availability for 11 DAYS KENYA CULTURAL AND MYTHOLOGICAL SAFARIS

Tour type: Cultural Tour

Countries: Kenya

Cities: Nairobi, Kericho

Tour operator: Great Horizon Trails - Nairobi, Kenya

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS 11 DAYS NAIROBI / KERICHO/ KISUMU (KIT MIKAYI) / MBITA / RUSINGA / RUMA NATIONAL PARK / NYAMGONDHO / THIM LICH OHINGA / AWENDO / TABAKA SOAPSTONE / SIMBI NYAIMA / KISUMU / LWANDA MAGERE / NAKURU / NAIROBI. DETAILED ITINERARY Day 1: Nairobi – Kericho Depart Nairobi early in the morning for a trip through Great Rift Valley with a stop over at the view point to have a glance at Mt Longonot and the breathe taking escarpment to reach Kericho tea hotel which was built in 1950’s by Brooke Bond Tea Company and has an old World airstrip, pitch your tents, enjoy your lunch and then go for an escorted walk in the Tea Plantations. Kericho is a Tea country which has put Kenya to be the world third largest Tea producer after India and Sri Lanka. There are beautiful rolling hills carpeted in neat, bright green tea bushes as far as you can see. The climate here is perfect for Tea with rain falling almost every afternoon. Kericho was named after Ole Kericho, a Maasai Chief who was killed in the battle by the Gusii in the 19th Century. The hotel also has an optional trout fishing activity at a cost. Day 2: Kericho – Kisumu – Kit Mikayi After an early breakfast, depart from Kericho via Kisumu city to reach Kenya’s most dramatic archaeological sites, a vast granite rock tower called Kit Mikayi. The rock is situated in Kisumu district, Maseno division, East – Seme – location, Kit – Mikayi sub-location, Kangeso village, Kadol clan. The rock which is about 70 to 80 ft tall is located 30kms Far East of Kisumu city and 1km from of Kisumu Bondo road. The sign board is on the gate of Kit Mikayi primary school then you enter through N’gop-Ngeso primary school. The legendary story behind Kit Mikayi which in Luo means the stone of the first wife is that: Long time ago, there was an old man by the name Ngeso who was in great love with the stone. He could wake up in the morning and walk in to the cave inside the stone and stay there the whole day which could force his wife to bring him breakfast and lunch everyday. The old man became passionately in love with this stone to the extent that if somebody could ask the wife the whereabouts of the old man, the wife could answer that he has gone to his first wife (Mikayi) hence the stone of the first wife (Kit Mikayi). More further explanation about this unique stone is that according to its feature and components, the structure represents the Luo cultural polygamous family which had the first wife’s house (Mikayi) built further in between, on the right hand side was the second wife’s house (Nyachira) while the third wife’s house (Reru) was built on the left hand side of the homestead. This rock also is seen to have a nuclear family whereby the father (Ngeso) being the middle stone followed by the bulky Mikayi (first wife), then Nyachira (second wife) followed by Reru (third wife) and further in front they have the child which is representing Simba (which is the house for the first born boy in the homestead). Picnic lunch enroute. Dinner and overnight stay at the campsite in Kisumu city. Day 3: Kisumu – Ndori – Lwanda Kotieno – Mbita After breakfast, you will be driven to Impala Sanctuary which lies close to Hippo point and features 3kms of Nature trails and a selection of picnic sites. The sanctuary is a holding area for animals which require special attention in this densely populated area. The sanctuary’s focus is a small herd of Impalas, while the animal orphanage contains a collection of caged Leopard, Baboon, Hyena, Jackal and Ostrich. The sanctuary also provides important open grazing for the local Hippo population while the threatened rare Sitatunga antelope is believed to exist in the nearby swamp. A shady and peaceful place, with its abundance of Bird life, the sanctuary is a tranquil place to take a refuge away from busy Kisumu’s busy city centre. Depart from Kisumu, drive to the junction of Ndori, turning left and take Lwanda Kotieno road, drive straight to Mbita ferry for an onward transfer at 03:00pm to Mbita to check in at Lake Victoria Safari village campsite / cottage. After checking in, you can enjoy a stretch with a guide to the nearby vintage Gembe hills to get a better view of the isles in Lake Victoria before you return back to the accommodation for dinner and overnight stay. Day 4: Mbita – Rusinga full day. After breakfast, enjoy a boat ride and fish for lunch also enjoys the conversation with the local traditional fishermen using the traditional built up boats and traditional methods of fishing at the fishing beach points. Return back to the accommodation for and early lunch. After lunch, leave the campsite / cottages and drive past the course way to enter the famous Rusinga Island. Rusinga is an austerely pretty