Amboseli - Namanga - Arusha - Ngorongoro

Today was mostly a travel day.  We had breakfast at the Amboseli Sopa Lodge and finally were able to see Mt Kilimanjaro as the clouds cleared.  There really isn't much snow and ice any more on the peaks of the mountain, which must be some indication of climate change. 

After eating we then hit the road and drove to the border town of Namanga in order to depart Kenya and arrive in Tanzania (and that is pronounced Tan-zan-ia, which was our biggest learning of the trip).  It was a bit of a funny scene as we went through customs on both sides of the border- filling out departure forms in Kenya, getting in the van for a minute and driving across the border, and then getting out and going to customs to fill out arrival forms in Tanzania.  We had to deal with some pretty aggressive souvenir sellers between buildings, which has been the case at the entrances to the national parks nearly every day. 

We sat around for over a half an hour waiting for our bus to arrive, and when it finally came they moved all our luggage onto the new vehicle and we bid farewell to our lovely drivers from African Jacana Safaris Charles and Joseph, who have taken great care of us over the past eight days.  Besides giving them a tip Tony also brought Aussie stubby holders for them to remember us by (although I don't think they will soon forget our group considering how loud it was). 

Our touring company in Tanzania is Sunny Safaris.  While driving along the highway I noticed the roads are much better than Kenya so far as they really seem to have invested in infrastructure.  Many of the houses we passed along the road also seem to be better built.  The Maasai huts here have a more rounded shaped with straw roofs, and the Maasai people wear blue along with the traditional red and tartan prints.  We were taken to the city of Arusha for lunch and to switch to our two safari vehicles.  Because someone was interested in buying some Tanzanite we ended up having a long side stop at The Tanzanite Experience which is run by one of the mining companies.  Tanzanite is a stone only found in Tanzania and it's considered more precious than diamonds (and also very expensive). 

After we finally got out of The Tanzanite Experience and changed to our safari vans we were back on the road heading toward Ngorongoro.  Although these vans are bigger and 4 wheel drive they are a lot hotter than our other vans (likely due to the non-breathable fabric on the seats), and the luggage doesn't seem to fit in as well.  We passed Lake Manyara along the way and our driver kindly stopped at an observation point so we could see a view of the lake.  Tonight we are staying at the Ngorongoro Farm House, which is really nice with well maintained grounds and massive rooms.  Tomorrow we will tackle the Ngorongoro Crater bright and early in the morning.

Amboseli

There was a bit of a glimpse of Mt. Kilimanjaro this morning at breakfast at the Amboseli Sopa Lodge, but unfortunately it remained shrouded in clouds for most of the day.  Our first stop this morning was a tour of a Maasai village, which I think our tour company threw in for free due to our unhappiness over some of the last minute changes to the itinerary.  We were welcomed to the village by Eric, the son of the chief.  A tribe of around 150 people live there and the men and women treated us to an opening dance performance and prayer.

Eric explained that they live a traditional nomadic existence and followed the customs of both male and female circumcision (even though it's illegal) in order to marry and the men taking multiple wives.  I found Eric to be somewhat arrogant and he was a far cry from Junior at the Siana Springs Tented Camp in terms of beliefs and personality (Eric claims the Maasai people in Masai Mara are much more westernised).  After the welcoming performances we were given a fire making demonstration, a tour of a traditional hut and then were led to the Maasai market.  It was a bit of a pressure sell and I felt guilty doing too many price negotiations with people who need the money.  In the end I bought some beaded baskets and a couple necklaces.  We were also going to have a tour of their school but ran out of time.

Next we headed into Amboseli National Park for our day-long game drive.  The first big animal sighting we had was a group of five lionesses who were feeding off a fresh kill.  One of them brought part of the animal over to a clear spot to eat from and then the next one took her turn to feed.  The landscape in the park is a mix of arid, dry land and marshes and swamps.  We had quite a few little dust clouds whirling around, including one that came over our open van (we all ducked).  At lunch time we had the opportunity to climb up to the observation area on top of a hill and see panoramic views of the park.

