May 18, 2012
FOCUS ARTICLES
48 Hours in Nairobi
March 5,2012
In two days, you will hardly see a half of what Kenya's capital has to offer but you will surely want to come back to this vibrant city.
Day one
Get your bearings
Nairobi spreads out in all directions, but most visitors prefer to remain in or around the high-rise centre or the districts of Westlands and Parklands immediately to the north. Most hotels and travel agencies offer maps of the centre, and arrange transport for excursions and sightseeing, including the Nairobi National Park.
Take a View
Go to the rooftop of the towering Kenyatta International Conference Centre, a massive cylindrical structure constructed in brown granite, which used to have a revolving restaurant on the 28th floor. With the help of an official guide you can visit the higher floors. It provides a stunning view of the entire metropolis spread out across the Rift Valley, and on a clear day you can surely see the two distant peaks of Mount Kenya and Kilimanjaro.
Window-shopping
Come Saturday morning and you will find hundreds of Masai traders in the car park next to the Law Courts. From their stalls they sell traditional craftwork at prices, which – after some polite negotiation – will convince you that curio shops are out to loot visitors. Perfect place for buying your stock of beadwork, baskets and woodcarvings.
Of Nairobi's two dozen shopping malls, the Sarit Centre in Westlands has made itself a name, becoming East Africa's largest and busiest shopping mall. With over 80 shops and a 300 seat cinema, this “city within Nairobi is worth a visit.
Cultural afternoon
The glorious Kenya National Museum on Museum Hill reopened in recently after renovation. It sets your mood and motivates you to undertake a safari tour of Kenya, charting the unique palaeontology of the Cradle of Mankind. You can also see a well-displayed good collection of modern East African art. Outside the museum, you’ll find a café and design shop with loads of relevant material.
If you are of those who don't hesitate to spend some cash on serious contemporary art, go to the long established Gallery Watatu, probably one of the best private galleries in Africa!
Dining with the locals
Have dinner at The Carnivore, located in tropical gardens to the south of town, is an iconic restaurant in Nairobi, and is not place for vegetarians. Its specialities include exotic meat dishes of the kind of crocodile and ostrich, roasted in pits of a circular fireplace. you get soup, salad and as much meat as you can eat, until you indicate your surrender by lowering a flag on the table.