island with high crags dominating the desolate goat-grazed landscape. A single dirt road is running around its circumference. Life here is difficult, drought commonplace, and high winds a frequent torment. The occasional heavy rain either washes away the soil or sinks into the porous rock, emerging lower down where it creates swamps. Ecologically, the island is in very dire straits: almost all its trees have been cut down for cooking fuel or been converted into lucrative charcoal. These conditions make farming highly unpredictable and most people rely on some fishing to make ends meet. Yet the islanders, in common with their mainland cousins, remain unfailingly friendly and cheerful bunches, who are more than happy to make contact with wayward visitors. Drive towards left from the junction, stop somewhere and then walk on foot to visit the archeological site where Dr. Mary and Louis Leakey found the skull of Proconsul Africanus which is believed to be approximately 18 million years old and was a man earliest ancestor and so was taken to National Museum of Kenya in Nairobi where you can view it when time allows and at an extra cost. It is also believed that this is one of the first important hominid finds of these two famous archeologists. Besides Ligongo, a visit to sacred rock Kiangata on Rusinga Island is an avoidable. The legendary story about this rock is that, the mother of the sub clan of Wakiangata who are occupying the area went to fetch firewood around the rock and she disappeared and so it is believed that she is leaving inside this sacred rock and whenever you shout, the unique eco sound which comes out of the rock is believed to be the sound of the mother of the Wakiangata sub clan and so the common question asked here in Abasuba language is Kiangata ufubreki (Kiangata, what have you prepared for us to eat today?) then there is an echo sound which comes out of the rock. After this experience, walk back to the car and further move to Tom Mboya’s mausoleum which lies on family land at Kamasengere on the north side of the island, about 7km by the dirt road from Mbita, or roughly 5km directly across the island. The mausoleum (open most days to visitors) contains various mementoes and gifts Mboya received during his life. Tom Mboya, civil rights champion, trade unionist and charismatic young Luo politician who was gunned down in Nairobi in 1969, sparking off a crisis that led to over forty deaths in widespread rioting and demonstrations. You don’t have to know anything about the man to be impressed. In any other surroundings his memorial might seem relatively modest, but on this barren, windswept shore, it stands out like a beacon. Mboya’s family live right next door and are happy to see foreign visitors, who rarely come here. After the sad painful story and readings about Mboya, we will drive further past Kaswanga through the Tom Mboya memorial hospital and Tom Mboya secondary to stop at Wanyama to have a glance at the legendary rock portraying the bulls which fought into the lake and turned in to two rocks facing each other. The legend about this rock is that long time ago when young men went to look after the herds, there was one common place where they could water their herds and after this, each clan could identify a bull to fight in between the clans and hence the two rocks were two bulls from Nyama and Ware clans. After this, we proceed back to Mbita for an overnight stay. Day 5: Mbita – Sindo – Ruma National Park After breakfast, we drive to Sindo, then turn left on Sindo-Homabay road, turn right on the sign board of Ruma National Park, then to Nyatoto gate. Drive to Nyati camp or Kamato or Oribi Guesthouse to check in, followed by lunch then proceed for a game drive. Ruma National park lies in Western Kenya, close to the shores of Africa’s largest inland Lake, Lake Victoria. The park is considered the last retreat and the sanctuary of the endangered and threatened Roan antelope which is considered one of the Africa’s rarest Antelopes. This park was established as Lambwe Valley game reserve in 1966 to protect its indigenous population of rare Roan antelope which exist nowhere else in Kenya. It acquired national park status in 1993 and renamed Ruma National Park on the request of the local community in honor of one of the most powerful Kenya’s wizards, the much-feared Gor Mahia who was living high on a hill which now forms part of the Kanyamwa Escarpment, from where he could watch over all people because his magic was so powerful that he controlled not only South Nyanza, but far beyond. The classic image of East Africa is realized in Ruma National Park, a land of rolling Savannah dotted with picturesque Acacias and backed by dramatic hills. Compact in size, the park is easily traversed by only two major routes and offers a unique mosaic of reverie woodland, golden Savannah and magnificent Escarpments. Well away from the beaten tourist track and relatively infrequently