Maasai and Giraffes

Day 6 - 3/17/17

We woke up in the morning to look at the sunrise but it was raining and yet I could see the sunrise and it was one of the most beautiful sunrises I’ve seen.

The Maasai tribe guided us to their village and showed us how they live. Each family has their own boma, or house compound. In the middle of the boma is the round pen divided for the cows and goats. Surrounding that are the houses, and all is encompassed by a brush wall. The acacia tree’s thorns are effective at keeping out predators. Each wife has their own enkaji, house, within the compound. They explained how they design their houses and the materials they use to construct it. Their houses are round, made out of mud and cow manure into a type of adobe, and have a straw roof that comes up to a point at the top. We were also allowed to enter their home and they were also kind enough to explain to us how their home is divided inside. There is enough room for a cooking hearth and two platform beds with walls and an open doorway. One of the platform beds is for the wife and the other for her children. The fire is built in the middle of the room and the smoke seeps out through the straw roof, but the straw keeps the rain out.

They took us into the bush and we hiked to a spot where you can see the whole Rift Valley. Lucas, the Maasai guide, pointed out plants used in traditional Maasai medicine. When returning from the hike we were able to see a giraffe. It was somewhat hidden in the brush about thirty meters away from us. It stopped grazing and looked at us as we quietly gathered around. It kept looking at us for five or ten minutes before it started to wander away. We looped around to the left and tried to see it again. As we slid through the thick mud, Lucas pointed out two more giraffes!

After returning from the hike we started to pack our things from the camp and we headed out. Not long after we started out on the bus, it got stuck on the muddy road because of the rain last night. After numerous attempts we got the bus moving again and we headed back to Njoro village. When we arrived at Njoro village we walked up to Poli Primary School again and the students there, as well the faculty, thanked us all for our hard work.