Was wondering what to write about this time as I'd hate to bore you all with my tales of 'I saw this animal and that animal, etc'. So thought I would describe a typical day for me here.
Well, it normally starts around 6.30am as this is when the horses are fed. I would of course be lying if I tried to claim that I participate in that. Normally the syces have already fed the horses and are waiting around for their instructions. Generally, we have guests ride at 7.00am so it is a case of deciding which horses to use and making sure they are all tacked up and ready to go. Then meeting guests, briefing them, fitting them with helmets, and getting them mounted and away. I don't normally go out with them if they are doing a slow ride - I only tend to go if it is a faster ride for more experienced people. Besides which, the guides here are obviously far more knowledgeable about all the wildlife than I could ever hope to be so the guests will have a much more informative ride with them!
The faster horses need to be kept fit so I try to ride them every two or three days. Depending upon who is lame, there are normally about six of these horses so myself and a couple of syces will ride a horse each and lead another. At the moment, the polo ponies are on holiday (no, they haven't gone to the beach, they are just enjoying some time off work as the season doesn't start again until May). When they are back in work, then we will also have to exercise them each morning so I will be much busier then than I am now.
If we have a quiet morning without guests or the need to exercise any horses, then it gives me time to have a good look at all the horses as they head out of their stables and off to graze each day. Or to do jobs like shoeing (two of the syces are also farriers), or vaccinations. Injecting 40 horses isn't really my idea of a fun way to start a day but it's not too bad once you get started and the horses are all good to do (apart from the foal but that's another story). So far, I've had African Horse Sickness and tetanus vaccines to do, but the annual rabies jab is also due soon.
After riding, I normally have breakfast around 9.00am by which time I am truly starving! Then at 10.00am, I drive down to the shamba (the farm) where the mares and foals live to check they are all okay. Right now, I am in a routine of one day re-bandaging Santa's legs and the next day doing some handling work with Champagne. Santa is growing well but his legs are still a mess. The vet said it may be necessary to continue with the bandaging for 100 days!! In another place, he really would have had skin grafts but this is Africa and that isn't going to happen. Champagne is just the most gorgeous foal. Incredibly naughty but also very clever and affectionate. She accepts that she has to wear a head collar but isn't happy about being taught how to lead. She rears, has tantrums and has even thrown herself on the floor and refused to get up. Suffice to say, her first tetanus jab did not go well and three syces had to pin her into a corner in the stable as that was the only way to inject her. Despite all that, she really does love fuss and a cuddle - just don't ask her to do anything that she doesn't want to do..
The rest of the morning is free really. I might sort out ordering food or drugs for the horses, read, internet, or chill out by the pool. Then lunch which tends to be a prolonged affair (drinks beforehand, then 2 courses, then tea/coffee on the verandah after) as I eat with the guests. I start work again around 3pm when the horses come in from grazing in time to be ready for the 4pm ride. Asides from getting organised for that ride, every horse is groomed and has all the ticks removed so generally I am just checking all the horses and the stables. I can pretty much guarantee that at least one horse will have some minor cut or injury (usually from thorns out in the bush) that needs cleaning up and treating. They also like to lose shoes with amazing regularity. We feed around 5pm and then I just wait around for the riders to return around 5.30pm - just to make sure all went well and no one fell off..
So that is my day done. I then either relax until dinner at 8pm or may be play a little tennis or go out on a game drive. Dinner with guests is once again a prolonged affair but it is useful to chat to them about riding if they are planning to go on a ride the next day to figure out which horses might suit them. I have developed a bad habit of immediately trying to assess people's weight as we don't have many big horses so I hate it when heavy people want to ride. Also if they are over 90kg trying to figure out how to tactfully say they can't ride!
Well, that's about it for now. The two donkeys did their first bit of work yesterday. We have called them Up and Down as their job is to go up and down the hill to a nice picnic spot by the river transporting lunch. They were very well behaved apart from when they were left grazing and they decided to take themselves off back up the hill to the stables! Supukia (the camel/donkey guide) had to run after them which was quite hilarious. They were tied to a bush after that. The new picnic spot is fab. You can swim under the waterfall and jump off the rocks. The water does look a little brown but it's quite nice once you're in!
