Masai Mara II — Fat Chicken Meal

Honeymoon - Day 3

At 7am sharp we were ready for our full day game drive in Masai Mara! We had to put on our jackets as it's quite chilly in the morning.

Upon entry, several Thomson's gazelles greeted us, and we began driving around in Masai Mara. I must admit I don't have common knowledge about wildlife...When the guide said, "Look! There's a xxxxxx over there!". Then I went like...Where??? What??? 😧 lol

Mr Husband on the other hand is very well-versed in that and could even tell if that is a male or female and their living style or diet. 😍

While my breakfast was still digesting in my stomach, we saw a pride of lions munching theirs - a buffalo! Being born and raised (and living) in city, the only occasions that I could see animals would be to go to the zoo. Seeing lions in open grassland is an entirely different experience - it's amazing!!!

A male lion resting after taking his share

A female lion and a baby lion digging at the remains of the buffalo

The guide made a stop at a domestic "airport" for toilet break. There were some local people selling handcrafts.

After the airport tour, we continued with our journey. Zebras were everywhere and we could see how zebra crossing works differently in Masai Mara 😄

What I didn't expect was to see "the crossing", as the guide put it. We drove to somewhere near the Masai river and saw thousands of wildebeest near the cliff. At first they were just making noise and idling around. After some time, some of them began approaching the edge of the cliff.

Wildebeest looking down at the river and hesitating whether they should go down or not...

Having waited for an hour or so, some finally decided to proceed! So fascinating! I came to understand that it's a tough decision for them because not all of them will cross the river safely. Some might get hurt on the way down the cliff; some might be hunted by the crocodiles in the river, and some might trip in the river and never get up again.

Wildebeest successfully crossed the river

They didn't cross at one go...some remained on the cliff and kept looking down at the river. The pressure from the back was getting higher and higher, and eventually I saw one being pushed down cliff...

We stayed for another hour to watch them struggle. I wonder whether it's the tradition that pushed them risk their lives to do this, or the better grass and water source that attracted them to migrate. It maybe a combination of the push and pull factors. After all, it's their way of survival.

On the way back to the hotel, we saw some elephants and a beautiful bird (which, of course, I don't know what bird it was). Our first full day safari ended with my heart filled with awe. Nature is full of wonders! 😊