Holiday Moments!!!- Article by Gareth Jones
Holiday Moments In The Park!
Well, 2021 has seemingly flown past and it is now the time at the end of the year, when families usually want to spend quality time together, either at home or at a venue that they enjoy. In this fast and often crazy world we live in, many people like to “escape from the city” and spend time in a natural environment. Well, the Nairobi National Park is one of those “escape to the wild” places.
However, over many years, I have noted that most of us are still in “City mode” when we enter a national park, and would like to see as much of the created wonders as possible. But our challenge is to quickly snap out of “City mode” into “Bush mode”. For many people the Nairobi National Park is a kind of “home from home”, a place where families have a wonderful time enjoying much of the rich natural treasures in the park.
It is helpful to raise a few points that will hopefully ensure maximum satisfaction and relaxation for others. 1)Pray for God to show you the glory of creation, 2)Slow down when driving – a speed of less than 30km/h is advised, 3)Don’t just look at the grass and trees, look through the grass and trees, 4)Watch the reactions of different herbivores and birds, 5)GO with the attitude of “birdwatching”, show interest in the smaller creatures, sooner or later other large creatures, like lions could “get in the way!”, 6)Don’t drive to far, stop often at waterholes and wait, 7)Stop often in places with a good view and scan the horizon with binoculars 8)If you have a good camera, remember to be well prepared, ensure the battery is fully charged, and then the memory card has enough capacity to capture many wildlife moments 9)Getting out of your vehicle at the various picnic sites/Ivory Burn site/Hippo Pools is always a good experience to relax for a while 10)Go with the attitude of “let nature come to me” rather than us trying to “catch a bit of nature”.
Then there are those families who have children of various ages with them in their various vehicles. Children are always learning, however, it is a bit much to expect them to remain focused and calm for hours on end when on a game drive, especially when it is getting hot inside the car and the adults are still looking for something special to observe. I would like to recommend that game drives for young children, ideally be not longer than 2 hours, and also preferably in the late afternoon when it is cooler, or early mornings for those who enjoy getting up early every day. There are also a number of games and activities to participate in while on a game drive. Having a basic fun animal knowledge quiz is always a winner, as various questions on multiple species can be asked, and the answers given in an educational way. Nature theme colouring-in books are also a good idea. For those children who show an interest in photography, parents can consider investing in a basic camera, and then encouraging them to take photos. The process of learning to take photos requires patience, as it is always a trail and error process, that eventually becomes very rewarding when the corrected repetitions are successful with good photos.
I personally believe that God created so many natural wonders for mankind to enjoy and keep our sanity, hopefully your holiday moments in the park will be restful and be like a “soul tonic for your innermost being” as we all prepare for the year 2022.
