Nairobi adventures with kids
27 Feb 2018, Posted by in Moments of Magic, Places, Travel Diary
Last week, I had an unusual Friday off with Nips. We decided to explore Nairobi, technically Karen suburb, and see what was possible in terms of child-friendly activities. We were pleasantly surprised!
First stop – Kazuri Beads, where we learned about the process of bead and jewellery making. Nips even got to make her own bracelet!
Next was lunch at Tin Roof Cafe, with a very full playground, some cute boutique-y shops, and delicious fresh food, it’s the perfect escape for kids and parents.
After a nap at a friend’s home, Fungai joined us for excitement at the Hub in Karen. We had dinner at Roast (a less overwhelming franchise of the famous “Carnivore” restaurant), fun and games at the Hub games arcade, topped off by an ice cream from Zuchinni.
SUCH an awesome day, and confirmed to us how child-friendly the city can be!
Do check out our other recommendations below for things we love to do in Nairobi with two-year-old Nips.
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- Nips meets some of the 350 ladies currently employed by Kazuri Beads. These women circulate so they’re not always on one station. This group is making the beads from clay.
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- Nips meets one of the longest standing Kazuri employees, who’s been working for the organization since 1975!
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- Not only do they make beads (and employ women!), Kazuri also produces a lot of ceramics. Here Nips checks out how the man spins plates and smooths off their edges,
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- Visitors to Kazuri can sit and learn from the women.
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- Nips couldn’t believe how many overweight giraffe there were!
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- Next was the painting station. After the beads have been fired, another group of women paint the beads with colours or patterns according to their orders for the day.
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- Painting the beads is super intricate, especially since Kazuri has some stunning patterns and designs.
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- Nips checks out the kilns, where thousands of beads are placed every night and fired for 8 hours once the employees have gone home.
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- Our guide, Philip, showed Nips the other kilns where the beads are fired post-painting. This is the final stage before making them into jewellery.
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- Each woman has their daily order for jewellery and makes stunning Kazuri necklaces, bracelets or earrings.
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- Deciding on which beads to use is a very important part of the jewellery-making process!
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- It takes total focus and hard work to a bracelet – especially when you’re only two years old.
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- Nips gets some help with the spacer beads that go in between the bigger colourful beads.
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- Finished product – now she gets to wear this beautiful, colourful reminder of our fun day at Kazuri!
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- Yup, running towards the Kazuri Beads shop is exactly what I also wanted to do!
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- Babychino at Tin Roof Cafe was the perfect end to a perfect morning.
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- “Mummy, swing swing!”
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- Although she was tired, there was no ways Nips would actually sleep at Tin Roof Cafe – too much to do!
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- Later, at the Hub’s Arcade. She may look serious, but Nips loves their train. She just wished there were more kids there – nothing like being the only kid in the arcade!
African Drift’s Kid-Friendly Recommendations for Nairobi:
- David Sheldrick Elephant and Rhino Orphanage
Who can resist watching baby elephants being fed enormous bottles of milk? - Giraffe Center
Children and adults alike squeal with delight while feeding giraffe by hand! - Purdy Arms Saturday Organic Farmer’s Market
Whenever we’re in Nairobi on a Saturday, we’re sure to go to the Organic Farmer’s Market at Purdy Arms. Nips LOVES getting “fesspending” (“face-painting”) and they’ve got jumping castles, swings, jungle gyms, see-saws, mini motorbikes…in other words, kid-heaven. All this while the adults buy yummy organic veggies or brunch outdoors at Purdy Arms! - The Arbor Cafe
Another outdoor cafe that we love, and they also have a sandpit with toys for kids.
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