Kenya is the historical home of the East African safari, a land of sweeping Savannah grasslands inhabited by charismatic mega-fauna, including Big Cats, the Big Five (elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard and rhino) and just about everything in between. Elsewhere, landscapes here stir the soul with deserts in the north, dense forests in the west, Rift Valley lakes in the center and tropical coast out east.

You can enjoy Kenya tours from the Nairobi and get a taste of metropolitan Kenya or witness the great migration to the Serengeti from a hot air-balloon. Rest in the shade of a palm tree on one of the beaches outside the city of Mombasa or rent gear and hike up a snow-capped mountain, like Mt. Kenya, Africa’s second highest peak.

Go to the Rift Valley where you will find Savannah, lakes and the Maasai people. The tribal culture in Kenya is rich and the Maasai, the Swahili and the Turkana are some of the tribes that still live a very traditional lifestyle.

Kenya is also desert land, rain forest, national parks and reserves. The wildlife here is out of this world. Red elephants, mighty cats, millions of pink flamingos, the Big 5 and fascinating predators are just some of the countless animals in this great country. And some are endangered.

Interact with these proud pastoralists in their own environment. They have made the Maasai Mara their home for centuries, herding their cattle and existing in balance with wild animals. It’s a lesson in harmonious living.

Approach their enclosure on foot. It is surrounded by a fence fashioned from thorny acacia branches to keep predators at bay. Even from a distance, you can clearly make out the figures awaiting, dressed in their signature red shuka blankets, adorned with beads and carrying long spears. You are warmly greeted by the headman, bearing his o-rinka a wooden club.

The Maasai have been custodians of this land for centuries. They have kept the environment intact, living in harmony with their cattle and the incredible wildlife of the Maasai Mara. Meeting them on their terms, on their own land, makes your dream come true.

The Maasai live in semi-permanent huts, which the wives make, in a compound called a manyatta. The headman and some of his family showed us around. The huts are mostly circular with a structural framework of poles interwoven with smaller branches, plastered over with a mixture of mud, grass, cow dung and ash. I took a peek into a darkened interior. In this small space, the family cooks, eats, sleeps, socializes and stores food, fuel and possessions.

You are asked to sit in a semicircle in front of the headman’s hut and he addresses you: ‘We are so proud of our heritage. Yes, we do find some of these new Western things useful, like motorbikes and cellphones.