We ended our day in the Amboseli Game Park by getting an
“up close and personal” look at the Maasai Tribe. Our driver, William, took us to a village
where we got to learn about this people group.
We were greeted by the Chief’s son who spoke pretty good English (YAE). He told us what we were going to see and
do. We were also greeted by an unknown
number of flies that became unbearable as the tour went on. One of the elders gave Anne something made of
Elephant hair that she whipped around our face to shoo the flies. It didn’t work very good, but it was better
than nothing!
The people gathered (about 20 women and 15 men) outside
the thicket fence and welcomed us with a song and dance. The men would take turns jumping up and
down. Surprisingly, they could get VERY
high off the ground! They invited Mitch
to join them and we got a good laugh as Mitch tried to imitate them! He didn’t quite have the “hops” that the
tribesmen had but gave it his best shot!
Next, they encircled us and the Chief prayed a blessing
over us. They mentioned they were
Christian and it would be important to bless us. Did I mention the flies were driving us
crazy?
We entered the fence that was made by the men with some
heavy brush. The huts lined the inside
of the fence and were made of cow dung, branches, and some special twine that comes from a plant. The women
build the huts and it takes about 3 weeks to complete one. We were able to go inside and see “not really
see because they were pitch black” what they looked like on the inside. There were 3 rooms, one for the kids, one for
the parents, and one for the fire needed for cooking. In the morning, the women gather wood for the
fire inside. Once our eyes adjusted, it
was pretty amazing!
We then went outside to sit and learn about building fire
(where they showed us how to do it with 2 sticks) and about the homeopathic
medicines made from plants. The whole
place was filled with cow dung and the flies covered the people at all
times. It’s just like what we see when
watching a National Geographic special. Honestly, I don’t know how they can
stand it!
The next part of our tour was outside the thicket fence
where the women have all of their “makings” displayed on blankets. They do a lot of beadwork and sell them to
make money for the tribe. The women looked
so old and worn. Such a difficult way of
life!
Lastly, we were taken to the school about 300 yards
outside the village. This was where the
children go during the day to learn English, Math, Writing, and other
subjects. The teacher was a young man
who had grown up in the village. He was fortunate enough to get some education outside
the village, and then came back to “give back” to his community. The children were delightful and sang for us
and then we said our “good-byes” and took the jeep to our final destination of
the day the Amboseli Sopa Lodge. 
Honestly,
we couldn’t wait to get in the jeep, and out of the fly infested place! We were filthy, dirty and thought perhaps our
shoes were ruined and would need to be thrown away! Thank God for a hot shower and some clean
clothes!
The Amboseli Sopa Lodge is very nice. Our dinner was wonderful and we are hoping to
get a good night’s sleep because today was the 1st day we didn’t
have to take a nap around 4:00. The time
change has taken a while to adjust to!
As usual, we had wonderful prayer time and anticipate anther great day
tomorrow as we drive to the Oloile Secondary School in Kimana, Kenya. As we gather each night, we have NO idea what
we are going to experience each day!
What we do know is that God has a purpose for our every minute that we
are here in Africa. We pray that He will
reveal His plan to us and that we would have the wisdom to know what to do with
each day that He gives us! Mosquito nets
down and good night!
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