Muthaiga Country Club Magazine Oct - Dec 2019

The M u tha i g a Country Club M agazi n e

October – December 2019

The M u t hai ga C oun t ry C l u b M ag az i n e

Front Cover Mount Everest by Tom Martienssen Going to extremes to raise funds to support wildlife Rangers.

Co-founder of ForRangers SamTaylor conquers Mount Everest. (see Pages 14 &15)

C o nten ts

October – December 2019

page 16

page 6

page 1

Letter from the Chairman

page 2

Letter from the Secretary

page 3

Membership Matters

page 4

Balloting Report & Finance Report

page 5

Roving Eye

page 6

House Wines & Messing

page 7

Staff News

page 9

page 8 Events

page 10

page 17

page 10

Forthcoming Events Chart

page 11

Muthaiga Sports Round-Up

page 13

Herring Cup

page 14

ForRangers – Mount Everest Conquest

page 16

Members’ Honours

page 18

Members’ Achievements

page 20

Opera & Ballet

page 21

Library Book Reviews

page 22

A Life in the Day of Maia Lekow

page 24

Bird Quiz

page 25

MCC Christmas Draw 2019

page 26

Reciprocal Clubs Reviews

page 27 Obituaries

page 13

page 18

The Muthaiga Country Club Magazine is published by MCC for Members Editor - Yoyo Volak Magazine Production - Matthew Rudd, Lucy Muregi, Mercy Wanyeri, Diana Waithaka, Eunice Mulwa, Yvonne Magambo.

Vincent Ford, Martin Musyoka.

Contributors – Stephen Mills, Julia Lawrence, Peter Usher, Edita Camm, Sam Taylor, Kevin Rodrigues, Billy & Dominic Coulson.

Design & Layout by Shelleys the Printers. page 19

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Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

Printed by Graphite Lounge.

page 22

www.mcc.co.ke

From the Chairman Dear Members Greetings to you all.

I hope that many of you have had an opportunity to meet the new, interim Club Secretary, Christian Vater. If you haven’t, please make a point of doing so.

We have had a busy few months at the Club in all sectors – music, drama, art and sport and we have some exciting events planned for all ages and inclinations. These include magician and illusionist Larry Soffer who, by popular demand, will be back at the Club to perform more mind-bending acts of magic; for the children we have Halloween Trick or Treat night, Bonfire Night and the Christmas party with Santa Claus; more formal events include the annual Poppy Ball and Remembrance weekend; a spectacular Ghetto Classics Concert performed by the young richly talented musicians from the Korogocho Slum in Nairobi; the Broadway extravaganza ‘Mrs Lucy goes to Africa’ (definitely one not to be missed) and our national treasures, the Moipei Sisters, live in concert at MCC. We also have some amazing stories of courage and achievement from our vastly talented membership.

To keep up with everything that is going on, do please refer to our newly up-dated, easy-to-navigate website and MobiApp.

I am pleased to be able to report that the major refurbishments in all the West Wing rooms are finally complete and these splendid rooms are now available for occupancy. Please take a look at our rates and offers for Members as they are very competitive.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your forbearance during the upheavals incurred by the maintenance and building works.

In 2016 the Club was awarded the eminent ISO 22000-2005 Food Safety Certification and I am delighted to announce that after the first 3-year audit, we have maintained the standards required and re-certification has been granted for the next three. There are no other private Members Clubs in Africa that are similarly certified.

Congratulations to the management and staff of the Club for achieving this very prestigious certification.

Finally, the MCC Annual General Meeting takes place on 6 November, and I encourage you to attend.

Looking forward to seeing you there,

Philip Coulson, MCC Chairman www.mcc.co.ke

October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

1

From the Secretary Dear esteemed Members of Muthaiga Country Club, First and foremost, I would like to thank you.

Ever since I have taken over as acting Club Secretary on 29 August 2019, every single day has been an absolute pleasure filled with a multitude of highlights across the board! I feel truly honoured to be your Club Secretary and I would like to thank you for your trust, the warm welcome and the incredible positive support and goodwill that I have received from all of you. Asante sana.

