Having driven across the Great Rift Valley we headed for a small village occupied by the Maasai people for our first night in the Mara. As we drove closer we passed small collections of mud huts, herds of cattle and groups of children waving and cartwheeling for us! It was amazing to see the kids out here, miles from the nearest town still enjoying life, and happy to see us.

The village itself was a collection of six huts constructed in a tight circle around a central pen which we later learned was where the cattle were put at night to protect them from lions. It also served as the village centre and where, when we first arrived, we were greeted by the women. They sang songs and danced a traditional welcome, before inviting the girls I was travelling with to join in. It was a fantastic show and although I had no idea what the words to the sings meant, they were great to listen to. As the sun began to set we left the pen (and the cattle were brought in) and had a little look around the village. A lot of the villagers could speak English and I had a great conversation with one maasai man named Robert (English name). It turned out that he was only 23, and had already been a warrior and was now looking to start his family. We talked about life back in England, and he told me how he would like to see it one day. I wonder what he would think if he saw it. The mud huts were small and really dark inside, but incredibly warm and snug. It seemed strange that as all these people were taller than six foot the huts were only about four foot high, but still, they seemed very proud of them. It turned out that it was the womans job to build and maintain the homes, and they would usually last 3-4 years before the village would move on to pastures new. Inside we were told how the huts were constructed, and given a bit of information about how the village works - with visiting Maasai able to walk into any village. Then they offered us some of their home-brew - filtered through certain plants and mixed with a form of honey to sweeten it. It tasted reasonable but not something I would drink regularly...

That night as we sat around the camp fire the village men told us stories and history about the Maasai people. We then told them about where we were from and how we lived. But as we slowly filtered off to bed the Maasai men stayed up all night guarding us agianst lions and elephants. It was nice to think that these guys were there looking after us, but somewhat scary to think that we needed them!

In the morning we were back in the pen (now emptied of cattle) to watch the warriorship display their dance and song. It was just as good as the ladies the night before and this time the guys were dragged out to join in. So I danced around with the Maasai Men and jumped away with them. It was so much fun, and the ladies watching were certainly entertained.

To be able to stay with the Maasai people and learn a little about how they live and work was an experience I was not expecting when I landed in Africa a few days earlier. It opened my eyes to the enourmous differences bewteen people on this planet, and how people with very few posessions and next to no money could infact be some of the happiest people I have ever had the pleasure to meet. It struck me instantly that these people were not after riches or status, they were happy doing what they had always done, and wanted their culture to continue for years to come. The joy and smiles simply radiated from these people, and to see a true smile is not actually a very common sight back home. If the Maasai could symbolise just one thing, it would be 'the kidness of strangers.'