2008-06-24

I Thought Kenya Would Be Hot!

My Czech classmate and I began today with a 6 AM swim in the hotel pool. It’s winter here (Southern hemisphere) and Nairobi is about 1400 meters above sea level, so it’s actually quite chilly with highs only around 65 degrees F. The air this morning was quite cool and the water even cooler so the swim was invigorating to say the least. There probably isn't much point in me continuing to brush my teeth with bottled water either, given the amount of pool water I swallowed!

We then spent the morning with Kenya’s largest retailer, Nakumatt, which is planning for expansion into the rest of East Africa. The afternoon was finance-focused with the Chairman of the Nairobi Stock Exchange (also an IMD alum!) and the CEO of Safaricom, which just completed the most successful IPO in Kenya’s history.

In the evening we mingled and networked with other IMD alumni in the area. Many of my classmates headed out to a local club. I, on the other hand, am turning in early as I will be getting up early for a run before we depart for our two days in Lake Naivasha.

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