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| High light of my 21 hours in Nairobi |
I landed Nairobi at 7pm Kenyan time and I could not (and still can't) believe the ease with which the immigration attended to my party.
I had applied for the visa online before I arrived and printed out the visa that was emailed to me.
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| Copy of my Visa. |
Someone at the entrance checked our yellow cards and then stamped our passports.
I had people in my party who didn't do their visa's online and they just paid $20 at the stand with cash or with their cards and guess what?
The immigration staff had change.
I dare say the immigration staff in Nairobi are the most efficient I have come across in all my travels.
Got through security and while waiting for members of my party to get their shit together I looked up and boom. The prettiest art installation I have been- even prettier than the bean at terminal 5 in Heathrow airport.
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| The Prettiest art installation |
Finally got out of the airport and got a cab to take us to our airbnb, where we had planned to meet someone from our party who had come in earlier than the rest of us.
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| Surprisingly- our Airbnb looked better than the photos |
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| Bedroom I slept in |
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| Sitting room |
That did not quite work out, but it was fine, we settled in and decided to go to Beer Bistro & Lounge. This is a concept space with an in house distillery, i.e they make their own Craft beer.
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| Take off your jacket- Man's Not Hotttttt. |
Pro tip: The beer was the nastiest thing I have ever tasted and for context- I attended QC boarding house for 6 years.
Anyway I had dinner here, the resturant has an out door terrace and the nicest Jameson bar.
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| The tapa's were soooo tasty. |
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| Bar Top? Anyone |
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| Obligatory Photo infront of the bar. |
After dinner we went to the second Beer Bistro location and danced till our feet hurt
*but really till the Dj shut down the party at 2am*
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| Me. Natalie ( Kenyan with the most beautiful skin) and Arin |
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| Half of the party, Ib, Les (not showing) Micheal Me(looking away), Nat and Arin. |
For the culture we stopped at this outdoor grill *think Suya stand* but had beef patties and sausages and beef skewers. *cue running stomach*
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| And they were sooooo sweet. |
Then we got a cab and stopped at a "Nakumart" which was 24 hours and bought some food.
The biggest downside of Airbnb-ing really is the fact that you have to cook your own food.
And we all know fewer things are more confunding than having to work other people's appliances especially microwaves.
Anyway the night ends without event*. Significant event- No group fighting or the sort one would expect from living with 9 other people they never met till that day.
Next morning I woke up really late probably because I had been travelling whole day before and went out partying- But really because I love the opportunity to lie in and I take it everytime.
I had only 3 items on my agenda-
Buy coffee from somewhere called Petes - as an errand;
buy a Maasai blanket and go and
kiss the giraffe's at the "Giraffe center".
Got a car hire for the whole day and headed to Pete's.
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| Daniel- my cab driver and photographer |
Got there and turns out there was no coffee because of the election unrest.
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| Pete's is like a Cafe Neo nestled in Yaba-con. or Maybe CC-hub. Pretty cool but shit wifi. |
Before I came to Kenya I had been advised about how unsafe it might be because of election unrest but I had no idea the level at which it affected the economy. Daniel pointed out that the country had literally been on standstill and had just started picking up. Africa is really a country.
Headed out to find the Maasai blanket and I found it in a store at the mall
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| Mall lay out with Daniel in the cut. |
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| Maasai scarf thats really a blanket |
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| This store had all the trappings of a tourist heaven. |
Because I am my mother's child I walked into this underwear store that had the word sale and bought something and paid with my Gt- Naira card.
Talk about own goal.
LOL
I'm still shocked till now at the exchange rate that they used but okay.
That was me when I got the alert notification
Finished from the mall and hit the road for the giraffes!
I was soooo excited to kiss the animals till I got there and actually saw them and realised I actually still do not like animals and the best I could do was feed the giraffes.
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| Center welcome |
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| Can you see how far I'm standing? exactly. |
Giraffe fun fact: it's tongue is 43 centimeters long.
Another Giraffe fun fact: It head butts you if pellets finish while feeding it
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| Pellets used to feed the giraffes |
The Giraffe center was really well maintained and after my failed kiss attempt ( I actually have a video on my instagram that is so shameful), the center asked us to come for a class and it was so informative.
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| femur of the giraffe |
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| Lower jaw bone of giraffe |
Yet another Giraffe fun fact: It's tongue is antiseptic.
Finished disgracing myself here then headed to the airport.
But first, I had to stop at somewhere called Java house for some coffee- kenya AA- which smelt so so good I'm not a coffee drinker but Yes to Kenya AA coffee.
Java house is located in the galleria - another mall, but i respected my self and did not buy anything.
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| What silverbird could have been if a senator had common sense. |
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| Smelled like heaven. |
Then I headed to the Airport to catch my flight.
I had heard lots of crazy things about the Nairobi traffic but I have to let you know that Lagos still wears the crown when it comes to traffic in Africa as far as I'm concerned.
There was no way the rush hour traffic I met there was enough to make anyone miss their flight.
Nairobi Fun Fact: The airport security is so serious, they make everyone asides the car driver to come down and walk thorough metal detectors before they let you into the airport. not at the terminal o, at the gate of the airport.
I guess security is still a big issue in Africa.
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| Me at Jomo Kenyatta, post security wahala. |
Strange how no one harrasses you when you try to take a photo at every other airport asides the Nigerian one.
This visit put Kenya on my travel plans for 2018 ( or maybe 2019)and I will definately be back to spend more time and visit other cities asides Nairobi. I have heard lovely things about the beaches in Mobassa.
Have you been to Kenya?
Did you enjoy it?
Ps: I'm open to correction about the photo at the aiport thing
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