About Kenya

 

Kenya, is bounded on the north by Sudan and Ethiopia, on the east by Somalia and the Indian Ocean, on the south by Tanzania and on the west by Lake Victoria and Uganda. Kenya has an area of approximately 585,700 square kilometres. The capital city is Nairobi.

Land, Rivers and Lakes

Kenya falls into several well-defined topographically zones extending from the Indian Ocean coast upward to mountain ranges that reach more than 3,048 metres above sea-level. From the low-coastal plains the land rises gradually to a broad, arid plateau that covers much of the north and east of the country. In the central area there are volcanic mountain chains, with the highest peak being Mount Kenya (an extinct volcano). Heading west, the depression of the Rift Valley features a succession of steep cliffs. The main rivers of Kenya are the T'ana and Galana. Kenya contains almost all of Lake Turkana and a small portion of Lake Victoria.

Climate

The equator divides Kenya nearly in half. The region north of the equator is hot and receives very little rain. The area south of the equator falls into three climatic zones. The coastal area is humid, with average temperatures of 24 degrees Celsius in winter and 28 degrees Celsius in Summer. The highlands are temperate, and the area around Lake Victoria is tropical. Kenya has two rainy seasons one occurring from October to December and the second from April to June.

Plants And Animals

The flora of Kenya is wide-ranging, the coastal areas are forests containing palm, mangrove, teak, copal and sandalwood trees. the lowlands are covered with forests of baobab, euphoria and acacia trees. Extensive traits of savannah or grassland, broken with acacia and papyrus cover the higher elevations, while the alpine zone (above 3,550 metres) contains large plants of the Senecio and Lobelia genera. The dense rainforest of the eastern and south-eastern mountain slopes contain camphor and bamboo as the main species.

Kenya is renowned for the variety of wildlife available, especially the big animals associated with the African savannah. The major animals are elephant, rhinoceros, zebra, giraffe, lion and other large cats. Most of these animals are protected in the national parks and game reserves. Kenya also has an abundance of birds and reptiles. The reptiles including the python and the cobra.

Main Cities

The capital, Nairobi, is the largest city. Mombasa, the main seaport, is built mostly on an island offshore. The other main cities are, Kisumu - a port city on Lake Victoria and the capital of Nyanza province, Nakuru - the capital of Rift Valley province, and Eldoret - a rail centre to the north east of Kisumu.

Language

The official language of Kenya is Swahili, however Kikuyu, Luo and English are wisely used.