# Photos & Impressions Of Kenya



## pauluspaolo (Feb 24, 2003)

Hi all, here are few photos from my recent honeymoon in Kenya.

Not sure what I thought of Kenya to be honest: immediate impressions after getting off the plane were heat & disorganisation. We'd bought visa's in the UK - to save time queuing at the airport - but we still had to queue to get a visa which we then didn't need because we already had them!!! The people we met were very friendly but Mombasa was an eye opener - we didn't want to go back there - & the bits we were driven through on the first day (on the way to East Tsavo National Park) were very squalid with lots of poverty evident. Other parts of Mombasa (which we were driven through two more times) seemed quite prosperous, though the traffic was truly horrendous on all occasions.

The lodge we stayed at for the safari (Ashnil Aruba lodge) was fantastic & the safari itself made the holiday â€" weâ€™d booked a 2 1/2 day safari before moving on to the hotel (Sentido Neptune Village at Diani beach) weâ€™d booked for the remainder of our stay. Diani Beach is on the Indian ocean & a very beautiful spot. Unfortunately the weather wasn't really good enough to spend much time sunbathing & Gillian (my wife ) didnâ€™t get much of a tan â€" I have a tan but then I burn more easily than she does. The wather was unpredictable really & there were a fair number of overcast days, as well as days with torrential rain. The staff at the hotel complained about how cold it was for the time of year & how they had to buy blankets to stay warm at night! I donâ€™t think we ever found it that cool though. Despite the weather we booked a couple of day trips â€" snorkelling/lunch at Kisite Marine National Park & day safari to the Aruba Hills. Luckily the weather was good for both of these trips & when the sun did come out to play it was glorious! The beach by the hotel was a bit of a no go area unless you liked being pestered by people trying to sell you anything from African carvings to boat trips! The hotel had a sun terrace & the â€œbeach boysâ€ (as theyâ€™re known locally) werenâ€™t allowed to set foot on it â€" so you could at least sunbathe in peace (weather permitting)!

I realise that Iâ€™m not painting a particularly rosy picture but really Kenya is still a Third world country thatâ€™s trying to improve. Bits of it â€" the towns/cities especially â€" look, & are, pretty grim & we didnâ€™t really want to go sightseeing/shopping in these areas. . The Kenyan people seem to want to improve things, & everyone seemed to be trying to do some sort of work (we saw very few beggars for example) but Iâ€™m not sure the infrastructureâ€™s in place for things to improve overnight. An example of this is that whilst being driven to the hotel we passed through many small towns; these had rubbish collection points (which looked like big bus shelters) but goodness knows when these dumps were emptied because all the ones we saw were full to the brim & overflowing. As a result the rubbish ended up strewn everywhere which looked bloody awful & smelt worse â€" the goats were happy at least!

We did have a good time & we would, I think, go back, but I hope that we'd spend more time on safari & less time at the beach or in the built up areas. The people were amazingly friendly, very welcoming & couldnâ€™t do enough for you but itâ€™s the animals, & the country itself, that will stay most in my mind - they really are absolutely gobsmackingly awesome & beautiful :thumbup: :thumbup:

Anyway here are some pics â€" I took 100â€™s of photos so this is only a fraction. I'm happy to answer any questions if I can 

Elephants near Aruba lodge on the East Tsavo National Park.










Cow Elephant with her calf.










An example of the terrain at East Tsavo. We had to stay in the vehicle at all times & no off-roading was allowed so we had to stick to the roads. The vehicle we were driven around in was a Nissan Urvan minibus â€" I was expecting a Landrover or Landcruiser at the very least! The Nissan seemed to cope fine though & the top hinged up to give a pretty good vantage point/photography platform.










A Giraffe â€" quite simply these are beautiful, graceful animals & seeing one in the wild for the first time made quite an impression on Gillian & myself.










Sunrise or is it sunset!


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## pauluspaolo (Feb 24, 2003)

More 

Sunset or is it sunrise!










Giraffe Gazelles.










Panorama of East Tsavo.










