Getting to know Nairobi

One thing that has surprised me so far about Nairobi is how green it is. This picture was taken just outside my apartment.

Trees are everywhere, and there is even a national park within the city limits, where giraffes, elephants, giseles and other typical Kenyan wildlife roam. 

Although I only arrived a few days ago, I was anxious to see some of this wildlife up close.  So, I headed to the David Sheldrick Elephant Sanctuary, where orphaned elephants as young as 3 months old are cared for until they are ready to rejoin life in the wild.  Did you know that elephants need to nurse every few hours for the first two years of the life?  With no mothers at the sanctuary, the elephants are bottle-fed (with some very large bottles!).

Humans are not the only ones who need to wear sunscreen!  Normally a mother elephant's shadow protects its baby from the sun.  But at the sanctuary, this is the job of the keepers - by holding an umbrella over the littlest elephant and applying sunscreen to the ears of the young ones. 

The keepers develope very close relationships with the elephants, even sleeping in the stalls with them! 

This weekend I also wandered the stalls at the large flea market (called Toi), where you can find secondhand clothes, shoes, hats - and lots of it!  Everyone has a "good price" for you. 

Crocs anyone?

You can even have your "new" clothing tailored on the spot!

I also discovered my new favorite snack at Toi - fresh sugarcane!