The 2022 Africa Journals, Chapter 35: Six Wives Africa

 Chapter 35:

Six Wives Africa

Polygamy:   Am endeavor to get more out of life than there is.

--Elbert Hubbard

A few days ago, Shelly suggested that we have a Facebook group page where we can share photos taken on this trip for the enjoyment of our travel group.   Later, she announced the name of the Facebook Group.  I burst out laughing and exclaimed the brilliance of  her chosen title:   Six Wives Africa 2022!

The joke goes back to our arrival in Nairobi at the trip's beginning.  Somehow, the staff at the Tamarind Tree Hotel thought Randy, the only male in this seven-person group, and I were married and assigned us to the same room.   I was not privy to the conversation that corrected this, but suddenly I was known as Randy's wife and it became a running joke.   We each had our own rooms.

 In 2014, Kenya legalized the traditional custom of polygamy and did not limit the number of wives a man could acquire, that is, if a man could afford to pay  dowry of livestock to the bride's family.    The Maasai value their cattle, so the dowry is not inexpensive.

Marg checking her messages on our last day at Great Plains Expedition camp.

We began asking our driver/guides if they had more than one wife.   Many did, and no, the  wives do not live in the same house or hut, but in separate dwellings.  Smart men.

So, keeping the culture of Kenya and the Maasai in mind, it was not long before we six woman were jokingly calling ourselves  "Randy's wives."   I often wonder what the villagers thought when we visited.   Did they look upon Randy as an enormously rich man for having six wives? 

Having six wives can spell trouble for any man as shown in the photo below when Randy tries to get all his wives heading in the same direction.

Slowly, at their own pace, and showing no sense of urgency, they begin to wander in the correct direction.

Waiting for us in the acacia grove are staff and a potted tree.   Great Plains endeavors to plant a number of trees every year and guests are invited to help.   I'm all in favor of giving the bushbabies more room to leap from tree to tree.

Randy jumps in to help put the tree in the ground.

And then each of his wives takes a shovelful of dirt and spills it in the hole.

Marg

Virginia

Cory

Sylvia, also known as Slyvia or Slyv for short,  due to a typo in those same hotel reservations that created Six Wives.

Staff takes over to finish the job.

Our finished tree.

One of the staff stops to show us the hole of a baboon spider.   He uses a piece of grass to entice it to show itself, but apparently the spider is camera shy.

The baboon spider, so-called because the coloring on its legs resembles baboon fingers, can have a leg span of three to four inches.   They are related to tarantulas.

The public restroom at GP

If you want privacy, you lean the spear across the opening in the tent.

There's no game drive this morning as we have to be at an airtstrip to catch the plane back to Nairobi.   It's also the day we part company with Marg and Virginia, who are going to Naboisho Conservancy.  They original air reservations for the trip home were changed by the airlines and that gave them more days in Africa.

For the five of us remaining, it's off to Nairobi and a very special afternoon.

A topi with her calf and a wildebeest.

Hamerkop in a puddle.   

Yes, this is the track to the airstrip and it's a good example of the tracks through the Mara and the conservancies.

Hyena in a puddle.

Impala stag and a gazelle stag (L) at sunrise.

And here's our airplane.   Larger than many we fly.   We were treated to the high-pitched screams of a very excited young girl for most of the trip.  There was a basket of hard mints upon boarding and she couldn't believe she could have as many as she wanted.

 I removed my hearing aids and inserted ear plugs.

By the time we reached Nairobi, we were all hungry so our driver took us to a food court at a mall.   We had a hard time deciding where to eat, and wound up at Subway where our vegan and dairy-allergic friends could be accommodated.

The Kenyan shilling roughly translates to the USD by adding decimal points, i.e., the turkey breast sandwich at 525 shillings if $5.25 USD.

Then, we were off to the Palacina Hotel to check in and get ready for this afternoon's adventure.

As you can see, this whole trip is based in southern Kenya.   There's Tsavo on the lower right, Amboselli moving left, and the Maasai Mara Reserve where Enkewa camp is.   Also in the area was Great Plains Expedition, our last camp.   Now, we go back to Nairobi.

The adventure isn’t over yet!