For hundreds of years explorers, borne on the Trade Winds, have made their way to the shores of Kenya. Recognising its value on the trade route, the Portuguese took control of Mobasa as their main trading centre along the East Coast of Africa, towards the end of the 15th century and dominated the East African coastal region until they were expelled in the 1700’s. Two Arab dynasties followed and Arab rule lasted until the end of the 18th century, when British government declared a protectorate over Kenya. In the early 1920’s the first murmurings of organised political protest against British government were heard and in 1947 efforts to gain freedom from British rule saw the start of the Mau Mau movement. Despite government actions, Kikuyu resistance spearheaded the Kenya independence movement, and Jomo Kenyatta, who had been jailed as a Mau Mau leader in 1953, became prime minister of an independent Kenya 10 years later. After his death in 1978, Kenyatta was succeeded by Daniel arap Moi as Kenya’s president that same year. Following elections in 2002, President Moi stepped down and the presidency was assumed by the current Kenyan president, Mwai Kibaki.

From the Cradle of Mankind with its prehistoric records of early man to the unique coastal culture created on the wings of the spice trade where Africa and Arabia met and mingled. From the shifting power of the early tribal states from the South, West and North to the European influences and colonial legacy … Kenya has a culture born of a myriad of sources and proudly reflects her strength – the ability to integrate the best of many worlds into her own unique and endlessly beautiful culture – a culture appropriately matched by a country as diverse and beautiful as it’s people.
Today Kenya proudly welcomes the world to its shores and eagerly shares its many treasures.
Although representing only 1.5% of the country’s population, the fearless Maasai tribesman, in their bright red apparel, have long been an intriguing and somewhat mystical aspect of Kenyan culture.
In her book “Out of Africa”, Karen Blixen said:
"A Maasai warrior is a fine sight. Those young men have, to the utmost extent, that particular form of intelligence which we call chic; daring and wildly fantastical as they seem, they are still unswervingly true to their own nature, and to an immanent ideal. Their style is not an assumed manner, nor an imitation of a foreign perfection; it has grown from the inside, and is an expression of the race and its history, and their weapons and finery are as much a part of their being as are a stag's antlers."