Friday Evening
After hard week of work and emotional challenges...we decided to let the steam off in Nakuru on Friday. There are 2 good places (that we know): Taidy's and Enigma. Taidy's is more like relaxed sports bar / reggae kind of place, where as Enigma claims to be the only lounge in Nakuru.
The evening was fun....we had our regular matatu driver, John, with us with his "disco matatu". We have named it disco matatu, as he has disco light inside the car and he always plays good music ;o)I was dancing, dancing and dancing...once I get going, there's no way to stop until I leave the place. I just let the music take over and it sure did good after a week like this.
Saturday
Day full of no special plans....l-o-v-e-l-y.
On Saturday most of the team did a day trip to lake Victoria in Kisumu. To me, after the demanding week, just some time off without any plans sounded more appealing.
Sleeping in felt amazing...I had forgotten how it feels to be able to sleep as long as you feel like and have a slow morning. Since we got here every day has been something and the previous weekend both days we left the hotel at 6.30am.
Saturday afternoon few of us, who had stayed at the hotel, went to experience the Nakuru street market fuss. The sellers have been educated though, they were not too pushy and listened when saying "asante, but not today".
I am not a shopper anyway, so was proud to be able to check out the stands from one end of the street to another. After that I didn't feel like leaving the hotel though ;o)
Sunday
Swimming in the morning felt great,as this time I was swimming first when the sun has started to shine. I have been swimming nearly every morning but at 6.30 am. The hotel staff things that I am crazy, as for them it's now winter and swimming before the sun is out...seems to them similar as for Finns jumping in the winter into icy lake from sauna. To me the water temperature is just fine, it's doing a morning swim in the lake during a Finnish summer.
Each time there are several people coming to wonder about the fact that someone is really in the pool, swimming in the "cold" water. Chinese tourist group, which is staying at the hotel likes to come and take photos while I swim. I guess in their opinion too I am crazy...and they all might be on the right track ;o)
While swimming I have been able to talk one of my colleagues into swimming as well. Krishna has gotten beaten by the swim-bug and seems to be enjoying it.
Sunday afternoon was time to get the nose out of the hotel, so group of us ladies went to Thomson's Falls and Hippo pond in Nyahururu.
Nyahururu is about 2 h drive from Nakuru, is Kenya's highest settlement, sitting at 2360 m above sea level. The drive there was climing with the matatu the hilly road...slow, but certain.
After getting past the tourist fuss at the entrance we could concentrate to the essential...the water fall.
Thomson's falls is beautiful. The sound of the water and seeing water...made me feel like home. The water comes from Ewaso Nyiro river and falls 75 m down in a single drop over a volcanic ledge. The waterfall has gotten its name after Scottish explorer, Joseph Thomson, who was in Nyahururu area in 1823.
The best part of visiting Thomson's Falls was the hike down, to the bottom of the valley. The stairs were not any sophisticated stairs, but rocks carved to the shape of stairs. That made the walk down more like climbing down. With our cameras and bags at times it did require helping out each other and giving guidance how to get down.
I was all worth it...the view by the river was so beautiful. The sound of the masses of water falling down was calming.
It was like in a dream...
The spot obviously serves as a "date place", as we saw unusually many couples kissing by the river. In Kenya, apart from Nairobi, it is now common to show in public that one is dating (bit same fashion like in India - apart from Mumbai).
The climb up was equal to a good run...and I was then thankful for doing regularly sports. The hike went fine till half way, after which I felt it in my pulse. It was fun though ;o)
After the climb it was time to sooth ourselves with hippos. Few kilometers from the fall there is a hippo bond. It was beautiful...there were at least a dozen of hippos in a close distance. Sugandha, who has the mega camera lens, got some beautiful pictures there. I forgot to change the lens in the car to the longer one (and for some silly reason left my camera bag in the car)...thus I had to settle with what I had...knowing luckily that I will get copies of "Suggi's" photos.
Seeing hippos that close made me amazed with the mass they carry. From that perspective water definitely is the best place for them, as it takes some of the mass effect off. Seeing a huge hippo head is one thing, but when few of those mega size hippos pushed themselves up....made me happy that we had still some distance between us ;o)
Hippos seem to be a tight group if the environment allows it. Mostly you could see a junk of hippos, not recognizing from the junk that which parts (head, back or behind)belong to which hippo. They seem to be very one with all ;o) Here and there a baby hippo popped the head above the water for a moment...and then dived back under the muddy water.
The trip back was having its excitement....the motor was smoking and made a whole lot of noise. But we got back without pushing the car.
The group that went to lake Victoria had to push the car 4 times, as the battery died and later on cooler was nearly out of liquid (and there was only a river close by to get some water from). One of the team member had to pay for the battery first, as the drivers don't (for some funny reason) carry hardly any money, nor water with them....so our trip was still far from that excitement. I can also state that Thomson's falls and Hippo pond was definitely value for money, as Sugi (our negotiator) got it for free as compensation to Saturday's lake Victoria matatu chaos. Thanks Sugi ;o)
(will add photos later - when the connection allows it)
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