No rain for ages so the grass is now dying very quickly and everywhere is taking on a yellow / brown colour. Quite different from the lush green when I first arrived on Lewa.
Western Sahara 2016
Friday, 27 January 2012
Wednesday, 18 January 2012
News from Lewa
So what exciting things have happened since my last blog?
Saw lions this morning when I was out riding!! Have always known that at some point I would and fortunately they were a good distance away and the horses were oblivious.
Went on a great game drive the other evening. Watched a couple of lionesses hanging out by the swamp and then saw three cheetahs together. They had just killed an impala and so we sat just metres away listening to them contentedly chomping on their dinner whilst the sun went down. Then saw three porcupines after dark running along the track in front of our vehicle - very funny creatures.
Lots of babies around at the moment. Saw the sweetest little waterbuck which must have been only a few hours old, and also the tiniest baby elephants - their ears still pink and barely coming up to their mums' knee.
Still haven't seen a leopard though...
Also ventured into Isiolo which is a town 30 mins north of Wilderness. Visited a school / orphanage / clinic project there. The school provides a home and education for children who have been orphaned and have effectively become head of their household. It is very common for children to be orphaned due the death of their parents from AIDS. The charity provides carers for the other children so that the oldest child can get an education. Kate and I spent an afternoon as "teachers". A Wilderness guest had arranged for her school to send penpal letters so we handed out letters to each student and then helped them write a reply, draw pictures to send, etc. Was fun but quite exhausting. We will have to go back soon to give out the next lot of letters. Heading into Isiolo and hearing about life there is certainly a stark reminder of what life is like for so many in Africa. Living on Lewa shelters you from all that and those who come to Africa just for a luxury safari definitely don't see the real Africa.
Saw lions this morning when I was out riding!! Have always known that at some point I would and fortunately they were a good distance away and the horses were oblivious.
Went on a great game drive the other evening. Watched a couple of lionesses hanging out by the swamp and then saw three cheetahs together. They had just killed an impala and so we sat just metres away listening to them contentedly chomping on their dinner whilst the sun went down. Then saw three porcupines after dark running along the track in front of our vehicle - very funny creatures.
Lots of babies around at the moment. Saw the sweetest little waterbuck which must have been only a few hours old, and also the tiniest baby elephants - their ears still pink and barely coming up to their mums' knee.
Still haven't seen a leopard though...
Also ventured into Isiolo which is a town 30 mins north of Wilderness. Visited a school / orphanage / clinic project there. The school provides a home and education for children who have been orphaned and have effectively become head of their household. It is very common for children to be orphaned due the death of their parents from AIDS. The charity provides carers for the other children so that the oldest child can get an education. Kate and I spent an afternoon as "teachers". A Wilderness guest had arranged for her school to send penpal letters so we handed out letters to each student and then helped them write a reply, draw pictures to send, etc. Was fun but quite exhausting. We will have to go back soon to give out the next lot of letters. Heading into Isiolo and hearing about life there is certainly a stark reminder of what life is like for so many in Africa. Living on Lewa shelters you from all that and those who come to Africa just for a luxury safari definitely don't see the real Africa.
Monday, 9 January 2012
Ngare Ndare Forest, Angry Elephants and Sad Donkeys
Lots happened here since my last update. Had a great day trip to the Ngare Ndare forest which is about an hour's drive from Wilderness. Very fun journey there in the back of a pick up transporting lunch, etc for our guests and great to get out and see some more of the area. The forest is beautiful, very cool and green with amazing waterfalls and pools to jump in - most refreshing!
Had an interesting run in with some elephants one evening. Kate (Wilderness lodge manager) and I decided to go over to Sirikoi which is another lodge on Lewa for drinks at sunset. Driving back in the dark we came upon a huge herd of elephants blocking the track. So we waited patiently for them to move which they showed absolutely no sign of doing. There was another vehicle in front of us and as they decided to go off road to bypass them, we thought we would follow. Unfortunately, the elephants started to get really angry and two of them threatened to charge us. It is very scary when you can see an elephant in your rear view mirror coming at you and then another from the side! Fortunately for us, they didn't make contact with the vehicle and we emerged unscathed but I shall be very wary of elephants from now on!
