Kenya Travel Guide

"Kenya" or "Keenya"?
Although you'll hear "Kenya" most of the time, the second pronunciation is still used, and not exclusively by the old settler set. The colonial pronunciation was closer to the original name of Mount Kenya, Kirinyaga. This was abbreviated to "Ki-nya", spelt Kenya, which came to be pronounced with a short "e", and when Jomo Kenyatta became president after independence, the pure coincidence of his surname was exploited.

Kenya's peoples
Certain language groups remain easily identifiable through dress and lifestyle, although urban growth and intermarriage are blurring distinctions. The brilliantly beaded and closely related Maasai and Samburu peoples are associated with the parks named after them, but they herd their animals across vast reaches of savanna and, when access to water demands it, even into the big towns. Many Turkana and members of some of the other remote northern groups also retain their traditional garb and rather tooled-up appearance, with spears much in evidence.

Kenya's biggest language groups, namely the Kikuyu in the highlands, the Akamba east of Nairobi, and the Luo in the west, have had a largely Westernized orientation for three generations, and their economic, if not political, influence is notable. There's more on language and ethnicity in "Peoples, languages and religions"; for more on traditional dress, see the second colour insert "Traditional dress".

Entertainment and sport
Kenya's espousal of Western values has belittled much traditional culture, so only in remote areas are you likely to come across traditional dancing and drumming which doesn't somehow involve you as a paying audience. If you're patient and reasonably adventurous in your travels, however, you'll be able to witness something more authentic sooner or later – though most likely only by accident or if you stay somewhere off the beaten track long enough to make friends. Kenyan popular music, gospel, and spectator sports are much more accessible.

Dance
The hypnotic swaying and displays of effortless leaping found in Maasai and Samburu dancing are the best known forms of Kenyan dance. Similar dance forms occur widely among other non-agricultural peoples. Mijikenda dance troupes (notably from the Giriama people) perform up and down the coast at tourist venues. As with the Maasai dancing, it's better to ignore any purist misgivings you might have about the authenticity of such performances and enjoy them as distinctive and exuberant entertainments in their own right.

Music
As for popular music, apart from what your ears pick up on the street and in buses (often amazingly loud), the live spectacle is limited to Nairobi, coastal entertainment spots, and a fair scattering of upcountry discos and "country clubs". The indigenous music scene seems overshadowed by foreign influences: American soul and hip-hop, Jamaican reggae (especially in the sacred image of Bob Marley) and a vigorous contribution from Congo predominating on radio and in record shops. The guide to the Nairobi club and music scene (see "Drinking, nightlife and entertainment") includes a detailed rundown on where to hear the home-grown product. See "Music" for a condensed history of music in Kenya and a discography.

If you're lucky enough to be invited to a coastal Swahili wedding with all the trimmings, a taarab band may be playing. Taarab music, especially the older music (modern taarab relies heavily on synthesizers) is hauntingly beautiful, an effervescent blend of African, Arabic and Indian musical influences. Steady drumbeats, tambourines, accordions, an instrument called the udi – basically a lute – and plaintive Swahili lyrics are the traditional components, while electric guitars, fiddles and microphones are modern additions.

Theatre and film
Theatrical performances are effectively limited to one or two semi-professional clubs in Nairobi and Mombasa and a handful of upcountry amateur dramatic groups. African actors and scripts tend to be rare but things are improving, at least in Nairobi, where there are a number of groups performing in English.

Cinema in Kenya revolves almost entirely around imports. The big towns have cinemas and a few drive-ins, while smaller towns may have one cinema with the occasional screening. American and Indian box-office hits are the staple fodder.

Culture and etiquette
Every contact between people in Kenya starts with a greeting. This means a handshake followed by polite enquiries, even as you enter a shop. Traditionally, such exchanges can last a minute or two, and you'll often hear them performed in a formal manner between two men, especially in rural areas. Long greetings help subsequent negotiations. In English or Swahili you can exchange something like "How are you?" "Fine, how's the day?" "Fine, how's business?" "Fine, how's the family?", "Fine, thank God". It's usually considered polite, while someone is speaking to you at length, to grunt in the affirmative, or say thank you at short intervals. Breaks in conversation are filled with more greetings.

Hissing ("Tsss!") is an ordinary way to attract a stranger's attention, though less common in more sophisticated urban situations. You may get a fair bit of it yourself, and it's quite in order to hiss at the waiter in a restaurant.

Answering anything in the negative is often considered impolite. If you're asking questions, don't ask yes/no ones. And try not to phrase things in the negative ("Isn't the bus leaving?") because the answer will often be "Yes" (it isn't leaving).

Body language and dress
Shaking hands upon meeting and departure is normal between all men present. Women shake hands with each other, but with men only in more sophisticated milieux. Soul brother handshakes and other exotic variations are popular among young men, while a common, very respectful handshake involves clutching your right arm with your left hand as you shake or, in Muslim areas, touching your left hand to your chest when shaking hands.

You are likely to notice a widespread and unselfconscious ease with close physical contact, especially on the coast. Male visitors may need to get used to holding hands with strangers as they're shown around the guesthouse, or guided down the street, and, on public transport, to strangers' hands and limbs draped naturally wherever is most comfortable — which can include your legs or shoulders.

Be aware of the left hand rule: traditionally the left hand is reserved for unhygienic acts and the right for eating and touching, or passing things to others. Like many "rules" it's very often broken, at which times you have to avoid thinking about it.

