Our Trip to Brazil

Farley and Anne in Rio 2020

I took a little break and had a wonderful two-week adventure to Brazil! Experiencing the Carnaval in Rio has long been on my “to do” list. Well, this year I decided to do it! It was beyond amazing and something that I would recommend to anyone who might want an injection of joy, extravagance, and sheer high spirits. (We can help you plan it!)

All year the Brazilians plan for the following year’s February carnival – the floats and costumes were beyond incredible. Sensory overload was almost immediate – each time when I thought the floats and samba dancers could not get better, somehow they did… The colours, the vibrancy, the amazing imaginations were hard to absorb all in one “sitting” at the Sambadrome! Click here to see my videos on Instagram where you can start to get a sense of the magic.

I may want to go back next year, and if anyone is interested please let me know! I combined the Carnival with a return visit to Salvador and a new destination of Trancosa in Bahia, Brazil, which is my favorite part of Brazil with its concentration of Afro-Brazilian culture. I feel right at home coming from Kenya! I developed a particular interest in Candomblé – an Afro-Brazilian religious tradition dating from the 19th Century and initiated by the original slaves .

Carnaval 2020

Their deities are known as Orixas, and my Orixa is – Iansã, or Goddess of the Wind. Funny thing that, as my father used to call me Hurricane Annie! I experienced a shell reading by a Candomblé oracle, and it was extraordinary how she saw my life, its challenges and its joys without knowing anything about me! These days, I find myself enjoying exploring different cultures and all that goes along with that. I am also trying to keep my brain cranked up by learning Portuguese! I can read it pretty well, but speaking is still challenging!

It was a truly wonderful break and whilst I was gone my wonderful AKTF team kept everything going in the Mara – against difficult odds as we have been experiencing exceptionally heavy rains, making the Mara virtually impassable – bridges were washed away, as were camps and roads. This made it difficult to operate, but operate the AKTF team did!

Maasai Take Manhattan

A fun little piece written about our good friend Kip in The New Yorker.

A MAASAI WARRIOR AMONG THE DEADHEADS

by By Nick Paumgarten 11/11/19

Kip Ole Polos travelled from Kenya to New York to raise money for wildlife conservation, with stops at the Yale Club and Madison Square Garden, where John Mayer stood in for Jerry Garcia.

Last month, Kip Ole Polos arrived in New York for a month of fund-raising on behalf of his tribe, the Il Ngwesi Maasai, which is trying to reintroduce the black rhinoceros on its lands, in northern Kenya. Ole Polos, a safari guide and a former Maasai warrior, is the chairman of the council that governs the Il Ngwesi community and its conservancy; he is leading efforts to protect wildlife, link up with other neighboring preserves, and integrate women into Il Ngwesi political life.

On October 30th, after a quick visit to Vermont, he was a featured speaker at a gala at the Metropolitan Club, hosted by the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, which borders the Il Ngwesi land. The m.c. was Alex Beard, an artist who lives in New Orleans and who sits on Lewa’s U.S. board. On a whim, Beard invited Ole Polos to join him the following evening, at a rock concert at Madison Square Garden. Ole Polos had never been to a rock concert, or to a place like the Garden. Beard bought him a ticket on his phone.

The next night was Halloween. Beard and his son, fourteen, fetched Ole Polos at the Yale Club, where Lewa had put him up. Ole Polos, head shaved, arms bare, wore a red shuka—the traditional plaid cotton shift of the Maasai—a checked shuka blanket over one shoulder, and Teva sandals, with an array of shanga jewelry crisscrossing his torso like bandoliers. “This is me at home,” he said. He had never heard of Halloween, and he couldn’t really tell, as they struck out into the rush-hour bustle, who was in costume and who wasn’t.

Beard asked Ole Polos, “Have you ever heard of Jerry Garcia?”

“No,” he replied. “What is it?”

Beard attempted to explain what they were going to see, a band called Dead and Company, comprising several surviving members of the Grateful Dead and, as a fill-in for Jerry Garcia, who died long ago, a pop star named John Mayer. “This whole thing could really end any day, even tonight,” Beard said. “So we keep going, until that day that it does.”

“I hope it continues,” Ole Polos said.

“You might not say so, after a few hours.”

As they neared the Garden, the ratio of Deadheads to regular citizens began to increase.

“You will see a lot of banghi being smoked,” Beard said, using the Kenyan term for marijuana.

“Let them do their thing,” Ole Polos said. “In Kenya, it is absolutely illegal. But it is allowed in Vermont.”

Their tickets were general admission. They found a spot on the floor of the arena—mid-court. Bill Walton, the retired basketball star and Dead mascot, was nearby. Beard introduced him to Ole Polos.

“Welcome to the center of the universe,” Walton said. When the band came onstage, Walton, almost seven feet tall, held his arms high in the air. Ole Polos observed that Walton was being considerate of his fellow-enthusiasts. “He realizes that if he danced like the others he would hurt people,” he said. “So he dances with his hands.”

The tempo of the music picked up—a little bit, anyway—and Ole Polos began to dance. People offered him joints (he declined), stepped on his bare toes, and moved in for selfies, some of them assuming he was in costume. A woman asked Ole Polos what his sign was. He didn’t understand. She meant his astrological sign. “I don’t know.”

Sometimes Medicine is the Best Medicine

Last weekend, AKTF organized a two-day Free Medical Camp which provided 456 patients with free consultations, treatments, eye exams and referrals. The second we’ve done this year, we were only able to make this happen with the help of our generous partner, The Angama Foundation, as well as our many, many supporters.

