Notes on Nairobi (3): arrival
Vee and I flew from London to Nairobi on a daytime British Airways flight, so we arrived mid evening. It took just over 8 hours but, since Kenyan time is just two hours ahead of British time, there was no jet lag.
We were met at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport by our son Richard and the able taxi driver Kennedy whom the family always use. We tried to obtain some local currency at the airport, but half a dozen ATMs were either out of action or out of cash. Clearly this is a country where everything does not always work smoothly and Richard explained that this is a “work around” society.
We were driven into town along the Mombasa Road. Apparently this was smartened up for the recent visit by President Barack Obama but he took a helicopter from the airport to town instead. Our accommodation for the week is the Jacaranda Hotel which is located in the fashionable Westlands area right next to the Sankara Hotel where Obama stayed.