"Safari" means journey
"If you were born in Africa, you become an integral part of it and wherever you go you will not feel at home. You manifest two distinct personalities: you are a white man with a spirit of a black man. When you encounter a kindred spirit you form a friendly relationship with him or her."
The author of these words - Mirelia Ricciardi - was born in Africa. She is a photographer, the author of breathtaking albums: Vanishing Africa and African Visions which portray Africa as a wonderful but suffering continent.
Many years ago when I went to Kenya for the first time, I did not imagine myself getting on with such people as Mirelia Ricciardi. I was not familiar with Africa then. I perceived Africa from the point of view of a European that comes here for a while.
Having explored Eastern and Southern Africa, I returned to Kenya. I heard the same words in Swahili: Kenia ni nchi nzuri, Kenya is a wonderful country.
Kenya was the first country to teach me to revel in peace, to observe nature, African animals and to photograph unique sunsets and sunrises. It is a country that has a special atmosphere created by people and places designed by them. It is a place definitely worth a visit during your safari adventure.
The ranch of a famous baroness, (Karen Blixen and her companion, Denys) the author of Farewell to Africa, is identical to the house in front of which Karen used to sit with her gazelle Lulu and her beloved greyhounds. She writes that Denys did not have any other house in Africa, only her ranch. He lived at her place when he did not go on safari. His books and a record player are still in the living room. In an old coffee roasting plant there is a posh restaurant designed in colonial style. Sitting in the restaurant and admiring Ngong I always recall stories the couple were famous for.
I wonder whether lions still visit his grave.
Ol Ari Nyiro ranch, situated in the region of Laikipia in Northern Kenya, is a special place where Kuki Gallan has created her African world. Having lost her husband and son, the Italian aristocrat and the writer of many books, (including the world best seller I dreamed of Africa), made a decision to stay in Africa where she had experienced life full of tribulations. The ranch is home to abandoned and injured animals. Kuki always seeks to prove that Africa is a place that preserves values that other places have lost: space, roots, tradition, striking beauty, wilderness of nature. Africa attracts dreamers.
Kuki Gallan was determined to present her world to visitors. She offers comfortably and tastefully decorated rondavel style accommodation and provides houses furnished in old Lamu style, situated on a picturesque hill and overlooking a ravine. To avoid disturbing the peacefulness of the bush with noisy generators, solar power is used to generate electricity.
In the evening, while sitting by candlelight and admiring the orange sun slowly and gracefully disappearing below the horizon, we may realize why Kuki fell in love with the place.
To reach Karen and Kuki's houses you set off from Nairobi. The only place worth visiting there is the National Museum. There are portraits of tribes of Northern Kenya painted by Joy Adamson that promise you an encounter with unusual people. Only indefatigable travelers succeed in reaching remote Turkana Lake and visiting such tribes as: the Samburu, the El Molo, the Gabra and the Rendille that inhabit the expanses of Northern Kenya. The trail is very demanding but for me it was the experience of a lifetime.
Together with her husband, Joy Adamson devoted her life to the conservation of nature. They took under their roof a lioness named Elsa and her cubs. Joy used to say: "For many years I had been looking for a house where we could live with George. Finally I found a place which came up to our expectations. We decided to call our home Elsamere."
The first lioness I saw, (it might have been Elsa's cub), was in Samburu Reserve. I consider the Samburu and Shaba National Reserves to be the most magnificent wildlife spectacle that can be found in Kenya. They can be admired for their variety of terrain, thick bushes and open spaces. They boast the most diverse and unique collection of wild animals that can be spotted anywhere on the continent, for example, Grevy's zebra. Samburu Reserve is home to an astonishing range of African cats.
Mountain Lodge is situated at 2194 meters on the slopes of Mount Kenya, regions inhabited by the local Kikuyu, Meru and Embu people.
The balconies of Mountain Lodge overlook a spectacular forest waterhole where there is a continual procession of game. Lights are kept on all night so the attracted animals can be easily viewed. Apart from elephant, baboon or buffalo you may spot skittish bongo antelope. Mountain Lodge is a wildlife sanctuary where about 250 species have been recorded and is renowned for being a peaceful haven for ornithologists.
Lake Nakuru National Park, which is situated in the Great Rift Valley and can be seen from space, is a black rhino sanctuary. The park is home to over a million pink guests (flamingos) and you can sometimes even catch a glimpse of the rare Rothschild giraffe - the second species of giraffe seen in Kenya.
