Kenya: The conclusion

After almost 3 weeks in Kenya, it’s time for us to make a conclusion. We didn’t visit the more touristic places of Kenya but we learnt a lot about the country!!! So here a little summary about our trip; but of course this is only subjective ;-)

We like	We dislike
-        Children screaming  « Mzumgus », smiling and doing hello signs when they see us	-        Adults saying « Mzumgus » with a bad smile
-        Travelling with matatus when there are only 14 passengers	-        Travelling in matatus when they are in « Fourty four » (4 rows of 4 people + 2 at the front, so 18 passengers (but sometimes more))
-        Very friendly Kenyan People	-        Kenyans who see us as a huge amount of money
-        1€ for 10 passion fruits	-        1€ for 1 kiwi
-        The convenient temperatures of Mai	-        The strong rains of Mai
-        The small shops everywhere in the street selling everything	-        The « Safari-Agents » trying to sell us « cheap but best safaris ever »
-        The geometrical constructions of the streets that make orientation very easy	-        The buildings don’t have any number in a street so it makes orientation difficult
-        The colours of the streets	-        The dirty streets
-        Hot water in the guesthouses	-        The never stopping noise that take you out of sleep in the guesthouses
-        The big wildlife of Kenya : Hippos, buffaloes, giraffes, zebras…	-        The small animals of Kenya in particular the mosquitoes
-        National parks	-        Entry fees (there is a « tourist price » and a « resident price », the « tourist price » is 10 times higher than the other one…)

Do	Don’t
-        Enjoying Hell’s Gate in the early morning to see monkeys and other animals hidden during the day	-        Coming home after dark. The country is more or less safe so it’s better not to be alone at night
-        Visiting the National Museum and its botanical garden	-        Visiting the Snake Park of the National Museum : very expensive to only see few snakes through dirty windows
-        Camping in Naivasha (Fisherman’s Camp) to see hippos at night	-        Camping in Naivasha during the rainy season (or you’ll need to dry all of your belongings)
-        Trying local products such as Chapatis, Ndahzi	-        Eating Matoke (a speciality made with stewed bananas but we didn’t like it)
-        Visiting David Sheldrick Centre (elephants orphanage), it’s a good way to help them and the babies elephants are so cute….	-        Visiting the Giraffe Center. We can feed giraffes, that’s nice but apart from that there is nothing else… Can be good with young children
-        Make a boat ride on Victoria lake to see fishers, birds and hippos	-        Paying more than 3000 Kenyan Shillings for 2 hours boat ride
-        Visiting the « fourteen falls » near Thika and cross the falls on foot	-        Not asking the price before crossing (in case they will ask you 6000 Shillings instead of 1500)
-        Helping (Sponsoring) street kids centre or association such as Red Cross	-        Giving money directly to bagging street kids (That contributes to make them stay in the street instead of going to school)

This first (but maybe not last) visit in Kenya was very positive. We met friendly people, always helpful. But you don’t have to forget that the country can be unsafe because of instability… Informe you well before going !!! ;-)

Kenya is well known for its safaris, but we can tell you that there is something else… So if you feel like an adventurer, go out of the « touristic circuit » and you won’t be disappointed !!!

And as gift, please find here our video about Kenya !!