What to Expect….

Expect the unexpected!!! In Kenya, you’ll never know what you’re going to come across. Everyday is a new, exciting day on a safari drive. We spent a week in Kenya and I was not ready to leave. The scenery was beautiful and just untouched. Watching the animals in their natural habitat was surreal. They’re very peaceful, for the most part. We went in June 2018, and the weather was nice. It was warm and sunny during the daytime, and cold at night. The people there were just kind and sweet. The hospitality was amazing, much better than what you can get in the states.

Things to Do….

Since we never been to Kenya before and don’t know anyone from Kenya, we booked our trip with a tour guide. We went with Tekko Tours, since their tour package fit more into what we wanted to do and where we wanted to stay. Our tour guide, Oburu, was amazing. We toured around to 4 different towns outside of Nairobi. We spent a couple of days at the Masai Mara game reserve and a day at the Nakuru National park, Aberdare National Park and Mount Kenya each.

The Masai Mara Park was the largest park we visited. There so many animals there. We were able to see three of the Big 5 there. The Big 5 includes lions, cheetahs, elephants, rhinos and buffalos. On the first day we were lucky enough to see the lions, cheetah and elephants.

There were so much to see here. We also came across a field of antelopes, giraffes and some baboons crossing the road in front of us. It was just amazing to watch them in their natural environment.

If you have some time, definitely check out the village. The Masai Mara village is quite unique from what were used to. Polygamy still exist here. The homes are quite small and made mainly using cow maneuver. Females do the majority of the manual labor, while men raise the cows. This gives you quite a different perspective on life. The people are really friendly. They have their own dance to their own song. So if you do come to visit, you should expect to participate in their dancing.

At our second destination at the Nakuru National park, we were able to track down the other two of the Big 5, along other beautiful wildlife.

Our third destination at the Aberdare National Park was quite an experience. At the first two locations, we stayed at a really nice resort. Oburu would pick us up from the resort and take us on the safari drive. At the Aberdare National Park, where we stayed at was the safari. We stayed at the Treetop Lodge. Although the rooms were a little crammed, the view outside our window was amazing. The lodge was pretty much set up like a tree house. Wildlife was just right outside. There were herds of elephants, buffalos and many more. We even got to see an elephant buffalo getting into it. Overall I thought it was a neat experience for one night.

The view from outside

The view from inside our bedroom

We spent our last night at the Fairmount Mount Kenya Safari Club. This resort was just BEAUTIFUL! I could’ve probably spend another full week relaxation at this resort, if I could. It was a great way to end the trip. This resort is so big and so were each rooms.

They offer so many different excursions here. We decided to do some horseback riding. The neat thing about this place is that have their own safari park, so they were able to choose which wildlife are placed here. Therefore, horseback riding was safe. There were a variety of animals here including zebras, albino zebras, buffalos, wildebeast, antelopes, and warthogs.  We were able to get really close to the zebras!

If you’re not on a time crunch like I was, I would recommend staying here to relax a little longer than one night.

On our very last day in Nairobi, before hitting the airport, we decided to check out the giraffe center. This was really cool. We got up close to them and got to feed them.

What to Eat….

The food here was pretty good. I ate mainly at the resorts we stayed at. They can be somewhat accommodating with the vegan diet. However, with the language barrier, it was sometimes difficult to explain to them what vegan even means, seeing that they like to put butter on everything. So even though, I was able to enjoy my meals, it was tough for Dan to eat at certain places. Most places served buffet style, so get a good selection in meals. One thing you must try is their watermelon juice. Their fresh watermelon is so sweet and delicious, so the juice will not disappoint you!.

Tips….

The weather here in June was really nice. it was really nice out during the day and can be pretty sunny, but at night time it was really cold and chilly. I would suggest to pack comfortable T-shirts and khakis for during the day and sweat pants for sleeping at night. Also bring a rain jacket, as it could rain a little bit throughout the day. Bring comfortable walk shoes. Even if you’re going to be in a safari van for the most part of the trip, the roads are really rough. So during the times you are standing up capturing pictures, the stability of the tennis shoes keeps you balanced on the rocky road. You definitely want to avoid packing any dark color clothes (black and blue) as those do attract the Tse Tse flies. Also bring sunscreen and mosquito repellent.

That’s the end of this trip. Hopefully one day, we can compare this safari trip to ones in Tanzania and/or South Africa.