Maasai Mara

Maasai Mara is amazing. Literally translated, it means the Maasai Savannah. It is on the Tanzania border. On the Tanzania side, it becomes the Serengeti. The animals migrate north to the Mara from the Serengeti. Wildebeests come up in groups of thousands. While I did not see a group crossing, I did walk down to the river where the major crossing occurs. Complete with crocodiles and hippos!


The sunsets were incredible. I would have probably ruined my eyes if I had stayed there any longer because I could not look away from the sunsets! It was really fun to stand up in the safari vans and have my head poking above the roof.

We went on an evening drive the first day we arrived. More animals come out when it is cooler. We saw antelope (they became the boring animal), dikdiks (that name is awesome!), zebras, ostriches, elephants, giraffes, and a lion family complete with baby cubs! I'm sure I am probably missing some animals.

We went on a full day safari the following day. This time we added hippos, crocodiles, and cheetahs to our list of animals. We also did a lot of bird watching. We had some bird books in the car and had so much fun identifying birds. There are so many incredible birds!

We all stayed at a really nice lodge. It was a little odd because all the tourists were either European or Asian, yet all the hotel employees were Maasai. I know the hotel provides employment for the Maasai community, and that is good, but the hotel is owned by an Indian family, like most developed businesses in Kenya. You could sense there was a lot of cultural exploitation going on as the Maasai culture was really 'played up.' Considering there are 42 ethnic groups in Kenya, it is interesting that the Maasai have become the "face" of Kenya. The group most resistance to change (or rather, least accepting of Western culture), they are now a tourist attraction. I know it happens in other tourist spots and countries as well, but never at the same level as here. The Maasai are very much the "other" group here in Kenya and that translated well to the tourist industry.

As amazing as the trip was, and as exciting as it was to see the animals, two days was a good period of time. While the first time we saw a lion, we all gasped and were quietly freaking out in excitement, by the end of our time there, we were tired and told our driver not to detour to see a lion. You can only appreciate so much I suppose! But the initial exhilaration of seeing each animal in the wild for the first time is great. I watched a lion eat a wildebeest just 20 feet away from me! I could hear her chomping and bones breaking!

Here are just some of the animals and sights I saw! You can click on the pictures to make them bigger and see it closer to my own experience. :)