Today, the last day of the long weekend before our last sojourn into the field, we decided to take a short trip out to Karen, just outside Nairobi.
Who can pass up an opportunity to see and even touch a giraffe up close? I’ve been pretty lucky to be able to see so much wildlife, especially giraffes, as I’ve moved around the bush in Kenya
just going about my work. Giraffes have always been one of my favorite animals; they seem so graceful. At the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife Giraffe Centre (Giraffe are endangered because of the constant encroachment on their natural habitat.), where one can stand in a “tree house” to get at eye level with the giraffes, Diane and I had the opportunity to very close to these stately animals. They are quiet (in fact, giraffes rarely make any sounds), and their huge eyes appear so gentle, but they can also butt you with their big head if you’re not careful or you’re close to one that’s hungry and you don’t have any food in your hand to satisfy it. 
Feeding them or watching kids feed them is really amusing. The wardens provide visitors with food pellets, that the giraffes eagerly take from from your palms. It’s a funny feeling as they grab the food using their lips but mostly with their long and slightly rough but definitely slobbery tongue. (The wardens claimed that giraffe saliva has been found to be a natural antiseptic – not sure about that, but something to look up later…) When you’re not actively offering more pellets to them, they’ll use that long tongue to try to reach for more from you. Definitely a cool experience.
Next, we checked out the Karen Blixen house (remember “Out of Africa” with Meryl Streep and Robert Redford?).
She really existed, and the movie and book are based on her true life story, and her house and lands around have been preserved. It was nice to see, and, of course, I took a few obligatory idyllic photos, but Diane and I both agreed that paying Ksh 800 (almost $12) just to get a tour of the small house was asking a bit much, so we opted out of that touristy option.
It was nice to get out for a few hours and relax. Now [sigh] back to work.
Who can pass up an opportunity to see and even touch a giraffe up close? I’ve been pretty lucky to be able to see so much wildlife, especially giraffes, as I’ve moved around the bush in Kenya
just going about my work. Giraffes have always been one of my favorite animals; they seem so graceful. At the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife Giraffe Centre (Giraffe are endangered because of the constant encroachment on their natural habitat.), where one can stand in a “tree house” to get at eye level with the giraffes, Diane and I had the opportunity to very close to these stately animals. They are quiet (in fact, giraffes rarely make any sounds), and their huge eyes appear so gentle, but they can also butt you with their big head if you’re not careful or you’re close to one that’s hungry and you don’t have any food in your hand to satisfy it. 
Feeding them or watching kids feed them is really amusing. The wardens provide visitors with food pellets, that the giraffes eagerly take from from your palms. It’s a funny feeling as they grab the food using their lips but mostly with their long and slightly rough but definitely slobbery tongue. (The wardens claimed that giraffe saliva has been found to be a natural antiseptic – not sure about that, but something to look up later…) When you’re not actively offering more pellets to them, they’ll use that long tongue to try to reach for more from you. Definitely a cool experience.Next, we checked out the Karen Blixen house (remember “Out of Africa” with Meryl Streep and Robert Redford?).
She really existed, and the movie and book are based on her true life story, and her house and lands around have been preserved. It was nice to see, and, of course, I took a few obligatory idyllic photos, but Diane and I both agreed that paying Ksh 800 (almost $12) just to get a tour of the small house was asking a bit much, so we opted out of that touristy option.It was nice to get out for a few hours and relax. Now [sigh] back to work.
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