We spent two nights in what was, for us, the least interesting town in Malawi – Lilongwe. Situated on the fertile Central Region Plateau, Lilongwe lies at an elevation of about 1,050 metres above sea level. Nestled in a valley surrounded by rolling hills and lush greenery, it is...
Our visit to Antananarivo, Madagascar’s capital (1,431 m), felt like stepping into a layered story—one in which every hill, street, and building carries echoes of the past. Perched across twelve sacred hills, the city’s history is deeply tied to the Merina kingdom. The city...
We spent one day in Somaliland’s capital, located in a valley within the Galgodon (Ogo) highlands of northwestern Somaliland, at an elevation of approximately 1,334 meters. Hargeisa’s history began as a watering and trading stop founded by the Isaaq Sultanate in the 19th...
After long preparations and in challenging times, we finally arrived in Addis Ababa, situated in the Ethiopian highlands at 2,300 meters, making it one of the world’s highest capitals. The city was founded in 1886 by Emperor Menelik II and Empress Taytu Betul, named “New...
Finally, we arrived in Dodoma, located in the semi-arid, central plateau of Tanzania, characterised by hot, dry conditions and a single rainy season, making it prone to drought. Its topography features elevations of 1,200-1,500 meters, including parts of the Great Rift Valley, with sandy...
Gitega, formerly known as Kitega, is the political capital of Burundi. Located in the heart of the country on the Burundian central plateau, it lies about 62 kilometres east of Bujumbura. It is Burundi’s fourth-largest city and was once the royal capital of the Kingdom of Burundi...
Once we arrived in Kigali, we realized that if Rwanda is the Land of a Thousand Hills, then Kigali’s setting right among rolling green vistas makes this a fitting choice of capital. It is a contender for Africa’s most scenic capital and the cleanest, safest, and most relaxed...
It was supposed to be an easy drive from Namagunga to Kampala, but 39 kilometers took us 7 hours. Uganda’s capital and largest city occupies a series of hills at an elevation of about 1,190 meters and is situated just north of Lake Victoria. Kampala lies just north of Mengo, the...
Like any other large and growing city, Nairobi has a rough underside that travellers are well advised to avoid. But Nairobi is also the vibrant, multicultural epicentre worth a few days to experience. We spent around a week exploring its interesting parts during the day and enjoying the...
We spent a few days in Amman, Jordan’s capital and largest city. The city is built on rolling hills at the eastern boundary of the ʿAjlūn Mountains, on the small, partly perennial Wadi ʿAmmān and its tributaries. Fortified settlements have existed there since remote antiquity...