CAR WASH

A ROADSIDE CAR WASH AND MORE IMPORTANT: 

A PUBLIC WC LOCATED AT THE REAR OF THE GIFT SHOP

Some of the trips we take between conservancies are LONG! Public WC's are much appreciated. Agoi and Vicki always know where the best places are to stop. We can browse and walk through the many aisles filled with all sorts of souvenirs ranging from carvings much too large to bring home (or even have shipped back to the US) to small items which have probably been imported for sale. One of the people who previously traveled with Vicki seemed to have found something to purchase at every stop. We, on the other hand, aren't  ready to buy anything at this point in our journey. The WC's are the main attraction and occasionally soft drinks.

Nevertheless, here we take the opportunity to walk briskly around the parking lot while Agoi drives down the street to a favorite gas station where he will fill up on diesel fuel. He often leaves the vehicle running during short stops. When I ask him why, he explains that diesel engines take longer to cool down and it's easier to start the van again when it's parked. 

Psalm 40:14 Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me; O Lord, make haste to help me.

Psalm 5:13 But all who take refuge in you will be glad;

Day 7 - Today we head to the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, a non-profit wildlife conservancy in Central Kenya, lying between the Aberdares foothills and Mount Kenya, right on the Equator. This picture was taken from the van (as indeed all of my pictures were.) Our next accommodation will be  in a traditional tent set up on permanent floor. Every tent has a veranda overlooking the waterhole and savanna, a grassy plain with low acacia trees and shrubs.

Every day, Agoi tries to teach us some Swahili words. He is fluent in English and can speak some to other foreign tourists in their languages. He has been to Japan to drum up safari tourists. Although Vicki and Cathy are catching on in Swahili, especially Vicki who practices her Swahili at every stop.

Me? Not so much. I’m even having difficulty bringing up English words at times with a short-term memory that doesn't seem to work very well as I age.

The chief purpose of this Conservancy is to protect great apes and the largest herd of black rhinoceros in East Africa. It is also home to three of five northern white rhinos in the world. We are also going to visit the Sweetwaters chimpanzee sanctuary (started by Jane Goodall). Sweetwaters is the only chimpanzee sanctuary in Kenya for orphaned or abandoned young chimps. It’s similar to the elephant sanctuary outside Kenya that we visited on our first day here. Sadly, baby chimps and other apes are often victims of poachers who sell the adult carcasses for bush meat.

Heading to Ol Pejeta Conservancy

Psalm 106:3 Happy are those who act with justice and always do what is right.

Kenyan highways range from excellent 4-lane roads to dirt roads that haven't been scraped in a long while. The worst road was the highway leading into Nairobi which dead ends as you approach from the south. Suddenly the expressway reverts to a narrow two-lane road hemmed in on one side by the Nairobi National Park and on the other side by private homes whose owners refused to sell or have their property taken by eminent domain (if such a thing is possible under Kenyan law.) The traffic immediately comes to a halt and grinds its way towards the airport. Of course, traffic jams are not uncommon in the capital city during rush hour.

Each town or village we pass through on this trip has market stalls on both sides of the roadway. Over there are vegetables like potatoes, in the next place, citrus fruits are in season at a different elevation. You can also buy plastic pails and buckets and other useful items for sale everywhere. I suppose if you travel the same route frequently, you know when to expect x, y, or z to come into season. Farm equipment tends to be sold or serviced in the larger population centers.

Sometimes, there are established crossovers on the roads. Most of the time, however, vehicle drivers - and men or boys herding cattle, goats, and sheep, just take their chances as the traffic goes around them. Lorry (truck) drivers and motorcyclists - carrying paying passengers on short trips - also push across the road to a point where they will stop and make their purchases. 

I know Kenyans in the countryside haggle before settling on a price. We only stopped at one grocery store - to buy candy bars and other small items. Although I used to haggle when I lived in Iran as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I have long since gotten out of practice.  Most of the souvenirs I bought in shops at fixed prices although, with Vicki's help, I did haggle with the Masai village women.