Maasai Mara Marvels
I looked across the plain. Tall, golden, grass is as far as the eye could see. Strong green trees dotted the area, stood out in the dull yellow background. I remembered hearing the birds harmonize, their music tickling my ear. I grinned. We were here. In Maasai Mara. Maasai Mara is in Norak Country, Kenya. The Maasai Mara National Reserve was made to honor the Maasai people. The Maasai people are a unique and interesting tribe that live across Kenya and Tanzania. Their ancestors originated in North Africa, but then started moving towards the south.
The truck bumped down the plains, spraying dust. The sun had shone brightly against the baby blue sky. I gazed up at wisps of clouds scattered across the sky, adding to the sky’s beauty. I lowered my gaze and looked around the plain that were home to so many animals. Lions rested in the shade, safe from the crackling hot sun. Giraffes stand out with their long necks casting a shadow behind them. I looked at every animal and made sure to remember every detail. The car started again, the items in the trunk making loud noises until finally, my cousin shakes my shoulder. “We have reached the hotel.” Later that night we had finally moved all of our luggage into our rooms and settled for a good night’s sleep. Tomorrow was safari day.
The cheetah ran faster than the wind, trying to catch its prey. The baby wildebeest ran just as fast, to see if it could escape its cursed fate. I closed my eyes and hoped that when I opened my eyes the cheetah would’ve given up, and the baby would be safe. I opened my eyes and I saw the mother wildebeest running towards the cheetah. The baby was running behind its mother, cowering. When the cheetah tried to attack, the mother lowers her head showing off her sharp horns. The cheetah tries to go to the side to attack the baby but the mother turned. After a number of failed attempts the cheetah decided to give up. They were such CHEETers anyway. The cheetah layed down on the grass, gasping for breath after it failed to get its lunch. About seven safari trucks surround it. You could hear the cameras clicking. SNAP! SNAP! We continued on, and ahead could see a zeal of zebras trekking across the thin mud road. I nudged my sister pointed, “Look! It’s a zebra crossing!” As lame as the joke was, we had never laughed so much.
As the day wore on, I saw two majestic lionesses, laying on the ground ahead of the our truck. They both had smooth orange skin that shined golden in the sunlight. One is young and the other was more worn out, which I had guessed to be her mother. She had a fatigued look on her face. The daughter goes up to her mother and puts her head against her mothers, as if hugging her, and lays down next to her, each lioness comfortable in the presence of one another, just like the strangers in a white truck staring at them.
Next, we go to a model village. It was built to show tourists how the locals live and how they used to live. My cousin and I went to all of the houses, being the explorers we are. We noticed that the houses were small, made of mud. A guide goes around and tells about the locals, the Maasai people.
We get into the car to go the hotel. I gaze out of the window. The sun is setting and the sky is a mixture of beautiful colours. Red, orange, yellow and blue is streaked across the sky like watercolor. I see a pride of lions and a herd of elephants. I get engulfed with tiredness. I slowly closed my eyes as we reach the hotel. As we entered inside, I yawned, ready to go to bed but my mom tells me that there was Maasai people, and I snap awake. We all went to the main room. It was large and circular and the ceiling was very high. If there were three people my size standing on top of my shoulders, the person on top would still not be able to touch the ceiling. I turned my attention to the center of the room. There were about five Maasai people. They had bright red and orange clothing with various accessories. When we came in there is a large crowd around them. The Maasai people are showing how high they jump. I was dumbstruck. They told us that this was a type of dance that transition a boy to a senior warrior. They then told us more about them, their language, called Maa and their diet. One Maasai tells us that they drink milk and blood from their cattles, to make them strong. They continued, telling us what religion they were. “We have a Maasai god (Enkai) that had 2 forms. When it is black it is benevolent and when red it’s vengeful. Now most Maasai are mostly Muslims or Christian.” They also told us that they put cow blood on their hair in order to scare away predators. That also explained their brightly colored clothes. I learned alot from this trip. I learned about the animals in this safari park and the Maasai people. How they originated from North Africa, how they have their own god. What they eat, their clothing. I learned that there are so many different people in the world. Everyone is different and unique.
