I stayed last night at the historic Norfolk hotel. It is over 100 years old, but recently renovated by Fairmont hotels. The public spaces remain the same and I really felt like I was in Africa. I love the Veranda and the gardens.
I paid a visit to A&K Kenya to meet all the folks that help me make wonderful Safari experiences. Last year a family from Atlanta came over on Safari and they met the children of the Jacob Loigero school. They were so impressed with the school, they sent with me two HUGE bags of school supplies- one was full of soccer balls. I took them with me today to A&K and they were delighted to get the supplies to the school in the Massai Mara. Such a wonderful gesture from my family and so great of A&K to help.
Shopping nairobi.
My number one mission was to find the atelier of Anna trezbinski. Anna is a fashion designer from Nairobi who does extremely successful trunk shows in the US.. Among her designs are pashminsas that have feathers attached to the ends. They are absolutely stunning, and all the best camps in Africa have her designs I their shops. She used local villagers and does the most Incredible beaded jewelry, clothing with beading, bags, belts etc,etc. After some phone calls, my most resourceful driver, Alex, found her. And it was her birthday! I would love to talk her into visiting Atlanta, and doing a show there with my friend Betty Jo. I felt like I was in AliBabas cave!
I also found some local crafts shops and a wonderful curio shop called African heritage. I am bringing a group in May so I wanted to get some places lined up for them.
Another delightful place I visited in Nairobi was The giraffe center where I was able to feed the giraffes and they gave me A big kiss. Seeing those gentle animals so closely was such a thrill. I highly recommend it
Sent from my iPad
Catherine Whitworth CTA
Day 2, we got up early and flew a charter to the chulyu hills. Our destination camp is the fabulous Ol Donyo Waus. Charters are so much fun,because you can really see the landscape. As we were flying into the grass land g strip, I saw elephants, giraffe, zebra, impala, grant and thompson antelope. My biggest surprise wS that the landscape was so green! The area had just had rains and I have never seen such green. The trees and grasslands were amazing. I am sitting by the pool looking at elephants with a giraffe in the background, drinking from the pond below. Welcome to Africa!
Ol Donyo Waus is one of the five star camps I have been wanting to see, and it met all my expectations. The accommodations are top notch. Beautifully designed, the attention to detail is amazing. They have 10 villas- one is a two bedroom for families. Almost all have plunge pools, all have stunning views of Mt. Killimanjaro when he wants to show himself.
Activities include horseback riding, mountain bike riding, hiking, they offer a trek with with the resident bloodhounds( tracking pouchers)and of course games drives morning and evening. After our afternoon game drive, we had “Sundowners” and watched the sunset on the plains.
.
We took a charter to the Massai Mara- safarilink. It was a caravan type of plane and flew so low, we could see the country below beautifully.
In the Mara we stayed at Mara Plains , owned by the same company that has Ol Donyo Waus – Great Plains. We knew we would have lovely tents for accomodations and we were not disappointed. My room was right on the river with hippo below. In the night I thought one was in my room the noise was SO LOUD! the usual plan was a game drive in the early morning before breakfast,so we could get a good view of predators on the hunt. Then quick breakfast back at the camp, later lunch under a huge evergreen, afternoon break and then back in The car for afternoon drive. Dinner is at the camp. We were so fortunate to see several prides of lions. Gavin is a big bidwatcher, so we saw hundreds of special birds all during the drives. One evening we got caught in an enormous thunderstorm on the plains. The light show was just breathtaking. We had to have our sundowners in the jeep with the rain and lightening all around us. Quite fun. In the Mara we visited quite a few camps for inspection: Intrepid Mara, Explorer, Rekoro, and Pirini lion camp. Also Sanctuary Olonana, Bateleur, and Kitchwa Tempo.
you travel with a US PASSPORT which is valid 6 months after your return.
.
.
.
.
.
Lewa Wildlife conservancy is an amazing idea of a small group of people who wanted to preserve and conserve Indigenous animals game in north Kenya. Started by Ian Craig, they have grown to 17 projects protecting wildlife in the Lewa Conservancy. We stayed at Lewa House one of the camps in Lewa Downs. Game sighting is plentiful. Right after landing, on the way to the camp, we saw a pair of white rhino. Specialties of Lewa are reticulated giraffe, Grevey zebra, white rhino, black rhino, hippo, and elephants, which we saw in abundance. We also saw Cheetah, we rode right into the middle of a large group of breeding elephants- yikes! We visited a fabulous 5* camp recommended by Richard Boone of Ol Donyo Waus, called Sirokoi. A really polished, glamourous amazing property. I have attached some pictures. I would happily go back there again.
