42 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER INDIA | MAY 2018
THE ITINERARY KENYAZEN GARDEN(PLATTERS),TOM COCKREM/PHOTOLIBRARY/GETTY IMAGES(FOOD)DAY 2
DINE TO A STELLAR VIEW
- 30 p.m. Just the drive to Zen Garden,
a 2.5-acre restaurant complex inspired
by the gardens of Asia, makes your trip
worthwhile. Its located in Nairobi’s Spring
Valley, a luxurious residential area with
manicured gardens. The road leading
up to it offers a peek into the city’s most
uppity abodes, many of them embassies.
Zen Garden has two restaurants and we
choose to eat at Bamboo, the pan-Asian
restaurant. Try the Crispy Duck Roll with
hoisin sauce, Sizzling Ginger Beef with
black bean and Asian greens, and the
Baby Squid, tossed in chilli, garlic and
Asian herbs. All three are flavourful, and
the servers happily oblige when asked
to adjust spice levels for children. The
cocktails here are great too—I loved my
Summer Crush (seasonal berries muddled
with tomato juice, vodka, bitter lemon
and crushed ice), while my kids enjoyed
their lychee and lemongrass iced tea
(zengarden.co.ke).
SHOP KENYAN CRAFTS
11 a.m. No trip to Nairobi can be
complete without a stop at the Maasai
Market, which pops up at a new location
every day, usually adjoining a mall or an
area concentrated with shopping and
food outlets, such as the Village Market
or the Yaya Centre. Craftspeople from
across Nairobi come to sell their wares
at this well-organised market, which,
contrary to popular perception, is
neither overwhelming as open markets in
unfamiliar cities tend to be, nor difficult to
navigate. You may be approached by an
enthusiastic seller but politely move on
and they’ll leave you alone. There is lots to
buy and browse through: animal knick-
knacks; coasters and platters handcrafted
from African stone, usually soapstone,
and painted in vibrant colours; cloth totes
and purses in Ankara fabric; kiondos (bags
woven from sisal, with leather trimmings,
a specialty of the Kikuyu and Kamba
tribes); a huge range of beaded and metal
baubles; and carved wooden figurines
(busts of Maasai warriors are popular).
But my personal favourite turn out to be
the Maasai-beaded slippers in gorgeous
blues, yellows, oranges, with motifs
ranging from peacocks and flowers to the
map of Africa. The best part? It’s a haven
for bargainers.