The Wonders of Nairobi… Part 2.

I am sure many of you have seen video or TV footage of Giraffe House in Kenya, where the Rothchild’s Giraffe, Daisy, has her head through the window of the house, and is eating off the breakfast table, while her human family, are enjoying their bacon and eggs…

Well, Giraffe House was our next port of call. And again, it was located just around the corner from Angela’s house…

Although there is only one species of Giraffe, there are 9 sub-species listed in Africa. Three of these sub-species of giraffe are found here in Kenya; the Reticulated Giraffe, the Maasai Giraffe and the Rothschild’s Giraffe. The later, is the rarer of these three sub species.

At Giraffe House, there is a small herd of Rothchild’s Giraffe, which have been kept here for breeding purposes and whose offspring have been released into other National Parks where they might once have been plentiful…

Up close and personal... Pippa is entranced...

A viewing platform has been built where one is able to “look a giraffe in the eye” so to speak. Small quantities of horse pellets are handed out to members of the public, and the giraffe come up to the platform to be fed, delicately taking a single pellet from your hand…or a whole handful, if you will let them…

I finally get a turn of my own...

I was able to feed the giraffe from both below, where I picked up all the cubes that had been dropped from above, and from up on the platform, where not only could you feed them, but you have the opportunity to scratch their long necks as well… They have huge liquid brown eyes, and have a rather haughty expression, which probably comes from looking down on the world most of the time…!!

Pippa hogs the giraffe, while Gemma waits her turn on the deck above...

We all took turns at getting up close and personal with these gentle animals, and Pippa had to practically be dragged away to prevent complaints of “overfeeding”… I was able to take a few photos from angle which you will not often be able to photograph a full grown giraffe from, and had a few taken from above of the giraffe feeding below me…

A few busloads of local children and another full of tourists arrived while we were waiting for Pippa to come down from the platform… Angela had got us there just in time, as the same groups had been with us at the elephant orphanage earlier… A good guide knows how to arrange these things…!!

The top sign clearly escaped Pippa's attention...

This was another of those “moments to remember”, and not for the first time that day, I wished my own children could have been there to witness it all… There was still so much I had wanted to show them…

This guy gives good tongue...

Abby and I were dropped off at home, where we got to work washing the Big Fella, while Angela, Gemma and Pippa went off to do some more sightseeing. While I got to work with a cloth to remove the combination of Tanzanian and Kenyan mud and dirt from the bike, Abby took charge of the hosepipe and followed me around the bike, wetting the areas I indicated (and a few I definitely did not indicate, such as my legs, and as I later discovered, the inside of the Big Fella’s exhaust!!)

Later that evening we went out to dinner at a local restaurant, where we were joined by a number of the Gauntlett’s friends, and enjoyed a great meal… It had been a long day, certainly one of the highlights of my journey thus far…

Unforgettable…

Gimme those pellets...

Angela and Roger, relaxing at our bush breakfast in Nairobi National Park...

The next morning (actually it was the same morning…!) we were all up early and the dynamo that is Angela (no idea where this woman gets the energy!!) packed a few baskets of goodies, and we headed out to the Nairobi National Park for a bush breakfast… This time we were in Roger’s Landcruiser which comfortably seated all six of us, and after entering the park, which is literally on their doorstep, we drove around looking for animals… Although we did not see a heck of a lot, it was great to be idling through the bush again, scanning the horizon, the trees, the thick bush…looking for beasts and birds that did not necessarily want to be seen…

While Gemma and Abby clamber about on the roof of the Cruiser, the rest of us settle down to enjoy our coffee...

More reminders of days gone by, when my family and I would haunt our favourite roads in the Kruger, remembering where we saw what, the last time we had been there…the kids shouting in excitement whenever we came upon a “special sighting”… Good times in the bush… A great soul-soother for me…

Breakfast was laid out on two tree stumps, and we settled into deckchairs to enjoy croisants (which I still can’t help refering to as “moffie rolls”…) with cream cheese and bacon, followed by mugs of coffee…

Bearing in mind that Roger had told me there are two prides of lion in this reserve, between watching giraffe and impala wander by, I kept a beady eye on the long grass closer to where we sat… I had enjoyed my breakfast, and was in no hurry to become something else’s…

