I’m finally going through all the photos I took on my visit to Giraffe Manor and I realized today that I had never given you a full tour of the beautiful room I stayed in while visiting the manor. This post has 20 photos in it that I’ve never shared from my visit.
Each of the rooms in the manor is named after one of the Rothschild Giraffe who have either lived or are currently living on the property. Rothschild Giraffe are endangered and the good folks at Giraffe Manor are trying to aid in increasing their population. I stayed in the “Daisy” room on this trip.
Daisy is on the back corner of the manor, with spectacular views overlooking the gardens. In this photo below, it’s the upstairs room on the right with the open window. I opened the window shortly after arriving to enjoy the view of the garden. I had no idea what room I’d be staying in when this trip was scheduled but I don’t believe I could have been given a better room.
The day I arrived, this is what I saw upon opening the door to my suite.
The beds were draped in netting and it just added to the already exotic feel of being in Africa and staying in a beautiful historical manor home!
Over on a desk nearby I spotted this.
A few feet away were lovely red roses.
These were waiting on the window sill. I had been advised to be ready because I would probably have visitors to my balcony in the early morning. I could hardly wait!
As I glanced out the window I could see ivy growing alongside the window…so enchanting. Surely this was all just a dream!
Now we’re standing looking out the window you saw open earlier from our view in the garden. The gardens are so pretty at Giraffe Manor. I’ll be posting photos of those real soon.
The bathroom was just as beautiful and special as the bedroom.
So pretty!
This balcony just off my room was where I was told I’d probably have a visitor stopping by.
I stepped out onto the balcony to take a look around.
To the left I could see the city of Nairobi way off in the distance. I had to zoom in to capture this photo. It looked very hazy that day.
Looking out front and slightly off to the right, this was my view. And such a wonderful view it was!
I could have stayed out on the balcony watching the giraffe all day.
As I looked to my right out on the garden below, I got a little visitor. Do you see him?
I don’t know what it is about birds, but it’s becoming a common thing for a single, little bird to appear on balcony railings to me. When my much-loved kitty Max was dying of cancer a couple of years ago, I was visiting a friend and crying my heart out, telling her through my tears about Max.
Suddenly, behind me a few feet away, a very small bird landed on the balcony railing just outside the room we were in. I don’t even know how I knew it was there because the window was behind me, but something made me turn and I saw it sitting there, peering intently in at us.
It sat there looking at us for quite a while. It seemed to be trying to tell us something. I was so shocked, I quit crying and just stared at it. Now here I was in Africa and a little bird was again stopping by. Do things like that ever happen to you? Maybe birds just know how much I love having them around me.
I also spotted this from the balcony that day. lol Giraffe Manor is so busy some times, they built a second manor next door in the style of the original home to accommodate additional guests.
What you see below is a common occurrence at Giraffe Manor. 🙂 If you follow BNOTP on Instagram, you saw this photo in real time during my visit there.
Here’s a better view of the newer manor home. They’ve started growing ivy up the front; you can just barely see it there to the right of the front door. I wonder how long it will take to cover the home like it has on the original manor. I’m so glad they made the new home look just like the old one. I never took time to go inside, I should have. Not sure why I didn’t think to do that while I was there.
Later that evening the giraffe came up to the front of the manor for their evening snacks. Giraffe Manor has around 10-12 giraffe living on the property. A baby was born not too long after my visit last fall. If you visit the Instagram account/page for Giraffe Manor and scroll down through the photos, you’ll see the new baby giraffe. I bet he’s getting big now. The Instagram account for Giraffe Manor is under this name: thesafaricollection. Update: Just found out a second baby was born. So that’s two new Rothschild Giraffe that have been born at Giraffe Manor since my visit last fall! So exciting!
We sat outside and sipped sundowners that evening until it was time for dinner. It was a lot of fun talking with the other guests who were visiting the manor.
Dinner was wonderful and you can see more of this lovely table here: Candlelight Dinner at Giraffe Manor
After dinner I returned to my room and found this.
I didn’t think it was possible for this room to get any more romantic and beautiful, but it had!
The next morning I arose early, showered, dressed and grabbed the little pail of snacks from the window sill. I headed out on to the deck to see if I had any visitors, and I did!
When you’re feeding the giraffe, anything that falls to the ground gets scarfed up by the warthogs who live on the property. Do you see them there in the background?
