We enjoyed three blissful days in Lewa, quickly adapting to what we slowly learned was the classic safari schedule. 6am wakeup, in the truck by 6:30am for the morning game drive with a "bush breakfast" along the way, back to Kifaru around 11:30am, lunch at 1pm, rest by the pool, tea at 3:30pm, back into the truck at 4pm for the evening game drive with a sundowner, then return home around night fall at 7pm.
During our planning, we wanted to make sure we spent my birthday in Lewa, based on the arbitrary decision that Kifaru House looked like the nicest of the lodges we selected. It was a wise choice - my birthday was quite simply one of the best days I've ever had.
Before we left for this trip, people asked what animal I was most excited to see. Easy answer for me was giraffe. Aside from one guy running away from us the previous day, we had yet to spend time with them. But after an unreal New Years Eve sunrise and before we even made it down the hill from Kifaru, we came across Jeremy, a reticulated giraffe (not to be seen in more southern parts of the country) that tends to hang out near the property. There were more a short distance down the road. It was 7am, and my day was made.
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I seriously couldn't get enough of these. They were amazing to watch as they munched on trees and scratched against the rough acacia branches. But alas, not everyone in the truck was as obsessed as me, so we moseyed on, quickly encountering a mother rhino nursing her baby as he cooed. We oohed and aahed over that for a bit then Phillip headed into a more remote part of the park we had yet to explore. We crossed paths with a dik dik (a small type of antelope) before encountering three elephants grazing near a watering hole.
Listening to the elephants was almost as fascinating as watching them. You could hear their trunks rip the grass from the dirt and shove it in their mouths. After hanging out with them for a bit, Phillip motored over to an open hilltop for our first bush breakfast. From there we could see the landscape filled with animals below - elands, giraffes all over, an ostrich and elephant crossing an open field, and other grazers scattered throughout.
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Following a delicious meal, we caught a glimpse of a family of warthogs, a shy male gerenuk (looks like a cross between a giraffe and an impala), and four rhinos rolling in a huge mud pit. It was hysterical. We stayed with them - as close as six feet at times - sitting quietly as the impalas and zebras circled around us with giraffes and elephants off in the distance. A huge waterbuck and tower of giraffe running across the road capped off our trip back to the lodge.
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My birthday continued with a relaxing massage back at Kifaru, another hilltop sundowner (accompanied by two retired male buffalo in the not so distant distance...), a group dinner in front of one of the fireplaces, and an exuberant rendition of Happy Birthday sung in both English and Swahili by the entire Kifaru staff and local Masai villagers. The camp manager then led us outside where the Masai performed their traditional "jumping dance" around a bonfire. If I have it right, this ritual occurs after the males of a certain age (late teens/early twenties) become warriors (coincidentally named "moran") and return to the village for a jumping competition with the victor selecting from the women who he will take as his wife. Simon was right alongside the Masai jumping, dancing, and clapping. It was so special to have this tradition shared with us and capped off the most spectacular day I can imagine. 40!!
Lewa and Kifaru House were enormously special in a way I have yet to figure out how to describe. Our time there was profound and transformative yet warm, relaxed, and brimming with natural beauty I hadn't expected. This entire adventure was overwhelming in its amazingness, but the moments this day were some of the most serenely magical during our entire time in Africa.
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