Latest / GowayPro Travel Tales / Before & After An Insight into Kenya

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Before & After An Insight into Kenya · GowayPro Travel Tales

• 0:00
  Hey there everyone, I'm Don, Professor Goaay and welcome to the Goaay Pro Travel Tale Podcast.
• 0:05
  Travel far and gravel often.
• 0:20
  Today we're doing another session of before and after.
• 0:25
  The one we did earlier was with Radesh, our Canadian national sales manager, and he was heading off to Thailand.
• 0:34
  He'd never been before.
• 0:35
  So we asked him about his expectations for that.
• 0:39
  And he just got back, when we recording this, he actually got back last week, I think, didn't I think so, yes.
• 0:43
  Yeah, last week.
• 0:46
  So we're gonna do the after with him shortly.
• 0:49
  But as we're recording this, I'm speaking to Ian Smythe, our US national sales manager, and he's off on a fam, lucky dog he is, and he's going to Kenya.
• 0:59
  Yes.
• 0:59
  So we're going to do the same thing with Ian, the before and the after expectations, because Ian has not been to Kenya.
• 1:06
  So have you been?
• 1:07
  OK.
• 1:08
  Hello, Ian.
• 1:09
  How are you?
• 1:09
  Good.
• 1:10
  How are you?
• 1:11
  Right, sorry, Ian and I, we've both been traveling a lot lately, Ian more so than I.
• 1:15
  So just on, you were, last we saw each other was actually for the Africa road show.
• 1:22
  Sorry, Africa is upcoming.
• 1:24
  This is life for the moment.
• 1:26
  Yeah, the 55th which we did through...
• 1:30
  Chicago, New York, Fort Lauderdale and Los Angeles.
• 1:33
  Yes.
• 1:36
  at the end of all that run, that was in a week, you were then flying back to Toronto where you live and then turning around and going back to Alaska for a sales conference, I
• 1:45
  believe.
• 1:45
  right yeah I went to Alaska so back for two nights yeah but basically dumped the luggage rinse and repeat and then I was in Alaska for three days and we did a conference there on
• 2:03
  a
• 2:04
  on the cruise?
• 2:04
  at a hotel.
• 2:06
  hotel in downtown Anchorage.
• 2:08
  Mind you, we had some uh evening events where they really wanted you to get the flavor of Alaska.
• 2:14
  I mean, Alaska is so vast.
• 2:17
  You just, it is beautiful.
• 2:19
  Absolutely.
• 2:19
  And I've had the opportunity to spend more time in Alaska before I went up to Fairbank.
• 2:26
  We did a, we didn't do a cruise.
• 2:30
  We did an entire land.
• 2:31
  Okay.
• 2:32
  tour because we sold those right at the cruise line so um that got me up to Fairbanks and I fell in love with the last
• 2:43
  mean I want to go back I was a guide
• 2:46
  It's, you know what?
• 2:47
  It's, uh and I thought, okay, maybe, you know, do I really need to go to Alaska in my life?
• 2:53
  Right.
• 2:53
  um Having been, I came back and I said, my God, this is a magical place.
• 3:01
  That's how I.
• 3:02
  No, I agree.
• 3:04
  I flew up there.
• 3:06
  When I was over landing, we will get to Kenya.
• 3:09
  Don't worry.
• 3:12
  Choc and cheese.
• 3:13
  No, I flew up to start my trip.
• 3:14
  I was leading a trip from Alaska down to Panama City was the route we doing.
• 3:18
  And I had no expectations of Alaska.
• 3:20
  I nothing really about it other than this one of the states of the US.
• 3:24
  Flew in, into Anchorage.
• 3:26
  And I remember we went into this like, I guess what would be an Airbnb was the hostel.
• 3:31
  and it was summertime so they had the blackout curtains because the sun rarely sets or sets so late.
• 3:38
  Very limited, And I crashed that night, was meeting my other drivers the next day and I remember distinctly
• 3:43
  called into bed and I was sharing this room with I think a First Nations gentleman who was sound asleep, I think he was a minor or something, and he snored all night.
• 3:50
  That was my first...
• 3:51
  Oh my God.
• 3:53
  We drove around Alaska and I was just completely...
• 3:55
  This is actually a very good segue.
• 3:58
  With no expectations for what to expect from Alaska, I was completely blown away as we traveled around it.
• 4:06
  So let's actually segue to our subject of point.
• 4:10
  Kenya, what are your expectations as you've, okay, have you been to Africa at all before?
• 4:15
  Well, you've been to Ghana, of course.
• 4:16
  I've been to...
• 4:18
  okay.
• 4:20
  up until Ghana, what do they call it?
• 4:23
  Sub-Sahara.
• 4:26
  So Ghana was my first Sub-Sahara Africa experience, which was phenomenal, which we talked about.
• 4:33
  need to check out our podcast about Ghana, Ian came back as a changed man.
• 4:37
  A changed man.
• 4:38
  For his trip to Ghana.
• 4:40
  So thinking about Ghana and thinking about Kenya uh and Alaska, I'm of the same mindset where, okay, I've looked at the itinerary.
• 4:51
  I know we're going to go to Nairobi and I know that Nairobi is a bustling metropolis and we're going to experience, uh you know, a major city in Africa that I'm looking forward
• 5:03
  to.
• 5:04
  But then, of course, the rest of the itinerary is conserved.
• 5:09
  conservation, conserva- conserva- conservancies, thank you, yes.
• 5:16
  So there's conservancies, there is of course game drives, right?
• 5:25
  So I think it's going to be incredible in terms of Nairobi and then conservancies and you know, the opportunity to
• 5:37
  walk amongst the wildlife.
• 5:39
  So I guess with Egypt and Ghana now, each of you is well aware that it's really history, pharaohs, that's how think, so ruins.
• 5:49
  Ghana, from our conversation, was more cultural.
• 5:54
  Definitely more cultural, however, we did see baboons on the side of the road, which was neat.
• 6:00
  And we did see some animals.
• 6:02
  But Ghana, of course, is much more heavily focused on the culture, the history, the story of Ghana, you know, in the slave trade for 200 plus years, etc.
• 6:14
  So Kenya is going to be, again, another whole different, another layer of Africa, exactly, where
• 6:24
  It's going to really be a lot of focus on the wildlife, the game reserves, the conservation efforts that are going on in Kenya, because I think from my limited
• 6:36
  knowledge, ah they are kind of a leader in Africa in terms of the way that they are protecting wildlife.
• 6:44
  I think again, I don't know for sure either, but I think a lot of the conservation efforts sprung out of Eastern Africa.
• 6:50
  obviously had the Dian Fossey.
• 6:52
  You had Jane Goodall, passed recently as well, which are probably two of the most famous uh conservationists when it comes to wildlife, both dealing with primates as well.
• 7:05
  Southern Africa is also very proactive, but I think you're correct in I think.
• 7:10
  the germ of conservation sprouted from Eastern Africa.
• 7:15
  Yeah, so much of a story there so much of a regard for protecting the environment protecting the animals that they have.
• 7:25
  So in thinking about this, Don, I have a feeling I'm going to come back and uh want to go to Botswana.
• 7:33
  You know, want to you just recently did that as well.
• 7:36
  m
• 7:36
  I was technically in we were we did a family trip.
• 7:40
  We were technically in Botswana I would say we saw I have seen Botswana before right in the past.
• 7:45
  But yeah, our recent trip was South Africa Botswana Zambia and Zimbabwe.
• 7:50
  Yes, but the Pots Zim and Zem were Victoria Falls, which again is not truly representative of right those respective countries
• 7:58
  Right.
• 7:59
  So I think while this, of course, again, is Africa, it's going to be just Kenya.
• 8:06
  So we are doing what?
• 8:07
  10 days.
• 8:08
  So we were just with Moira who was our past VP of Africa who sort of got this underway in her past duties.
• 8:14
  She's now looking after Asia.
• 8:16
  She mentioned she was just tying off the itinerary.
• 8:18
  Do you know the itinerary as it stands now?
• 8:20
  Like you mentioned Nairobi.
• 8:22
  Do know what else you're
• 8:23
  I do.
• 8:24
  uh I've kind of written it down.
• 8:26
  Okay.
• 8:26
  So I do have some notes.
• 8:28
  uh You're to help me with some of these pronunciations, right?
• 8:32
  So O L P E J E T A.
• 8:40
  Okay.
• 8:43
  My handwriting, my scribble.
• 8:44
  Ol' Pagito.
• 8:45
  I don't know that one.
• 8:46
  Okay.
• 8:47
  So that is apparently home to the last two northern white rhino.
• 8:53
  So that's going to be a highlight.
• 8:55
  Yeah, that's going to be a highlight.
• 8:56
  I'm looking forward to that Mount Kenya area we're going to, of course, Maasai Mara.
• 9:04
  Where else?
• 9:05
  The Mara area of Nobushi.
