Old and new, firsts and lasts.

roadside I still have a long African to do list, certainly not as long as it was two years ago. We have certainly see and done a lot in Kenya. But we haven’t been to Lakes Victoria or Turkana, the Kakamega forest, Lamu,  the ancient burial mounds of Thimlich Ohinga or driven through the Tugen Hills and Kerio valley to Eldoret (Kenya’s Grand Canyon).

I am still discovering things in Nairobi.  With our most recent guests, Jim and Ann, we discovered one more Nairobi gem and a surprise in the Abedares.  While the boys were golfing at the Muthaiga Golf Club, Ann and I went to Amani ya Juu on Riverside Drive.  I had been in the shop before, but since it had been a Saturday, I wasn’t able to have a tour

Amani ya Juu means “Peace from Above” in Swahili. Amani is a sewing and reconciliation program for marginalized women in Africa. Women from many African nations and cultures are learning to work together through faith in God who provides a higher peace that transcends cultural and ethnic differences.

Amani is a proud member of the Fair Trade Federation and committed to holistic development. Our wide selection of high-quality handbags, home & kitchen décor, jewelry, clothing and children’s items are made out of local African materials. Amani began in 1996 with four women sewing place mats together in Nairobi. Since then, Amani has grown to over 100 women representing ethnic groups and experiences from all across Africa. As women return to their homelands, they carry Amani with them. Amani has established a presence of peace in five African nations and two US cities (Washington, DC and Chattanooga, TN). Each Amani center is locally registered and independently managed with support from an international leadership team.

Our guide took us to the top floor of a four-story building.  There, we were welcomed by half a dozen women who stopped their work, gathered around us and sang a Kiswahili song of thanksgiving, for all that God has given them, work, home, community and two special guests.  We each said our names and where we were from as each of the Amani ladies consider themselves refugees, including two women from Kenya.

Everything has meaning, even the colours and pattern of the mosaic on the wall, designed by a Canadian artist.

Amani Ya Juu sewing room

The quilt, 11 of the squares represent the countries they come from, the 12th represents a fractured Africa.

Brightly dyed and printed fabric hanging on the line to dry.

 

We went to the pattern and cutting room, to the materials and supplies room and quality control where each of the 300 different items for sale are inspected.  If any item does not meet their rigourous standards, it is returned to the individual who made it.  Amani Ya Juu supports 100 women and the women get paid for each item that is finished so they are motivated to do their best.  The shop sells bags, purses, quilts, clothing, table and kitchen linens and Christmas items, including an amazing nativity scene, with 25 wooden items in the pockets surrounding the scene and a nap to show which figures hang on which buttons.

From there we went to Spinner’s Web, a one stop shop of fine Kenyan crafts.  While we wandered and admired and shopped, Nelson picked up the boys from their golf game.  It was time for a light lunch at the Norfolk.

Then off to the Masaai Market at the Junction enroute to the Gem.

 

Despite the rains, Daniel, Jonah and the rest of the Ngerende team, gave Jim and Ann the time of their lives in the Maasai Mara.  Here are some of Jim’s spectacular photos

 

No visit with us is complete without a trip to Kitengela glass and I had the pleasure of purchasing some garden jewelry for my friend Caryl.

Followed by lunch at Rolf’s.

This year, we celebrated my birthday with a small gathering of friends for the final party at the Gem.  The weather cooperated and we have a lovely Sunday afternoon.

The Gem ready for a party.

 

Our new table with my Ghanian fabric table cloth.

Dominik doing the honours!

Jim, Angela, Leslie and Kyle

Ann and Carmen

What fun!

A visit to Treetops was on my wish list so Jim and Ann’s visit was the perfect excuse.  While the hotel is old and certainly not a luxury camp, the lodge has historical meaning as the place where Elizabeth went to bed as a Princess and woke up a Queen.  As well, it is situated in the Abedares range. On Saturday morning, the five of us were packed and on the road by 8:30 am.  North of Makuyu we stopped for morning tea at the side of the road (no pullovers here!)

We drove over and around scenic terraced hills, rich with assorted vegetation and crops.

The Treetops package started with lunch at the Outspan Hotel in Nyeri.  This hotel was originally the cottage of Lord Baden Powell.  The grounds include the original cottage as well as lovely well maintained gardens.  We sat on the porch and enjoyed a stunning view with our lunch.  We left Nelson in Nyeri, checked into KWS and then headed to the lodge.  We settled quickly into our rooms and went out for a short game drive.  Here the forest is so think you can barely see 10 feet, but we were occasionally surprised when a breathtaking vista appeared.

