Our day started very early this morning because we had to make it to the airport to catch a 7am flight down almost to Tanzania where we would visit the
Once we arrived to the Masai Mara, we were greeted by 5 drivers waiting with their Land Rovers to take us on the safari. We had no idea what to expect but everything went well and
It was absolutely unbelievable. We were able to pull up to a pack of lions and watch them from

The guides we were with were so knowledgeable and proud of their country. They were so happy to teach us about each animal and did everything they could to make our trip a success. The Kenyan people are some of the most genuine people I’ve ever met. They make you feel right at home from the second you meet. We all shared a lunch out in the wilderness and then went to see some more animals before we had to catch our plane back to Nairobi.
Around noon this afternoon, we were so fortunate to visit one of the Masai tribes. We were welcomed by the male leaders of the tribe and then all the women danced out to meet us and sang their tribal welcome song. They handmake
They were so kind and let us visit their village which was basically a huge circle of huts made out of cow dung to keep out the rain and in the middle, they have big fires at night since there is no electricity. If you remember from a few days ago, Nick, the little boy who was brought to the ABC Center is from the Masai tribe and so his living conditions were just like the ones we saw today except he wasn’t from this exact area.
In Kenya, everyone comes from a certain tribe. There can often be conflict between people because of their differences in the tribes. Not everyone lives in a tribal village but there are still many many people here who do live this lifestyle. It is so completely different than anything one could imagine.
They have very specific guidelines regarding power and leadership in the tribe. There are many things a man must do in order to be a leader. We met one today who is respected as the leader since he was the first one in his age group to spear a male lion. In the Masai culture, the male can go out at 20 years of age with others who are the same age and whoever can spear the lion first, becomes the new leader. They must skin the lion and wear it’s mane on their head as a headdress. It was wild!
We learned many things about the Masai culture and considering how they lived literally in the middle of no where, we were surprised to learn that the children do go to school many miles away. And, they walk there. The same goes for the women when they go to get water. They must walk miles and then carry it back to their camp. Many of the people there have never had a bath and their diets are so strict as they only eat beef from cows and drink milk and cow’s blood! There wasn’t a tasting today but they did in fact invite David Wesley to spend the night with them with the promise that they would give him a goat and some cows blood! Sadly, he turned them down because we have yet another busy day tomorrow.
The Masai people are very friendly and talented. The young girls learn to work with beads at a very young age and the women are in charge of making the jewelry and most of the utensils they have. Since people can only marry when they reach the age of 24, every person who is “dating” another person must wear matching wristbands. It is a way of marking territory until marriage. And, once a man is married, he has children with his wife and then finds another wife and has children with her. It is their culture to do this and a typical man will have about 13 children that he will raise in the village.
To sum it all up, the Masai people are very nice. They live a completely different life that does not consist of TV, music, and video games among many others. It is just indescribable to have the chance to experience something like we did today. Everyone is so thankful for the wonderful opportunity we had.
Then, we fly out tomorrow night at 11:30 Kenyan time. So, we may not be able to update until we get back to the states. Thanks so much for checking in on our journey here. We have learned so much and cannot wait to share more stories and pictures once we get home.
Peace,
The FTC Team
Written by: Meghan Marbuger, Photos Copyright J.P. Wilson 2008
1 comment:
hi I'm from the twin islands of Trinidad and Tobago.I just would like to say that I'm really happy about the huge difference you all made in these Kenyans' lives.I would love to be a part of this:visiting Kenya.You have my prayers.Keep up the good work.
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