[Sunday, July 30, 2023]
The alarm went off at 5:30 AM this morning so that we had time to get up, shower, and re-pack all our items for the start of the safari at 8:00 AM. Laureen indicated that the shower had barely warm water this morning, so she started out with a coolish disposition to the day. Not exactly sure what was going on as when I jumped in the shower the water was just as hot as it always had been. BTW – one needed to step carefully into the shower as the tiles were smooth and the water was hard giving them a bit of a slippery sensation. A little bit of strategic packing and we had everything back into the suitcase.
Breakfast was lighter for us today as I think we were both still feeling the effects of our carnivore experience the night before. Having that much protein that late before bed was surely a recipe for crazy dreams and a restless night – both of which came to fruition. Yogurt and a little fruit were the entrees for this morning along with our regular vitamins. We also took part in our anti-malaria Sunday ritual which we have affectionately nick-named: “Communion Sunday” after which we headed back to the room to do a final inspection (yes, triple checked the safe) and grab our bags. I snapped a quick picture of the view from our room and the room itself just before we left.
We all met in the lobby just before 8:00 AM. Even Ara noted that, “The Porto Rican’s were on time”. Out to the Land Cruiser (LC) and a short game of Tetris to put the luggage in the back of the vehicle before we hopped in and started on our way. I didn’t snap a picture of our wheels yet, so I’ll have to make sure that I do that in the next day or so.
Our first stop would be a couple hours into the drive at a place called Sagana to stretch our legs and take a bio break. It was here that we walked through a plethora of wood carvings made by the local villagers (who are extremely talented carvers). The wood I recall was Rosewood, Ebony and Teak. We had one of the “sales” guys following us attempting to make his first sale of the day. I think he almost had us at one of the leaf-art wall hangings of the big-five; but in the end we decided not to make a purchase given that we are just at the start of our trip, and we were not entirely sure if cut out leaves glued to a fabric would be allowed back into Canada. I was also eyeing up a few of the small masks they carve. I think it would be fun to get one for each of the big-five (Buffalo, Lion, Elephant, Leopard & Rhino). I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
Back into the LC and we were off to our next destination. It was supposed to be an orphanage, but apparently, they had received complaints from several previous travellers that the site was not a good place to stop. So, instead, we were off to a family farm called Kiburi Farms for a tour and a lunch as a first-time experience on this Trafalgar tour. Our driver had to stop a few times to ask for directions as he had not been there before. After we found ourselves down a wet muddy road that did not seem to be going where we needed to be, our driver started to turn around using one the driveways along this mud road. At the same time, I pulled out my cell phone and fired up Google Maps to search for Kiburi and I found a place close by called Kiburi Homestay. Using the directions from that we were able to find the place. Getting lost on your first day was not exactly what I had in mind.
Laureen's Musings
Let me tell you about the roads here. Curt has already mentioned the British style of driving. “Stay to the left”. (FUN FACT: the four western provinces of Canada, influenced by the British settlers, used to drive on the left side of the roads until the 1920’s. Ontario and Quebec were more influenced by French settlers and always drive in the right side of the road). They do this here in Kenya too, but with some extra crazy maneuvering. Traffic circles are everywhere in Nairobi and all vehicles just move into the circle all at the same time. No “rules” of waiting/yielding for entrance or inner circle has the right-of-way like we do in Canada. There doesn’t really seem to be a logic. When we asked, the response was “whoever gets there first and whoever is more aggressive”. Very few honking horns and no road-rage. Drivers just nod their head like this is how it's supposed to be done.The actual infrastructure of the roads varies in different locations. Some roads are newly finished with few potholes. But other roads really remind me of the bumpy, potholes everywhere in Nicaragua. And this is on common streets and highways.The other thing they use here a lot is the huge mound speed bumps and rumble strips across the road. These are everywhere, including highways. Picture driving 80 kms on Hwy 2 between Edmonton and Calgary or the 401 in Ontario. All of a sudden there are double sets of deep rumble strip’s followed by 2-3 huge mound speed bumps. And it happens very regularly along the route. Then highway pavement starts and stops (onto gravel unfinished roads), vehicles pass whenever, lane lines are totally “suggested” and motorbikes weave in and out. So glad we’re not drive on our own here. We’ll leave that to the locals.
We toured the farm which grows both coffee and tea and was started by the father of the lady that showed us around. She relayed how Kenyans were not allowed to grow cash crops, but only the things that were used to feed their families. We saw the coffee operation from tree to drying stations as well as the farm animals. The weather was a little damp, as it had been drizzling up at this higher altitude, so it was muddy and slick in a few places. Had to be careful not loose footing and land in the nice red volcanic soil. After the tour, we went back into the house to have lunch, made by the locals consisting of traditional Kenyan items. The house itself was built by her father who was a self-taught engineer.
When lunch was over, we once again, hopped back in the the LC and headed off on our way to our next destination, Aberdare Country Club, which would be our home from the next couple of days. The place reminds me a little of Banff, however the animals found here are quite different. We saw Baboons, a Wild boar, some Impala and a few Peacock's. All of these animals roam freely on the grounds of the Country Club. The two Impala in this photo were sparing with each other.
And, I took a few picture of our room for the next two nights, so you could see it before the Blais Tornado hits this place.
We spent some time in and around the main building before dinner. Dinner itself was at 7:00 PM and was an amazing buffet. Back in the room, the blog was being worked on so we could get to bed and be well rested for tomorrow's game drive.
G'nigh all.
Curt & Laureen
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