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Barefoot, smiling children welcomes us to the Masi Mara shouting “Jambo” as they step through cow manure. I can’t help but remember all the shots we were required to take before we were allowed to travel here that protect us from disease. Like walking into a National Geographic photo shoot, we follow mesmerized. Invited into a small hut, sits a young girl with dead eyes, about the age of our teenage daughters. Circumcision of females is still practiced here. Her husband grins toothlessly at us, three times her age. A fire pit in the center of the dwelling glows with lit embers, while a small window-like opening creates not only a draft but some light. I cringe thinking of my complaints of our “small” home in the states. Surreal. Is this a Disney experience, erased when I leave?? Reality bites. Outside, tall men in red plaid togas surround the camp, jumping & chanting in a sing-sound tone, apparently happy. Sacred skinny cows graze on very little foliage. Never slaughtered, but “bled” for human consumption of the tribe. Transportation is foot traffic. Most never venture more than five miles from where they’re born or where they will die. Feeling as though we have been thrust into centuries of a time tunnel past; Into dark ages on the dark continent, we are saturated with the smells, sights, & sounds of Africa. It’s people are simple, yet warm & friendly. We jump up and down with them, smiling back, offering goats that they will slaughter & eat later. Carrying handmade spears, it seems they are avid hunters as well as dancers. I have to wonder if we would survive here while maintaining the joy they exhibit? Travel forces focus on what really matters. Zebra is on the menu and like a good Indiana Jones scene we imbibe. We aren’t in Little Rock, Arkansas anymore Toto! Riding in open air jeeps on amazing animal safaris depicting the circle of life, we saw the “Big Five.” Yet it was the natives that stole our hearts. As the sun sets, what teeth they have shine brightly. No dentists are available I suppose. Yet it never stops them from sharing their continued smiles. We leave with an expanded understanding of people whose lifestyles so differ from ours, yet we are somehow heart-connected. Invited & embraced into friendship is rare but such a beautiful thing! We leave with full hearts ♥️ Grateful to be exposed to such a breathtaking country & people.