The most prevalent animal in Amboseli is the elephant.  It was pretty amazing how many we managed to see throughout the day.  The elephants really seem to enjoy being in the marshland and you could only see the top half of their bodies as they sank into it while eating away.  At one point we had a herd of at least 15 elephants walk past our van in a line.  We also witnessed two elephants charge at each other and then a small group chase away the offending one from the area.  I had no idea that elephants could run continuously for a good 5 minutes!  It was a rare sight (and believe it or not, they were fast).

 

 

The animals tended to congregate in the greener areas of the park, but we did see them wandering around some of the drier parts as well.  Besides elephants we saw wildebeests, zebras, impalas, ostriches, giraffes, jackals, hyenas, warthogs, flamingos, and a huge group of hippos by a lake.

 

Toward the end of the day we had another crush of what I like to call the safari paparazzi pack as we came across three cheetahs in the distance who had made a kill.  I think there were over ten safari tour vans there jockeying for position to watch them feed.

Tonight is our last night in Kenya as tomorrow we will cross the border into Tanzania and say goodbye to our drivers Charles and Joseph.

Lake Nakuru - Nairobi - Amboseli

We started our day bright and early with a game drive at Lake Nakuru National Park.  There were many more birds today, including heaps of flamingos, herons, egrets and pelicans.  We also saw white rhinos, giraffes, buffaloes, gazelles and a new animal for us- baboons.  There was a group of them of various ages playing around some trees.  Thankfully none of them jumped into the car!  Our drivers also took us to a waterfall where we got to get out of the van and stretch our legs.  We did find some lion tracks in the dirt while driving around, but unfortunately didn't get to see a lion in the park.

 

 

 

We drove back through Nairobi and stopped for lunch there as it was on the way to Amboseli.  It's been a couple weeks now since the horrible terrorist attack at the Westgate Mall.  I'm not sure if security is tighter now than it was beforehand, but all cars were being searched underneath before entering shopping centers and other locations.  Our lunch spot for the day was Carnivore restaurant.  As the name implies, it is a meat eater's paradise.  The waiters come around to the tables with different types of meat on swords and will keep returning to serve you until the group declares surrender by putting down a flag that's on the table.  I had some chicken, lamb, beef, ostrich, pork and crocodile.  We also got dessert included with the set meal, but my choc-chip blondie was really dry, which was disappointing.

After lunch we were back on the road to continue the drive to Amboseli.  Getting through Nairobi traffic was a bit of a mess (even on a Sunday afternoon), and then we had to deal with all the trucks on the highway which made it slow going at some points.  Driving here on two lane highways is interesting because people will cross over the double line into oncoming traffic to overtake vehicles- and that even includes the trucks!  This led to some dangerous games of chicken and near misses.  The scenery out to Amboseli was more red soil with some agriculture.  We passed through a few towns along the way with markets going on and tomatoes and red onions seems to be the popular fresh foods on offer.

We arrived in Amboseli after dark since we left Nairobi so late.  There were so many people walking along the roadside in the dark because the roads are not lit.  You would just see them in the headlights of vehicles.  We are staying at the amazing Amboseli Sopa Lodge which has wi-fi so I am back on the grid for at least a day.  Our dinner in the restaurant was quite good, and I hope to have some time to explore the grounds tomorrow after our all day game drive.

Masai Mara - Lake Nakuru

This morning we bid farewell to Masai Mara and hit the road for Lake Nakuru.  It was another long 5 hour drive but I found it interesting to watch the changing scenery as we got into the hills.  Everything was very green with all the agriculture in the area and as we passed through different towns of various sizes the little kids would wave to us as we drove by.  We did have a horror stretch of unpaved roads which felt like it would never end (even more fun when trying to go up a hill), but our drivers Charles and Joseph were amazing.  The Kenyan Government needs to invest in infrastructure!