As most of you know or have heard, I am not a hotelier but a seasoned manager and serial entrepreneur. And whenever I take on a new position, or start a new company, I make a plan of what I want to achieve and by when. In the case of Muthaiga Country Club, I made a plan for my first 180 days. And as nobody can be successful without a team, I shared my 10-point strategy with all of our 262 MCC members of staff who baptised it “Christian’s Top 10”. Today is my Day 43 and as I am writing for the first time to you, I could not think of a better opportunity to share my Top 10 with you too…

1. Human Resources – Our Team 2. SOPs – Standard Operating Procedures 3. Service & People 4. Offerings 5. CRM – Customer Relationship Management 6. Members – Activate, Re-activate, Win-back the trust 7. Rooms 8. Events 9. Club House Dining 10. Gym & Spa Detailing each point of the Top 10 would go beyond the scope of this letter yet I would like to invite you to swing by my office anytime so that I can personally run you through them. For now, suffice it to say, that each of my Top 10 has an immediate impact on the performance of our Club and aims to improve quality, variety and service provided to you at all touch points of your “customer journey” ultimately leading to a better overall experience. And if we provide all our Members - from the young to the old - with an excellent experience, we will most surely not only do financially better as a Club but also achieve our vision: “To be the most sought after, fully integrated Private Members’ Club in Africa and amongst the most respected in the world.”

FYI – our team of staff came up with this!

And as of Day 42 of my tenure I am delighted to tell you that our entire team is not only moving on each of the Top 10 but

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Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

we can already see the first positive changes. I have had one-onone interviews with all our 262 members of staff and the team is happy and highly motivated to serve you.

At this year’s SecureExpo, East Africa’s largest security conference, our security system has been identified as one of the safest in the country. Ensuring the highest level of safety for you and your guests is critical in times of global terrorism. However, I am convinced that safety and user-friendliness are not mutually exclusive, hence we have spent the past 42 days on our SOPs to optimise our Gate Security process with the aim that we are not only the safest but also the most customer-friendly place in Kenya. We want Muthaiga Country Club to be “your home away from home” so, trusting our Members must become our overarching principle.

On the Event front, we had record-breaking sell-out events, from Kenya’s Rolling Stones, “The Hootenanny,” with their biggest show ever, selling out in only 72 hours, to the bestattended talk ever by iconic anthropologist Dr. Richard Leakey.

We also launched exciting new events and partnerships such as customer-friendly place in Kenya.

We Muthaiga C the Mulberry Project, the trendiest pop-up bar onwant the continent away from home” so, trusting our Members must becom featuring the finest mixologists from NYC. And the new LastThursday-of-the-Month series, Fishbowls@Pinks Bush Bar, On the Event front, we record-breaking sell-out eve organised by our awesome newhad Youth Committee, which kicked Stones, “The Hootenanny,” with their biggest show ever off with almost a 100 young and beautiful Members and their to the who best-attended D friends came to drink,talk play, ever dance by andiconic party tillanthropologist 3am in the launched exciting new events and partnerships such as morning making MCC the place to be.

trendiest pop-up bar on the continent featuring the fines the new Last-Thursday-of-the-Month series, Fishbowls@ And I would like to thank you all for the most memorable day by our awesome new Youth Committee, which kicked o for me so far - on Sunday 29 September 2019 - only 4 weeks and beautiful Members and their friends who came to d in charge - we made history together as we experienced the 3am in the morning making MCC the place to be. most successful day in the history of PINKS restaurant with the And I would like to thank you all for the most memorable highest turnover ever and the Club joy. in charge Sunday 29 September 2019brimming - only 4with weeks And we have only just started, there is so much more we experienced the most successful daytoincome… the history o highest turnover ever and the Club brimming with joy.

Many we of you knowonly that Ijust love our Club and haveis been active more to And have started, there soanmuch

and passionate Member for many years, so in closing I would like to make a promise All I do during my Club tenureand I will have do in been a Many of you know- that I love our the best interest of you as our Members.

Because our Members Member for many years, so in closing I would like to ma always come first. my tenure I will do in the best interest of you as our Mem

Members always come first.

Looking forward to seeing you at Muthaiga Country Club!

Looking forward to seeing you at Muthaiga Country Clu Yours always,

Yours always,

Christian Vater Christian Vater, Club Secretary Club Secretary

www.mcc.co.ke

MCC Massage and Body Treatments Members can now enjoy Massage and Body Treatments from as low as 1,700/-.