You might recall that in an earlier post, I stated that I wanted to visit places on the planet where history was made…history or events that strike a chord in me… The highlight of our visit to Nairobi National Park for me, was when we stopped on the spot where a huge pile of ivory was burnt by the then president of Kenya, Daniel Arap Moi…

A framed poster stands next to a mount of ashes, the remnants of that same pile of ivory… In order to put this event into perspective, I quote verbatim from this poster:

“A Nation Stands Up For It’s Elephant…

In a period spanning only twenty years, poacher gangs traversed Kenya’s rangelands and forests, slaughtering elephants and rhinos almost to the brink of extinction. Elephant numbers declined from a high of 130 000 in 1973, to a paltry 16 000 in 1989. An insatiable demand for ivory fueled this slaughter, with a kilo of ivory selling for almost 13.00 US Dollars. In 1989, poachers were killing an estimated 1 000 elephants per month…

It was time to put the foot down…

The Wildlife Society’s ammunition store was at the time full with over 2 000 tusks meant for sale, with bids stretching up to US$ 3.2 million. And that is when Dr. Richard Leakey, KWS Director, suggested that it all be torched in symbolic outrage at the international trade in ivory…

On the morning of the 18^th of July 1989, Kenya’s Head of State led his country in making a statement of international concern: that Kenya would no longer allow it’s elephants to be slaughtered to satisfy market demand for ivory…

On this very spot, he faced a pile of ivory worth an estimated 1 Million dollars, and lit a bonfire that was broadcast by television stations across the world…

The publicity arising from this historic event stunned the world. C.I.T.E.S. placed the elephant on it’s  “Appendix 1”, in effect enforcing a total ban on ivory sales. The once lucrative ivory market collapsed, with prices dropping to US$ 1.50 per kilo…

Do Not Collect This Ash !

It must remain as a symbol of this country’s commitment to conservation. And as you picnic here, reflect and join Kenyans in saying:

NEVER AGAIN…”

Powerful and moving stuff…  Sobering, and sad, especially as I remembered our visit to the elephant orphanage the day before…  Our Chinese and Japanese friends (they who still enjoy a bit of whaling…),  have in the past, and continue to this day, to fuel the desire for ivory… They use ivory to make “signature blocks” called “Hankas”, used to seal deals or sign documents…

Message to the Far East:

Use a frigging pen, like the rest of us, for Pete’s sake !!!

And that’s all I have to say about that….

Abby sits on the edge of the ash pile, that once was 2000 elephant tusks...

Back at the main gate, we visited a so-called rehabilitation centre, which left us more depressed than anything else… Not only at the conditions that the animals were kept in, but the fact that no rehabilitation seemed to be taking place… Halfway through our stroll, Roger and Angela decided they had seen enough, and went back to the entrance to wait for Pippa and I… It reminded me of some of those zoos you visit, where animals pace up and down continuously, caged in enclosure far too small to give them any decent quality of life… And Pippa and I paid US$15.00 for the privilege of seeing this…!! While on the subject of payment, Kenya has a policy of charging Kenyans and other residents a reasonable rate to enter their parks and institutions, but charge tourist sometimes as much as ten times what the locals pay… For instance, it cost the Gauntlett family a total of about R120.00 to get into the Park, but Pippa and I paid about R300.00 EACH to get in!!

I have three letters for the Kenyan Tourist Authorities… O.T.T. !!!  Get real Guys…we don’t mind paying twice what the locals pay, but as much as ten times is what is commonly known as “fleecing”…!!

Vulturine Guinea-fowl

There was however one thing I enjoyed, and that was seeing a Vulturine Guineafowl up close for the first time. It is a beautiful bird with a large hooked beak, hence the name… I couldn’t get a photo, as the bird was housed in a low structure, completely enclosed with fine mess…in the process of being “rehabilitated” no doubt…

Here’s a pic I downloaded to show you the bird in question…

And by the way, Kenyan Wildlife Society, how do you “rehabilitate” a six foot crocodile…???

Pop him in the nearest dam, and then go for a swim in a few months time… You will see that he has got on VERY well without your “rehabilitation” !!!

Back at home, we wound down to “relaxed mode” and spent the rest of the day napping, watching sport on TV, or in my case, getting my travelogue up to date… Except for Angela, of course… She was bustling about in the kitchen, making dinner… (I think she needs a shot of Ritalin…)

Angela and Roger had made this a weekend for both Pippa and I to remember, and I am sure I speak for both of us when I say,

“MUCH APPRECIATED!”