Kenya’s first Christian Church, built as a mission in 1846, now a museum to the earliest Christian missionaries. Found 25 km northwest of Mombasa, off the Nairobi – Mombasa highway on the Mazeras-Kaloleni Road.

Rabai is well known in the annals of history as the place where Christianity and modern learning in Kenya started well over 150 years ago. In 1994 the Krapf Memorial Museum was founded to give formal and a perpetual reminder to monumental events during the advent of early missionaries. Stories about the first missionaries were passed on by word of mouth and are still told today.

Built in 1846 as the first Church edifice in Kenya, Rabai is situated about 25 km north-west of Mombasa, off the Nairobi-Mombasa highway on Mazeras-Kaloleni road, about half an hours drive from Mombasa.

DEEP SEA FISHING

The season starts in late July and runs through to early April.

There are 2 monsoon winds that prevail on the Kenya Coast:

The Kusi (southern monsoon), which blows from April to November.

The Kaskazi (northern monsoon) that blows from late November through to March.

These winds play a big part in the migratory patterns of most Game Fish, therefore different times of the year are better for certain species.

Malindi is world renowned for “Sailfish” which is the smallest yet most acrobatic of the Kenyan Billfish family. Sailfish are great fun with their difficult takes and searing runs. They are found throughout the season, but the best period seems to be October, November and December. The smaller game fish tend to follow a similar pattern to the Sailfish due to their similar feeding habits. One may catch 6 or 7 other species of Pelagic game fish whilst targeting Sailfish or Marlin. The 2004/2005 season saw the most sailfish caught in one day – 24 on one boat and this beat the old record of 22 in one day.

Three of the Marlin family occur on our coast, Black, Blue and Striped. Black Marlin can be found throughout the season. They roam shallow and deep water and have been caught up to 850lbs. The Blue and Striped Marlin inhabit deep blue water. They appear for a short time in August and September, but the most fruitful time is from December to March.

Broadbill Swordfish, the “gladiators” of the sea are caught at night throughout the season; the best time seems to be over the new moon. Kenya’s best night saw 12 Broadbill caught and Kenya’s biggest Broadbill to date was caught in March 2000 weighting 326lbs. Pound for pound the Broadbill is probably the hardest fighting fish in the sea. Kenya sport fishing boats are leading the way in finding new methods for fishing for Broadbill at night.

The Indian Ocean is home to the largest of the Shark family, namely the Great White (never caught on rod and line). Tiger, Bull, Hammerhead, Silver Tip, Black Tip, White Tip, Mako and many others also roam the Indian Ocean. Malindi holds the world record for Silver Tip, Spinner and Black Tip Sharks. Over the last three seasons a new method of fishing for big shark, namely Tigers, has been used and those wanting to fish for these there is a real opportunity to catch a fish of a lifetime.

Yellow fin Tuna, as far as power to size ratio goes, are certainly the strongest fish in the sea. Malindi has experience some incredible Tuna fishing these past three seasons. The biggest to date is a fish of 105kgs although bigger ones have been lost. The Tuna season seems to run from late July through October.

Fly Fishing – for the Fly-Fishing enthusiast Malindi offers many opportunities with Sailfish on fly being one of the ultimate.

One of the best things about fishing the Kenyan waters is the wide range of different species of fish that can be caught. When the billfish are not running as should be there is always a chance for a Giant Trevally (Karambesi), which have been caught up to 50kgs and are one of the strongest fish in the sea. Wahoo, said to be the fastest fish in the sea, with speeds up to 40kph and are a delight to catch. Kingfish, Barracuda, Dorado and Black Runner (Cobia) are just some of the other game fish found in the Kenyan waters. The smaller Kawa-kawa, Skipjack and Frigat Mackerel although used as bait also put up a good fight on light tackle.

Tag & Release of Billfish are encouraged. If the fish is in good condition, the skippers are happy to let them go. All tagging information is then sent to the African Billfish Foundation who then track recaptures. Kenya to date has Tagged more fish than most countries in the world. The furthest is a Striped Marlin caught off Australia.

Drinks are provided on board, packed lunches are not provided and should be ordered through the hotel. Gratuities are not included, if the client’s are satisfied they can leave a tip for the crew, ask the skipper what is a fair sum.

Fishing days can either be short (7hrs) or long (10hrs), normally starting at 6.30am. Clients will be collected from the Driftwood. It is recommended that clients fish long days between January and March in order to target Marlin.

