Tall, Skinny, and a lot of Beads - Kenya

Here is story of how our day went - in and around Nairobi Kenya. 

   We had organized a day trip out of town to visit a tea plantation and have lunch.  Nairobi is a lot like any big city anywhere, except there are not that many special things to do or see.  We had already explored the local parks and eateries, and wanted to get out into the country. 

   Only ... we found out at the last minute that our tour got cancelled because the tea farm is closed on Thursday.  Okaaay ...  We quickly did some research and found a couple spots to visit and decided we would hire a taxi for the day and make our own tour.  We are pretty independent about making travel plans and can be flexible to change as needed without any help. 
   So the taxi guy shows up and we negotiate a price, a little higher than we wanted but not too bad, like eighty bucks for the whole day, with a fair amount of miles driving.  Off we go. 

Hakuna Matata, and the Great Rift Valley   

   Only the driver immediately tells us that where we want to go is not good and we should go where he wants to take us (the viewpoint).  We argue about this and he just starts driving and says we have plenty of time. 
   So I tell the driver, "you know, it seems like when you agree on a price and a destination, then we should go there.  It is not right that a driver should only take passengers where the driver wants to go.  It would be like going to a restaurant and ordering a meal and the waiter brings you something different based on his decision."  
   So he chuckles and sets off for his preferred destination anyway.  Saying, "it's okay, we have plenty of time.  Hakuna Matata!" (they actually say that here) meaning "no problem!"  His opinion was that it was the best place to see the Rift Valley.
   It takes a rather long time to get to this viewpoint.  I could say something like "it depends on your point of view" but we just went along with it. 

   Part of the reason to go to this viewpoint was to see the Great Rift Valley down below.  This is a significant valley that runs along East Africa for almost 4,000 miles, and contains some of the world's most impressive scenery, wildlife, and geological formations.  It is where the massive wildlife migrations take place 
    So we get to the viewpoint and it's pretty cool, with a great view down from the escarpment, or huge cliffs overlooking the valley below.  It is rather spectacular, and would have been even better if the air was more clear.  The driver described the air as "foggy", but it wasn't fog, it was smog. The temperature was around 80F with a slight breeze, not conducive to fog. 
    So we spend a few minutes there, being annoyed by the ever present vendors trying to sell you a miniature statue of an elephant or rhino, or some such souvenirs.  Sometimes these guys can be very persistent, they shove stuff in your face, and you have to almost get rude to them to make them go away.  
   So we leave, and by this time it's well past noon, and we have a long way to go.  We make our way back to, and through, Nairobi, which is a traffic nightmare.  We are trying to get to a nature reserve called Ngong, where we were told there are forest trails to hike and you can see the Rift Valley there.  

Ngong Nature Preserve (sort of) 

   Long story short, we drive forever, and by this time it's close to 4:00 and we haven't eaten all day and it's hot and the last thing I wanted to do was sit in a car and drive all day and that's just what we did.  Seemed like we covered a lot of Kenya today while driving.
   To top this off, we have to stop at several police and ranger stations to get "permission" to visit this Nature Preserve.  I'm thinking, "isn't this like a National Park?  Why are they so strict?"
   And they say if we want to go for a hike, we have to hire armed escorts, and I begin to wonder, What the  ... ?
    So I ask the driver, why do we need armed escorts?  and he says because there are vicious animals, and criminals.  Criminals?  Yes, they can mug you and rob you.  Wow, sounds like great fun!
    We finally reach this place, and to say we were disappointed would be an understatement.  The place, along the top of this steep ridge, turns out to basically be a wind farm.  You know, with the big giant windmills generating electricity.  A whole bunch of them.

   So we get out to take pictures and try to make the best of this, and I wander up to the gate where a police man comes out and starts talking to me. Fiona is down below and she sees the police man come out and start asking me questions and she thinks "Good grief, Kevin's got himself into trouble again."

   But I made a hasty retreat and - who wants to hike on your trails with an armed guard anyway?  - and by the way, where are the trees?  We were told this was a forest, and it's a barren hillside covered with large commercial wind turbines.  Worst Nature Preserve I've ever seen. 
  There were a bunch of Massai there, you know the tall native African warrior guys who jump up and down and have kept their tribal customs alive.  We saw several of them and the driver described them as "Tall, Skinny, and a lot of Beads!
   So we make our way back down the hillside and make a side trip to the home of Karen Blixen, the lady from Out of Africa, the book and the movie in which Meryl Streep famously said with a heavy accent "I hod a fahm in Awfrica!"  It was a pretty cool place. 

   We eventually made our way back to Nairobi and had dinner in a nice Italian place (I'll give credit here, it was recommended by the driver) and finished a long day with several mis-adventures.

   

   Might not blog for a couple days, we're heading off on Safari near Mount Kilimanjaro, and might be off the grid.