University of Helsinki
Welcome to our Taita Field Course blog site! Here we’ll write about our adventures on Taita field course 2024 in Kenya.
Our journey started on Wednesday when our flights took off at 7 am from Helsinki-Vantaa airport. After long hours on two separate planes, we arrived in Nairobi in the night’s dark. At the airport, our drivers Ken and Ruben were waiting for us and welcomed us with open arms and drove us to our hotel where we spent the night.
The next morning we started our day with the hotel breakfast and greeted those who had arrived in Nairobi before us. When we had eaten our stomachs full we were introduced to the bus we’ll be using for the next two weeks also known as “Toyota Predator”. With cheerful spirits we lifted our bags on the roof of the bus and started our drive towards Taita.
Unfortunately, our drive didn’t have the best start when the leading vehicle of the professors broke down before we even got out of Nairobi. But things weren’t that bad, because after a short wait at the local supermarket, Petri and Enrico joint our party bus and we could continue the great migration towards Taita hills.
The trip went by quickly when admiring the changing landscape as we drove along the highway. The chaotic traffic took some time to get used to, but after a short while we realized there is nothing to worry as our driver knew what he was doing. Along the way you could spot countless vendors selling all sorts of stuff to drivers passing by and you didn’t even need to get out of the car as they came to your window with their goods.
At the halfway point we stopped for lunch to a sikhi temple where they served us a delicious meal. The temple was a beauty and we were glad to donate some funds as a thank you for the food and service.
Rest of the journey went smoothly while enjoying the savannah of Tsavo National Park. We spotted a lot of wildlife including elephants, zebras and different antelope species.
We arrived to Taita research station just before dark and were greeted by the amazing staff members of the station. As we marveled the magnificent views of the new Petrihouse, delicious smell of freshly cooked meal reached our noses. We enjoyed the meal and called the day.