As I was feeding my very tall friend, my neighbor in the adjoining room came out and offered to take a photo.
I will be forever grateful that she was so kind to offer, otherwise I’d never have these photos to share with you. I tried to get her to let me take a photo of her feeding our visitor, but I couldn’t talk her into it. I ran into her later that day in a restaurant in Nairobi that my guide took me to while I was awaiting my flight home that evening. She came over and sat down at my table and we had a chance to talk. Such a great memory!
Pssst: View a brief video I made of this morning feeding here: A Visitor Stops By My Balcony at Giraffe Manor. You’ll hear me giggle in the beginning, I couldn’t help myself! 🙂
I can’t wait to take you out into the garden in a future post! I know you’re going to love it. It’s really pretty and there’s even a greenhouse!
Hello Susan, I enjoyed so much reading about this awesome place and seeing your pictures, can’t wait to see the gardens. Did you visit Karen Blixens home as well ? These are two of the things I want to do. We visited S. Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe a couple of years ago and can honestly say I left my heart in Africa. Looking forward to going back to visit Kenya. What a trip you had. Sheila
My guide did take me there, but unfortunately they wouldn’t allow photos inside the home. I did get a few pics outside and you can see those in THIS post. Most of the rooms were empty except for the dining room. The tour guide said that when Blixen was so desperate for money, before finally moving back home to Denmark, she sold off most of her furniture. The furniture in the dining room isn’t the original furniture, but it’s similar to what she had from the photos they have back then. I think they hold various functions there from time to time so I guess that’s why they have purchased furniture for the dining room.
Thanks so much for the link, I will check that out. How sad that she had to sell her things, from watching the movie Out Of Africa, I always thought she never found true happiness, except for the brief times she spent with Denis.
I know this is going to sound crazy, but I’ve never watched the movie. I didn’t watch before I went because I had heard it was really sad, and I just don’t like sad movies. Then when I was touring the home on my last day in Kenya, there were a lot of photos of her and a man (I think her husband) with lions they had killed. I figured that would be in the movie, as well, and I can’t stand to see animals killed, even if it is pretend and in a movie. So, I’ve never seen the movie.
I know it’s supposed to be good, but it sounds really sad and depressing. I’m more the romantic/comedy type. I like a happy ending! 🙂
I know what you mean, when I stumble across pictures of “hunters” standing with a dead lion or elephant it just breaks my heart. I watch the movie once a year, the scenery is wonderful and of course Robert and Meryl are so fantastic together. Maybe you’ll watch it one day.
I saw “Out of Africa” in Nairobi when I was living in Kenya. The most remarkable thing about that was that the audience reacted to the lines in Swahili before the subtitles came up.
It’s worth seeing for the scenery if nothing else.
I think the ivy will cover the new building in a few months. Things grow very quickly in Kenya.
What an awesome experience that would be, to see it there! It will be fun to see how fast it grows. It was definitely looking healthy and sticking to the stone.
Thanks for sharing your memories and photos. Lovely. Sounds like a lovely trip.
Thanks, Suzanne!
See how much fun you are having going through all those pictures!! My bag is almost packed. I won’t sleep much tomorrow night.
lol I’m sure! I think I’ve gained 10 lbs this week sitting at my desk going through pictures! It’s exhausting, trying to decide which photos to keep and which to toss. Not sure I’ll get through them all before you get here!
Dear Susan, We could not make the trip with you but, we are seeing Giraffe Manor through you eyes. Thank you for bringing this wonderful adventure back to your friends. What a lovely welcome to you from Giraffe Manor. So very romantic and a wonderful adventure with the Giraffe’s. I would respond the same way when feeding these gentle animals.
So glad you are enjoying it, Nancy! I tried to take a lot of photos to share the experience as much as possible with everyone. There are so many affordable trips/tours now to Africa, I encourage anyone who is interested to go. It’s still my favorite trip out of all the ones I took this past year since I started traveling.
The Manor looks beautiful. If we ever get to Africa it will be a must. Have you ever travelled to Australia or thought about it. We might not have giraffe’s but we have beautiful scenery and lots of wildlife. Happy to help if you can come this way.
Definitely! Giraffe Manor was the reason I initially planned the trip…then it turned into a safari and a stay at Mahali Mzuri.