Thank you’s all around:

AKTF is tremendously grateful to the doctors, medical workers and volunteers who dedicated their time, knowledge and patience, ensuring every patient received thorough and thoughtful care. Thank you to the Narok County Health department and Transmara West Health department, through Beyond Zero Mobile Clinic led by the First Lady Narok County Sarah Tunai for bringing free Maternal, ANC and other services closer to people who need them most.

• A Special thanks to Dr. Eva Njenga @ncdalliancekenya @diabetesmanagementkenya and her medical team from Nairobi for leading a successful medical Camp and also for conducting free Diabetes and hypertension screenings.

• Many thanks to @sanctuaryretreats (Olonana Camp) for proving the medical team and volunteers with a healthy, delicious lunch on Friday and for Narmeen under Dr. Eva for volunteering to provide the team with an Indian lunch on Saturday.

• Many thanks to @andbeyondkichwatembo and @angamasafari for providing accommodation to the medical team. The Emurutoto Health Facility, through Transmara West Health department Asante Sana for providing us with the venue to host the Medical Camp and to Tom the Clinical Officer and health management committee for a job well done ensuring every activity at the facility ran smoothly.

• The drugs were provided by Cosmos Pharmaceuticals and we would like to extend a huge thanks to them and for sending down their pharmacist.

• Last but not least, we would like to appreciate the NHIF team for their time and services to the community and to Janice Murani (British High Commission) for all the commodities she donated to the Health Facility. Ashe Oleng to all Partners, who stood to influence the lives of the communities whom at many times have difficulties in accessing quality medical care.

Down came the rain, but no one here was washed out! Brilliant work everyone. Thank you!

Big News! AKTF Wins Big Grant from Adventure Travel Conservation Fund (We're All Very Excited)

We are truly grateful to be a recipient of the 2019 ATCF funding award worth $20,000! As you can see above, everyone here is really excited. The Adventure Travel Conservation Fund is a worldwide initiative and this is a true honor and great opportunity for the AKTF family.

As Anne puts it, “I am at a loss for words reading this amazing news! Thank you so much. I cannot tell you what a difference this will make to our work in the Mara. A million thanks to you and all who made the decision to support us so generously. WOW! DOUBLE WOW! Thank you, thank you! We guarantee to you and all who made this decision that every penny will be put in the field where it belongs….and it will go so far to achieving so much.”

More about ATCF:

The mission of the Adventure Travel Conservation Fund (ATCF) is to: Directly fund local projects engaged in the conservation of unique natural and cultural resources of adventure travel destinations. The ATCF is a non-profit that will provide funding, connections and an international spotlight on projects that protect the cultural and natural resources which underpin the adventure tourism industry.

Want to Save the Planet? Help the Girls

Day of the Girl 2019, students sporting their re-usable feminine pads.

In the latest issue of Swara Magazine, writer Delta Willis pens an opinion piece about the common denominator in every environmental problem across the globe: overpopulation. It’s the third-rail cubed in terms of political talking points and a topic so utterly and insurmountably vast, what‘s even the point? Well, there is always progress and there is always hope. Greg Carr lead a success story in Mozambique and when asked of his secret to success:

“In a nutshell, when people ask Greg Carr how to protect African wildlife, he replies, ‘Girls in school … It’s the No. 1 thing we will do for this planet.’”

You can read the full article here to understand how this all ties together. Or better yet, subscribe to Swara, which is the journal of The East African Wildlife Society, the oldest conservation group in East Africa. It’s only $10 per annum.

The photo above is from #dayofthegirl2019. This year’s theme, ‘GirlForce: Unscripted and Unstoppable’ celebrates the empowerment of girls. #MHM education is key to ensure girls are not limited by their periods.

Read more about how AKTF is addressing girls’ menstrual health needs.

Another Successful Rescue!

AKTF Team and MC Rangers had a busy day searching for the female zebra that had a wire snare around her body for several weeks. She had been spotted in different areas, but was a tough one to track down as she was in amongst a migrating wildebeest herd. But found her we did and the vet, Dr Limo, as well as the Sheldrick Trust vet were able to remove the snare, treat the animal and release it back with her herd.  

Many thanks to the drivers and guides who contacted us when they spotted her and to our team and MC Rangers for their efforts and great work in the Maasai Mara ensuring all the wildlife is safe and well protected!

Last Chance to Put Your Brilliant Safari Photos to Good Use

entry from October. Can you beat it? Perhaps!

There is an almost primal relationship between the Mara and photography. As visitors from the outside world are drawn here, so to are they drawn to record and share its indescribable effects on the soul. From the first-time visitor to the seasoned local, one can’t help but reach for the camera—or camera-phone as it were—when this world reveals a special moment.

Incidentally, our friends over at Angama have had a brilliant idea. Instead of all these gorgeous photos just hanging in “the cloud” or on someone’s wall, why not put them to good use and raise some money for the local non-profits that are dedicated to protecting the Mara? Thus was born:

THE GREATEST MAAISA MARA PHOTOGRAPH OF THE YEAR

• It is a $20 entry fee which all goes to local Mara non-profits and AKTF is so honored to be one of the recipients.

• All are welcome to submit.

• The competition is monthly and the winner of each month goes on for a chance to win the grand price of $10,000. You could also win a stay at Angama Mara resort or a 5-night safari.

• All ages are welcome. All levels are welcome. And all the money goes to great causes that help to protect the Mara.

• October is still open. And November is the last month to get to the grand prize. Enter here now!

Adam Bannister at Angama made this lovely video about us. Watch it. Share it. And then start snapping!