We woke up at the crack of dawn (actually before because one of my roomies accidentally set her alarm way too early and we didn't figure it out until we were all up and at 'em) to finish our packing, eat an early breakfast, and hit the road for our big trip back to Nairobi. On the front end, we had flown from Nairobi to Eldoret, but Bud (plus another van and a trailer to carry our luggage) would be driving us back so that he could join us on a safari and a few other touristy adventures before we departed for home.
Pretty sunrise at Karibuni
Thankfully, we traveled back lighter than when we came and all of our luggage fit in the trailer.
Theresa and Ibrahim were there to send us off. We were sad to say goodbye and so grateful for their wonderful hospitality while we were at Karibuni.
Our trip from Kitale to Nairobi was about 7 hours. I rode in the backseat of the van and was entertained for the entire trip. There's never a dull moment on the roads of Africa so no part of the drive was boring. We saw many sights and had many laughs.
After a few hours into our trip, we made a pit stop on the side of the road at a special landmark, one that I was unaware we would see or cross. The equator!
What's a landmark without shopping?
Fortunately, our van had stopped earlier at a gas station and we used the "bathroom" there. The station had the worst conditions we experienced the whole trip, but it still wasn't as bad as the orange box here on the side of the highway that the other half of our team had to use!
Of course, this was a great photo op...
More spectacular views on the drive of the mountains and lakes...
Moments when we saw monkeys or zebras on the side of the road reminded me that we were far from home. Even though most of my team had traveled to Africa before, they were no less excited than I was to see these exotic animals...especially enjoying a snack roadside as we drove by!
We stopped at a restaurant on the side of the road about halfway to Nairobi. Bud was with us so we trusted his judgment on restaurant choices, but this menu had a few things listed that made me nervous. I just wasn't in the mood for meat pie (and neither was my stomach, probably).
A few were more adventurous than me and tried the fish. Unfortunately, Teddy's fish didn't have much meat. We've laughed about this too many times to count since the trip.
I played it REAL safe this day...
Upon arrival in Nairobi that afternoon, we made a quick stop at the lodge/hotel where we would be staying our last two nights (and where we stayed our first night in Africa) to unhitch the trailer, unload all of the luggage, and convert both vehicles into safari mobiles.
And then we were off to the much anticipated Nairobi National Park for our safari ride...
The kiddos
I was intrigued by the fact that every vehicle, whether it was a Land Cruiser or van, had roofs that easily popped out converting it into a perfect safari ride. The van was a little interesting to stand in (with a roof that raised but didn't come off) but we made it work.
The first few glimpses of animals were either blocked by bushes or very far away.
But it didn't take long to get to the good stuff. I was so excited that I didn't know what to do (except take hundreds of pictures). When I took a photo class a few years ago, the instructor told us that skilled photographers only take a few shots to get a good one. I threw this theory out the window in Africa and went a little overboard!
I didn't realize until long after we were home that Bud, who was driving, made sure that his hand made it in my picture (showing his Texas roots).
I think my heart literally started beating faster when we got close to the giraffes. I was in awe of God's creation and the unique characteristics of these animals.
The zebras did not like showing me anything other than their backsides
And gazelles...
We were our own guides through the park so everyone had their eyes peeled for any hidden animals. And there certainly wasn't any guarantee that we would see every type of animal that had been spotted in the game park before. We were fortunate (we were told) that we did see a lot in a little amount of time.
Lions...
Beside the lion we noticed a recently killed ostrich (a.k.a. dinner). We drove a bit past the lion and saw the ostrich below in a field by itself.
The running joke for the rest of the evening was the following conversation this ostrich was having with herself:
Ostrich: Why is he late for our date? I swear he told me to meet him here at 6:00. Where could he be?
Us: We just saw your date. He's going to be a little late. He was a tasty snack for a lion.
We were so interested in the lions and hoping to see more so we turned around to head back towards them.
And did we see more!
Ted was the only brave one to get on top of the van for a better view...
Can you see the cub?! (and the ostrich snack)
2 lions and a cub!
And a few more shots as we made our way back out of the park
Leaving the park was hard for me because of how much I was enjoying myself. I could have explored this land all day if we had had the time.
For our big night in Nairobi, Bud planned to take us to Carnivore, every meat lovers dream. This restaurant would be similar to a Brazilian churrascaria like Texas de Brazil.
Photo below not a fan favorite of vegetarians
I love the look on Gerri's face as the waiter (holding a large knife) dropped a sword full of meat on her plate...
As long as our table (all 15 of us sat at one long table together) was still hungry, this flag stayed flying in our table number. Based on the number of appetizers, breads, salads, sides, and too many meats to count, most of us barely made it through half of the options. Of course, there were a few guys who were bottomless pits and refused to take down the flag. So...the rest of us sat and watched in amazement as they tried meat after meat. By the time we got to this point, it was late and we had had a really long day. A few at the table were full and ready for their heads to hit a pillow...or they were ready to take that same pillow and hit Ted with it so that he would finally stop eating and take down the flag!
The expressions on the faces in the following pictures are priceless. These two brave kiddos had just tried ox parts (you can imagine what part)...
The most adventurous meat I tried was ostrich and it was actually my favorite of all. I suppose the lions would agree.
By the time the flag was down and the final round of desserts was coming, we were all a bit delirious...and some were fading...
Spencer gave up and gave in to the exhaustion
We had a wonderful meal all together but were anxious for our beds as soon as dinner was over. I'm not sure any of us stayed awake on the drive back to our lodge.
