Kisumu & Lake Victoria

Welcome to the second of my African Adventure blogs, with an update on my plans and preparations for my impending visit to Kenya!

First, here's a brief background, both historically and geographically, on Nancy's hometown...
Kisumu is Kenya's third largest town/city, and is the known as the administrative centre for Western Kenya. The town lies just on the edge of Lake Victoria, and up until the 1970's it was a busy port with connections to other ports in Uganda and Tanzania. Unfortunately since then there has been a steady decline in trade by boat across the lake, and Kisumu is not as prosperous as it once was.
Kisumu is also home to Western Kenya's largest market which sells just about anything!
Dunga village, just to the south, offers the best views of Lake Victoria, with its hippo and rich bird life. The lake straddles the equator and is Africa's largest covering 26,550 sq.miles, and is the second largest fresh water lake in the world. (If any of you can recall the Top Gear Africa special, when the lads went in search of the source of The Nile, they actually started alongside Lake Victoria).
As for the climate, when I'm visiting in April it's in the middle of the rainy season...so no worries about taking the factor 30!

So that's the history and geography lesson over with...so what about my plans?
Nancy has told me so much about Lake Victoria, and the fun times she has spent there, that I can't wait. As stated above, hippos can be observed around Dunga, and there's even an open group on Facebook called 'Chillaz@Hippopoint Dunga Lovers' where many photos have been uploaded, so I hope to witness some wildlife for myself in April.
The most impressive lake that I've ever witnessed was without question Lake Wakatipu on New Zealand's south island, especially when driving along the highway with all its spectacular views as you approach Queenstown ~ (I recently shared a photographer's snapshot on Facebook of this very image). The fact that I skydived above it only re-confirmed my thoughts. But I believe I'm going to be changing my opinion very soon, once I experience what Lake Victoria has to offer, especially when you consider the circumstances...in New Zealand I was very much a solo trekker in total awe of all of my surroundings, whereas in Kenya I am gonna be alongside my lady love sharing many happy times!

I am so looking forward to visiting Nancy's home, and letting her show me all the other sights and places nearby. I'm also looking forward to meeting all of her friends and family...I just hope that I come up to scratch! Being an older, white guy doesn't particularly phase me but I would obviously like to make a very favourable impression if at all possible, especially as I fully intend to re-visit time and time again.
I recently re-watched 'The Long Way Down' dvd of the TV series, featuring Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman, as they travel down on motorbikes from the north tip of Africa to Cape Town in the south, including passing through Kenya. This really got my travel juices flowing and filled me with inspiration, anticipation and excitement.

I'm on holiday next week when I'll be receiving my final set of jabs and starting to purchase miscellaneous items in readiness for my amazing journey ahead. I'll also be receiving confirmation of my actual flight and hotel details for my first night on arrival in Nairobi with Nancy. Due to my lack of access to a computer there will be no blog next week, but watch this space for further updates!

Steve Muskett