Where & what infographic of our time in Kenya

Inspired by the way Jeff & Kerryn-lee, of Pass the Map, documented their 2012 expedition through Southern Africa with infographics, we were inspired to do the same. So each Tuesday we will be posting a summary infographic, in the order of our route, and today's one is for Kenya, the 7th country of our expedition. 

While we were in Kenya our expedition started to unravel a little and we ended up spending a LONG time here getting everything back on track. It was here that Ishtar left the team, Matt was forced to resign from his job to be able to continue the expedition and our route also needed to be changed due to an outbreak of conflict in South Sudan. While we were sorting out our finances and next steps we were fortunate enough to have some very kind people put roofs over our heads, namely James and Claire Clark as well as Naomi, Sammy & Chui Mutua. Thank you so much to you all for kindly opening your homes to us - if it hadn't been for you the expedition would not have been able to continue. We are eternally grateful.

While in Kenya we also spent about a month camping, mainly at the Nairobi Scouts Camp. This camp was an incredible find and we by and large had it to ourselves the entire time (except weekends when day visitors flocked to the beautiful spot for picnicking). Set in the Ngong Forest even though the facilities weren't fantastic, the surroundings more than made up for it - oh and the fact that the site cost only $1 a day a person didn't hurt! It was here that we lived in $1.25 a day for a week - a perspective altering experience that you can read more about here.

At this stage of the expedition we were really impressed at how well our camping gear was doing - even after 6 months of hard use on the road and a month of solid use in Nairobi - particularly since most of it was second hand when we left South Africa! Our Cadac tent had literally been bent in half during storms in Tanzania, beaten by the wind in Namibia, soaked over and over again in rains across Southern Africa and yet still somehow kept standing and barely even leaked. This tent, by a gas bottle company we didn't even know made tents, was the most reliable and strongest piece of equipment we've had on this expedition and in fact ever before! Sadly when we tried to find out more about the tents we discovered they are no longer made, so your best bet for finding one is second hand - ours was anyway! If you're in Tanzania I'd recommend you check out these free online classifieds. You're bound to find everything you need for an adventurous weekend away here!

The variety of places we stayed while in Kenya gave us the opportunity to meet some amazing people, and having the time to really get to know them was a gift. We ended up with not only an incredible support system across Kenya but also a bunch of friends for life. For just this everything else we went through in Kenya was worth it.

All these experiences, from the way we were living, the people we met, to the issues we faced, changed us from travellers to nomads. We changed from the people who freaked out at a 3 day delay because of a broken windscreen in Namibia to the people who were prepared to not only give up everything to keep the expedition alive but stay in a campsite for weeks on end and love every minute. We learnt to roll with the punches and we learnt that, as cliched as it sounds, everything really does happen for a reason - if we hadn't been delayed in Kenya we would have been in the middle of the Sudanese desert when the conflict broke out and Juba shut down! In Kenya we threw away our timeline and recognised that it was going to take as long as it was going to take, there may be delays, there may be stops but we'll get there in the end. And that's ok, in fact it's exactly as we want it, because that's the real adventure and that's where the life-changing lessons are learned.

All in all Kenya was a tough time but we toughened up, got to re-explore the country we used to live in, and from here were truly ready to embrace all that T2T has to offer us.

Posted by Tracy Angus-Hammond (@T2T_Trace)

Where & what infographic of our time in Namibia

Jeff and Kerryn-lee, in 2012, embarked on a 22,500 km journey over 150 days, through South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique. This trip became the beginning of a much larger journey for them as global travelers and bloggers, and you can follow their exploits at http://www.passthemap.com/

They created some incredible infographics summarising their stay in each country: 

We LOVE them! Don't you think it's a fantastic way to create something frameable that gives much more detail in the same space than a photo would? So we were inspired to do something similar...
After checking with Jeff and Kerryn-lee we did and each Tuesday we'll be posting our infographics in order of our route. Hope you enjoy them as much as we enjoyed Jeff and Kerryn-lee's!

Posted by Tracy Angus-Hammond (@T2T_Trace)

Skipping the Serengeti and finding Singida instead

Our planned route through Northern Tanzania was to head from Ngorongoro to Mwanza on the shores of Lake Victoria via the Serengeti, but that plan was forced to change when we discovered the ludicrous park fees for the Serengeti. We were aware that we’d have to pay $60 a day per person to get into the Serengeti National Park, fees we felt were high but would be worth it, but were not aware that in addition to this we’d also be required to pay a whopping $200 a day for our car to be in the park. The issue of park fees and their size is a matter for a whole other blog but the ethics of the matter were moot since our budget did not allow for such an expense, especially since camping, food etc.  were not included.

We still needed to get to Mwanza though, since that’s where the next school food garden we were part of co-creating was scheduled, and so we worked out a new route around the park. This route meant heading south again before picking up the Dodoma-Mwanza Highway. The new route was approximately 800km compared to the 350km we would have traveled through the park. However after doing the maths we established it was still a much cheaper option than heading through the park and so we hit the road! We soon discovered we were completely off the beaten track and (I might add) were thrilled about this.

The road was in perfect condition and climbed and climbed closer to the clouds, to a point when we started to find it a little difficult to breathe and the car began to struggle. The highest point we climbed to in our trusty Nissan X-trail was just over 3000m and as you can imagine the views from up there were spectacular.  Before long we found ourselves in a town called Singida situated on a salt lake of the same name and surrounded by huge boulders. Best of all this lake, listed as an Important Bird Area, even has flamingos in it! We headed towards a bar, always our first port of call if we don’t know a place, so we could get some advice from locals on where to stay and what to do. We ended up at the KBH Hotel bar right on the lake shore and asked the owner if he knew of any camping facilities in town. He laughed and replied that Mzungus (white people in Swahili) don’t really come here and only Mzungus camp (so no) but did say we could camp on the hotel grounds. However the difference in price for a room in the hotel versus the campsite in the parking lot was so small it made more sense to just get a room – especially considering the room rate included Wi-Fi, breakfast and spectacular views over Lake Singida. We soon settled in our room and then went for a wander on the lake shore.

