Day 5 started before the sun came up. We were still in Nairobi, but barely. A 5am wakeup call had us packing and headed to the airport—not the international one with terminals and food courts, but a smaller local strip where Air Kenya flights shuttle people to remote spots within the country. Our destination? Maasai Mara.

Above left: the egg and bacon sandwich I got from the airport’s cafe. The bread was sweet and different but great! Above right: me on the private plane with my camera at the ready.

After a pretty smooth flight, we landed at Mara Kikorok Airstrip—which sounds fancier than it is. There’s no terminal. No baggage claim. No pavement. Just dirt. Like… actual red dirt.

It was the first time I’d ever landed on a non-paved surface, and it honestly felt like we were being dropped off in the middle of nowhere. The plane didn’t even stick around—it landed, spun around, and took off again like, “Good luck!”

Above: where our plane landed.

Waiting for us near the airstrip were a few locals who had blankets laid out with handmade items for sale. One woman waved me over, and I ended up buying a keychain with beads and little dangling pieces on it—green thread wrapped around the middle, some kind of carved piece at the bottom. Nothing super fancy, but it had character. She definitely tried to upsell me on other stuff too, but I was trying to save money, so I stuck to the one item. I think it came out to about 20 bucks.

Above left: a handmade key chain I bought! Above right: this lady walked however many miles to get here just to sew and sell!

The sellers were dressed in traditional Maasai attire—super colorful robes with vibrant reds, greens, pinks, and even some khaki tones mixed in. At first glance, you might think it’s Kente cloth, but it’s actually not—it’s a different fabric altogether, even though the patterns kind of have that bold energy to them. Either way, it was striking. Definitely unlike anything I’ve seen in person before.

Safari Begins: Tracking the Big 5

Once we got picked up from the airstrip, it was straight into safari mode. Our driver, Kevin, flipped the vehicle into four-wheel drive because the rain from the night before had turned the dirt roads into a slip-n-slide. We were bouncing around in the back, slipping through puddles and patches of mud like we were on a ride at Disneyland—just with real lions instead of animatronics.

Right away, we got lucky. We pulled up on a family of elephants grazing, just out there doing their thing. There were maybe five or six of them, all super chill, ripping up grass and flapping their ears as they walked around.

Not too long after that, we rolled past a massive herd of water buffalo. For a second, I thought it was a train because they were so perfectly lined up. Just buffalo as far as the eye could see.

We kept spotting more wildlife as we went—Thompson’s gazelles darting around in every direction (those little dudes are fast), a hyena hobbling along with a limp, and a lion passed out under a tree like it had just finished a big meal.

Above: some of the other safari vehicles lined up to see the pack of lions sleeping in the field.

On our way to the lodge, we came across a group of zebras hanging out near the road. One of them was rolling around in the water like it either had an itch or just wanted to cool off. And a few of them were all huddled up like they were having a team meeting. 

Right after that, we saw a lone topi standing tall on a hill, just watching everything. Looked like he was keeping watch over the whole savannah.

By the end of this part of the safari, we had only seen 3 of the “big 5” animals, but were hopeful we’d see the remaining 2 (leopard and rhino) on our outing the next day…

Welcome to Sarova Mara Game Camp

Eventually, we made it to where we’d be staying—Sarova Mara Game Camp—and let me just say, this place was not what I expected.

I heard “camp” and thought I’d be roughing it a bit, maybe sleeping in a tent with a zipper that barely closes. Nope. These were upscale tents. Like, actual beds, furniture, a bathroom inside, and everything set up in the middle of the park. Glamping to the fullest.

The service was super friendly, and the food? Top tier. The on-site restaurant, Isokon, had a buffet setup that went way beyond what I thought you’d find out here. They had everything from focaccia and ciabatta to quinoa salad, fried banana and asparagus, and something called Njahi—basically mashed black-eyed peas and potatoes, which I’d never had before but was surprisingly good.

There was a pasta station where they’d toss raw colored pasta in a pan with your pick of veggies and sauces. The meat station had roasted lamb, grilled chicken, pan-seared tilapia with cucumber butter sauce, and something called Massaman beef curry. It was the kind of buffet where you promise yourself one plate and end up going back for seconds… maybe thirds.

The service here was next-level. And I’m not just saying that. I have a dairy allergy, and the kitchen had been given a heads-up in advance.

When I arrived at the restaurant, the head chef—Daisy—personally came out to greet me. She walked me through the buffet and pointed out every item I could and couldn’t have, and even said that if none of the desserts worked for me, she’d have the kitchen whip something up on the side. That kind of thoughtfulness? Way above and beyond.

Into the Heart of Maasai Life

Later that afternoon, with the power off at the camp, we headed out to visit a nearby Maasai village—and everything about the experience felt like stepping into another world.

As soon as we arrived, we were greeted with a traditional welcome dance performed by the men of the village, followed by a jumping contest where each guy tried to out-jump the others. Apparently, the higher you can jump, the more girlfriends you can attract. Not sure if it actually works like that, but it made for great footage.

