The next day after breakfast we headed out for another game drive and a visit to a Maasai Village. The Maasai are an ethnic group in the the Masai Mara. They are the famed warriors dressed in red and adorned in beads who perform the ceremonial dance that consists of high, vertical jumps. Meeting the Maasai was a once in a lifetime experience, as their culture is slowly being changed by westernization. There are more and more maasai that have adopted the western way of clothing and living, but a few traditional villages left that still live in the old ways. We went to one of the traditional villages. The traditional way of greeting in the Maasai culture is to spit on the palm of the hand before shaking hands. You will see a Maasai putting the palm of their hand to the mouth before shaking hands (this is the spitting). It is customary to do this. We were welcomed with singing from the women of the village. It was an experience that was surreal. When the translator told me I was asked where I came from, I told them the United States. I was showered with smiles and the word "Obama!". I was welcomed in one of the Maasai homes to see what it looked like from the inside. They were modest homes made of wood frames, with mud, cattle dung and water mixed to make the material that form the walls. There was a kitchen with a small firepit used as a stove and a separate bedroom with a bed made of natural materials. I was very honored that I was allowed to go into one of the homes, and expressed my gratitude for inviting me as a guest. We then headed up the road to the Maasai Market. It's where the Maasai go to buy goods, food and trade cattle. To the Maasai, the more cattle you own, the richer you are. A man's wealth is determined on the number of cattle he owns. We saw a cattle auction with the Maasai bargaining on the prices of the cattle, some dressed in traditional clothing, some in western clothes and some dressed in a mix of the two. We walked through the market, looking at the various items for sale, grains, fruits, vegetables, small electonics, clothes and other items. "Jambo!" we were told as we passed the market stands. "Jambo" means "Hello" in swahili. The Maasai are wonderful people and very gracious. I enjoyed my time in the Masai Mara.

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