Finally, our safari ended at Hell's gate National Park. I'll begin by saying this is not a trek for the faint hearted. (possibly where the name came from though to be fair , I think its probably harder to get into heaven than hell). - Side note: There are different theories as to the origin of the name but I choose to go with the name coming about owing to the geo-thermol activity that is on going (hot like hell). It is a part of the Rift Valley and has endless steam spewing points, spa day anyone? Now, make sure you have the right shoes on , have some water with you, preferably a cap if its hot and be prepared to be amazed! This is an absolute gold mine for trekkers. I could by all means see why this was picked as a perfect location for both Lion Kings inspiration and Tom Raider. Hell's gate is beautiful!!

Hell's gate National Park is about 90km from Nairobi in case one decided to take a day trip and they have about 3 campsites and a Maasai cultural Centre (they are the main tribe around the area ) and you can then learn a bit more about the history and the culture of the tribe.Just walking through the towering cliffs and deep gorges (watery and slightly mucky hence the shoe check) was great. We were lucky enough to get a great guide Salim (I am very good with names) and he obviously took us on a short trek and helped us through not only pointing out the must see spots but where to place your step for safety.

It houses about 3 Geothermal sites (maybe 4) producing geothermal power  (they were the first in Africa) and use the hot springs and geysers for this. The water was actually pretty hot to the touch as were the rocks obviously! And Salim told us that some locals would sometimes find spots to take a shower from!! #saynotocoldshowers  I think the green stuff is mainly due to the sulphur in the water. There are two inactive volcanoes within this park

There was obviously the park section and I have to say the giraffe against the background of the rock towers, just amazing!! Have I mentioned I love giraffes?!!

Its all just such a wonderful experience, being one with nature. I know it does sound a bit cliché but really, nothing beats walking the route (knowing Angeliina Jolie has been there!!ahhh!) and just taking in the silence and serene environment , fresh air, seeing the result of things you would only read in geography books.

The last part of the trek involved going up a slightly steep hill.Now I would have EASILY taken this on, no really, I would.. but 1. I was very unfit at the time 2. I was very unfit at the time so I it did take a bit of cheering on.

Salim obviously walked it like a boss and assured me it would be worth it. And boy was he right! Right at the top, turn around and Boom! Million dollar shot!

There were a lot of monkeys lurking about and I did try to get as close to take a photo. I am however very cautious (read wimp) and was half smiling, half ready to take off in case one decided to pounce!

There were a couple of people biking as well so it really is a fun spot for outdoor activities including rock climbing and did I mention the natural health spa enough? All in all, it is definitely worth a trip for locals and tourists and you will no doubt enjoy it!. My husband certainly did!!

As always, thanks for taking your time to read this. Do feel free to share and leave a comment below.

I am still collecting funds for my charity of choice , Imara international and will be having a stall at the African Union Day celebration, Celebrate Africa event on the 28th of May from 13:00 - 17:00 .Details in poster below!!

Thanks!!
xoxo

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Safari no.2 was to Lake Nakuru National Park. I thought I should mention that the word 'safari' actually means journey. But obviously has been popularised to refer to game drives so we will go with that! This one started with getting up at 4:30 a.m. The plan was to beat the traffic and get to the view point in time to enjoy the scenery before heading on . You will see why this is simply a must do!! Lake Nakuru National Park is about 160 km away from Nairobi .So roughly 31/2 hours to get to and therefore an early start is advised especially if you plan to get back on the same day.

John was our guide for the day and he picked us up early and set off . We managed to beat the traffic and use back lanes and finally we fell upon this wonder and stopped at the view point.

The beauty that is the Great Rift Valley cannot be explained .It just has to be experienced . The photos definitely do not do it justice!

The locals were only too happy to give us a bit more detail about the valley . It runs from the Middle East  to Africa and is simply spectacular bordered by escarpments and a lovely backdrop of Savannah and various lakes. There are a couple of volcanoes and some are still active and result of this can be seen if you get to visit Lake Bogoria . You can actually boil an egg in the water!!

