Today we did a cooking experience! The lady who hosted us had lived in her house her whole life and so did her parents, grandparents and great grandparents! There was two other people doing the experience with us. Their names were Libby and Matt. We started with introductions and our host talked about herself. Then we started cooking. The first thing we did was fill the samosas. There were gluten filled and gluten free! I was tasked with frying the samosas in oil and it was very fun. While I was frying them, the others started making the curry and rice. The rice was made with cardamom and other spices to give it flavor. The process of making the curry was ridiculously simple and fast. We put the spices in then the coconut cream ingredients in then it was done! By done, I mean ready to be put on the stove to be cooked. When it was time to sit down and eat I was very hungry. The samosas were the best! The chicken curry was a little spicy for me and the rice was super good! While we were eating our host and her helpers made us a traditional dessert of Ribose tea, sweet potato, and a ball with dates in it. I liked the tea and sweet potato but I don’t love dates.
The Experience overall was amazing! Being able to learn from someone who loves cooking and has done it for many years is very special. I really enjoyed myself and I would highly recommend doing a cooking experience with anyone!
The scenery was amazing! The drive to the penguins was along the coast and through towns. We learned about the history of each town. At one point there was a tunnel that had one side open. I really enjoyed the drive and one thing I learned was, there was 14 mountains that were called the 11 apostles. If you are into awsome landscape photos I would highly recommend this drive!
Puppy the Seal
Puppy, in my opinion, is a funny name for a seal. It makes me think of a cute fat animal, wich is what Puppy is. When we saw him he was being hand fed by a man and he seemed to know what to do. We were told that he came up on the docks to get snacks and that he was very friendly. The friendly part might not be true. He was more exited about the food then anything. I think he did not mind us touching him and maybe he liked it but he was super exited about the food. While we were with Puppy I bought a really cute elephant satchel! We then moved on so we could see the penguins.
The Penguins
The penguins were awesome! We had to climb over some rocks witch was super fun. Then we had to wade through freezing water to get to the penguins. When I got to the place where the penguins were I saw what looked like a dead shark! I asked our guide and he confirmed it was a dead shark; and just to clarify, the shark was a baby so only a foot and a half long. The penguins were sitting on a rock and they would waddle into the water. I was surprised at how fast they could move under water. They were little bullets! We went to a second place with penguins but it had lots of people in it and it was less special.
Our time at Hotel Verde was fantastic! The rooms were elegant, and the bathrooms were beautiful. Each room had a small deck with a super comfortable chair. The food in the restaurant was not good, the restaurant was empty and lonely. We ate at the hotel restaurant one night and went out the next.
Playing at the hotel.
The hotel had a pool, gym, spa, playground, and water park open on Saturdays. Bardez and I played in the pool and playground for one of the afternoons. The playground was more like an obstacle course than a playground, which made it even more fun. The pool was not warm, but it was probably about 70 degrees. I loved playing in the pool and the playground.
A Day in Stone Town
On our first full day, we went into stone town. We went on a walking tour around the town. Imron was our guide, and he was hilarious. We were looking at a weaving shop that had an actual loom, then the other people on our tour arrived. The time was amazing, andI learned so much! We went into the old fort and saw a big stone auditorium. On our tour, we learned about the doorways and the town’s history. We also visited a museum about the history of slaves on the island and one really surprising thing I learned was that there were black slave owners! this had never occurred to me. In the museum there was a story about a woman who was unjustly sold into slavery, she was freed and given money for compensation. She was asked what she would do with it and she said “I’m gonna buy a slave.” This was shocking! I asked why and mom said that she thought it was the culture to own slaves.
Hotel Review
I would give this hotel four stars. It was not terrible but the food was bad and the rooms were very smelly. My dad once said something along the lines of, if your experience is 99.9% amazing but there is one big thing that is not amazing it will lower the whole experience. Not being able to eat at a hotel is hard but it was kind of good because we got to go to other fun restaurants and eat their amazing food! I would recommend trying a different place in stone town if you ever visit. I’m sure there are other amazing hotels in the area that are waiting to be used. I would go back to stone town and see other amazing things!
