I arrived at Nairobi airport. It was dark and I had to find my Kenyan couchsurf host that I know from just a photo. Guess what, arriving at the exit, everyone started to shake my hand. Is this him? Or him? Apparently not. Luckily I had his phone number somewhere. After calling he said, “I am coming, almost there!”. I was standing there, at the exit, waiting for somebody I didn’t know. Can I trust him? Is Couchsurfing safe? As a nervous inexperienced traveller I stand there. My host sees me and walks to me. “Welcome, George! Come let’s go!”. I follow him to his car. We had a short talk and as it was late I decided to go to sleep shortly after. All anxiety was gone by then.

My host was an amazing guy. It was my first time to use Couchsurfing network and the experience was amazing. You get to know the country, the area and the people in a way you just cannot experience when you stay at a hotel. I would love to go back to Kenya just to meet him and his friends again. He opened my eyes, Africa is awesome.

Downtown

On the way of downtown, it is common to see street sellers. They will make use of the traffic to sell their stuff. In fact, you can buy nearly anything from the streets. Whether it is a quick snack or drink for the journey, something you still need to buy in the shop, toys for your kids or even gifts for your lady, you will all find it.

First stop: The conference tower. A great place to have a view of the skyline of Nairobi.

The markets of Nairobi.

Elephant Orphanage

At this place, you can adopt an elephant. They use the money to feed and help the elephants that have been victim of poachers. Read more about this project on their website.

Giraffe centre

Last but not least, if you would like to have a close encounter with a giraffe, this is the place to be. Some people like to put the giraffe food in their mouth and get a nice lick from the giraffe. I preferred not to do so.

I bet there is much more to do in Nairobi. Most tourists come to Nairobi to depart for safari trips. I went on three different safaris during my stay in Kenya. Read more about them!

• Lake Nakuru – Naivasha
• Masai Mara
• Amboseli National Park (Kilimanjaro)