Trips

Sat., 8/5/2017 – Nairobi to Lake Nakuru
        Heading out of Nairobi toward Lake Nakuru, we stopped at the Rothschild Giraffe Center founded in 1979 with the rescue of five rare Rothschild giraffes.  We held food pellets in our hand and the giraffes would reach over and use their tongues and lips to take them to eat.  They are all “cute” with big eyes and long eyelashes.  We learned at a presentation that giraffes communicate with their eyelashes.  Their tongues are blue from melanin that keeps the tongue from getting sunburned because it is sticking out most of the day gathering leaves to eat.  They sleep standing up or leaning against a tree and sleep only 20 minutes to two hours a day.

Sign at the Rothschild Giraffe Center	Rothschild Giraffe Center - Begging
Jason feeding a giraffe	Gale's turn
The next stop was at Karen Blixen’s House (now a museum).  She was the Danish author who wrote “Out of Africa.”  Part of the movie was filmed at the house.  We sat outside and heard the story of Karen and the house and then went in to tour the house.  The Danish government gave the house to the Kenyan government on the day of their independence, Dec. 12, 1963.  Meryl Streep and Robert Redford were not home!
Karen Blixen Museum	View of the Ngorongoro Hills (if you look just above the trees that have grown up over the years)
Karen Blixen Museum - farm machinery	Next stop was at the place where Kazuri beads are made.  Two women established the factory in 1975 to give employment to women who are single mothers or handicapped.  We toured the buildings where clay is prepared, beads are shaped and a hole poked through, then kiln dried, painted, glazed, and strung.  The women rotate through the process so they don’t get bored.  We talked to “Mother Elizabeth” who has been working there for 40 years.  The women burst into a singing chant at one point.         We ate lunch at a fancy country club, Karen Country Lodge.  The chef explained each dish.  Arrowroot was interesting.
Mother Elizabeth	Kazuri Bead making
Kazuri Bead making	Kazuri Bead making
Kazuri Bead making	Kazuri Bead making
The beads are also used for other works of art	Kazuri also makes some pottery
Our trip to Lake Nakuru took us along the road above and through the Great Rift Valley. The traffic and driving habits were impossible!  The road is only two narrow lanes wide.  More than half of the vehicles were slow moving large and small trucks and buses.   Most of these were overloaded and underpowered.  The cars passed and dove back in with bare misses but all knew how to play the road game.  Our driver, Steve, was very skilled and gave us a thrilling ride. We stopped once to look down into the Great Rift Valley where homo sapiens' Eve is thought to have begun our human race. All in all it was a wild ride.
Traffic on the road to Lake Nakuru	Baboons and traffic on the road to Lake Nakuru
Very interesting driving! So glad that Steve was at the wheel	Great Rift Valley
Great Rift Valley	Scene along the road to Lake Nakuru
Along the road to Lake Nakuru	Roasted corn vendor along the road to Lake Nakuru
Along the road to Lake Nakuru - very skinny cows	Along the road to Lake Nakuru - goats will eat anything
We arrived at our lodge, Sentrim Elementaita, in one piece (a miracle!) had a little time to settle in before we had a briefing, and then had another fancy buffet with lots of soup, salad, main dishes, and dessert.         Our “hut” is nice with a veranda looking at Lake Elementaita, a large room with sitting area, and a nice shower in the bathroom.  It is nicer than our last hotel.
Lake Elementaita - from our lodge	Lake Elementaita - from our lodge - morning reflection
Sun., 8/6/2017 – Lake Nakuru National Park         Today we explored Lake Nakuru National Park.  The lake is one of several on the floor of the Rift Valley.  We left the lodge at 7 AM and spent the next six hours spotting African animals in the park. The impala were in one of two groups at this time of year: all male or breeding herds of all females and young ones with one impressive male who contains the herd and chases off other males. Our first lion was a large male who walked along a fence line near the road, so we saw lots of him.  The rhinos were lying down so we only saw them move their ears.
Entrance to Lake Nakuru National Park
Cape Buffalo - one of the most dangerous animals in Africa	Impala - the Park is close to the city
Impalas having a discussion	Zebras taking turns at the water hole
Waterbuck	Grey Crowned Crane
Lion	Lion
Lion	Lion
Yellow fever trees - Acacias	Dead trees in lake
Baboon	Vervet Monkey
Black-headed Weaverbird and nests	Yellow Acacia
White Rhinos	Impalas and White Rhinos
African Spoonbill	Warthogs and White Rhinos
Curious Rothschild Giraffe	Grant's Gazelles
Southern Ground Hornbill

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