Today we went to one of the Masai villages next to Amboseli National Park. We got a welcome dance from some of the villagers, and we also got to dance. The dancers put beautiful handmade necklaces around our necks and welcomed us happily. We were invited to dance with them, and we did. Then they prayed for us. The Masai people are Christians.
We then went into their village. There was a fence made of thorn bushes to keep unwanted animals out and their livestock in. There were also similar smaller enclosures inside to keep the cows, goats, and sheep inside the paddocks, inside the village. There were so many baby cows, goats, and sheep running around. We were led to chairs and saw how the Masai make fire. They made fire by rubbing a stick in a notch in a piece of wood to create friction and then fire. While one of the men was talking, a baby goat ran under my chair and stayed there! It was adorable, but I wanted to see what was happening, so I stopped gazing at it.
They next brought out three kinds of traditional medicine. It was all different types of wood! And there were so many uses for it all. Such as helping with headaches and stomachaches and treatment to block diseases from mosquitoes.
We got to tour one of the huts. The doorways were shorter than me! The inside was super dark because there was only one tiny window close to the fire area. There were two rooms, one for the adults and one for the kids. The walls were made of elephant dung and sticks, and the roof was made of thatch and sticks. I would not want to live in this type of home. It didn’t make me sad because these people were keeping their traditions and choosing to live this way.
After the house, we went to their market. All the ladies had beautiful stuff, but they were kind of pushy. They kept trying to put bracelets on my wrists, and one bracelet was too small, but the lady wanted to get it on me. Emmy and I did find some cool things in the end, but when it was time to pay, we discovered that everything was more expensive than we anticipated. I went from about six items to three. Emmy and I got gifts for a friend and one thing for myself.
While mom and dad were settling the prices for what they were buying, us kids got to hold a three-day-old goat! It was so tiny and so cute! We got plenty of good photos, and I wanted to keep it, but I knew I could never carry a goat around Africa.
We went to the school. The kids there were super cute! Three-year-olds knew their ABCs and 123s fluently! They all had the cutest uniforms, and I adored them all. We had to leave after school, and I was glad because I was super hot! I loved seeing the village and I wish more people knew about it. I would go again to see more and learn more.Â
this baby cow was very skinny due to the 2 year droughtI really loved these beautiful earringsthis woman made many beautiful necklacesthis was an older village woman who makes jewelrysaying goodbye to the village was hardmy sister, Emmy, and I holding a baby goatThe local women make beautiful jewelry to sell at their village market
Our first visit to Nairobi started at midnight in a hot, stuffy airport. Getting through customs was long and not fun. The only fun part was when I made my passport photo face at the person checking our passports. Â
For those of you who don’t know, when I got my last passport and when they took my photo, I smiled a sweet smile, but to my astonishment, they said I was not allowed to smile. Now my passport photo looks like I am a hiker trying to stare down a mama bear. In other words, I don’t look happy.
The outside air was not hot, thankfully. Hot outside air is the last thing anyone needs when coming off a late-night flight. It took us so long to get our sim cards, long enough for Bardez to fall asleep by mom, on the floor, outside. He was pretty cute.
When we finally got our sim cards, we got into the hotel taxi. There was nobody at the hotel except the security guard. They had to find someone to check us in. It took a while to get room keys, but it eventually happened.
The hotel was excellent. But not somewhere that I would want to go back to. The food was delicious and the staff was friendly, but it was not a stunning experience. I would rate the Double Tree Hilton four stars.
Second Stay in Nairobi
Our second stay in Nairobi after being in the Masai Mara was much better. We stayed at a different hotel called the Movenpick. The rooms were more beautiful, and the food was so much better! At breakfast, there were always gluten-free cupcakes and bread. They would also label everything saying if it was gluten-free or not. On Sunday, we went to the same church we attended the previous Sunday. After Church, we had an afternoon at the hotel.
To our delight and surprise, there was a beautiful lunch buffet and a kid’s play area with bracelet making. I made about five bracelets, one of which was completely gold, and I wore it to dinner that night. The restaurant was a revolving restaurant at the top of the hotel where we could see most of the city while we ate our dinner. I would rate this hotel five stars and add that the staff was excellent and friendly. I would also visit again and explore Nairobi more extensively.
