Sunday, February 25
Adam is with our vehicle today as we head to Amboseli and views of Mount Kilimanjaro. Traffic and businesses seem as usual, despite it being Sunday. We do see folks going to church one place, with everyone very dressed up.
Water towers with tanks that provide gravity feed are very common.
We discuss travel. Adam says it is difficult for Africans to visit the US unless you are a professional like a doctor. It requires 3 interviews and a visa. He went to Tulsa, OK for a training conference once. Said he fell asleep in the Houston airport, but was treated well and helped on his way. He enjoyed barbq, and said he was shocked when offered a hot dog, responding "we don't eat dogs!"
We have seen policemen flagging down vehicles here and there on the highways. Adam says they are checking insurance, licenses, etc. and most people just give them a bribe and go on their way. They generally don't bother tourist vehicles, but our drivers are stopped once. Adam says Gordon got a warning about going too fast in a trading station area - we don't know whether money changed hands.
The Maasai people in Kenya are more traditional... no school, mud homes, nomadic. The deformed or weak are left behind as there are no places to care for them. They do not bury their dead, but may leave something to attract animals which take care of the bodies. Life expectancy is in the 40's. Indeed, I only recall seeing one gray/white-haired man.
Our "potty stop". Had lots of carvings and a few carvers.
We pass a major cement factory, one of very few manufacturers.
We arrive in time for a late lunch and checkin at Amboseli Sopa Lodge. Wifi is only in the main building and hot water is available 5:30AM - 10:00 and 7:00-10:00 PM. Everyone has individual cabins reached by pretty winding paths through a treed area. Nice rooms!
Quick rest before the game drive!
These pretty yellow trees are seen quite often - introduced from Brazil I believe. Never did get a proper name - Adam calls most everything Acacia trees, Gordon called them Iron Wood Trees. The grounds here are quite nice!
There is a viewing platform, but Mount Kilimanjaro is shrouded in clouds for now. It is the highest point in Africa. Adam, who is from Tanzania points out that the mountain is actually in Tanzania. Gordon, our driver/guide from Kenya, says yes, but the best views of it are from Kenya. 😀
Our game drive begins around 4:00. And there is a lot to see! Amboseli National Park was established in 1974. It is noted for elephants, but we saw so much more!
The young wildebeest are able to walk and run within 5 minutes of birth! A necessity for survival!
We see some Maasai giraffes. 
A warthog family makes the road crossing as well.
A windy day, as the "crowns" on these cranes show.
A large bird, the bustard, was marching around, following a female. The male fluffs up his tail feathers in hopes of interesting a female. She just kept walking but he was persistent.
The elephants are in groups of females with young, while the bulls are mostly alone.
Their ears, we're told, are in the shape of Africa. And the tusk that is shorter is the dominant one that gets used more often.
This huge bull was "in musth", a period of sexual activity which sees a spike in hormones which result in more aggressive behavior. You can see that the temporal gland behind his eye is dripping. He crossed the road where several vehicles had stopped to watch and it looked like he had second thoughts about one vehicle in particular! He stopped and eyeballed the vehicle, shook his head a bit and then moved on. After crossing the road he stopped and looked back again like he was re-considering. Adam said he weighed about 7 tons and could easily have toppled the vehicle!
He was looking for something to take out his aggression on. About a week after we are home we hear about a bull elephant overturning a safari vehicle, killing an 80 year old woman.
The buffet dinner tonight was quite nice. Puddings are popular desserts - more like bread pudding texture and often served with a sauce. The monkeys were entertaining. People who sat outside on the patio soon learned not to leave the table unattended as the monkeys were quick to snatch foods, sugar packets, or anything else in reach!
Speaking of monkeys...Funny story from Cindy in our vehicle. She got up in the middle of the night to use the restroom and as she was making her way back through the mosquito netting to bed, her husband Dennis bolted upright and said - "There's a monkey in our room!"
Going back to our cabin there were monkeys with babies clambering about and some grooming each other. They were quick to move out of the path when we got near. Also saw a few dik-diks, which are the smallest antelope, probably about 18" tall.
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