Friday, November 28, 2008

Kenya Safari

Kenya is one of my favorite countries to visit. I've been there eight times in five years (I went back and counted the number of stamps in my passports). I've made some wonderful friends there...Elizabeth, Sidney and Susan to name just a few. Most often my travels have been restricted to regular work related activities with the hope of occasionally spotting some of Africa's beautiful wildlife on the side of the roads. On my last couple of trips I've gotten to go on safari in the Maasai Mara area in Southwest Kenya. The Maasai Mara turns into the Serengeti at the Tanzania border so it's pretty much the same thing. 

Both times I've visited I've stayed at the Kichwa Tembo tented camp. Yes, I said tents but it's not anything like what you're thinking. The tents have a completely functional bathroom (including a shower) and the beds are very comfy - they do a turn down service and put a hot water bottle between the sheets each night. The meals are served in the main dining room and the food is absolutely delicious. In the morning they serve you coffee or tea as part of your wake up call. As a side note, they give you the option to either bring the tea into your tent or serve it on the porch. If you ever visit, have them bring it into the tent because the monkeys will steal the biscuits off your plate...while you're standing there looking at them! If Kichwa Tembo seems too rustic for your tastes, check out their adjacent luxury tented camp, Bateleur. I reserve the right to call you a snob if you choose to stay at Bateleur Camp and will probably hit you up for a "grant" to fund my next trip to Kenya!

The area is beautiful with it's tremendous African sky. The wildlife is amazing! Maasai Mara is a game preserve so the animals know they aren't in danger from humans. The result is magnificent photo opportunities. The following are examples of a few of the pictures I was able to take. I've been considering making prints or desktop images of some of my pictures available for people to purchase. Pricing would depend on how large a print and what type of media you'd like it printed onto. I'd be more than happy to discuss details with you if you're interested.

By the way, I'm still working on getting the video of the Maasai dance together. I'm hoping to have something ready to show next week.







4 comments:

Amber said...

I stayed at Kitchwa Tembo. Despite being a tent, it's by far the most luxurious place I've ever stayed. Best bed, by far.

And I can't believe you saw a rhino!!!

Ric Sieben said...

The rhino had her baby with her, too! The only member of the Big 5 we didn't see on this trip was the leopard. I guess they were being shy.

Anonymous said...

Love, love, love the giraffe photo! LAB

Becky said...

WOW. Those pictures are AMAZING.
Seriously.

I would love to go there someday.