I was moved by the simplicity and poverty of the Samburu and Maasai tribes. I felt welcomed as I joined in dance with Marien and the Samburu women. I found myself in awe of the landscape beauty and was excited to see the natural animal habitats being preserved. We were fortunate to see the big five: lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino.

    It was thrilling to see a four day old hippopotamus and the conflict that ensued as a crocodile that had killed a zebra tried to travel past that hippopotamus den. I appreciated my fellow American travelers as we shared our unique stories and prayed together for the knowledge to understand our experience and respond accordingly.

    Karibuni is the word of welcome. Our guide, Muthoga, gave us these words of wisdom: "The secrets of successful international travel is to combine the savvy and personal organization necessary to avoid your new world's pitfalls with non-judgmental attitude that will allow you to take in its wonders." I thank Muthoga for reminding me to leave my judgments and be open.

Day 1:

After a 14 hour flight, we arrived in Nairobi around 9:00 pm. The sign at the airport said, "Smile, you're in Kenya". I did. I was so excited to be there. Our guide, Muthoga and driver, David welcomed us. We drove to our hotel where we took time to meet our fellow travelers, ate snacks and retired to our bedroom where the mosquito nets were already around our beds.

Day 2:

Driving through Nairobi I saw my first glimpse of Kenyan life: people everywhere - approximately 3 million people live in Nairobi. They were carrying sticks from the forest, groceries on their heads. We saw shepherds herding cows through the city. We stopped at a market where vendors were selling all types of wares and women were weaving baskets. They recycle and are creative in their use of resources. Most of the clothes were second hand from America.

Strip malls lined the roadside.

Day 3:

Our guide, Muthoga, grew up in Naromoru which lies at the foot of Mount Kenya. There we walked the roads and got a sense of life. We met some children going to fetch water. They use plastic containers. We also visited the Naromoru Disabled Children's Home Rehabilitation Centre. It's amazing how they help children with club feet and other bone problems.

We also visited Muthoga's school. The children have many challenges. Some walk six miles one way to get to school. The school buildings themselves are made of wood and are well worn. Repairs are needed. I brought jump ropes and the principal, Gladys, was a good sport and showed that she could jump rope with the best of them.

Day 4:

We drove on the Great North Road which goes from Kenya to Egypt. A friend of Muthoga's was walking by the gas station as we were filling up and since we had an open seat, he joined us. He talked about the need to care for the environment so that it would continue to provide for them.

We officially started our animal safari. It was amazing how our guides could see animals in the thick. However, most animals were out in the open and our vehicle maneuvered the rocky terrain roads so we could get a close view of them.

Day 5:

We visited the Samburu tribe. Marien speaks 3 languages: Kiswahili, English and the Samburu tribal language. She talked about the tribunal traditions: polygamy as well as the circumcision and shared their beliefs about death. When someone dies they place animal blood on the body and place in the open. They hope a lion will eat the corpse so that whenever a lion is seen you can think of your ancestor. We were fortunate to see a leopard lounging in the afternoon sun.

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