Jungle Night Sounds

We would spend our second night in Kenya sleeping in a lodge in the middle of the jungle. There was no television, and the hotel was almost empty. Joumana and I each did some book reading, and then fell asleep early. But jetlag made us wake up a few times during the night.

Animals growling, monkeys singing, and large insects whistling, were all I can hear in this African wild orchestra. It wasn’t a noise that woke me up. It was more like a calm and soothing jungle lullaby that was melodious. It wasn’t like anything I had heard before, except on some adventure Hollywood movies.

Joumana had confused some of the primate screams. In the morning when we woke up, she thought the neighbours were having sex all night, in a loud and beast-like way. But I am sure that what she heard was jungle sound from the animals, and no neighbour was playing love sports.

Hippos on Mara River

While driving around the Masai Mara, we had an initial introduction to the animals in Kenya. We saw a cheetah, different species of antelopes, hyenas, and many lions that were sleeping in the bushes. We also passed by a site with leftover bones. It was hard to tell which animal was prey to the carnivores.

The sun was starting to set and Albert took us to the Mara River to see a group of hippopotamuses. Joumana screamed from excitement! She was so happy to see those huge round animals with small ears and big behinds. Albert explained how these animals were as dangerous as they were cute. A hippo’s mouth can open to 150 degrees and instantly crush a person that might be standing or swimming in his way. Nevertheless, Joumana’s excitement didn’t subside, and she talked all night about the hippo being her favourite animal!

First Animals in Masai Mara

“Is that a buffalo? What is that colourful bird? Oh my God, look at the zebra!” Those were the first reactions we got, Joumana and I, as we entered the Masai Mara National Reserve. We still had an hour drive to get to the hotel because the road was not paved. Albert was driving and Peter, the Serena Hotel manager, was sitting next to him. Albert didn’t make many stops because we had to arrive quickly at the hotel for the restaurant to serve us lunch.

We arrived at the Mara Serena Hotel at 2:30 pm. The hotel was in the middle of the reserve with a fence around to prevent the animals, all but the baboons, from jumping inside. No one was allowed outside from 6:30 pm to 6:30 am. It was a little like a prison, but what choice do they have, it would be very dangerous wandering outside at night.

We checked in quickly at the front desk and had lunch at the restaurant. Our room was fine and colourful but without a television, which was kind of good.

At 4:30 pm we would have our first safari! If we went earlier, it would have been too hot to be able to see animals, since most of them would be sleeping in the shade. Albert came to pick us up at the hotel’s lobby and off we went. We saw cheetahs, lions, zebras, and many more creatures. It would only be an appetizer for all the other great safaris we would come across.

Leaving Nairobi

Albert came to pick us up very early, at 7:30 am. He would drive us all the way to the Masai Mara National Reserve. We drove a little outside of Nairobi, passing by many embassies, including the Canadian one.

When we were in the country side, we saw many farms; most of them were cultivating tea and coffee. The earth’s colour was strikingly red, apparently because it contained a lot of iron.

The landscape changed as we drove across the Rift Valley. There were fewer trees and less green spaces. As we drove by villages, we could notice how some people lived in profound poverty. The roads were not paved and some places were tough to drive on. Our destination was 300 kilometres away, but the journey took more than 6 hours.

We made a stop in a village called Narok to get some water and to answer a bathroom call. When we were there, we picked up a guy who’s name was Peter. He worked at the Serena Hotel, and he needed a ride. He was polite enough to ask us permission if we wouldn’t mind him coming with us. We said of course not. He was a gentle and kind man who looked like the Chief on the television show Grey’s Anatomy.

As we approached our destination, the Masai culture became more apparent. We saw shepherds with their animals who were mostly accompanied by children. Those children were always friendly and they would say hello to the passing cars.

As we crossed the gate and entered the Masai Mara National Reserve, we would soon start seeing animals that we had only seen before on television. And there would start our African safari adventure.