Before we even stepped fully into the village, our guide Henry gave us a full breakdown of how Maasai society is structured. He explained that the Maasai practice polygamy, but only for men—each wife requires a dowry of 10 cows, so the more wives a man wants, the more cows he has to give. Villages are made up of clans, which are extended families tied by blood, and each clan is named after a wild animal—Henry, for example, is from the Hyena Clan.

Each village has about 350 people, all related through the same clan, and they have four key leaders:

• The Chief, who makes and amends laws (currently 94 years old in this village).

• The Medicine Man, who creates herbal remedies from local plants.

• The Midwife, a woman who delivers all the babies in the village.

• The Blacksmith, who forges all the tools, weapons, and cowbells for the community.

Leadership is inherited, not elected—the son of a chief becomes the next chief. And even though the Maasai live in both Kenya and Tanzania, each village is self-sustaining and operates with these same cultural structures.

Also fun fact: Men in the village wear red robes, not just for tradition, but also to scare off wild animals. Apparently, the color red keeps predators like lions from messing with them, which… if true, that’s genius.

The Greeting from the Women of the Village

As we walked into the main part of the village, a group of Maasai women were lined up to welcome us with another song and a short dance. They stood shoulder to shoulder, singing in unison as we entered.

What stood out, aside from their voices, was their bright, layered clothing and beaded jewelry. They wore vibrant reds, deep oranges, and bold patterns, with wide collars and earrings that shimmered in the sun.

Village Structure & Culture

The homes were made from a mixture of cow dung and clay soil, which they shape by hand and let harden into walls. These aren’t permanent structures, and they’re not meant to be. The entire village—about 350 people—packs up and relocates every 10 years, partly because the homes wear down over time, and partly because they’re nomadic by nature.

In this video, Henry takes us inside one of the homes.

Everyone in the village has a job to do. The women do everything from fetching water and collecting firewood to building the actual houses, cooking, and taking care of the kids. And when I say “building the houses,” I don’t mean overseeing construction—I mean literally building them, by hand, from the ground up.

Men are in charge of guarding the livestock, taking the animals out to graze, building protective fences, and defending the village from potential animal attacks. They use spears, knives, and even cowbells made by the village blacksmith to track animals.

The kids were everywhere—laughing, running around, climbing on each other. A bunch of them ran up to me, probably more curious about the camera than anything else. At one point, a few started roughhousing and straight-up wrestling in the dirt. A couple of them cried, but no one stopped the fight. It was like, “they’ll figure it out.” Real hands-on learning, I guess.

Interview with a 94-Year-Old Elder

The real reason we came to the village was to meet Olemuli, the 94-year-old village chief. His name literally means “lion slayer”—he was given the title after killing multiple lions in his younger days. He’s respected, wise, and surprisingly active for his age. Still walks on his own. Still leads.

The Marketplace Hustle

Before we left the village, we were taken to the local marketplace—basically an outdoor strip of hand-carved souvenirs, jewelry, and crafts. By now, I knew the drill: they’re gonna come at you with everything they’ve got. And they did.

I only had about 1,050 Kenyan shillings left (roughly 7 U.S. dollars), so I had to negotiate hard. Ended up walking away with a few gifts for some friends/family of mine in the states – not as many things as I wanted to, but enough to feel satisfied.

Reflections

Leaving the village, I couldn’t help but compare their homes to mine back in L.A. My “tiny” one-bedroom would probably feel like a mansion to them. Ten people were living in what would barely count as a bedroom in the States—and not only were they making it work, they weren’t complaining. It was life as usual.

What stood out the most, though, was their resilience, community structure, and health. They weren’t rushing, they weren’t stressed, and they weren’t glued to phones. They were moving, working, eating clean, and living together.

And despite being strangers with cameras, they welcomed us without hesitation. Shared their food, stories, and even the secret to living longer…

Back to Camp & Dinner

After we finished up at the village and said our goodbyes, we made our way back to Sarova Mara Game Camp. It had been a full day—off-road safari, meeting the Maasai, interviews, dancing, and a lot of dust—but we still had dinner to look forward to, and the evening didn’t disappoint.

The buffet was stacked: barbecue chicken, yellow rice, seasoned vegetables, potatoes, and more. I went back for seconds without hesitation.

While we ate, a man walked through the dining hall with a guitar in hand, singing familiar songs to set the mood. It gave the whole place this cozy, laid-back feel—like a little concert tucked inside the safari wilderness.

And once again, Chef Daisy had my back. Since the regular dessert options all had dairy, she brought me a cinnamon cake with a scoop of homemade jam that tasted way fresher than anything I’ve ever had in the States. Soft, warm, and just the right amount of sweet.

One thing I hadn’t mentioned earlier: at Sarova, the electricity cuts off from 4pm to 6pm, and again from midnight to 4 AM every night to conserve energy. So after dinner, it was a race to shower, charge gear, and wind down before everything powered down.

All in all, a long but incredible day!