I haven’t been to Australia yet, would love to see it one day though! My son spent 6 weeks in New Zealand and 6 weeks in Australia, with a week on Fiji in between, when he studied abroad in college. He loved it! Definitely on my bucket list!
Enchantment all over again, and then some. With such an exotic adventure, and all the initial prep and extra special prep, you were a seasoned traveler before you left Africa to return home. Thanks for taking so much time to capture you trip, and for sharing again now.
Thanks, Mia! Just going through all my photos now and finding those I’ve never shared, like the balcony views, other details of the room and the beautiful bath. So glad you enjoyed seeing those!
So cool! This will be a very cherished memory for you!
Thanks, Rose! It really is! Worth all those vaccines I had to get! lol
HOW MUCH FUN THIS TRIP MUST HAVE BEEN! I love giraffes and I simply cannot wrap my mind around how somebody could kill such a beautiful and peaceful animal. So glad they are protected in this wonderful place.
They are and they are helping to increase the population. Bunny, if you visit their Instagram account, you can see the baby that was born a few months back. Just scroll down through the pics and you’ll see him. Here’s their Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesafaricollection/
Thank you for the wonderful tour. I would love to write more buy am busy taking care of a sick hubby.
Sorry your hubby is sick, Mary Anne. Hope he feels much better real soon!
What a beautiful, magical place. Thank you for the tour, I am sure you have a heart filled with memories of this trip!
Thanks, Lidy…so glad you enjoyed it! XX
Thanks for sharing more of this beautiful and enchanting place–just amazing!
Thanks, Bobbi! Enchanting is the perfect word to describe it! 🙂
Susan, this is so very cool. You were really lucky to have the chance for your neighbor to capture those great shots of you feeding the giraffe! The room accommodations are wonderful. I can see why you continue to mention this trip as one (if not ‘the’) very best of your travels so far.
As for the bird, I always like to interpret that spiritually, as a visitor from the other side who has passed (mother, father, sibling, close friend, etc.) 🙂
It does make you wonder. He stayed a long time watching me, didn’t act at all afraid like the birds who come to my feeder do. You would think they would be used to me by now but they scatter and fly away when I go out on the deck. I was so surprised by how long this cute birdie stayed watching me.
What a wonderful place to visit! Thanks for giving me the chance to once again accompany you on one of your adventures! This is a remarkable place and one I know you will always cherish in your memories!
Thanks, Darlene! I realized I had never the pretty bath and some of the other photos, so thought folks might enjoy those.
Absolutely beautiful! The bird is definetly something special. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks, Mary! I couldn’t get over how long he stayed watching me. So sweet!
What a special place, so beautiful! I love the bathroom sinks, hand painted, so pretty. I love that there is a place where those beautiful Giraffes can live such a happy well cared for life.
I loved those sinks, too! I know, I hope they are able to increase the populations over time.
Such wonderful memories, thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Marlene! XX
Hi Susan,
Guess what! I am the Giraffe Manor neighbor you spoke about! Glad to see the pictures turned out well. It is a magical place, isn’t it? I think of my trip to Africa often and can’t wait to go back. When you & I sat together at lunch, you told me of this blog and I followed it once I got home. Glad to see you are doing well and continuing your travels!
Oh my gosh, that is awesome! I had forgotten that we talked about that, I remember now mentioning I’d be using the pics on my blog. Wasn’t Giraffe Manor just the most amazing experience, Barbara?! Yes, I so want to go back to Africa again! Where would you go next? I’ve heard about Mfuewe Lodge where the elephants walk right through the building on their way to the trees in back of the building during a certain time of the year. Have you heard about it? You can see it HERE. Apparently the lodge was built in front of the trees they had always visited so now they just walk right through the lobby. 🙂
Here’s one more video that explains more about it: Elephants That Came to Dinner
What an incredible sight that would be to see them come through the lobby! One thing I noticed being around the elephants in the bush is how quietly they walk. I expected them to be loud since they are so heavy, but they are actually surprisingly light on their feet (if it’s possible to use that phrase about elephants haha). I think we would return to Rekero camp. It’s a bit more rustic (semi-permanent tents with bucket showers), but we found the experience to be more authentic and the game viewing to be far superior than the more luxurious place where we stayed in Tanzania. Now we just have to build the vacation fund back up again! 🙂
SO fun!!! I would love to stay there! Don’t those giraffes have the funniest tongues?! Amazing! 😉