Unless you want a serious confrontation, never point with your finger. It's equivalent to an obscene gesture. For similar reasons, beckoning is done with the palm down, not up.

Don't be put off by apparent shiftiness in eye contact, especially if you're talking to someone much younger than you. It's normal for those deferring to others to avoid direct looks.

On the coast, it's always best to dress in loose-fitting long sleeves and skirts or trousers in the towns, but shorts and T-shirts won't get you into trouble; people are far too polite to admonish strangers. Lamu calls more for kikoi and kanga wraps for both sexes and, because it's so small, more consideration for local feelings. For more on suitable dress for women, see "Women travellers". You'll also need to be suitably attired to enter mosques. Few are very grand, however, and you rarely miss much by staying outside.

Sexual attitudes
Although there is a certain amount of ethnic and religious variation in attitudes, sexual mores in Kenya are generally hedonistic and uncluttered. Expressive sexuality is a very obvious part of the social fabric in most communities, and in Muslim areas Islamic moral strictures tend to be generously interpreted. The age of consent is 16.

Female prostitution flourishes almost everywhere, with a remarkable number of cheaper hotels doubling as informal brothels. There are no signs of any organized sex trade and such prostitution appears to merge seamlessly into casual promiscuity. If you're a man, you're likely to find flirtatious pestering a constant part of the scene, especially if you visit bars and clubs. With HIV infection rates extremely high, even protected sex is extremely inadvisable.

Women travellers
Women travellers will be glad to find that machismo, in its fully fledged Latin varieties, is rare in Kenya and male egos are usually softened by reserves of humour. Whether travelling alone or together, women may come across occasional persistent hasslers, but seldom much worse. Drinking in bars unaccompanied by men, you can expect a lot of male attention, as you can in many other situations. Universal rules apply: if you suspect ulterior motives, turn down all offers and stonily refuse to converse, though you needn't fear expressing your anger if that's how you feel. You will, eventually, be left alone. Really obnoxious individuals are usually on their own, fortunately. These tactics are hardly necessary except on the coast, and then particularly in Lamu.

Travelling on your own, you'll usually be welcomed with generous hospitality. On public transport a single woman traveller causes quite a stir and fellow passengers don't want to see you badly treated. Women get offers of accommodation in people's homes more often than male travellers. And, if you're staying in less reputable hotels, there'll often be female company – employees, family, residents – to look after you.

The way you look and behave get noticed by everyone and they're more important if you don't appear to have a male escort. Your head and everything from waist to ankles are the sensitive zones, particularly in Islamic regions. Long, loose hair is seen as extraordinarily provocative; doubly so if blonde. Pay attention to these areas by keeping your hair fairly short or tied up (or by wearing a scarf) and wearing long skirts or, at a pinch, very baggy long pants. If you find it's too hot to wear a bra, it's unlikely to bother people. If you'll be travelling much on rough roads, however, you'll need a bra for support. Seriously.

Tampons are available in town chemists but expensive, so bring your own supplies.

Women's rights in Kenya
Women's groups flourish across the country, but are concerned more with improvement of incomes, education, health and nutrition than social or political emancipation, though this is changing. The government-sponsored Maendeleo ya Wanawake Organization (MYWO) started to help women at a very basic level in the 1950s. It now encourages economic independence and, with a nominal annual membership fee, almost every woman in Kenya can belong. The umbrella group teaches basic literacy, family planning and nutrition and is also working hard to abolish the practice of ritual female genital mutilation, "female circumcision". This is carried out as a rite of passage on an estimated fifty percent of Kenyan girls, and is more prevalent in some ethnic groups (the Gusii and the Maasai for example) than others. Unsurprisingly, it is more common in rural areas and among uneducated people than in cities and among those with schooling. Kenya is a signatory to the UN's Human Rights Convention, which proscribes genital mutilation, and the government promised in 1990 to ban the practice, but a motion calling for its prohibition was heavily defeated in parliament in 1996, and it remains legal. Womens' groups are meanwhile trying to persuade rural communities to accept a mutilation-free "alternative rite of passage", with some limited success.

Kenya is still used as something of a contraceptive testing ground, with less stringent rules on over-the-counter drugs than many countries. Depo-provera, high-level oestrogen pills and the Dalkon shield have all been foisted on Kenyan women.

For more information and contacts, get in touch with MYWO (Maendeleo House, Monrovia St, PO Box 44412; Nairobi tel:02/222095, www.maendeleo-ya-wanawake.org), or the much more independent National Council of Women of Kenya (PO Box 43741 Nairobi tel:02/603416).

Gay and lesbian travellers
Sex between men is illegal in Kenya, and homosexuality is still largely a taboo subject, lesbianism doubly so; many Kenyans take the attitude that it's a foreign, un-African practice. While there is no gay scene as such, male homosexuality is an accepted undercurrent on the coast, where it finds most room for expression in Lamu and Malindi, and to a small extent in Nairobi. The Lake Victoria region has a fairly relaxed attitude, too. Msenge is the Swahili for "gay man".

You'll find a small amount of information on the male gay scene in Kenya in the Spartacus Gay Guide. The US website Purple Roofs (www.purpleroofs.com) maintains a list of gay-owned and gay-friendly accommodation and tour companies in Kenya, while Promote Kenya in Malindi (tel:042/31951 or tel:21232, www.kenya-travel.com) is a gay-friendly company offering tailor-made safaris and beach holidays.
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