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The Shimoni Slave Caves
Only five minutes from Shimoni Pier, and well worthy a visit, are the ancient coral caves of Shimoni. Vast, cavernous bat-filled, they are reputed to extend 5 km inland and served for centuries as ”Kayas” or scared sites of worship and sanctuary for the local community. Later, in the 18th and 19th century, the caves are also believed to have served as the holding areas for the thousands of slaves captured in the African interior, who were in transit to the infamous Arabian slave markets of Zanzibar. The caves, which are run as a community project, are open from 08.30 am to 06.00 pm (entrance fee is payable)

Mombasa goes back some 2000 years and is the second largest city in Kenya. It is built on an island covering an area of abot 295 sq km.
The City was orginaly called by Mombasa by Arab traders of the 11th century and was the center of trade primarily exporting ivory and slaves. It has retained its status as the leading trading center in the coast region and is also now an international port receiving vessels from all over the world. Mombasa is strongly influenced by Arabic culture and this is quite evident in the food, the dress and the architecture. Today this costal island is a melting point of different cultures and religions.

Within Mombasa Island there are a number of interesting tourist attractions.

The tusks on the Moi Avenue commenmorate the visit of Queen Elizabeth II to the town 1952 and make a lovely backdrop for photographs.

Close by is the Mombasa Old Town with its interesting architecture, art and curios. A walk through its narrow winding streets takes you back centuries.

Fort Jesus is the island’s premier lure, built by the Portuguese in 1593 and overlooking the Indian Ocean. It was desned by an Italian architect named Jao Batisto Cairato, and has been variously cocupied by the Portuguese and Omani Arabs before the Kenya Goverment first used it as a prison soon after independence. In 1962, the Goverment opend Fort Jesus as a muesum after declaring it a historical monument. The museum exhibits the culture of the coastal people and archaeological and historical excavations from the coast.

Visit the Market,
the old Port where till today Dhows are loaded with Goods for Lamu and Zanzibar.
From here you drive to the Mama Ngina Drive, for a refeshment you can have a fresh Coconut and some casava crips or grilled sweet Potatos.

Visit the Swaminayan Hindu Temple at the Haile Sailasee Road.
If you like, walk through the Bisahara Street.
Return to your Hotel.

Welcome to Mnarani Historical National Monument

he site was first occupied in the early 14th century but the first mosque; the Great Mosque was not built until AD 1425. Enlargements were undertaken soon thereafter, followed by major reconstruction efforts later in the 15th century following the collapse of the earlier building. Close to the first Mosque is a smaller mosque which, prior to its construction a much similar but smaller mosque existed at its location; the foundation of its Mihrab may still be seen east of the present Mihrab. The original mosque was built around 1475, while the later mosque in about 1500; this is evident by the presence of a Portuguese dish in the cistern thus indicating that the final alterations to the mosques were probably not completed before the 16th century. Mnarani was eventually destroyed by the Galla in the early 17th century and archaeological evidence seems to confirm this. These ruins were first gazetted in March 1929 in Gazette Notice No.170 as “Ruins of Mnarani” and later confirmed as Monuments in Gazette Notice No.457. Subsequently, they were listed first on the 15th June 1935 in Gazette Notice No.445 and then again under cap.215 of 1962 Revised Subsidiary Legislation. Thus to date they are known as Ruins of an Old Mosque in Kilifi Map sheet 198/2. Manarani is a scenic, peaceful spot well worth a visit and makes an excellent picnic site.

The Nairobi National Museum is the custodian of Kenya’s natural and cultural heritage, and thus collects, preserves and presents the past and present for today and posterity. It is the home to a variety of cultural and natural history exhibits. The displays include prehistoric articrafts discovered by the Leakey’s, over 900 stuffed birds and animals, fossils from Lake Turkana, ethnic displays from various Kenyan tribal groups as well as local artistic exhibits.

One of the mayor attractions at the National Muesum is the area growing plants that are used as traditional medicines, complete with the names of the plant and the diseases that they are said to cure.

The Hominid Vault contains a collection of bones and fossils from the pre-historic era in their orginal form.

There are also very illistrative reconstructions of early life, the traditional regalia that the former president Danil arap Moi adorned at the Lancaster conference; a fossil of the famous elephant Ahmed, Kenya’s most renowed elephant celebrated as having the largest tusks ever recorded in Africa. In 1970 the state declared it a protected animal and placed it under 24 hour guard until his death at the age of 55.

On the north Coast in the Area called Bombululu you find the Bombululu Disalbe Workshops. Here are around 260 Disable Pople who are trained on Jobs, to have a independend future and can work for their own living. They are traind on jewllery, Wood works, Leather and fabric and metall Works. You can visit the Workshops and see the Leather bag manufacture, the screen printing on Textiles (african designs) or very nice wood carvings and african design jewellery.  Once you have seen the manufacture you may opt to buy some of the Items you have seen at the Workshops at the very god sorted sales room. After extended shopping you can have a refreshment at the Ziga Restaurant and watch here the fashion show of the Bombululu fashion.

