[Kenya] Samburu

The first game reserve we visited in Kenya was Samburu. It is located about 7 hours  north of Nairobi.

Female Somali ostrich in Samburu

I thought I didn't know anything about Samburu up until we got there. When we entered the main gate of the Samburu National Reserve (which is painted to resemble the spots of a reticulated giraffe)...

Entrance to the Samburu National Reserve

...there was a small sign commemorating Elsa, an orphaned lioness who was raised by George and Joy Adamson before eventually being released back into the wild. I read about Elsa when I was a kid. This lioness gained a lot of popularity because the movie "Born Free" was made about her story and the song "Born Free" by Matt Monro was actually written for the film. Samburu is one of two places where Elsa was raised and the small memorial at the entrance indicates how Elsa helped safeguard this game reserve, probably because her popularity helped Samburu gain more financial support. I took a photo of this memorial before realizing that there was another sign next to it that talked about Kamunyak, a lioness who became famous for adopting a baby oryx. (One of the staff members of the Samburu Sopa Lodge where we stayed told of us this story and said there was a sign at the Samburu gate about it and that's when I realized I had a photo of it.)

Memorial for Elsa and Kamunyak at the Samburu entrance

Arguably the most beautiful and elegant animal we saw during our safari was the reticulated giraffe. We saw so many of them during our Samburu game drives. Apparently, there are several different giraffe subspecies, and it was only in Samburu that we saw this particular one.

Reticulated giraffe

We also saw several other animals here that we didn't see elsewhere such as the rare and endangered Grevy's zebra, which is the largest wild equid and can be distinguished from the plains zebra by its tigher stripes...

Grevy's zebra

...and the rare and near-threatened striped hyena. I continue to be amazed at how our guide Zachary saw it. The sun had set, it was dark and we were on our way back to the Lodge. As we were driving along the dirt path, Zachary stopped, looked behind the jeep, and pointed to the hyena behind some bushes and quite some distance away from us. Considering how dark it was and how even when he was pointing it out to us, it was still tough to see, it blows my mind that Zachary actually spotted it while driving! I'm really happy that the striped hyena walked a bit closer to us and crossed the dirt road because it gave us a chance to take a better photo.

Striped hyena

A few more animals that we also got to see only in Samburu were the gerenuk, or giraffe gazelle, which is called as such because of its long and slender neck,

Gerenuk or giraffe gazelle

the Beisa oryx which is known for having beautifully long and straight horns,

Beisa oryxes

the dik-dik, which is one of the smallest antelopes in Africa (I previously thought it was the smallest but apparently, it isn't; the royal antelope is),

Dik-diks

and the superb starling with its beautiful plumage. (That said, I can't be sure if we also saw it elsewhere but it's only in Samburu that we got to recognize it, see it upclose, and take a photo of it.)

Superb starling

Of course, we also saw many other animals here, including ostriches,

Male Somali ostrich

impalas,

Impalas

Thomson's gazelles

Thomson's gazelles

a black-backed jackal,

black-backed jackal

warthogs,

warthogs

and baboons. (Now that I think of it, I'm not sure if we actually saw baboons in the other game reserves so we might have seen them only in Samburu. And boy were there a lot of them!)

Baboon

What I also really love about Samburu is its landscape. There are lots of trees and vegetation set against mountains and hills.

Samburu landscape

We also got to see the Ewaso Ng'iro river.

Ewaso Ng'iro river

We spent a day and a half (and two nights) in Samburu before departing for Lake Nakuru. On our second night, Zachary told us that there was a threat of roads being blocked the next day due to a nationwide protest and he recommended that we leave very early. Samburu Sopa Lodge prepared packed breakfast for us and we left at around 6am. Before we left the reserve, we got to see a beautiful sunrise.

Sunrise in Samburu

I'm not sure if I know anyone who has been to Samburu but I'm glad we got to go on safari here because it was absolutely magnificent.

Next: Lake Nakuru

[Kenya] The Big Five

The term "Big Five" actually doesn't have the best roots. It was coined by hunters to collectively refer to the five animals in Africa that were supposedly the most difficult to hunt on foot. Thankfully, it is now used by safari tour operators to refer to a set of animals that they would like to people to see during game drives. The Big Five: elephant, lion, rhino, buffalo, and leopard.

