TWO KENYA VISITS

                                  Two Different Interesting Visits

Our first stop on a full day of Nairobi sightseeing was the Karen Blixen home. She was the main character in both the book and movie, Out of Africa. She bought and occupied this home in 1917. The outside of the home was in the movie, but the movie inside scenes were filmed elsewhere. Much of the original property has been sold. The grounds were lovely and contained some of the biggest cacti I’ve ever seen. Some stood thirty feet tall and measured fifteen feet in diameter!

            A docent on the grounds gave us a tour of the house and told us some of Karen Blixen’s story. Danish by birth, she lived in Africa from 1914-1931 returning to Denmark after her failed attempts of establishing a coffee plantation---neither the soil nor altitude were right to grow coffee. She wrote under the name of Isak Dinesen.

            Her home, now a national museum, has been restored and was an independence gift to Kenya from Denmark. There are some, notably the dining room table, original furniture. Floor to ceiling bookshelves dominate one room. She was a headstrong and wise woman. A Danish suitor visited her often for a few days at a time, but they never married. She had numerous medical problems, many of which were ill defined and leave many questions unanswered.

            On another day we saw the train at the railroad museum used in the film Out of Africa.

At an ostrich farm, a guide told us, “On this farm all eggs are incubated. The display behind me shows the gestation of an egg from two weeks to maturity. The ostrich is only ‘in season’ during September and October. A female will lay 10-15 eggs.

             “The male of this species makes a shallow nest in the ground about a meter wide. Several females will lay eggs in the same nest so a nest frequently can hold 45-50 eggs”

            This fact amazed me.

            An adult ostrich reaches maturity in three years and lives only about five years in the wild. An adult weighs 140-290 pounds and measures 6-9 feet tall. Being very sociable birds they get lonely if isolated. This stress alone can cause death. They are the largest bird in the world and mate for life. They are native to Africa and do well in arid and desert climates. They have very strong and powerful legs.

            The docent continued, “The shell of an ostrich egg is thick and tough enough to stand on. By the way one egg will make the equivalent of a 24-egg omelet.”

            A commercial ostrich market is emerging. The meat is gaining popularity because of its very low cholesterol content. Nearly all of the ostrich has a commercial use. The skin of course is used for leather goods. The feathers make fine dusters. The eye lashes   make   paint brushes.     The skeleton and nails are used for several things including piano keys. Because the ostrich can distinguish color, scientists are studying the use of the cornea for human transplant.