VISITORS AND ILLNESS 245 



him whereby he was to stay with us until we were out 

 of the worst going. After that for a week he towed 

 our cars through the mud at intervals. One we had 

 to abandon hopelessly bogged. 



Osa and I went on, sloshing through the mud for 

 two hundred miles more to Nairobi, completing 

 the worst safari I think we ever experienced. At 

 Nairobi we had a reimion with Carl Akeley who had 

 rented a big stone house on the outskirts of the town 

 and was preparing for the arrival of the Eastman 

 expedition. The latter came in on the following 

 day and for the next week we were busy getting their 

 things out of customs and preparing for our first 

 safari with them. 



It was now raining every day. We had planned to 

 take the newcomers directly back to Lake Paradise; 

 but we knew it would be hopeless to attempt the trip 

 at this time. This reminds me that I have heard 

 the seasons in South Africa are changing somewhat. 

 Certain it is that the rainy and dry seasons in Africa 

 seem to have gotten mixed up. They don't start any 

 more where they should ; and neither do they end on 

 schedule. However, such conclusions should not be 

 drawn hastily from only a few seasons' observations. 



As the Kedong Valley, about thirty-five miles out 

 of Nairobi, seemed to be dry, we took our friends 

 down there for ten days. This valley is part of the 

 great Rift Valley, which starts in Asia and zigzags 



