My Visual Travel Experience: Kenya

I've been an avid international traveler for years, but Africa and South America were two continents I had somehow never ended up visiting. Last year, I finally made my first trip to Africa and spent 10 days in Kenya over the summer, for an unforgettable experience, very different from anything I've had before!

The trip was that much more special because my parents lived in Nairobi in the mid 1960s for 2 years (my father was a diplomat there at the Indian mission), and my elder sister, Ankila, was born there. I had the opportunity of visiting the house where my parents lived - the house is still with the Indian Embassy. I also got to meet a couple - the Inamdars - who were old friends of my parents from back then, and who had kept in touch through all these decades! It was also good to meet my old XLRI batchmate, Vikash, who works with GSK and lives in Nairobi.

A lot of people tend to skip Nairobi and treat it like a transit point before going to the game parks. I decided to spend a few days in Nairobi. I stayed at the Nairobi Gymkhana Club, through my reciprocal membership with Delhi Gymkhana Club, and I also stayed with the Inamdars. I had a car at my disposal through my stay in Nairobi, and my knowledgeable and chatty driver, Hillary, made things very interesting with all his anecdotes about local life, culture and politics! I was impressed at the fluency with which Hillary spoke English, and I later discovered that levels of fluency in English are really high across the country. I found the people friendly. I had been advised to be a little careful, as muggings are known to occur, but I took precautions and my visit was fortunately incident free.

Nairobi turned out to be a very pleasant experience. The highlights of my visit included:

Nairobi National Park: The park lies on the outskirts of Nairobi and is spread over 117 sq km. It was set up in 1964 and was Kenya's first national park. The park has most animals that one finds across national parks in Kenya, but one notable exception is the elephant, because it was felt the park wasn't big enough for elephants. I got to see rhinos, impalas, warthogs, giraffes, zebras and many more animals. The park also has a savannah walk and an animal orphanage, for sick and orphaned animals. At the orphanage, I had the unique and not too pleasant experience of being piddled on by an agitated lion from across its cage!

Rhinos at Nairobi National Park, Nairobi

Impala at Nairobi National Park, Nairobi

Baboons at Nairobi National Park, Nairobi

Warthog at Nairobi National Park, Nairobi

Lion at Animal Orphanage, Nairobi
National Park, Nairobi

Cheetah at Safari Walk, Nairobi
National Park, Nairobi

David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust: This trust was set up in 1977 by Daphne Sheldrick, the widow of David Sheldrick, the former game warden at Tsavo National Park. The park looks after orphaned baby elephants. During feeding time, the park is open to visitors, who can see dozens of baby elephants feeding on formula milk, perfected for them. The elephants also have a blast bathing in mud!

A baby elephant being fed milk at the David Sheldrick 
Wildlife Trust, Nairobi

Giraffe Centre: The centre was set up in 1983 and hosts the rare Rotschild Giraffes. There is an elevated viewing platform where visitors can feed giraffes.

A giraffe demanding food at the Giraffe Centre, Nairobi

Nairobi Mamba Village: Mamba means crocodile in Swahili, and this is an interesting crocodile farm. The complex also has ostriches, tortoises, and various rides for kids.

Crocodile at Nairobi Mamba Village, Nairobi

Camel Ride at Nairobi Mamba Village, Nairobi

Carnivore Restaurant: This world famous restaurant is a meat lover's paradise. It offers a set menu consisting of sizzling meats, including chicken, lamb, pork, beef, ox, ostrich, rabbit and crocodile. Waiters come with these large skewers of meat, and one can eat as much as one's tummy allows!

A waiter with his skewer at Carnivore, 
Nairobi

Various Meats at Carnivore, Nairobi

Karen Blixen Museum: The Karen Blixen Museum is the house where the well known Danish author, Karen Blixen, lived from 1914 to 1932. She ran a coffee farm in Kenya. She became famous with her autobiography, “Out Of Africa”, which was then made into a Hollywood movie in 1985, starring Meryl Streep as Karen Blixen – the movie went on to win multiple Oscars. Visitors can see the interior of the house, with its period furniture.

Karen Blixen Museum, Nairobi

Nairobi National Museum: Nairobi National Museum was set up in 1910, to showcase Kenya’s rich natural history. It has gone through stages of expansion and renovation and reopened in 2008. The museum has an impressive collection of stuffed animals and birds, as well as a remarkable section of prehistoric man, with several skulls dating back to over a million years ago!

A stuffed elephant at Nairobi 
National Museum, Nairobi

Ahmed the Elephant at Nairobi
National Park, Nairobi

Francolins at Nairobi
National Museum, Nairobi

Kenyatta International Conference Centre: Kenyatta International Conference Centre was built in 1973. The 30 story circular tower offers splendid views of Nairobi from the top. There’s also a helipad at the top. The conference centre plays host to many important international conferences. Outside it, there's the City Square, with a seated sculpture of the country's first President, Jomo Kenyatta. The Holy Family Basilica, Nairobi's main church, lies very close by. 

Kenyatta International Conference Centre, in the heart of Nairobi

City Square with statue of Jomo Kenyatta, Nairobi

Railway Museum: The Railway Museum features several locomotive engines dating back to the late 19th century, from the period of the construction of the Uganda Railway from Mombasa to Uganda. The museum has interesting exhibits with photographs depicting the history of the railway line. Nairobi came up as a city during the construction of this line.

