2008 Nairobi Meet
Mike, Nick and HS fly to Nairobi on the 2nd from
Cape Town (via Johannesburg) with our own luggage and numerous bike spares. It
was preceded by a number of TV reports describing the post election riots &
massacres in Western Kenya, and the escalating standoff on Nairobi between
Onguma & Kibake supporters.
In hindsight, it was probably a bad idea to walk into a
riot zone with tyres round our neck
We were greeted by Rennie & Jeremy, who were (at that
point) very upbeat about the situation. We were taken to the Swara Safari Hotel,
where we checked in, and then retired to various hostelries for urgent
refreshment, and bike preparation (oil service, pannier checks etc). As the day
progressed, it became more obvious that the morning of the 3rd (the due date for
John & Ross to arrive) would probably be bad time to be on the streets of
Nairobi. There was a scheduled political rally being organised by Onguma's
supporters.
It was decided that all remaining parties (Ross, John and
Glenn) should arrange their arrival for the morning of the 4th. The rather blunt
logic behind this being that (as we were advised), the rally on the 3rd in Uhuru
Park would inevitably degenerate into a major piss up, followed by the, now
customary, machete party, finished off with a bit of rape and pillage in the
Asian section of Nairobi. The following morning, it was safe to assume, everyone
would be sleeping it off, and probably wouldn't notice a van full of white
nervous faces.
Having ensured everyone would be arriving on the morning of
the 4th, the advance party retired to the Karen Club to meet some good friends
of Nick, Peter & Maggie, playing Bowls. In the evening we ventured down to
Wilson Field and went into the Carnivore with a view to consuming large slabs of
dead animal. The place was as deserted as a Gibraltar taxi rank, so we retired
to the Rusty Nail in Karen for an excellent meal, then onto another Inn for yet
more beer.............
We were joined by Glenn, John and Ross on the morning of
the Friday 4th Jan.
On Friday 5th we visited Sheldrick Elephant &
Rhino orphanage, followed by Giraffe Manor.
The group agreed to depart for our first stop (Isiola) the
following day (the 6th), providing Rennie could source a suitable vehicle.
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The Swara Safari Hotel
On the outskirts of Nairobi, near Karen |
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The bikes with new panniers
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Nick Keeling, Mechanic!
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Bikes at the Security Group maintenance facility
On the outskirts of Nairobi |
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Replacing the old front tyre
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Bowls at the Karen Club
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