Day 6 May 11, 2025 Masai Mara to Nairobi
Another early breakfast with departure scheduled for 7:30. The drive back to Nairobi takes about 5.5 hours including two bathroom stops. Traffic is terrible again but not as bad as when we left Nairobi. It’s Sunday and still lots of trucks on the road. Some of our route is the same and some is different. Unfortunately at this point a lot of it looks alike. Still local markets but some businesses are closed for Sunday. About 45% of the population is Christian.
We did see one truck on its side. That slowed things down a little bit. Didn’t look like anyone was hurt. Only saw one vehicle so the driver may have lost control or fell asleep.
We are on our own for lunch. They dropped us off at a large shopping mall. Very upscale complete with a Burger King, Dominos and Cold Stone Creamery. Today is Mother’s Day. They celebrate it here as well. Lots of families were out to celebrate. They only gave us an hour so no time for shopping. That was just fine with us. We got a local pizza which as expected was different from home but still good.
After lunch we went to the Karen Blixen Museum. Karen was the subject of the movie Out of Africa. The museum is her house. Many of the furnishings were hers. Some of the clothes hanging in the closet were used in the movie. We didn’t really have long enough here because it was threatening to rain and the guides wanted us to get to the giraffe center. The museum did not allow photos to be taken on the inside. Several books that Karen wrote were on display as well as many of her paintings. It is a beautiful home even now. The home was built in 1912 using the very best materials. Now we need to see the movie again.
Off to the Giraffe Center. This is really crowded. Lots of local people are out. We are given a small bowl with treats for the giraffes. Two kinds of pellets are inside. One is sweet and the other more bland. The giraffes like both. Then you go on a platform about the height of the giraffe. You have to be careful to feed them one pellet at a time because they like to reach in and take more. The pellets are about the size of a large almond. Their tongues are long and a little rough. After feeding the giraffes we went in for a short presentation about giraffes and the center. There are actually three different kinds of giraffes. The ones here are Rothschild giraffes. They are the fewest in number. The center raises these to be released into the wild. One of the giraffes is currently pregnant and another gave birth a week ago. It’s been a successful program.
Several wanted to go to the bead factory so off we went. The place chosen was the Kazuri Bead Factory. Local women are making the ceramic beads and then making jewelry from the beads. Very time consuming work. The clay is shaped and painted by hand. The beads are in different sizes and shapes. Some beads are a solid color and some have designs. After the beads are fired in a kiln they are strung into bracelets, necklaces and other items. The factory employs over 100 women. They greet us with song before showing what they do. Don’t come here looking for a bargain. Compared to home the price is most likely good.
We checked into the same hotel. Tonight we will have a farewell dinner. Four of us will continue to Tanzania, two will go home and three will remain a few more days. We had so much food for dinner. The waiters served each dish and then left the bowls for anyone wishing more. We had fish, chicken and beef dishes. We had several kinds of vegetables and rice. It ended with a plate containing three small pieces of cake and fruit. I sure hope the guides took home the leftovers.
Spoffords Travel 