Out of Africa

Many years ago I had the utmost privilege of being part of a journalistic team heading to Africa, as guests of Qatar Airways, when they launched their inaugural destination NAIROBI.

This was my first trip ever to Africa, and to the Kenyan capital city of Nairobi, traditionally referred to as Ewaso Nyirobi (translation Cool Waters) by the native Masai people, who inhabit this unique part of the world.

NAIROBI  CITY

The first stop was the city itself, and I was lucky enough to have a guided tour meeting extremely interesting Governmental Kenyian representatives and many local people, most of whom shared with me their favourite or family recipes, and proudly several of these recipes I now share with you via the website – Baked Fish with African Spices, BBQ Chicken with Figs, African Peanut Sauce and Kachumbari African Salsa 

Once the city fix was over, the most exciting part of the trip for me then commenced, and off we all set to enter the Masai Mara National Game Reserve, where my true African experience began.

The featured image to my Africa blog I am particularly proud about, as I captured it whilst entering the Masai Mara National Game Reserve in an open topped land rover. The location of this spectacular game reserve being 90 kilometres from Narok, the principle regional town and 250km from the capital Nairobi.

The photograph I took I admit was not quite what I had expected to find in this unique, unspoilt game reserve but definitely worth the shot I believe.

THE AFTERNOON RACE TO GET HOME

I would also like to share with you another thought provoking image I just could not resist to take. Again, totally unexpected and unprepared. Whilst traveling fast again this time in a small jeep across vast open land with only a dirt track to follow, I looked out of the window and what I saw completely took my breath away. This emotive picture I just had to capture …and immediately after the shot I thought of the opening words to the magazine article, and these words were by the infamous Lou Reed, who said ‘TAKE A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE, sugar plum fairy came and hit the streets looking for soul food and a place to eat’. So perfectly apt for my work as a travel and food journalist I felt?

This image still for me evokes a wonder as where in the world do you see ‘Man and Beast’ so connected and at peace. How many of us yearn for comfort and 21st century bustle yet this man (a tall, traditionally dressed Masai Mara tribal warrior) was totally at peace with his surrounding, making his way home bare footed, oblivious of what we ‘westerners’ consider to be the dangers of Africa; wild animals, tigers, lions etc… This was HIS home, HIS land and HIS life.

Makes me question myself and think whose got it right, we who chase material perfection or this regal man, who seeks no more than the perfection around him, absorbing its unspoilt beauty with every walk home, every day.

BAREFOOT WALKING HOME

Naturally, the animals deserve coverage, and the Masai Mara National Game Reserve supports  home to a breathtaking array of wild life. The vast grassland plains support herds of free roaming zebra, giraffe, gazelle and topi, and the famous and beautifully shaped Acacia trees provide homes for a profusion of birdlife and monkeys. The emphatic elephant can be found standing proud amongst the fauna and buffaloes are often seen wallowing in the wide Musaira swamp, with the Mara and Talek rivers brimming with hippos and crocodiles. This land is a true safe haven for these tragically endangered animals, and of course a safari heaven for those lucky enough to see it.

SLEEPING HIPPOS

ACACIA TREES PROVIDE HOMES FOR MANY

PROUD AFRICAN ELEPHANTS

MASAI PRINCESS IN TRUE TRADITIONAL ATTIRE

I have so many memories to reflect upon during my stay as the reserve really was quite magnificent; rightly a true wonder of the world, and I can see why the Masai Mara National Game Reserve (The Mara affectionally named by the locals) is widely considered to be Africa’s greatest. As the world spins forward at great speed with what we label as ‘progress’, these beautiful free animals and these unchanging, unspoilt people who continue to co-exist together, make this Masai land one of the worlds most revered wilderness regions.

My trip to Africa was many years ago, and luckily my memory remains strong regarding the experiences I was so lucky to savour, however, with the passing years and sadly as the ageing process takes its toll I feel the need to re-capture it all, so please indulge me and allow me to share my experiences in Africa with you via this blog, and I truly hope you enjoy my travels as much as I did, all those years ago.