Lion Cubs & the Masaai Cricket Warriors
First sight of the day was three lionesses with their seven cubs. The cubs were so cute frolicking about and wrestling with each other while their mothers watched protectively from a distance. We sat with them for an hour just watching the little guys play.
The elephants here dust themselves with the red clay so they appear almost brown. There are so many giraffes. We saw a tower of at least 30 giraffe from a distance. Two males had a short fight. They knocked each other with their necks until one surrendered and retreated. They are truly fascinating to watch.
We went back to the lodge for breakfast around 10:00am (a 3 ½ hour drive was sufficient). There we met an interesting English woman named Donna who now lives in Perth. She was visiting her sister who lives in Kenya and runs a pony camp for kids. She was a lot of fun and had hilarious tales of being flashed as a teenager in England and how the perverts are never what one expects them to look like. I am not sure how we got on that subject, but it was truly a fun and lively discussion.
Around 1pm, Solomon was to drive Veta and me to Polei to see the Masaai Cricket Warriors. I read about them last January when I was flying to Nairobi from Kigali in Msafiri Magazine (Kenyan Air magazine), and have been dying to see them play. In tournaments and official games, they wear their traditional clothing on the field and from the pictures it is a magnificent sight to see. The team plays in fundraising games to raise money for AIDS prevention and to bring attention to and stop female genitalia mutilation. The team was founded and coached by a woman Alvya Bauer, who was teaching in Polei and missed cricket so she taught some local guys how to play and now the team members have blossomed into ambassadors for their culture and causes around the world as they travel playing the game of cricket.
For the drive, we had a man named Laki join us. He was there for security and was carrying a rifle. Not sure why, because I never felt in danger. On the way to Polei, the SUV started dragging and wasn’t shifting into gear properly. About 40 minutes from the lodge, the car stalled. We were in a village named Koija, which is Solomon’s hometown. Solomon called the lodge and they were sending another car for us, but instead of losing time we chugged forward. The car started but the motor was dragging so we jerked along stopping every 15 minutes or so to restart it and try again. When Veta, hollered, “Come on car!” as the engine started sputtering and jerking up a hill, Solomon and Laki started laughing and that became our chant every time the engine started to fail. At one point Solomon and Laki got out and fiddled a bit and then the car started running normally for 30 minutes or so before the fuel pump clogged again and we were reduced to a slow herky jerky ride, but the important thing is we made it to Polei and in time to watch part of the cricket practice.
The Cricket Warriors are in the process now of raising funds to participate in the Last Man Standing Tournament to be held in London on August 26th. We were able to give them a donation and wish them luck. Last year’s tournament was held in South Africa and they team captain Soyanda Ole Ng’ais won a trophy for best baller. I showed them the magazine that had the article about them. They were thrilled to see themselves in the photos and tell where each shot had taken place (one was from a game in Mombasa, another from London, and another from South Africa). They had not seen the article so I asked them to hold the magazine as I took a team picture and let them keep it. All the guys were really friendly and I could tell what a kick they were getting out of playing the game, helping their community, and travelling the world. While they practiced Solomon put on a glove and picked up a bat to try out for the team. The team captain explained the rules of Last Man Standing Tournament to us. There were a lot of little kids watching them so we were able to give out the rest of our pens and pencils.
While we were watching the practice, the other car from the lodge appeared and we were able to transfer our stuff to the new car, which was an open safari vehicle so I am glad we brought our fleece jackets with us. The ride home was without incident and before heading back to the lodge, Solomon took Veta on a quick ride through the bush and found the Grevy Zebra, which is only visible in Loisaba and only 2000 are still in existence. She was thrilled. It was dark and he had to shine a light on them but she was able to see their distinct markings and big ears. Riding through the bush in the dark is fun. An elephant, bothered by the lights did a mock charge at us but stopped. That was kind of scary and at the same time thrilling…another exciting day in the bush.
We leave for Nairobi tomorrow and stay one night in Giraffe Manor, where the giraffes knock on your window in the morning in search of food. Lala Salama.