Shinkou

June 29, 2011 Maasai Mara, Kenya
It took about 3 hours from Kisii to get to the outskirts of Maasai Mara. It was an additional 2-3 hours of hard driving in our matatu. We really needed a four wheel drive vehicle! The scenery kept changing. There was a vastness of flat land spotted with nettle and acacias which hills in the background. Then there would be a blur of color in the distance. It would be Maasai shepherds, sometimes on cell phones! There were cows and cows............and then there would be an occasional antelope. And then a wildebeest! And then there were herds! We arrived at The Fig Tree in Maasai Mara - a settlement along a river in the middle of the Kenyan side of the Serengeti Desert!

The Fig Tree is aptly named - there is a huge ancient fig tree in the main foyer. This place is lush thanks to the river. Bougainvilleas abound! There is an entrance bridge over the river which opens up the the courtyard with the fig tree. Each cabin is a military-style tent erected on a stone slab foundation facing the river. There is hardwood floor in the tent and the bathroom is tiled. There are two single beds with mosquito netting, a desk, sporadic internet and a closet. The first thing our team did was to hit the showers!!!! After two days of dung work, we all needed to be cleaned off. There was hot water for a few hours in the morning and a few hours at night. There was electricity during specified hours as well as internet. Since we arrived near dinner time, we were showered, rested and ready for a late night dinner!

The dining room was set up buffet style. The food was excellent. The disappointment was the desserts. The Kenyans can cook but they do not have the American sweet tooth mastered yet. Off to bed early as we have a 6am safari!!! The moon did not shine this night. It was dark as pitch in the tent! And it was loud and noisy! I woke up to hear what I had originally thought was a dolphin jumping in the ocean! Now that I think about it, it must have been a hippo in the river! I also heard so many birds. I didn't know they were nocturnal! This is truly an amazing place - such sharp contrasts! Sitting in the Serengeti Desert in a tent, under mosquito netting over hardwood floors on the internet sipping on chilled bottled water. Whoa!