Once we got to Nakuru we were back in a bigger city.  At the entrance to Lake Nakuru National Park you could see lots of monkeys roaming around.  Unfortunately while Charles was paying the park fees we had a monkey jump through the open driver's side window, which freaked us out.  I was scared it was going to come through the van but thankfully Joseph shooed him away.  The last thing I needed at the end of a 5 hour drive was to be attacked by a monkey.

We checked into our residence for the evening, Lake Nakuru Lodge, which is up the hill within the park grounds and has views of the lake.  The lodge is pretty nice with a great pool but unfortunately we didn't have time to jump in as after our late lunch we headed out on our afternoon game drive.  The lake has been rising over the past couple years which is destroying some of the habitat.  As a result there aren't as many birds here as in previous years.  We did see some flocks of flamingos but the most amazing sight was a small herd of white rhinos that were grazing by the roadside.  We were so close to them and as they just munched their way quietly past us.  The females have sharper horns than the males.  It was the last of the "big five" we had yet to see on the trip, so that was very exciting.

During the game drive we also saw zebras, buffaloes, and a huge group of giraffes among the trees.  We watched them for a bit as they ate and then crossed the road behind our van.  It looks like giraffes are walking in slow motion, but they are so graceful.  I think they are my favorite animal as I can't get enough of them.  We didn't have any luck with seeing a lion today but did come across some guinea fowl and a jackal. 

As we drove back to the lodge we were able to watch the sun set behind the hills.  We had dinner in the very kitsch-designed restaurant and saw a bit of a dance performance before heading off to our rooms for bed.  We have decided to do another game drive in the morning before departing for Amboseli.

Masai Mara- Day 3

It was another early start for the group as we headed to the Masai Mara National Reserve around 7:30 am this morning.  Today was more about quality than quantity of animals, and since we had time we spent quite a bit longer in spots and were able to observe them.  We saw herds of elephants, giraffes, impalas, gazelles, topis, wildebeests and zebras roaming around.  Our two big spots of the day though were a leopard, which we saw emerge from the bushes and climb up a tree, and a cheetah with its two cubs who were these little balls of fur.

 

We returned back to the Siana Springs Tented Camp around 1:30 pm for lunch and a leisurely afternoon.  Chantal, Shevonne and I got to chat with Junior, a 21-year-old Maasai man and the camp conservationist about the history of the Maasai people.  He took us to a secluded place on the grounds and spoke about the creation of the Maasai, traditional rights of passage and roles for boys/men and girls/women, the importance of cattle, religion and education.  As more children are educated they have more choices about how they want to live their lives.  Junior, who went to boarding school, exists between two worlds but wants to be a change agent for his community, which is fantastic.  He is fairly progressive as he is against female circumcision and wants to modernize the practices of the Maasai people.  He hopes to study wildlife conservation at university next year, but it would mean moving to Nairobi.  I was very impressed by him and hope he gets to achieve his goals as he is so articulate and would make an excellent leader.

At our last dinner we were once again treated to a performance by the Maasai men and a market afterwards.  I bought a wooden giraffe and elephant for my niece and nephew.  We have had such a nice stay at the camp and the staff have been so friendly and welcoming.  The grounds are lovely and coping with limited hours for power and hot water has been a breeze.  Tomorrow we are back on the road as we head off to our next destination- Lake Nakuru.

Masai Mara- Day 2

Today was an early start for Chantal and Shevonne as they decided to do a sunrise hot air balloon ride over the Masai Mara National Reserve.  The rest of us got to sleep for a bit longer but we were out on the road at 8:00 am for our full day game drive.  The first animals we got to see up close were a couple of buffaloes.  We also saw some impalas, ostriches, and many wildebeests and zebras.  After picking up Chantal and Shevonne at a designated spot around 11:00 am we were really lucky to see a pride of lions on a hill resting in the shade.  They were amazing to watch.

 

While the migration across the Mara River to the Serengeti is coming to an end we had a couple of attempts at trying to watch the wildebeests make the crossing.  It was a bit of a cat and mouse game with the various safari vans trying to catch a glimpse and racing to spots along the river when word would go out across the radio.  At one point we saw a stampede happening, but no luck with the wildebeests crossing the river.  We did see a group of hippos though, which was cool.

