My newest traveller partner wasn’t best impressed with me that I enjoyed riding the metro to the airport. She’s a taxi snob so it seems. It probably didn’t help that before we left the apartment she found out that taking a carry on rucksack for me was a double strap backpack and Annie opted for the one long strap duffle bag that was double in size to mine and jam packed full. So she’s going to be a lop sided Annie by the time we sit on the plane haha. 

The metro wasn’t so busy, we were able to sit down. After all it was 10PM. However we did have the pleasure of a mother and daughter from what seemed like eastern european that had a very strange dress sense and were in diapers need of a pedicure, ychafi!! 

Tired now, but were able to go through security straight away, with the funny moment of an arab 2 year old Kevin Mcallister running through security and almost up the escalator to the train to departures haha! 

We weren’t long before we found the sports bar, a obligatory beer and wine with a shnacccck! But we didn’t have too long until we had to go for a pee, find something sweet for the night time sweet tooth time and then to board the plane.

These guys love to cram themselves on the plane before its their turn and then take forever to sort themselves out and hold the queue up on the plane. (and to sit in the wrong seat and try to get away with it on a FULL PLANE) silly people. We weren’t sat together on the plane, for some reason Annie loves a middle isle seat at the back of the plane. I think she was rethinking her choices looking at her unimpressed face waiting for a while in the aisle before getting to the back of the plane haha. 

Thinking we were budget airlining it, Kenyan Airlines surprised us! A tele with new movies and we were given food (they give you 500ML of fizzy drinks and large beers!! Not that I could keep my eyes open to have this, I just saw it being delivered to people. So skipped on that and missed out on my money’s worth there haha!

Iv’e began to realise that my new travel companion (Annie) is one of those travellers where nothing goes smooooothly. 
Firstly in Dubai, she approached the Smart gate and it didn’t work straight away so the back gate reopened and instead of letting her exit or read her passport to the scanner and guy proceeded to walk into the booth with her before she shouted at him to move. HAHA. The duffle bag is not working well for her, security checks getting onto the plane took a while as they couldn’t print her boarding ticket (not sure why it was needed) and the visa wasn’t going through either, Annie chose the seat at the back of the plane that didn’t make her happy waiting, found out after disembarking the plane she has sat next to the ones who don’t know how to work a seatbelt or use the headphones or want to use their own arm rest to which she had to assist her with during the flight. She did have a women after my own heart sat next to her, asking for two ‘plane size’ wines and then another to which the steward said you have enough, so she opted for asking the steward on the other side of her (plus side to sitting in the middle of the plane after all! haha) Let’s hope Annie gets into the country okay, otherwise I am going it alone haha.

So turns out you dont need very much time in Nairobi Airport Terminal 1A, its extremely tiny! haha. The fact that we had only hand luggage allowed us through the process a lot faster. But downside we had to wait outside for our driver for almost an hour, upside it was VERY fresh and cool outside. So very pleasant actually!

Kenneth (Ken) arrived at 6AM, he seemed lovely. Didn’t realise he was going to be our driver and guide for the entire time! Our big minivan seated for 8 people was just for us! Very lovely :)
Ken, faffed about in the slow lane getting out of the airport, we met the organiser in Nairobi and finished the payment. We were on our way out of the city, something I was very keen of because no one wants to be in a city in a minivan at rush hour, especially when there are no traffic lights in sight on any junction or roundabout! haha.

Slept some of the way, I’m too nosey to sleep the entire way. I enjoy watching the world go by in places like this. People happy with nothing, the way they live on the edge crossing the the 6 lane highway in flip flops with a bag of potatoes on their head and riding their motorbike that could just swell be a push bike the opposite way to the traffic down the sand lane (hard lane) although I am surprised at Nairobi, it is extremely clean! They clearly have very good sweepers here! The red sand is swept and clean. I havent seen a homeless person yet either.

We got to a lookout point, a road going down the side of a mountain looking out over a valley which coincidentally was the Masai Country. Beautiful view, a tourist stop of course! BUT it wasn’t expensive and they were cooking what we found out was ‘Mandasi’ it was sweet bread thrown into a bowl of oil that inflated and was absolutely DELICIOUS!

We moved after coffee and mandasi, I couldn’t keep my eyes open for much time again, and soon we were on our next stop for petrol and turns out a tyre change which was well in line with the timing of pee pee time. But then we had to change the tyre, bored and thinking its time for snacks but now were couldn’t get out the van because we were stuck inside the van with it being hoisted up in the garage. Nevermind… there will be time later for snacks for sure. We stopped for a third time after another nap at a very tourist trap place, great paintings and souvenirs. I loved the look of paintings similar to my one from zanzibar but instead of $50 he wanted $350 for it. So I laughed at him and walked away before I told him it wasn’t as good as the one I have. So….. we went to the restaurant had out first kenyan beer and some pringles. YumYumYum.

