Travelogue: First weekend in Kenya

From the moment we got off the plane, we were working non-stop. The first week was packed with work at our Non-Governmental Organizations, work as Daraja writing mentors, and work on our blogs. But when the first weekend came, we had a chance to be tourists in Kenya. We experienced many new things and had quite an adventure! Below is a travelogue of what we did, with links to reviews attached.

Entrance Room at Tandala Birding Resort

For me, the weekend started on Thursday evening, when we had dinner at Tandala Birding Resort. We went with a fun group of people, including Daraja staff and staff from each of the three NGOs that we have been working with. After a long week, it was so nice to sit down and have a relaxing, delicious meal!

Before we ate, our hosts gave us a tour of the resort. There were banana trees galore, and many other fruits and vegetables which they use for their restaurant. When we sat down to eat, I finally had a moment to breathe. In that moment, while sharing a table with a friend from school, a staff member at Daraja from California, and a woman who started a children's school in Nanyuki, I realized how lucky and thankful I was to be there. At that moment, I really processed how exciting it was to be sharing laughs with people from around the world. It was also quite exciting to eat rabbit for the first time! Here is my review Tandala.

"Refrigerator" at Permaculture Research Institute

The weekend continued with an exciting day out Saturday. We first went to the Laikipia Permaculture Center, a sustainable conservation compound in Nanyuki. One of the main missions at the center is to make use of the overabundant cactus that grows at Twala Maasai Cultural Center in Kenya. The cactus is overrunning the Twala center, but at Permaculture they show that it can be a great resource instead of just a pain. Permaculture uses the cactus fruit to make jam, wine, and many other things. Because of this use of the fruit, they are showing that the cactus can be of great value. We got to taste the jam, and we also got a tour of the compound. Here is my review of Permaculture Center.

After visiting the Permaculture center, we went to Mitumba Arts in Nanyuki, a small shop that uses thrift materials and fabrics to create new merchandise, such as tablecloths, bags, and many other items. We watched some of the women who work there sew pillow cases. I have noticed that in Nanyuki, many people in the community value sustainability. This love and care for their environment was shown both at Permaculture and Mitumba. We then went to lunch at Dormans in the middle of town. The food at Daraja has been great, but it was nice to get something different for a change. Here is my review of Dorman's.

An Eland (Largest type of Antelope) at the Conservancy

After lunch, we went to the Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy, which was my favorite part of the weekend! We saw so many different animals, and we also got to interact with them! I expected them to all be in cages or at least in enclosed areas...but the first thing we saw when we entered was an ostrich and a llama just hanging out in the open area. It was so cool! We saw many other animals, including cheetahs, a leopard, an Eland, and many different types of monkeys. One monkey stood on my shoulders! Here is my review of the conservancy.

On Sunday, we went to the Twala Maasai Cultural Center, and stayed there for one night. The center is a space for empowered Maasai women to gather and thrive, without depending on the patriarchal society. When we arrived, we were greeted by Maasai women doing a traditional song and dance. They were very welcoming and friendly, and treated us like friends rather than tourists. Rosemary, the founder, told us her amazing story of how she fought struggle after struggle to get Twala going. Hearing her story about the resilience of the Maasai women was extremely inspiring. That evening, we watched the sun set at Minoshoi rock. It was a stunning view. Afterwards, we sat around the fire to talk and tell stories, which Rosemary said was the "Kenyan television." In the morning we went on a Baboon walk! We got very close to the baboons, and spent an hour just sitting with them and observing them. It was quite the way to cap off the weekend. Here is my review of Twala.

Baboons at Sunrise

Minoshoi rock at Sunset