A Weekend in Nairobi

Living in Nairobi, I never really thought about how to spend a fulfilling, action-packed weekend in the city, since it always felt as though there was an ocean of time to do everything I wanted to do. However, a quick visit from my friend Bonnie compelled me to come up with a tight weekend itinerary, as well as giving me the necessary shove to enact my plans.

Since Bonnie was to arrive on Saturday afternoon, I did not have to rack my brains for how to spend the first morning. I would have proposed going to the National Park or the National Museum, but fortunately Bonnie did not seem very enthusiastic about either and positively refused to set foot in the Snake Park. After she touched down, we dropped off her things at my house and made a tour of the city centre. I accidentally timed our arrival at Jamia Mosque right before the call to prayer, so we were not allowed in, marking yet another occasion on which I was not able to enter the establishment. From there, we continued past the historical buildings to the Kenyatta International Convention Centre. Its helipad gave us a unique view of the sprawling skyscrapers, the traffic congesting the roads, and the colourful markets spread out below us. 

On the second day, we visited the Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage, which welcomes visitors for an hour-long presentation at eleven in the morning. I had dutifully signed up online, but so many people were present that I doubt there was any meaningful cap on attendance. A row of people ringed the entire enclosure, leaving later arrivals to perch on nearby walls or to peek awkwardly behind them. When the keepers brought out the juvenile elephants – including a four-month-old baby with a blanket strapped to its back – they scattered leaves by the fence to encourage the elephants to come closer to the tourists. Every time they walked past, a swarm of hands jutted from behind the fence to touch their thick skins.

We had lunch at a nearby fancy restaurant, the true fanciness of which was most clearly indicated by the fleet of cars with diplomatic red licence plates waiting in the parking lot. Afterwards, we continued to the Giraffe Centre, whose main draw is the chance to feed the giraffes. The centre has an elevated walkway so that the giraffes do not need to bend their necks too far to the ground. Instead, humans can see eye to eye with them and sometimes get headbutted when they withhold their food pellets for just a little too long. Bonnie and I agreed that equally if not more interesting were the warthogs sauntering between the giraffes’ legs, and I was upset that the warthog I had selected as the recipient of my generosity did not care for the pellet I tried to throw it.

Finally, late in the afternoon, we made a quick walk through Karura Forest, crossing it from West to East along the river valley. As usual, the forest was full of reckless bikers. This concluded our two days in Nairobi, and Bonnie went on to take a private tour to Hell’s Gate the following Monday.

A market as seen from the Kenyatta International Convention Centre
The Cathedral Basilica of the Holy Family
The Governor's Office
The Parliament
A juvenile elephant drinking milk at the Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage
Another juvenile
A juvenile drinking water
A giraffe and its baby at the Giraffe Centre
A giraffe baby
A hamerkop
A hibiscus

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