Other news is that we now have two donkeys at Wilderness. I have always wanted donkeys so I was very excited at the prospect of their arrival. They are going to work as pack donkeys transporting lunch down to the river when we hold picnic lunches for guests. They are rather battle scarred little donkeys, although I'm assured by the locals that their scars are due to them fighting with other donkeys rather than ill treatment. They also have really tatty ears as the ears are cut as a means of marking them so villagers know who owns which donkey. I rather think these donkeys have landed on their feet coming to live at Wilderness and being pampered by me. They are going to be the best kept donkeys in Africa! I've successfully treated the pus filled wound on one donkey's neck. Unfortunately, the other donkey is not as friendly and took great exception to me trying to clean up its runny eyes. I guess the poor donkey has never been handled by a mzungu (white person), and they've definitely not had hard feed before as they just stood and stared at the food bowls. The syces all think I am completely mad for being so nice to the donkeys, and I've given up on feeding them. They just have hay at night in the stable and roam free during the day. The difficulty with having the donkeys is that the horses all went crazy when they saw them, although they are slowly getting used to each other now.
Finally, an update on my foal, Santa. The traumas continue but he is still with us! I decided that he wasn't really developing and was a bit slow mentally as well. I spoke to the vet who suggested putting him back on antibiotics and vitamin injections to try and boost him. I also learnt that there is a condition called 'dummy foal' where the foal suffers from a lack of oxygen during birth and thus mentally is somewhat slow although they can gradually recover. As I mentioned in my last blog post, he was constantly injuring himself as well which was something of a mystery. Very fortuitously for us, a vet was coming for lunch (he is actually a Professor at the Royal Vet College in the UK but was holidaying in the area). So to earn his lunch, he was persuaded to come and look at Santa. Just as well that he did. Turns out that the circulation to his lower limbs was affected (the vet said he must have been very close to death from septecemia at one point which he was in his early days) and the skin was all dead and just falling off - hence why he kept injuring himself because he actually has very little feeling in that area. Luckily for me, the vet stripped off all the dead skin and scrubbed his legs until they bled / got back to live tissue, showed me how to bandage them, etc. So I am now three days in to the daily saga of scrubbing his legs and rebandaging them and more antibiotics. Not sure at this point how well the legs will recover but Santa is definitely getting stronger each day and really fights against his treatments. The poor foal is going to be traumatised for life by the sheer number of injections he has had. The fact that he fights so hard gives me some hope that he is not as dumb as we first thought!
On a more positive foal note, my two month old foal has finally succumbed to wearing a head collar after what seems like many hours of trying. She was very cross when we duped her into getting it on and she realised that she couldn't get it off. Foal number three is yet to put in an appearance - technically due yesterday but I think it could me a few more days yet..
Played squash yesterday for the first time ever which was really good fun. Can't believe that I've never played before. There is a squash court in Nanyuki and as our guests all left yesterday, Kate and I ventured out for an evening of squash and dinner at a restaurant. Quite a long way to go for squash and dinner but such is life when you live in such a remote place. A guest free day today which is nice..
Anyway, I think that is my main news so I will sign off now.
Had an interesting run in with some elephants one evening. Kate (Wilderness lodge manager) and I decided to go over to Sirikoi which is another lodge on Lewa for drinks at sunset. Driving back in the dark we came upon a huge herd of elephants blocking the track. So we waited patiently for them to move which they showed absolutely no sign of doing. There was another vehicle in front of us and as they decided to go off road to bypass them, we thought we would follow. Unfortunately, the elephants started to get really angry and two of them threatened to charge us. It is very scary when you can see an elephant in your rear view mirror coming at you and then another from the side! Fortunately for us, they didn't make contact with the vehicle and we emerged unscathed but I shall be very wary of elephants from now on!
