Good News!!! ....It's a baby girl!

Hallo Hallo!!

I know that hello sounds very corny....haha but i will just jump right in as to why this is the strangest post i have put up (lie) in a while..truth is i have GREAT news to share with you. The reason why i have been away from my blog, have not responded to your comments and emails is because God helped us through my delivery and blessed us with a beautiful, precious little baby girl on 16th October 2012!

This is my first born, so i have alot to learn!!! I will therefore be away for a short while, but will resume my posts very soon.

Thank you all for your support.
xoxo

Keeping Fit While Traveling - For the Business Traveller

Following a feature article I read on CNN’S BusinessTraveller segment, for most people keeping fit involves an established exercise routine built around a regular weekly schedule. But what if your job involved large amounts of travel? 

In my line of duty, all I see is travel, travel and more travel! This means that typically thinking about exercise is close to never, even though we have countless times heard of how lack of exercise not only impairs your waistline, but can also reduce energy and concentration level, in turn reducing your work productivity.

Below, I gathered some of the tips proposed which I feel will ultimately help all those business travellers out there….   

        

1) Don’t treat business travel as a "holiday" from your health regime

Just because you are away on a business trip, this does not mean you should not do your normal twenty minutes morning jog or your daily yoga stretches! You could jog around your hotel etc.  This way you would still be working and keeping fit!

2) Prepare and do research

Before you travel, investigate the best locations for your preferred form of exercise. If you're into cycling, see if there's a local bike hire company nearby; if you're a jogger, plan the most scenic route to get the most of your new environment. Basically it is advisable you plan your health workout as part of your schedule. 

3) Bring portable fitness equipment

Things such as a simple skipping rope can make a big difference and will not require you going extra lengths, in that you could carry it in your travel bag and use it while in you hotel room. 

4) Don't overindulge at business dinners

I believe this tip is the hardest! Just because you are on a business trip that does not give you the pass to overindulge in the tasty deserts! Keep your health first and remember the consequence of what you are eating. 

5) Take advantage of hotel fitness services

In this day and era, most hotels are fitted with some sort of health fitness centres or gyms. They usually have great programs that can benefit the hotel resident (you).

Top Traveling Tips For Pregnant Women

It is common fact to any pregnant woman, that so long as there are no known pregnancy complications, travel during your pregnancy is safe during all trimesters. However pregnant woman travel is usually recommended during the second trimester. Morning sickness is less of an issue than in your first trimester and you are more likely to suffer from fatigue in the third trimester. Here are some great tips for safe and relaxed travel:

• If you are traveling by airplane, experts recommend asking for an aisle seat. This is beneficial because it allows you getting up every 30 minutes to walk and stretch, and drinking plenty of water. Please note that after 36 weeks many doctors and airlines restrict pregnant women from flying.
• If you are traveling by car, do not turn the airbags off. It has been contended that the benefits of an air bag outweigh the risks to a pregnant woman and her baby.
• When planning your itinerary, make sure to schedule time for rest, bathroom breaks, and stretching. Stretching will lessen the risk of blood clots and reduce swelling in your legs and feet.
• Whether traveling by car, bus, or train, try to limit actual travel time to blocks of no longer than 5 or 6 hours.
• If you are traveling long distances or for a long length of time, be sure to get a copy of your prenatal records and carry them with you in case of an emergency.
• If you are traveling to a foreign country, take caution when eating fruits and vegetables, milk, water, and meat, as traveller’s diarrhoea is common and could lead to dehydration. Stay away from raw fruits and vegetables. Drink bottled water and only drink milk that has been pasteurized. Make sure all meat and seafood is cooked thoroughly.
• If you are traveling to a country which requires immunizations before entering, avoid travel to that country or talk with your doctor first if you cannot avoid it.
• Take time to eat. It is recommended that a continuance of eating a balanced and healthy diet during your trip is necessary in order to boost your energy. They also recommend getting plenty of fibre since constipation is common during travel.
• When wearing your safety belt in a car, always wear the lap and shoulder belt. Never wear the lap belt across your belly. Instead, buckle the lap belt low on your hipbones, below your belly.
• Before you travel, locate the nearest hospital or doctor's office where you are visiting.

Getting Banned by Top Hotels

We have all read stories of celebrities getting banned at top level hotels for strange behaviours or rather misbehaviours! If you haven’t here are a few that we picked up courtesy of Yahoo Travel.....

