For some people, it may be a busy shopping mall. For others, it’s the serenity of the forest. For others it is chocolate or talking to a close friend. It can be a place, a person or simply an activity. The beauty of happy place is that it is subjective and it can be anything. Think of it as that place you go to be fully present with yourself, and you can savour the experience. Finding a happy place can give us inner peace, the freedom to lose ourselves in the moment, opportunities to find meaning, and a platform for achieve greatness. We spoke to a few public personalities to find out what their happy places were, and this is what they had to say:
1.Olive Gachara (Business Entrepreneur and TV personality)
What do you do for fun: I think my work ticks that box, but in my free time, I like to practice yoga or take a walk in Karura.
What is your happy place: My happy place is in my head! When I feel stressed or flustered, I like to go somewhere where I can decompress, and reflect on life, and Nature usually does it for me. Living in Nairobi, Karura Forest is definitely the best option for me where I will either go for a walk – or a run – at least once a week. Nature is very humbling and helps put things in perspective as you look at the big picture of life as we know it.
What do you love most about the forest, why does it calm you?
Everything about nature appeals to me, the air is fresh plus everything is so green and quiet. It is soothing. And it’s not just the forest, if I lived near an ocean that would be my happy place. I would simply go and sit and stare into the horizon and be at peace with myself and life.
2.Jackie Nyaminde (Actress, MC, TV Host)
What do you do for fun: I enjoy staying at home and watching movies. However, back in the day I would have said going out but that is the old me. I also love to cook so you will often find me trying out new recipes. Lastly, hanging out with my chosen family at The Chuom, we meet there as often as we can to talk, cry and laugh.
What is your happy place: My happy place is my son’s laughter especially when I tell him a funny story. My second happy place is on the road. A drive out of town with my best friend always does it for me. When I need to distress and clear my mind we will drive to Naivasha, or to Nakuru, or past Amboseli, or anywhere we randomly agree to go to.
What do you love most about your happy place?
My son’s laughter just does it for me, no matter how hard things are, that always melts it all away. When it comes to driving, I love to see the plush green scenery along the road, its majestic. Plus, I go with my best friend because I need to like to talk. I need someone to open up to. He does not have to give me a solution, all I need from him is to listen, and to keep anything I tell him between us. It always works for me because by the time we are returning to Nairobi I feel lighter.
3.Eve D’Souza (TV Host/Actress, Director: Moonbeam Productions, Brand Ambassador)
What do you do for fun? I love to hang out with friends and family. I also love cooking and alone time. I once loved going out and dancing, but I do not have the energy or time anymore. In the past few years my life has changed, I have never respected actor/ actress more. We are currently shooting 78 episodes of the new series called Varshita a spin off from Auntie Boss. We have been shooting in December and will continue all the way to April in 2018. Usually we shoot from six in the morning all the way to nine in the night six days in a week. I barely have anytime for myself, my friends do not understand why I am always so busy. At one point it got so bad that I cried on set because of fatigue. So now anytime I get all I want to do is stay home and rest.
What is your happy place: My happy place is cooking in the kitchen. I am really good at making chicken biryani, beef and bacon lazanya, roast pork. I am also a very good baker and I can make a mean chocolate cheese cake. When I am in my happy place I love to be alone. Cooking calms me down and helps me to reflect and see things with clarity, but sometimes I cross the line a little. Once I was having a really bad day and so I made a chocolate cheese cake and ended up eating the whole thing (laughs). So I guess you can say I have both a happy and unhappy relationship with food.
What do you love most about cooking, why does it calm you?
Growing up I watched my mum and aunties cooking and the way it brought as all together as a family. They were also very good at cooking and I guess they passed it on to me. When I am cooking I forget about everything else and I am happy.
4.Kalekye Mumo (Radio & TV Host, business woman & MC)
What do you do for fun?
I love going out for dinner and trying out new places. I also love a good series. Further, I enjoy going for plays, musicals even better; and hosting barbeque hangouts with friends and family.
What is your happy place?
My happy place is my castle (figuratively speaking), but yeah I love being home. It’s quiet and peaceful. Once I’m in my home I feel like I’ve shut out the whole world and its madness, and like my house is floating in the air. Once inside I play my favorite music and all is good. It’s so relaxing.
What do you love most about being home and listening to music, why does it calm you?
Singing just calms me down and makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside! I find messages in music particularly worship music coupled with reading scripture to be very calming for me. Plus it gives me the right perspective.
5. Amina Abdi Rabar (TV/Radio Presenter, Talk show host, Singer, MC, Voice over artist)
What do you do for fun? Hanging out with my girlfriends or my husband and son. I also enjoy going out to eat Ethiopian, I love injera.
What is your happy place? My happy place is talking to my husband. When I am having a bad day, or things are just not going the way I though, all I need to do is talk to him and I get some perspective.
What do you love most about taking to your husband?
My husband is my best friend and so we talk about anything and everything, plus he is very frank and will always be honest with me.
6. Talia Onyando (Radio presenter/TV host)
For fun: I love hanging out with friends and family
Happy Place: I have three, my family, listening to good music and the gym. I love coming home to my son and my husband; there is something that comes over me, I feel safe like, love, it is where I belong. Also good music, it does not matter the genre, it always puts me in a good mood. Finally, the gym. It is not always fun, but I know that when I am done I will feel better than I arrived. I love the challenge and the high you get from working out.
7.Anita Nderu (Radio presenter/Voice Over artiste)
For Fun: Travelling, cooking and baking
Happy Place: When I am in Nairobi, my happy place is at home in my room doing absolutely nothing constructive just watching series or reading a book or the kitchen trying new recipes, it has a calming effect on me. Apart from that I love to travel away from the city or country. It brings me joy and time away to reset. My daily activities can get monotonous and sometimes I just want to be away from the routine. My happy place gives me time to myself to relax, travel and see how the rest of the world functions. Basically, it takes me away from the routine and we all need that from time to time.