Our first day in Kenya was a down day of sorts to allow us to rest and get acclimated to the new time. We had gotten into Nairobi late at night, so we were happy to have a restful morning! We started the day with a visit to the Nairobi National Museum, which allowed us to learn about Kenya and its history. Our guide led us around the museum and pointed out interesting exhibits and gave us loads and loads of information. It was so interesting to learn about the history of their country from pre-colonialism through colonialism and into their current independent state. The Republic of Kenya was established in 1964 and in 1991, the country shifted to a multiparty democracy. Kenya’s elections were on August 9th, 2022, and while we were in Kenya, we saw lots of political ads. It was interesting to me to be in another country in the midst of election season – it was definitely very different from the ads we see here! Most were just a picture of the candidate with the position he/she was running for and the date of the election.

On the same property of the museum is a snake park, which was essentially just a little zoo with lots of snakes, tortoises, lizards, crocodiles, and other animals! Mike and I both got to hold animals – I liked the chameleon the best and Mike loved the snake!

After the museum and snake park, we went to lunch at this amazing restaurant, Talisman, and got to know our fellow group members. After lunch, we went to the Giraffe Centre where we got to interact and feed giraffes! It was so cool being so close to them and I even got to kiss one! Later, we were informed that because of COVID, we weren’t allowed to kiss the giraffes, but by that time Mike and I both snuck a smooch!

We had a great first day in Kenya and were so excited to see what the country had in store for our trip!