The Big Five: Elephant, Lion, Rhino, Buffalo, and Leopard

The first of the big five animals we saw was the African elephant. On our very first game drive in Samburu, our guide/driver heard on the radio that there was an elephant sighting. We made our way to where they supposedly were and while the herd of elephants was on the move, we got there in time to see them and take several photos!

African Elephant

The second animal we saw is one of the more difficult ones to see: the rhino. Actually, the rhino was the only animal we didn't get to see in a game reserve. Apparently, rhinos don't particularly like the noise generated by wildebeests during the Great Wildebeest Migration which means rhino sightings in Maasai Mara are quite rare during this time. Our guide knew that we might not actually get to see them in Maasai Mara so on our way from Samburu to Lake Nakuru, he decided to pass by Solio Ranch, which is a sanctuary for rhinos. We got to see several of them as we passed by. Thankfully for us, there weren't a lot of cars on the road so we were able to stop on the side of a road briefly but long enough to take a few photos.

White Rhinoceros

The next big five member we saw was the African cape buffalo. We saw this creature for the first time in Lake Nakuru, then we get to see it again in Maasai Mara.

African Cape Buffalo

Before we left Lake Nakuru, we got to see some lions! Initially, dozens of jeeps were parked around the area of this lion sighting in Lake Nakuru and we couldn't get in. We decided to leave that area and look for other animals. However, on our way out of Lake Nakuru National Park, we passed by that same area again and most of the jeeps were leaving. We managed to get in a good position to see the lions better and to take several photos of them.

Lion

The last of the big five we saw is also known to be the most difficult to see: the leopard. By nature, leopards are solitary, nocturnal, and they rest in trees making it very difficult to spot them (pun intended). It was on our 5th day and our final game drive in Maasai Mara that we finally got to see one! Our guide Zachary got word of a leopard sighting and drove there. When we arrived, there were several other jeeps parked in the area. The telltale sign that there was a leopard in the area was a dead and bloody wildebeest hanging from a tree branch. Since the leopard was pretty much the only animal we still wanted to see but hadn't seen yet at that point, we decided to wait it out. After an hour, we finally caught glimpses of it just as it was leaving the tree where it hung its kill. Our guide told us that the leopard was most likely going to poop somewhere else and it would be heading back after several minutes. He said we should stay, even as most of the other jeeps had already left, and I'm thankful we did because the leopard did actually come back and we finally got to see it and take decent photos of it. It was beautiful!

Leopard

Deciding to go on safari for 6 days and 5 nights turned out to be a really good choice for us because it allowed us to see all the Big Five animals.

Next post: Samburu

Safari Adventure in Kenya!

I feel incredibly blessed, fortunate, and grateful that I have finally been able to go on safari!

The vast savannas of Maasai Mara in Kenya

I took my family to Kenya where we went on safari in Maasai Mara,

Wildebeests and zebras in Maasai Mara

Samburu,

An elephant at the foot of a hill in Samburu

and Lake Nakuru.

Hundreds of pelicans in Lake Nakuru

We also got to visit Lake Naivasha and Crescent Island. It was such an amazing trip!

Hippos in Lake Naivasha

I have always loved animals. I used to watch Life on Earth with David Attenborough a lot. When I was a kid, we had many animal books that I read multiple times. I would also read all the animal sections of the encyclopedias we had at home. There was a time when we were subscribed to National Geographic magazine. I was also really good at Zoology in Biology class. So going on safari to see the wild animals of Kenya up close and personal has been in my bucket list for a really long time now. That I got to do it with my family made this experience significantly more meaningful and memorable.

Spotted hyenas in Maasai Mara

There are three very popular African safari destinations: Kruger Park in South Africa, Maasai Mara in Kenya, and Serengeti in Tanzania. So why did I choose Kenya? First, Filipinos need a visa to go to South Africa but we don't need one to visit Kenya or Tanzania (we still need an electronic travel authorisation or ETA but that's easier, cheaper, and quicker to get). Also, based on the research I did, it seems a Serengeti safari is more expensive than a Maasai Mara one. That helped me decide to go to Kenya.

