Kenya: It pays to read the fine print

Jumbo! Inveterate world traveller Ros Freeman should have read the trip notes before booking her 'camping' trip in Kenya. Will all end well for Ros?

Time to brush up my Swahili as I arrived at Kenya’s Nairobi Airport. A big smile and a local greeting don’t go astray, especially at immigration. But no worries, getting through Nairobi airport was a cinch. Now the adventure truly began. And what an adventure it would be!

A few months earlier, I’d booked this trip after a cursory scan of the itinerary. It ticked off all the places I wanted to see in Kenya and Uganda. However, I failed to read the fine print. Two weeks before departure day I read the trip notes. Jumping giraffes! I’d booked a camping trip. Camping!! Isn’t that the thing that existed before they invented glamping? Further reading indicated that I needed to supply my own sleeping bag, pillow, towel and even toilet paper. My dreams of glamping quickly faded. Adding to the mix, the Department of Foreign Affairs issued warnings about Kenya. There was monkey-pox, demonstrations and kidnapping of tourists. Nairobi’s nickname, I learnt, was Nairobbery. What had I let myself in for!

Rapping on Nairobi's buses

Tentatively, I hit the streets of 'Nairobbery' accompanied by young Erick, my guide for the day. The city may not be a looker, but its joy lay in those who inhabit it; there are thousands of tales to tell. Along Nairobi’s streets there were shoeshine stalls, pavement bookshops and security men carrying AK-47s, G3s and M16s. The day’s highlight was jumping on a mutatu, a local bus. This one was psychedelically air-brushed, inside a screen pulsated rap music. Everyone swayed to the beat. I felt like a token whitey in a rap video.

Kenyans have an expression, hakuna mutata; for every negative there’s a positive. This trip I was swapping comfort for adventure. There were early starts, helping the cook, and bumpy roads; euphemistically called African massages. My fellow travelers, were well used to camping life, and let’s just say, I increased the average age substantially. There were seven of us altogether, plus a crew of three.

Shoe-shining

We left Nairobi and were soon in a rural area. Acacia trees and euphorbias, gigantic cactus, dotted the landscape. The view over the Great Rift Valley was stunning. Driving to Lake Nakuru there were buffalo, giraffe, zebras, warthogs, eland, waterbucks, impala, as well as many varieties of birds, including flamingos and pelicans. What a feast! The highlight though, was sitting quietly, hearing the wind through the grass, and watching a group of giraffes gently journey their way across the fields. Pure magic.

Arriving at our campsite, a family of baboons greeted us. We set up tents by the river. A full moon rose and, as we played cards, a hyena made an appearance on the edge of the camp. The night soundscape included the cackle of hyenas and the roar of lions. What a day!

Kenya is one of Africa’s success stories. Despite not having great mineral wealth, its economy is strong due to its stable government. Its chief exports are tea, coffee, cut flowers and titanium ore. Fifty million people live in this country of 582,642 square kilometres. There are over 40 tribes including the Masai, however it’s the Kikuyu people who are predominant. The Kalenjin tribe produces the world’s best long-distance runners. Kenya was colonized by the British in 1895, and independence was declared in 1963.

Camping life was, for me, jumping into an entirely different world. Who would I be sharing with? Would she snore? Would she be upset if I snored? Our small group meant that I had a tent to myself. Erecting the tent was the next problem, it required strength and dexterity, however someone always came to my aid. The early starts were alleviated by early nights. The best thing though was the group. A great bunch; fun, kind and positive. My fears fell away like ten green bottles.

A journey of giraffes

As always, the crew were the local ambassadors. What tales they had to tell. Michael was our fun-loving leader. Evy, our cook, had grown up in a slum in Nairobi; however, through determination and hard work, she’d achieved much, including starting a foundation for young Kenyan girls. And Francis, our cross-eyed driver. He’d been a driver in the Special Forces. A landmine had blown up in front of him, affecting his eye. His driving was still impeccable.

A dazzle of zebras

There are many proverbs in Swahili, but I doubt ‘always read the fine print’ is one. Fortunately I didn’t read the fine print, instead allowing Africa’s magnificence to bathe me once again. Hakuna matata!

FACT FILE

Ros Freeman booked a day trip in Nairobi with Urban Adventures and the Kenya and Uganda trip was Intrepid’s 'Gorillas and Game Parks'. 

Ros Freeman travelled independently at her own expense but would not go anywhere unless Kirsty at Flight Centre Eastgardens booked her flights. 

Disguised as a mild-mannered corporate employee,

Ros lives a secret life as a world traveller and adventurer

amassing a count of more than 150 UN-recognised countries.

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