• What is the weather like?

The weather is fairly consistent year round - around 70 – 85 Fahrenheit or 20 – 30 Celsius.  June and October are rainy months, July is considered the cold season here and it can get quite chilly. (Please note that Connie’s home is not heated and of concrete construction.)

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• Do the people speak English?   

English is one of the national languages so most people in the city speak at least some English and the students of CSL Kenya are all fluent in English.

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•  What is the local economy like?

There are more middle class people all the time and the gap between the haves and have nots is shrinking.  That said there are still many people that are living in abject poverty, the people there are destitute, as are the people living in the slum where I am involved with the school.  In the slum areas many of the families are single parents with anywhere from 2 to 8 children barely surviving... selling peanuts on the street to support their families... living on the equivalent of about 1 dollar a day.

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• What would my days look like? Do you schedule for us, or do we come up with the activities ourselves? 

If you give me an idea of what your interests are I can set up an itinerary for you.​   There are lots of things to do in and around Nairobi: 

• Giraffe sanctuary: www.giraffecenter.org, is a sanctuary for orphaned giraffes.  It has a raised viewing platform where you can interact with the giraffe.  We learned that the giraffe are very fickle… ‘no food – no friend’

• David Sheldrick elephant sanctuary: www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org, is an amazing facility where they rescue orphaned elephants in the wild and raise them for 3 – 4 years before re-introducing them back into the wild.

• Nairobi National Park Safari Walk: www.kws.go.ke/content/nairobi-safari-walk, Safari Walk has 3 distinct areas: forest, wetland and savannah where you walk among the plants, birds and animals of each region while learning about the quest for wildlife conservation.

• There is a great museum: http://www.museums.or.ke

• There are lots of safaris and I have a tour guide that gives me good deals.  I would definitely recommend Masai Mara for sure as that is where you will see all of the big 5.  That would be a minimum 3 day safari.

• There are several smaller game reserves that can be accessed as day or overnight trips.

•  Depending on my teaching or class schedule there is the potential of visiting Kisii where one of my students has a soap stone carving shop where everything is hand made with much care and love. They love to have me stay at their home which is an amazing authentic Kenyan experience. This would be a 3 day trip and we could add a day to stop at Nakuru and/or Naivasha game reserves on the way.

• If you like the ocean Diani Beach near Mombasa is awesome and you can fly there for under $150 US return.

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• How do we get there?

There are many airlines that fly to Nairobi and it has an international airport.  My preference is KLM as most of the flights only have one stopover in Amsterdam.

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• How do we get from the airport?   

Nairobi now has UBER here and it works well, it will cost about $15US from the airport.  If you prefer there are taxi’s available at the airport which will charge more.

 

• What do I need for a visa?

Go to the following link to apply for a visa: https://immigration.ecitizen.go.ke/index.php?id=5

 

• What do I need for immunizations?

I recommend that you visit your doctor or a clinic that specializes in global travel and let them know that you will be visiting Kenya - specifically Nairobi, Masai Mara and Kisii areas.   Malaria:  there is no risk in Nairobi but I would recommend taking tablets when going on safaris.

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• How do I travel around Nairobi?

Uber is a great way to get around by taxi and fairly reasonable.  There are also small motorbikes operating as taxis called boda/bodas which are cheaper than taxis.  The locals use matatus or 15 passenger mini buses that are very cheap and several larges buses that now operate as well for the same price as matatus.

 

• Do we have to rent a car?

I have a small car that we can use around the area.  You can rent cars but there are no large car rentals here.

 

• How do we make phone calls?

If your cell phone is unlocked you can get a local SIM card for about $2 and the calling rates are very reasonable. 

My cell number in Kenya +254718402052.

There is also an App that can be used on your phone to make local and international calls or text messaginb (as long as you are connected to Wi-Fi). WhatsApp is used by both me and my students, locally and internationally to keep in contact.

 

• How do you do laundry there? 

There is a washing machine; we hang the clothes to dry on lines.

 

• What is the dress code?

It is a conservative culture so to be respectful please don’t wear any revealing clothing (i.e. belly showing, short shorts, etc.)  Bikinis are OK at the swimming pools and the beach.  Most traditional women still only wear long dresses and the men do not wear shorts.  There are many Muslims that are covered completely.

 

• How reliable is internet service? 

I have a good internet provider and the internet is strong.... that said the power does go off and so does the internet.

 

• How do we access money?

The currency is Kenya shillings and the exchange is approx. $1US = 100KES. You can usually use a major bank card (so long as it has a visa/MasterCard logo and a 4 digit pin) at the ATM to get the KES.  There are also a lot of foreign exchange bureaus here.

 

There is an amazing service here called mpesa where you can also register your phone number for mpesa services; you add money and use your phone to pay in stores and at local markets.  For more info:  www.safaricom.co.ke/personal/m-pesa

 

• Do you know anything about obtaining prescriptions in Nairobi? 

Do  they have drug stores?  Do they take American prescriptions or can  people buy directly from a pharmacy without an RX?

You can get pretty much any drug for relatively inexpensively at any local pharmacist/chemist without a prescription.  One of my guests visited a clinic in Diani. 1000/= to get checked out by doctor + prescription, one set of meds was 800kes and the other was 600kes It was very very easy.

 

• What is the cost of living?

If you eat local products it is fairly reasonable here (at least by our standards), local vegetables and fruits are abundant and cheap.  Anything processed or imported is very expensive.  I am a vegetarian and it costs me about $50/week for food.  There are a wide variety of restaurants in Nairobi; the local restaurants are very inexpensive you can get a meal for around $5; the westernized restaurants would be about on par with US$ costs.

 

• What donations could we bring? Is it better to bring things from here or buy them there? 

The children at the slum school have very little and are genuinely    appreciative of even the smallest presents:  pens, pencils, crayons, markers, stickers, storybooks or educational toys, etc. are great motivators for the kids.

• Within the city there are large malls with more and more products all the time so you can pretty much find just about anything you may want, and I like to support the local economy.

• There are things I can't get here that I like to bring from home, like metaphysical books!  I have a ‘lending library’ and am always looking to add more books.

• Currently in Calgary and Las Vegas two of my practitioners have suitcases of books that we could arrange for you to bring over.

 

• What service can be done with Centre for Spiritual Living Kenya? 

• I welcome all visitors to participate at whatever level you feel comfortable.  I love to give the students (both adult and children) the opportunity to hear about the SOM from others perspective so would welcome you in any classes being offered during your visit.  Many guests have spent time at the slum school reading to the children or helping them with homework.

  • If you are a minister or licenced practitioner I would love to have you teach a SOM class while you are here.  In particular if you could come for at least 8 weeks it would give the students an incredible opportunity to learn from someone else!  You would also be welcome to teach at the slum school - I teach a SOM class there each week to the students in grades 6 - 8. The principal and his wife that run the school were some of the first students are both intending to become practitioners.