As we left Nairobi, we were surprised we could see giraffes and zebras in Nairobi National Park literally just outside the airport gates – we’d never seen such a large city with wildlife like that in the mix. Flying into Lewa Conservancy, we could also see giraffes, elephants, and zebras from the plane. We were greeted by our guide, Mike, and some snacks prior to heading out to the lodge. The Lewa Safari Camp was the furthest one from the airport so we were able to get a game drive in on the way. It was crazy to me how close we were to these animals on the conservancy. On the drive, we saw several giraffes, grant gazelles, both common and grevis zebras, along with several types of birds flying around. Mike pointed out several different type of acacia trees along with one that is nicknamed “Yellow Fever” tree. He said that soldiers/settlers used to lay under these trees for shade and many would acquire Yellow Fever, although they spent a lot of time in the swampy area that held many mosquitoes carrying the disease. They originally thought the tree was giving them the disease rather than understanding it came from the mosquitos.

Upon reaching the camp, we were greeted by the staff with hot towels to wipe our hands (which we have noticed happens at all of these lodges we’ve stayed at in Kenya/Uganda). We were then given a short briefing before we were guided to our tent. We were surprised upon entering our tent with a bottle of champagne, bed decorated, and a complimentary 30 minute massage for each of us for our “late” honeymoon. We keep joking that every trip we’ve taken after getting married has been a honeymoon, so this world trip would technically be our 4th. We opened the bottle of champagne and enjoyed the deck area watching out for any animals crossing the Savannah in the distance. We did see a giraffe right before we headed for lunch. Again the food did not disappoint! Lunch at the lodge was always served family style and dinner we could choose between a couple options for the starter, entree and dessert. 

After a quick nap, it was time for the afternoon game drive! We learned the following facts as we saw them along the drive: 

• Male black rhinos make a pile of dung and that is the one place they go. Kind of like marking their territory 
• Giraffes are very solitary especially the males
• Lions are easily scared away by buffalo and rhinos

Near the end of our drive we game across three lionesses that were feeding on a zebra they had killed earlier. We were surprised that we had already seen 4 of the Big 5 in the first evening: the lion, elephant, buffalo, and rhino. Mike had told us they call the leopard the “elusive leopard” as it is very hard to spot. They like to spend their time in thick bushes or up in the trees. So it was likely we weren’t going to see her as there was only one in the conservancy. We enjoyed a nice sundowner with some white wine and snacks as we watched giraffes cross the horizon as the sun was setting along with rhinos and Buffalo joining the lions in the meadow. Once we finished our wine, we kept driving along the road and were shocked when we spotted 4 more lions (3 of which were males). They enjoyed a short rest before getting up and moving to a different location. They ended up walking right past our truck as they headed deeper into the forest. It was unreal being so close to these animals that we are only fortunate to see in zoos for the most part. And hearing them roar was also incredible. It was a lot deeper than I expected. We were going to continue to follow them but one lioness was blocking the bridge so it was time for us to turn around and head back to camp.

The night ended with a wonderful 3 course dinner before it was off to bed for an early morning wake up (which was how the week of safaris went as we started morning game drives before sunrise).