We ended up having boxed lunches at a safe spot under a tree and then got see some giraffes, which was the highlight of the day for me.  There was a male and female which basically stood still for a few minutes as if they were doing a red carpet photo call.  We then had another giraffe come up close and walk by our van.  It was so amazing!  Some other great moments in the afternoon were seeing various herds of elephants, a cheetah lying under a tree and a lion sleeping in the shade.  We have been very fortunate these past two days to see the animals we have, which is a credit to our excellent drivers.  I am even getting used to the off-road driving we are doing around the Reserve and the unpaved and bumpy roads.

 

Nairobi - Masai Mara

After a little bit of sleep I was up early for our first full day of the safari.  The five hour drive from Nairobi to Masai Mara allowed us to watch the changing landscape from an urban city to the rural countryside as we drove further out.  We stopped at a viewpoint of The Great Rift Valley and came across a lot of goat, cattle and sheep herders along the roads as we drove past.  The last hour of our drive was on an unpaved dirt road and we bounced around a lot in the van.  Our final destination and home for the next three nights is the Siana Springs Tented Camp which is located in the middle of where there are some Maasai villages.  The large tents include a shower, toilet and twin beds and are set amongst a natural setting.  There are deer wandering around the grounds and we have to tie our tent zippers closed so the monkeys don't get in!

After lunch we set out for our first game drive in the Masai Mara National Reserve, which is about 30 minutes away from where we are staying.  It was a pretty amazing afternoon as we searched for and found zebras, wildebeests, Thompson's gazelles, topi antelopes an ostrich and then our first big sighting- a herd of elephants including a baby!  They were just eating and walking around and it was so cool to watch them.  We next set our sights on finding a lion.  We drove around for a while without much success, but our big break was finding a group of vultures eating a zebra, which our drivers thought indicated there should be a lion in the area.

By some miracle we managed to spot a lion up the hill and drove towards him.  Then he started walking towards our van!  He was so close to us as he walked past and then went to a watering hole to drink.  Because he appeared to be full from a feed he didn't pay much attention to us watching him.  After that incredible experience we started to head out of the park and came upon another herd of elephants.  It was such an amazing afternoon that I wonder whether we have cursed ourselves for the rest of the trip.

When we got back to Siana Springs it was dark so we headed to dinner where we were treated to a performance by a group of male Maasai people, including a jumping competition.  They have a fire pit with a man singing songs on guitar, which adds to the camp feel of the place.  Chantal and I returned to our tent and enjoyed the sounds of nature outside before falling asleep.

Melbourne - Nairobi

Today has been a very long travel day to start off my three week African safari holiday.  Tash was kind enough to drive me to the airport at midnight for my 2:40 am Emirates flight from Melbourne to Dubai (with a stop in Kuala Lumpur).  As you can probably guess, the Melbourne airport is pretty empty at that time of the morning.  The travel Gods were smiling on me as I was lucky enough to have a whole row of seats in the middle all to myself on both legs of the flight.  This greatly helped with getting some sleep, and I also entertained myself by watching The Bling Ring and The Great Gatsby.

At Dubai airport I met up with the rest of my travel group, including Chantal, her sister Shevonne, mother Shirin and their family friends who had all travelled from Sri Lanka where they were at a wedding.  There are 12 of us total in the group- it's me and the Aussie Sri Lankans!  The flight from Dubai to Nairobi was a short hop of around 5 hours compared to the first two legs.  When we landed in Nairobi we were taken by bus from the tarmac past the burned down international terminal to a makeshift one at the bottom of a parking lot.  After making it through customs we were picked up by our drivers from African Jacana Safaris and taken to the Nairobi Safari Club where we are staying the night.  After over 24 hours of travelling I'm not really looking forward to the 7:30 am start tomorrow morning!

