Day 1 in Nairobi

Last night ended up by being a travel night for us, not to Kilimanjaro airport that is still unsafe due to the unrest in Tanzania, but to Nairobi where we will make new safari plans.

Turkish Airlines provided a shuttle from the Hampton Hotel, where they paid for accommodation and all of our meals, right to the airport (normally $50 U.S).

On the way, we were in a mild accident so had to stop while the driver of both vehicles and the police talked and did some paperwork. We still got to the airport in time though.

As we were getting ready to board, we were asked for our E Visas for Kenya. Hmmmn. We didn’t have visas. Or know that we were supposed to have them before boarding. It was too short of time to apply for a visa so the officer let us on the plane and wished us luck in Kenya.

The flight was cramped and noisy, but overall good and we arrived in Nairobi at 3 a.m.

We explained why we didn’t have an EVisa (ETA) and the officer was very understanding. We paid him directly and he stamped us in. It was a pretty easy process. I think we paid him $5 U.S. more each for doing it this way, but we didn’t have the hassle of doing it online. Our total was $140 for the four of us.

A car was waiting for us to take us to the Kije hotel. By 5 a.m., we were in bed fast asleep! The hotel is not a Hampton or Movenpick but a clean 16 story building with great views of Nairobi. Our contact, Paul, was in contact with us via WhatsApp, all the way.

After 3 hours of sleep, we met and had a good breakfast in the hotel restaurant. We didn’t have to pay for it. Breakfast is included.

Paul is meeting with us at 4 pm to replan the itinerary. In the meantime, we found an ATM for some Kenyan shillings, organized for laundry to be done, had lunch, rested a bit and spent a little time in the top floor lounge before meeting with Paul.

It has been a productive and positive day and we look forward to seeing the possibilities of a new trip that Paul will be suggesting.Read more