What is the most beautiful thing you have ever seen? Have you ever had the opportunity to set your eyes on breath-taking scenery? Society Magazine is more than glad to bring you one such place. A place spiced with modernity and nature -a well-blended cocktail. Combining the gifts of Mother Nature and human interest, Nakuru is a place decorated with uniqueness and novelty. You need to see the floating pretty pink flamingos form a ring around a mass of water deep into a natural outfit.Welcome to the fastest growing city in Africa, sitting on the bed of the Great Rift Valley whose formation gave rise to a unique natural structure. The town started as a railway station at the Kenyan-Uganda railway at the turn of 1900`s. The name ‘Nakuru’ is derived from Nakurro, a Maasai word meaning a ‘dusty place’ because of its environmentally sensitive location. Sandwiched between Lake Nakuru National Park to the south and the Menengai Crater and its associated volcanic landscapes to the north, Nakuru offers a splendid choice of destination. Bahati Escarpment forming the western fridge of the Aberdares Escarpment is also further to the north east of the city.The main question at this point is, how do you get there? Take a vehicle from Nyabugogo heading to Nairobi and head to Nakuru. As you approach this town from Eldoret, you will realise large tracks of wheat and barley largely grown in the region. Vast plantations of maize often dominate the agricultural activities there. Visitors into the city always have a touch of what they expect by a far vision of the pink ringed lake some ten or so kilometers from the town center. Huge silos that serve as reserves for the grains stand erect at the entrance of the city.Nakuru is home to Lake Nakuru, one of the Rift Valley soda lakes, also forming part of the Lake Nakuru National Park. The park has large numbers of flamingos that are always seen foraging in the shallow lake. The park also has many wild animals that can be seen during a safari including the huge white rhino, African buffalos, Rothschild giraffes, zebras, impalas, olive baboons, vervet monkeys and waterbucks among others. Being one of the premium parks, it is an important destination for bird lovers because it houses unique spices of birds including yellow-billed pelicans, marabou storks, hammerkops and fish eagles. Beautiful landscapes: grasslands and dense forests and the very rare tarconanthus bush lands and euphorbia forests are a common feature.Menengai Crater, a dormant volcano with small fumaroles and steam vents can regularly be observed within the forested caldera from above. This is the second largest surviving volcanic crater in the world, plunging 483m down from the rim and the summit. The wood-covered crater ground is a natural reserve. Lake Bogoria and Lake Baringo are easily accessible from Nakuru. These are major tourist attraction sites too.Hotels are in plenty this side of the city because it hosts many tourists. From the central business district to the deep lush national park, you are spoilt for choice. Merica Hotel stands right at the heart of the city giving an aerial view of the town. The summit and Lake Nakuru lodge are tucked deep in the park`s ecosystem with canopies of trees creating that intimacy with nature but at the same time giving one a variety to choose from.Do not forget to grab well covings from the curio shops to enhance the trip to the pink land of Kenya. Shoes and accessories assorted from different tribes of Africa and given the taste of art will work best. The trip will not be complete if you do not take photos of Hyrax, a pre-historic site that was discovered by Dr. Leaky and explains the origin of man at least from the historical point of view. What a joy that will be! Give it a try for it costs so little yet has more to offer to you
