Macushla Hotel - Nairobi

We arrived at the Nairobi airport about 7:30 pm and quickly passed through customs. We had been warned that it would be chaotic with lots of people waiting for the new arrivals and many clamoring to be the one to help you get to your destination. However, it really wasn’t much different from any other airport when you arrive from an international trip. As long as there is a space for new arrivals to stop and look around before entering the crowd, you have time to either find your ride or check out the signs and note where the help might be. We had a driver waiting so once we saw our names, we headed out for our driver and left the airport.

I had a much more chaotic arrival 20 years ago in Ghana where that separate area wasn’t available and we were immediately accosted by folks wanting to be our personal guides. Fortunately, I was part of a large group there and our leader, who was from Accra, quickly found his brother waiting for us and we were on our bus headed for the hotel. We talked to a couple of guys later who had not been so lucky. They had accepted a ride from a taxi driver who took them to Cape Coast, about three hours away. $300 later they were at their hotel. The ride should have been less than $50 even for that distance given the taxi rates in Ghana at the time.

Interesting pool fountain

No worries for us as we headed for our hotel, the Macushla House in the Karen District of Nairobi. We had an easy drive as it was well past rush hour and we bypassed the center of town. I asked our driver/guide later about tours that included central Nairobi. He said they only do those on weekends because traffic is so bad most of the tour would be sitting in traffic. Built about 20 years ago, the Macushla House has a colonial feel to it appropriate for a neighborhood named after Karen Blixen author of Out of Africa. She had lived nearby.

Dark, heavy beams and large furniture highlight the common areas. Our room was similar to the ‘tents’ we have stayed in at safari camps. A large room with a huge double bed surrounded by a mosquito net and a full bathroom make for a nice place to spend a couple of nights. The next morning was unscheduled time, so after the typically large breakfast I explored the hotel grounds. A large tiled pool with a crocodile fountain is the highlight. The grounds are small, but there is about an acre of natural area where I was able to spot a few birds. Out front I found a family of capuchin monkeys including one very young sprout feeling his oats and trying to get some distance between herself and the parents, unsuccessfully.

Our guide arrived about 2:00 to take us around. Our first stop was the Giraffe Centre where they are working to save the Rothschild Giraffe. Found mostly in Uganda, southern Sudan, and northeastern Kenya, there are only about 1700 left in the wild making them the most endangered of the nine giraffe subspecies. Rothschild giraffes are differentiated by the jagged edges on their spots, no spots below their knees, the five ossicones (horns) on their heads. No other giraffe has more than three ossicones. The preserve is quite small with a two story viewing building where visitors can hand-feed the giraffes from the sack of pellets given to everyone as they enter. The interior of the viewing building has displays about giraffes and the preservation efforts. The giraffes kindly stick out their tongues to take the pellets so there is no danger of being bitten although some will head butt you if you get too close.

Just let it lick or it might bite

A pair of warthogs mock fighting adds to the color