Since the publication of Karen Blixen’s Out of Africa in 1937, westerners have been dreaming of Kenya (or British East Africa as it was at the time), and with good reason.
If you have a sense of adventure or an appetite for Land Cruisers, safaris and big game, take a journey into Kenya’s wild heart and head to Tsavo National Park, which is among the best places in Africa to see lions, elephants, rhinos and leopards. Then there’s the famous Maasai Mara National Reserve, where the famous wildebeest migration takes place between July and October each year.
Kenya will win you over with rolling grasslands, searing deserts on the shores of Lake Turkana, and the rugged peaks of Mount Kenya National Park, which is an oasis for trekkers.
When you’ve had enough of wildlife on the plains, the Malinda Marine National Park offers an amazing underwater world of fringing reefs, coral gardens, mangroves and more on the Indian Ocean coast.
Kenya’s biggest city, the notorious Nairobi, is sidestepped by many visitors, but actually has an interesting urban appeal with its vibrant cafes and nightlife.
They booted out their Italian colonialists, soldiered on through civil wars, coups and droughts, and survived the famines of the 1980s. It’s safe to say that the people of Ethiopia are resilient. There are 84 indigenous languages spoken in the nation and these tough-as-nails folk are also direct descendants of the first Homo sapiens.
While the country is landlocked, water babies can get their fix through spectacular waterfalls and hot springs. You’ll also find mountains and caves to explore. And what better country to visit a coffee plantation than here, the origin of the bean?
Compared to its African neighbours, this landlocked country has survived in relative peace, and has fiscally triumphed since independence from the Brits more than 40 years ago. Tourism, particularly to the spectacular Okavango Delta (the world’s largest inland delta), is something of a lifeline and maybe on the increase, given the runaway success of Alexandra McCall’s novels and BBC series, The No 1 Ladies Detective Agency, which is set in Botswana.
As well as the delta and Kalahari desert areas, you’ll want to explore Botswana’s grasslands and savannas, where blue wildebeest, antelope and a variety of birds can be spied. Northern Botswana boasts a rare large population of the endangered African wild dog, and Chobe National Park has the world’s largest concentration of African elephants.
Fascinating hunter-gather ‘bushmen’ traditions still linger alongside the more modernised parts of the country such as Gaborone. All in all, this is a tip-top destination, even for newcomers to the continent.
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