• 9:11
  So that's kind of what you so it's going to be a real good.
• 9:15
  uh flavor of, again, I say, launching, starting in Nairobi, which I think, you know, everybody obviously does, based on air.
• 9:22
  ah then getting into the culture and the wildlife, the conservancy, all that kind
• 9:28
  Yeah, I think you'll enjoy it for the obvious reasons.
• 9:32
  It's East Africa, it's Kenya.
• 9:33
  Like it's sort of, it's one of these countries that are out there, sort of, know, the Peru, Italy's, just, you they name themselves.
• 9:40
  Yeah, they have a brand, don't they?
• 9:41
  They have a brand.
• 9:42
  Perfect wording, they have a brand.
• 9:45
  But what I think is key to your itinerary, the fact you're doing conservancies and maybe some private game reserves, I'm not sure if you are.
• 9:53
  What I learnt,
• 9:55
  on my recent trip to South Africa, because I often had conversations with some of our partners, and they'd say, conservancy this, private game reserve that, national park that.
• 10:05
  And I could never really get my head around what the differences were, but I've since learned.
• 10:10
  And what I've learned is this, that a national park is exactly that.
• 10:14
  It's a national park open to everyone.
• 10:17
  And a conservancy and a private game reserve, a private game reserve is in its name, it's private land.
• 10:25
  It's a reserve for animals which you pay to enter like a national park you pay to enter as well.
• 10:31
  But they're generally a little more expensive, more exclusive to a degree as conservancy similar setup.
• 10:36
  And what I found is we did kapama in Southern Africa in the greater Kruger, private, and the experience was...
• 10:47
  Awesome.
• 10:47
  Like from a wildlife point of view, you're get blown away.
• 10:49
  Like you saw the baboons in Ghana.
• 10:51
  Yeah.
• 10:51
  Awesome.
• 10:52
  Yeah.
• 10:52
  But when you are literally two feet from lions or leopards or hopefully cheetahs, elephants, um it's another...
• 11:03
  Like I know zoos are not a thing anymore and rightfully so, but you can, could get close to animals in that environment, but there's something so much different about seeing any
• 11:12
  wild animal in the wild in its natural environment.
• 11:15
  But what you'll find with your experiences here, it'll be so much more relaxed and tranquil because you're not fighting to see these animals with...
• 11:24
  50 other vehicles, which is what will happen at times in a national park.
• 11:28
  And we had that experience.
• 11:29
  We went to Choby National Park, saw a pride of lions, and there were like 15 vehicles around it, whereas in Kapama, by their rules, two vehicles only, and you had a certain
• 11:39
  amount of time, then you left.
• 11:41
  And it was just such a better experience.
• 11:43
  Yeah, I think that's one of the things in sort of reading up on the itinerary that um you're going to get a really up close and personal experience.
• 11:55
  So, hearken back to my Ghana experience, right?
• 11:58
  uh Again, talk about chalk and cheese.
• 12:01
  Going to a slave castle, people told me ahead of time, it's going to be moving, it's going to be emotional.
• 12:07
  And I'm like, okay, we'll see, right?
• 12:10
  um
• 12:12
  And I was completely unprepared for the emotions that it stirred.
• 12:16
  I honestly believe, I mean, talk about little the other side of the coin.
• 12:22
  I think this is going to be very similar and much to what you just said.
• 12:26
  Seeing the animals in their own environment, what a privilege, what a privilege that will be to sort of uh creep in on them, you know, in a kind of a not a touristy way, but
• 12:41
  almost in a privilege to see them in their natural environment and their habitat doing what they've done for
• 12:48
  thousands of years, Yeah, no, I agree.
• 12:50
  It's like through my life and you're very much the same in that we've traveled extensively ourselves.
• 12:57
  And my wife has as well and our boys, we went with a family and some friends from Australia actually.
• 13:04
  And our boys have been spoiled, they've been exposed to the world of travel.
• 13:08
  And I've had some amazing experiences, but we all came back from this particular trip.
• 13:13
  And again, it was South Africa, but I'm sure a lot of the experiences you'll have will be very, very similar.
• 13:18
  It was it was life changing oh for us at an older age and sort of um jaded view on certain things.
• 13:29
  Yeah.
• 13:29
  And it was it was but it was so simple in that it was seeing lions two feet from you or the sunsets or the sunrises.
• 13:37
  That's another guess.
• 13:38
  Or just like.
• 13:41
  Some of the most memorable things for us were the sundowners, for those who may not know is all the sun up as we often did.
• 13:48
  you often your game drives in the morning and late evening or early evening because that's when it's cooler when the animals are out.
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  So as they drive you around the pull over in a safe spot and they'll serve you in the morning coffee, tea, some pastries, that type of thing.
• 14:03
  And in the evening, it's a sundowner, the famous sundowners where you have cocktails as the sun goes down in the African savanna again, safe.
• 14:10
  areas and it's just it's simple yeah it's unbelievably emotional spiritual whatever yeah over descriptive you want to use almost
• 14:22
  it's built into our DNA to appreciate this on a higher level.
• 14:28
  That's kind of what I'm thinking and I was reading exactly about sunrise, sunset, you know, there are night drives that we'll do on this itinerary, um which again, from what
• 14:40
  I've been reading are completely different from the morning, right?
• 14:45
  Even though same concept, but a whole different
• 14:49
  level of experience, I guess.
• 14:50
  Well, it is because it again it depends how deep you you not how deep a person you are how deep you want to take it.
• 14:58
  Yes with yourself, but we did a couple of night drives as well and Going back to the wildlife.
• 15:04
  You said it what wildlife had done for millions of millions of years.
• 15:07
  Yep It's like if you go scuba diving.
• 15:09
  Hmm, you're in another world and you realize how helpless you are as fish fly around you Yeah, you just can't react
• 15:15
  Night drives to me is like going back to the primitive days where you're in their element.
• 15:20
  They can see you, you can't see them, you hear noises in the bush.
• 15:23
  We were chasing down some hyenas.
• 15:26
  We never found them.
• 15:27
  We could hear them uh yelping in the dark.
• 15:30
  So it's that sort of...
• 15:31
  And we saw lions at night.
• 15:33
  saw lions mating at night and we learned a whole lot of interesting stories about that which I tell you because...
• 15:38
  No, no, I don't mean any...
• 15:39
  But like truly interesting which I'll let your guys tell you about.
• 15:43
  But it's just...
• 15:45
  Yeah, it's like there are so many different experiences doing the same thing.
• 15:49
  That makes sense.
• 15:49
  Like it's wildlife, but morning is different to afternoon.
• 15:53
  Midday walking is different to an evening game.
• 15:55
  Yeah.
• 15:56
  Go drive.
• 15:57
  Yeah, and I think I was talking to a travel advisor a couple of weeks ago.
• 16:02
  Where was I?
• 16:03
  Maybe it was at the conference in Alaska.
• 16:05
  Now that I think about it.
• 16:07
  And she had been recently like in the last year to Kenya, as a matter of fact.
• 16:12
  And we were comparing notes and she went off in like so we were talking business and then we started talking Kenya and then she started talking about her experience and it was like
• 16:25
  a different person.
• 16:26
  Like she was almost channeling whatever she was feeling when she was in Kenya.
• 16:32
  It affected her so deeply.
• 16:36
  just hearing her talk, I was getting, um you know, because she was so incredibly struck by the story of Kenya, the culture and the memories that she came back with.
• 16:52
  different from going to, I don't know,
• 16:54
  uh a theme park, right?
• 16:59
  You have a sort of, you know, it's like, okay, we're going to get through this or whatever, because you're dealing with all sorts of, you know, distresses and, you know,
• 17:06
  lineups, etc.
• 17:07
  Then you have an experience like this, and it kind of takes you back to the roots of this is why we travel.
• 17:13
  This is why we get out of our environment, because this is the world that we live in, and it exists, and it's available to go and experience.
• 17:24
  and what a life-changing experience this will be.
• 17:31
  Whereas maybe going to a theme park is not going to be life-changing, right?
• 17:35
  So yeah, I'm looking forward to that.
• 17:37
  Everyone that is on the itinerary, the other travel advisors, none of them have been before.
• 17:47
  We will be six in total.
• 17:49
  So a small group.
• 17:52
  We will fly to, well we'll connect through Istanbul.
• 17:58
  Thank you Turkish Airlines.
• 18:01
  Those who were at our 55th roadshow, Turkish were our platinum sponsor.
• 18:06
  Awesome airline.
• 18:06
  So shout out to Turkish.
• 18:07
  Thank you.
• 18:08
  Terrific partner of ours, so thank you.
• 18:11
  so it's a small group, but it's all, there's one other person from GoWay I should mention.
• 18:17
  Laurie.
• 18:18
  From marketing.
• 18:20
  oh
• 18:21
  going to Australia?
• 18:22
  Is she doing both?
• 18:23
  Maybe I don't know if she's doing both maybe we it.
