Visit Nairobi - In just over a century, the capital city of Kenya has been transformed from an uninhabited highland swamp to its current evolution as a bustling metropolitan city which still recognizes its wilderness roots.

The city was first formed when rail workers set up a basic railway camp and a supply depot in 1899 and named it ‘Mile 327’, it like many African regions, was once under British Colonial rule, and much of the architecture of the area reflects this. More...

Nairobi is probably the best place in East Africa for buying African souvenirs (known locally as curios). The markets have great atmosphere and are worth exploring as sights. The covered City Market, Muindi Mbingu Street, was originally built as an aircraft hangar. For traditional fabrics and clothes, head down Biashara Street. Kariokor Market, corner of Racecourse Road and General Waruingi Street, is a huge sprawling open-air chaos with everything on sale from vegetables and fish to traditional fabrics and souvenirs. Alternatively try the Embakasi Village Crafts Market, Mombasa Road, or the colourful Maasai Markets (Tue and Fri at the corner of Moi Avenue and Monrovia Street; Thur at National Theatre on Harry Thuku Road; and Fri at the village market, Limuru Road).

Nairobi has a good selection of excellent international restaurants including Chinese, Indian, Italian, Ethiopian and Thai. There’s even a Japanese restaurant. The most famous of Nairobi’s restaurants is the Carnivore, a few kms out of town in Langata. Meat is their speciality ranging from chicken, pork, lamb and spare ribs to exotic game meats such as ostrich, zebra, crocodile, hartebeest and wildebeest. The meat is hacked onto your plate from huge Masai spears and the waiters keep coming around until you ‘surrender’ by lowering the white flag on your table. It may sound like a vegetarian's nightmare, but they have good vegetarian meals too. This gut-busting extravaganza is a great night out and if you can still stand afterwards there are several bars and the Simba Saloon nightclub at the Carnivore.

The city was first formed when rail workers set up a basic railway camp and a supply depot in 1899 and named it ‘Mile 327’, it like many African regions, was once under British Colonial rule, and much of the architecture of the area reflects this.

The modern name of Nairobi was derived from the Maasai name of Ewaso Nai’beri meaning ‘the place of cold water’. The city was made the capital of British East India in 1907, only eight years after inception and since the Kenyan independence in 1963, remains the current capital of the new republic.

Nairobi is not like other ‘average’ capital cities which have developed away from its wilderness roots and into technological havens. The city is covered in foliage and green-space, so much so that it has been nicknamed ‘The Green City in the Sun’. Nairobi very much recognises, and celebrates, its safari heritage with a 117km² national park interlocked with the city itself.

The Nairobi National Park is just 20 minutes away from the heart of Nairobi and is home to a large number of zebras, wildebeests, buffalos, giraffe, rhinos, cheetahs, and even lions. The park is home to more than 400 types of birds and this dry savannah has a status as a protected game reserve.

The reserve is one of the leaders in preserving rhinoceroses in Kenya and has become renowned for re-introducing the species through its many rhino projects. Currently the rhino population in the park has been estimated at 3100, and the park is one of the few in Kenya where visitors can be certain to see the elusive black rhino.

Due to its rich and varied history, the city is immersed in culture and has a large collection of museums such as the National Museum of Kenya, the Kenya Railway Museum, the National Archives and even a Karen Blixen Museum. Monuments are scattered around the city that commemorate the region’s independence, such as the Nyayo Monument and the Uhuru Monument.

Nairobi was placed under the limelight in the eighties due to the movie ‘Out of Africa’ that became a western-world hit and even took out seven Academy Awards. The movie by Sydney Pollack, based on the book written by Karen Blixen about her life living in Kenya, intrigued audiences who had never before encountered this unique setting.

Visitors to Nairobi no longer have to lack for luxuries with a large range of accommodation, and many five-star properties, that can meet the needs of the ficklest traveller. The shops, restaurants and nightlife in Nairobi don’t fall far from the par in other metropolitan cities either, with swanky new bars and locations opening all the time.

For your own out of Africa experience, Nairobi is served mainly by the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. Located just 15kms out of town, Nairobi is no longer difficult to reach. Or for a more ‘authentic’ experience the railway system can still reach the city centre from locations such as Mombasa and Kisumu, so travellers can still enter the city the way that the original founders did.

Whatever reason motivates you to visit this 1661-metre highland city location. Nairobi is a city that offers an experience of some of Kenya’s most unique features, from the savannah wildlife planes to the old-world colonial features that have enhanced the city’s mystique. Nairobi is a must see for the modern plucky traveller.