Tag: Recent
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A Night in the Forest
I’ve enjoyed plenty of gamedrives in Nairobi National Park over the years, but few as much as my drive in the park last Saturday evening. An overnight shower had washed the air clean of dust, and the city lights shone bright against a lilac sky. We trundled along a rocky track near the park’s Middle…
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Exploring Oloolua Forest
Last week’s article was all about the new Land Rover Defender, which I had the opportunity to test in Oloolua Forest. The dirt tracks that we used were beneath the SGR, which runs right across the southern portion of the forest. I’ve written a few articles for this column recently about Nairobi’s forests, and the…
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A Review of the New Defender
I don’t envy the designers at Land Rover. Creating the new Defender must have been one of the most challenging jobs of the automotive world. The old models have been adored across the globe for decades, for their flaws as much as their off-road capabilities. Their designs were simple, rugged and instantly recognisable. The new…
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A Night on the Sacred Mountain
‘Maape!’. ‘Let’s go!’. Our Samburu guide, Lemaiyan, urged us to continue our climb after a long water break. The mid-morning heat had been turned up a notch, and our progress was slow. We zigzagged up the eastern slope of Mount Ololokwe, along a path well trodden by elephants and cattle. Stumbling under the weight of…
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Driving Kenya’s Roads
‘I think you could well be interested in this,’ a friend said, as she handed over a book. It was the AA Members Handbook for 1982-84: ‘Guide to Motoring and Touring in Kenya’. I was certainly well interested – particularly, because it was published around the time I came back to Kenya to stay. Gavin…
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Life and Death on the Mara River
Of the 1.5 million wildebeest that trek into the Masai Mara from the Serengeti each year, an average of 300,000 die, most while crossing the Mara River. While death at such a scale may seem senseless, it plays a vital role in the nourishment of the river ecosystem for years after the dust settles.
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Clean Eating at Boho
‘This is one of the best rhubarb crumbles I’ve ever had!’. That was high praise from my wife, Gabie, who is crazy for crumbles. We were at the Boho Eatery, along Ndovu Road in Karen, enjoying a late lunch on a Sunday afternoon. As she shovelled the crème Anglaise into her mouth with her teaspoon,…
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Exploring the Ngong Road Forest
A few years ago, a good friend of mine told me a story that has stuck with me. He was driving around town with his buddies one evening, with a chocolate cake from Java on the backseat. They hit traffic on Ngong Road, and decided to take the loop behind Jamhuri Park. It was getting…
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Sunday Lunch at the Talisman
One of my most memorable meals was on the terrace of Lamu’s Peponi Hotel. It was a creamy beef and mushroom pasta dish, paired perfectly with a cold beer and a cool sea breeze. The chef who prepared it was probably Ray Cournede, who in 2015 relocated to the kitchen at the Talisman Restaurant along…