Fun Family Moments!!!- Article by Gareth Jones
Fun Family Moments At The Nairobi National Park
The alarm clock buzzed at 05h00 as we awoke to a new day and arrived at the gate just after 06H00.
The master plan was to spend the entire day in the park, and just enjoy all of creation, from the smallest to the largest creatures. Well, I have to say it was an amazing day as our plan manifested into a wonderful reality, as we slowed down to the pace of nature.
Even though it was early in the morning, we were pleasantly surprised to notice a number of families who had also made the effort to get up early and some families with small children. This scene brought back childhood memories of outings in national parks as a family many years ago. My parents used to make considerable effort to turn wildlife education into fun family moments. There were always various nature books in the car, including wildlife colouring-in books and crayons. We would have a family quiz from the mammal book with my younger brother often being the “quizmaster”, and asking some very challenging questions that even my parents had to guess. Points would be given for various sightings, usually rewarded with a small sweet. We would make up songs about the various animals, for example, a silly song like “jerry giraffe he makes us all laugh” or when watching hippos or rhinos in mud, my dad would sing “mud, mud glorious mud, nothing quite like it for cooling the blood”. We would play “I spy with my little eye something beginning with…” and then ask up to “twenty questions” with the theme being, in particular, the national park. In this game, a person sees something and keeps quiet while the others then try to guess what it is by asking a maximum of 20 questions. As we have grown older we still treasure those wonderful memories of fun family moments in nature.
If you are planning a family day in the park, it is a wonderfully fun way to get away from the “city buzz” and experience the therapeutic “bush buzz”. I believe the following basic tips could make your day really fantastic. 1) Try to preplan your food and drinks in advance 2) Use a cooler box with ice packs to keep food and drinks fresh and cold 3) It’s worth waking up very early for a game drive 4) Stop at a picnic site for a meal together 5) Pack a good set of binoculars 6) A map and some basic ID books are useful when seeing various species 7) Having a decent camera helps to enhance the experience as you are able to capture some of your sightings in the form of photos 8) Don’t travel too much, take time to sit and relax at various dams and treed areas 9) Don’t worry about finding lions first, rather focus on enjoying every species and then if a lion sighting happens it will be a special bonus 10) If you have young children, take nature-themed children’s books, colouring books and games, don’t take long drives 11) Slow down to the pace of nature and relax!!
The tranquil peace in the park is tangible and very real. A day in the park is a real “soul tonic” medicine for the inner being, an escape from the fast-paced world around us. A fun-filled family moment awaits those families and individuals who venture into the Nairobi National Park.
