We interviewed Rosa Escandell, co-founder along with William Kikanae Ole Pere of this unique project of great purpose. It has been twenty years since their paths crossed and they created ADCAM, a project dedicated to preserving the Maasai culture in Kenya.
In the land of warriors. Travel notebook to the Masai Mara with Masqi and ADCAM
Sometimes the most life-changing experiences take time to sink in. This trip to the Masai Mara in Kenya was much more than a destination: it was an encounter with an ancient culture and a way of life that touches your soul.
There are journeys that not only take you to a destination, but transform your outlook on life. This past August, the Masai Mara offered us not only stunning landscapes, but also a profound and moving learning experience.
“The Masai bracelets that I still wear on my wrists are a reminder of that connection with what is essential, with a way of living in total harmony with nature. I look at these small pieces of colour and smile, looking for that anchor and remembering the moments lived.” Silvia Hengstenberg
A Journey with Purpose
It all began with an invitation from our friend Sonia Ferré, owner of the Masqi hotel, who organized a small group to discover the heart of the Masai community in Kenya, on the occasion of its tenth anniversary. After 30 hours of travel, we arrived at the Masai Mara, a vast protected savannah where lions, elephants, giraffes and leopards coexist. Accompanied by William Kikanae, a Masai leader, and Rosa Escandell, co-founders of ADCAM, we discovered first-hand the projects that this NGO leads in the region. They were our hosts on a tour that showed us both the cultural richness and the challenges faced by this community.
Life at Sawa Mara Eco Lodge
Our adventure began at Sawa Mara Eco Lodge, an eco-camp run entirely by the Maasai community, a project created and promoted by ADCAM, with the aim of preserving the future of this ancestral people.
Here it is not just about safaris, but about living an immersive experience in the Maasai culture.
The first night, the sounds of the savannah became an unforgettable soundtrack. From listening to the hippos in the Mara River from your tent and the creaking of branches in the distance. Every awakening was a gift, like that morning when we had breakfast surrounded by zebras after camping in the middle of the savannah. The connection with nature was absolute.
Walking through the Savannah with the Masai
To discover the savannah with the Masai is to enter a world of codes and meanings. They walk calmly, dressed in their colorful red blankets, a symbol of courage and protection. They taught us that white is a color that alerts animals and why a simple red blanket can be your best ally in the savannah, not only as a coat, but as a tool to transport children and even sick people. During the walks, they showed us how to read the signs of nature and how to respectfully coexist with animals.
Rituals and Unique Experiences
One night, by the warmth of a bonfire, we attended an ancestral Masai ritual. Their songs and dances, in the middle of the immense starry sky, resonated like an echo of something eternal. Another day, the sun was setting while giraffes and buffalos strolled around us, creating an image as powerful as it was unrepeatable. Each moment immersed us more in their way of understanding life. We were even invited to a mass in one of their temples, where we experienced their way of giving thanks to life, celebrating and even dancing. We learned about the educational project from them and visited both the school and the “manyatas” where the artisan women live and work.
All of this was accompanied by the incredible yoga and meditation sessions of Sonia Ferré, with whom every sunrise and every sunset, whether in the savannah, in the lodge or in the school itself, we lived unforgettable moments.
The Story of William and Rosa
This journey takes us to the origin of ADCAM, an NGO that has transformed the life of the Masai community in the Masai Mara. William, leader of his community, traveled 40 kilometers a day as a child to go to school, facing the dangers of the savannah. Son of a brave mother who fought alone to bring him up, William learned from childhood the value of education and the fundamental role of women in his community. That daily journey, under the scorching sun and the darkness of the night, awakened in him a dream: to build a school so that the children of his community could study without facing the dangers that he experienced. Without resources, his first school was a tree in the middle of the savannah. The bare trunk became a blackboard, the tree bark became chalk, and the children’s legs became notebooks. They sat on the ground and, when it rained, there was no class. But that small improvised school was the seed of something bigger: a vision of the future for his community.
When William met Rosa Escandell, he found not only an ally, but a partner with whom he could share his dream. Rosa, an expert in international cooperation, was moved by the authenticity of his story and decided to join him. Together they founded ADCAM in 2005, with the aim of transforming the lives of the Maasai through education, the empowerment of women and sustainable development. Thanks to the tireless determination of both, today their projects include the Mara Vision School, a school in the reserve that educates more than 250 Maasai children. It also includes a cooperative of 2,500 women artisans with which they empower women, ensuring their future and economic independence, and the Sawa Mara Eco Lodge, which finances a large part of their activities.
Final Recommendation
This trip is much more than a tourist destination: it is an opportunity to discover the savannah from the perspective of those who inhabit it, to connect with a community that finds its guide and balance in nature. If you are looking for an authentic experience, full of meaning and beauty, here, the savannah and its people invite you to dream, learn, live with nature and return with your soul full of an ancestral legacy, the Masai Mara is the place.
We are definitely looking forward to returning. Masqi will repeat this incredible experience in 2025 together with ADCAM, an NGO that we recommend you follow closely and of course recommend that you stay at their lodge, since the satisfaction of the experience triples when you see the dedication, the love behind it and the powerful social purpose that helps this community to forge its own future by leading its own change.
This trip was not just a physical journey, but a life lesson. William and Rosa’s story showed us how perseverance and authenticity can change the destiny of a community. In every corner of the Masai Mara there is a spirit of resilience and connection to what is essential.
We leave you all the addresses:
More information ADCAM.
More information Masqi
Safari to Kenya: Masqi from July 26 to August 6, 2025
Our purpose is to help give visibility to this project so don’t miss our interview with Rosa Escandell and the charity art auction that we will do in Madrid on January 21 in Madrid, an event in which ADCAM will be presented by its founders, in our Tr3intayuno space.
Article written by: Silvia Hengstenberg
Photographs: thanks to the entire travel group for sharing these photos and being able to document this article. To Sonia, Rosa, William, Manuel, Esther, Galia, Sylvia, Eva, Merce, Nathalie, Celine, Aurora and the rest of the colleagues.
