Coming down into a valley after a 4 hour drive and seeing the snowy top of Mt.Kilimanjaro peek through the clouds was a breathtaking sight, reassuring us that the next week in Amboseli was going to be a good one. On the ride there we saw an elephant in the bush as well as a family of giraffes at dusk. We arrived at camp in Amboseli just before dinner time, what we didn't know was how gorgeous this place was going to be. "Glamping" to the max. We stayed at Kibo Safari Camp in Amboseli, every morning we had a view of Mt.Kilimanjaro and every afternoon we had time to jump in the pool under acacias and palm trees..... Oh right and we did some learning in between....
The first day we were there we went and interviewed farmers in the Amboseli region. Traditionally, the land here was Maasai land, who are pastoralists but now we are seeing the Maasai selling or leasing their land to farmers of other ethnic groups for cultivation. Although the land is not great for cultivation, the farmers are able in many cases to make a profit and surprisingly, it is the Maasai land owners that actually are losing out as they don't make as much from leasing as they would from actually farming the land. We asked them questions about what they were growing, how much they yielded in a season, how much they made, what they leased the land for, etc...We asked them about water usage and who they shared the water with to which all the answered were "with the people upstream". There are many pastoralist groups downstream that need water for their herds and is running out as more and more farmers settle in the area, yet the only concern is with people upstream as those are the people who could use all 'your' water. We also were able to question them about the National Park. During the rainy season, animals will migrate from the park to the surrounding group ranches as there is plenty of water and food to be able to expand their migration routes and territories. However, outside of the park is where these farmers are and they have many problems with elephants, zebras and other ungulates ruining their crops causing much distress. When asked about the park, many of them said they had no use for it, that it was purely for tourism. Many wanted it to be fenced in so that the wildlife would stop ruining their crops, and main source of income. Even if the government stepped in to patrol an area and scare away elephants roaming through peoples shambas would help the situation. That, unfortunately, is a huge cause to some serious wildlife mismanagement and conservation issues in Kenya; the struggle between conserving wildlife and not being able to support the people that deal with the wildlife on a daily basis. It is so vital for Kenya conservationists to realize what is at stake if the people of Kenya are not involved in the wildlife, if they don't see it as an asset then protecting it will be so much harder.
Later that day we went to a cultural Manyatta which is a traditional Maasai village used for cultural tourism. Basically, all the people there live there in order to make money off of tourism and they dress up in traditional dress and show you around their "traditional" village and assure you that it's authentic. When we arrived there, they were all waiting for us outside of the village and began to sing and dance. The men have a jumping contest and the women do a shoulder dance where we all join in. Then we were shown around the village which is set up with an outer wall (boma) made from dead thorny acacia branches surrounding about 10-15 stick and dung houses almost in a circle then another boma in the center, where the cattle and sheep are kept safe at night. We learned about traditional medicine (even "Maasai manpower" to support their polygamous lifestyle) and then we all sat down with small groups and had a Q&A session. We asked about how much money they make being a part of a cultural Manyatta and who was in charge of the money. They make between 500 and 1000 ksh (6-11 USD) per tourist and during the busy season they get about 3 vans a week although the handling of the money is not always fair. They also felt as if they did not learn anything from the tourists and that they were only there to teach them about their lives, which in my personal opinion is sad. I think when you go to learn about a new culture, its important for the opportunity for cultural exchange. This trip also changed my opinions about cultural Manyattas. At first I was disappointed that a people would "sell out" their culture, but I am now seeing that it might be a great way to preserve a struggling culture in an ever changing world. That being said, people visiting these places need to be culturally sensitive and mindful of what they do, say and wear. (They also need to make sure they see their money get to the people and not only to corrupt tour drivers, but that's another discussion). I also think it should be known to tourists that this is how TRADITIONAL Maasai people live and not necessarily how ALL Maasai live today.
