Kenya
Kenya is a land richly endowed by nature. It is a land of contrasts, from its snowcapped mountains to its palm-fringed beaches, and from its lush farmlands to its sun-kissed savannas. Nature can be seen in the way the country's outward-looking cities sit side-by-side with the world-famous national parks that are home to the last bastions of lions, leopards and other roaming wildlife and the small communities that still serve as the basis for Kenya's traditional lifestyle.

Kenya's multitudinous gifts provide its visitors with much to see and remember. Nairobi National Park, Tsavo National Park, Amboseli National Park, Masai Mara Game Reserve, Lake Nakuru National Reserve, Samburu National Reserve, Shaba National Reserve, Mount Kenya, Aberdare National Park and Meru National Park are just a few of Kenya's many fascinating travel destinations.

Kenya lies astride the equator on the eastern coast of Africa. It is a medium-sized country by continental standards, covering an area of approximately 224,900 square miles (582,600 square kilometers), slightly smaller than the state of Texas. Inland lakes and waterways cover some 4,100 square miles (10,700 square kilometers), the bulk of this in Lake Victoria and Lake Turkana. Kenya is bordered by Somalia and the Indian Ocean on the east, Ethiopia to the north, Sudan to the northwest, Uganda to the west and Tanzania to the south. Its Indian Ocean coastline is about 350 miles (550 kilometers) long.

Kenya enjoys tremendous topographical diversity, with the array of its landscapes ranging from glaciated mountains with snow-capped peaks to the Rift Valley with its escarpments and volcanoes, and further on to ancient granite hills, flat desert landscapes and coral reefs and islets.

However, the basic topographical configuration is rather simple. Coastal plains give way to an inland plateau that rises gradually to the central highlands, which are the result of relatively recent volcanic activity associated with the formation of the rift valley. To the west, the land drops to the Nyanza plateau that surrounds the Kenyan sector of Lake Victoria. To the north, the topography drops off to the rugged low country around Lake Turkana.

The Great Rift Valley, with its associated escarpments and mountains, is a major feature of the Kenyan landscape. It runs the length of the country from Lake Turkana in the north to Lake Natron on the southern border with Tanzania. The central portion of the rift is raised, with the Aberdare Mountains and Mount Kenya to the east and the Mau Escarpment and the Cherangani Hills to the west. The northernmost and southernmost sectors of the rift are low-lying, arid and rugged, with spectacular volcanic landforms.