Passports Arrive!!

Our passports were stolen back in August. The temporary replacements got us as far as Kenya but now miracle of miracle we finally pick up our "proper" passports complete with Ethiopian visa. Route to get this far goes as follows:
Application for replacement passport sent from Windhoek, Namibia to Pretoria (only place that issues full passports if you are in Southern Africa)
Passports returned 3 weeks later to Namibia FEDEX office. We had arranged that they would then be couriered to UK where our son would get replacement Ethiopian visas.
 No joy -now in Zambia we are told they could only be sent onto a British High Commission. OK Dar es Salaam then it is so more courier fees.
Pick up passports in Dar es Salaam. Ethiopian Embassy will not issue the visa so decide only option is to courier from Nairobi to UK.
Courier from Nairobi to Ethiopian Embassy in UK with prepaid return, turn around service promised. Visa side worked well, DHL did not!
However finally after several phone calls to UK they finally arrive so 2 months after the loss we are now back in posession of passport and visa!!!
Moral - Do not lose your passport!!

Family Excursion to Masai Mara

Now the part where we expand to 13, the original 8 plus Emma, husband Chris and children William (9) Grace (6) and Alfie (3). The excitement (and argument) who would sit where! The boys "bagged" the 2 spare seats in the truck. Again a journey that should have taken 4 to 5 hours took us 7+. Bad roads, the truck missing a turn, drink and "loo" stops all contributed but we did find a camp site before nightfall and had an amazing time. We had planned to spend 3 nights and then move onto Lake Nakaru. A lovely camp site, just outside Talek Gate - Crocodile Camp, masses of game and lethargy persauded us all that we really didn't want to see lake Nakaru. Although we knew we were late to see the migrations we went in pursuit anyway and amazingly nearly managed to see one group of wildebeest and zebra go over the river. We had followed them down to the rivers edge then they decided to amble on. After a few  hours sitting, driving etc we came upon another group which actually did start to go over the river bank. Again not to be - the animals suddenly decided to come back and started running away. You can imagine the childrens reactions. William and Thomas really disappointed that they didnt actually manage to see the crossing. The girls - Florence and Grace, age 6,  upset at the thought of any of the animals being killed by the huge crocodiles waiting, cheered up. Well you can't please them all! I had been a bit sceptical about the Masai Mara - too many tourists etc but was proved wrong. Yes, there were a couple of occassions when there were so many white mini buses viewing some spectacle that it looked as if we were at a bus station, but it was possible to get away from the main tourist groups and we saw so much -
Mating lions (or copulation as the boys describe)
Large prides of lions
Lioness with cubs and kill
Lions with giraffe kill
Cheethas and cubs
Large herds of wildebeest and zebras
Hippos
Enormous crocodiles
Large numbers of hyenas and hyena kills
etc etc

We have been on safari many times in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana etc but as I read in one guide book  "if you can only have one day of doing a safari in your life time then spend it in the Masai Mara".

And so to Nairobi

Due to meet Emma (daughter) and family we pushed onto Nairobi. We were all ecstatic at the new, deserted road from Amboseli, optimism rose we would be in Nairobi by late lunchtime. We hadn't taken account of driving standards in Kenya! After the initial 100 km or so we joined the main Mombassa - Nairobi highway. Full of trucks on their way to or from Mombassa, the road deteriorating to rough hole filled tracks in places, contractors "mending" the road and worst of all the apparent rules of the road meant that progress slowed to about 30km an hour. A 2 lane road became 5 or even more lanes. What a nightmare. It was more like the dodgems than a road. We eventually made it to a camp site in Nairobi hours later. I (Mandy) was instantly for going into a hotel - it was pouring rain, a muddy small camp site etc. I couldnt find support for this as noone wanted to venture back into the traffic so there we stayed. It didnt improve! The tent and truck leaked. Thomas lay in a pool of water and my side of the bed in the truck was soaked. At least the sun shone later so we could dry everything and effect repairs. Apart from the traffic we found Nairobi amazingly civilized. Lots of shopping malls with all the food we wanted. lots of restaurants  and time to get the washing done, leaks repaired etc. as well as meeting up with Emma and friends. The children were in heaven, cousins to play with and lots of toys at Emma's friends house. All very relaxing.

Visit to a Masai Village

More Masai village

Masai village

Full marks to one of the Masai villages in the Amboseli! Try to "capture" the tourists on game drives and lure them in! It worked! In actual fact we all found the visit fascinating. We were welcomed with a traditional dance and prayer. This was followed by a fire lighting demonstration - much to Ray Mears delight - alias Chris! The houses were almost loaf shaped, all identical and made of wood and cow dung. They all had 2 rooms - just big enough for a cow hide bed in each. One room for children and one for adults. Between the rooms was a tiny space just big enough for a small fire to cook on. With only one hole about 10 cm long for ventilation the whole house was in virtually total darkness.
The village we visited had 152 members of an extended family and was the main village in a group of 42 others in the area. The chief lived in this village.
There was a small primary school for the group of villages and a pre school. The pre school had 65 children and one teacher but there was no sign of any teaching materials at all, even paper or pencils.

I think we are coming to the conclusion that what is needed in the schools is a supply of the basics - exercise books, pencils and chalk.

Amboseli

Hyena Amboseli

After Ruhana and North and South Luangwe Amboseli was small but easy game viewing. Many, many elephants and even saw several hyenas.

At last a sight of Kilimanjaro

Kilimanjaro by moonlight

Ten at night and camped just outside Ambroseli finally the clouds lift and we see the mountain. Quite spectacular.

Kilamanjaro it is!

Village near Marangu

We finally left Dar es Salaam by mid afternoon on the saturday - land rover steering fixed. Two days of travelling later we made it to Marangu, the Tanzanian town where the treks up the mountain commence. The scenery definitely had the wow factor although we had our first rain since leaving on August 10th which meant Kilamanjaro was in the clouds. The vegetation was so lush and fertile. It reminded us of the road into the Cameron Highlands in Malaysia. Such a change from heat and dust.
In the hope that the clouds would retreat we decided to follow the road around Kilimanjaro and cross the border to Amboseli in Kenya which we had read had superb views. Time will tell whether we are lucky.