Serengeti, Kenya - February, 1993

From "Travels in a Blue Chair" - a series of short stories

          One of the things that interested me most when I was a disabled kid sitting in front of the TV, was nature programming.  I saw many far off places and unusual animals.  It was the thrill of a lifetime when in 1993 on a visit to Kenya, my friend Wayne suggested that we fly out to the Masai Mara, Kenya’s portion of the Serengeti Plain, for two days of camping.  I didn’t know if I could do it, but if he was willing to take me, then I was definitely going to give it a try.

             We travelled for two hours in the early morning on a trip from Nakuru, where Wayne was working, to the Kenyan capital of Nairobi.  Just before lunch, we arrived at a small airstrip to catch our Cessna flight to the Masai Mara, which is located near the western border with Tanzania.  Wayne is a notoriously bad flyer and would’ve been much happier on the flight if he’d been drunk.  Of course I took advantage of the opportunity to mock him and hand him my camcorder, enticing him to film some of the landscape.

             Small clouds passed as we ascended over the African countryside.  Green trees and thick forests gave way to open pastures.  I could never have imagined the wondrous beauty of this continent and I looked down, wondering what animals were playing their daily game of life and death.  The Africa of open fields and animal migration is slowly fading into history, as fences are erected and forests are brought down to clear land for planting.  This is exactly what happened in North America and ultimately led to the end of the buffalo and the First Nation’s way of life.

             We arrived at the Mara Safari Lodge on the Mara River and found the way to our “tent”, which was to be home for the next few days.  Inside were two large, single beds, a shower that I could easily get into, a toilet and a marble vanity.  It was not exactly roughing it in the wilds of Africa, but Wayne and I decided we could tolerate it.  I’d purchased a bottle of Bailey’s at a store in Nakuru before we left, paying an outrageous $50 U.S., but Wayne had never tasted the drink before and I knew we’d have to share a special toast when we arrived.  He loved it and to this day, when we get together, it’s a tradition to share a Bailey’s on renewing our friendship.

             We headed into the lounge for a beer, following a short afternoon nap and met a fellow wildlife enthusiast from Sri Lanka, named Hamza, who worked for a packaging company and had travelled to Canada numerous times with work.  Hamza had a slight speech impediment due to losing part of his lower jaw to cancer, but we could understand him perfectly and he fit right in with the two of us.  We enjoyed a Tusker out on the patio overlooking the fast rushing brown Mara River, while a blue kingfisher serenaded us as he scanned the water for a meal.

             The three of us congregated outside the Lodge with a British couple and their two young children for our first safari in a Land Rover.  As we moved out into the long, brown grass of the savannah, raindrops began to fall.  Our Kenyan guide stopped by the side of the road to manually put up the top.  We were all set as the rain started to pound down and it wasn’t long before we were rewarded.

             A pair of young male cheetahs became our first quarry and they looked so cute as they huddled together for a long while in the rain.  The guide suggested that they’d just been abandoned by their mother and were setting out for the first time to stake out a territory.  We moved on and it wasn’t long before we spotted a hyena.  They’re not large and their back legs seem shorter than the front, but when the animal yawned, we gasped at the sight of its massive teeth.  As the terrain moved from grassland to green scrub, we finally saw a herd of gnu, also known as wildebeests.  It was exciting to see the topi, zebra and Thompson’s gazelles congregate and I wondered what predator’s eyes might have been watching from behind a rock or shrub.

             The driver obviously knew his game park quite well, as he revved up the engine for a short ride to where he’d spotted a pride of lions the previous day.  Sure enough, as we rounded a bend and came to a stand of trees near the edge of a forest, we were treated to the sight of a pride of lions.  They were quite comfortable with people watching from the truck as the male, with his magnificent mane, gently licked a cub as he lay on the wet ground, under a tree, out of the rain.  I’d never realized how gentle a male could be.  I knew that the lionesses were excellent protectors, but this seemed rare to me.  The lion was quite cute as he groomed his paw.  For the most part, the five or six lionesses stayed off to the side, away from the male, but the cubs romped all over the distance between them.  The rain finally abated and some of the mud and water holes that were left became so large, I thought the Land Rover would become submerged, but we made it home.  It was time for a Bailey’s and dinner in the lounge.

