Just About Everything

After the wonderful experience at Lake Naivasha , we set off for Hell's Gate National park. Located close to Lake Naivasha, Hell's Gate National Park was established in 1984 and is a smaller park compared to other national parks in Africa. However, this park is unique and provides an experience that one can’t truly get in other national parks! The unique landscape of Hell’s gate is what appealed to me the most. The name comes from a small break in the cliffs creating a gap between them that looks like an entrance or gate, and the gate brings you into a volcanic area, an area full of geothermal activities, geysers, hot springs… This is one of the national parks that allow you to cycle and walk inside. It is also a very popular place for hiking. That’s why it is so unique…you can get as close to nature as possible, see the animals in their natural habitat and not from the confines of a vehicle! I wish we had the time to experience the park by walking and cycling aroun...

Lake Naivasha, Kenya After an exhilarating time at Masai Mara , we set off for Lake Naivasha early morning on day 3. Located in Nakuru County in Naivasha, Lake Naivasha is  around 280 km from Masai Mara, it took us 5-6 hours to reach by road. Lake Naivasha is a part of the Great Rift Valley. The name comes from the local Masai name Nai'posha. Nai Posha means rough water which may arise due to the sudden storms. The best way to see the lake is to hire a boat. It was a wonderful ride...the lake is home to various birds, Hippos, and is surrounded by forest …we saw Giraffes, Zebras, Wildebeests on the shore of the Lake as well. If you are in Kenya, and should you have time, I would recommend that you spend a day at Naivasha for sure.We stayed at the Lake Naivasha Country club. Serene, green, and beautiful, with the lake right next to it, we enjoyed our stay there. One of my favourite pictures from this trip was at the Country club is below...this is what we saw when we...

Coming of age, traditional jumping dance at Masai village Masai Village During our Masai Mara trip, we visited a Masai village. which was not far from the park.The entry fee was around $30/head.The proceeds from the fee goes towards the village school.The fee allowed us to to take pictures and videos as well. We spent around 40 mins in the village...we were welcomed by Masai men and women with their traditional dances which we enjoyed a lot...and joined in as well. I have included the videos at the end of this post.The jumping dance is a part of the the coming of age ceremony. We also got a tour inside one of the huts in the village. The visit ended with us buying some handcrafted items that the village women had put up for sale. We probably spent around 40 min at the village. We had to rush back because we wanted to get back to the park and complete our safari while there was time...our last day at Masai and we wanted to make the most of it. What I really m...

Lioness with cubs at Masai Mara Day two and our last day at Masai Mara was even more exciting! After a wonderful Day one at Masai Mara , we were all set to have an even better day two...we set off after a hearty breakfast.Our plan was to spend as much time as we could at the park. And day two did not disappoint, it was another day in Paradise Masai Mara! Started out with a Leopard sighting and ended with a pride of Lions!!! In between….wild Buffalo, Wildebeests, Zebras, Giraffes, Ostriches, Deer, birds,  a visit to Masai village ,  Hippopotamus, and  Banded Mongoose kept us at our highest high! The lodge we stayed in “Keekorok Lodge,Sun Africa Hotels” was beautiful. We did not get much time at the lodge but whatever little time we did manage to spend in the lodge, it was blissful…birds, scenic beauty, and the water body next to the lodge was lovely...it is home to quite a few Hippos who seem to be having an awesome time! We watched from a safe ...

Masai Mara has been one of my dream destinations for as long as I remember.... My Masai Mara travel plan took a while to materialise because I wanted my father to accompany us. He has been instrumental in getting all of us interested in wild life! I still remember one of the first books on wildlife that my dad gave me from his bookshelf was a book of snakes (although I can’t say that I developed a liking from snakes!) Going to Masai Mara without my dad was unthinkable!  Since his health has not been that good in the past few years, I wanted him to get better before recommending this trip to him! He was hesitant, but finally gave in to my persuasion:) and our team of five (my parents, my sister, niece, and I were ready for Mara!) Because our parents were travelling with us we did not want our trip to be too long or too hectic…we managed to keep it short, but it did end up being hectic considering the distances we had to travel. However, it was all worth it, every bi...