visited, it is also a park that excels in tranquility and the solitary enjoyment of the wilderness. Lying on the flat floor of the seasonally watered Lambwe river valley, the park is bordered to the South East by the breath taking Kanyamwa Escarpment and to the North by the dramatic Volcanic plugs of the beautiful Ruri hills. A long, narrow corridor of land contained on a first-shipped peninsular extending into Lake Victoria, the parks terrain comprises largely black cotton clay soil, scenic rolling grassland and open woodland thickets dominated by species of Acacia and Balanites. Apart from the Roan antelope which has a sanctuary here, we have also plenty of Africa Buffalo (the only native African cow) it is believed that Ruma National Park was the origin of almost all the animals found in Maasai Mara which were driven away by the Luo community, who are farmers and animal hunters by nature, through Migori, Lolgorien and into Maasai Mara. To prove this, keenly you could check the African Buffalo in Ruma National park with the normal Buffalos you can see in Maasai Mara are quiet different and more so, the Buffalos in Ruma National park are very Wild and have wide horns with very hard and big forehead which were protecting them from the bullets, arrows and spears of the hunters hence they remained behind. The park also act as a home to the common waterbuck, the Aardvark, the honey badger, the solitary nocturnal African civet, Serval, Genet, Topi, Impala, Vervet Monkey, Olive Baboon and at night you can hear the sound of the secretive Leopard and the common sound of the spotted Hyena which will give you the memorable sound of African bush. Return to Nyati campsite or Kamato or Oribi Guesthouse for dinner and overnight. Day 6: Ruma – Nyamgondho site – Thim Lich Ohinga Enjoy after breakfast morning game drive in the park, and then depart with your picnic lunches through Magunga shopping centre with a stop over at the vintage hills between Magunga and Nyandiwa to have a better view of the rich in fish curved away Kiwa Island. The beauty of how water has entered the inland is so amazing that will take you with wonder. Drive further to the legendary site of Adikinyi Nyamgondho (connoting the time and the type of fishing in dholuo) the wife of Julu son of Ombare site. The legend here is there was a poor fisherman from Kamangeta in Tanzania who came to sojourn in Kachwodho clan in Nyandiwa next to the present Nyandiwa fishing beach called Julu son of Ombare, grandson of Omae whom like other fishermen used Migondho kind of fishing to catch fish. Migondho was made from the fiber of sisal which was spined into a rope attached to a hook with crab as the bait to lure fish to be caught. One day, when Julu son of Ombare went to fish as usual, as he was pulling the rope, suddenly an ugly one eyed woman appeared and requested Julu son of Ombare to take her home and lit fire to make her warm as she was feeling cold. Julu son of Ombare was a very brave man and as per her request, she was taken home and apart from the fire, she lived with Julu son of Ombare and he gave her the name of Adikinyi Nyamgondho. Not knowing that this was luck, they started having cattle and multiplying them day by day. Julu son of Ombare became a very rich person and forgot that he was poor and hence he took to drinking and abusing the woman every other day until one time he decided to fight the woman and even said that he doesn’t want an ugly woman like Nyamgondho as he had already married another woman. The lady decided to go back to the lake. Then animals in the compound started following her to the waters that even Julu son of Ombare could not stop them. The foot prints where they stepped on before jumping into the water are still there and can be seen when there is no much water on the shore. The cowshed which was built for the cattle using the dry stone walls which has no mortars just like the ones in Thim Lich Ohinga and the ones in Lianda Tuwi can also be visited. The big tree which people believed was Julu son of Ombare watching in dismay when his wealth was going into the lake can still be seen to date. After this amazing story, we move towards Sori to have a glance at the mythical stone which disappeared with no trace and further move to Kadem then take the left turn through Lwanda Magwar and pass through the traditional Luo villages and reach Thim Lich Ohinga the unique architectural stone structure situated in Nyanza province 181kms South of Kisumu in Migori district to pitch your tents and get ready for the wonder. The site lies on a gentle sloppy hill some 46kms North West of Migori town near Macalder’s mines. Its exact geographical location on map is at grid reference 019 474 on sheet number 129/4. The Ohinga is believed to be one of the most important archaeological discoveries in East Africa and only compared to Great Zimbabwe ruins and the modified Great Wall of China in terms of architectural achievements. A dry