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The Mara waters had become too fast, and the rocks too many. We hadn’t prepared for this, hadn’t had a chance to stop and scout ahead by foot. Having finally fought our way free of a narrow, overgrown channel of quick water running through dense forest, our lumbering dugout canoe suddenly surged out into the open and 5mins later we found a sandy riverbank. The canoeist and I, already exhausted, I looked ahead in panic, the amount of adrenaline rushing through my veins at that moment was uncontrollable. We’d survived the rapids, and I was only a few hours in my exploration into the unknown. After I deboarded the canoe and continued on foot, I began facing those pivotal moments when you explore a new place and a little voice inside you whispers "go down that alley" or "what is that – go find out"? or "you need to do this"?. Next, I find myself moving down the alley. My intuition got the best of me for the must part of the adventure. We don't always listen to that voice. We don't always trust our intuition but I did and it always somehow led me to somewhere, something, or someone amazing. The alley walk led me to a few discoveries about the National Reserve Masai Mara. It is for a fact dominated by species of resistant grasses with, the most common being the red oat grass. It is also characterized by a wide valley and a towering escarpment. At exactly 30 minutes into my walk, I spotted a group of persons on a steel bridge. Happy I had finally found company, I immediately rushed to them but, as I approached the steel bridge, my eyes caught hold of the abundance of hippos with their bodies submerged in the Mara river. Everyone seemed to be more focused on the hippos but then I got lucky to meet Joseph again. “Look! There! The lions are on the prowl,” whispered Joseph. Joseph and I had met before at the campsite. I was actually relieved to see him because I wasn't going to alone anymore. Moments later, we hopped into the safari vehicle where we met Kendy our guide, we wanted to see what the Masai Mara was all about and lucky for us it was perfect timing. Perfect timing because it was the day of the Mara migration, one of nature’s most spectacular events in the world that happens here in Masai Mara. A few minutes in we spot a lioness just 15ft away from us, and I freaked out a little because It kept coming closer to the vehicle. Then again to see all these zebras and wildebeest crossing north in vast numbers from the Serengeti plains up here to the Masai Mara was one of the coolest moments of my adventure. Kendy our safari guide is Masai, so he knows the land, animals and is quite an animal whisperer. We got close to this giraffe, “omg! his eyelashes are so long,” i said to Joseph. Finally just before we entered our camp at about 3 p.m. we spotted elephants everywhere. This experience to me was absolutely breathtaking and sort of terrifying. We finally made our way back to our campsite where we found Masai women colorfully dressed and welcoming us in their traditional songs. We moved to our campsite for a well-earned rest, it was surrounded by electric fencing and armed security guards in case of lions or if any other wildlife entered the facility. I felt so blessed to be in Kenya, all these beautiful women displaying their culture, the was this warmth in my heart I hadn't felt for a longtime. The most part of this journey is actually when you connect with different people and witness the display of their culture. Africa is definitely a place to live and die in and I am happy to have discovered the beauties of the National Reserve Masai Mara.