• 18:27
  She may have got a gold star for something that
• 18:33
  So yeah, I mean, we're gonna get to experience this.
• 18:35
  We go November 2nd.
• 18:40
  Okay, so this is being recorded mid-October.
• 18:43
  uh
• 18:47
  more trips in between that and now.
• 18:49
  trips.
• 18:49
  Business trips, yeah, including a cruise, one of your favorite modes of vacation.
• 18:55
  then what are they used to say now for something completely different?
• 18:59
  different.
• 19:03
  Yeah, well that's thing because Ian's history is worked for Norwegian.
• 19:08
  He is a theme park lover, he's a Disney boy.
• 19:10
  You like your Disneyland?
• 19:11
  Yes.
• 19:11
  As well.
• 19:12
  But you're also, you you're a connoisseur of, what's the word, different styles of travel, which obviously the safari in East Africa will be.
• 19:23
  Right.
• 19:24
  I am open to a different experience because I know I'm not going to do a safari every year, right?
• 19:32
  Or every other year.
• 19:34
  I mean...
• 19:35
  I wouldn't say it's a once in a lifetime.
• 19:36
  Yeah.
• 19:37
  It is for a lot of people for obvious reasons.
• 19:39
  I think if you're in the industry can be more than once in a lifetime.
• 19:42
  But even still, it's not something you will put this way.
• 19:45
  How many cruises have you been on?
• 19:48
  Right.
• 19:48
  Infant.
• 19:48
  Right.
• 19:49
  Again, this is I was surprised you hadn't been to this part of Africa before when you said never hadn't.
• 19:56
  no, never been.
• 19:57
  So yeah, I think that while I'm there, it's going to be one of those experiences where we just want to savor every single experience.
• 20:07
  And uh I should tell you, the accommodations are not too shabby.
• 20:12
  No, we're being very well accommodated throughout the tour, even though some of them are camps, they're luxury camps.
• 20:21
  Right.
• 20:21
  Camping in.
• 20:22
  Well, there's camping in Africa, which I did as a guide.
• 20:25
  And then there's.
• 20:26
  Right.
• 20:27
  Your camping in Africa.
• 20:28
  camping 2020 2025 right for your typical North American.
• 20:33
  So I think yeah I mean even just that I'm like I'm excited about the fact that okay we'll be camping in whatever reserve or conservancy and then waking up to the sounds and so I've
• 20:48
  done Costa Rica many times and I mean I remember many times would be at hotels and you know some deep dark
• 20:56
  parts of Costa Rica.
• 20:58
  And that of course comes alive in the morning.
• 21:00
  yeah, this will be another kind of experience completely different from
• 21:05
  Well, that's the other thing too about Africa is that...
• 21:08
  the accommodation when you're on safari, obviously not in the big cities, can be anything from basic rusted camping, which is still available, you can still overland through
• 21:18
  Africa, which is still where it's probably only running now overlanding, up to the five star lodges.
• 21:24
  But the tented camps are beautiful.
• 21:26
  And just as a throw an experience at you, and we'll sort of wrap up here, is that we were very well looked after at Kapama, we're in Kerala, which is their five star option.
• 21:37
  luxury you cannot believe and then we stayed in a more moderate let's say in choby national park it was a tented camp yep and we found the tented camp as good as the five
• 21:49
  star because we were literally in a tented camp the walls with a tent permanent permanent and literally you'd walk out a little veranda balcony and there was a water hole with
• 21:58
  animals wow literally
• 22:00
  There was an electric fence.
• 22:03
  Safety is paramount, so you won't be put in any dangerous situations.
• 22:07
  we came back from an evening game where I've had dinner.
• 22:11
  We were falling asleep.
• 22:12
  um And we heard this noise.
• 22:17
  and it snapped us all awake.
• 22:19
  ran out onto our balcony and we saw some animals in the dark, down the elephant and stuff like that.
• 22:23
  We found out next day there were lions that had come in to the water hole and they had a fight.
• 22:28
  ah by the time we got up and got outside they'd scamp it off.
• 22:32
  But their roars and stuff, which we're not attuned to, just snapped us awake.
• 22:37
  And that was one of the memories.
• 22:39
  We actually didn't see them, but just the noise and being that close to it all.
• 22:43
  can imagine what experiencing that would be like live and in person.
• 22:49
  To you know hearing it on the internet or watching a lion roar at the beginning of a movie.
• 22:55
  Yeah, like, yeah, there are so many predictions with AI and VR that, you, in time, you can just put your VR on and be in East Africa.
• 23:05
  But I swear to you, well, you know this, you've traveled enough to appreciate it, but you will, it'll be in your face literally that there is nothing like being in person anywhere
• 23:16
  in the world.
• 23:17
  looking at the Eiffel Tower, but more so when it comes to outdoor interactions and particularly with East Africa and the wildlife.
• 23:25
  And we didn't even mention the Maasai that you'll probably visit as well.
• 23:27
  It's on here.
• 23:28
  Yeah.
• 23:29
  Yeah, sure.
• 23:29
  And I think you correct me if I'm wrong, but November is from what I hear a good time to go in terms of migration.
• 23:41
  The migration right there were two points my sermon there's the Masai warriors themselves as in the tribal people which you I'm sure you have an interaction with and then there's
• 23:51
  the migration Yes, put us way the migration is a good time anytime because the migration is a continuous circle that runs through northern Kenya Masai Mara area and then into
• 24:02
  Tanzania gotcha and it's in Tanzania where you see I think the big famous crossings of the world of a strength in Tanzania from memory
• 24:10
  But no matter where you pick up the migration in its cycle, you will see amazing, amazing sites.
• 24:18
  So, take your camera, which I'm sure you will.
• 24:20
  Yes, I will.
• 24:22
  yeah, and just the other thing, I guess that I will mention from what I've been told, November is a good time to go in terms of crowds.
• 24:29
  Yes.
• 24:29
  I mean, think of, you know, the more uh contemporary destinations such as Italy, you want to tell people to go to Italy and sort of October, November and then, you know, March,
• 24:41
  April are good times.
• 24:42
  ah Same is true, I guess, for Kenya.
• 24:46
  So we're going to have the luxury of not
• 24:48
  being too surrounded.
• 24:52
  Yeah.
• 24:53
  So, yeah, I just think it's going to be one of those experiences where I will get to talk about like that I do when I talk to people about Ghana.
• 25:03
  Exactly.
• 25:03
  I get to tell the story of Ghana and ah I immediately get taken back to my experience in the slave castles and what have you at the fishing village, which is again is incredible.
• 25:16
  And I'm
• 25:16
  expecting to be able to do the same when I return from Kenya.
• 25:21
  Yeah, I'm sure you were a gailess with stories.
• 25:26
  anyone out there, if you want some information on Ghana, and I met a woman in Los Angeles just the other day who's taking a group to Ghana, 42 people she's taking, Ian's your man
• 25:36
  to help you sell it.
• 25:38
  If you have a group to Ghana, he was completely moved by it, understandably so.
• 25:43
  And I think from a different, I think going back to what we said beginning, Egypt with its history.
• 25:49
  Ghana with its culture, Kenya with the wildlife, you're to have the perfect triple layer cake of Africa.
• 25:53
  I think so.
• 25:54
  In about a month's time to talk just about.
• 25:57
  So when Ian gets back, we will do a follow up and see how blown away.
• 26:01
  Yeah, exactly.
• 26:02
  he was, it's a definite how blown away he was by Kenya.
• 26:07
  Yeah, it'd be very dramatic.
• 26:10
  thanks for listening and you'll see us in about one second as we cut to Ian and welcoming him back from Kenya.
• 26:18
  join our regularly scheduled program after these messages.
• 26:23
  We now return to our regularly scheduled programming.
• 26:26
  Welcome to the new Go Away Studio.
• 26:29
  This is the first podcast we have done in the new studio.
• 26:35
  Thanks to our marketing team for, I guess, modernizing our setup.
• 26:40
  We were just talking before we came on air how they even like the old setup of the tables and stuff.
• 26:45
  So do I.
• 26:47
  I think this is quite cool.
• 26:50
  I like it though.
• 26:51
  uh It's cool.
• 26:52
  Very nice.
• 26:53
  Our logo, our brand new logo.
• 26:55
  It's not so much new anymore.
• 26:56
  Absolutely.
• 26:57
  How long have you had
• 26:58
  It feels like a long time, but it's probably what, a year and a A year and a half, I think.
• 27:02
  A year and a half.
• 27:03
  Anyway, we're not here to talk about our studio, though as pretty as it is, or our logo, which you'll know about.
• 27:08
  We're here to talk to Ian about his recent trip to Kenya.
• 27:14
  And you would have seen the first half of this podcast, or heard this first half podcast, Ian's perceptions and expectations for his trip.
• 27:23
  He hadn't been there.
• 27:24
  So just a quick recap.
