SAFARI! Part Uno

‘Twas 5:45am and all through Ivory Hotel,
not a sound could be heard, not even a bell.

‘Til Aaron came round with a loud shout,
and woke us all up, so we could go out.

“Today is the safari!” we all thought with glee,
and even a power outage couldn’t stop our wilderness fantasy.

As we filed in drowsily for a quick bite to eat,
eggs, toast and sausage got us up on our feet.

Our two large buses sat outside waiting,
If we were using Wishvast, we would give them a great rating.

If we were using Mashavu, it might be a bit more trouble,
for 19.5 people per bus may create a health rubble.

At 7am we were off on our way!
Even a 5 shilling bathroom break didn’t dampen our day.

But one crucial thing we all faced with regret:
Marshmallows are one thing to never forget!

Our journey continued to a souvenir shop,
where some purchases were quite a pop.

1:30pm and we finally arrived at our destination,
where paying $15 per student created some frustration.

In reality, we were just tired and hungry.
Even the view of Mount Kenya couldn’t keep us from grumbling.

Thanks to our talented chefs, we soon received a filling lunch.
Ham “sandwishes” with cheese, tomato and onion gave our hunger a punch.
(No ketchup or mustard, but to expect that on a safari would be quite the hunch!)

At 3:15pm, we entered Meru Park and began to look for animals.
Luckily, we avoided all their dangerous claws.

Zebras, antelopes and elephants all were seen,
upon entering the rhino sanctuary, we watched rhinos and giraffes preen.

It was getting dark, and we wanted to be safe,
so we left for our campsite before it was too late.

At 6:30pm we arrived at our camp,
we set up our tents with no help from any lamps.

Flashlights and headlamps were all that we used,
along with some staff from CYEC that accrued.

Supposedly 3 people were arranged per tent,
but later in the evening that rule would be bent. 

At 7:30pm our dinner was ready!
Everything so far was good and steady.

We had delicious veggie soup and an African dish pronounced “Peel-ow”,
Although there was no meat, nobody was down.

The rice and veggies kept us full and happy,
even though later on we sang karaoke around the campfire that might have been sappy.

After an hour, we settled down for some entertainment.
Dr. Butler brought a travel guitar and gave it 100%.

Bello, Colin, Alice L, Min and Mike S also played a few tunes,
While everyone else sang and then laid down to watch the stars and the moon.

It was a full moon and we weren’t superstitious,
but a few people saw eyes that may have been vicious.

They thought it was hyenas that might have been nearing,
but it turned out that there were only harmless deer in the clearing.
(but this was only discovered as the morning was nearing!)

There was no electricity and only the moon shone,
The campfire burned bright and gave us feeling that was comfortable and well known.

The bathrooms contained toilets and showers,
but since it was dark we just peed by the trees and flowers.

At 2am we exhausted ourselves and (almost) all fell asleep,
dreaming about the new adventures tomorrow would reap.

Authored by: Alice Cheng