Britney Spears 

The Incident: Even though the legendary Chateau Marmont has a history of harboring wild celebrities, from Errol Flynn to Dennis Hopper and Lindsay Lohan, the Hollywood hangout reportedly banned Britney in 2007. The reason? Bad table manners: she was supposedly smearing her dinner on her face, inspiring several complaints from other guests.

Still Unwelcome? Other hotels reportedly followed suit during the pop star’s very public troubles that year: the Beverly Hills Hotel and the Beverly Hills Four Seasons both reportedly closed their doors to Spears’s antics. The Four Seasons ban was apparently not universal, as Spears has since been spotted at branches in Budapest and Buenos Aires.

Paris Hilton

The Incident: In 2010, just trying to check in at the Wynn got the hotel heiress both banned and facing criminal charges. As they were pulling up at the hotel, Hilton and her then boyfriend underwent a traffic stop that quickly escalated—culminating when Hilton reached for lip balm in her purse, and a bag of cocaine fell out instead. The Wynn and Encore resorts banned Hilton from staying and fired her boyfriend, who was, at that time, manager at two of the resort’s nightclubs.

Still Unwelcome? Hilton pleaded guilty to drug possession and obstructing an officer, and served a year of probation, as well as paying a $2,000 fine and serving 200 hours of community service. By the end of 2011, the Wynn reportedly reinstated Hilton as a BFF, and she’s been spotted partying at The Encore Hotel’s Surrender nightclub (“Wynning,” as TMZ.com put it).

Lil Wayne

 The Incident: In 2010 the Wynn in Las Vegas issued a pre-emptive ban against the rapper, who arrived at the hotel for festivities after a performance at the Hard Rock Hotel. At the time, Lil Wayne was fresh off an eight-month sentence for attempted criminal possession of a weapon, and had also been legally prohibited from having alcohol for the next three years. The Wynn, according to reports, was concerned that Wayne (and the hotel) would be asking for trouble if he came inside.

Still Unwelcome? Lil Wayne took his business to The Palms instead, without incident. The Wynn had no comment.

This got me thinking, what are some of the behaviours that would get us (normal people) banned from a hotel? My top two are; Bad table manners & Drunk and disorderly. 

What do you think one would do to get a ban from a hotel? Are there some local celebrities, friends or family that you know of, who have been served with hotel bans? Tell us, we would love to hear more!

Untapped Destinations and Unique Attractions

Recently a place known as Terra Encantada, An Abandoned Theme Park in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil made news after a feature from untappedcities.com. The thing that caught my eye about this abandoned theme park is the fact that it sits only a short distance to where in 2016 the Olympics will be held; Rio de Janeiro. The thought of an attraction like this, after being opened in 1998, it was abandoned due to a bad accident of a 61-year old woman being killed after being thrown from a ride and an investigation uncovering multiple engineering and maintenance failures led to it being shut down and abandoned....

Courtesy of Untappedcities.com

Courtesy of untappedcities.com

This led me to thinking of which places in Kenya do we have that could turn into fortune makers but somehow we are blind to that fact either because of a past negative event or simply because we choose not to think of the potential of that destination, we could be missing out! Think of it, Kenya has 47 counties as of now, and out of those 47, only about 10 of these can say they are maximizing on the attractions they have to bring in a good amount of income?

Previously I did a post on most talked about attractions inAfrica and this same question seemed to pop up? Have we explored our areas to the maximum? What can we do to bring them to life? What life can is there to bring more to that life?

I am not only talking to the people in Kenya and Africa, as you read this article...there ought to be that one fine outstanding thing about your area that is striking and makes you different from other areas? Are you using it to show the world your home? Even if it is not for an economical gain, just for the sake of appreciating where you come from... 

Nairobi National Park - The only Nationl Park in the world within a City!

What uniqueness can be found in your home town area that you feel makes it outstanding and the rest of the world should know? It could be a special cocktail, a unique dancing move or how people enjoy riding bicycles, or maybe it could be the way you great (salute) each other when you meet in the market place / town? Or maybe it just could be......tell us!

The Dirtiest Things in a Hotel Room Revealed!

Recently, I read an article on yahoo news that left me in total surprise. If anyone asked you which place or what item you thought would have the most dirt in a hotel room, I bet your response would probably be the toilet, sink or bathroom? However this seems not to be the case. 

According to a research that had been done by microbiologists at the University of Houston indicated that TV remotes and light switches were among the most contaminated items in hotel rooms! Yap...you read right! 