• 27:25
  know everyone out there just listened to, hopefully, the first part of this.
• 27:28
  But Ian, I haven't spoken for a while.
• 27:31
  I've been away for about six
• 27:32
  been away.
• 27:34
  It's probably been almost two months since we did the original.
• 27:39
  Yeah, yeah.
• 27:40
  So quick recap.
• 27:41
  Ian had not been to Africa other than Guyana, correct?
• 27:47
  Sorry, not Guyana.
• 27:49
  Ghana and Egypt.
• 27:50
  Right.
• 27:51
  So this was the first time to, guess, people would, when people think of Africa, they immediately would go to uh Eastern Africa, Kenya and Tanzania.
• 28:01
  Uganda and then Southern Africa, primarily South Africa, but you went to Kenya.
• 28:07
  So we went well on what it was because you've just said that, told us about it in the previous recording.
• 28:13
  So have you come back as changed as you were from your return from Ghana?
• 28:19
  Because that one impacted you quite heavily.
• 28:22
  Can you have the same oomph to it?
• 28:25
  I think so, yes.
• 28:26
  uh interesting enough, we also went to Tanzania um illegally.
• 28:33
  it's on camera.
• 28:35
  That's right.
• 28:35
  I know I was just thinking that it's on the internet now.
• 28:38
  Yeah.
• 28:39
  Yeah, we stepped over the border.
• 28:40
  There's uh In one of the conservancies you can go to there's litter literally just like a little triangle It's a man thing and it says Tanzania that side uh Kenya this side anyway
• 28:53
  uh Now to that point you do get a very because right along the border uh There's a lot of hippopotamuses hippos, I guess it's easier to say
• 29:04
  maybe.
• 29:04
  Yeah, hippopotami.
• 29:06
  um But yeah, in terms of was I impacted, um I was excited about going to Kenya, of course.
• 29:16
  Who wouldn't be, right?
• 29:17
  It's kind of the pinnacle when you think of going to Africa, doing game drives, and seeing animals.
• 29:26
  And I was actually just looking at the list.
• 29:28
  We had one of the agents on the fam.
• 29:30
  This was part of our passport to a free fam.
• 29:33
  We had one of the agents on the fam and thankfully to her, she was our secretary in recording the animals that we saw.
• 29:41
  And the list grew to 96.
• 29:43
  Seriously?
• 29:44
  96.
• 29:45
  Now that includes birds, that includes, ah well anything, any creature really.
• 29:50
  um So we saw everything.
• 29:53
  um And that is one thing that you can almost guarantee people.
• 29:58
  ah If you have guests that say,
• 30:02
  You know what, we're ready to go to Africa because typically it's a of a landmark trip, right?
• 30:09
  Probably once in a lifetime.
• 30:11
  Just try to interject there.
• 30:12
  was just speaking to one of our destination specialists yesterday, and he asked some advice in South Africa, they'd just been there.
• 30:18
  And he said, you know, just whatever questions.
• 30:21
  And the trip that these people were asking for, it was quite rushed, to be perfectly honest.
• 30:25
  But what they said, it's a once in a lifetime bucket destination.
• 30:29
  We want to get as much in as we can in an appropriate amount of time.
• 30:33
  So yeah, you're right.
• 30:34
  It is a big one on the list.
• 30:36
  one.
• 30:36
  And uh people that say, okay, Kenya is on our radar.
• 30:41
  We want to go to Kenya.
• 30:42
  They're going there because they want to see animals.
• 30:46
  And they want to see them in their natural habitat.
• 30:49
  And boy, boy, I mean, 96 animals.
• 30:52
  So we saw everything.
• 30:53
  And you said, think, because we did, well, actually, we tell a lie.
• 30:57
  and I did chat, though not directly, a sales meeting a couple of weeks ago.
• 31:01
  Yes.
• 31:01
  And you mentioned then, I think you said you saw the big five.
• 31:04
  Yeah, the big five we saw.
• 31:05
  um So we saw everything.
• 31:08
  And I think having returned from Kenya, um I can now see why people put that on their list when they say, Don, I want to go to Africa, and I want to experience Africa.
• 31:23
  um You really do get that opportunity in Kenya.
• 31:28
  The focus is game drives.
• 31:30
  Yeah.
• 31:31
  It's the focus is on the national parks, the conservancies.
• 31:36
  However, there's also the city of Nairobi, which we had an opportunity to go into.
• 31:43
  had dinner one evening in Nairobi, uh which is kind cool because it's a hustling, bustling city.
• 31:51
  uh Unlike Ghana, it doesn't have the same sort of, I don't know if it's chaotic feel.
• 32:00
  Yeah, it has a more Western Nairobi.
• 32:05
  But yeah, we had an amazing time in Nairobi.
• 32:09
  So uh incredible accommodations, incredible.
• 32:14
  Yeah, you mentioned that was one of the not taking away from the wildlife or the culture, but this one thing Africa is also known for and sought after is because like, I don't
• 32:24
  think you should build a trip purely around accommodation, but I think Africa, it becomes a much bigger part of a trip because not so much in the cities.
• 32:33
  It's really what is available in the bush in its either in its rustic charm or in its luxurious appointment.
• 32:42
  Yeah.
• 32:42
  Correct.
• 32:43
  And I think what they do very well in Kenya, Don, is they uh work at trying to incorporate the accommodations, the hotel, the tent, camp, whatever you're at, into the environment.
• 32:57
  You know, they do an amazing job at
• 32:59
  they make you feel as if you're out there with the animals safely, of course.
• 33:04
  Yes.
• 33:04
  Yeah, so it's not big walled hotels and stuff.
• 33:07
  It's very even a lodge to the tent at camps is very yeah, it makes you feel as if the savannas are at your doorstep, which they generally are.
• 33:16
  They do an amazing job.
• 33:18
  ah
• 33:18
  Who did you stay with?
• 33:20
  Was it one chain of hotels or...?
• 33:23
  we sort of ran the gamut.
• 33:25
  We were at a Fairmont at one point in the northern part of Kenya, which was, uh northern part of Kenya is interesting, uh where you're up near, you know, the northern part of
• 33:37
  Kenya, which is a different sort of topography than the south.
• 33:41
  ah We had amazing views.
• 33:44
  We are at the Fairmont there.
• 33:46
  Another hotel that I must make a note of was the uh
• 33:51
  Mara Plains, Chow.
• 33:53
  I think it's one you mentioned when we chatting.
• 33:55
  Yes, that was an incredible tent camp.
• 33:59
  I sent a picture to a friend of mine, and he sent back a comment from me taking a picture inside the tent camp.
• 34:08
  And he said, it looks like you're Dr.
• 34:10
  Jones in Indiana Jones.
• 34:12
  And I thought, oh my god, that is perfect.
• 34:15
  It had that kind of, what is it, 1930s feel, Indiana Jones.
• 34:21
  This word's becoming a bad word, but colonial vibe, guess.
• 34:27
  The great white hunter feel.
• 34:30
  Yeah.
• 34:31
  So I'm in a tent camp at Mara Plains and um the river is probably 10, 15 feet away from me.
• 34:42
  And in it were a family of hippos.
• 34:44
  And they hung out there the whole time I was there.
• 34:48
  What's that?
• 34:49
  As hippos do.
• 34:49
  As hippos do.
• 34:50
  just to hang out in the water.
• 34:51
  Thank God they were hanging out there and not anywhere else.
• 34:54
  ah But yeah, so I went back to my cabin, sorry, my tent camp at night, literally a tent, and you get into this incredible bed.
• 35:05
  Was this one of them because there are different choices of tented camps you can go from the rustic which is still very very comfortable up to the luxurious.
• 35:12
  What was yours?
• 35:13
  The more high-end one?
• 35:15
  say that.
• 35:16
  Very high end.
• 35:17
  We were at dinner one night and I was talking to the agents and they said, they were talking about their doors to their tent.
• 35:26
  And I said, doors?
• 35:28
  What do you mean doors?
• 35:30
  I have a zipper.
• 35:32
  I had a zipper.
• 35:33
  So it turns out I was put in what's called the guide tent, which is fine, right?
• 35:39
  Didn't bother me.
• 35:40
  Once I'm in it, it felt incredibly luxurious.
• 35:43
  But it was an actual tent with a zipper.
• 35:47
  And you go in at night.
• 35:48
  um You get escorted from wherever you are on the property to your tent, um which was kind of nice.
• 35:57
  Now, they don't escort you because of their concerns or safety or anything like that.
• 36:02
  They're escorting you because that's part of the service that they provide.
• 36:07
  they all know your name.
• 36:08
  uh
• 36:08
  Yeah, you brought this up and I had the same experience in South Africa that within half an hour of arriving at the lodge we chose, uh everyone knew our name.
• 36:18
  Now, again, it wasn't a big lodge, but still, we didn't really get introduced to them.
• 36:22
  I guess the documentation was there.