A lizard sunning itself at Aruba Lodge â€" there were 1000â€™s of these everywhere at Aruba (as well as Hornbills, glossy blue Starlings, giant black Wasps, Geckoâ€™s, spides, beetles, locusts etc etc etc etc)










More Elephants â€" we were told to expect to see 100â€™s of Zebra but we saw very few. The most commonplace animal we saw was the Elephant (thatâ€™s not a bad thing though). Out of the big 5 (Rhino, Elephant, Leopard, Lion & Buffalo) we saw Lions, Elephants & Buffaloâ€™s.


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## pauluspaolo (Feb 24, 2003)

A few more - we'd finished the East Tsavo safari & had moved to one of the many hotels on/near Diani Beach 

Needless to say this was (a very) high tide â€" caused by a new moon!










The beach itself - beautiful spot (shame about the "beach boys").










One of the many Geckoâ€™s at the beach hotel â€" this is Bernard 










Thanks for looking - apologies for double posting the Elephant shot 

I may well post more when I've sorted a few more photos out :thumbup:


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## tall_tim (Jul 29, 2009)

I think different people can have wildly dirrent views of Kenya, inluenced also by where you go and what you do. I have been several times now, spending a few months altogether there. Me and the missus plan on living there for a year or two when our kids are older. The first time we went we did a week safari at several parks and then a week in Malindi. The subsequant times we have gone to lesser know parks and spent time in the smaller villages, where the experience is totally different. Nai-robbery (the capital) is something else! Not for the fain of heart, but agian if you are careful, it can be very rewarding just spending aday exploring.

The smell of Kenya is certainly noticable, but for me is an integral part of the experience, as is the red dust that renders any clothing useless on your return to the UK!

BTW - your Giraffe Gazelle is called a Gerenuk and congrats on getting hitched!


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## tall_tim (Jul 29, 2009)

ps, apologies for terrible typo's, for some reason my work pc has lost the edit post button.


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## Sancho Panza (Apr 7, 2010)

It sounds like you had a mostly good time there, great pictures as well :thumbsup:

It's an interesting place Kenya. I went there a few years ago for a couple of months with the Army on exercise in the Jan/Feb period and the weather was great, no rain and very hot. We were at Nanyuki Show Ground, which is right on the equator in the highlands. I managed to get into Nairobi a couple of times and it's certainly a strange place, with rubbish burning along the side of the road and some incredible contrasts. In the middle of the squalor there's modern shopping mall's, (with armed guards on the entrance to keep out the undesirables), with Banks, supermarkets, food courts and a cinema.

On my one day of R&R we went on Safari in one of the Game Reserves, in a Land Rover of course, and had a good day out. There's not much in Nanyuki itself, though we did go to certain bars at night. We also made use of the pool at the Sportsman's Arms hotel when time allowed, I think they took something like a Â£1 to get in. Everyone of course brought back loads of carvings.

The anti-malarial drug we were issued was Lariam, (Mefloquine), which did have side effects, some people got over them faster than others. Some had to be changed on to totally different drugs.

I would go back tomorrow with the Army, but I don't think I'd actually pay to go on holiday there, though of course many do. I definitely wouldn't be going into Mombasa, it's regarded as so dangerous it's out of bounds to visiting British ships and troops.


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## pauluspaolo (Feb 24, 2003)

tall_tim said:


> I think different people can have wildly dirrent views of Kenya, inluenced also by where you go and what you do. I have been several times now, spending a few months altogether there. Me and the missus plan on living there for a year or two when our kids are older. The first time we went we did a week safari at several parks and then a week in Malindi. The subsequant times we have gone to lesser know parks and spent time in the smaller villages, where the experience is totally different. Nai-robbery (the capital) is something else! Not for the fain of heart, but agian if you are careful, it can be very rewarding just spending aday exploring.
> 
> The smell of Kenya is certainly noticable, but for me is an integral part of the experience, as is the red dust that renders any clothing useless on your return to the UK!
> 
> BTW - your Giraffe Gazelle is called a Gerenuk and congrats on getting hitched!


A year in Kenya sounds interesting to say the least!!