Also they have a culture center opend in 1994 where you can visit six homesteads where they show the houses and living of six different tribes. (here entrance fee is charged).

Bombolulu Workshops has also a Wood workshop in Likoni where they manufature Funiture and metall workshop where they produce three wheeler Wheelchairs for Polio disable people. If you want to support one you can donate the cost of the manuacture at the Bombululu Workshops and they will hand over the Wheelchair to a disabled person.

Also the Port Reiz Polio clinic is part of APDK.

Support these project it is realy great work what they are doing.

A refuge for the Wild

Only 7 km south of Nairobi lies the Nairobi Safari Walk, Kenya´s conservation based recreation facility. The combination of skilled and creative landscape design, unique wildlife species and detailed interpretation, renders the facility supremacy on tourism an conversation education.

With a combination of three simulated, forests, wetlands and savannahs, visitors have an opportunity to learn about these valuable resources and how they can controbute to its conservation. Some unique plants and animals that are localy extinct or threatened are also displayed. This is the place to learn how to take part in wildlife conservation quest.

The Nairobi Safari Walk is an eye opener to Kenya´s Parks and Reserves. It offers an opportunity to learn what to expect to see across the country. Eypierence a taste of Kenya´s rich animal collection including the rare bongo, white rhino, albino Zebra, a collection of cats, antelopes and primates. Nairobi Safari Walk is also home to a collection of about 150 species of tocal trees. Get to learn their varied traditional uses too.

The unique design of the Safari walk includes the interst of all visitors, families, students, tourists, and all others are caterd for.

Location: Nairobi Province

Distance from Nairobi: 7 Km

Size: 117 square Km

Climatic conditions: January-March is hot and dry, April-June is hot and wet, July-October is very warm and wet

Major Attraction: Three major ecosystems namely wetlands, savannah and forest ecosysems, variety of mammals, reptiles, insects and birds, The boardwalk, children museum

Wildlife: Lion, Cheetah, Leopard, Crocodile, Pygmy hippo, Zebra and albino Zebra, Buffalo, Colobus monkey, Ostrich, Bongo, Oryx, Tortoises, Turtle, Rhino

Birds: Wide variety of birds and insects

Access
Road: located only about 7 km from the city centre, the Nairobi Safari Walk is easily accessible on tarmac roads, off lnagata Road, Kenya Wildlife Service headquaters

Accomodation: There are various Lodges and Hotels located in Nairobi City Center

Best time to visit: All year round

Activities: Walking Safari, wildlife viewing, Children´s Museum, guided walk, talks and lectures, tree identification nursery techniques

The Giraffe Center is located in the Karen district. It’s to protect the rare Rothschild giraffe. You can watch the Rothschild giraffes here and even pet and feed them. How she can lick the food from her hand with her long, blue tongue and watch the man up close with her impressive long eyelashes. Eye to eye, in the viewing terrace, with the animals up to 5.80 meters high is quite unique. You can also see commodity pigs and mighty turtles here.

The Giraffe Center was founded in 1983 by the Leslie-Melville couple to protect the Rothschild giraffe. The Giraffe Center has approximately 6 hectares of space for the Rothschild giraffes. Baby Daisy, the giraffe, which you raised in your Giraffe Manor home and wrote a book about it, which you ordered “Raising Daisy Rothschild”, was made into a film by CBS under “The last Giraffe”.

We would be happy to answer any questions you may have about your Africa trip!

The Karen Blixen Museum is located in the Karen district. It is housed in the house where the writer Karen Blixen lived. She became world-famous through her novel “Out of Africa” and the film adaptation by Sydney Pollack titled “Out of Africa.”

Karen Blixen was Danish and came to British East Africa, today’s Kenya, in 1914 at the age of 28. After arriving in Mombasa, she married her cousin Baron Bror Blixen-Finecke. His family helped financially to purchase a coffee plantation in the Ngong Hills. The marriage was not happy, and in the first year of marriage, Bror infected his wife with syphilis. From 1920, the two lived apart, and in 1925 their marriage was officially divorced. Later, Karen Blixen met a British nobleman, Denys Finch-Hatton. He was the love of her life. Denys Finch-Hatton was an enthusiastic big game hunter, and he was the one who motivated Karen Blixen to write books. Because the soil was too acidic, the coffee plantation did poorly. In 1930, Denys Finch-Hatton died in a plane crash. He is buried in the Ngong Hills.

Karen Blixen wrote many books under pseudonyms.

The farmhouse was built in 1912 by a Swedish farmer, Ake Sjören. In 1917, Bror and Karen moved into the house. After they moved out, the house had various owners until Denmark acquired it in 1963, and it housed a school until it was placed under the authority of the National Museums of Kenya.

We are happy to answer any questions you may have about your trip to Africa!