Other news is that we now have two donkeys at Wilderness. I have always wanted donkeys so I was very excited at the prospect of their arrival. They are going to work as pack donkeys transporting lunch down to the river when we hold picnic lunches for guests. They are rather battle scarred little donkeys, although I'm assured by the locals that their scars are due to them fighting with other donkeys rather than ill treatment. They also have really tatty ears as the ears are cut as a means of marking them so villagers know who owns which donkey. I rather think these donkeys have landed on their feet coming to live at Wilderness and being pampered by me. They are going to be the best kept donkeys in Africa! I've successfully treated the pus filled wound on one donkey's neck. Unfortunately, the other donkey is not as friendly and took great exception to me trying to clean up its runny eyes. I guess the poor donkey has never been handled by a mzungu (white person), and they've definitely not had hard feed before as they just stood and stared at the food bowls. The syces all think I am completely mad for being so nice to the donkeys, and I've given up on feeding them. They just have hay at night in the stable and roam free during the day. The difficulty with having the donkeys is that the horses all went crazy when they saw them, although they are slowly getting used to each other now.
Finally, an update on my foal, Santa. The traumas continue but he is still with us! I decided that he wasn't really developing and was a bit slow mentally as well. I spoke to the vet who suggested putting him back on antibiotics and vitamin injections to try and boost him. I also learnt that there is a condition called 'dummy foal' where the foal suffers from a lack of oxygen during birth and thus mentally is somewhat slow although they can gradually recover. As I mentioned in my last blog post, he was constantly injuring himself as well which was something of a mystery. Very fortuitously for us, a vet was coming for lunch (he is actually a Professor at the Royal Vet College in the UK but was holidaying in the area). So to earn his lunch, he was persuaded to come and look at Santa. Just as well that he did. Turns out that the circulation to his lower limbs was affected (the vet said he must have been very close to death from septecemia at one point which he was in his early days) and the skin was all dead and just falling off - hence why he kept injuring himself because he actually has very little feeling in that area. Luckily for me, the vet stripped off all the dead skin and scrubbed his legs until they bled / got back to live tissue, showed me how to bandage them, etc. So I am now three days in to the daily saga of scrubbing his legs and rebandaging them and more antibiotics. Not sure at this point how well the legs will recover but Santa is definitely getting stronger each day and really fights against his treatments. The poor foal is going to be traumatised for life by the sheer number of injections he has had. The fact that he fights so hard gives me some hope that he is not as dumb as we first thought!
On a more positive foal note, my two month old foal has finally succumbed to wearing a head collar after what seems like many hours of trying. She was very cross when we duped her into getting it on and she realised that she couldn't get it off. Foal number three is yet to put in an appearance - technically due yesterday but I think it could me a few more days yet..
Played squash yesterday for the first time ever which was really good fun. Can't believe that I've never played before. There is a squash court in Nanyuki and as our guests all left yesterday, Kate and I ventured out for an evening of squash and dinner at a restaurant. Quite a long way to go for squash and dinner but such is life when you live in such a remote place. A guest free day today which is nice..
Anyway, I think that is my main news so I will sign off now.
Sunday, 1 January 2012
Happy New Year
Just a quick blog post to wish everyone a happy new year. Thanks to everyone who has sent me emails or messages via Facebook wishing me a happy Christmas, etc. Apologies that I haven't replied to many of you. I will get round to it one day when the internet improves!!
So New Years at Wilderness was fun. We had dinner out in the bush with a campfire, two whole roasted lambs and Masai warrior dancing. With the amazing stars here, it was really very beautiful and quite unique. Certainly a different way to spend New Year.
Well, who knows what 2012 will bring, but I wish everyone all the best.