The Maasai Mara, the most famous game sanctuary in Kenya, regularly features on the itinerary and marks the end of the journey. Open spaces and an abundance of different species make the place a premier wildlife destination. It is the final destination of the great annual migration that starts in the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania. In Maasai Mara, I always try to trail species the park is famous for: leopards, hippos, hyenas and lions with characteristic dark manes.
Alexander Lake, who was one of hunters and organizers of hunting tours in Africa in the 1920s and 1930s and after WWII, used to say: "In the human voice, there is something that arouses anger in some lions' hearts". That is why you should remain silent while approaching these cats.
In reserves I learnt how to remain silent. Observing guides, we may easily understand why they are harmonious with the surrounding environment and why they are familiar with animals they trail. They devote their time to animals and watch their behavior. During the guide training course I realised that we are visitors to the land of animals, not the opposite.
Karen Blixen wrote about silence: "Civilised people have lost the ability to remain silent, nature has to teach them how to be silent before they are allowed to commune with it. The first thing a hunter has to get used to is how to move continually and smoothly and avoid sudden and unexpected movements. It is of particular importance for a hunter with a camera in his hand. Hunters should not act at their own discretion but have to take into consideration wind, colors and the smell of nature, and have to keep pace with the surrounding environment. When a man follows the rhythm of Africa once, he realises that the same music can be heard on the rest of the continent."
People who are in love with reserves and their inhabitants, accommodate their guests in wooden safari lodges or luxurious tents comfortably equipped with tastefully furnished bathrooms. Wonderful lodges invite visitors to find rest and tranquillity.
I had been sitting for a long time in front of my tent in Samburu Intrepids Camp and listening intently to the sounds coming from the bush. In the evening elephants appeared. What I like most about sleeping in the bush is listening intently to herd of elephants at night. I was often woken up at night by an elephant eating eucalyptus leaves just above my head.
Early in the morning, a breath of fresh air in an African bush is an unforgettable experience. Nothing equals the feeling I have while sipping a cup of hot tea in the heart of the bush after which we head for the sun rising and animals searching for their waterhole.
Returning from the reserves, I visit people who have always lived here. I believe that time spent with Samburu or Maasai warriors exerts a profound influence on the way I perceive life in Europe. I will bear in mind the pride of tribes struggling to live in harmony with nature despite the challenges that advancing civilization offers.
I was not born in Africa but I am lucky to be able to return there as often as possible. I always know that I am in the right place. I know that my safari will last forever.
All text by Dorota Kozarzewska
All photos of Africa courtesy of Moremi Africa
www.moremiafrica.com.pl.
The author of these words - Mirelia Ricciardi - was born in Africa. She is a photographer, the author of breathtaking albums: Vanishing Africa and African Visions which portray Africa as a wonderful but suffering continent.
Many years ago when I went to Kenya for the first time, I did not imagine myself getting on with such people as Mirelia Ricciardi. I was not familiar with Africa then. I perceived Africa from the point of view of a European that comes here for a while.
Having explored Eastern and Southern Africa, I returned to Kenya. I heard the same words in Swahili: Kenia ni nchi nzuri, Kenya is a wonderful country.
Kenya was the first country to teach me to revel in peace, to observe nature, African animals and to photograph unique sunsets and sunrises. It is a country that has a special atmosphere created by people and places designed by them. It is a place definitely worth a visit during your safari adventure.
The ranch of a famous baroness, (Karen Blixen and her companion, Denys) the author of Farewell to Africa, is identical to the house in front of which Karen used to sit with her gazelle Lulu and her beloved greyhounds. She writes that Denys did not have any other house in Africa, only her ranch. He lived at her place when he did not go on safari. His books and a record player are still in the living room. In an old coffee roasting plant there is a posh restaurant designed in colonial style. Sitting in the restaurant and admiring Ngong I always recall stories the couple were famous for.
I wonder whether lions still visit his grave.
Ol Ari Nyiro ranch, situated in the region of Laikipia in Northern Kenya, is a special place where Kuki Gallan has created her African world. Having lost her husband and son, the Italian aristocrat and the writer of many books, (including the world best seller I dreamed of Africa), made a decision to stay in Africa where she had experienced life full of tribulations. The ranch is home to abandoned and injured animals. Kuki always seeks to prove that Africa is a place that preserves values that other places have lost: space, roots, tradition, striking beauty, wilderness of nature. Africa attracts dreamers.
Kuki Gallan was determined to present her world to visitors. She offers comfortably and tastefully decorated rondavel style accommodation and provides houses furnished in old Lamu style, situated on a picturesque hill and overlooking a ravine. To avoid disturbing the peacefulness of the bush with noisy generators, solar power is used to generate electricity.