Upon our return to the lodge, Jim, Gary and I went for a walk with Amos around the fenced perimeter of the lodge.

The trees still grow through the lodge!

Amos our waking guide. The gun is over 90 years old, but he fired it recently when a Cape Buffalo was threatening someone’s safetly.

Treetops Lodge (originally built as a hunting lodge. You could shoot wildlife while having cocktails on the porch.

As we were returning to the Lodge the first of three elephant families came racing towards the lodge.  We rushed to the roof to watch a total of 34 elephants in three families congregate around the watering hole. Then we went to our rooms where we could watch the antics and behavior up close (merely feet about them).  We were so close, we could hear them coughing and breathing and snorting and rooting around and most spectacular, trumpeting!  Members of the families came and went.  There was a teenage male who was clearly outgrowing his family and seemed ready to be off on his own (as they do) for he was disrupting everyone and everything, challenging other elephants, rubbing and pushing others and generally just stirring up the pot.  I noted one with no tusks (birth defect), one with only one tusk (lost) and a very young one with huge tusks. They were still there when we came back from dinner.  A spot light is kept on the watering hole all night.  You can set the buzzer in your room to on or off. One buzz is for hyena, two for leopard, three for black rhino and, in the case where the elephants haven’t been around,  four for elephants.  I sat on the stool by the open window for ages, until I was practically falling asleep.  The buzzer only rang twice in the night, each time just one ring.  It was fascinating to watch the behavior of the elephants still there around the hyena.  It was an elephant experience unlike any other we have experienced in Africa.

The next morning, I opened the curtains to a breathtaking view of Mt Kenya.

After breakfast, a quick group shot before we went on our own game drive.

The only animal that Ann had been hoping to see in the Mara but didn’t was the elusive leopard. Good thing we had Safari Gari

We drove for over two hours and every corner and hill provided ever more dramatic vistas, though apparently the Cape Buffalo did not appreciate sharing the lookout spot and one make a mock charge. Mock or not, I was sufficiently scared and moved carefully behind the car.

A quick detour to the equator was required for the requisite water experiment and photos straddling the equator.  Did you know that not only the water changes direction depending on the side of the equator (clockwise in the north, counter-clockwise in the south), but also the direction of vines?

 

Lunch at Lily’s Pond, the only Irish pub in the world on the equator (go figure)

Nelson having a good laugh with us over lunch.

 

and a road side pit shop for fruit and veggies on the way home.

Because if you don’t stop, all you need to do is slow down and this happens.

So we have managed to squeeze in a couple more wonderful new things. There are two more Nairobi ‘firsts’ on my list.  If you can come and visit in the next 5 weeks, you can see them with us.

Finding Easter in the Masai Mara

Carmen and Dominic are our closest friends in Nairobi.  We met through their dog Emma, who had a litter of puppies and our relationship grew as one of the puppies, our Tusker, did. Tusker’s energy, enthusiasm and general goofiness belie his 20 months. Surely he should be more mature by now?  But that also means that the four of us have known each other and been friends for that same time.  Where has it gone?  Perhaps living in a foreign country, working in a stressful environment, facing strange and sometimes trying challenges, we don’t waste time or energy with polite courtesies or petty differences.  Perhaps we are more flexible in our criteria of friends (I recall 21 months ago,  Elizabeth L suggesting that I was ‘taking applications for friends’ and thinking that ‘having a pulse’ was my only criteria!) or am I more comfortable at being myself, without all my familiar, but irrelevant armour (where I live, work, went to school, the clothes I wear etc) ? I have been blessed to have met so many diverse and wonderful people and have recognized several kindred spirits and I will hold onto them, in one way or another, for the rest of my life.

It also means that our time is winding up here.  Carmen and Dominik have already booked their final flight home.  Packing lists are being finalized. Details are being sorted.  We all agreed that a weekend away together was in order before departures. Carmen did the legwork, looking into various places.  We landed on the Masai Mara.  The Olare Mara Kempinsky to be exact.  At first, I was a little disappointed that we weren’t going somewhere new, a place that none of us had been before, but it was a different camp in a different location of the Mara and recent news of a very early migration was very exciting.

Easter weekend in Kenya is four days long as both the Friday and the Monday are holidays. We dropped off Tusker at the vet/kennel Thursday night and threw my stuff in a small duffel bag.  Carmen and Dominic picked us up at 7am and we were on our way to Wilson Airport.  Traffic was non-existent and we practically opened the airport 20 minutes later. Lots of time for a cuppa before we left.  And then we were on our way….

