We were awakened by Duncan at 6:30. Frank was to pick us up at 7 for more game viewing before heading back to the ship. We headed out hoping to see giraffe since we hadn't seen any the day before. We did see a silver backed jackal, something I'd never heard of. It was unique and beautiful. I could see by signs that we were nearing the gate. We had to see giraffe! Frank stopped at the gate to get permission to re-enter the park using another gate, to go where the giraffe were. It was a short time before we saw Water Buffalo, then a LOT of giraffe. Nice to see so many in the wild.
One experience we had on our safari could have been construed as a bad thing....we had a flat tire. In reality it was a good thing because we were allowed to get out of the van. No one else had that experience! I asked Frank if it was OK to pee behind a bush. He said fine so we all picked our bushes, kind of funny. While he was fixing the flat, we walked closer to a group of waterbuck to get pictures. When we returned to the van, the tire was fixed and we were about ready to take off. Frank then informed us that 1, there are poisonous snakes in the bush and 2, if a ranger had passed while we were out taking pictures, he could have lost his license because it is against the rules of the park to let passengers out of the van. Geese, why didn't he tell us BEFORE we went out.......poisonous snakes, yikes!
We had lunch at a lodge that is on the border of the park. There was a watering hole right next to it with several Marabou Storks. We got to watch them while enjoying a buffet lunch. We got back in the van and started our E Ticket ride on the main highway between Mombassa and Nairobi. They all drive very fast and pass with little room before a vehicle passes in the opposite direction. Once we were forced off the road by a bus passing a truck. Glad I wasn't in the front seat. We stopped at the main gate again to get a picture and to shop. Mel found a giant elephant that needed a home. It didn't have holes drilled for it's tusk so one of the store workers rode with us to a craft store we'd passed on our way to the park. We'd wanted to stop there anyway. While they were drilling the holes, I shopped. I bought pretty much everything that I wanted from Kenya, all at that one store. Of course later on the pier I bought things I didn't know I wanted.
We next stopped at a Masai Village. They originally wanted $20 per person for a tour, but we got them down to $10 each. It was HOT! A Masai took us around showing us their homes, children and women making beaded jewelry. We met the chief who had 9 wives and dozens of children. They were setting up tables for the tour buses that were close behind us. They wanted to demonstrate a dance but we needed something cold to drink so badly that we passed on that and headed down the road. It was almost an hour before we found a gas station with cold drinks.
We arrived back at the ship at about 6 pm. It was such a relief to be in air conditioning after none for 48 hours. The shower felt so good! We had a quick dinner in the Lido then headed back out onto the pier to shop. It was so sad to see how desperate those people were. One approached me to say that everyone stopped at the 1st and 2nd "shops" then never got to his, about the 5th one. They would touch our arm and plead for us to visit their shop, or to buy something from them. Few passengers were out at that time, so every seller was focused on us. We did buy a couple of things but it was hard to see quality in the dim lights on the pier. One woman approached me and said "My name is Rebecca and I'm 18 years old. I'm leaving for the day but please visit my shop tomorrow". I cracked up and told her that I am 18 also. She was probably in her 40's or 50's. I did return to see her the next day, but she had nothing I wanted to buy. We returned to our air conditioned luxury at about 9 pm. I slept VERY well that night.
It was interesting to compare experiences with others on the ship. Some saw more than we did, many saw a lot less. One woman told us there were flies and bugs everywhere. We didn't see many bugs at all. Guess I'm very happy about that. I think we were all very happy with what we did and saw, some more than others. Wonder if we'll see any different animals at our next safari outside Richard's Bay, South Africa
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