Nairobi National Museum
On Museum Hill just to the north of downtown Nairobi, this interesting museum has good reproduction rock art displays and excellent prehistory exhibits of the archaeological discoveries of Richard and Mary Leakey. When working near Lake Turkana in the 1960s, the Leakeys discovered the skull and bones of Homo habilis, believed to be the ancestor of early humankind. Their findings established the Rift Valley as the possible Cradle of Humankind, although both South Africa's Sterkfontein Caves and Ethiopia's Hadar region claim the same distinction. There are also excellent paintings by Joy Adamson, better known as the author of Born Free, and a good collection of Kenya's birds and butterflies. There are some good craft shops and a museum shop, and it's worthwhile wandering around the gardens to see the sculptures and perhaps visiting the small snake park. Nature Kenya ( naturekenya.org) runs guided bird walks every Wednesday morning at 8:30 from the museum.
