Category: Africa

In July 2013, the Satyens took a trip to Kenya with The Wanderers and came back with a bag full of memories. Arshea Bimal sums up the amazing experience in a blog post for us..

Excitement was in the air as the plane to Nairobi took off. This was our first family trip abroad and we were all thrilled. Having never seen a place outside my own country, I had spent the previous few days researching every place we went to. Google provided me with information on everything, starting from the Maasai people to the black rhinoceros. Little did I know that nothing could ever prepare me for the gorgeous country of Kenya.

We arrived at Amboselli and stayed at the tented facilities of Amboselli Sentrim Camp. Our two days there were spent exploring the vast open grasslands of Amboselli National Park. The National Park is famous for its vast numbers of free range African elephants and is crowned by the Great Mount Kilimanjaro. The highlight was our sighting of a lion taking care of his sick wife and a pack of hyenas.

Then we were off to Aberdare National Park, which is a wooded region situated 7500 feet above sea level. The first word that came to mind was ‘green’.  We stayed at The Ark Lodge (which is straight out of a fairytale) and its viewing galleries enabled us to see elephants at arm’s length. The highlight of our stay was a sighting of our first and only leopard. However it was so quick that the only proof we have of seeing it is a picture of its backside.

An eight hour drive from Aberdare led us to Kigio conservancy. On the way we stopped at the Equator. The Equator isn’t how one imagines it to be. I for one always imagined it to be a red glowing line on the earth, despite what I was taught in my school geography classes. It was marked by a board and a curio shop.

Here, we experienced something rather different from the rest of our trip, as Kigio is unfenced. To prove that we were indeed standing on the imaginary line, a man demonstrated an experiment. Entertainment isn’t a pasta chef, but a giraffe. Your dinner companions aren’t other hotel guests, but warthogs munching on grass.  We were lucky enough to see at least 20 of the conservancy’s 45 endangered Rothschild Giraffes.

Masai Mara is famous for The Great Wildebeest Migration, so we went with a lot of expectations. Masai Mara should definitely top everybody’s bucket list. Its immensity is something that can be captured by no camera. The number of animals greatly exceeds the populations of some small countries. Here your stop sign is several herds of wildebeest, and a zebra crossing is quite literally, zebras crossing. Want some entertainment? Well the theatre comprises of a pride of lions, not to mention baby Simba and his little brother protected by their ferocious mother, a honeymooning couple (I’m still talking about lions), and cheetahs chomping down on their latest kill.

If you want the perfect getaway, Kenya is the place to go. Its serenity and proximity to wildlife and the absence of any passing traffic make it brilliant for relaxation. For the adventurer, there’s more than enough to see and do, including hot air ballooning. In addition the people are genuine, kind and cheerful and win you over instantly. It’s the experience of a lifetime, and you don’t want to miss it.

 And finally, it’s the best place to spot the Super Seven, just like we did!