Tracing a route immortalised in classic film Out Of Africa, MARK O'CONNOR in Kenya is seduced by the nation's charms

"IF I know a song of Africa, of the giraffe and the African new moon lying on her back, of the ploughs in the fields and the sweaty faces of the coffee pickers, does Africa know a song of me?" So says Meryl Streep in 1985 film Out Of Africa in which she plays the Danish author Karen Blixen.

It's almost impossible to visit Kenya without Blixen's name coming up. Part of the high-society colonial set in the early 20th century, she made such an impression here that there is even a small suburb of the capital Nairobi called Karen in her honour.

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Somehow I doubt I'll be able to have the same lasting effect in my short stay but on touching down in Nairobi on a muggy day it doesn't take long for my face to match that of her perspiring coffee pickers.

Thankfully, I'm staying in the capital's oldest hotel, Fairmont The Norfolk, a slice of air-conditioned heaven in the heart of the capital where the concierge, John, gives me the biggest of smiles as he welcomes me with a huge "jambo", the Swahili word for hello.

The Norfolk is decorated in a modern colonial style with accommodation set within a large courtyard and gardens that include banana trees, and bird-of-paradise and hibiscus flowers, as well as a charming collection of old cars, rickshaws and motorbikes.

Check-in complete, it's off to lunch at one of Nairobi's other famous colonial institutions, the Muthaiga Country Club, which was the setting for 1988 movie White Mischief about the murder of Josslyn Hay, Earl of Erroll.

Just 15 minutes from the heart of Nairobi, it opened its doors on New Year's Eve 1913 and quickly became a gathering place for the British elite. It's also where Blixen met big-game hunter Denys Finch Hatton, beginning a love affair that would last a lifetime.
Not much has changed since British expat Berkeley Cole opened the club. The dark oak panelling, Chesterfield leather sofas and games rooms are all still there, as is the male-only bar. I take lunch on the terrace, a traditional Sunday roast served by waiting staff formally dressed in dark green and burgundy uniforms.

The next day I visit the Kazuri jewellery workshop. Based in Karen, the name means "small and beautiful" in Swahili, and tour guide John talks me through its fascinating history. The company was founded more than 30 years ago by Lady Susan Wood, wife to Sir Michael Wood, famed for starting up the first Flying Doctor service in Africa. Lady Susan's idea was to create a company that produced hand-made quality ceramic jewellery and pottery in sustainable employment conditions. It has been owned and run by Regina Newman since 2006 and the admirable ethos of Lady Susan's mission statement remains strongly rooted in the workforce today.

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The jewellery tour lasts an hour and I get to meet two of the oldest workers, Angeline and Elizabeth, who have been here since the 1975 opening. Angeline tells me how the workshop helped her, and many others from poor and volatile backgrounds, to find a better life.

The jewellery and pottery are sold in the gift shop at cost price, and can be found in John Lewis stores.

After the tour, I head to the small local airstrip at Wilson Airport for a short flight to the fabled Masai Mara Conservancy, where Hatton would once have hunted. Today, the shooting is done solely by tourists with cameras. On arrival, staff at the recently refurbished Fairmont Mara Safari Club lodge greet me with a cold towel and a warm welcome. The main hotel building houses the restaurant and a lounge area, along with a pool and spa, and is built in a traditional tribal style.

Accommodation comprises 51 luxury, river-edge tents with verandahs for wildlife spotting. The honking of hippos and cries of bush babies at 3am are a reminder that I really am in the wild.

Game drives are what bring visitors here and you are never far from the Big Five: lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino. Drivers stay in communication via radios and I feel my heart pounding with excitement when ours, Wilson, reports that a leopard - the rarest of the big cats - has been spotted.

A film crew from BBC television series Big Cat Diary beats us to the spot. We all wait, enthralled, as the leopard, just visible through the undergrowth, stalks a lone gazelle. It pounces, going for the kill, and a frenzied pursuit ensues, with the gazelle proving a little too sprightly for its predator.

The next day, Wilson takes me to meet Masai warriors, who perform a traditional welcoming dance. The women wear multicoloured costumes, the men only red, to symbolise their warrior status. I am taught to make fire with sticks and dried elephant dung, a skill of limited value in Britain, I imagine.

All too soon I am back in Nairobi with one last stop before heading home. The Giraffe Manor was modelled on a Scottish hunting lodge when built by David Duncan, of the Mackintosh's Toffee family, in 1932.

This amazing property is home to a number of the once-endangered Rothschild Giraffes. These magnificent beasts live in the 140 acres of land that surround the house and are incredibly friendly, sticking their long necks into the manor's windows while you are taking lunch. A former family home, The Giraffe Manor is now a luxury hotel, offering six exclusive rooms.

I would have loved to have stayed in the Karen Blixen suite but, sadly, it is time to head out of Africa.

THE KNOWLEDGE:
Somak Holidays (0208 423 3000/www.somak.com) offers seven nights in Kenya from £2,569pp (two sharing).

Price includes one night at Fairmont The Norfolk (B&B), and two nights at Fairmont Mara Safari Club as part of a six-night "Kenya Royal Safari" (full board).

Return flights from Heathrow to Nairobi, transfers, and excursions to Kazuri jewellery factory, The Giraffe Manor and Karen Blixen Museum also included. Departs May 2011 (quote Daily Express offer).

Kenya Tourist Board: 0207 367 0931/ www.magicalkenya.com