From L to R: Tom Ochuka, Rick Randolph, Damar Ochuka, Joan Ochuka, Jo Randolph, Mindy Hidenfelter, Trisha Tull, Sajal Sthapit, Mark Lynch, Dennis (guide)
The third day of our friendship visit to Kenya began with a devotion led by Rick Randolph, with a focus on a reading from Isaiah 1:17 and a discussion about the injustice of environmental problems disproportionately affecting our economically disadvantaged brothers and sisters in Christ. We then headed out into Nairobi for another day of exploration.
A visit to the Nairobi National Museum in the morning gave us all some background on the rich history of the people of many tribal cultures who comprise the country of Kenya. From the brutal British colonization period to the present day fierce independence of a nation struggling to develop a unified identity, we were all given some important context for our time spent here over the next two weeks.
In the afternoon, we were off to the Karura Forest for an ecotour of the forested oasis in the middle of a bustling city. In 1900, much of the native forest was cut down for fuel and then replanted with nonnative eucalyptus, pine, and cypress trees. Today, 64% of the forest has been restored to native species and work continues to remove the nonnatives. Animals making their homes in Karura include antelopes, monkeys, bush babies, jackals, Angolan fruit bats, bush pigs, and a variety of bird species. We were also given a tour of the adjacent tree nursery, where trees are grown from seed to plant in the forest restoration process.
A full day’s drive west brought us to Olkenyei Tent Camp, on the outskirts of Masai Mara National Game Reserve. This brought us to the location of our next adventure- a jeep safari on Friday.
In awe of wonderful creatures so nearby, there are no words to appropriately describe our experience in the 1510 sq. km. of Masai Mara. Here are a few of our group’s collective photos:
Masai giraffe at sunrise
Wildebeest
Thompson’s gazelle
African elephant
Lion cubs
Zebra
Water buffalo
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