Day 6 was the final day of the safari, and we left at 6:30am for an earlier game drive, to catch the animals in action. I saw some jackals trying their best to piss off some lionesses by getting near as possible and barking at them. Jackals, we learned, are nature's assholes.
Also, saw a lion with a fresh wildebeest.
Then it was time to leave, and a Brit in our safari group convinced me to head back to the lakes region of Kenya's Rift Valley, for hiking and biking and whatever else. Despite low funds and an absence of internet, I figured, eh what the hell. So after leaving the Maasai Mara we got on another safari bus at lunch, one headed towards the lakes. From the town of Naivasha, we jumped on matatus, the local transport. A matatu is essentially a van driven by Kenya's answer to the New York cabbie. You cram in with as many locals as possible, and hope for the best. On a good day a matatu is a real experience, but you can really crank up the fun when your bag is strapped to the roof. Do I trust the matatu drivers? No. But it worked, and we took the matatu all the way to the lakeside of Naivasha, finding a fantasic lakeside camp with an open-air restaurant, and a monkey filled campground with an electric fence at the water's edge- to keep out the hippos. We dropped bags, rented bikes, and biked out to a saltwater lake nearby, Lake Eloiden. This is one of the famous flamingo lakes. Normally I don't care about flamingos, but when you see a few thousand take off from the water in concert, it's amazing.
More amazing was the bike ride to the lake. Spotted giraffes just off the road, and went to investigate. Once we got near (but not too near) we found zebras and antelope as well. When a hyena popped up, we got the hell out.
After all that, back to the camp for a Tusker.
Nairobi, Kenya (Why am I back in Nairobi? You'll have to wait for day 9)
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