• 36:25
  But yeah, we checked in, put our bags in, and came back for lunch.
• 36:29
  And they were saying, Mr.
• 36:30
  Don, Ms.
• 36:31
  Jana, by my wife's name, and you said you had a very similar...
• 36:35
  very similar.
• 36:36
  the service is incredible.
• 36:40
  They make you feel like you are part of the environment.
• 36:45
  So that was incredible.
• 36:46
  Tent Camp, I highly encourage anyone to do something like that on their 12, 13-day itinerary, even if it's only two or three nights.
• 36:57
  As a tented camp, mean?
• 36:59
  As a tented camp.
• 37:00
  option.
• 37:01
  It's phenomenal.
• 37:02
  So we did that in two locations.
• 37:07
  One of the other hotels we were at, we had a long day of game drives, which you can't get enough of.
• 37:16
  At least the group I was with.
• 37:18
  They'd have gone 24-7.
• 37:20
  Oh yeah.
• 37:22
  Because again the general structure no matter where you are is early morning game drive because the animals are up early morning and late afternoons too hot in middle of the day
• 37:31
  early morning maybe mid afternoon or into the evening yeah and then you have options for other options during the day but often that's walking safaris.
• 37:40
  Right.
• 37:41
  you or any of your group do walking safaris?
• 37:42
  No walking safaris, which I learned was it's not as big a deal in Kenya.
• 37:50
  Yeah, so but what I was going to tell you was so we're at this property.
• 37:54
  I'll get the name in a sec.
• 37:58
  I bought a round of drinks as I'm known to do.
• 38:02
  And I went to the washroom.
• 38:04
  Excuse myself.
• 38:06
  I came back.
• 38:07
  There were the drinks, but all of my travel agents were gone.
• 38:11
  And I'm like,
• 38:12
  Where did everybody go?
• 38:13
  Was it something?
• 38:15
  I lost them already.
• 38:16
  It's something I said.
• 38:17
  Something I said and the bartender came over and he said they went outside to see the elephants so I looked out the window and Probably 20 feet from where I was standing in the
• 38:30
  bar at the table were a troop of elephants a parade There's so many different ones that I heard so uh there they were probably eight elephants
• 38:45
  Not evening.
• 38:49
  This is after dinner, so it's probably 830 at night.
• 38:54
  And of course, there were all my travel agents standing there with their phones capturing the moment.
• 39:00
  And we were, you know, we were not, I don't know, 20 feet from these elephants at the watering hole.
• 39:09
  And little babies, mothers feeding the babies.
• 39:14
  young, smaller.
• 39:15
  Yeah, yeah, but so I'd, prior to going on our trip, I'd, know, actually it's more in East Africa.
• 39:21
  You see the elephant orphanages where caretakers will, you know, look after orphan babies.
• 39:27
  Eventually they'll be released.
• 39:29
  But they're just so, like any other little baby, they're, you they like to cause trouble, they're mischievous.
• 39:35
  And I thought, oh, that's because they're around humans.
• 39:37
  It maybe brings it out.
• 39:38
  But when we were in Botswana, we saw the exact same behavior in the wild.
• 39:42
  They're just little terrors, like running around.
• 39:45
  causing trouble, fighting amongst themselves.
• 39:48
  It's amazing.
• 39:48
  Yeah.
• 39:49
  Why?
• 39:49
  Exactly.
• 39:50
  Yeah.
• 39:50
  So you realize while you're standing there what an immense privilege that is, right?
• 39:56
  So now, up until that point, we had already seen elephants quite a few times.
• 40:02
  um Kind of in the distance, but there was something different about this experience because it was so, what's the word, impromptu?
• 40:14
  Natural, organic.
• 40:17
  There we were standing.
• 40:18
  You know, it was obviously dark.
• 40:22
  There's the watering hole and there may be a blip.
• 40:26
  Elephants are smart.
• 40:27
  They're probably aware that we were there.
• 40:31
  But they're not bothered because they understand, well, they're safe.
• 40:35
  They feel very safe and they do an amazing job of protecting these animals.
• 40:40
  So that was incredible.
• 40:42
  uh Did you get to see Lion up close?
• 40:46
  Yes.
• 40:47
  I'm prompting on this because you mentioned this I think in our chat that you had a couple walk right by your vehicle.
• 40:52
  We did.
• 40:53
  that's the amazing thing about the game drive.
• 40:56
  The guides, the drivers.
• 40:59
  what I was leading to.
• 40:59
  The guides, because I can...
• 41:01
  They're incredible.
• 41:02
  I'll let you say it, but I'll back it up from Eric.
• 41:04
  incredible.
• 41:05
  They're incredible.
• 41:05
  So uh probably the most uh memorable experience with Lions was at night.
• 41:15
  had we had dinner?
• 41:17
  No, we hadn't had dinner yet.
• 41:19
  So we left the hotel.
• 41:21
  This was actually Mara Plains.
• 41:22
  We left around 6 o'clock in the vehicle.
• 41:25
  Now these vehicles are, and you've been in them, they're open um with sort of theater seating.
• 41:32
  Right?
• 41:33
  which is nice and we're very comfortable.
• 41:36
  And what I found lots of room.
• 41:39
  Oh God, if you're a creative photographer like I am, yeah, lots of room to put all your junk and everything else like that.
• 41:44
  Want you to be very comfortable.
• 41:45
  There's adapters to charge your phone.
• 41:50
  It's, they're pretty sophisticated.
• 41:53
  But anyway, we were following this group of lions and it was a mother with her young.
• 42:02
  Interesting enough, one of them was uh a young lion that had been kicked out of its pride for whatever reason.
• 42:10
  Yeah.
• 42:13
  And he had now joined this other pride.
• 42:17
  And they accepted him.
• 42:18
  So that's a whole interesting thing and studying how animals will, because they said this mother has chased other ones away.
• 42:28
  For whatever reason, this one appealed to her.
• 42:32
  Welcomed her.
• 42:33
  Yes, she welcomed.
• 42:34
  Anyway, we're following them.
• 42:36
  And they are on the hunt.
• 42:38
  um The game driver.
• 42:41
  has a light on it that is red.
• 42:44
  So what he was concerned about is he doesn't want to alert the prey to us or to the pride or uh alert or disrupt.
• 42:55
  And anyway, very, we want to be sort of in the background.
• 42:58
  uh Anyway, he turned off the light.
• 43:02
  We drove for probably a minute or two, came out somewhere else and we sat there and there came the pride.
• 43:09
  So he knew exactly
• 43:11
  He's in himself for it.
• 43:12
  he positioned us and the mother probably walked as close as this table is to me.
• 43:20
  She glanced over at me and then just kept on going.
• 43:23
  So, Emmy, you can hear a pin drop.
• 43:26
  It's complete silence.
• 43:28
  And this was in Mara.
• 43:31
  And uh you're watching this unfold.
• 43:35
  It's just, it's incredible.
• 43:37
  Oh, it is.
• 43:38
  It's something that you
• 43:40
  You know, if you grew up, you watched it on TV, ah you know, you see it in books or whatever, and there you are, up close and personal at that moment, watching this all
• 43:52
  unfold in something that's been going on for thousands of years.
• 43:56
  It's incredible.
• 43:57
  Yeah, and that's an interesting thing you bring up.
• 44:00
  I think we said this when we had the sales meeting, we're chatting about it, is that particularly of late, but even before AI became a thing, there was talk back in the day
• 44:10
  of, don't need to go anywhere on a holiday anymore because you just put on your VR set and you can be there.
• 44:15
  And yeah, fair enough.
• 44:16
  And it could be real.
• 44:18
  since then, it's advanced so much.
• 44:20
  But my personal feeling, I think you just said it yourself from your side of things is that
• 44:27
  There's something different, be it wildlife or anything else, seeing the Statue of Liberty, seeing the Eiffel Tower, whatever it may be, being there is different.
• 44:38
  And when it comes to wildlife, to me, there's that next level up, because as you said, it's something that's natural, it's been going for millennia, there's a whole structure to
• 44:45
  it, which you learn through your guides who, as many questions as you want, we peppered our guide to death.
• 44:51
  He was fantastic, answered every one of them.
• 44:53
  As the next guide, I know he's probably heard 80 % of them.
• 44:57
  but he answered them like it was the first time we'd ever been asked.
• 44:59
  um Yeah, there was nothing like seeing wildlife and particularly the famous big wildlife.
• 45:07
  And Africa is rightly famous for containing probably some of the most famous type of wildlife anywhere in the world.
• 45:14
  Yeah.
• 45:15
  And to your point on the guide, ah so while we were driving, he would often pull over to the side or pull up to a bush or a plant or a tree.
• 45:27
  And he would be able to tell you what this bush is used for.
• 45:32
  there was everything.
• 45:34
  If you have an upset stomach, you crush these and you boil them and you drink them.
• 45:39
  This is what they use as a toothbrush.
