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So, you've decided to visit Kenya. After the Campaign is over are you going to return home or are you going to take advantage of the opportunity to enjoy the vistas and natural beauties of this and/or other nations of East Africa. If so, the destinations are innumerable but counsel in planning your travel is indispensable. When was in Nairobi in March to lay Campaign plans I asked East African Union leaders to recommend a travel agency. They referred me to Ms. Zainab Yahya, Managing Director of Travel Creations Ltd. I asked her to a) provide me information regarding just a few travel destinations, b) tell me about her travel agency so you will have someone to ask for counsel regarding possible destinations and associated costs. Her company's address is: P O Box 14687, Nairobi, Kenya. The telephone number is 011-254-2-712011 or 712015 or 719209. The fax is 725790. You may reach her by e-mail at: info AT t-creations.com |
| Wildlife in Kenya is a precious natural heritage and it has been the ultimate destination of many well-known adventurers. Winston Churchill, Theodore Roosevelt and Ernest Hemmingway lived with lasting memories of this land of vivid contrasts, wide open spaces, snow-capped mountains on the equator, and plains teeming with wildlife. Today "bagging the big five" (referring to the large animals most would like to see) is done by camera since hunting was banned in 1978. Kenya has 59 National Parks, Game Reserves, which account for eleven percent of the country. Now let me introduce you to some of the optional destinations in Kenya as well as other countries. |  |
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The Maasai Mara Game Reserve is arguably Kenya's most popular game
sanctuary. A spectacle worth seeing is the annual migration of millions of wildebeests,
zebras, and gazelles from the Serengeti Plains across the Tanzania border and the Mara
River to reach the Maasai Mara grazing fields. Hot air balloon rides are readily available
in the park and accommodations range from five-star lodges to tented camps. Lake Nakuru is a shallow alkaline lake about 160 kilometers (95 miles) from Nairobi. The lake is famous as home to millions of flamingoes. The number of flamingoes depends on the water level which determines the quantity of algae on which the birds feed. |
| The Ngorongoro Crater (right) in neighboring Tanzania is one of the more dramatic sites in East Africa. Bordering on the Serengeti Plains the crater, 35 kilometers (20+ miles) in diameter and 600 meters (2,000 feet) deep, has one of the highest concentrations of wildlife in East Africa. Some of Africa's last black rhino are protected within its rim. It is not unusual to find Cape Buffalo or giraffe on the grounds of the Ngorongoro Crater Lodge which is recessed into the crater rim. The Maasai and their cattle co-exist with the wildlife in this Conservation Area. |
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The Serengeti: If one part of Africa encapsulates all that is wild and free, it must be the Serengeti. Covering an area of nearly 15,000 square kilometers, this Tanzanian National Park is a grassland of awesome beauty and size. Derived from the Maasai phrase meaning "endless plains," the Serengeti is the scene of the greatest wildlife migration on earth. In this kingdom the five predators -- lion, leopard, cheetah, wild dog, and spotted hyena -- remain locked in a battle for supremacy. Located at strategic sites several camps offer they beauty and peace that is possible only away from the crowds. |
| South Africa: Should you decide to venture this far south, you will want to visit the Kruger National Park where the Ngala Private Game Reserve is located. Ngala, known as "The Place of the Lion," supports a remarkable assemblage of wildlife, including huge breeding herds of elephant and a high concentration of lion, white rhino, giraffe, leopard, and cheetah. |
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Victoria Falls: No visit to Africa will be complete without a visit to Victoria Falls, one of the world's most spectacular natural wonders. Located on the border of Zimbabwe and Zambia it is less than an hour's flight from Zimbabwe's capital, Harare. In 1855 local people led David Livingstone to this magical place where the Zambezi River plunges into a mile-wide ravine, call the Mosi-oa-Tunya -- the "Smoke That Thunders." The spray billowing up from a series of magnificent cataracts, some over 100 meters high, can be seen 70 kilometers (40+ miles) away. The volume of water is greatest in April and May (just when you'll be there). You can fly over the falls or watch (or even try) bungee-jumping from the bridge above the gorge. |
| Thousands of additional options could be added to these including Mt. Kenya, Mt. Kilamanjaro, and some of the beautiful seashores of the Indian Ocean. But whether far nor near I hope that it is possible for you to visit some of the extraordinary sites in East Africa before returning to your homes. |