala, lions, baboons, zebras, ostrich, dik-dik (we loved saying this name). Simply AWESOME!!!
The gerenuks belong to the antelope family. I love the way they raise up on their hind legs to eat from the acacia trees. Njoka said you can recognize them because they wear black G-strings! (check out the 2 on the far right)



Guinea fowl(L).


The majestic Beisa oryx.

Impalas. How do you tell impalas from gazelles? Impalas have the McDonald's M on their rear ends(according to our Tanzanian guide, Maulidi). The males usually are the ones with horns.

The lion (our 2nd animal from the big 5)-hard to spot because they are camoflauged so well by the savannah grasses.

A baby baboon attempts to clear the protective circle of its elders - heading to the grasses on the left. Another baby waves to us with an outstretched hand - barely visible from inside the adult circle (below).


The first of many Grevy zebra spottings.


Our zebra entrance to the Samburu Simba Lodge.




Our rooms, the pool and the lounge areas of Simba Lodge - in the middle of the reserve and just opened for about one year. Modern, luxurious rooms and absolutely delicious breakfast, lunch & dinner buffets served by incredibly warm and friendly staff. I tried White Cap beer since they were out of Tusker - excellent, and less calories.


I have to hurry and finish this journal entry since the lodge shuts off their generator from midnight until 5:45 AM. No hot showers during that time period, and all guests are provided with flashlights on their bedstands. Incredible starry sky, and the only sound one can hear is that of the crickets chirping.

The male Somali ostrich (above).

Iris' unwelcome shower visitor (left). I promised to report that she handled the situation bravely and no one, including the spider, was harmed in the outcome.






Up early and away at 6:30 AM the next morning for our early morning game drive. Can you say AWESOME!!!? It's worth dragging yourself out of bed early to catch the animals before it gets too warm outside. Plus you get to experience a breathtaking sunrise!




General Tracker is in rare form this morning with some noteworthy witticisms:
1. Pilsner stands for: people in love should not entertain rumors.
2. White Cap stands for: when the hangover is terrible, eat chicken & pepper.
3. Tusker stands for: have the best sex and tell your best friend tomorrow. (This is the English translation. Apparently in Swahili it's not for mixed company).
4. When we asked him if one of the giraffes was male or female, he replied, "Isn't it obvious?"
5. When we asked him the same question about the zebras, he said, "The males are black with white stripes, and the females are white with black stripes." (He actually had us going for a minute or two with that one. I will attribute that delayed response and follow-up laughter to his accent).
6. When I asked him why one of the vervet monkeys had such bright blue balls, he said, "We call those blue buttons." Later he referred to them as batteries!
7. He also pointed out the black g-strings on the gerenuks.
8. Then there was a discussion about whether the plural for oryx was oryx or oryxes -that one never was resolved.
9. We spotted a female elephant which obviously recently had a baby - and mentioned that she was in serious need of at least a 42D cup bra.



See, these sort of discussions prevail when there is a lack of sleep...(Just take a look at the baboon on the right and you can see he is NOT a morning animal).






Two little ones hanging onto the acacia tree for dear life.



Here he is...the vervet monkey with the blue buttons! Looks like he's being ostracized by the rest of his community.















It's the infamous dik-dik!




The stunning male impala.






The superb starling, red-billed hornbill and the palm golden weaver (below).




















We celebrated Judy's big 70th birthday with extra wine after dinner. And, as a result, we crashed earlier than usual (about 10 PM) - hey, we are getting older after all! (Funny how it's always the 5 of us who seem to be closing the lounge every night). On our way to Mt. Kenya in the morning - about a 5 hour drive, north of the equator.

Safari Park Hotel & Casino (Nairobi) July 11-12

OMG - what an incredible hotel room! A canopied bed with mosquito netting; a huge bathroom with lots of towels, hot water and hair dryer; and, would you believe it - a walk in sauna (OK, so it didn't work, but it's the thought that counts).



This place is huge! There are multiple swimming pools; a small carousel; a casino; shopping village; multiple restaurants.
Tasty brunch buffet - almost all lunches and dinners start with some of the most delicious soups I have ever tasted in my life, followed by immense buffet selections of incredible vegetables & fruits; an active station where omelets are made to order for breakfast and pasta sauces for lunch & dinner; assorted cheeses & crackers; assorted breads; fish & meat dishes (the meat dishes were somewhat disappointing - dry & overcooked in many instances); and the desserts..........amazing mousses, eclairs, flans, creme brule, cakes, pies & fruit (why do they even bother trying to pass off fruit as a dessert anyway???) During brunch the Tucson women (more about them later) invited me to join their group once the 16 of us were separated into smaller groups of 5, 5 and 6 for the game drives. Little did I know we were destined to be the life of the party!