We bought a few souvenirs and  half heartedly headed off , i would have been happy to sit there all day and marvel at the beauty that it is.Its GREAT for a reason . Soon we arrived at Lake Nakuru National Park which is best known for its flamingoes but boy were we in for a suprise.

It had been raining rather heavily over the past few days and as a result , the water levels had risen to such huge amounts flooding the area and forcing the flamingos to migrate to Lake Baringo.(Nearby Lake that is also worth a trip) . I have to say that though it was sad to see the state of the lake site ,the view was breath-taking

It almost felt like a scene from walking dead!!I just couldn't take my eyes off it! It looked unreal!!

We however had to make a move on and so headed to the park side. We managed to see a couple of wildlife  and it was just amusing how they pretty much posed for a shot and then went on with their business

Lake Nakuru National park was known for its white rhinos but the number has considerably gone down owing to poaching !! The recent #worthmorealive campaign aimed at elephant (which we didn't get to see either owing to the same) should cover them as well. We got a glimpse of ones back as it was well hidden among the shrubs .

 I will point out though that Kenya hosts the remaining 3 Northern white rhinos in the world. Last I checked there were 2 female and 1 male left  at the Ol Pejeta conservancy . It's a shame that they are going extinct and if you can get the chance , do give them a visit and support the conservancy . It is in Nanyuki and plenty of beautiful views as well. Below is Sharon Mundia aka @thisisess (a Kenyan blogger I will be featuring soon on her visit at the conservancy. You could read more on her blog - http://www.thisisess.com/2015/06/the-wild-side.html)

We then headed out and caught glimpses of several other wildlife . Again , it's refreshing seeing them out in the wild without a care in the world..I would have bet this guys were having a meeting!

Interesting to note , you are not allowed to blare your horn of the animals are crossing the road or are in the way. You are on their habitat so you have to wait for them to get past at their own pace . # respect

We then set off for hell's gate!Another must visit ..you'll see why on the NEXT BLOG!!

P.S . In my last safari I forgot to mention the visit to the ivory burning site. This is currently a heated topic with the #jointheherd and #worthmorealive campaign to reduce poaching . I love that both campaigns involved a lot of young people and that obviously made it easier to spread the message as they took on social media to make the public aware of their support. @susanLUCKYWONG  and @thisisess below were involved first hand. And then there was me..:-)

The bone of contention (horn even) is whether the government should continue burning the recovered tusks . The last heap that was set on fire was about 10 ft high and worth £68 million!!!! This policy of burning ivory dates back to Moi era when he burned the first lot of about 10 tonnes of elephant tusks Would you believe that!?? Question is, has the burning reduced on the demand or the poaching ? Do let me know what you think.

As always, thanks a lot for reading and don't forget to please vote for me if you still haven't.
I am also collecting funds for my charity (link below) and will be giving further details on this soon. In the meantime, I appreciate all your support and remember every little helps!

Proudly Kenyan!
xoxo

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So before the second visit to another national park, a short trip to bomas of Kenya was in store . The word 'boma' means homestead in Swahili. This is very evident from what is found in this bit of space tucked away in Langata, Nairobi. It is about 15-20 min drive from the Nairobi National Park- traffic permitting obviously.

Kenya is a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual country and therefore, while English and Swahili are our official languages ,we have at least 62 other languages!!languages...not dialects but languages....think German,French,Spanish,English...now 62 of those ! This obviously then brings the idea of different tribes ,their cultures and their traditions. While most have obviously moved away from the traditions owing to western influence and education a few here and there have maintained a couple. Some may be beneficial but the likes of female circumcision (mutilation) still being performed by one or two communities face serous criticism and there are various campaigns against this .