Grey crowned cranes in Maasai Mara

Our safari was organized by Explorers Wild Adventures (although they also go by the name Wilderness Explorers). I discovered them when I was searching for a safari tour. I knew even before our trip that it wouldn't be easy to see all the animals that you want to see in the wild because it's not a zoo. You need to spend a lot of time in the bush to find them. As such, I felt that our safari should be at least 5 days and 4 nights long. (Also, it would be a shame to travel 17-18 hours from the Philippines to Kenya only to spend a couple of days there.) My initial search for safaris brought me to Safari Bookings, where I found options that varied in duration and price range. I found one option that was 6 days and 5 nights long and that was within our budget. I saw that the tour operator was Explorers Wild Adventures. A quick search on Trip Advisor showed a high rating and great reviews. I checked out their website and from there, I reached out to them via email and whatsapp. Eventually, I booked this trip with them.

Reticulated giraffes in Samburu

Our safari tour was private, which was good for us because it meant that we could make decisions quite easily without having to worry about other people, such as the time to leave in the morning and any adjustments we wanted to make in our schedule. The standard package includes a van transport but I paid extra for the jeep option because it would be more spacious and comfortable, giving us a better overall experience. We were the only people in our jeep, which can somewhat comfortably accommodate up to 7 adults. Our driver Zachary was also our guide and he was superb!

Our safari jeep

What I didn't realize, however, was that the three different game reserves in our tour - Samburu, Lake Nakuru, and Maasai Mara - are all pretty far from each other. This meant that our safari would be very exhausting. (I will share my thoughts about visiting these three game reserves later on as well.) We had an evening arrival in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, so I thought it would be best to stay at an airport near the hotel, especially since our departure the next morning would be at 7am. Here is what our itinerary looked like:

Day 0: Arrival in Nairobi, check-in at the Hilton Garden Inn Nairobi Airport
Day 1: Travel to Samburu, check-in at the Samburu Sopa Lodge, afternoon game drive in Samburu
Day 2: Morning and afternoon game drives in Samburu
Day 3: Depart Samburu, Travel to Lake Nakuru, check-in at the Sentrim Elementaita Lodge, afternoon game drive in Lake Nakuru
Day 4: Depart Lake Nakuru, travel to Maasai Mara, check-in at the Mara Empiris Safari Camp, Maasai village tour experience in the afternoon
Day 5: Whole-day game drive in Maasai Mara
Day 6: Depart Maasai Mara, visit Lake Naivasha and Crescent Island, travel to Nairobi, check-in at The Social House
Day 7: Depart Nairobi
Day 8: Arrival in Manila

Baboons resting on tree branches in Samburu

While this tour was exhausting, it did give us an opportunity to see so many animals, including the famed Big Five. I also wanted to visit Maasai Mara around this time of year because this is when the Great Wildebeest Migration happens. Over the next several blog posts, I will be writing in more detail about this amazing adventure.

Twilight in Maasai Mara

Next post: The Big Five

July Hodgepodge

I have a new favorite board game: Pokemon Splendor! Apparently, this game is only available in South Korea, which means the game producer there must have gotten approval both from Splendor and from Pokemon and develop and produce it. Somehow, a few of my board gaming friends got their own copy. So one of our board game nights, I got to play this. I am not really familiar with the many Pokemon characters or how they evolve but I always thought they were cute and the evolution aspect of this game was an incredible element added to the original game. I love this game so much that I have played it in almost every game night I attended since the first time tried this game. I now want to get my own copy haha.

Pokemon Splendor

Because of my upcoming trip to Kenya, I decided to get a couple of new jackets. The temperature in Kenya during our visit would go up to the mid to high 20s Celsius and as low as about 10 degrees in the evenings, which is pretty cold. While I do have jackets at home, they are all either brightly colored or black, both of which are not recommended. (Apparently, bright colors can scare animals away while black can attract tsetse flies which carry the African sleeping sickness.) As such, I thought of getting a new neutrally-colored jacket (although I ended up getting two haha). The first one was this really nice Adidas Z.N.E. Woven Full-Zip Hooded Track Top (see photo below). I really liked its design and its color, which is apparently tent green, and while it wasn't exactly cheap, it was on sale at 30% off so I decided to get it.

