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Nairobi is a wonderful city and a place we are proud to call home for this season in our lives, however it is a bustling city that is expanding rapidly.  That in combination with the fact that we live and work in the same compound all week (even though we love our community) leaves us with the frequent need  to get away from the traffic, the road construction,  the overall madness that comes with the city, and even the safe haven of our Rosslyn community.  Fortunately for us we live in the northeast corner of Nairobi on the outskirts.  All of Nairobi’s conveniences are easily accessed, but with a short drive north you find yourself surrounded by tea and coffee plantations and within an hour approaching the Great Rift Valley….one of the most stunningly beautiful places on the planet.  So a couple of weeks ago we decided to head to Mt. Suswa for a bit of hiking and camping with Melissa and our friends the Nippers.  Mt. Suswa is an impressive double cratered volcano in the Rift Valley.  It is not as well-known as other Rift Valley volcanoes such as  the neighboring Mt. Longonot, but it is indeed a hidden gem.  The mountain has so much to offer for the outdoor lover/adventurer:  Idyllic campsites offering pristine views of the inner crater and central plug of crater, gorgeous hikes around and into the inner rim,  an extensive network of obsidian caves and underground lava tubes to explore, and being a Masai Conservancy, a unique look into Masai culture, with local visitors stopping by the campfire being fairly commonplace.  This was Sophie’s first camping trip and we are proud to say that she is a natural outdoor girl.  The trip also served as the last hoorah with Daniel, Keturah, and their girls before they move back to the States at the end of the month.  We are really going to miss these guys, who in the last three years, have become more like family than just friends. Mt. Suswa is an amazing place and has moved up the list as one of our favorite spots to camp/explore in Kenya.  If you are interested in visiting the Suswa Conservancy or if you would like more details about the mountain, check out this very informative blog: http://wildaboutafrica.wordpress.com/2009/05/29/craters-and-caves-in-mt-suswa-kenya/