The Basics- Leftover Ingredients Tour

The past three nights have been a bit of a Basics marathon as I attended all three of their sold out Melbourne shows.  I figured since they haven't played together live over the past three years that I was making up for lost time.  Besides, no Basics show is ever the same so you can expect the unexpected to happen each night (a bit similar to Crowded House in that respect).

The opening act was the wonderful Louis Spoils (aka Jake Rush) who played solo on electric guitar.  While his set was short I really enjoyed it as he has a rich tone to his voice and was quite funny with his explanations about the inspiration behind each song.  Next up was the 6 piece band Hoy, which featured Mr Tim Heath on bass.  They had a bit of a 1970s folk rock vibe to them.

As for The Basics, here is what happened at each show:

September 27

Mary and I met up at the Northcote Social Club for dinner before the show and got a high five from Kris when he walked past (I think high fives are his new thing).  Tash joined us by the time the boys hit the stage, and it was a very strong start to the set with "So Hard For You" and "The No. 1 Cause of Death Amongst Youth Today."  The show was being filmed, which Wally admitted was making him a bit self-conscious.  The set list featured earlier material such as "She's Gonna B. Late," "Lovin' Man," "Hey C'mon!" and "Yeah, Yeah" complete with some exceptional choreographed dance moves by Kris and Tim.  Other highlights were "Besame Mucho," "Second Best," the lovely harmonies on "Hey Rain," and two new songs: "To Think Of You" and "The Lucky Country," which is a blistering commentary on Australian politics at the moment.

After doing shots backstage before coming back on for the encore we were treated to a couple Creedence Clearwater Revival covers of "Long As I Can See the Light" and "Proud Mary" before they finished with "Call It Rhythm and Blues."  Poor Wally had all sorts of trouble with his drum kit throughout the night as it kept moving around on him and he even lost the kick pedal in the bass drum mid-song.  By the end he had had enough and lightly threw off the cymbal that kept spinning on him and knocked over its stand in the most rock move I've ever seen him do.

September 28

Before the show Ruth, Danny and I had dinner at Los Hermanos Mexican Taqueria in Brunswick, which was quite yummy.  It's such a relief to have another good Mexican place to eat at (and so close to home).  We grabbed dessert at Delphi Continental Cakes on High Street before heading into the Northcote Social Club.

The Basics started their set with the one-two punch of "Hey There!" and "Just Hold On."  There was great energy from the boys right from the start as it was Grand Final night and Tim's team Hawthorn had won in the afternoon.  The set list was switched around a lot from the previous evening.  They played "Money (Gimme, Gimme)," "Feels Like Love," "Home Again," and "What Do You See In Me?"  We were also treated to more new songs: "The Lucky Country," "To Think Of You," "Roundabout" and "Come Back" (not entirely sure on some of those titles).  There were also lots of covers throughout the evening, including Ryan Adams' "Shakedown on 9th Street," and Spencer Davis Group's "Gimme Some Lovin'" with AC/DC's "Jailbreak" mixed in.

September 29

The last Basics show was at the Corner Hotel, a venue they haven't played at in years.  The set list was pretty similar to the previous night, but there were some additional gems in there that hadn't been played on the other nights, including "My Baby" and "All or Nothing" with Kris solo on acoustic guitar (and a silent venue listening along).  This show was pretty epic and got more rockin' as the night wore on with a cover of The Kinks "All Day and All of the Night," and an encore that featured "Rattle My Chain," Cream's "Sunshine of Your Love," the "Gimme Some Lovin'/Jailbreak'" medley and finished with "Call It Rhythm and Blues."

It was great to see the boys playing live over several nights.  They were very gracious with fans after each of the shows as they hung out at the merch desk to chat with people, sign albums and take pictures.  I hope the new songs that are emerging will eventually get recorded, especially "The Lucky Country" which I think should be released as a single because Australia needs a good protest song right now.