Adidas Z.N.E. Woven Full-Zip Hooded Track Top

Very shortly after that, I passed by Mango during their store sale. Some items, including this really nice brown jacket (see photo below), had a 50% discount. Wow! I really love how this jacket looks and the discount was too good of a deal to pass up so I got it as well, even if I already had a new jacket.

Jacket from Mango

Also in preparation for my family's Kenya trip, I decided to order Smart Tags on Lazada. These are like Apple Air Tags but for Android phones (which I have). I thought it might be good to have Smart Tags in case any of our check-in bags got stuck somewhere, including at the airport where we would have our layover. I never used Smart Tags before but I'm happy that they were all pretty easy to set up and use. (Thankfully, they all worked too and none of them were defective.)

Smart Tags for Android

I needed a bit of a break from the stress of all our travel preparation so when my schedule freed up a bit, I decided to watch Inside Out 2. I had been hearing lots of great reviews about this movie and now that I've seen it, I gotta say it was really good. I loved how the film depicted how one's belief system is formed and how anxiety can so easily take over. It's a very well-made and tremendously good sequel.

Inside Out 2

Finally, I got to join Tita Florence's birthday celebration. Initially, I wasn't sure whether I would go because she lives about two hours away and her dinner party was on a weeknight. However, I ended up going so that I could take my mom and so that we could also see Tita Florence's son and my cousin Fr. John, who was home for a few weeks. I was happy that we got to go because so many of our relatives were there, even if some arrived quite late on a rainy weeknight. Family truly is love.

An Unexpected Trip to the ER

It started on Friday afternoon. My abdomen felt some pain each time I would take a breath. Initially, I thought it may just have been a muscular problem because I woke up with some back pain. However, the pain started to get worse in the evening. I was hoping that by the time I woke up the next day, the pain would be gone. But it wasn't. I decided I needed to see a doctor.

Unfortunately, my HMO is a bit challenging to use because apparently, you need to find your own doctor before you can request a letter of authorization (LOA). Also, since it was a Saturday, I couldn't ask our company clinic for help. I decided the best option would be for me to go to a hospital emergency room (ER) since ERs normally work with the HMOs to get the necessary LOAs and paperwork done. I decided that Medical City in Pasig would be my best option.

I knew that my abdominal pain wouldn't be flagged as top priority after triage at the ER (I was right) so I was expecting a long wait. It took about an hour for me to get a more thorough doctor's assessment. She said that my abdomen was swollen and when she put pressure on one side of it, it hurt a lot. She prescribed some bloodwork as well as an abdominal CT scan. She also told me I needed IV fluids since I needed an empty stomach for the CT scan and it would take a while before I would get my turn so having an IV meant that I wouldn't need to eat.

The doctor said I would most likely be in the ER until the evening so if I had any plans that evening, I should cancel them. While I didn't have plans with other people that night, I was actually planning to finalize trip preparations for my family's trip to go on safari Kenya a week later. I still needed to sort out our electronic travel authorisations (which is sort of like a visa) and secure travel insurance. Being in the ER was worrisome because I wasn't sure how serious my condition was and if I needed to be confined, which could throw off our travel plans. And of course, no one wants to have a serious health concern that puts them in the hospital.

It was late in the evening when I finally got my diagnosis: it wasn't a serious condition and I didn't need to be confined. Whew! However, I would most likely to continue to be in some pain and discomfort over the next few days so the doctor told me to be in bed rest for four days. He also prescribed me a couple of meds, including a pain reliever.

Needing to go on bed rest was tough since I still needed to sort out many things for our safari but thankfully, I didn't need to be hospitalized. Hopefully, I recover fully in time for my family's trip.

Wimbledon 2024

Carlos Alcaraz continues to make a name for himself as he successfully defended his Wimbledon title, defeating Novak Djokovic in straight sets 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 in the final. Alcaraz has now beaten Djokovic in back-to-back Wimbledon finals (he did this too in 2023), which is an amazing feat considering Novak's legendary status and how no one else outside of Carlos has beaten him at Wimbledon since 2018. This is Carlos' second Wimbledon title, his fourth major championship, and his second Grand Slam title this year. Carlos is really on track to be one of the all-time greats in tennis and he is only 21 years old. Amazing!

