On the road to Amboseli

Kilimanjaro from our lodge at Amboseli

We spent most of the day on the road from lake Naivasha to Amboseli. Here are my impressions from the road:

• People walking everywhere on the side
• Taking yellow-striped minivans to cover long distances
  
• Heavily laden trucks slowing to 5-10 mph on hills
• Everyone taking risks trying to pass these trucks, especially those yellow-striped vans with 8-12 passengers
• Many roadside shops selling everything from clothing to auto repair
• Vegetable stands selling onions, tomatoes, and piles of sweet potatoes
• Donkey carts carrying barrels of water from the well
• Motorcycles with gallon milk containers surrounding the driver
• Wheel barrels loaded with sugar cane for sale
• All the signs in English, but all the conversations in Swahili or a tribal language
• Slowing down for speed bumps in the highway in every village.

As we headed south from Nairobi, the land turned drier, much like New Mexico, then we headed up a greener ridge and then back down into the desert. As we turned onto Maasai lands, the soil turned red, giving us red zebras. Kilimanjaro (mountain with the white top) comes into sight, rising from the plains in the South. Finally about 4:30 PM, we reach Amboseli National Park. Amboseli means salt dust because of the dust that rise from the salt flats. The water from Kilimanjaro feeds springs which result in a swamp in the middle of the desert. Here we saw Elephants, Cape Buffalo, and Hippos.

Cape Buffalo, Hippos, and Elephant in the swamp

An exciting find was a Python curled up in a birds nest, then we saw a Saddle Billed Stork and a Kori Bustard. But the hit of the day was a pride of ten lions, lounging around. Apparently, these lions wandered into the park just a few months ago.