Kenya has one of the most diverse and colourful collections of tribal people found anywhere on the continent. There are more that 70 tribal groups, distinctions among them are blurred with western cultural values widely adopted. Kenya straddles the equator and covers an area of 582,646 km2, which includes around 13,600 km2 of inland lakes. Kenya's has a population of around 27 million with most of the native African population Christian whereas the Asian population are a mix of Muslim, Hindu and Sikh. English and Swahili are the official languages, however there are many other major tribal languages spoken.
The Masai Mara Game Reserve, often abbreviated as 'the Mara', is perhaps Kenya's best known game park. There are no fences between the Masai Mara and the bordering Serengeti National Park in Tanzania, so the large numbers of animals can roam freely. The highlight is the annual migration of zebra and wildebeest. Several sub-tribes of the Masai people live within the Masai Mara Game Reserve. They are a proud semi-nomadic people who live and raise their cattle in harmony with the surrounding wildlife. Amboseli National Park is known for its large herds of elephants and famous for its cross-border views of Mt Kilimanjaro. To the west of Amboseli are Tsavo East and West National Parks that combined make one of the biggest game sanctuary's in the world. Kenya's highest mountain is Mount Kenya, the second highest mountain in Africa with the Samburu National Park a little further north. This park is renown for the colourful Samburu tribes and several species on animal which are unique to this area including gerenuk, Grevys zebra, Somali ostrich, reticulated giraffe and Beisa oryx.
Of Kenya's lakes Lake Nakuru National Park and Lake Bogoria National Park attract plenty of flamingos. Lake Baringo National Park and Lake Naivasha are big fresh water lakes that attract many crocodile, hippo and an enormous variety of species of birds. Lake Turkana in the far north, also nicknamed 'Jade Sea' for its iridescent blue-green colour, is the world's largest desert lake. Around the lake live the Turkana people who are known for raising camels and weaving baskets.
Great places to relax after a safari include Lamu Island and Mombasa for crystal clear warm Indian Ocean beaches.