First stop of our journey...The David Sheldrick Orphanage for Rhinos & Elephants. This amazing rescue center was set up by Daphne Sheldrick after her husband, David, died. He was an advocate for anti-poaching activities in Tsavo National Park. Once the animals are old enough, they are reintroduced into the wild. We watched them drink and bathe in the mud.















I forgot to mention that warthogs also reside at the sanctuary. After the baby elephants marched off, the warthogs proceeded in single file to the mud hole to cool off. I am fascinated by how ugly they are (right up there with the wildebeest - more on them later). I have designated them as my favorite 2 animals because everyone and everything needs some loving. I was trackng this particular warthog ith my zoom when it disappeared from my optical lens. So I moved the camera from my eyes to see where he went, and he was practically on top of me and moving quickly.

Next stop...Giraffe Manor. We meet the giraffes up close & personal when they pop their heads through the gabled Scottish hunting lodge. Rare endangered Rothschild's giraffes roam freely, eating feed from your hand - or if you're brave enough (or stupid), you can place a pellet between your lips and the giraffe will look like he's kissing you with his long, slobbering tongue as he searches for the pellet. Those of you who know me know I did not even attempt the second option.

Judy feeds the male giraffe while Terry looks on in disgust.











Next stop...Karen Blixen Museum. Karen Blixen, author of Out of Africa, lived in this estate from 1913 to 1931. This is where she threw a grand dinner party for the Prince of Wales and where she carried on a torrid love affair with aviator Denys Finch Hatton. The museum contains a few of her belongings and some of the farm machinery she used to cultivate the land for coffee & tea, as well as her literary works penned under the alias of Isak Dinesen. The grounds are a landscaper's dream, dominated by euphorbia, the many-armed plant widely known as the candelabra cactus.












Back to the Safari Park Hotel & Casino. I went to the small casino (for Deb). I think there were 7 people playing the slots, including me. I began my quest of trying each country's beers, starting with Tusker lager (very good and free while I was playing. A great deal since each bottle contained about 2 full beers. Average cost in US dollars - $3.50!) I lost about $20, and since I had to continue to feed the 10 shilling coins into the slots, my hands were filthy after about 1-1/2 hours of playing. When I first entered the casino to play the 2 shilling machines this group of Arab women were hogging all 20 machines - even though they were eating dinner in the small dining area while watching very poorly dubbed soaps on the plasma TV. (Some things are universal).

I went to the Hemingway Lounge after the money ran out, looking for my Arizona peeps and in search of the happy hour appetizers the hotel was advertising. These so-called "canapes" consisted of small chunks of Swiss cheese with a small dill pickle on top + some carrots and cucumbers. I was so hungry I left only one "canape" and one carrot for the next customer. I ordered a non-alcoholic drink with orange & pineapple juices, a diced Granny Smith apple, pineapple, watermelon & maraschino cherries. Excellent! But more expensive than a glass of wine ($4 US). Oh well, that's OK since I had already had essentially 4 beers on an empty stomach.

Finally, dinner! A carnivore's delight: beef links, beef, chicken, turkey, lamb, and yes, camel and crocodile served on a huge spear skewer. And no, they did NOT taste like chicken! They both were actually pretty tasty and moist. (I could not help thinking about my camel, Gus, from my desert ride from hell last summer). Sauces were provided for each: mustard, garlic, hot pepper, Italian. We always made it a point to ask the servers which sauce went with each meat. Took some photos of the cute leopard salad bar; great grillmasters; menu shield. We were entertained by an amazing group of dancers & acrobats after dinner - what a great show!

















I could not believe how low the one guy was able to go below the limbo stick - that would have done a number on my knees!

Back to Hemingway Lounge with my Arizona peeps for some more wine. Because we are all without our significant others, we have decided to share one of the game drive vans for the duration - a decision which we had no idea would result in such a fantastic experience. Of course my first indication that these ladies might be a ton of fun was that their consumption of wine almost exceeded our book club at home!