3 Days Safari in Masai Mara National Park

“Don’t wait until the best time comes, but make the present the best.” (Monika Minder).

On Wednesday (November 1st, 2023) the time had finally come - Madlin's parents landed in Nairobi an hour late at 11:03 p.m. The reunion was indescribably beautiful and we were all so happy.

We used Thursday to see Nairobi. Among other things, we visited a cathedral and enjoyed the view over the city from the heliport of the Kenyatta Convention Center. William, our driver, also showed us residential buildings and we passed many markets. That evening we all went to sleep excited for the next day.

On Friday (November 3rd, 2023) we were picked up from the hotel by our guide James in a large jeep at 7:30 a.m. - our journey towards Masai Mara began. After six hours we reached our lodge, which was close to the entrance to the national park. We received a very warm welcome here. After lunch we moved into our tents. They were permanent tents with real beds and private bathrooms, and there was also a great view of the savannah from the restaurant. A few minutes later we drove into the national park. Unfortunately, Peter (the weather god) wasn't kind to us and it was pouring rain. On the way to the national park we already saw giraffes and zebras. A few minutes after we arrived in the Masai Mara National Park, it finally stopped raining and we were even able to open the roof of the jeep. On our first day we saw a lot of animals, such as hippos, jackals, wildebeest and water buffalo. Chris was particularly happy about the antelopes that he wanted to see. We were back at the lodge around 6 p.m.

Yesterday there was a day safari on the agenda. We drove to the national park with James at 7:15 a.m. The weather was perfect and the mood was cheerful. Right from the start we were able to open the roof, which gave us a unique view of the animals. We were really close to the animals. Lions ran so close to our jeep that we had to close the windows - it was incredibly exciting and exciting. After lunch, which the hotel packed for us in the form of a lunch box for everyone, we all had a bit of a midday slump - we were all tired because the night was short and the morning was full of adrenaline. Suddenly James started driving faster. He was on the phone with other guides and we sensed that there was a certain tension in the air. We woke up again and were very curious to find out what the reason for the changed mood was. A few minutes later James told us that a leopard had been spotted. However, due to the heavy rain the day before and during the night, many paths were not passable. The ride was very bumpy, but we had so much fun. We drove through deep puddles, steep ditches and lots of mud. At some point we came to a stop and suddenly the leopard emerged from the bushes just a few meters in front of our jeep. This particularly pleased Dieter, who had wanted so much to see one. Andrea also got her money's worth because we were able to observe some elephants up close. After nine hours of safari, we arrived at the lodge overjoyed.

Our day today started at 7:30 a.m. with the third safari. On the way to the national park, giraffes lie across the road, just a few meters in front of us. When we arrived at the national park we were all full of hope that we would see a rhinoceros so that we could complete the “Big Five”.

“Big game hunters used to refer to five specific animals in Africa as the Big Five . There were African elephants, rhinos, buffaloes, lions and leopards. The selection was not primarily based on the body size of the animals, but primarily on the difficulties and dangers of hunting them.

We left the national park around 10 a.m. and drove back to Nairobi. We didn't see a rhino, but that wasn't a bad thing for us at all. Each of the four of us saw the animals that we were individually hoping for and so we saw our very own “Big Five”.

We were able to admire the following animals up close over the last three days:

• buffalo
  
• Monkeys
  
• Giraffes
  
• Zebras
  
• Wildebeest
  
• Jackals
  
• Wild boars
  
• antelopes
  
• hippos
  
• buffalo
• meerkat
  
• Hyenas
  
• Elephants
  
• Ostriches
  
• secretaries
  
• Goldfinches
  
• vulture
  
• Turtles
  
• Eagle
  
• Lions
  
• Crocodiles
  
• snakes
  
• leopard
  
• steel blue rock games
  
• Mongooses
  
• Gazelles
  
• various birds
• Impalas
  
• partridges

In summary, we can say that we had an incredibly fascinating time. With the safari we all fulfilled a dream. We will always remember this experience.