My parents went to Kenya when I was just a small girl. They named their ranch Aberdare, after the Aberdare National Park in central Kenya, where they stayed at the Treetops Lodge.
Finally, in my seventh decade, I was able to afford to go to Kenya. I spent the majority of my trip in East Kenya, the Masai Mara, in a small, tented camp called Bella Mara.
Every day I was there on safari was beyond my wildest imagination. My last adventure was at the Lentorre Lodge in Southern Kenya.
Seeing for the first time African animals not in a zoo or in a circus brought tears to my eyes. I learned about our global responsibility to help keep these animals for generations to come. Loss of habitat and humans are their worst enemy. Education is the only prayer they have not to become extinct.
I have been an artist all of my life in one form or another. In college, I majored in art, painting large scale abstracts. I used African designs to paint tabletops. I have always been involved with animals, large and small. I have an active retired nursing license.
I have worked as a critical care nurse for three decades. I have worked as a volunteer nurse manager in Sequim at our Dungeness Health &Wellness Clinic.
Seeing the world through my eyes and being able to portray it photographically is my heart and soul.
I belong to the Olympic Peaks Camera Club in Sequim. I enjoy sharing my photos, socializing with the other members, and taking field trips through our club. Plus, we have wonderful monthly education nights that feature some very talented photographers from around the world.
I hope my Kenyan images will inspire you.
About the presenter
Anaya moved to Sequim eight years ago. Photography is her passion, she said, as are her border collies. Some locals may Anaya from volunteering at the Sequim Information Center, as a registered nurse at the Dungeness Health and Wellness Clinic, and from social media. She’s had photographs displayed at the Blackbird Café, Studio Bob’s and Sequim Museum & Arts.
It was Anaya’s lifelong dream to retire to Sequim, as it was a lifelong dream to be able to travel to Africa. In East Kenya, seeing first-hand wild animals in their environment and the people of the Masai Mara trying to live mutually with them was life-changing, she said. “I witnessed survival of the fittest, trauma and joy. I learned how man, loss of habitat and climate change are affecting the animals and the people who live there.”
About the series
Traveler’s Journal, a presentation of the Peninsula Trails Coalition, raises funds to buy project supplies and food for volunteers working on Olympic Discovery Trail projects. Shows start at 7 p.m. at the Dungeness River Nature Center, 1943 W. Hendrickson Road.
Admission is a suggested donation is $5 for adults. Attendees are encouraged, but not required, to wear mask.
For more information, email Arvo Johnson at amjcgj@gmail.com.
2023 Traveler’s Journal Series
When: 7 p.m., Thursday, March 16 (door opens at 6:30 p.m.)
Presenter: Suzanne Anaya
Presentation: “Massai Mara, East Kenya”
Where: Dungeness River Nature Center, 1943 W. Hendrickson Road
Cost: Suggested $5 donation (adults)
Coming up: “Will there be refreshments? Hiking the Pyrenees High Route” with Carol Bernthal, March 23
Photo by Suzanna Anya / Wildebeests cross the Mara River in Kenya.
Photo by Suzanna Anya / A family of elephants.
Photo by Suzanna Anya / Impala get an evening drink.
Photo by Suzanna Anya / A Kenyan goat herder is hard at work.
Photo by Suzanna Anya / A gathering of flamingos seem to be dancing.
