by: Nyambosa G. Maroa
Located just outside Bungoma Town along the busy Bungoma Mumias road, Happy Moments is a true holiday haven. The hotel’s environment is ideal for holiday makers wishing to have a stop-over while in transit to other sites. It is the ideal base from where to explore Mt. Elgon which is about 40 kilometers from Bungoma and other surrounding areas. Being only 30 kilometers from the border of Kenya and Uganda, Bungoma is probably the most suitable stop before proceeding to the neighboring country.
There is ample parking space and the hotel gardens are beautifully landscaped and flowered. The playground is equipped with modern playground equipment that always keep the children busy as you while your day away uninterrupted. The young ones are particularly mesmerized by the giant ‘crocodile’ that pauses majestically near the hotel entrance with its mouth wide open. It looks so real.
The lounge is spacious, with a collection of beautiful framed pictures in all private rooms and halls. The spacious dinning room features long communal tables and matching chairs. We arrive in time for dinner. Served by tidy and friendly staff, the variety of food is mind-boggling – curries, salads, lamb chops, roasted goat ribs, chicken and much more. I go for the fish soup as a starter and the ice cold sorbet to clean the pallete sets my appetite ready for the main dish of roasted goat meat and sliced potato chips. After this feast, we hit the bar for cold beer and some action. Today the resident band – a group specializing in lingala and local beats is upbeat and manages to entertain us to dawn. It is a night well spent.
Lodging facilities include well furnished private en suite rooms that are well equipped with double-beds paneled with Elgon teak wood. The satellite TV in every room ensures that you’re up-to-date with world events.
The little heaven on earth project is the brain child of one Amos Muchelule, a seasoned hotelier with an impressive hotel management background. He has a hotel management resume to die for. He worked in most of the tourist class hotels at the Kenyan coast and as at the time of retirement, he was holding a senior management position at the Grand Regency in Nairobi. Armed with over 20 years experience, he left to set up Happy Moments five years ago and the outcome does not disappoint.
“While working in the major hotels in the country,” he narrates. “I used to get enquiries on the best hotels in this locality. I realized that this part of Kenya, despite the great potentials, does not have a world-class facility. The idea of setting up Happy Moments came to me eight years ago. I started to save towards the project and three years later, I acquired this property where the hotel stands today. Construction started immediately.”
Asked what his future plans for the hotel are, he proudly said that he wants the facility to be the hotel of choice in the entire western part of Kenya. Going by the construction activities being undertaken, that dream is not far away. The face of the hotel has been changing constantly to the surprise of even regular visitors.
The hotel is well located in a quiet setting, away from the hassle and bustles of the town centre. The hillside project, depicting natural fauna and flora, twisted wood and stone boulders have been incorporated into the architecture. Open walls and private verandas face out over the wide expanse to Sang’alo hills and beyond. This gentle sloping area with well endowed communication network is truly the little heaven on earth. The isolated hill with huge rock outcroppings just behind the hotel adds to the beauty of the location that’s accessible only by taxi or the local cycle riders locally known as ‘boda-boda’.
After breakfast in the morning, our trip to Mt. Elgon begins on a high note. We’ve had a truly Happy Moment.
Contacts:
happymomentscafe@yahoo.com
Tel: +254 734 641910
About the Author:
Nyambosa G. Maroa writes exclusively for Safari Wagon located at www.safariwagon.blogspot.com.
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