It was an uneventful 45 minute flight to the small airstrip where we were met by our guide/driver Phillip.  A short game drive would take us to the camp for lunch.  The landscape was varied, with open plains and hills, brush and bush and green winding riverbed.
We were greeted warmly

and shown to our beautiful, luxurious tent.

The view from our bed.

Our tent and porch.

The bathroom, with toilet, shower, two sinks and a clawfoot tub with a view.

The sitting room of our tent.

 

We got unpacked and settled.  We had lunch and then headed out for an afternoon game drive.

two young ones playing together

Poppa looks on

But then he’s bored.

Eventually, Mom steps in, or rather sits on, one of the offenders.

But the wrestling starts again.

And all that exercise makes one thirsty.

A young sub adult male, out on his own.

This kitty leans into a sibling like Tusker leans into anyone.

 

And keeps leaning…

A group of eight hungry hyenas, outnumbered by the lions, wait patiently for their turn at the scraps.

A smaller group of jackals wait as well.

The foxlike jackal. So pretty.

We saw lots of antelope, Grants and Thompson’s gazelles, topis, banded mongoose, hippos and plovers.

We even saw a small elephant family.  

Rumours of an early migration were not exaggerated.  We saw large herds, restlessly on the move.

It was exciting to see these animals, following their instinct, following patterns, following food.  But I had never seen wildebeests running and then doing a face plant.

As we were heading back towards the camp at the end of the afternoon, we came upon the pride of lions again.  This time, the male and one of the females were mating. The male would chase the female for a few feet, mount her, they growl at each other and in less than 30 seconds, its over. Within 5 – 20 minutes, this repeats. It repeats for upto 72 times in a day, for four days.  No breaks, no eating, no drinking. Ensuring the continuance of your progeny is serious and exhausting work.

We saw this act of survival happen several times, as the sun dropped in the sky.

 

What a spectacular ending to our day’s safair.  No time for a swim,

 

but there was time for a luxurious soak in the tub before dinner.

We went to sleep to the sound of hippos snorting, zebras trotting by, wildebeests grunting and hyenas barking.  Slept like a baby.

Coffee and tea and biscuits were delivered to our tent at 6am and we were off on a damp early morning safari.

A sub adult lion with his kill, being followed by a jackal and a hyena.

Wildebeests on the run.

Can you see the 16 hippos in the muck of this pool?

Like our previous visits to the Mara, the animals were spectacular, breathtaking and hopefully, memorable for the rest of my life.  But for me, the images I hope stay with me forever, images so special and unique to Africa, are those of the sky.  I have yet to craft with words, what these photos can show.  It is times like this that I wish I could paint and my admiration for artists grows sharper.

I never tire of looking at these skies.  Another wonderful day, a holiday, animals, scenery and all great friends.

On Easter Sunday morning, we had our final game drive. We returned for breakfast and after breakfast, we planted the African Green Heart tree (see separate post). We rested in our tent again before we had our lunch.  After all, it had been an exhausting morning (not).

The view from our porch.

Frank and Safari Gari

 

After lunch each couple was presented with a box of 4 carved kisi stone animals. Included in our set was my favorite, Ngiri (warthog).  Carmen and Dominic’s included a male lion.  What can you say?  We said fond farewells to the great staff at the camp (who apparently loved my ‘shang’ Kiswahili or at least found it highly amusing).

Our way back to the airport was our final safari drive.

After the rains

Going through deep water. The water came up to the top of the hood and started to come in our cab at the back.

Elephants usually move silently. This time, all we could hear was the squish, squish, squish of their feet in the soggy ground.

Our final treat was a cheetah.

What a high note.

The Aliokombo waiting lounge!

Carmen and Dominic boarding their plane.

Heading out the Mara, a rainbow says goodbye. 
thank you Carmen and Dominic for the most special time in the Masai Mara.

What a gift. xoxox

A tree in Africa for Alistair

We planted a tree today, in Alistair’s memory.

We are in the Masai Mara for Easter.  We are with our closest friends in Africa, Carmen and Dominik Amrien.  They are Swiss,  and in addition to being archetypically clean and prompt, they are energetic, kind, generous, thoughtful, funny, fun and caring.  They are also Tusker’s mother’s people, which is really how it all started. Our friendship in Kenya is coming to an end, as they leave in two months. While we already have plans to visit each other, we decided several months ago that we should go on weekend away together somewhere in Kenya before they leave.  We settled on Easter weekend and we chose the Masai Mara.