By the way, for those who are interested in the progress of my foal (who has been named Santa), he is doing okay. Still a little wobbly but getting there. Had a bit of a setback yesterday as I think he must have fallen over in the stable as he has a few little cuts and is lame on his back leg. Seems better today though so I just hope he will start to go from strength to strength. No sign of the next foal yet... As for the other horses, they are still proving a challenge. The guests we have staying are very into riding so it wasn't a good start to New Years Eve when two of the horses we were planning to use come out of the stable lame. I am rapidly running out of 'useful' horses and the ones that are sound are being massively over used. Fortunately it's a quieter day today so some of them can have a rest. For the first time since arriving here, I actually used the pool today and did a bit of sunbathing as the guests are all out walking and having lunch. Peace and quiet..
So New Years at Wilderness was fun. We had dinner out in the bush with a campfire, two whole roasted lambs and Masai warrior dancing. With the amazing stars here, it was really very beautiful and quite unique. Certainly a different way to spend New Year.
Well, who knows what 2012 will bring, but I wish everyone all the best.
By the way, for those who are interested in the progress of my foal (who has been named Santa), he is doing okay. Still a little wobbly but getting there. Had a bit of a setback yesterday as I think he must have fallen over in the stable as he has a few little cuts and is lame on his back leg. Seems better today though so I just hope he will start to go from strength to strength. No sign of the next foal yet... As for the other horses, they are still proving a challenge. The guests we have staying are very into riding so it wasn't a good start to New Years Eve when two of the horses we were planning to use come out of the stable lame. I am rapidly running out of 'useful' horses and the ones that are sound are being massively over used. Fortunately it's a quieter day today so some of them can have a rest. For the first time since arriving here, I actually used the pool today and did a bit of sunbathing as the guests are all out walking and having lunch. Peace and quiet..
Thursday, 29 December 2011
New born foals and sick camels
Less than 9 months ago I had a "normal" job in an office, now I am injecting sick camels in Kenya - how did that happen?!
To explain that one, there are a number of camels on Lewa that are used for walking safaris. One of them got sick and the guys who run them asked for my help. They seem to think that because I look after the horses, I might know something about sick camels!! I can safely say that I don't, but decided that antibiotics for the swelling / infection it has under its stomach might work. Trouble is how much does a camel weigh? If you don't know that, you don't know how much to inject so it's kind of tricky. Also discovered that camels have skin like leather and it was not happy about being injected - teeth barred and spitting. Have decided it is easier to just give the camel guys the drugs and some needles so that they can administer it themselves going forwards - I have enough problems of my own to deal with right now as I have a very sick little foal.
So in the early hours of Christmas morning, a foal was born (2 weeks early but the mare had milk a few days before so I wasn't that surprised). He is a huge foal, light bay and just adorable. Sadly not that bright and needed help learning how to drink from mum. It's her first foal so she wasn't that helpful either. Unfortunately on day 2, the foal just got really weak and we nearly lost him. His temperature was almost 40 degrees and his heart was racing. After speaking with the vet, we injected him with super strong antibiotics and got him on a drip. Trying to find a vein on a 2 day old foal is not easy let me tell you!! He started to improve though only to relapse again the following day. This time he seemed to have colic as he was lying on the stable floor groaning. For the second time in 24 hours, I definitely thought we would lose him. For the past couple of days, he has been too weak to get himself up so he has to be lifted up every hour and put on the mare to drink. The poor syces (grooms) have worked so hard keeping him alive through the night. Amazingly, he has started to improve and has just spent his first two hours out in the paddock with mum as he can now stand up by himself and walk really well. I am feeling more positive that he will make it, but I also know that he might relapse at any point. We will just have to wait and see - he is certainly a little fighter. Will be devastated if we lose him after all this..
Suffice to say the last few days have been quite stressful and tiring. I could not even begin to count how many times I have driven back and forth from the farm where the mares and foals live (it's a couple of miles from the main stables here at Wilderness) Also busy with lots of guests riding. I saw a cheetah out riding the other day which was just so brilliant - we were just metres from it whilst it sat in the grass looking at us. That was an afternoon ride but I particularly love going on the morning rides with guests as we surprise them with a bush breakfast. Once we reach the breakfast destination, the horses are untacked, let loose and they make their way back across Lewa to the rest of the "herd" (usually they head off in the right direction but sometimes they decide to go on a little adventure first. I worry about them as they usually end up cantering and the terrain is so rough and full of holes, but they are used to it and its fun to watch them go). The guests then enjoy breakfast in the bush before taking a camel or jeep ride back to Wilderness.
