Fencing

I try and write in English this time since Salaash hasn’t been able to read the previous posts and is very interested in this blog. A lot of things are happening now with the plot of land and with the Trust. The lawyer has now finished his work on the trust. Salaash has the papers and we will soon be able to take part of them and maybe publish them on the blog.

Salaash has been working on the fencing of the plot of land in Maasai Mara. About two weeks ago he left Nairobi and took a matatu to the plot of land in Narok. All the poles for the fencing were made and Salaash made sure they all got on board a lorry for transportation to Maasai Mara. About three kilometers from the goal the lorry was stuck. There were heavy rains and the road was muddy. They tried to pull the lorry with help from the Old Donkey but the lorry couldn’t be moved. The staff left to take shelter and find a place to stay for the night. Salaash, who was worried that someone would steel our poles put up his tent on the roof of the Donkey (where he feels most safe from animals, thieves and rain), kept some poisonous arrows inside the tent and stayed two night guarding our precious load. Two days later, they still couldn’t move the lorry so the staff had to start carrying the poles for three kilometers to the plot of land.

The plot of land is in Siana and situated approximately where the red heart is drawn. The closest gate is called Sekenani Gate and is about 10km distance from The Old Donkey Memorial.

They started to put up the poles. Salaash came to visit us a few days later and his hands had turned grayish from stirring the cement with his bare hands (he’s a very dedicated man!). It had been a bit too wet though and they were afraid the cement would get destroyed by the rains since it didn’t get the chance to dry up. So, they gave the fencing a bit of rest. During that time elephants had broken some of the poles (The plot of land is at the moment the elephants’ highway to water).

At this moment Salaash is in Maasai Mara again to finish the work with the fencing. So next time we see the land for the Old Donkey Memorial (and maybe do some camping) it will all be in a safe way inside a good fence. Now we are just waiting for the lawyer to finish the work to transfer the ownership of the land. After that we can start working on the design of the land, the building(s) etc. Salaash thinks we should plant one tree for every child that is part of Old Donkey Memorial – only indigenous trees though!

Some more pictures from the plot of land in Maasai Mara