FEAST OR FAMINE

The National Museum in Nairobi, Kenya, is holding a photography exhibition called ‘’Kenya through the lens of the Thais.’’ In 2015 the Royal Thai Embassy in Nairobi invited a renowned photographer and editor from Thailand to Kenya: Ms Duangdao Suwunarangsi, senior photographer artist, and Mr Suwat Asavachaichan, managing editor of Thailand’s Sarakadee Magazine. They travelled 7,000 kilometres during their 12-day visit to northern Kenya to record their impressions of the location where the history of mankind is said to have commenced. They recorded their journey – their safari – in this collection of photographs. This exhibition was previously shown at the National Science Museum in Bangkok, Thailand, in 2015. It showcases the diversity of Kenya and the way of life that remains largely unknown to the Thai public. This is the first time that these photographs, the reflection of Kenya captured through the lens of the Thais in their memorable journey, have been displ...

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

The United Nations General Assembly announced 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. Tourism contributes to all the three dimensions of sustainable development – economic, social and environmental – and each of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Not only does the sector spearhead growth, it also improves the quality of people’s lives. It can bolster environmental protection, champion diverse cultural heritage, and strengthen peace in the world. World Tourism Day, celebrated annually on 27 September, presents a unique opportunity to raise awareness about the contribution of sustainable tourism to development among public and private sector decision-makers and the international community, while mobilizing all stakeholders to work together to make tourism a catalyst for positive change. The theme for 2017 World Tourism Day is Sustainable Tourism: A Tool for Development. MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and devel...

Dark Star Safari - Overland from Cairo to Cape Town (2002) is a travelogue of Paul Theroux’s travels in continental Africa by rail and road from Cairo, Egypt, in the north to Cape Town, South Africa, in the south. It is 2001 and he is 59 years old and travelling alone. In 1963, almost 40 years before his travels, he was a teacher in the peace corps, working in Malawi, and a lecturer at Makerere University in Uganda. In 2001 he wanted to resurrect the wonderful memories he had when he was working in Africa as a young man. In 2001 Theroux travels from Egypt to Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and South Africa. He has comments such as, ‘’Urban life is nasty all over the world, but it is nastiest in Africa – better a year in Tabora than a day in Nairobi. None of the African cities I had so far seen … seemed fit for human habitation.’’ Well, I am reading his book while I am in Nairobi, and I beg to differ. I have read two o...