Also before Christmas and the foaling dramas, I found time to get one of the Masai guides to take me walking in the bush. It was so cool as there is that sense of danger all the time as you never know what might be round the corner. We were able to sit on a rock and watch a big herd of elephants crossing the river 100 metres below us, and also see a rhino and her calf at the same time - pretty cool I think.
So that's the latest news from Lewa. Another foal due in less than 2 weeks..
To explain that one, there are a number of camels on Lewa that are used for walking safaris. One of them got sick and the guys who run them asked for my help. They seem to think that because I look after the horses, I might know something about sick camels!! I can safely say that I don't, but decided that antibiotics for the swelling / infection it has under its stomach might work. Trouble is how much does a camel weigh? If you don't know that, you don't know how much to inject so it's kind of tricky. Also discovered that camels have skin like leather and it was not happy about being injected - teeth barred and spitting. Have decided it is easier to just give the camel guys the drugs and some needles so that they can administer it themselves going forwards - I have enough problems of my own to deal with right now as I have a very sick little foal.
So in the early hours of Christmas morning, a foal was born (2 weeks early but the mare had milk a few days before so I wasn't that surprised). He is a huge foal, light bay and just adorable. Sadly not that bright and needed help learning how to drink from mum. It's her first foal so she wasn't that helpful either. Unfortunately on day 2, the foal just got really weak and we nearly lost him. His temperature was almost 40 degrees and his heart was racing. After speaking with the vet, we injected him with super strong antibiotics and got him on a drip. Trying to find a vein on a 2 day old foal is not easy let me tell you!! He started to improve though only to relapse again the following day. This time he seemed to have colic as he was lying on the stable floor groaning. For the second time in 24 hours, I definitely thought we would lose him. For the past couple of days, he has been too weak to get himself up so he has to be lifted up every hour and put on the mare to drink. The poor syces (grooms) have worked so hard keeping him alive through the night. Amazingly, he has started to improve and has just spent his first two hours out in the paddock with mum as he can now stand up by himself and walk really well. I am feeling more positive that he will make it, but I also know that he might relapse at any point. We will just have to wait and see - he is certainly a little fighter. Will be devastated if we lose him after all this..
Suffice to say the last few days have been quite stressful and tiring. I could not even begin to count how many times I have driven back and forth from the farm where the mares and foals live (it's a couple of miles from the main stables here at Wilderness) Also busy with lots of guests riding. I saw a cheetah out riding the other day which was just so brilliant - we were just metres from it whilst it sat in the grass looking at us. That was an afternoon ride but I particularly love going on the morning rides with guests as we surprise them with a bush breakfast. Once we reach the breakfast destination, the horses are untacked, let loose and they make their way back across Lewa to the rest of the "herd" (usually they head off in the right direction but sometimes they decide to go on a little adventure first. I worry about them as they usually end up cantering and the terrain is so rough and full of holes, but they are used to it and its fun to watch them go). The guests then enjoy breakfast in the bush before taking a camel or jeep ride back to Wilderness.
Also before Christmas and the foaling dramas, I found time to get one of the Masai guides to take me walking in the bush. It was so cool as there is that sense of danger all the time as you never know what might be round the corner. We were able to sit on a rock and watch a big herd of elephants crossing the river 100 metres below us, and also see a rhino and her calf at the same time - pretty cool I think.
So that's the latest news from Lewa. Another foal due in less than 2 weeks..
