This past weekend I had the fortunate experience of going on a safari in the Maasai Mara. The scenery was beautiful and the wildlife was abundant. And best of all I was able to take hot showers every day! The animals were not phased by the 5 or 6 vehicles that surrounded them at one time, going about their business as if we weren’t even there. I took many photos, which is worth more than me writing about what I saw, so hopefully I can get to an internet cafe soon and put some photos up.
As much as I loved being dangerously close to lions and elephants, my favorite part of the trip was visiting a traditional Maasai village. Although I live in Maasailand, a majority of the families live in homes made of bricks or metal sheets. The lived-in cow dung huts, called manyattas, are further south and we haven’t had a chance to see them until this weekend. I’ve seen these villages on television and in photos countless of times, but to see them firsthand is absolutely fascinating. When we first arrived to the village we were greeted by a group of Maasai men dressed in their traditional garb, obviously well rehearsed in their opening act of song and dance. The men and women were equally beautiful in their vibrantly colored dress and beaded Maasai jewelry. At first the “entertainment” did seem a bit fabricated and commercialized for the sake of the many tourists that visit their village, but then we stepped inside the village walls and realized they truly live a life that needs no dramatization.
This particular village that we visited had 15 manyattas and had about 72 people. Typically, a village is made up of family members, so everyone is related in some way or another. Not to worry, there is no inbreeding. When a man finds a wife, he brings her back to his village and she builds a new manyatta. It takes about 2 months to build and they last for 6 years before the termites tear it down. In order to get a wife the man must give 10 cows to the woman’s family, although in the past they used to have to kill a lion. Times are changing though! Now most people know that manyattas are made out of cow dung, but we were also surprised (for some of us ‘surprised’ isn’t the operative word) to find that the entire village ground was covered in it as well. Wearing slippers that day was probably not the best idea (luckily I could shower that weekend). Our guide, Samuel, was kind enough to take us into his mother’s manyatta, but it was pitch black so I only really saw what it looked like when I took photos. From what I could tell and what Samuel told us there were two beds and in the center was the fire where they cooked their food. There were a couple of windows for ventilation, only a couple of inches in length and width. There was also a small area for the goats, cows, or sheep to sleep at night. How all of that can fit in there is beyond me. The animals are also allowed on the village grounds, hence the carpet of dung. The children at the village were very sweet and adorable, nearly knocking me over into the cow dung to see themselves on my camera! Phew!! We ended our tour by being bombarded and pressured into buying carvings and jewelry. It’s a must to haggle here and I must say that my skills are improving, but it’s never an enjoyable experience. But in the end I did come away with some nice pieces and also contributed to their village, so I can’t complain about that.
So, if anyone is planning on visiting Kenya I would highly advise going to a Maasai village, but do go with an open mind and heart. It’s very easy to criticize and shake a head at such a way of living, but it is more of a choice than anything else. And although at times it can be heartbreaking to see children with as many as 20 flies on his/her face, they are happy and it has been their way of life for hundreds of years. Samuel mentioned to us that many Maasai people go to school and never return home, leaving their families behind. But for him coming back to live in his village after finishing school was a top priority; a choice he made even after seeing a different life style. He put it perfectly, “North. West. Home is best!”