At the end of our trip when we were heading to the cars, there was a huge commotion and all of a sudden everyone was running up the hill, away from the cars. I asked a Maasai man what all the commotion was about, "Ndovu!". I started running to where everyone was and there was not one, but two elephants grazing in the bush. Both with huge sets of tusks. Let me tell you, you don't realize how huge an elephant it until there is one ten feet away from you on the ground. Especially when they notice you're there and stare at you. Then you not only realize how huge and powerful these gorgeous beings are, but how absolutely intelligent they are.
The next day, we went on a SAFARI in Amboseli National Park! We woke up at 6 and headed out to maximize our chances of seeing animals as they migrate in and out of the park. It worked. We saw over 30 different species of birds and mammals including some of the favorites, elephants, cheetahs, hippos and ostriches. I will make another blog post for pictures of our safari as I took over 300 of them :) get excited. We took a lunch break back at the camp and then returned to the park at 4. As the sun was setting, we were driving along the road, Mt. Kilimanjaro to the south and as if that wasn't a gorgeous sight in itself, a herd of about 50 elephants grazing to the north decided to cross the road, surrounding our car to head toward the mountain. They are incredible! So intelligent. The image of the orange glow on elephant backs with Kili in the background was so incredibly beautiful.
We also did a one night home-stay with a Maasai family. Charlotte and I stayed together with a family who owned about 60 cows and probably 60 goats and sheep as well. The Manyatta we stayed in had 3 rooms, a bedroom/kitchen, a sitting area and another bedroom. We stayed right in the dung hut on a cowhide and straw bed, right next to the kitchen. On the first night we cooked with our translator and mother then went to the field to help our father herd the livestock in for the night. I really liked herding the goats, its a new found talent of mine; goat whisperer. (Shout out to Aunt D!) So in order to maintain the right number of goats in a herd and not permanently castrate them, the billy goats have chastity belts. Basically they strap on a wooden board to their bellies that hangs down so they can't reproduce. I thought that was interesting, you needed to know. While we were out in the field, a herd of about 10 elephants was on the edge of the bush, crossing to the watering spigot, once again I was amazed at how graceful they are. After all the herding was over, we had dinner and we looked at the stars which are soooooo clear here! Then it was time for (another) cup of chai and bedtime. I thought I was going to have a horrible night's sleep on the cowhide mattress, but we both actually slept pretty well. It got pretty smoky in the hut, but there were no bugs so it was all good.
The next day, we woke up and had pancakes for breakfast, then got right to work. We fetched water in buckets which we carried like the Maasai women, on our backs with a leather strap around our foreheads. Then we did some poop smearing to repair the dung hut and got artsy. Organic. After that we had lunch and we didn't even wash our hands! (just kidding.) We collected firewood and carried it in the same manner as we did the water. Early afternoon we sat on a hide mat under an acacia tree and make jewelry with our mother and we were able to talk to our father. We asked him about his wives (he has 3, which means he is well off) and about his duties. He only has one leg and he was asking us about healthcare in America and prosthetic limbs which was just such a cool conversation to have with him. After that we said our goodbyes and thank yous and were picked up by our safari drivers. I am so grateful to be able to have all the experiences I have had before, there really is not other way to learn about this area than to just immerse yourself into it.
On Friday, we were able to interview local people about gender roles, environment, government and tourism. We learned so much from the different groups of women, elders, farmers and pastoralists. There is so much going on in the Amboseli area as Kenya continues to develop, it will be interesting to see in the next 30 years how the government handles the people in this region, the environment and how tourism continues to effect the lives of so many people here.
Saturday we just had a day off. We got to sleep in! I had a late breakfast, did some reading, got a massage, hung out by the pool for the majority of the day and ended it by laying on the pool deck looking at the stars. We saw at least 7 shooting stars. Then a huge guy from Slovenia (not Slovakia) came up to us and tried to start a conversation like this *points to stars* "Ohh you see the sunshine.." *awkward pause* "ha ha JOKE". Then we all died laughing, his friends came and jumped in the pool, had a broken conversation about safaris and that was that. So random. Anyways, Amboseli was paradise and I really can't wait to go back someday!
Pictures are coming I promise! I just wanted to get this part out, I still have to tell you about Mombasa! Keep reading!
Ferocious Love, SafariSam
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