A friend of mine has a Grandad who lives in Mombasa & he suggested that a look round Mombasa would be a very good way of spending a day - however after having been driven through it by our safari driver/guide (Ali - a very patient, knowledgeable man) both Gillian & I decided that we didn't want to go back. We could have booked a day trip through the hotel, been shown round Mombasa, ending up with a meal at Fort Jesus (old Porugese fort) but we really had been put off by the drive through. I sort of regret that decision now & wish we'd taken the opportunity - it's not all safari's & animals so if you're going to experience Africa then you may as well go the whole hog!!

We met an Australian couple at the hotel & they'd spent 2or 3 weeks travelling round the country doing various different safari's & the like. They only had a couple of days at the hotel before catching the overnight train from Mombasa to Nairobi & they were quite worried about what the train was going to be like (they were travelling 1st class)!

I liked the buzz & vibe of the place & would like to go back (not sure about Gillian though she enjoyed the holiday very much) & experience more of it. I'd love to go to the Masai Mara for instance & take the opportunity to see Mombasa or Nairobi.


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## pauluspaolo (Feb 24, 2003)

Sancho Panza said:


> It sounds like you had a mostly good time there, great pictures as well :thumbsup:
> 
> It's an interesting place Kenya. I went there a few years ago for a couple of months with the Army on exercise in the Jan/Feb period and the weather was great, no rain and very hot. We were at Nanyuki Show Ground, which is right on the equator in the highlands. I managed to get into Nairobi a couple of times and it's certainly a strange place, with rubbish burning along the side of the road and some incredible contrasts. In the middle of the squalor there's modern shopping mall's, (with armed guards on the entrance to keep out the undesirables), with Banks, supermarkets, food courts and a cinema.
> 
> ...


Interesting reading - regarding safety we were warned not to go on the beach at night (difficult with the tide in!) & the hotel had an armed (with a big stick not gun) guard who patrolled at night. Also all the hotels had security points & big gaes at their entrances. I waasn't aware that Mombasa was particularly dangerous, though we had been warned by Ali to keep any windows shut to prevent any thefts of camera equipment but mostly to deter people begging (not that we saw many beggars) or selling stuff.

Gillian's youngest daughter is in the Army & went to Kenya a couple of months before we did - so she got us some Lariam - no side effects ................ yet!


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## tall_tim (Jul 29, 2009)

I personally found the Mara a little dissapointing. This was due more to me building it up in my mind after watching wildlife programmes though. I found Samburu to be a lot better as it has all the same wildlife but in a smaller area. It also has some sub-species only found there, such as Rothschild giraffe. A night in Treetops is also an experience, though you'll not sleep at all - if you're anything like me though. I was up all night eyes fixed on the waterhole.

As for the anti-malaria drugs - it's partly for the side effect reason that you're supposed to start them a couple of weeks before you go, so if you react, there is time to try another kind. This happened to the 710, she started hallucinating on Larium. She was seeing elephants before we even left the UK!


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## Sancho Panza (Apr 7, 2010)

tall_tim said:


> As for the anti-malaria drugs - it's for the side effect reason that you're supposed to start them a couple of weeks before you go, so if you react, there is time to try another kind. This happened to the 710, she started hallucinating on Larium. She was seeing elephants before we even left the UK!


It's not just for the side effects that you start taking anti-malarial drugs before departing, it's so it can build up strength in your system so that it's at peak efficiency by the time you arrive. Similarly you have to continue taking whatever drugs you have when you return for a period.


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## tall_tim (Jul 29, 2009)

Sorry Sancho, just edited my post on my phone to add that it is one of several reasons, then saw you picked up on it.


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## tyrannes (Sep 27, 2006)

Have to say that must have been a brilliant holiday (especially the safari part) of the holiday.


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## Guest (Sep 6, 2010)

Lol @ Bernard.


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## rolexgirl (Jul 17, 2010)

How wonderful ^_^ Good pics.

Aww, I love giraffes. <3 They're so cute.


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## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

Nice pictures Paul :yes:

Your observations on Kenya and not knowing what to think are not untypical of a first-time visitor to Africa (I assume it was the first time?) Mombasa is a bit manic :lol: Another couple of visits to Africa and you will be hooked!

You have been a bit unlucky with the weather the "little" rainy season doesn't usually affect the coastal regions until October.


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## Xavierg (Sep 7, 2010)

How nice. Beautiful photos.

Wow!, I love Africa :man_in_love:


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