Politics anywhere in the world is not for the fainthearted. A short while ago JD Vance, he of Hillbilly Elegy fame, now the new kid in Trump’s universe, was calling Donald Trump a modern-day Hitler.
Today he’s Trump’s fawning deputy. Kenya’s politics this week makes one recall Senator Jackson Mandago’s viral video counselling Kenyans to always store politics in the lungs, never in the heart.
To enable those who never heeded the Senator’s counsel to recover, this week we move away from politics and law to sample magical Kenya.
In the last two years I have had the benefit of participating intimately in cultural events in diverse communities, a Nyombo in Migori where I realised that my community have no understanding of a good ‘heng’.
The other was last week when we enjoyed an “Ekegeni kia Abako” the Kisii equivalent of the Kikuyu Itara in Nyamira County.
For the uninitiated, this ceremony involves the bride’s family visiting the groom’s home to ensure their daughter will be well looked after. By the time we left Nyamira, we knew our girl would be more than catered for.
The journey between Nairobi and Nyamira offers many samples of the best Kenya has to offer. If you choose to use the escarpment route to Mai Mahiu, you will enjoy some of the best views of the Rift Valley.
Be aware however that if any of the hundreds of trucks that traverse that road develops a cough, you can spend nights on that road. I however have good news; you can avoid the escarpment by using the newly tarmacked Ngong-Suswa road.
If you choose that road, please have your breakfast at Entim Sidai on the outskirts of Karen. You won’t be disappointed. The only challenge is the 2 or so kilometres that connect it to the Narok road that is not tarmacked. It is however passable.
Interestingly, though there is little traffic, Kenyans have invested heavily in numerous nyama choma joints on that stretch of road awaiting the predictable convoys that will grace it once it is fully open.
Past Suswa, the drive is enjoyable, your only company is tourist vehicles, the sights of wheat farms and the sounds of livestock. Some investors, including the famous Artcaffe have developed first class stop-overs that serve as bathroom and refreshment breaks.
If you love nyama choma, roasted by authentic Maasai, not the fake Nairobi ones, please do not pass Narok. You will be spoilt for choice either in the boisterous town or its bustling suburbs. From there the other must stop is Bomet.
The greenery of Bomet is unmatched and so are its hotel offerings many of which scream to be sampled as you pass them on the highway. Soon you are in Gusii land and you are made aware of entry into this land by the vibrancy of even its smallest towns. Whatever you do, do not fail to stop at Amaanzi Resort.
If you are a golfer, hacker or otherwise, spend an hour at the resort and try out their new par 3-only course and sample their chicken, matoke and mbuzi delights.
Take the opportunity to stay in one of Nyamira’s best kept secrets, the Yana Residence deep inside the Kipkebe Tea farm. I know of few places that have surprised me as this gem did. Beautifully manicured lawns, excellent lobby restaurant and bar, complete with an array of exclusive single malts; you could be anywhere in Europe.
And they arrange tea farm and factory tours. Kenya has beautiful places waiting to be discovered and enjoyed. If you decide to pass Nyamira and head to Kisii through Keroka, you encounter busy, vibrant and full of life towns. You have your pick of stuff to do including a round of golf at Kisii Golf Club. You can tell my latest hobby.
As we headed back to the city, and I reflected on the trip, I realised what I had loved most about Nyamira were its people. Friendly, easygoing, generous to a fault, religious but loving a good dose of fun.
Once we take a break from our politics, take a moment to see Kenya. We live in a magical paradise.
-The writer is an advocate of the High Court of Kenya
