Naivasha - ho!

October 1-3

We all met at the school at 10am on Friday morning to go to Naivasha. Francis, our Swahili professor, had set us up with a matatu (bus-type system, I'll discuss this some other time) and a driver and all we had to do was meet with him.

Zach and Emily in our matatu

Saskia and Mimansa

Megan and I

Naivasha is about an hour and a half away from Nairobi, but we stopped at a viewpoint - 8000km above the ground, looking over the country-side. It was beautiful! You could see for miles. We stayed there and took a bunch of pictures for a while and then got back on the matatu.

When we arrived, we met up with Francis who took us to where we would be staying and helped us get situated. We stayed in tiny little rooms, with two single beds and possibly a little bedside table/lamp. All of the beds had mosquito netting over them, to protect from malaria. (I've been taking my meds too, so no worries!) Zach and I had long ago decided we would be roomies!! That left Mimansa and Amelia together, Saskia and Megan together, and Emily by herself. We then found out that if Emily were to get a room by herself she would have to pay double, for the extra bed. So we decided her and I could share a bed and her, Zach and I stayed in one room.

The first night we walked around our site and walked a bit into town to check out a little market area. We got back and started to make dinner. (We had all gone to a grocery store together and bought a bunch of food to cook for meals.) As we walked around the place we were staying, we happened upon some really cool trees that looked good for climbing. I was the first one to mention it, and all in all encouraged the group to climb - haha. I started off, but as I was climbing up, I pulled on a branch and it immediately broke, having been eaten through by termites. I wasn't too high on the air, and I managed to grab the trunk and sort of slide down - I've got some nasty scrapes on my arm, but that's it. Zach and Mimansa found a tree with a little wooden seat in it, and both of them scrambled up.

Mimansa in the tree

Zach climbing on Emily's back to ascend

We started a fire, with the help of our friendly neighbor Todd - who had kerosene - and put potatoes, green beans, carrots and onions in a big stew bowl and cooked that. We also roasted squash in a pan of butter. It was so good! I was actually surprised how well we got things going.

Megan and I: Ferocious Firebuilders

Amelia and Emily (So Cute!!!)

That night we all stayed out by the campfire for a long time, talking and listening to music and telling stories. We drank from a communal bottle of white wine met a couple of our neighbors, who joined us and got to know us a bit. It was great. We finally went to bed because we knew the next morning was going to be an early one.

The next day our alarms rang at 6am. We got up, ate a tiny bit of breakfast and went to meet with a guide who we had arranged to take us to Hell's Gate National Park. We had all rented a bicycle to bike to the park, through the park and then to the gorge.

Emily, Zach and I take the lead

Mimansa

Suddenly, we crossed a corner and there were A BUNCH OF WILD ZEBRA!!!

Our guide spotted some giraffe in the distance, so we parked our bikes in the dirt and walked through the field. We were so close to the animals – it was absolutely amazing.

Peter, our fantastic guide

Amelia and Mimansa

Look how close I was! Totally amazed.

Finally, after biking 13km (8 miles) we made it to the gorge, a descent of steep and narrow cliffs.

The sign that greeted us at the top of the gorge - ha ha

It was difficult to climb down, because there are streams flowing through and it is often very slippery, but Peter, our guide, knew exactly where we should step to avoid slipping. He was very helpful. It was BEAUTIFUL – by far the most beautiful thing I’ve seen in real life. All of us felt completely mind-blown by the sights seen in this wondrous place.

Zach and I were worried about the descent

Proof that I walked for a long while in the gorge without my shoes - So good.

Green algae = hot springs. They were actually hot to the touch! Like scalding bath water.

Dancing in the stream :)

We walked 4km (2.5 miles) through the gorge, part of which I walked without shoes because they kept slipping off. It was actually great to feel the earth beneath my feet! We then landed at the view-point for a quick lunch, and headed back to the bikes, where we biked another 13km (8 miles) back home. We were absolutely exhausted by the end of the day, and most of us took long naps that evening before going to the restaurant for dinner and heading to bed.

What an exciting and life-changing weekend it was! All of us had many “awe-inspiring” moments, and agree that it was one of the best trips thus far. Mom and Dad – you DEFINITELY have to go here. You can take a car instead of biking or skip the gorge, but it’s definitely worth the exhaustion and pain in the butt and legs and arms to see this stuff.

Hope all is well in the States. Miss and love you all!