The beauty of spending time in Singida is that you can just relax and enjoy small town life in Tanzania – afternoon soccer training, the daily homeward migration of cattle and their herders, the bustle of traders unaffected by tourists and an incredible sunset. This sunset though was nothing on the sunrise we were treated to the next morning, which was without doubt the best of our entire journey so far! The white deposits of salt around the lake enhanced the orange of the rising sun, contrasting beautifully with the green coloured water of the lake all finished off with a seemingly never-ending jumble of boulders and a sprinkling of flamingos which made just this moment well worth an 800km detour.  

If you’re looking for more than just a few days absorbing your surroundings Singida does have more to offer like the Singida museum out past the J-Four Motel, plenty of bouldering opportunities (provided you have your own equipment), sunflower plantation tours, some excellent basket shopping – something the town is known for,  tours of the 113 year old town Mosque (including its clock tower which visitors can climb for spectacular views of the town) and even some rock paintings 35km south of Singida at Mjukhuda or 50km north near Lambi Village. I have to admit we didn’t do any of these activities because we were stuck by the lake, entranced by the view, the birdlife and enjoying the company of new found friends.

Posted by Tracy Angus-Hammond (@T2T_Trace)

5 Things to do in Nairobi, Kenya

From 2008 to the end of 2009 Matt & I lived in Ngong just outside of Nairobi, Kenya. On our very first weekend in Nairobi we excitedly got out our guidebooks to find our very first adventure in our new city. We were a bit baffled to find that all of the various brands of guidebooks not only had very little information on the city but in fact were rather disparaging of it! One said, and I’m paraphrasing here, that there is no point visiting Nairobi other than as a stop off point to get somewhere else in Kenya, but if you do get stuck there’s nothing to do so go to the mall and watch a movie! Having spent as much time as we did in Nairobi I can say with absolute confidence that this is complete nonsense – the city is packed with all sorts of historical, cultural and wildlife experiences. Here are my favourite 5:  

1) Kitengela Glass

It's a long and rather rough road to get to this magical wonderland but worth every second of the trip! You know you're getting close when strange but beautiful statues made of glass, metal, wire, tyres and more start appearing in the landscape. The first thing that makes the trip worth while are the spectacular views of the Nairobi skyline en route and then you arrive in a make believe surreal world ideally set in the Kenyan bush...

Here you can wonder around the property filled with quaint, straight out of a story book sort buildings -  some filled with shops, other workrooms and even some accommodation; visit the actual hot glass workshop as well as get some fabulous deals at the factory shop. For more visit Kitengela's website or follow them on Facebook.

2) Tradestar Exim Agencies

Not only an amazing empowerment project completely locally run but also the place that offers the best variety and quality sisal woven handbags in the entire city. Located on Mbono road, parallel to Thika road near Muthaiga, it can be a little tricky to find but the weaving women usually sitting outside working in the sun should help. The best part of supporting this initiative is that you can pick your own handles, style, colours etc. for your bag and have it made while you wait! You will also find beaded belts, sisal & beaded wine holders, beaded necklaces, sisal place mats among many other unique gems not available in the local markets. Contact Charles at tradexim4@yahoo.com for more.

3) Olorgesailie Pre-Historic Site

A 90 minute drive from Nairobi straight down to the bottom of the Rift Valley is this prehistoric site with fossil findings still in their original spots, excavations in progress open for viewing and wide, open, quiet spaces in one of Kenya's most unique landscapes.  Located on Magadi road, Olorgesailie has excellently preserved biological and cultural evidence about the evolution of man and human tools are the most prominent of all fossils found here. In fact it is currently on the UNESCO World Heritage Sites tentative list and so will soon be considered for full status.  It is very hot on the Rift Valley floor and there is no shop at the museum so be sure to take plenty of cold drinks and water. There are camping facilities available too, but again be sure to bring everything you may need with you. A great lunch stop 20 minutes away from Olorgesailie is Ribs Village, a local spot with the best Nyama Choma of any we tasted in Kenya! For more information visit the National Museums of Kenya website or the UNESCO site

4) David Sheldrick Rhino & Elephant Orphanage

This incredible centre on the outskirts of Nairobi looks after orphan elephants and rhinos, ensuring that they are able to be re-introduced into Kenya's national parks. Each elephant or rhino is assigned a keeper who stays with them for the duration of their stay at the centre. Their role is to hand rear their charges, even sleep next to them and most importantly accompany the orphans into the Nairobi National park each day, thus ensuring they spend as much time in their natural environment as possible. Once a day for only an hour the public are allowed to witness feeding time and get up close and personal with these sweet personality filled creatures. For more visit their website or follow the centre on Twitter

5) Giraffe Centre

A 15-20 minute drive from the David Sheldrick Rhino & Elephant Orphanage, here you can interact with, feed and even kiss a giraffe at eye level on raised platforms. This very special and rare experience is enhanced by excellently informed and multilingual staff always close at hand to teach you something or put nervous visitors at ease. The centre also has a great restaurant right next to the raised platforms, nature trails, accommodation, one of Nairobi's best priced and greatest variety gift stores and some very entertaining, very fat warthogs to boot! Best of all every cent of profits goes towards conservation and education so not only fun but sustainable & responsible tourism too! For more information visit their website or find them on Facebook. 

By Tracy Angus -Hammond (@T2T_Trace)