Couples Massages and Beauty Scrubs and Wraps are also available.

Our new in-house Spa Therapist Loice Muholo is available all day offering massage and body treatments, which include Classic, Deep Relaxing and Energising Massages, Back, Shoulder & Neck and Foot Massages, Detoxifying Body Treatments and an AfterSun Soothing Moisturiser Treatment.

All treatments include a welcome and farewell drink and use of Sauna and Steam Rooms afterwards.

Members are encouraged to book their sessions in advance through the Fitness Centre. Email fitness@mcc.co.ke or call +254 20 722 9243.

I am one of the few wheelchair Members of the Club, but as an overseas Member I am not here very often to use it.

Ever since Pinks was built, it has had the Disabled Toilet facility, which is commendable. It is also great that there are proper steps and handrails to get in and out of the pool. However, when I went swimming in January, I was disappointed to find that there was no disabled-friendly shower, in fact, no access into the showers at all. So the Club has only gone half way towards making the pool and restaurant facilities accessible, but has just ignored the needs of disabled people to have a shower.

When I last went into the Main Clubhouse, it was the same for the Ladies Washrooms. I think there is a steep ramp to get up those few steps from the corridor, but once in the washroom, there is no disabled toilet or shower facility. Perhaps this has now been rectified?

In your magazine, there is no mention at all regarding wheelchair-accessible rooms in the Club. I think it would be a good idea to include information for Disabled Members in your magazine, and update them on any improvements.

EF (Ed – I am pleased to be able to inform you that, since your last visit, a loo and shower for disabled Members has been installed in the Ladies’ Washrooms in the Main Clubhouse.)

MEMBERSHIP

MEMBERSHIP ATTE RTSE R S MM AT

With the winding down of a communications committee, this page is devoted to being more anything that might Uncle Anodyne remains in his armchair, carefully de-selecting winding down of a communications committee, thisof page is on devoted to being more of an opinion page, where prevailing moods and sentiments Members current Club cause, perish the thought, outrage.

AllAsoffence redacted, dismay humour issues, expressed in comments and mails, are echoed. always, we want to know what’s on weeded, ion page,your where prevailing moodsyour and sentiments of Members on current Club mind, and will always welcome feedback. the postbag opens to reveal… pressedextracted, in comments and mails, are echoed.

As always, we want to know what’s on d, and will always welcome your feedback.

The Club is still a very nice place to stay.

AB

I stayed at the Club in the new West Wing and found there was a dinner party going on which was very loud and I was unable to sleep.

ETC

The food in the Main Dining Room was delicious the other day. Mmm. Thank you.

WS

at Pinks

R E C E N T LY, A D E C ISIO N WA S MA D E TO O The O tap inAT theP I middle O F F E R B R E AKFAST N LY NK S … shower

in the changing room is dripping. Please do [Must have dropped off there for a Breakfast at Pinkssomething only is a mistake.

Do away about it. with the chafing dishes and cook to order as it used MO RE G E N E RAbit.

L LY Still, at least we’re not upsetting KFS to be. TP

inks

anyone, so thank you Uncle

German sausage has not seen Germany A D EC I S Iwere ObyNpeople’s WAS MA Dwho TO Oand to abcxyzYour Anodyne.

I’m glad you Who those abcxyz decided with the Appalled behaviour atEPinks, and the saurecraut [sic] was not cooked.

It intercepted disappointed to have to have breakfast there…

I am …

AKFA abcxyz S T O NLY AT excellent PI NKS… after the abcxyz? I’m glad they were those contentious letters and cleverly tasted ok as I was very hungry.

PE an overseas Member and come to the Club for the having a abcxyz but it might be better if they chose a redacted all gossip. That’s the spirit!

Club, not to come to an average hotel. FP Why is it that there are never any ice-creams bollock in which to do it.

Ed.] nks only is a mistake. Do away with in the fridge? Also, never any low-fat milk. RH LK I agree with the economic reasons for having While shes and to for order as itI do used M ORE GENER AL LY onlycook one venue breakfast, not agree with the argument that economy alone justifies www.mcc.co.ke dispensing with breakfast in the old restaurant in a child-free environment. RS

Not the place it used to be. WR

October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

There German are only threesausage things wrong Pinks: Your haswith not seen Germany

3

l l oti ng c omm it t ee many years, and her terrific diligence balloting c ommittee is probably what has made the chairmanship look so easy. The rest of you lose interest. candidate is the committee have Your enjoyed and are accepted.

