11/01/2024
Maasai village.
The Maasai settlement was located in the middle of a large open area of savannah.
The squat, round huts were located in a semicircle, making it seem as if the settlement was even larger than it actually was.
I was dressed in Maasai clothing, which consisted of large, brightly colored pieces of cloth held together with knots, and was given a stick. When I asked why the Maasai needed a stick, they received an explanation from a local leader named Lekle that the Maasai always needed a stick - for walking in self-defense and for driving goats and cows into a corral.
It seemed like the whole village took part in the welcoming dance, and for them it was also a kind of entertainment. I was invited into a circle with other Maasai men, and there I joined them in performing the traditional upward jumps that the Maasai are so proud of.
By the way, why the Maasai jump upward in dance, I did not receive an intelligible answer. But most likely this is due to the ancient ritual of calling rain.
The Maasai huts themselves looked very modest. Inside they were divided into two parts. They cooked or sat in one part of the hut, and slept in the other part of the hut. As I understand it, both children and adults sleep together in a separate part of the hut, right on the bare ground.
But all members of the tribe spend most of their time outdoors.
The men take care of the goats and cows, and also practice their hunting skills by throwing a spear at targets and shooting with a bow. By the way, there I tried to shoot a bow and throw a spear at a target like a real Maasai.. Of course it turned out badly. To use a bow and spear well, you must still be born Maasai.
The Maasai usually make fire by rubbing a wooden stick against another piece of wood. They did it quite quickly and deftly when they demonstrated their skills to me. Despite several attempts, I was never able to get fire.
Women in the tribe do all the routine work. They weave necklaces from beads, cook food, repair huts by coating them with cow dung diluted in water, bring firewood and water to the settlement, milk cows and collect useful plants and herbs.
By the way, I tried fresh milk straight from the cow. Quite thick and has a sweetish taste.
The leader of the Lekle tribe, according to him, has three wives and for each he built a separate hut. And in order to have enough potency for all his wives, Lekle constantly chews to***co and some other plants.
The tribe also makes alcohol by fermenting maize flour.
The tribe's main source of income is the sale of goats and money received from tourists.
The settlement also has its own school, where children are taught English and elementary mathematics.
The Maasai do not need a deeper level of knowledge in life.
The end of the day spent with the Maasai was an evening around the fire. It was very unusual to be in the middle of the savannah, surrounded by wild nature and surrounded by tribesmen armed with bows and spears. It was as if I had been transported to another distant era.
As dusk fell, the chief and other members of the tribe bid me a warm farewell, closing a fence made of acacia branches behind the departing car in which I was sitting.
As they explained to me, they do this to protect against lions and hyenas