But the most memorable moment of that first day for me occurred at the Giraffe Center in the suburb of Langata. Founded by Betty and Jock Leslie-Melvile in 1979 as a refuge for endangered Rothschild giraffes and supported today by the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife, the Giraffe Center makes exemplary efforts to educate Kenyan schoolchildren about their wildlife and environment. Part of that effort includes the opportunity to feed the giraffes and, for a brave and foolhardy few, to kiss a giraffe.
When Lewela asked our adventurous foursome if any of us wanted to be kissed by a giraffe, I felt sure someone else would volunteer—wouldn’t a giraffe kiss make that honeymoon even more memorable? But when no one stepped forward, I felt a professional obligation to put my lips on the line. Lewela laughed and slapped me on the back, then placed a long thin stick of some sweet treat—a kind of giraffe Tootsie Roll—between my teeth and instructed me to pucker up. Sure enough, within a few seconds, a Rothschild beauty was swinging its patched proboscis toward me and unfurling its prodigious leather-black tongue. With a swift tickle of chin hairs and a sloppy slippery scratch of the tongue, she took the Tootsie from my lips. Wow! Talk about interspecies communication.
As I blinked in disbelief, Lewela draped an arm over my shoulder. “Don’t worry, Don, the giraffe’s saliva is extremely antiseptic.” Ah, I felt much better.
So what did it feel like? Make a dish of tapioca pudding and spread a thin layer over a sheet of very rough-grained sandpaper; now take that sheet and smoosh it across your lips. Mmmm. The kiss of the giraffe.
That night we were treated to a festive feast at Mrs. Pinto’s home in another gracious Nairobi suburb and I was able to regale the table with my tale of the giraffe’s kiss. Sometimes adventure travel takes you places you never expected to go. And this was just the beginning!
By Don George, guest blogger for Viator.com. Don has been a pioneering travel writer and editor for 25 years. His seven books include “Travel Writing,” “The Kindness of Strangers,” and “Tales from Nowhere.”
.gif){kind=icon}