Job’s a good’un. grateful for her friendly, forthright leadership – we’ll miss her. that the However, then you discover person you proposed is no good at all.

So now it’sfashioned me, andterms, I’d like begin In old not to only is he with aacad fewbut words the list he’s a about bounder to waiting boot. Since the process took a long time, it passed for prospective Members. It is long. you by that the fellow has already been Candidates can expect to wait at least elected to the Club, so you hurriedly 18 months being proposed write to between say that you withdraw your and being invited torespected attend aMembers balloting nomination.

The whose– names werethen usedwait as references meeting and will a further also write in, saying the fellow should Imagine. You’re having a quiet drink two months while their names are not be allowed anywhere near this fine in thewhen Members’ Bar when mportant, handing overa friend the known to Members. of ours. up to ask if you’ll help propose madeClub s of anycomes committee, to assure your a fellow that you don’t know. You’re The It’s second point note is now thatasthere too late.

He’stoin.

He is -eyed made successor that “It’sthat a doddle: to understand he’s perfectly equal as you are,Members in Membership are no short cuts. are fun, doesn’t take several much other time,worthies all ok and knows terms, and unless he is rude to staff or around the Club; you meet him, and strongly advised not to use their y straightforward really”. behaves abominably, there is way he does seem all right, and so you signinfluence to have Candidatesno move up to dismember him.

You have helped , right.the proposal form. the list more However friendly make a bedquickly. that, unfortunately, other are required Duedone process Waiting list, onyourMembers Paul has anhappens. outstanding job relationship mighttobeshare withwith thean unclubbable one. the noticeboard, speed dating with the seeing the Balloting committee for Secretary – or with anyone else Balloting Committee. Uninvolved,

involved with balloting – there are no short cuts.

Finally, crucially, we urge Members to

Nothing like that could ever happen take the time to examine the names of at Muthaiga, could it? Surely it’s just Candidates theyMembers are posted on a cautionary talewhen to remind that things might happenisifthe slightest thethese Board and, if there you do notabout think their long and carefully doubt ‘clubbability’, to before recommending a candidate voice any concerns to the Secretary. Al for membership. Proposing a new objections Member shouldare nottreated be done with lightlythe strictest orconfidence, unadvisedly. Electing and areunsuitable followed up Members only ensures that other diligently. We really do want to ensure ‘unclubbable’ candidates will start the selection barnet. for prospective slipping through the

Members is maintained at a very high level.

Matthew Rudd

RuddCommitte ChairmanMatthew Balloting Chairman Balloting Committee

ouse & financ e finance

Dear Members

various initiatives that we hope will continue with our investing activities, pop into his office and share any great appeal to, andofattract a better turnout the majority which was spent on our thoughts - the recent Muthaiga Fest from these sectors. room upgrades.

I am happy to report (with record attendance) is an example that we now have 22 fully renovated In terms of projects, we are making of one Member’s great idea!

West Wing rooms. Generally, the Club We are moving in the right direction reasonable headway on our security infrastructure is in great shape. project and expect to complete in early and request your support. We are We must now make the most of May….on budget! The library project doing our best to meet Membership this great asset and ensure that we requirements and always welcome any hasentice been more revitalised and we the hope to Members to use input. present a plan at the next later it Club more frequently.

ThisAGM will lead to a turnaround of our financial he year.

performance. Pinks was the star As mentioned in my last letter, the Finally, we expect to complete the performer last year and we now need Club performed poorly (from a Mukutano Room quarter, which more growth fromthis other areas. Events financial perspective) during the offer Members aare state-of-the-art accommodation the quick year ending to June 2019.good The audited willand Club continues make potential wins given the quality and are subject to approvalMeeting Room. ress inaccounts our key(which strategic initiatives. exclusivity of what we have to offer. We at the AGM) show a marginal loss on work inChristian progress nues are on budget and cashGiven So we havehave a newplenty interimofsecretary, revenue growth of 3.6our percent. defining thehopefully desires and ion is a‘safe’.

