I am yet to write much about the Maasai who have been a fascinating site for me as we have driven through northern Tanzania.

On the side of the road you see men (warriors) in red or purple tartan shukas, or boys wearing black (indicating their recent circumcision) – different coloured cloth denotes different stages in the life of a Maasai.

You also see women with shaved heads and lots of jewellery made using hundreds of beads; they often have elongated earlobes and elaborate necklaces. Again the colour of their clothing denotes their stage in life.

The Maasai used to practice both male and female circumcision. Female circumcision was stopped when it was outlawed. But the practice continues for boys. The procedure takes place around the age of 13 and is performed by a village elder, the boys are not given any anaesthetic and are not allowed to show any fear or pain before during or after the operation. If the boys show pain they are not ‘real men’ and will not be given a party after their circumcision.

The Massai pop up all over the place in northern Tanzania. They can be found grazing cattle across the planes as they have done for thousands of years, but they often appear just as comfortable wandering through northern Tanzania’s towns.

The Maasai’s reputation for being fearsome warriors make them perfect security guards and many can be found working as security guards much further south than their tribes would historically have wandered.

During their history the Maasai travelled south into northern Tanzania where the seasonal grasslands were ideal for their cattle. They reached their present extent in the 18th century at which time they were the most powerful and feared tribe in east Africa. Their tight social organisation, offensive warfare, deadly cattle raids and mobility as semi-nomadic cattle herders ensured they could go wherever they pleased.

In the 17th century their combined Kenyan and Tanzanian territory was around 200,000 sq km, but today is less than a quarter of what it was before the Europeans arrived in Africa. The British took much of it away to use as farms and ranches for settlers and more recently large portions have been turned into wildlife preserves.

The Maasai used to graze their cattle in the Ngorongoro crater, but the cattle were easy pickings for lions and in retaliation the Massai would kill the big cats. Today the Maasai are allowed to bring thier cattle into the crater to drink but must take them out again to graze.

Snake Park in Arusha has a Maasai culture museum where a Maasai guide took us around and explained their culture,  although this mainly centred on circumcision. He also explained that husbands and wives do not sleep together, they come together only to have sex to produce children.

We were also given a tour of the nearby Maasai village which included a look inside one of their basic mud huts. The space was small and filled with a mis-match of ad hoc furniture. A fire was burning, for warmth (!), and filling the hut with thick smoke. We perched on chairs, trying to get below the level of the smoke, listening to the guide talking about Maasai culture and the workings of the village. During the talk children came into the hut fascinated by the white people and wanting to hold our hands. One young girl sat playing with my earing before becoming engrossed in my watch.

Outside the hut Maddie gave the guide some pens and paper to hand out to the children. I was surprised to see the adult women also come and crowd around hoping to get some pens and paper. Amongst the goodies was one rubber that our guide expertly cut into pieces using a scarily sharp machete, then dished out one small piece to each child.