The research indicated that even though housekeepers spend about 30 minutes cleaning each hotel room, the highest level of contamination were found in their cleaning cart, specifically on the mop and sponge, which is a big problem because it means that bacteria are carried from room to room.

I am a bit of a clean freak and I have to admit that I actually never thought of TV remotes being dirty! I always assumed that the door knob would be dirt and of course....the toilet and bathroom areas!

The research also showed that the lowest levels of bacteria were found on the headboard, curtain rods and bathroom door handle. Can you believe that?! For more on this story, click here.

I usually carry a small bottle of sanitizer in my bag to try and fight of germs. It sounds and looks weird especially when you see me rubbing the sanitizing gel on my hands but hey...I am just trying to protect myself from diseases. Do you have any tips on cleanliness in hotels and in general?

Celebrating Our Second Blogoversary!!

I cannot belive it has been two years of blogging! Sometimes it feels like it was just the other day....and sometimes it feels like I have been at it for the past 300 years! LOL

All in all, I am very grateful for all of you who have supported me by reading the blog, commenting and so much more! I am also grateful for the awards that I have recieved, over those past two years! *Blushing*

To date, my most read article is The Chameleon which is an interesting thing because it gives me an insight on what people would love to read and what they want to see me write about.

It is my hope and promise to keep at it..and hopefully keep you reading! Cheers people! 

A Reason To Tour Turkana... and it is not because of the Oil deposits.

If you are in East Africa, especially in Kenya, then of course this does not come as news that Turkana County is now said to have Oil deposits. This came as a shock to many because Turkana county is one of the places in Kenya where it is always characterised in the media as a poverty and drought stricken area. The news we have always received from Turkana is nothing really but sad news until now... However, I choose not to dwell on the oil issue as my interest solely lies on a different attraction in this now popular county....The touristic approach.

How many of us have ever thought of touring Turkana ? Sincerely I never did....until now (just kidding). Turkana is a place widely known for the Lake Turkana, the World's largest permanent desert lake and the world's largest alkaline lake. 

Turkana people have a very rich culture which I believe is something worth learning and witnessing first hand, and if we were to go by the last country census, the Turkana people are even a bigger margin  of the Kenyan people than the world known Masai People. 

I am sure your next question is, so what else would you do while in Turukana? A visit to the Central Island National Park, Fishing at Lake Turkana,Sundowner by the lake while sipping on chilled wine or a cold beer, visit the local market and get to interact with the local people and the list is endless....

So now that you have sorted what to do, comes the obvious question, where would you stay? And the answer to that is Eliye Springs Camp and Lodge. The first time I heard of Eliye Springs, I must say I thought they were crazy to have put up a lodge in Turkana, but now the more I think of it, the less the idea seems crazy!

Eliye Springs includes 6 luxury and unique Turkana bomas,a well stocked bar with cold drinks,an open dining room, the Palm tree bar,the massage corner,a swimming pool, motor boats and fishing equipment.

A boma contains a main house (the biggest ever built Turkana hut) with double bed and some furniture, a veranda facing the Lake, a tiled bathroom and a space for relaxing, sunbath and pleasure. The Lodge also has a camping site, if you prefer pitching tents.

So... next time you are thinking of a holiday, try and step out of the normal Masai Mara, Mombasa or Nakuru.....Try Turkana!

A date in Nairobi...

Have you ever thought of what could be a perfect date in, one that did not need you to spend lots of money but left your date in awe?! I have always tried to figure out what a perfect date in Nairobi would be so I started jotting down my thoughts and....

 8.00 am - Go for a morning game drive in Nairobi National Park. This should cost you about KES 300 per person  and your vehicle, thus a total of KES 900.

 Nairobi National Park

11.00 am - Drive to the Giraffe Center or Daphne Sheldrick (Elephant Sanctuary) and get to feed the animals.

1.00 pm - Have lunch somewhere in Karen area that is not too expensive, my suggestion would be one of the restaurants within Nakumatt crossroads which in essence you would spend about KES 700 - 1000 per person.

National Museum

2.00 pm - Drive down to Westlands area and visit the National Museum to learn more about our culture and history.

4.00 pm -Drive to Sarit Center and  enjoy a cup of tea or coffee with some pastries as you chat about yourselves.

5.00 pm - Drive to the Central Business District and go to the Kenya National Theater or Alliance Francaise and enjoy watching one of the local plays that are always very entertaining.

