I have to admit that there are not many resturants in Nairobi that I would crave for however, this particular one had me on my first bite of it's Chooza Chicken.

As per my previous post on the Tipuana trees and the jacarandas, I realized that there is a pink and red tree as well.... it's really amazing! Unfortunately I do not know what they are called, in full bloom they really bring colors to the city!

For years i have been in Kenya, I never took the effort to visit the famous Coast of Kenya. I have briefly visited the North Coast of Mombasa however it did not really impressed me. I supposed coming from Asian where white sandy beach is abundant, taking a relaxing weekend by the beach was not top of my list of things to do in Africa.

Little did I know that a visit to the South Coast of Mombasa, specifically Diani, could be one of the most relaxing trip I've ever taken. Literally, forgetting all your worries behind with your favourite book in one hand and a pina colada in the other. And the scenery....absolutely gorgeous!

Having visited the Mara, Amboseli and Tsavo, the only National Park I wanted to tick off my list in Kenya is Samburu. Although Samburu is not as well known (or rather not well publicized) like the Mara, if you have the chance, I strongly recommend you to pay a visit to this National Park.

First lesson I learnt from this trip was the difference between, National Park and National Conservancy. A National Park is the government’s responsibility and the national conservancy is the local Government’s.

Unlike the Mara, I was more keen to see the “northern hemisphere” animals such as the Grevy Zebras (where the patterns were so well defined that the made the usual zebras looks quite horrendous), Gerenuk (Giraffe antelope) , Oryx, Somali Ostrich (Blue neck and legs instead of pink), Vulturine Guineafowl (Blue lined feathers instead of dot, again made the usual guinea fowl we see quite ugly), reticulated Giraffe (apparently the patterns are larger but I fail to notice) and many different kinds of colour birds.


Grezy Zebra


Gerenuk


Somali Ostrich

The landscape is completely different from Mara where large plains are not seen at all. Instead, it is hilly and dense with scrubs/tree. Similarly in Shaba, the whole area looks extremely dry, despite the fact that the Ewaso Ngiro river cuts through both of these two parks. The interesting sight I caught was that there seems to be an oasis in the midst of the dryness where you can see a lustrous green patch of tree and grass right the in the middle of the vast brown scrubs.


Green pasture in the midst of the "drought"

We decided to lay our heads at Joy’s Camp which is situated at the Shaba National Conservancy. The torturing rocky ride from the smooth main road to the camp site was all worth it. The camp site has only 10 luxury tents so you can imagine the pleasure of being a guest in this place. I have absolutely no complains about the food (desert was to die for) and for the first time, the packed lunch is not in paper box but a picnic with proper cutleries and mugs for your hot coffee. That was such a treat!


Joy's Camp

Although the road trip from Nairobi to our camp in Shaba was about 7 hours but the long and tiring journey was compensated with a scenic drive (especially around Mt Kenya region) and the comfort of the luxury tent.

Tucked away from the hustle bustle of the busy city of Nairobi, there is a place where local artist (which includes the neighboring countries) store their masterpiece for exhibition and for sale.

This art studio is found along the way to the Tigoni Tea Farms and to be honest one would not even think that there is an art studio in this town called Banana Hill.

From Village Market, on Limuru Road (opposite direction from the UM) and go towards the direction of the tea farm. Watch out for the signboard.



Reason for them setting it up here is because of the cost. There are quite a few nice masterpiece in the stores behind the main exhibition hall and requires some patience to run through each paintings. There are on going exhibition most of the time and you can sign up to receive their news and upcoming events.


Tanzanian Artist's work on exhibition

Nyama Choma (Roast Meat) is a common and well-liked meal kenyan loves to have when they eat out. What I found special about this Nyama Choma place in Thika town is that they do roast pork and not the usual goat or beef.

Close to what the chinese have, this roast pork is season with nothing and only season with some salt before they slipped the steaming hot piece of meat into their mouth.


It doesn't look that appealing but trust me it is yummy!



One odd thing pointed out by my dad is that they seems to charge the same price for cooked and uncooked meat...I guess it's more worth it to get the cooked meat!

All those with the dream of creating your very own little indoor safari by carrying home a 3 ft, 4 ft and 5 ft (even 6 ft) giraffe and don't want to pay more should make their way here. Machakos is often made as a reference where this place is however, the specific town is known as Wamunyu ( which is in the Machakos district). This place, I was told, is one of the source of the wood craving handicraft you see in the Masai Market in Nairobi.

Looking for a relaxing weekend away from Nairobi and yet not willing to travel too far? Look no further. Tigoni has got just what you need, away from the busy Nairobi. Just about 30 mins from Village Market will take you to the beautiful landscape of tea plantations in Tigoni. Just by driving in this area itself is therapeutic.

Hidden in the heart of Langata somewhere opposite the Nairobi National Park, there is a magical fairy land where all used glass are recycled and turned into something beautiful: The Kitengela Glass Factory.

There is something which I really miss after staying in Kenya is the nice pastries and cakes. It is not that Kenya doesn't have it but you can only get it from places like Art Cafe, Java, Dorman or Savannah. I was looking more at those lovely bakeries that bake good cakes, bread and assorted buns. Finally, I found one, Cake Plaza.

In additional to my last trip to Lake Baringo, I did see something different. I guess it never hurt to visit one place twice.

Lake Nakuru is famousfor its massive population of Flamingo, however, lately most of them has migrated to Lake Bogoria which is slightly further up from Lake Nakuru. About 3 (plus) hours from Nairobi, this place is extremely worth the visit. When i was told that we will be heading to Lake Bogoria (as part of our trip to Lake Baringo), I was kind of expecting that it was just another lake. I was wrong and I am glad I was.

This tiny little gem is found at Lake Naivasha. The Crescent island is a preserved sanctuary for Wildlife. The most interesting part about this island is that you get to do your safari on foot. Yes, that means you'll get to walk among the animals instead of enjoying them from the car. Of course, you will never be too close as they will probably start avoiding you even when you are miles away.

To get to this place, you park your car at the Naivasha Country Club and get a boat ride from the country club. You can buy the ticket from the reception. Alternatively, you can also drive to island by passing through the "Horse Riding Complex" (keep right). Park fees will be charged.


Boat Docking at the shore of Crescent Island