We stayed at the Olare Mara Kempinsky.  It is a tented camp, but by far the nicest camping yet.  We did morning and afternoon game drives, rested and relaxed in the middle of the day and when we were not sleeping at night, we listened to hippos, baboons, hyenas and zebras as well as the peaceful sound of the rain on the canvas above us.

This morning, we planted a tree in memory of Alistair.  Its an African Green Heart tree.  We didn’t select the type of tree, we let the lodge chose it. Having found out the following, it seemed like a perfect choice.

Warburgia ugandensis ssp ugandensis, also known as Uganda/Kenya/East African greenheart or pepper-bark tree or elephant pepper tree (Muthiga in Kikuyu), is an important medicinal species of evergreen tree up to 30m tall and with smooth or scaly, pale green or brown bark, found at 100-2,200m in lowland rainforest, upland dry evergreen forest and also on termitaria in swampy forests in Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi, South Africa and Swaziland Africa.

In Kenya the species occurs widely in highland forests and riverine forests of savannah woodlands such as those found in Masai Mara. It flowers in December-January and seeds in May. The genus is named after Dr Otto Warburg (1859-1938), born in Hamburg, lecturer in botany at the University of Berlin and author of many botanical papers.

The tree is remarkably useful in many ways . . .

Medicine: extracts of most parts (leaf, twigs, stem and root bark) have high antimicrobial activity but stem bark is the most widely used by traditional healers and medicine-men and this is mostly harvested from natural forests. Various plant parts are used to cure or alleviate several ailments such as stomach-ache, constipation, toothache, common cold, cough, fever, muscle pains, weak joints, erectile dysfunction, candidiasis, measles and malaria, as well as livestock diseases, eg. trypanasomiasis. It rivals the widely known neem tree (Azadirachta indica) which is widely used in herbal remedies and claimed to cure around 40 diseases.

Food: Fruit edible; all parts have a hot peppery taste subtly different from chillies. Early Indian immigrants to Kenya, working on the construction of the railway, used the leaves and seeds to flavour curries before the chilli plant was introduced.

Fodder: Leaves, pods and seeds are fed to livestock

Fuel: The wood has high oil content and burns well with an incense-like smell

Timber: Heartwood yellow or greenish, becoming brown on exposure; very fragrant when freshly cut (also persists for several years) smelling like sandalwood. The wood is resistant to insect attack (not termites!) and very strong. It was commonly used for the yoke pole of ox-wagons. Also good for building and furnituret. Dust from milling is very fragrant and cause sneezing!

Gum or resin: used as glue to fix tool handles

Shade/shelter: the dense crown provides good shade.

Soil improver: leaves provide green manure and mulch.

Ornamental: often planted for amenity purposes

So after breakfast, with Carmen and Dominic,  Godrey the gardener, took us to the spot he had prepared. It was near our tent and as we looked at the spot, we could see topie, zebra, gazelle and wildebeest and could hear the river, now moving quickly, behind it.  What a ideal scene. Godfrey had already dug the hole and placed the seedling.  The marker was already in place as well. So Gary and I gently shoveled the dirt around the new plant.  Then Godfrey said we would bless the tree.  He poured the water over the seedling as we washed our hands.  We made a few jokes and laughed and cried. Our friends cried with us.  We miss Alistair.  The ache of the hole in our hearts has never gone away, it can’t ever be replaced or refilled. But we are not alone.  We have learned, we continue to learn to deal with it, to make the best of it, and to grow from it, as he would have wanted us to do.

 

And so it seems fitting, as we approach what would have been his 19th birthday, at a time when we celebrate the Resurrection of Christ,  that we have planted an African Green Heart tree.  The will grow tall quickly, it will help others heal and it  will have a magnificent view over a majestic land filled with God’s creatures. We have brought Alistair (and Spencer literally and figuratively) to Africa with us.  And just has he has left a bit of himself with so many of his family and friends, we shall leave a bit of him, his memory, in Africa.

Here is what the tree will look like in a couple of years.

 

Africa has helped us heal.  We have lived in a different part of the world.  We are reminded constantly of our good fortune.  We have made acquaintances and friendships.  We have explored.  We have risen, for the most part, to the challenges.  We have made wonderful, new, lifelong friends.  We have been blessed.

Planting the tree today will remain a special part of this journey.

 

view of the Masai Mara from the tree.

Love you forever, Bobo.  xoxox