stone enclosure of zigzagging walls some 150m in diameter and 1.0 to 4.2m in height built on lose stones and blocks without any dressing or mortar. Archaeological record of material found within the site goes beyond 500yrs ago. Since the present inhabitants of the area arrived probably some 3 centuries ago, it seems most likely that Bantus who initially occupied this region prior to the arrival of Luos first built the stone structures. Abundant rocks on the hilly areas provided them with building materials to meet their security requirement to drive away the wild animals and protect them from the warring tribes around that area. Thim Lich Ohinga literally in dholuo language means “frightening dense forest or scary jungle” was occupied after the Bantus by Kabwoch Kochieng clan who drove away the Bantus then followed by Kanyamkago clan whom also subsequently were driven away by Kadem who are the present occupants of the area around Thim Lich. However, the Kanyamwa clan came also to settle here but most of them decided to move to Lambwe valley around Kakaeta in Ndhiwa. The small number remained behind around Thim Lich Ohinga. Further story is that the famous Gor Mahia who was the youngest son of Ogada who was the grandson of Ogalo the renowned wizard in Luo Land drove away his elder brothers by killing their offspring’s because he was a powerful wizard which he inherited from his grandfather Ogalo although all of them were wizards. This forced Ochieng his brother to go back to Kadem and request for shelter from their cousin the chief of the small clan Kanyamwa in Kadem, because of lack of land, Ochieng was told to settle and hide from the wrath of Gor Mahia in Thim Lich Ohinga which he also tried to repair and modify. Having seen the safety of the place, he invited his other brother Akuku who also came and settled next to Ochieng, then came Okech, then subsequently Oluoch and all this people had their homesteads next to Ochieng’s. This is the last people known to have occupied this historical place before the National Museum came in to make it a great monument under its umbrella. Dinner and overnight at the campsite. Note: In between you can visit a Natural and cultural Luo traditional village apart from what is in the compound of Thim Lich Ohinga. Day 7: Thim Lich Ohinga – Rapogi – Awendo After breakfast, we leave Thim Lich to Awendo through Rapogi. Awendo is a Sugarcane town and every activity in life revolves around sugarcane growing and sugar making. We will have an opportunity to visit Sony Sugar Company to get to learn how sugar is processed and to amaze at the big sugar plantations and the process of cutting down sugar canes and transporting the same to the factory for crushing. We will then move to Awendo town to check in for our accommodation in a budget hotel, picnic lunch enroute, dinner and overnight at the hotel. Day 8: Awendo – Tabaka Soapstone factory – Simbi Nyaima After breakfast in Awendo, pass through the sugarcane plantation reaching Rongo, then proceed further to Tabaka united community project Centre, the manufacturers of soapstone carvings in Kenya, they make variety of quality items which can be bought and used as candle holders, flower holders, sculptures, figures, coasters, plates, bowls, boxes, animal designs etc. Proceed further to reach the junction of Kisii-Kisumu road, turn left off to Kisumu road and drive to Oyugis then onto Kendubay and then to the mythological village of Simbi. The folklore about Simbi goes like this: One day the chief of the village of Simbi in Kakseru Rachuonyo District decided to throw a big party in this tranquil and prosperous village of Simbi as they had just experienced a bountiful harvest. However, after Adikiny Nyamgondho the wife of Julu son of Ombare had disappeared in the lake in the story of Nyamgondho site, she reappeared in Simbi inform of a strange woman who was asking for food and shelter as she was very tired and hungry. Given the excitement and the merry making, the spirit of the participant i.e. old men and their sons were very high and they choose to chase this old woman away except one woman with a child who welcomed her. The strange woman invited the woman who welcomed her to take her belongings and leave that village with her and do not dare to look behind. As they went a distance, suddenly there was a big rain and thunderstorm only in that specific home, the strange woman asked this lady to look behind and what she could see was a big flood in her former homestead with people on top of roofs of the grass thatched houses which eventually sunk in the flood and everybody perished except the old lady, the woman and the child. After sometime, they appeared in Lwanda K’Otiato in a homestead of one respected old man whom fortunately welcomed them. Until today, Simbi Nyaima is like a stagnant small lake and because of its water algae and the sacred in it, people with rushes in their bodies use that water to bath and to get