7/4 Marius' Boma and Waterfall Hike

7/4 Marius' Boma and Waterfall Hike

We wake very early today and leave before breakfast, as we are in for an experience very few people ever witness.  After a short 10 minute drive we arrive at Marius' Boma, the Maasai word for home.  A large circular (50yds diameter) fence- basically a 5ft tall pile of prickly acacia branches- enclose several mud huts, and two more smaller acacia branch circles.  Ol Doinyo Lengai, Mountain of God, dominates the horizon.

The two-room huts provide nighttime shelter for the family; in the innermost room, the wife sleeps with the children while the husband sleeps in the outer room with the fire and maybe some baby goats.  The huts are very small and dark.  The smaller acacia branch circles provide holding pens for the cattle or goats. and we arrive early to see the livestock being taken out to graze for the day.  
The youngest boys (age 5-12) are charged with grazing the animals all day, while girls fetch water, clean, and maintain the boma.  However, things are changing in Africa, so many boys and girls go to school now.  

We meet Marius' wife, and his children, and they take us for a tour of their hut, which is so dark we can barely see, except when our flashes go off during picture taking.  Also, Elizabeth gets to milk a cow, which isn't her favorite activity of the safari!  
 
  Finally, the women trap us in a circle of jewelry, as they try to get us to buy their homemade Massai bead work.  Let me just say that if these women worked retail in Boston, you would never walk out of a store without spending more than you should have!   After they clean out our wallets, we say goodbye.  


Later Marius and Samwel take us on a hike up a river to a secret swimming hole and waterfalls.  The canyon was so narrow we have to cross the river (or hike in the river) several times.  We pass a beautiful waterfall that sprinkles 
down the side of one of the canyon walls.  After about an hour, we reach our destination, an awesome swimming hole where the river cuts through a tunnel of rock.  The cool fresh water feels so good after days of heat and dust.  

Later that day we make a trip into the village and in the evening are treated to a maasai ritual dance; they even ask me to dance with them!