The day starts with a smoothie, with vegetables fresh from Hippo Point’s organic garden, delivered to your bedroom. Outside your window, the zebras and giraffes, the hippos, warthogs and the monkeys have already been up for hours.
A session of gentle yoga stretches eases you gently into the day. Then, a walk with one of the wardens as they check that the wildlife is safe and well, and see whether Hippo Point has had any overnight visitors – a leopard or lion passing through isn’t uncommon.
Breakfast is home made by Penina our cook from local produce - organic eggs and bacon, muesli, fruit, home-made bread and Hippo point’s world famous marmalade. And Kenyan coffee, of course.
With your body stretched and your body fed it’s time to expand the mind and the soul.
For the next few hours, our team will lead you into unexplored territory – maybe in a group, maybe by yourself. They will challenge you and nudge you out of your comfort zone; they’ll get you thinking about relationships, work, health and spirituality. As questions about life and how we live surface, our team will help you find interesting - and perhaps surprising - answers.
Then it’s time to switch off and simply relax by the pool. Or maybe have a massage. Lunch is light and delicious and served in the cool garden of the 1930s colonial house.
Afterwards there’s plenty of time for a nap and then another session with our team. We might be talking about dreams, what they tell us, and what we can learn from them. A one-to-one session with our osteopath and physiotherapist will look at your posture and help you think about the way you move, addressing any physical aches and pains you might be experiencing.
Tea is served in Dodo’s glorious tower. And as the sun starts to slip away a session of stretching and sunset yoga relaxes you for a walk to the wildlife observation bunker to watch the animals feeding as the evening arrives.
Dinner at the Manor House is another opportunity to sample Penina’s superb cooking. Guest speakers will join us to tell us about the local environment, ancient Africa, conservation and the art of the area.
A busy day ends with conversation round the campfire and a bedtime meditation session to ensure you sleep like a log.
You will need to. Because the next day we are up at the crack of dawn to take a helicopter safari on a scenic flight north to 850,000 acres of wilderness that is the Namunyak Wildlife Conservancy where we will be the only guests at the only camp in the Conservancy - to meet, live with and learn from the Samburo tribe. But, don’t worry, the thatched and canvas tented camp is as luxurious and comfortable as Hippo Point – and Penina comes with us.