This morning we got up early and started getting breakfast together when, on time, the baboons arrived. Den decided to scare them away by running at them waving cooking utensils above his head and somehow I got volunteered to join in to stop them stealing food, raiding the bins etc which they continued to do anyway. It was quite an experience chasing them away but I would have been in trouble if they decided they wanted to confront me – plastic plates would have been no match for teeth!
After breakfast we went for a game drive and managed to get some good photos but saw mainly the same animals, with the exception of Hyena which we saw for the first time. The drive took us back along the lake to the park entrance and after leaving the park we travelled to the town of Gilgil to visit the Ngumo Primary School which is part of the Kariandusi School Trust Project that Dragoman sponsor.
It took a while to find the school – Den had to ask the locals for directions several times but eventually somebody knew where it was. The final road up to the school was rather steep and rocky and Oscar really worked hard to get there but we were rewarded with an amazing view from the top. While waiting for a teacher to greet us we relaxed and took in the view.
A senior teacher met us and took us on a tool of the school, showing us the old classrooms that were in a horrible state of disrepair, then onto the new rooms, the staff room and the new ground before we were given an opportunity to meet some of the kids. I talked to two of them that were sitting next to each other and they were asking very intelligent questions. It was the same day as the Kenyan Census so a lot of the questions were census themed but they were so inquisitive and well thought out that it made me feel really sorry for them. Maxwell wants to be an engineer and Dorothy wants to be a nurse and they have so much enthiusiasm I really hope they are able to achieve all of their dreams. We spent some time compareing our countries and I gave them some photos of my hometown before we had to leave.
I had a good signal on my mobile phone so decided to call home at this point while the others played football when, to my surprise, I saw a tornado going along the valley floor. It was only small and wouldn’t have caused any damage but seeing one was on my travel bucket list so it saves me a trip to Tornado Alley.
I’m not much of a sports person but I decided to join in with the football game while lunch was prepared s I wasn’t ready to finish interacting yet. Lunch consisted of mainly sandwiches but it filled a gap and was quick as it was soon time to drive back down the hill and head the town of Eldoret. On the way the scenery changed from dry to a lush rainforest-like area with thatched huts instead of corrugated iron and we also passed into the northern hemisphere.
In Eldoret we’re staying at the Naiberi Overland Stop and it seems really really nice although it was already almost dark by the time we arrived. We just enough time to set up the tents, refresh ourselves and relax in the bar for a few minutes before dinner. Dinner tonight was a group Indian meal, as the owners are Indian, and it was really nice. During the meal the owner let his dogs out into the building but even though they were really friendly there were 13 of them so they did get in the way occasionally.
