"BAC" wrote:

Great post, Hans. I do like the idea of staying in one area more than a day
or two. I don't want to spend all my time bouncing place to place. With 4
weeks I can spare some hang time in a given area. I just want to soak it
in. What do you do there....photographer? Have any recommendations on safari
companies? A lot will depend upon my timing and how much I am willing to
spend. I really don't want to get caught up in a large group bounding from
place to place, crammed into a minibus, running on a tight schedule. The
reality of it all is KISS (keep it simple stupid)....I will adjust once I
get into the area. Its like sitting down at a great feast....my eyes are
truly bigger than my stomach.

I find that when I move from lodge to lodge, perhaps with some
friends, the most likely times to stay in one place are three
nights and four nights, depending on how nice the place is. Two
nights leaves you only one day, which is usually not enough
except for smaller places like Lake Nakuru.

When I'm by myself, taking photos, I often stay longer, but
that's something different. I don't have to see that next place
because I know it anyway.

I'm only an amateur photographer (see
http://www.michna.com/kenya2003/ for a travel report with sample
photographs), but I do a little bit of work for a zoological
research project (elephants in Amboseli, see
www.elephanttrust.org for details). Please check also
http://www.michna.com/kenya.htm for a useful checklist of what
to bring and some other safari information.

I don't know much about travel bureaus any more. I no longer
book the lodges in advance and I always rent a small jeep and
drive on my own.

If you don't know the place and its customs and if you are
inexperienced with travelling in third world countries, that may
not be a good idea. But if you travel a lot and inform yourself
properly about your country of destination, you can do it,
provided you bring a GPS so you won't get lost.

Hans-Georg

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