We took a Tusker Cider for the road, it was lovely but we had to wait until we were half way to the end point because otherwise I may have peed myself. Only trouble was that when I reached the hotel I was almost peeing myself so I hoped for the short and sweet welcome spiel to the hotel and q quick get away to the room. But I wasn’t in luck, she was VERY slow in talking about the hotel and amenities and then had the bell boy take us to our lodge which appeared he would walk EXTREMELY slow to and then want to show us around. I went straight to the toilet (once I found it behind the 100+ curtains) yes the toilet did not have a door but a thick curtain. haha! This would be fun if there was a smell.

there didn’t seem to be any electric, we didn’t mind. We went to the pool (cold and dirty) which I fell asleep lying on the side of, luckily Annie was there I am sure I would have fallen in to the pool, and then afterwards for lunch, there weren’t many of us assuming a lot of the guests where at the reserve finding animals. Decent food, decent restaurant sat outside to eat and have another beer! Then it was almost time to meet with Ken again and get our Safari on!! - How exciting!

From the hotel to the entrance of the reserve wasn’t far, albeit a 10 minute drive. The safari started when we left our hotel, baboons, antelope and jackals were what we saw first! 
We stopped outside the reserve and of course the street women with their tacky homemade beads, necklaces and souvenirs attacked the van. Not seen it this bad before I am sure they would have climbed in through the roof if it was open because they ere trying all sorts to open windows and get into the van. Made me think of the scary films where the demons and zombies try to get themselves in. The one didn’t like that she could see me take a short video (of course content for the reel) but she insisted on getting money, to which I ‘deleted’ the video slammed my phone against the window and asked her where it was. She was someone I would have liked to barter or fight with haha. Annie, not so used to or comfortable with things like this by the looks lol.

We were soon moving into the reserve but first Ken opened the door to our van to open our roof ready for SAFARI!

As soon as we entered the reserve we say water buffalos, zebras and GIRAFFES! I was pleasantly surprised to the fact that it was very green and not safari sand and dead grass like I see on documentaries and imagine. They had plenty to eat which was lovely! 
Ken would stop and pull up along side of the animals to give us time to stare and admire. There was always a question and he would always have an answer. One was the pouching situation, this was apparently next to none now because Africa had swayed China into being apart of the conservation team and saving animals and turns out they were the biggest buyers for ivory (not surprised). So pouching is slowly becoming a nothing as locals are also apart of the no pouching rule because they get support and money from the government if they catch or are involved with pouching plans.

We saw a leopard very soon, which was VERY unlikely because they are nocturnal unless they are looking to pouch or eat. Annie was a little scaredy cat (pun not intended) the leopard strolled in their slutty cat like way ‘i dont give a s*** who or where you are’ kinda walk. Surprised and disappointed (without being racist) at the amount of ignorant, disrespectful and loud chinese tourists there were everywhere.

We moved on from being next to these annoyances and found a herd of wonderful elephants, hyenas and CHEETAHS! silly fancy cats who want to just show off their sexy patterns and face. Hienna’s are supposed to be happy all the time because they mate 6 times a day, but the hyenas in masai mara south are scruffy, old, dirty, miserable and look lonely to us. Still one of the ugly 5 they are indeed. 

The list of what we saw is below because honestly trying to remember and name them all ahead of time is not possible. But OMG what an awesome experience, being caged is so much better than them being caged! 

Masai Mara Spottings Day 1: 
Water buck
Baboons
Side stripped Jackal
Hyena
African elephant
Leopard
African buffalo
Cheetahs
Giraffe
Plain zebras
Aardwolf
Antelope
Bushbuck
Eland
Grants gazelles
Thomson gazelle
Impala
Oribi
Ostrich
Eagle
Egyptian goose
Wart hog

We got back for 07:30PM, had a beer and some dinner. Realised that there was a lot of chinese dishes on the menu of buffet and the BBQ station which definitely should have been for meat in the MASAI MARA had kenyan chefs cooking PACKET NOODLES with a chinese man over looking them cook them for the chinese tourists - awful. Should be ashamed. 

We had our dinner and it was soon ready for a proper night sleep to lie flat then sleep sat up right. Shower and electricty was now available because it was passed 6PM, shower was HOT, not too powerful but did the trick! The bed comfortable however the mozzy nets were a nuisance as always. Behind the wall of curtains the glass windows opened with mozzy nets fixed so it was perfect we could open them without worrying about an animal or person jumping into to the hut and we could listen to the wildlife and insects with fresh air flying through the windows. Not that Annie was impressed with this I dont think a little worried about insects and mosquitos lol. But it was FRESH and the bed was comfy, although the mattress I feel old and with potential of denting in the middle with my body imprinted.

Goodnight - God Bless Africa