• 45:43
  this leaf from this tree.
• 45:45
  It just goes on and on.
• 45:46
  So we were at a point where this is Mother Nature's CVS or Walgreens or whatever.
• 45:53
  It's like everything is available to you in the savanna, or uh in any of these parks.
• 46:00
  It's just incredible.
• 46:01
  And the thing about the guides too, then it's interesting because I had someone, a friend of mine from Australia, go on safari, not with Go Way, and he had a...
• 46:14
  Complaint that he felt he felt his guy was just drive you from point A to point B And he felt he didn't get the insights that you obviously got the night and we received as well
• 46:25
  And that is a bit of a shout out to go a because we picked the best guys best companies But a good guy and I know this from being one Yeah Can make or break a trip right and when
• 46:34
  you're in a situation like that where you want to learn as much and you ask all the silly questions If the guy doesn't care
• 46:41
  They might know, but if they don't have the enthusiasm, it takes away from your experience.
• 46:45
  Correct.
• 46:45
  And it sounds like you had the complete opposite.
• 46:47
  You had someone or some people, because you had more than one guy, I don't know, who were passionate about it.
• 46:54
  like the guy getting you to where was positioning you.
• 46:58
  And as a photographer, that's what our guy did.
• 47:00
  He got me, I've got a beautiful shot of a lion in the night, and he drove ahead of the design of another vehicle.
• 47:06
  He got in front.
• 47:07
  spot of the lion, I got that magical shot because he's a photographer.
• 47:13
  knew I was into photography so he designed stuff around that as well.
• 47:19
  oh
• 47:20
  Yeah, they totally embrace the fact that you are there and you're there for a very limited time.
• 47:28
  And they bring the same level of enthusiasm as if it was their first time doing it.
• 47:34
  And there's obviously not because they're extremely knowledgeable.
• 47:38
  And to your point, we had probably four different guides throughout our trip.
• 47:44
  And your trip again was how long?
• 47:45
  many days?
• 47:47
  Ten days.
• 47:48
  Ten days.
• 47:49
  That on ground or was that including your flights?
• 47:51
  uh Total was, uh yes, was including our flights.
• 47:57
  We were eight days in destination, Because we have two days that we eat up in the beginning to get there.
• 48:04
  It's a long way to go.
• 48:05
  Well worth it when you get there.
• 48:07
  ah But yeah, the guides were incredible.
• 48:11
  ah So they made the trip very, ah you couldn't help but, know, what is it?
• 48:18
  the saying, you want to learn something new every day.
• 48:21
  We just learned a ton new every single day.
• 48:25
  And then we'd come back to the hotel or the lodge, wherever we were, and cocktails.
• 48:33
  Cocktails are amazing.
• 48:34
  That's something I didn't expect.
• 48:37
  I thought, OK, I'll have a glass of wine.
• 48:39
  No, they want you to have a cocktail because they're all named different things.
• 48:46
  I'm assuming you did the sundowner when you were out on the game drops as well?
• 48:49
  Yep, where we saw what a leopard uh literally just we marked and uh the same guy who was extremely knowledgeable about the plants and the foliage and all that is now mixing your
• 49:03
  drink.
• 49:04
  So you have a gin and tonic while you're
• 49:06
  Did you have the driver and spotter or just the driver?
• 49:09
  Just a driver.
• 49:10
  a driver.
• 49:10
  Yep.
• 49:12
  And yeah, we're sitting there having a sundowner.
• 49:15
  Yeah.
• 49:16
  Right?
• 49:18
  Yeah, mean, pinch yourself, kind of a moment.
• 49:20
  Which to Moira out there who is past VP of Africa, she's South African by birth, we always not fight, argue over sunsets around the world.
• 49:29
  And I've seen some beautiful ones, but I gotta give it to her, Africa does have something.
• 49:33
  I don't know what it is, but they, not every single one, but pretty much all of them are really spectacular in some form or fashion.
• 49:41
  they're very spectacular and uh Sunset Sun rises as well So we did a hot air balloon.
• 49:50
  we did a hot air balloon and that you do early morning.
• 49:53
  ah So there we were obviously I mean many mornings we were up anyway Time up early for the game and we were busy.
• 50:04
  Yeah, we were not doing what normal people would do
• 50:07
  Well I'm glad you brought that up because I want to make it clear that the sort of eight, nine days you were there is not what we would normally recommend.
• 50:14
  But it's a FAM, so obviously FAMs are compressed experiences.
• 50:17
  So probably two weeks minimum is our suggested.
• 50:21
  Yeah, I think two weeks you could do Kenya very nicely.
• 50:25
  You'd come back and you'd be very, you know, content with your itinerary.
• 50:30
  um We are travel agents, so we are used to constantly being on the go.
• 50:39
  Sorry, we did a little break there because next to the studio we have our lunchroom and someone's moving stuff around.
• 50:44
  So sorry about that little sharp cut there.
• 50:47
  Ian, you were saying?
• 50:47
  Sorry.
• 50:50
  Sorry, no.
• 50:50
  In the distance.
• 50:51
  I hope not.
• 50:51
  Yeah.
• 50:52
  Not next door.
• 50:53
  uh But yeah, so we did the hot air.
• 50:58
  It was, yeah, it was again a pinch me moment.
• 51:04
  Like when are you gonna go back to Africa and do a hot air balloon?
• 51:08
  Well, getting back to Africa, that's going be the hardest part of it.
• 51:11
  But again, yes, you're 100 % right.
• 51:13
  can hot air balloon anywhere and amazing experiences.
• 51:18
  again, Africa, again, it's one of those classic destinations.
• 51:22
  You started off, it's a classic destination, the continent of Africa.
• 51:28
  And yeah.
• 51:30
  when it comes to most people's first thought, it's the wildlife and therefore as we discussed, East and Southern.
• 51:35
  yeah, getting above the savannas and looking over the expanse is because it's actually some of the best, to me, some of the best photography, videography, oh is taken either
• 51:46
  from drones or aircraft or balloons of the masses of wildlife below you in patterns, this type of thing.
• 51:54
  So we were sailing over a herd of zebra, was kind crazy.
• 52:03
  There must have been.
• 52:05
  was hundreds.
• 52:07
  it was hundreds.
• 52:08
  um That's kind of a weird moment, too, when you realize you're sailing over this.
• 52:15
  You can't hear anything except for the constant.
• 52:18
  Every once in a while, he releases the gas to keep you going.
• 52:22
  At the end of that we had a breakfast.
• 52:26
  You can see it eventually as we come along.
• 52:29
  You can see them setting up where you're going to have breakfast.
• 52:32
  photos yourself or?
• 52:33
  did.
• 52:35
  If you can send those to me I'll sort of overlay it on the video version of this.
• 52:40
  And you know, another thing, some of the hotels have a camera in their room, some of the lodges.
• 52:47
  I haven't experienced that, I do know some do that.
• 52:50
  And they're good cameras, like high-end cameras.
• 52:53
  And cameras, USB stick, you simply give it to somebody at the end.
• 52:57
  They download it, email you the pictures.
• 53:01
  It's phenomenal.
• 53:04
  you know, an incredible experience.
• 53:06
  uh One of the assignments for the group was prior to the fam.
• 53:12
  There'll be a test at the end.
• 53:13
  Yes.
• 53:14
  One of the assignments was to watch Out of Africa, which if you know anything about the movie, I will admit I did not watch it when it originally came out way back in 1984.
• 53:27
  I mean, it's 40 years ago.
• 53:29
  This is all based in the 20s.
• 53:30
  Again, back to that colonial.
• 53:32
  It's based on the story of this lady named Karen Blixson.
• 53:35
  ah
• 53:39
  Meryl Streep I remember.
• 53:41
  She won rave reviews for her accent because she affected her, I think it was Dutch or Dutch.
• 53:47
  Kind of a yes.
• 53:50
  we went to her house, which was used in the making of the movie out of Africa.
• 53:56
  ah saw where she was.
• 53:58
  An incredible life.
• 54:00
  She really embraced Kenya and its people.
• 54:07
  from memory the story, she went out there with her husband, the husband died or left.
• 54:10
  Her husband, yeah, it was kind of an interesting marriage.
• 54:12
  They weren't, I wouldn't say in love.
• 54:15
  Yeah, was kind of, yeah, exactly.
• 54:19
  And uh they weren't maybe in love.
• 54:21
  But of course she did fall in love with the character Robert Redford Blade, who's Dennis, who died tragically in a plane crash.
• 54:28
  He ended up burying him on the property.
• 54:31
  I mean, it's a true love story, right?
• 54:32
  ah But she had a real love affair for Kenya.
• 54:36
  And she did a lot to help the Kenyan people.
• 54:39
  education, etc.
• 54:41
  But something we found interesting, you we talked about the plane journey to get to Kenya.
• 54:46
  my God, it was so long.
• 54:47
  Here we are sitting in a plane, watching movies, getting meals served to us and all that.