To win here is special. To defend here is elite.

Carlos Alcaraz is the 2024 Gentlemen’s Singles Champion 🏆#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/kJedyXf0vn

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 14, 2024

Barbora Krejcikova won her first Wimbledon title and her second Grand Slam trophy, defeating Jasmine Paolini in three sets, 6-2, 2-6, 6-4. This is an amazing result for Krejcikova who hasn't made too much of an impact in a Grand Slam event since her French Open win in 2021. In fact, since then, she has only made it past the 1st week of a major three times and in those cases, she did not advance past the quarterfinals. Barbora paid tribute to her ex-coach and mentor, Jana Novotna, who herself won Wimbledon in 1998 (Jana sadly passed away 7 years ago).

Breathtaking. Brilliant. Barbora.

Barbora Krejcikova is the 2024 Ladies’ Singles Champion 🏆#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/Xz0jjezO89

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 13, 2024

Diede De Groot has added to her legacy yet again, defeating Aniek van Koot in the Women's Wheelchair championship match 6-4, 6-4. This is now Diede's 4th Wimbledon in a row, her 6th Wimbledone in total, her 16th Grand Slam Women's Wheelchair title in a row, and her 23rd grand slam singles title. She also has 18 Grand Slam doubles titles, making her a truly dominant force in women's wheelchair tennis.

15 Love ❤️

Diede de Groot extends her record streak to 15 consecutive Grand Slam singles titles 🤯

De Groot defeated compatriot Aniek Van Koot 6-4, 6-4 to become the first winner at the 2024 Championships 🏆#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/ikm5fQeK0c

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 13, 2024

Congratulations Carlos, Barbora, and Diede!

The Fat Seed Cafe + Roastery

The Fat Seed Cafe + Roastery has been in my radar for a while now. I learned about this place when looking for possible brunch venues with my friends. Its menu really appealed to me when I saw it so when I was in Glorietta recently and was thinking of a place to eat, I remembered that there was a Fat Seed branch at One Ayala Mall and decided to eat there.

Fat Seed Cafe + Roastery

For this first visit, I wanted to try a couple of items on their menu. First, I ordered their Bacon and Cheese Omelet (P270).

Cheese Omelet

I asked the waiter if it came with some toast and he said it didn't so I decided to pair it with their Grilled Cheese Sandwich (P380), which is a parmesan crusted brioche with four cheeses, served with tomato soup. That's a really good combo in my book.

The Grilled Cheese Sandwich comes with Tomato Soup

There wasn't anything too fancy about the dishes I ordered but they are flavorful comfort foods that make for a perfect brunch/lunch. I quite enjoyed my first visit here so when I had another opportunity to visit, I did. This time around, I ordered the Buttermilk Fried Chicken & Ube Waffle. There are a few options for this particular dish - 1 chicken and 1/2 waffle, 1 chicken and 1 waffle, and 2 chickens and 1 waffle. I decided to get the 1 chicken and 1 waffle option (P420). I don't think I've ever had ube waffles before but this was pretty good. I'm a fan of Chicken and Waffles so this dish was right up my alley.

Buttermilk Fried Chicken & Ube Waffle

On my third and most recent trip to Fat Seed, I was pretty hungry so I decided to order The Notorious Big (P625). This is their version of a big breakfast set, with eggs, bacon, sausages, skillet mushrooms, tomato, and sourdough. This is my go-to dish whenever I visit places that serve brunch and this one didn't disappoint.

The Notorious Big

What I also love about The Fat Seed Cafe + Roastery is its ambience. It's very cozy and welcoming, making it an ideal place to chill out with friends or read a book while enjoying some good coffee. There are plants all over the restaurant and on the tables, adding some color and warmth. There are also unique decorative pieces inside, such as the very interesting and striking light fixture at the center of the restaurant.

Interior of Fat Seed in One Ayala Mall

The Fast Seed Cafe + Roastery has four branches in Metro Manila: One Ayala, Greenbelt 3, UP Town Center, and BGC. Clearly, I love this place as I've visited it three times already in a short span of time. I will definitely be visiting this place a lot more in the future.

The Fat Seed Cafe + Roastery
https://fatseed.com.ph/