Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation. Psalm 68:5

The wonderful African Safari continues with a nice stay at the Mt. Kenya Safari Club. During the few days we were there we went out to Nanyuki, the town nearby and did a game drive.

Ol Pejeta and the Chimp Orphans

We started off the first morning on the look-out for the final animal on the Big 5 list, the Rhino. We spotted some elephants and the normal characters—gazelles, baboons, wildebeest and more. Then we were treated to a beautiful site—the reticulated giraffe. This giraffe has different markings than the ones we had been seeing and they looked as though they were wearing socks.

A little while later, as we drove through the Ol Pejeta Conservancy we made a stop at the Chimpanzee sanctuary. Guides took us around the area to view a few of the chimps who gave us a bit of a show. One had a bad attitude and threw sticks at us—but seeing how these guys were rescued from a life of slavery and abuse, I think some patience and forgiveness was in order.

On we went searching for the Rhino who had so far been hiding way off the beaten path, when suddenly we saw several of them hanging out with some Grevy Zebras. These were called “white” rhinos and not because of their color. The name “white” was yet another mistake stemming from those German accents. They were calling the rhinos “wide” because of the shape of their mouths.

The grevy zebras were also a new site for us. These zebra’s had slightly different stripes—narrower—and their stomachs were white. This area was the only place we saw this kind of zebra.

Our final stop was at the big equator sign. We got our photo op and straddled the line, so now I can say I stood on the equator and at one point was standing on both the northern and southern hemispheres. It may have been cooler than it sounds—call me a geek, I don’t care,—it was cool.

Spinners and Weavers

The next day we drove through Nanyuki (what a fun name) to the spinners and weavers guild. More than 140 women who are widowed or come from a bad domestic situation have found employment through the Nanyuki Spinners and Weavers. Their children have a place to go while they are working and there is a girl’s school there as well. This organization has grown quite a bit over the years. We got a tour of the areas where they were spinning and weaving wool into beautiful rugs, shawls, and place mats. They grow the plants that are used for the dyes, they have sheep on site that provide the wool, and every step of the process is controlled through the guild. Our group donated some cash (in addition to the stuff I bought that was made there) so they could buy a new computer and step up their online sales.

The Children’s Rescue Center

Our final stop of the day was a heartbreaking treat. We visited a children’s rescue center. It’s not an orphanage per say but some of the children were in fact orphans. The adults that work there take care of the kids who they have rescued from abandonment, abuse, and other sad situations. They work with the families to rehabilitate the parents and kids so that the children can be returned to the families. I was astounded to hear that—who can possibly be rehabilitated after abandoning their children on the side of a road to fend for themselves? This is one of those things that culturally is hard to understand. What I do know is that the children were absolutely sweet and full of smiles.

Our tour director, Eric, had the kids hold up letters that spelled out Happy Anniversary Greg and Carol. It was so sweet I cried. After that he gave them noise makers and scoops of ice cream. The fun continued with a game of soccer (Eric brought along a new soccer ball as well). Once again we had fun taking pictures with the kids and then got big hugs before we had to leave.

Africa was a showcase of God’s artwork—through the animals, the grand scale of land, sky, mountains, and desert and also in the people. These people are really poor and many work what we would consider boring, unskilled jobs. But I saw a lot of contented and happy people—especially the kids. Now maybe some of that was the special occasion of having tourists come by with treats, but all in all I would say for sure I am blessed and am finding it hard to hear anyone in our country (with the exception of the truly poor and homeless) complain about not having enough material things or money. I’m not saying that we can’t want things or have things, but I just have a different perspective of needs vs. wants.

An Upscale BBQ in the Bush

When Tauck Tours says we are having a BBQ for dinner, you should raise your expectations. But seriously, whatever they deliver will be much cooler than what you were thinking. Our last night at the Safari Club was topped off by a wonderful dinner under a tent on the Conservancy along a flowing creek. Bonfires and lanterns lit the way to our tables and free booze flowed. That last part is what probably lead to the singing and animal imitations that followed. We had a wonderful guitar player who played everything from the Beetles and Kenny Rogers to Neil Diamond and the Lion King. One fun family we were traveling with entertained the group with imitations of the various animals (ostrich, zebra, lion, and so forth) that we saw on our journey. Hilarious. And I’m not saying that because of all the wine—I have photos to remember it by. I only wish I had recorded the Hakuna Matata (no worries) song. What a great way to end our stay at Mt. Kenya.