• 54:52
  How bad can it be?
• 54:53
  It took her six months.
• 54:56
  If she wanted to go back uh home to Denmark,
• 55:00
  Because I think it was a freighter.
• 55:01
  They went out to the coast and around South Africa.
• 55:04
  Yeah, so she took her six months Wow six months to go in six months to come back plus whatever time she'd spend in Denmark
• 55:11
  Right, unless you're Danish.
• 55:13
  She was Danish.
• 55:14
  Incredible, right?
• 55:16
  So we started chatting before the history.
• 55:22
  Is there history in Kenya?
• 55:24
  So that I didn't even realize.
• 55:26
  And one of the questions that a travel agent had of one of the guides was, now in 2025, do we look back at Karen Blix in a different light?
• 55:37
  And he said, absolutely not.
• 55:39
  What she did was,
• 55:43
  was very beneficial.
• 55:44
  She helped educate.
• 55:47
  She created schools for the children.
• 55:50
  She experimented with a lot of crops.
• 55:53
  One of her was coffee, which she struggled with.
• 55:57
  uh yeah, she provided a way of life to a lot of people.
• 56:05
  And she really contributed.
• 56:06
  So when you travel around Nairobi, uh you see things named Karen this.
• 56:12
  Karen Maul, there's a district of Nairobi called Karen.
• 56:16
  Like they really regard her.
• 56:18
  So anyway, anyone going to Kenya should look out of Africa.
• 56:25
  I think I have to revisit myself.
• 56:26
  So I did go looking for it after I came back and uh it's incredible the film quality.
• 56:32
  When you look at a movie today versus a movie made 40 years ago, wow, what a difference.
• 56:37
  But anyway, if you can get past all of that, ah it really does capture Kenya very nicely.
• 56:44
  uh the scenery is exactly as we saw.
• 56:52
  It's just incredible.
• 56:54
  It's not made up, it was real.
• 56:56
  So we had an opportunity to visit our home.
• 56:58
  We had lunch.
• 56:59
  They have a beautiful restaurant there.
• 57:01
  ah The food is another thing that surprised all of us.
• 57:05
  oh Incredible food, incredible cocktails and food.
• 57:09
  Cocktails don't count as food.
• 57:13
  That's not a food group.
• 57:15
  ah yeah, one of the nights in Nairobi, we went out to this restaurant and uh it was kind of an outdoor, I mean, they have a beautiful climate.
• 57:25
  So you don't need walls or whatever.
• 57:30
  And we all ordered different types of food.
• 57:33
  And it was just incredible.
• 57:35
  The service was great.
• 57:36
  The food was great.
• 57:38
  So if anyone has concerns about traveling to a country in East Africa such as Kenya, I would say don't have those.
• 57:49
  You're going to love the food.
• 57:54
  It really surprised all of us and the service was great everywhere we went.
• 58:00
  The people are incredibly open.
• 58:03
  yeah, it was, uh I just can't, I just, there's not a negative that I can say.
• 58:11
  There really isn't.
• 58:13
  A couple of other things that were interesting.
• 58:15
  So we did an elephant uh sanctuary.
• 58:20
  This was another great experience, but very limited.
• 58:23
  They only open from 11 till 12.
• 58:26
  And I want to say two days a week.
• 58:28
  So it's very limited.
• 58:30
  Because the focus is really on rehabilitating these animals.
• 58:34
  first introducing to the human.
• 58:35
  Right.
• 58:36
  Yeah, because they've already, to get to this point, they've already had some sort of tragedy happen to them or something.
• 58:43
  Yeah, so that was incredibly impactful and we had an hour there watching, learning about the animals, seeing them in different stages, as you mentioned, the little ones up to the
• 58:54
  teenage, elephants, et cetera.
• 58:57
  We also did a giraffe sanctuary, which is right near to Giraffe Lodge.
• 59:02
  I get a lot of agents asking,
• 59:07
  Change the name, you're right.
• 59:09
  It's changed the name.
• 59:10
  uh It used to be called Giraffe Lodge.
• 59:13
  Manor Lodge, yep.
• 59:15
  Which is right next to the giraffe sanctuary.
• 59:19
  So a lot of agents will ask me about Manor Lodge and you do have to make a booking.
• 59:25
  I think it's a year, two years in advance.
• 59:28
  However, if that's not feasible, you can do the giraffe sanctuary, which is literally right next door.
• 59:35
  Like you can see,
• 59:36
  Manor Lodge and there you have the opportunity to just visit the sanctuary.
• 59:41
  I assume the sanctuary is the same concept as the Elephant One where it's giraffe that have been abused or orphaned in the wild, rehabilitated to, if possible, reintroduced, if
• 59:53
  not looked after.
• 59:55
  Correct.
• 59:56
  And there's some interaction you get with them.
• 59:58
  But it's also another great learning experience.
• 1:00:02
  You learn so much about giraffes that, you know, like at one point they were passing around one of their legs and uh like a skeleton.
• 1:00:10
  Exactly.
• 1:00:13
  Thank you.
• 1:00:13
  Yeah.
• 1:00:14
  Good point.
• 1:00:15
  And the weight, they're solid.
• 1:00:17
  So there's no marrow in their bones.
• 1:00:19
  They're actually solid.
• 1:00:21
  So when they kick an animal or
• 1:00:24
  as self-defense thing, they can really put some effort to
• 1:00:28
  I just saw a video actually of a line that had latched on to the hind of a full-sized metal giraffe.
• 1:00:36
  He eventually kicked him off.
• 1:00:39
  the power, because they look so fragile.
• 1:00:41
  They do, they look like they could be just.
• 1:00:45
  Those are solid.
• 1:00:46
  Yeah, this man, lion, male held on and the giraffe kept kicking and eventually kicked him off and not just bumped, as you say, a full-sized male was kicked a good 10 feet in the
• 1:00:57
  air.
• 1:00:57
  It was impressive.
• 1:00:59
  They're, yeah, so they're interesting.
• 1:01:01
  And you know, uh one of the national parks we went to at the very beginning of our time in Kenya was the Nairobi National Park, which is the only.
• 1:01:10
  And it's right outside the city, isn't it?
• 1:01:13
  there.
• 1:01:13
  It's in the city.
• 1:01:14
  It's the only national park in a major city in the world, right?
• 1:01:17
  So there you are.
• 1:01:19
  And it was giraffes that we first saw.
• 1:01:21
  You're looking at giraffes, and there's the skyline of Nairobi in the background.
• 1:01:27
  That's a pretty weird view.
• 1:01:28
  The airport is right there.
• 1:01:29
  So you see planes taking off.
• 1:01:31
  ah Yeah, they've built a train that connects Nairobi to the coast.
• 1:01:36
  ah That goes right through national.
• 1:01:40
  the Nairobi National Park, which is neat to see, animals amongst all this.
• 1:01:45
  ah But yeah, it was, yeah.
• 1:01:48
  Okay, one last thing before we say goodbye is you brought it up and it's something I've been asking our African operators for a while to explain to you because I didn't get the
• 1:01:58
  concept of a conservancy, a private game reserve and a national park.
• 1:02:02
  What was the difference?
• 1:02:04
  I've since learned and you also found out.
• 1:02:06
  So you want to briefly tell us what the differences are.
• 1:02:10
  And I think by telling us what the differences are is why you and I both recommend if you can, private game reserves for.
• 1:02:17
  Correct.
• 1:02:18
  So the National Park, think we want to think of it as uh something that is being preserved with very strict protocols.
• 1:02:30
  And what I mean by that is it's open from 7 AM till 6, 6.30.
• 1:02:39
  At that point, it closes.
• 1:02:41
  uh Also, a national park, must stick to the main roads.
• 1:02:46
  So if there is an animal sighting and your game driver, because they're on the radio constantly, right?
• 1:02:52
  You probably saw that when you were in Botswana, et cetera.
• 1:02:55
  uh If they learn of an animal somewhere and uh they need to go off the road, you cannot do that in a national park.
• 1:03:03
  You must stay on the main path.
• 1:03:05
  there's many, many more uh rules that you have to abide by.
• 1:03:10
  And I think what's key is the National Park as its name, it's a park for anyone.
• 1:03:15
  Is it?
• 1:03:15
  Your entrance fee.
• 1:03:16
  Correct.
• 1:03:17
  Go in from, as you say, 7 to Dusk, whatever it may be.
• 1:03:21
  Private car.
• 1:03:21
  Go in your private car.
• 1:03:23
  Anything like that.
• 1:03:23
  So very similar to like Banff or Yosemite or something like that.
• 1:03:28
  A conservancy or a private game reserve, those rules do not apply.
• 1:03:35
  So you can do night drive.
• 1:03:37
  Yeah, we can do night drives, you can go off-road within reason, like there are certain still rules in there.
• 1:03:42
  Correct.
