Brief History

East Africa straddles the equator in the central portion of the African continent and the independent countries of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda combined together make up East Africa.

The East African landscape is extraordinary; grassy plains, rock-strewn deserts, extinct volcanos, fresh and saltwater lakes, forested mountains, palm-fringed beaches and coral reefs.

Throughout East Africa there are numerous ethnic groups with unique cultural traditions and among the better-known are the Bajun, kikuyu, Samburu and Turkana and perhaps the most famous is the Maasai tribe. Until as recently as 100 years ago the Maasai ruled over much of East Africa and their warriors were renowned for their bravery and the Maasai are now concentrated in southern Kenya and northern Tanzania. 

They cling tenaciously to their culture and customs and to describe the Maasai’s attitude toward their cattle as mystical is not an exaggeration – they believe any pursuit other than cattle herding is demeaning to them and insulting to their god and the Maasai’s many rites of passage give their lives a profound meaning.

A centuries-old Arab presence along East Africa’s coast and offshore islands provides these areas with a distinctive flavour and the rhythms of nature and native traditions sound loudly in East Africa and Zanzibar.