Here is a live version of "To Think of You" from 3RRR minus Wally, but featuring some lovely guitar work by Tim:

Alexander Gow- The Red Hummingbird

Photo by Mary

One of the benefits of living in Melbourne is impromptu gigs by your favorite local bands.  Although Alexander Gow from Oh Mercy has relocated to Portland, Oregon he was back in town this week being filmed for a "Where Are They Now" bit for the Qantas Spirit of Youth Awards (SOYA), which Oh Mercy won for music in 2009.

Mary, Tash and I met up after work at The Red Hummingbird to watch this intimate set by Alex solo on electric guitar.  It was good to hear these Oh Mercy songs live again and stripped back, especially "Rebel Beats," "Drums," "My Man" and a particularly strong version of "Suffocated."  We were also treated to a couple new songs, one about courting a woman of faith, and another called "Cool Water" which I really liked.  Alex joked he sang them to prove to himself and us that he has actually done something over the past four months in the States.  The set finished with an impassioned cover of The Waterboy's "Fisherman's Blues" and the title track "Deep Heat."  There is a new "trans-Pacific" version of Oh Mercy about to emerge at the CMJ Music Marathon in New York City in October and hopefully some shows along the West Coast soon (I was strongly advocating for one when I am home in December- I will get you a crowd Alex!).

Here is Alex performing "Drums" solo for Tram Sessions last year:

Lunch In The Melbourne CBD

Working in the Melbourne CBD allows you a plethora of choice for excellent lunch options.  Normally I pack a lunch (because I would be broke if I ate out everyday) but sometimes it is good to escape the office and grab a meal with coworkers.  These are a few of my favorite places to get a bite to eat.

Mamasita (Level 1/11 Collins Street): There have been many Mexican restaurants that have opened in Melbourne over the past couple of years, but I still consider Mamasita to be the best.  The key to getting a table at lunchtime is to get there before 12:30 pm.  All the food is light, fresh and flavorful with a variety of options on the menu depending on what you feel like eating.  My favorites include the chips and salsa, tostaditas, fish tacos and the chickpea fritters.

China Red (Shop 6/206 Bourke Street): Located down an arcade by JB Hi-Fi, China Red is the place to go for dumplings in the city.  Add in touch screen ordering and it is a very efficient lunch trip as the food comes out quickly.  My top three picks on the menu are the pan fried pork dumplings, pork won tons in spicy sauce, and their signature dish the Shanghai Shao-Long-Bao.

Wonderbao (Shop 4/19-37 A'Beckett Street): Continuing the Asian theme, steamed buns (bao) became big over the last year, with Wonderbao leading the pack.  Located in a laneway near the RMIT campus, Wonderbao puts an updated spin on your normal steamed buns, and are best known for their gua bao.  All the food here is really great, including their amazing egg custard buns.  The prices are also a steal due to their proximity to the university and student clientele.  Seating is limited, but you can usually get a spot in the alley if all the seats are taken inside (it's best to go when the weather is nice).

Mr Burger (428 Little Bourke Street): Another big food trend in Melbourne over the past year has been hamburgers, and Mr Burger is definitely the best I have found.  Starting out as a food truck they recently opened a store in the CBD and also have a semi-permanent spot at the Queen Victoria Market.  There are three different burgers to choose from (Mr Burger, Mr Meat and Mr Veg) along with a side of chips.  I've only had Mr Burger so far and it is a great classic cheeseburger.  The brioche buns are what make them so tasty.

Bowery To Williamsburg (16 Oliver Lane): The current fad on the Melbourne food scene is American, with a focus on Southern cooking and New York style deli.  The recently opened and appropriately named Bowery To Williamsburg has the New York deli vibe down pat.  For $16.50 you can get a sandwich and side of your choice, along with some pretzels and a pickle.  The reuben sandwich is quite good, and the mac and cheese side is delicious.  There are also bagels with lox and schmears, as well as some yummy desserts including New York cheesecake and pumpkin pie tarts (although I will say that my pumpkin pie is better than theirs).

So those are some of my favorite places- what are your recommendations for places to eat in the Melbourne CBD?