• 1:03:43
  But because it's private or the conservancy, there's a little more flexibility in what you do.
• 1:03:48
  As you say, you have access, I wouldn't say 24-7, but late night game drives are an option.
• 1:03:56
  Late night game drives are an option.
• 1:03:58
  uh Driving off the beaten path, going off the main road, and we did that a lot in conservancies.
• 1:04:05
  If particularly we uh hear of a sighting, the driver will take the vehicle.
• 1:04:12
  These are obviously four by fours.
• 1:04:14
  It's fairly flat terrain, um but they're allowed to go off and get a little bit closer.
• 1:04:21
  uh
• 1:04:23
  So, a conservancy, uh even a private reserve, one of the hotels we stayed at, the Fairmont, for example, has their own private game reserve.
• 1:04:33
  And again, that's sort of their backyard, if you will.
• 1:04:37
  um And the ability to drive off, the ability to just set up somewhere and have a sundowner, or even in a private game reserve, they have little areas where they do evening
• 1:04:49
  barbecue.
• 1:04:50
  So all of that is possible.
• 1:04:53
  within a conservancy or a private game reserve as opposed to a national park, which is much a little stricter.
• 1:05:02
  And the other thing too, what I found is that because it's a private reserve and or conservancy and there is a lodge, maybe two, but in Eric, or there are four lodges, within
• 1:05:12
  the one owned area.
• 1:05:14
  um As an example, when we were in the national park, there was a lion pride and we zoomed there and there were like 15 other vehicles around us.
• 1:05:25
  When we were in our private reserve and it's very...
• 1:05:28
  Ooty and you do pay you pay a bit more for the private reserves correct at conservancies.
• 1:05:32
  Yes is the reason why is Their internal rules were two vehicles per animal sighting only so if you came across one, yeah, like a lion you'd radio we found lions at whatever they
• 1:05:44
  all knew where they were and Then only one other vehicle come in then you're allowed unless something like a kill or a hunt If it was just lying sleeping you you had about 10
• 1:05:54
  or 15 minutes
• 1:05:55
  get your photos, then you'd move off and the next vehicle would come in.
• 1:05:58
  So you were only sighting, often you were the only vehicle, but you'd only have two maximum.
• 1:06:03
  Correct.
• 1:06:04
  Out of sighting.
• 1:06:06
  to me that was hugely better, that was really poor English, hugely better experience than the national, though we saw amazing wildlife in the national park.
• 1:06:20
  So it does cost a bit more, but I think you and I would both agree that
• 1:06:25
  If you're going all that way to see wildlife, should try and get the best experience you can.
• 1:06:30
  Yeah, it is more intimate experience.
• 1:06:33
  And to your point, we were watching a leopard.
• 1:06:40
  And uh there was two vehicles there.
• 1:06:44
  And off in the distance was a ranger.
• 1:06:47
  And he was watching to see, because we were waiting for one of them to leave for us to then drive up and have a look.
• 1:06:54
  So they do police that sort of thing, which is nice.
• 1:06:57
  Yeah.
• 1:06:58
  But a national park, We were at some points one of maybe seven or eight other vehicles, right?
• 1:07:06
  uh
• 1:07:07
  I don't want to take away from the animal experience you have there, but just think having experience both on the same trip in particular, that your more intimate experience will be
• 1:07:17
  on a conservancy or private game reserve.
• 1:07:19
  And I think it's important to understand that if you're going to consider selling uh East Africa, selling a game drive experience, selling Safaris.
• 1:07:29
  Interesting enough, Safari, I think I said this to you uh during that same meeting, Safari is a Swahili word for journey, which I think is perfect.
• 1:07:39
  They don't use Safari a lot in Kenya.
• 1:07:41
  It's game drives.
• 1:07:42
  yeah, back to the point.
• 1:07:45
  uh
• 1:07:48
  It is important to understand that difference.
• 1:07:50
  Personally, I think a little bit of both is ideal.
• 1:07:53
  Yes.
• 1:07:54
  Like you definitely want to do.
• 1:07:56
  want to see both.
• 1:07:57
  definitely want to do the Nairobi National Park.
• 1:08:00
  yes.
• 1:08:00
  I think you want to be in that city, that unique environment.
• 1:08:05
  Exactly.
• 1:08:05
  ah And then you go off to your next hotel or your lodge, which typically will be in a conservancy or even a private reserve.
• 1:08:13
  And you get that very different experience.
• 1:08:16
  So a little bit of both.
• 1:08:17
  But understanding what experience you'll have in a national park versus a conservancy, that's important.
• 1:08:24
  Yeah.
• 1:08:25
  So as you can see, Ian's a very well-traveled individual.
• 1:08:29
  He learned a lot of things, as we all do when you travel.
• 1:08:31
  But that was one key thing that he and I both picked up on, respect to ways of seeing wildlife.
• 1:08:37
  So as Ian says, when you're looking to sell a wildlife experience, a safari or a game drive uh in anywhere in Africa, you want to um be conscious of that when your destination
• 1:08:48
  specialist is advising on lodges and whether they're located in or near.
• 1:08:53
  a national park, or you can't be in the national park.
• 1:08:56
  That's the other thing too.
• 1:08:57
  The lodges on private game reserves and conservancies are within their specific...
• 1:09:03
  ...
• 1:09:03
  up the environment.
• 1:09:05
  Whereas the national park for us, it was a 25 minute drive into the national park.
• 1:09:09
  Not a big deal, but it's just things to be aware of because your clients may find it a big deal.
• 1:09:13
  So keep conscious of that.
• 1:09:15
  You've got anything from rustic to five star lodges, tent and camps, whole thing.
• 1:09:19
  Africa is amazing for that.
• 1:09:21
  anything you'd like to leave the listening audience with.
• 1:09:26
  um I would say that my impressions of Kenya and how to sell it have um really changed since before I went.
• 1:09:37
  Incredibly safe.
• 1:09:39
  I know that's kind of an overused word, but I can't really bring enough point to the fact that wherever we went, ah it was clean, it was safe.
• 1:09:51
  um
• 1:09:54
  We had no anxiety in terms of, it was comfortable.
• 1:09:58
  It was a very comfortable experience from a guest point of view.
• 1:10:03
  There wasn't a lot of concern about, I have to be familiar with my surroundings.
• 1:10:09
  Maybe if you're sleeping next to a river full of hippopotamuses, you want to be concerned.
• 1:10:14
  But in terms of, it was just easy.
• 1:10:17
  There was no stress.
• 1:10:19
  There was no issues.
• 1:10:20
  um Safe, clean, great food.
• 1:10:24
  uh Not expensive, know not you know exactly um and uh Of course English widely spoken for those people that are you know concerned about that?
• 1:10:35
  uh I just would say it's it's a premier destination in terms of if you have guests that are interested in experiencing the wildlife a safari Africa etc.
• 1:10:49
  I can't think of a better place than Kenya today
• 1:10:52
  also have an Odyssey for Kenyudow.
• 1:10:54
  We do.
• 1:10:54
  We have an Odyssey for Kenya, which is one of our guided trips, which is guaranteed departure.
• 1:10:59
  ah So take a look at that on our website at goaway.com.
• 1:11:04
  ah Even taking that itinerary, and using it yourself to your own guess.
• 1:11:10
  Maybe the dates don't match on our Odyssey, but we've put a lot of thought into it.
• 1:11:15
  So it's kind of a ready-made itinerary if you're looking to promote something.
• 1:11:20
  pop the Odyssey onto your social media.
• 1:11:23
  People are always looking for content for social media.
• 1:11:26
  Maybe you want to get into uh being a little bit better known for safaris and that option.
• 1:11:32
  A great way to start, promote our Odyssey.
• 1:11:35
  Or any of our suggested ideas.
• 1:11:36
  Yeah, exactly.
• 1:11:37
  So again, as Ian's just outlined, all of Africa, or all of Africa we sell for sure, is safe, secure, comfortable, keyword, southern, eastern, northern, Egypt, Morocco, the whole
• 1:11:49
  thing, Ghana.
• 1:11:50
  It's all easy to do with us.
• 1:11:52
  We can customize.
• 1:11:53
  We have a groups department.
• 1:11:54
  If you have a group out there that want to do this, if you have an individual wanting to join a group, that would be our Odyssey program as well.
• 1:12:01
  ah Again, you've heard it all before, three-star to five-star, we can do it all for you.
• 1:12:06
  and your clients.
• 1:12:07
  So ah I would say that Ghana rocked in.
• 1:12:12
  I would say Kenya equally from different points of view.
• 1:12:15
  different experience, but both have left me uh really appreciating what each destination has to offer.
• 1:12:22
  There you go.
• 1:12:23
  Couldn't finish it off better than that.
• 1:12:24
  So on that note, thank you everyone out there for your time.
• 1:12:27
  We know you have busy days.
• 1:12:28
  We appreciate you listening in and we will talk to you next time.
• 1:12:31
  uh