Isak Dinesen
NAIROBI KENYA
NAIROBI
Nairobi, Kenya ‘s mile-high capital is only 90 min/138 km south of the equator. The name “Nairobi” comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, which translates to “the place of cool waters”. However, it is popularly known as the “Green City in the Sun” and is surrounded by several expanding villa suburbs. The people of Nairobi are popularly nicknamed ‘Nairobians’.
Founded by the British little more than a 100 years ago, the city now has a population of more than 2 000 000. It’s a modern commercial center with some interesting high-rises and lots of bustle. Visitors can find things not so common in other parts of Africa, such as nice theatres showing the latest films, expensive restaurants serving every type of food, as well as E-mail facilities, faxes and any other sort of modern technology you may want to use. The city is constantly alive, especially at night. Unfortunately, Nairobi has acquired a reputation of being a dangerous city and petty crime is rampant.
Besides being a convenient place to take care of administrative matters and contact people back home, Nairobi has much to offer to travellers. If you want to hang out, there is a wide array of restaurants, clubs, pubs and discos to choose from. While in Nairobi, be sure to visit the City Market, the National Museum, the Arboretum (excellent collection of East African flora) and the superb Kenya Railway Museum. Exhibits about the period leading to independence can be seen at the Kenya National Archives. There are casinos at the Safari Park Hotel and the Inter-Continental Hotel and there’s also Sunday-afternoon horse racing.
For those who can’t wait to see animals (or who are only visiting Nairobi), the nearby Nairobi National Park has lions, giraffes, impalas and more wild animals in addition to an animal orphanage. Or you can take a rather pricey taxi ride to the Giraffe Center in the suburb of Langata where the Rothschild giraffe was saved from extinction. At the facility, you can feed the giraffes and the gift shop has some of the best prices we found in Nairobi. However, the Giraffe Manor (the manor house turned into a hotel) elsewhere on the grounds has some of the steepest daily rates in the city—but then it’s the only place where giraffes may join you for meals.
This excursion to Langata is often combined with a visit to the former home of Karen Blixen (who wrote under the pseudonym Isak Dinesen), author of Out of Africa. Blixen’s farmhouse, which was presented to the Kenyan government by Denmark, is now a museum —it’s located nextdoor to the Karen College. Langatta also has The Bomas of Kenya which is a terrific cultural center that regularly hosts traditional song and dance performances.
A day trip (a two-hour drive each way) can be made to Lake Magadi to visit Olorgesailie in The Rift Valley for its prehistoric campsite. The scenic region inhabited by Masai farmers has a wide variety of birds.
About the Author
Alphaxad is Tours and Travel Consultant with LetsGokenya, an online hotel reservations company that allows guests to book and pay for hotels, lodges and camps in kenya, Uganda and Tanzania online and in real time. Find us on www.letsgokenya.com
Karen Blixen/Isak Dinesen
|
|
Karen Blixen Museum, Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa, Africa Photo Mugs Karen Blixen Museum, Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa, Africa…. |
|
|
The house of Karen Blixen (Isak Dinesen) Photo Mugs The house of Karen Blixen (Isak Dinesen), suburbs, Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa, Africa…. |
|
|
Babette’s Feast $14.98 A French chef who lives and works in a small Danish religious community spends her prize winnings on an incredible meal for the entire village.Genre: Foreign Film – FrenchRating: GRelease Date: 7-SEP-2004Media Type: DVD… |
|
|
Isak Dinesen, The Old Chevalier from Seven Gothic Tales; read by Irene Worth Spoken word vinyl album. B&W outline of author on front; Liner notes by Clara Svendsen and photo of Irene Worth on back…. |
|
|
Out of Africa $0.73 … |
|
|
Photo Jigsaw Puzzle of Karen Blixen Museum, Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa, Africa from Robert Harding $24.99 Photo Puzzle, Karen Blixen Museum, Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa, Africa. Karen Blixen Museum, Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa, Africa. Chosen by Robert Harding. 10×14 Photo Puzzle with 252 pieces. Packed in black cardboard box of dimensions 5 5/8 x 7 5/8 x 1 1/5. Puzzle image 5×7 affixed to box top. Puzzle pieces printed on RA4 paper at 300 dpi. This item is shipped from our American lab…. |
|
|
Photo Jigsaw Puzzle of The house of Karen Blixen (Isak Dinesen) from Robert Harding Photo Puzzle, The house of Karen Blixen (Isak Dinesen). The house of Karen Blixen (Isak Dinesen), suburbs, Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa, Africa. Chosen by Robert Harding. 10×14 Photo Puzzle with 252 pieces. Packed in black cardboard box of dimensions 5 5/8 x 7 5/8 x 1 1/5. Puzzle image 5×7 affixed to box top. Puzzle pieces printed on RA4 paper at 300 dpi. This item is shipped from our American lab…. |
|
|
Out of Africa $6.78 Sydney Pollack’s 1985 multiple-Oscar winner is a sumptuous and emotionally satisfying film about the life of Danish writer Karen Blixen (Meryl Streep), better known as Isak Dinesen, who travels to Kenya to be with her German husband (Klaus Maria Brandauer) but falls for an English adventurer (Robert Redford). The film is slow in developing the relationship, but it is rich in beautiful images of Af… |
|
|
Isak Dinesen … |
|
|
Out of Africa $19.95 In this book, the author of Seven Gothic Tales gives a true account of her life on her plantation in Kenya. She tells with classic simplicity of the ways of the country and the natives: of the beauty of the Ngong Hills and coffee trees in blossom: of her guests, from the Prince of Wales to Knudsen, the old charcoal burner, who visited her: of primitive festivals: of big game that were her near nei… |
Tags: blixen, dinesen, isak dinesen, isak dinesen biography, isak dinesen out of africa, isak dinesen quotes, isak dinesen the ring, karen, literature, writer
This entry was posted on Friday, October 29th, 2010 at 12:41 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.