healed. Dinner and overnight at a budget hotel in Kendubay. Day 9: Kendubay – Orian’g Market - Kisumu Drive from Kendubay to Orian’g Market for the famous clay pottery of all styles, types and sizes by Orian’g women group which is a self help group. Proceed to Kisumu, picnic lunch enroute with stopovers to places of interest and arrive in Kisumu in the evening to check in at your campsite for dinner and overnight. Day 10: Kisumu – Lwanda Magere site – Nakuru After breakfast, drive to Awasi junction, divert on your left hand side and then drive to the site where one of the great Luo sons was laid to rest. Magere was staying in Kano in a clan called Sidho, however, he was not a true Kano man, and he was coming from Kombe clan which was not Luos but “Mwa”. The mythical story about Magere is that, long time ago there was a problem of grazing land between Nandi people and Luos in Kano. The most fertile land was found in Kano plains and the Nandis living on the hilly areas could not find enough grass for their animals. Therefore the two tribes were engaged in wars every other day and mostly Luos were been killed and their herds taken away. One day, Lwanda Magere decided to join the fight and make sure that their cattle are grazed in their piece of land and hence he joined the fight and killed several of the Nandi people. Both sides were amazed at the power and strength of this gigantic Luo warrior. According to the story, no spears neither any metal could enter his body because the body was as strong as stone hence the name “Lwanda” in Luo connoting rock. These wars were numerous and every time the proud Lwanda Magere immerged the winner with Nandis being killed in hundreds. The Nandis decided that this could not go on and one of them called “Rono” decided to befriend Lwanda Magere and after each and every fight, they could sit alone together and have a preview of the fight and Rono could ask Lwanda Magere kindly to forgive the Nandi people and not to kill them any more. Lwanda Magere declined and the fight continued. Then they decided to give him a lady to marry with an ill motive of knowing his powerhouse where his strength was resting. Lwanda Magere picked the most beautiful lady among the three and decided to marry her as a second wife to the dismay of his first Luo wife. One day, while the first wife (Mikayi) was away, either in their home attending a funeral or in their farm, Lwanda Magere fell ill and called his second wife (Nyachira) to administer a drug (Buru) by cutting with a small knife (Mirich) as she tried, the first one became blunt and the second one was broken and so this lady told Lwanda Magere that she is trying an impossibility. There and then, Lwanda Magere revealed to her the secret of his power as he woke up and pointed at his shadow and instructed the woman to do the same to the shadow and all of a sudden the blood came out and after administering the drug (Buru) , the woman left Lwanda Magere sleeping and went along river Nyando to meet Rono and spill out the information. The woman disappeared not to return. One day after Lwanda Magere was well, there was a fight again and after Lwanda Magere killing several of the Nandi people, one of them took a spear and on hiding threw it to the shadow and it pieced into him and the great man fell down and that place turned into a pond. Darkness surrounded the place and when light came in, the body disappeared. It took two good years of drought and deaths to both people and the cattle while he was sending the dreams to the prominent magicians in Luo land telling them to find him and this could save them from the drought. When they eventually got him, where the big body laid down and after identifying him as Lwanda Magere, he buried himself by sinking down and only leaving his right hand out which he promised that all the hunters and great fighters in Luo land will use to sharpen their spears and all the generation after generation of Luo tribe will have to learn and identify themselves with their great son of the soil and hence till to date, the hand is still in the same site and can be viewed any day. After this fascinating story, drive to the junction of Awasi toward Sondu and on to Nakuru for dinner and overnight stay at Makalia falls campsite or a budget hotel. Picnic lunch enroute. Note: You can donate towards the maintenance of this wonderful site and the upkeep of its Curator. Day 11: Lake Nakuru – Nairobi After breakfast, enjoy a game drive at this famous National park known for its multimillion Flamingo birds (both lesser and greater flamingos), Pelicans and other bird life which are abundant. The drive will take you to the Baboon cliff, the vintage point to admire the panoramic view of this pink Lake. Lake Nakuru also doubles as the White Rhino sanctuary and hence this is the only place where we guarantee 80% to 90% to see both White and Black Rhino. Depart to Nairobi, picnic lunch enroute arriving in time to end your trip.