Week 13: My fiancée came over to visit so I took a few days away from the tea so we could go over to Tsavo East National Park.

Although it may not have the same renown as the Masai Mara, Tsavo is the largest game reserve in Kenya and covers an area the size of Israel. It is also only 2 hours from Mombasa, however the pink car is not a suitable safari vehicle so we travelled in a specialised minibus with a professional game driver called Mumo at the wheel. With five years experience of taking safari goers on game drives, Mumo had an incredible eye for spotting the different animals lurking in the undergrowth. Admittedly a herd of elephants or buffalo are pretty difficult to miss but I'd find it hard to spot a kudu or a dik dik hiding in the bushes.

Having been brought up on BBC Wildlife documentaries in the UK I thought I knew what to expect from a safari, however seeing the animals up close in their natural environment was quite an experience. Whether it was seeing a pride of lions sunning themselves on the rocks, elephants bathing in a muddy watering hole or giraffes gracefully munching their way through the foliage, there was something special to be seen. In a world where nature is under threat from so many quarters it was a real privilege to observe nature as it has been for thousands of years. However even here it is all carefully managed by man, armed Kenyan Wildlife Service guards patrol the gates, electric fences keep the animals in (and hopefully keep the poachers out), and those of us on safari cruise around in specially adapted vehicles. These few artificial touches seem a small price to pay, however, to preserve such a spectacular natural heritage for future generations.

Tourists are starting to trickle back to Kenya following the recent crisis, but I got the impression that it's still far from normal levels - one night in our safari lodge we were the only guests. On the last day of our brief holiday, we drove the pink car along the coast to Malindi, usually a popular tourist destination, but there were more curio sellers than holiday makers on the beaches. Despite the lack of custom these traders were in upbeat mood as up in Nairobi an historic agreement had been reached. After months of meetings, handshakes and the odd symbolic cup of tea, President Mwai Kibaki and Opposition Leader Raila Odinga agreed to share power.

Malindi is also home to the Vasco da Gama pillar, commemorating the visit of the Portuguese explorer in the 15^th Century. In the centuries that have passed since his historic trip this region has had its fair share of political turmoil, but people have still been drawn to these shores from across the globe to trade, to colonise or more recently simply to enjoy the scenery. With the political leaders moving towards reconciliation, and the people of Kenya determined to get back to normality it is surely just a matter of time before the visitors return.

After doing my bit to help out the Kenyan tourist industry it was back to Mombasa and back to the tea business.

I was woken this morning by the sound of rain, and for a brief moment I thought I was back in my flat in London. It didn't last long, though, as Kenya is still in the grips of the dry season. Although we expect drier conditions at this time of year, it seems to be particularly bad in some of the tea growing areas, meaning less growth on the tea bushes, less leaf being processed and some factories having to suspend production. The repercussion will be felt in the Mombasa auction in the coming weeks as quantities on offer will be lower and there will be lots of buyers trying to get their hands on not a lot of tea. The question is exactly when will it happen and will it have a dramatic effect on the market? The long rains are predicted in April however, which will see increased production and in theory an easier market. For now it's a matter of wait and see.

Next week is my last in Kenya and now that stability has returned I'll be making a whistle stop tour of some of the tea estates...