Locomotive Engine at Railway Museum, Nairobi

Bomas of Kenya: Bomas of Kenya was set up in 1971 by the government to preserve tribal culture. Every day, there are shows with tribal dance and music performances. One of the main highlights of the show is the brilliant acrobatics performance.

Bomas of Kenya, Nairobi

Some of the other interesting sites of the city include the art deco City Market (with its numerous souvenir stalls), Swaminarayan Temple (a Hindu temple built by the Indian community), Jamia Mosque (Nairobi's main mosque), Nairobi Arboretum (a large park with walking and jogging trails, that has numerous species of trees; it was founded in 1907 and originally had exotic tree species from Australia and the Americas), City Park (which dates back to 1904 and has beautifully landscaped gardens), Uhuru Garden (with its National Monument, dedicated to the country's independence from the British in 1963), Uhuru Park (a green patch in the heart of the city, close to City Square) and National Archives (the collection inside largely consists of the private collection of Joseph Murundi, an art collector who was the country’s first Vice President; the collection includes objects of art from across Africa, tribal masks, sculptures, furniture and other objects of interest).

Paintings at City Market, Nairobi

Bust of a Woman, City Market, Nairobi

Swaminarayan Temple, Nairobi

Jamia Mosque, Nairobi

Nairobi Arboretum, Nairobi

People feeding a Monkey, City Park, Nairobi

City Park, Nairobi

National Monument at Uhuru Garden, Nairobi

Uhuru Park, Nairobi

Exhibit at National Archives, Nairobi

After a few days in Nairobi, I set out on a safari. I had a minibus with a sliding top all to myself. I opted to travel solo as that gave me ample flexibility, and I thoroughly enjoyed my few days on the safari. My driver was a fellow called Joel, who was most helpful and went out of his way to ensure I saw as much wildlife as possible.

I first went to Lake Naivasha, just 90 km outside Nairobi. The lake covers an area of about 130 sq km. It has a very rich array of birds, found in very large numbers, including cormorants, pelicans, marabou storks and Egyptian cranes. Hippos can also be seen in the lake. In the park outside the lake, one can see animals like giraffes, zebras, and impalas. The best way to explore the national park is to go on a boat ride.

Pelicans at Lake Naivasha

Marabou Storks at Lake Naivasha

Cormorant at Lake Naivasha

Trees at Lake Naivasha

Hippo at Lake Naivasha

Next, I went to Lake Nakuru, 160 km from Nairobi. Lake Nakuru was established as a national park in 1968. The lake is famous for the millions of pink flamingoes that reside there, but with changing saline levels in the lake, they do migrate elsewhere and there are times when none are to be seen - unfortunately, that was the case during my visit. When they are seen, however, it is quite a spectacle seeing a huge pink mass! On my visit, I saw giraffes, zebras, black rhinos, impalas, buffaloes, warthogs, baboons and a wide range of birds.

Rhinos at Lake Nakuru

Zebras at Lake Nakuru

A buffalo at Lake Nakuru

Babboons at Lake Nakuru

Impalas at Lake Nakuru

My last halt was Masai Mara, and that was also the real highlight of my trip. Masai Mara is not the largest, but is certainly the most popular of Kenya’s national parks. It was established as a national park in 1968, is spread over 1,510 sq km, and lies around 265 km from Nairobi. Wildebeests and zebras, especially the former, can be seen in very large numbers. In July/ August, one can witness the wildebeest migration, when huge numbers cross the Mara River & come in from Serengeti  in Tanzania. In November, the reverse migration can be seen. Many of the wildebeests don’t make it, as they drown or get eaten by crocodiles. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see the migration, despite being there in the right season. But no complaints, as I was lucky to see a huge range of animals - wildebeests, zebras, giraffes, elephants, hippos, crocodiles, buffaloes, ostriches, vultures, cheetahs and lions, to name a few. I was particularly fortunate with the lion spottings, as I got to see lions from up close on no fewer than about 7 occasions spread over 3 days. I also got to visit a Masai village close to the park's entrance, and got to see their dwelling units and their cultural performances.

A lioness at Masai Mara

Elephants at Masai Mara

Giraffe at Masai Mara

Hippos at Masai Mara

Wildebeests and Zebras at Masai Mara

Buffalo at Masai Mara

Gazelle at Masai Mara

Lioness at Tourists at Masai Mara

Masais lighting a Fire at Masai Mara

Me in my minibus at Masai Mara

My stay at the national parks was at Sintrum Resort Elementaita (on the banks of the Elementaita Lake, close to Lake Nakuru; the property was very nice, the only problem being the zillions of insects if one stepped outside in the evening) and Sintrum Mara (which was inside Masai Mara, close to the park's entrance). For the safaris, my travel agent was an Indian lady called Aparajita, who has been living in Kenya for years. She did a fine job indeed.

My wife and 2 year old son were visiting my mother in law in Kolkata while I was on the trip. My wife had been to Kenya before and so she didn't mind my going alone, and my son was too young to take along. But the trip was such a fabulous experience that it would be great to go back some day with the family, once my son is older! It would be good to visit a few of the famous national parks I didn't get the time to visit - Tsavo East National Park, Tsavo West National Park and Amboseli National Park (famous for its huge tuskers). It would also be great to cross the border and visit Tanzania, which boasts of Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro National Park.