Sunday, 18 December 2011
Life on Lewa
After a hideously long journey, I finally arrived in Nairobi Africa . November is rainy season so everywhere was very green in comparison to my last trip through Kenya Kenya
The Lewa Wildlife Conservancy is a 64,000 acre expanse of land. It is stunning – the landscape (savannah and acacia trees, forests and rivers) seems to go on forever and the views of snow capped Mount Kenya are incredible. At the moment, it is all so green and the grass very long but I’m told it doesn’t stay this way for long. The downside of all the rain is that getting to Wilderness Trails (the lodge on Lewa where I am based) is impossible without four wheel drive. As soon as my taxi turned off the tar road, it was clear that we weren’t getting any further in a regular car and we had to call the lodge to come and collect me. It’s a good few miles along very bumpy tracks to actually reach Wilderness Trails – very remote but I am gradually getting used to driving on these crazy African roads!
The nearest big town to Lewa is Nanyuki (an equator town) which is about an hour’s drive south. It has the most amazing supermarket which has seemingly transformed the lifes of the many white settlers (Europeans) living in this area since it opened 18 months ago. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by how many English / international products this supermarket has too! On checking back through my photos of Kenya
So what is living on Lewa like? Well my accommodation is great. I have a small lodge to myself – nice big double bed, huge bathroom (including bath), a verandah, TV and DVD player – so it’s all good. I am having to adjust to a life of being waited on – it’s kind of like living in a hotel as my bed gets made, room cleaned, etc each day. Even my laundry is done for me and in the evening my bed is turned down and a fire lit – so I’m thoroughly spoilt really! It is all quite rustic though – lots of insects and you have to be careful that monkeys don’t get in. The generator is only on for a limited time each day and goes off at 10.30pm so it is a life of early nights and early rises.
Food wise, I can either eat with the guests (everyone eats together at one long table), or just go to the kitchen and grab whatever is on offer. Eating with the guests is good – lots of interesting people stay here – but it does mean you end up having a cooked breakfast, 2 course lunches and 3 course dinners each day – will soon be getting fat if I carry on like this! Thankfully I normally miss out on afternoon tea and cake as I’m at the stables then.
As for the job, well there are 38 horses – there were 40 but two had to be put down in my first week. Not my fault, I would like to stress! They had come to the end of the road so it was the kindest thing to do. Nine of the horses are polo ponies that the owners’ children compete on (when they are here – they all work/study in the UK
There are 14 syces (the Swahili word for groom) so I don’t actually do any hard work like mucking out, feeding, grooming, etc. My role is really to oversee the running of the yard, work out exercise programs for the horses, check on the health and welfare of all the horses (some of the syces are not at all horsey and really wouldn’t notice if the horses leg was hanging off), administer drugs, etc. Looking after horses in Africa is so different from the UK
Most mornings I am out riding soon after 7am. It is such a beautiful place to ride and the polo ponies are especially fun. They are off at a tournament this week though so I have a bit more time to devote to the other horses. Before going to the tournament, the polo ponies get moved to stables at the local polo club to practice. As that is a 45 minute drive away, that was pretty much my whole morning taken up driving up there and exercising them.
The game on Lewa is impressive. Been on a few game drives so far – lions, cheetah, elephant, rhino, waterbuck, giraffe, buffalo, zebra, oryx, eland, impala, warthogs, Grants gazelle – the list goes on.. Lewa is particularly renowned for its success with rhino conservation. There are 60+ black rhino (the most rare) and loads of white rhino – you basically can’t go on a game drive here and not see rhino. I saw eight on my first game drive which considering I only saw two the whole five months I travelled through Africa previously says it all. This morning I was out riding with guests and we stumbled upon a sleeping black rhino. As the grass is so long, we literally did not see it until the last minute. Fortunately, it got up and ran away rather than charging us (black rhinos are particularly renowned for being aggressive). As four of the guests couldn’t ride it could have been a bit hairy had that happened! Lewa also boasts the largest Grevy zebra population in the world.
So that’s a brief overview of life on Lewa. There is so much to see and learn here. Am struggling to learn some Swahili as that would really help me when dealing with the syces and other staff here – it is quite a hard language though so I don’t hold out much hope of ever being very good at it. The downside of living in such a remote place is that the internet is often not working and when it does it is very slow – hence the lack of blogging recently.