8.15 pm - Enjoy an all "lay-low" dinner at either Steers (there is nothing yummy as their burgers) or some Pizza at Galitos, all the time as you enjoy each other's company!

9.30 pm - What other perfect way to end the night other than... Go dancing! There are lots of places to go dancing and since you are in the CBD I would go with Florida Night Club... It is a classic and truth be told all regional and international celebrities love it too..and the dance floor will give you a chance to check out each others dance moves..LOL!

So, that's my date..what would you do on a date day in Nairobi or anywhere else in the world? I would love to hear your suggestions....!!

Top 10 Best Hotel Swimming Pools in the World

As you may have seen from my previous posts, I have a tendency of posting these polls done by Tripadvisor because they are a reflection of what travellers think. See below the 2012, Top 10 list of best swimming pools in the world. Do you agree? Which ones do you think ought to be on this list?

1. Amangani, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, USA

2. Grand Hotel Central, Barcelona, Spain

3. San Alfonso Del Mar, Algarrobo, Chile

4. Atlantis, The Palm, Dubai, UAE

5. Holiday Inn Old Sydney, Sydney, Australia

6. The Library, Chaweng, Koh Samui, Thailand 

7. Manava Suite Resort Tahiti, Punaauia, French Polynesia

8. Six Senses Yao Noi, Ao Phang Nga National Park, Thailand 

9. Amangiri, Big Water, Utah, USA

10. Ramada Limited @ the Stadium/Downtown Nashville, Tennessee,USA

Her Lifestyle: Meet Maryanne Waweru - Wanyama from Mummy Tales

I had a chat with Maryanne of Mummy Tales Blog, which is one of my all time favourite blog because of all the stuff you learn about motherhood. For most women this is a chapter in life which is ..... (I have no words to describe it)!! So here at Her world, it is time we got to know a little bit more about the lady who has become a source of advice for many women....

1. Tell us more about your blog and why you decided to write about motherhood?  

My blog is about my day to day experiences as a mom – both good and bad. I decided to write about motherhood because there are so many experiences to narrate about this journey and being a writer, this is the best way that I could capture them. Mummy Tales is my diary, a journal that I will look back on together with my family in future years and reminisce those moments.

But besides sharing my experiences, I also hope to educate and inform other moms on different issues that affect us. I hope they can learn from my experiences and from the resources that I use in my posts. I have also learnt a lot from other moms who give me feedback and guide me on different issues as I build my family.

So my blog is not just about me – it’s a community. 

Maryanne 4 months pregnant... aint this just sweet.:)

2. Which is the best destination you have ever visited? Why?

It’s got to be Mauritius.

I loved it because I found the beaches so pristine and inviting and the country so relaxed and easy. We (hubby and I) also had a good experience driving through the entire country on smooth roads while sampling the various tourist attractions. I was four months pregnant then and I totally enjoyed our weeklong stay there. 

3. Which is your favorite restaurant in Kenya? Why?

Indigo Spice in Westlands. I love its alluring ambience and their lovely food. I also enjoy the warm hospitality given each time I’m there.

4. Which / where is your dream holiday destination? Why?

Somewhere in the Caribbean islands. I think being in a different continent and taking in the scenery while enjoying the experience of a different culture will be a surreal moment for me.

5. What do you like most about traveling? What do you dislike most about traveling?

Being to a different place with new experiences is always welcome for me as in this rat race, life can be routine and sometimes dreary. So it is the experiencing new things from my everyday environment that gives me so much satisfaction.

What I dislike – the travel itself! I don’t like the journey much –whether by road or by air and I’m always very impatient as I just can’t wait to get there already so that I can start enjoying myself. I find travelling so confining, tiring and endless and I don’t like that at all.

6. What / which gadgets do you NEVER miss to pack in your travel bag?

My camera, a notebook and a pen. Because anything can happen at anytime. I’m a journalist.

7. What is more of a romantic getaway for you, Beach or Safari?

Beach definitely. So that I can laze around in the sun all day.

8. Tell us 3 things about you that your blog doesn't?

 I hate travel by water. But if I really must, I’ll sit somewhere where I’ll stay fixated until we get to our destination, all the while praying hard and afraid of looking into the water.

-       I’m just not a movie person. I find it hard to stay still and watch a movie till the end. On the times that I find myself watching one (once in five years), I prefer fast forwarding and quickly seeing what will happen next.

-       I love writing. I could write forever.

9. What travel tips do you have for "Her World" as she trots around Kenya and globe?

Enjoy the moments and capture them all.