In the evening, while sitting by candlelight and admiring the orange sun slowly and gracefully disappearing below the horizon, we may realize why Kuki fell in love with the place.
To reach Karen and Kuki's houses you set off from Nairobi. The only place worth visiting there is the National Museum. There are portraits of tribes of Northern Kenya painted by Joy Adamson that promise you an encounter with unusual people. Only indefatigable travelers succeed in reaching remote Turkana Lake and visiting such tribes as: the Samburu, the El Molo, the Gabra and the Rendille that inhabit the expanses of Northern Kenya. The trail is very demanding but for me it was the experience of a lifetime.
Together with her husband, Joy Adamson devoted her life to the conservation of nature. They took under their roof a lioness named Elsa and her cubs. Joy used to say: "For many years I had been looking for a house where we could live with George. Finally I found a place which came up to our expectations. We decided to call our home Elsamere."
The first lioness I saw, (it might have been Elsa's cub), was in Samburu Reserve. I consider the Samburu and Shaba National Reserves to be the most magnificent wildlife spectacle that can be found in Kenya. They can be admired for their variety of terrain, thick bushes and open spaces. They boast the most diverse and unique collection of wild animals that can be spotted anywhere on the continent, for example, Grevy's zebra. Samburu Reserve is home to an astonishing range of African cats.
Mountain Lodge is situated at 2194 meters on the slopes of Mount Kenya, regions inhabited by the local Kikuyu, Meru and Embu people.
The balconies of Mountain Lodge overlook a spectacular forest waterhole where there is a continual procession of game. Lights are kept on all night so the attracted animals can be easily viewed. Apart from elephant, baboon or buffalo you may spot skittish bongo antelope. Mountain Lodge is a wildlife sanctuary where about 250 species have been recorded and is renowned for being a peaceful haven for ornithologists.
Lake Nakuru National Park, which is situated in the Great Rift Valley and can be seen from space, is a black rhino sanctuary. The park is home to over a million pink guests (flamingos) and you can sometimes even catch a glimpse of the rare Rothschild giraffe - the second species of giraffe seen in Kenya.
The Maasai Mara, the most famous game sanctuary in Kenya, regularly features on the itinerary and marks the end of the journey. Open spaces and an abundance of different species make the place a premier wildlife destination. It is the final destination of the great annual migration that starts in the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania. In Maasai Mara, I always try to trail species the park is famous for: leopards, hippos, hyenas and lions with characteristic dark manes.
Alexander Lake, who was one of hunters and organizers of hunting tours in Africa in the 1920s and 1930s and after WWII, used to say: "In the human voice, there is something that arouses anger in some lions' hearts". That is why you should remain silent while approaching these cats.
In reserves I learnt how to remain silent. Observing guides, we may easily understand why they are harmonious with the surrounding environment and why they are familiar with animals they trail. They devote their time to animals and watch their behavior. During the guide training course I realised that we are visitors to the land of animals, not the opposite.
Karen Blixen wrote about silence: "Civilised people have lost the ability to remain silent, nature has to teach them how to be silent before they are allowed to commune with it. The first thing a hunter has to get used to is how to move continually and smoothly and avoid sudden and unexpected movements. It is of particular importance for a hunter with a camera in his hand. Hunters should not act at their own discretion but have to take into consideration wind, colors and the smell of nature, and have to keep pace with the surrounding environment. When a man follows the rhythm of Africa once, he realises that the same music can be heard on the rest of the continent."
People who are in love with reserves and their inhabitants, accommodate their guests in wooden safari lodges or luxurious tents comfortably equipped with tastefully furnished bathrooms. Wonderful lodges invite visitors to find rest and tranquillity.
I had been sitting for a long time in front of my tent in Samburu Intrepids Camp and listening intently to the sounds coming from the bush. In the evening elephants appeared. What I like most about sleeping in the bush is listening intently to herd of elephants at night. I was often woken up at night by an elephant eating eucalyptus leaves just above my head.
Early in the morning, a breath of fresh air in an African bush is an unforgettable experience. Nothing equals the feeling I have while sipping a cup of hot tea in the heart of the bush after which we head for the sun rising and animals searching for their waterhole.
Returning from the reserves, I visit people who have always lived here. I believe that time spent with Samburu or Maasai warriors exerts a profound influence on the way I perceive life in Europe. I will bear in mind the pride of tribes struggling to live in harmony with nature despite the challenges that advancing civilization offers.
I was not born in Africa but I am lucky to be able to return there as often as possible. I always know that I am in the right place. I know that my safari will last forever.
All text by Dorota Kozarzewska
All photos of Africa courtesy of Moremi Africa
www.moremiafrica.com.pl.