Lewa house was set on the plains under fever trees. Beautiful setting. During lunch we watched a spectacular display of the area birds, and a mongoose on the prowl – our first kill. Accommodations are more simple, but comfortable. Great for a more moderate budget.
We are back on the charter today- another caravan, flying to the island of Lamu on the Indian ocean. Tonight we are staying at Manda Bay. We will inspect peponi, beach house, and red pepper while we are visiting Lamu.
Lamu
I have always heard that Lamu is a heavenly beach destination. Everything I have heard was confirmed in spades. We arrived in the afternoon and took a boat directly to Manda Bay. Gorgeous coconut palms greeting us on the beach. We dropped our luggage and went immediately to see a special surprise: thousands of Northern Carmine bee- eaters. Thousands and thousands clustered and flying in huge clouds. It was such a spectacular sight. I will never forget it. We then got on a Dhow and had our cocktail cruise. While watching the sundown. Fabulous way to start a beach vacation. Dinner was under the stars, on the beach. The food everywhere we have been has been incredible. This evening we had fresh prawns in our appetizer and red snapper. Lamu is a terrific fishing destination on the Indan Ocean off the coast of Kenya. An easy scheduled charter from many camps. I find that alot of clients like the down time on a beach after Safari. The next morning we went to see several hotels. Garden House, Shella house, Palm House, and the fabulous Beach House. All of these properties are in the city center of Lamu. They have several stories, so lots of steps to go from living room to bedroom, etc. We visited Peponi the delightful family run hotel, Peponi, right on the edge of the city, on the harbor. Across the bay on Manda Island is a spectacular new property called Majlis. Owned by an Italian family, we were hosted by Stefano Moccia, one of the sons. The artwork in the compound was the best I’ve seen in Kenya. Including major American contemporary art. I will happily return and feel very comfortable putting clients there. Rooms were bright, the furnishings and decorative accessories were terrific.
We actually stayed at another former private villa, Red Pepper. Soaring open rattan ceilings, very theatrical. I loved it. Only one room had air-conditioning and we suggested that they put it in all the rooms. The night is very still and weather in Lamu is HOT.
.
.
Best camps are for last and we are on our way to Tanzania to Singita Sabora and Singita Sasakwa. As good as it gets!!! Can’t wait to see them again!
A note about the visa situation: get your visa before coming to Tanzania and be sure to have your Yellow fever shots documented on the yellow card. We flew on by charter, if we had flown in commercially, the visa application line and procedure would have taken a very long time because of the larger line of people. Visas cost $100 cash if you buy upon entry.
As I said, we saved the best for last. Sasakwa is like an English Manor sitting up on the hill overlooking the stunning Grumeti plain. Grumeti borders on the Serengeti. It is a vast plain with unlimited skies and sunsets. When the migration is going on, the plains are completely covered with Wildebeest, zebra, elephants and giraffe. And lots of predators sitting there watching the buffet. Sasakwa has the ultimate stable with about 25 horses in superb condition. Rooms are ultra luxe English cottages with fireplaces, antiques- the works! I could live there, happily. Even better is Singita’s tented Camp Sabora, nearby. Right our of Hemingway’s Africa. The Tents are completely finished with English aniques, Persian rugs, chic mobile safari furniture, crystal, silver and china. I have never seen anything like it. Totally glamorous!
.
.
.
.
Our trip was planned and hosted by a new ground operator, Africa Inscribed. Partners Dylan Harriss and Gavin Ford are a perfect team. Dylan is the planner, organizer and ultimate detail man along with important input from Gavin. Gavin, formally with A&K, has been a top Safari Guide for all of Africa for 18 years. Together they are unstoppable. The biggest difference about this team is that they constantly check camps, and resorts-personally. So when we want a certain area, we can depend their knowledge and expertise. They have truly been there and experienced the properties. Little details like personal handwritten notes announcing our departure time for the next day along with a framed picture of something we saw that day gave our travels a new dimension. The bag tags they supply are metal with woven metal strings so they can’t be torn off. Very well
thought out. No stone left unturned. Africa Inscribed has a very bright future.
We had such a fun, interesting learning experience, but I have to say the very best part of traveling is walking back into my Home! Home is truly where the heart is. I am so blessed to be able to see the world’s amazing places, but there is no place like home, and nothing more important than family. I got off the plane and went straight to Will’s 3rd TBall game. SO adorable!! He was more interested in drawing in the dirt with his toe than catching the ball!
Next trip is back to Kenya in May. Thanks for your interest.
Fantastic article about the benefits of using a trusted travel professional on cnn.com by Christopher Elliott, Tribune Media Services. Very informative: http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/01/15/booking.travel.online/index.html?hpt=Sbin
Dispatches from the Road 