Wednesday, 30 November 2011
Goodbye New Zealand
Well, it's my final day in NZ. Not sure what has happened in the past three days but I think it's probably a good thing that I finished the Flying Kiwi trip early. I never would have got myself organised for the next stage of my adventure otherwise!
So for those of you who don't already know, I am heading back to the continent that I love - Africa. I have been lucky enough to land a job working with horses on a game reserve in Northern Kenya (website is www.lewawilderness.com if you are interested). I definitely rediscovered my passion for horses during my travels in Africa so this provides me with a fantastic opportunity to live and work in a beautiful place. Has to be more fun than working in finance anyway?!
The last few days have largely been spent trying to shift this cold, shopping for horsey stuff and all other essential items that aren't so easy to come by in Africa (toiletries, etc), doing laundry and generally just chilling out in my hotel room. So much nicer than hostel life. Mind you, the unfortunate people who had to share a dorm with me in Wellington the other night must have been cursing me - coughing and sneezing all night long. Still, I consider it karma for all the nights I have been disturbed by people coming in late, getting up early, etc - that's backpacker life for you. A cheap bed means a rubbish night's sleep. Staying in a hotel has been fab - my own bathroom and a TV. NZ TV is exactly like English TV - has all the same shows, even Emmerdale? I can't say that I've missed TV whilst travelling but it is quite nice to be able to lie in bed watching Michael McIntyre (my favourite comedian) on TV. Reckon tonight is going to be takeaway pizza and more TV - must enjoy these things whilst I still can..
Anyway, sounds like it is all kicking off in the UK with the strikes (even NZ news programs have reported this). Just read that Jeremy Clarkson announced that strikers should be shot - is it wrong that I found that funny?!
Well, enough from me. I haven't actually done anything news worthy in the past few days. My most exciting adventure was locating an equestrian store (what did we do before internet?) and getting the bus out to Newmarket, an Auckland suburb, to buy a hat, chaps and boots. Other than that, my hotel is right in the centre of Auckland so everything else I need is right on my doorstep.
Tomorrow, flight to Bangkok, than on to Nairobi. Hopefully, they will actually let me in to Kenya and ignore the fact that I have no onward flight ticket. I'll soon find out anyway....
So for those of you who don't already know, I am heading back to the continent that I love - Africa. I have been lucky enough to land a job working with horses on a game reserve in Northern Kenya (website is www.lewawilderness.com if you are interested). I definitely rediscovered my passion for horses during my travels in Africa so this provides me with a fantastic opportunity to live and work in a beautiful place. Has to be more fun than working in finance anyway?!
The last few days have largely been spent trying to shift this cold, shopping for horsey stuff and all other essential items that aren't so easy to come by in Africa (toiletries, etc), doing laundry and generally just chilling out in my hotel room. So much nicer than hostel life. Mind you, the unfortunate people who had to share a dorm with me in Wellington the other night must have been cursing me - coughing and sneezing all night long. Still, I consider it karma for all the nights I have been disturbed by people coming in late, getting up early, etc - that's backpacker life for you. A cheap bed means a rubbish night's sleep. Staying in a hotel has been fab - my own bathroom and a TV. NZ TV is exactly like English TV - has all the same shows, even Emmerdale? I can't say that I've missed TV whilst travelling but it is quite nice to be able to lie in bed watching Michael McIntyre (my favourite comedian) on TV. Reckon tonight is going to be takeaway pizza and more TV - must enjoy these things whilst I still can..
Anyway, sounds like it is all kicking off in the UK with the strikes (even NZ news programs have reported this). Just read that Jeremy Clarkson announced that strikers should be shot - is it wrong that I found that funny?!
Well, enough from me. I haven't actually done anything news worthy in the past few days. My most exciting adventure was locating an equestrian store (what did we do before internet?) and getting the bus out to Newmarket, an Auckland suburb, to buy a hat, chaps and boots. Other than that, my hotel is right in the centre of Auckland so everything else I need is right on my doorstep.
Tomorrow, flight to Bangkok, than on to Nairobi. Hopefully, they will actually let me in to Kenya and ignore the fact that I have no onward flight ticket. I'll soon find out anyway....
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