             As we ate our chicken and potatoes while sipping on a cold Tusker, some of the local Masai, dressed in their traditional red garb and brandishing spears, entered the lounge and began to chant and sing in their native tongue.  Masai warriors always wear red, so if they’re injured in battle, their adversary won’t know they’ve been hurt.  The Masai are nomadic shepherds and a staple food is a drink made from a combination of milk and blood from the cattle they own.  They have perfected a technique to draw blood from the neck of the animal without causing injury or long-term negative effect to the beast.  In one of the main movements of the dance, each member in turn would sing and then jump up as high as he could.  I think this is probably important because in the rainy season, when the grasses are high, it’s important to be able to jump to keep a lookout for predators that may attack and reduce the size of the herd.  Even though it was totally staged for the tourists, I must confess that we enjoyed it immensely.  We were told that the songs were authentic.

             After a great night’s sleep, at least for me, we gathered again in the lobby for another day’s safari.  Wayne pointed out a huge Nile perch that weighed 175 pounds, caught in 1968, mounted on the wall of the lobby.  He suggested that the guy who landed the fish was either eaten by it or was a complete maniac.  It was just daybreak when we departed and the African landscape was beginning to stir to the sound of excited birds in the cool breeze.  We moved easily through more herds of antelope and then glimpsed an array of crowned cranes and secretary birds.  Suddenly, a jackal sprang out of the grass, attacking one of the hapless fowl, but was denied its meal, as the alert birds quickly made flight.  Rolling along the open spaces of the Mara, we happened upon a herd of ominous looking Cape Buffalo.  These animals must be a wonderful meal for lions, cheetahs or leopards, but taking them down is likely risky.  The fearsome curved horns, sharp hooves and stocky muscular bodies, made it apparent that any animal trying to make a meal of them would have a heck of a fight on its hands.

             The weather was much better than the previous day, but some of the huge water-filled depressions in the road were still present.  We approached each of them with dread, but our driver maneuvered the vehicle deftly through the waves without getting stuck in the mud.  We watched from the front to see what it looked like as the next truck in the convoy made its way through the huge puddle.  As lunch approached, we came upon a flock of huge ostriches loping along the terrain.  As the large birds moved by, a herd of zebras barely blinked and continued to graze.

             Next on the list of Africa’s “Big Five” animals, were two rhinoceroses that were not wild, but part of a captive breeding program to help increase the numbers of this highly poached animal.  They’re impressive beasts with poor eyesight and nasty tempers, but these specimens were relatively docile and Wayne took the opportunity to get out and pose for a photograph.  After two days out of my blue chair and in the front seat of this bumpy ride, my sore bum was starting to get the better of me.  We began to make our way back to camp and as we did, another herd of antelope seemed to gather to bid us farewell.

             The Mara River, which ran beside our tent, had unusual residents each afternoon.  As we returned from the day’s excursion, we decided to go to the edge of the safari park and observe a group of hippos wading in the muddy water.  These beasts are massive, but they’re also quite slow and rather quiet, except for low grunting noises. They’re so big and have such small legs, that they require the buoyant force of the water to keep them upright, although in the evenings, they come out on land to eat grass.  There were about fourteen of them in this particular pool, but they all seemed to be getting along very well.  The only sound was of them expelling their breath in a heavy fashion from their lungs or the occasional splash.  The scene was very tranquil and while lazing about, they occasionally opened their mouths to yawn, revealing amazingly large canine teeth.

             Our trip to this portion of the Serengeti was coming to an end.  As we made our way to the landing strip for takeoff, a group of giraffes watched and short rain showers put in another appearance.  We still had a bit of Bailey’s left and I gave it to Wayne to finish off.  This time I decided to leave him alone and let him sleep on our return flight to Nairobi

© 1993 - Walt Balenovich