So back to bomas, we got to see the way our great grandparents lived. We are a very community focused nation and as such most homesteads comprised of various little huts belonging to different members of the family . We love to live together. In some cases, once a son was of age to marry , he simply put up a hut in his parents homestead and moved his wife in!

Most homesteads have a grandmother hut because it is pretty much an unspoken rule to care for our elders . She would often have the biggest hut in the homestead (best for story telling time).

Men were allowed to marry more than one wife and so the sizes of the huts would vary depending on what position you were in the list with the 1st wife obviously getting the biggest . This was probably because in most cases that was where everyone including the children would converge .

There would then be a hut for the husband (he would go to whichever wife he was 'visiting' for the night and then back to his hut to sleep) Some might argue that not much has changed in some cases on that...

Its surprising how well they all managed to live together and you apparently couldn't even tell whose child was whose as they were all treated fairly.  It was seen as a show of wealth how many wives and children a man had because it obviously took a lot to maintain them. As times changed, these are some of the traditions that were done away with,thank heavens!! Plus in this day and age,it's not easy maintaining the one I suppose..The boys and girls obviously slept in different huts

A few bits here and there relating to marriage have still been kept though . This is mainly in regard to dowry . In my culture ,being kikuyu,It is still expected that a man visits a girls home to ask for her hand in marriage accompanied by his uncles, elders and friends and an agreement in regard to dowry (gift to the parents for raising such an amazing woman)is made. He then is expected to deliver a part of it on what is then the ceremony 'ngurario' which is pretty much a traditional wedding though not really recognised by law in Kenya and you can then plan a proper wedding and if not you can then take your wife home with you . You are to continue bringing the remaining part of the fiery in small bits and the idea is to keep the relations going with each visit . However not everyone still does this. It was a lot more dramatic back in the day anyway where they had a mock 'kidnapping' of the bride done . Strange but exciting I can imagine .

Anyway, you are also treated with a few traditional dances from various communities. I think we danced for everything ,child birth,initiation ,marriage, even harvest!! So it can be a bit interesting seeing the various costumes and dances though as mentioned , there are 62 languages , and much as they don't perform in all of them chances are you might only understand one or none of the words but can definitely follow the story.

It's worth a visit when in Nairobi I would say . A small part of tradition and if you are lucky to have a guide ,he can then give you the intricate details of each community and family setting while giving a distinction or similarity to modern day.

From there ,we were off to the great Rift Valley !!! Next blog.

Thanks for reading as always

xoxo

Ps- if you haven't voted yet I will really appreciate your vote simply by clicking the link below

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Boom! The first glimpse of the National Park. Kenya is the only country to have such a park right in the middle of the city and oh are we proud of it!! .

It's just different being able to see them in their natural habitat and actually co-existing ...with such a massive space of land about 46 square miles it's pretty much an all day trip but worth every minute! The fact that this park has been here since 1946 makes it such a great part of Kenyan history and is a definite must see for locals and tourists alike..The trip wouldn't be complete without seeing a lion!! So initially we saw two at the beginning of the trip but they was slightly hidden ..

Then as our day trip ended ...we came across this bad boys!!

girls actually...note the lack of a mane...but they look super vicious!!! But I was not going to pass up a chance for a lion selfie!

Ofcourse I didn't leave the car!! And I was terrified having the window that far down !! I don't understand all the videos of people jumping into cheetah and panda cages..Im all for adventure but I want to live to tell the story!....And this one is to be continued..

Feel free to comment on your own little adventures and if you haven't been on one of this safaris, what are you waiting for??


P.s Just a little reminder to vote for me for this years Face of Kenya UK in case you haven't yet..your one vote means a lot..I am also collecting donations for my charity Imara International, it is such a great initiative and you can have a look at their website for further details..all links below..

Thanks for reading!
xoxo

http://www.faceofkenyauk.org/voting.html  - Thanks for voting!!
http://imarainternational.org/our-story/#.VysGrk32Zkg  - IMARA INTERNATIONAL - MY CHARITY OF CHOICE