54|ℬᎾℳᎯ

I'M AWOKEN by a hippo bellow so deep that my tent shudders. 

Simultaneously, my phone rings. "Nants! Ingoyama Bagithi Baba!" I changed my ringtone to Circle of Life from Lion King to match the Kenyan theme.

"Hey," I answer still quite shaken by the rude hippo.

"Hey, did you sleep well?" he asks.

I pull my phone from my ears to look at the time while my other hand furiously rubs at my sleepy eyes. 4:30 a.m.

"Yes I did," I say. "But do you know how illegal it is to wake somebody up by this time? 4 a.m. fine, 5 a.m. splendid but 4:30 a.m?"

Between the hippo splashes and the tweeting birds, I can hear his laughter from his tent.

"Meet me outside in an hour, exactly one hour, or we'll miss it." 

I sit up smiling. "Where are we going to?" 

"Wear thick clothes and bring a hat, it's cold around this time," he says.

"I don't have a hat but I like the sound of that." I squeal.

"You're going to love the sight even better," he says.

"Ok then see you in an hour." I hang up, before stretching myself into a long yawn.

I don't remember ever sleeping so comfortably. My bed at home is great, but this, this is just wow. 

We flew in yesterday on a small plane that landed on an improvised grassy runway, after which we took a short drive from the airstrip to the hotel. So far, I have met two really awesome people. At the airstrip, we met Mutua the driver and here, Anisa, our tour guide. 

The main lodge of the hotel—Fairmont Mara Safari Club—is just as impressive as my tent. There’s no doubting the classic safari theme here; real wooden ceilings, African furnishings complete with animal prints and art, handmade beadwork, deep leather chairs, huge open fireplaces. And a view of The Mara River from almost everywhere.

My tent contains a four poster bed, hand-woven rugs, full en-suite facilities, with hot and cold running water, electricity, free wifi and, a completely private outdoor shower which I'm super excited to see. Also, I have my own private deck with an unobstructed view of the river with hippos and crocodiles for company. 

In summary, Ivan is godsend.

I roll out of the bed before walking up to the wooden wardrobe where I unpacked the Kenyan part of my suitcase last night. I lay out my black baggy Adidas tracksuit and trainers before grabbing my towel, toothpaste, toothbrush, shower gel and sponge.

I take the short walk out the back of the tent into the outdoor bathroom. Once I enter into it, I laugh excitedly.

"What did you expect?" I ask myself.

The bathroom is a wide four corner rectangular space, complete with everything a bathroom should have, only that it has no ceiling. I look up at dawn's face, its dense dark coat is speckled with many blinking eyes, stained by only a few bleak beams indicating the approaching sunrise.

I'm not sure how much time I have left from the one hour so I quickly brush my teeth, ever so often glancing up at the open sky. It is one thing to bath in the secrecy of my bathroom at home and a whole different thrill to do it under the watchful eyes of Simba's ancestors. 

After my hot shower where I took great care to leave my hair dry, I step out of the bathroom, breathing in the fresh forest air sprayed with the childhood nostalgia of wet mud and leaves. 

Back in my tent, I pick up my tub of petroleum jelly and spread it over my skin. If it's going to be cold, I have to be well protected. 

5:00 a.m.

He's waiting outside my tent when I step out. He has both of his hands tucked away inside a white baggy hoodie. "Good morning, Ms. Lawson," he smiles a simple smile. "You are on time." 

I hug him, laughing. "I'm learning from the time keeper himself." I say.

He bows dramatically and I look around in the dark. "What if a Crocodile creeps up on us?" I ask.

"We have two options," he says. "Croak or dial for help. Think about it." 

Wait.

"Oh!" I laugh when my brain connects the dots. "That was smart. Damn, you're on fire." I say.

"Good morning everyone," Anisa walks up behind us. Still as beautiful and bronze as yesterday. 

"Hey, Anisa." I wave.

"Good morning, Anisa," Ivan says.

"How was your first night?" she asks.

"I slept great," I say.

"Splendid," Ivan says.

"Alright then, the vehicle is just by the corner and then we'll be off." Anisa says.

"Off to where?" I ask.

"Mr Adebayo planned–"

"Anisa," Ivan cuts her off with a wink and a half smile. I look back at Anisa, she runs an imaginary zipper along her lips.

I shake my head, smiling. "Ivan, if you're taking me to lions, you might as well want to inform me, don't you think so?"

"Don't be so forward, Bomate." His fingers graze my cheeks.

We follow Anisa into the safari vehicle which looks like a small lorry or just an extra large keke napep from back home. Around us, we can view the grassland and sparse bushes.

"Here." Ivan puts his baseball hat over my head but it bounces off. I wrap my hair in a bun and he tries again. This time it sits tight. 

I look ahead and my eyes pop when I see it.

"Oh. My. God. Ivan!" He starts laughing. The vehicle stops and I start jumping around as soon as my feet hit the ground.

"Hello!" The smiling white man waves. "Good morning and welcome to Maasai Mara. I'm Williams, and I'll be your hot air balloon pilot."

"Hello, good morning," I say grinning with pure happiness, unable to stand at the spot.

"Surprise!" Ivan says.

"Hot air balloon!" I squeal with wide eyes.

"I decided that before we see the sunset we could see the sunrise first."

"How did I meet you again?" I ask 

"In heaven," he says, laughing.

"We'll be boarding the basket now," Williams says.

Anisa gets in, then Ivan, and I follow. Above us, a blaze burns, connected to an engine and ropes with which Williams controls the balloon. 

"We have to crouch during takeoff," Anisa says. We stoop in the huge basket and I can't keep from squealing as we lift off. 

"We're in the air." William announces. 

"Can we get up now?" I ask.

"Sure," Williams says and I stand up, holding the thick rim of the woven basket for support. 

The balloon floats slowly eastward, and in the far horizon, the dark sky bleeds out into bleak yellows and bright oranges.

I hear the shutter of a camera behind me. I turn around to find the camera in my face. "Oh yeah?" I laugh.

"Oh yeah," he says. I make silly faces and he captures more pictures. 

"There!" William's exclaims. "Cheetahs, they are always a sure bet."

We all look towards a coalition of Cheetahs nestling in a bush, moving their tails and ears around.

"They have ears like Chinny," Ivan says.

I laugh and he captures another shot. "Are those Elephants? Oh my god they're huge." I say, looking at a small herd of Elephants. "Fifteen, is that the entire herd?"

"Oh no, they're spread out all over the reserve in different herds." Anisa says.

"Wow."

○○○○○

We saw antelopes, and warthogs, herds and herds of Zebras, all watching the sunrise with their ears standing tall, just like The Lion King and of course, Ivan would have taken a million pictures. 

After the seventy minute ride, at 6:40 a.m. the balloon glides down into the bush. We jump out of the basket again, gathering shortly for a group picture with Anisa and Williams, all of us saying, "Mara!"

"Next stop," Anisa says. "Buffet Breakfast and Champagne."

"Really?" I squeal. "Ivan."

He turns around and I fake faint into his arms. He pulls my face up and kisses my forehead.

I'm beginning to feel larger than life.