Maasai Mara Day 1

Today we’re off to the Maasai Mara, one of the great national parks of Kenya (IF NOT THE WORLD!!!). Our day starts early with breakfast at the crack of dawn as we’re told we need to be down in the centre of town for a 7am set off. Naturally, we arrive right on time only to wait there for another 2 hours before setting off.

We’ve joined a low budget tour which means we are cramped into what looks like a small minivan has been transformed into a makeshift safari car. Our driver is Richie who never fails to disappoint us with his jazzy jacket.

We arrive at the camp and are pleasantly surprised to learn that we each have our own tents that come equipped with their own private washroom and shower. The manager warns to keep our tents closed to prevent monkeys from burgling our things. Chris tries to make a joke, and asks whether the monkeys will take our camera to sell at the market, but the manager just responds by saying “monkeys don’t need money”. The warning quickly proves itself to be prescient, when one monkey storms into our tent, scaring Katie, and setting off with Chris’ banana. So it’s food that they want.

This time of the year brings the Great Migration to Kenya, where millions of wildebeests cross from the Masai Mara into the Serengeti (the Tanzanian side of the park). Fortunately, this means we’ll be able to spot many animals during our game drives. But unfortunately, it means we’re joined by hundreds of other tourists who are here to do the same.

Within minutes of driving into the park we are able to spot two cheetahs on the hunt for their evening tea. By tracking them with all the other cars (which means waiting in a long queue as well), we’re able to see them in action. They spend a good few minutes posing for a photo shoot (or maybe preparing for the hunt- I’m not David Attenborough), and dart into the herd of wildebeest and take one down. I’ve read about the sheer speed of cheetahs in books and on websites, but it’s another thing to behold in real life. There was no grand chase, just a 65km/h yellow blur, then a dead wildebeest. It’s nature at it’s most raw and exhilarating. And we can't wait to see more tomorrow.Read more