Our Intrepid Assistant Manager, Paul Knapper has been kept busy in the last few weeks. In the Middle of November we sent Paul on an educational trip to THE GAMBIA,Paul then returned to work for 5 days before jetting off again with Somak Holidays and Virgin Atlantic to Kenya to experience the unique sights, sounds and scents of Africa.

Paul experienced the cool air on a morning game drive, the sultry sun, the serene evenings, al fresco dining and the heart-stopping glimpse of his first leopard in the wild. These are the enchanting moments that a jorney to this colourful continent delivers time and time again.

Paul has taken some absolutly incredible Photograhs of the Kenyan Wildlife and pictures of some of the best lodges that Kenya has to offer. Just Double Click on any of the pictues on the Picassa Photo album below. Each photograph has a full description of the incredible Sights that Paul saw.

Pauls Itinerary was a superb intoduction to the splendours of Kenya , visiting a variety of key national parks and game reserves along a classic safari circuit. Accommodation in memorable locations including a special overnight stay at Treetops. Treetops is one of the most famous game viewing lodges in the World.It overlooks a water hole and salt lick high in the Aberdare National Park. The lodge rises straight out of the ground on stilts, and open balconies are the ideal vantage points for viewing and photographing game.

Keekorok Lodge was the first lodge built in the Masi Mara and is in a prime position to enjoy the widebeest migration. The Samburu safari itinerary takes you in either Lake Nakuru or Lake Naivasha where a variety of birds and numerous bright pink flamingoes often entertain

Time spent in Samburu and the Mara completes the itinerary on this Safari which represents excellent value for money.

FRIDAY OR SUNDAY Fly from Heathrow Overnight to Narobi.

SUNDAY OR TUESDAY. Drive north across the equator to the Samburu National reserve.Samburu National Reserve is a 6 hour drive from Nairobi(360km) which lies in the northern frontier of Kenya. It boasts the unique speices of wildlife such as the Reticulated Giraffe, Grevys Zebra and Somali Ostrich, luckily Paul got to see all 3 on his Afternoon game drive.Paul Stayed at the excellent Samburu Serena Game lodge.Samburu Serena Lodge were our hosts for lunch, the property is set amidst acacia groves that border the crocodile filled Uaso River.This refreshing rustic lodge is decorated to a high standard and the restaurant has great views of the river.

MONDAY OR WEDNESDAY. Morning and late afternoon game drives in this open savannah which is traversed by the Uaso Nyiro River. The River is populated by hippos and crocodiles, whilst the park is home to a host of animals including several species which are rarely seen in numbers elsewhere including Grevy's Zebra, reticulated giraffes and long-necked gerenuks.

WEDNESDAY OR FRIDAY.An early morning transfer to outspan Hotel for breakfast and to collect your luggage. descend into the Great Rift Valley and continue on to Lake Nakuru for an afternoon game drive. Overnight at Lake Nakuru or Lake Naivasha.Pauls drive from Samburu Game Reserve to Lake Nakuru took them over the equator. They stopped and were treated to a show of how magnetic forces of the earth effect the direction of water down a plughole. Water in the northern hemisphere goes down anti clockwise and 10 yards south in the southern hemisphere anticlockwise. On the equator the water goes stright down.

Lake Nakuru is a very shallow strong alkaline lake 62km2. Nakuru is one of the alkaline Rift Valley lakes and a fantastic bird sanctuary, its shores populated at times by more than one million flamingoes. The flamingoes are the main attraction of the national park along with the white rhinos. The landscape includes areas of marsh and grasslands alternating with rocky cliffs and outcrops.

Sarova Lion Hill Game Lodge has 67 chalets all overlooking the lake, within the Lake Nakuru National Park. There is a lovely swimming pool, Flamingo restaurant and the Rift Valley bar all with great views out across the lake. It is the perfect place to experience the Pink Flamingo, or a rich concentration of wildlife including black and white colobus monkey and is also a famed Rhino Sanctuary.

Lake Nakuru Lodge offers the sort of relaxing you have never experienced before and the surroundings are sight too good to miss. Lake Nakuru Lodge is situation in a wonderland, which lies in the heart of one of Kenya's most densely populated wetlands National Park . The rooms are quite spacious and have good views out across the game reserve. The inviting swimming pool also has good views out to Lake Nakuru in the distance.

Drive to the Masai Mara National reserve (320km) An afternoon game drive is included.Located within the world famous Masai Mara Game Reserve, Sarova Mara Game Camp's 75 tents capture the true spirit of the Kenyan wild, in Kenya's richest game reserve. Greatly renound for its annual wildebeest migration and big five game viewing. The tents are very luxurious and spread out around the huge grounds which are very well kept. The property is highly recommended and was probably Pauls favourite lodge that the group visited.The Masai Giraffe (common in Amboseli, Tsavo and the Masai Mara) has less well defined markings and lacks the clean lines of the Reticulated Giraffe, the markings can sometimes look like small rosettes of dark brown on a creamy-yellow background

FRIDAY OR SUNDAY.Enjoy an early morning balloon flight over the Mara, followed by a 'bubbly' bush breakfast (optional extra), or an early morning game drive followed by breakfast at the lodge. relax by the pool overlooking the enless panorama stretched out before you. Afternoon game drive.

The world's largest land animal, the Elephant, needs no introduction. Despite their massive size they are entirely vegetarian eating a wide variety of foods including grass, leaves, shoots, flowers, bark and a variety of cultivated plants such as maize, bananas, mangoes, sweet potatoes etc. They are very protective over their young and have great hearing but poor sight.

The African Lion is the largest of the big cats in Africa. It's the second largest of the big cats worldwide, after the tiger. Most cats are essentially solitary but Lions are social, with 1 to 3 males living in a "pride" with a variable number of females. The local tribes people regard the African Lion as a symbol of power. For several of the local tribes in Kenya, killing a lion was traditionally a ritual expected of a boy before he became a man. African Lions are a now protected species.

The common ostrich is different from the Somali in the pink colour of its neck, flanks and legs, becoming brighter in the breeding season, though it can be partially concealed by the dust. The male's plumage is very flashy, whereas the female is duller, grey-brown in colour.

Sunsets in Kenya are very spectacular, generally the sun goes down around 630pm.