Author Archives: Leonardo Gubinelli

March 6, 2016

African Wildlife Safari & Masai School Project

Written By Leonardo Gubinelli

Welcome to the Masai Mara for an adventure of a lifetime!

This African safari with a difference, welcomes you to a luxury safari camp in the Masai Mara. The base camp for you to set off daily on a wildlife safari.  You will come within touching distance (of course don’t touch they bite!) of amazing African animals most of us only see in zoos or on TV screens. Marvel at the majestic African elephant, watch lions and cheetahs hunt their prey, see a vast number of wildebeests, zebras, giraffes and many more indigenous African animals.

This is no ordinary African safari experience as you will be part of an exclusive group to witness the opening of the very first girls’ secondary school in the Masai Mara, Kenya.  Established by Educate the Children (ETC), a UK-based education charity, the school aims to empower the local girls by providing them with secondary education, an opportunity that is not possible for them – until now.

The region currently has 47 primary schools and no secondary schools. Previously, people from the Masai could find employment without education. Today, under the new Constitution people are required to possess a school certificate in order to obtain any kind of formal employment. So for people that don’t attend school, they have no hope in finding a job and will remain in the cycle of poverty.

You may be asking why is it only a girls secondary school? Well, ETC undertook a survey and their findings were shocking. Only 20% of Masai’s are employed in the surrounding tourist camps, of that only 2% are women. Girls will start to drop at the end of primary school due to a number of reasons – secondary schools are too far away and transport costs are high, boys are favoured to continue their studies, girls will help run the household. The school plans to educate at least 1000 girls over the next 10 years!

You will not only be witness to such a remarkable occasion but you will get to explore the wonders of Kenya.

Please Note: you can add extra services and additional costs, to enhance your journey and your stay. These include;

·         Pick up from Nairobi airport and drop off

·         Stay in Nairobi hotel overnight

·         Stay in Safari camp for extra nights

·         Extend your stay and travel onto Uganda to visit the Gorillas!

·         Hot air balloon safari over the Mara

Please email info@inspiredescapes.com if you wish to book optional extras to the current itinerary and enhance your experience!

For those who cannot join us in February we will be having another trip at the end of May. It will be exactly the same itinerary except instead of attending the school launch you will spend a day at the school interacting with the students and seeing the progress of the school!

March 5, 2016

Mt Kilimanjaro Machame Route

Written By Leonardo Gubinelli

Summit the famous Mt Kilimanjaro, support a local literacy project

This is the alternative Mount Kilimanjaro experience. Not only will you summit one of the world’s most iconic mountains, but you will get the chance to take part in a local literacy project at the foothills of the mountain. 1000’s of people every year use the great Kilimanjaro climb as a way of fundraising for overseas charities. 1000’s of starving children and marginalised families witness this on a daily basis. At the foothills of Kilimanjaro lie local schools desperately in need of help, where many 14 year-olds still cannot read or write. We plan to reinvent these rural schools and turn them into desirable and successful places. On top of your charity of choice, why not join us and fundraise for the people of the mountain.

You will climb Mt Kilimanjaro via the Machame route. This is the most popular route up the mountain. It’s shorter than some and can be more difficult with steeper paths and less time to acclimatise. However, this shouldn’t be a problem for people who are in shape and have some hiking experience.