Wehigh do depreciation however charge, butVater, who will bring new relatively ideas to the Club whilst remaining true of our diverse from operations was positive requirements ate oncashflow very thin margins at three to our traditions.

Please feel free to and at Ksh 40 million.

This allowed us to Membership remains paramount ent profit on turnover.

our success will lie in our ability to challenge remains how to increase satisfy these. sation of4 the Club,Country particularly the Muthaiga Club October–December 2019 n Dining Room and the sports

“ I can complete the

project under budget and ahead of schedule Vijay Gidoomal but you’ll need to Chairman Finance allocate additional time and money fo that.” www.mcc.co.ke

roving eye

Colonel Blimp may have been created as a buffoonish cartoon character, full of bluster, twisted syntax and red-faced outrage – but he had things to say. In this issue, Eye allows him to speak again for a certain group of Membership.

Gadzooks!

And there’s the Secretary – gone. That was quick. What went wrong?

Seemed a decent enough cove to me. I wonder what those committee chaps will come up with next. Mind you, provided they don’t spend mountains of moolah advertising internationally for some hot-shot hotelier, it’ll be fine: there’s a deep pool of talent that can surely be recruited locally.

Tally ho!

Well, well, that was quick! They’ve appointed an interim fellow to hold the fort. An existing member, German, non-hotelier, serial entrepreneur, sportsman – who knows, he might be just the sort of energetic shot in the arm this Club needs! From what I hear, he’s politically well-connected, so I can’t imagine what might have possessed him to apply for the role – surely he has little to gain and much to lose. Highly caffeinated, fizzing with new ideas, it might be quite a ride!

Harrumph!

Security chap greeted me at the gate last week like a long-lost friend. Hardly surprising since I’d only left a few minutes earlier.

I’d left my card in the Club and was returning to get it. Would you believe I had to re-register my friend, a non-member?

Outrageous. The poor thing had to wait, humiliated, by the security gate, until I retrieved my card from the bar and drove out again.

Where’s the common sense? Are we all automatically assumed to be untrustworthy?

www.mcc.co.ke

And don’t give me any of that faddish gobbledygook about “duty of care”. I do not frequent hotels but if I was to go to one and find it as difficult to get into as the Club, then I would look elsewhere. It’s time the Committee took a hard look at the security arrangements. It is obvious that if a couple of thugs turn up at one of the gates, well-armed, then they will get in and be able to cause mayhem before getting out. So, as the baddies cannot be kept out, why make it so difficult for the Members and their guests to get in? Why can’t the guest simply say (at the gate if there as be to be a gate) “I am coming to meet so and so” and be let in? it is absurd for the electronic systems to keep track of the number of times someone has been in during the year and turn them away the seventh time.

Woof!

October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

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wines & mes sing

Visiting Chef Visiting Chef Jan Klein treated Members to a week of sumptuous French cuisine serving over 435 lunches and dinners and sharing his knowledge and some of his special recipes with the MCC chefs. He is pictured here with his wife Elizabeth and the catering team and with MCC Head Butcher Joseph Kahongo (inset.)

MCC Eco-Drive continues With the new high-tech purification water plant now installed and certified by KEBS, MCC is bottling an average of 3900 bottles of drinking water per month, recycling our branded glass bottles and saving the landfill from the equivalent number of plastic bottles every month. MCC is now largely plastic-free and one of the leaders in Hospitality in making a positive move towards eliminating single-use plastic waste.

MCC is also phasing out the use of outside jikos in the evenings to reduce the use of charcoal. Instead, Members and guests will be offered a warm Kenyan shuka to wrap up in against the cool evenings.

Snooker Room Honesty Bar Tucked away as it is, in a quiet corner of the Club, Snooker aficionados have found it difficult to get service in the Snooker Room so, to improve the Snooker experience and encourage others to venture into its hidden depths, we have installed a fridge stocked with beers, wine and soft drinks which can be signed for using the old chit system.

Wines & Messing Bulletin LAUNDRY & DRY CLEANING SERVICE MCC offers Members an excellent Outside Laundry and Dry Cleaning Service for when your laundry basket overwhelms you. Just drop off your washing at the Linen Room (near the Crescent) with the Laundry Attendant, and collect it the next day – clean, pressed and ready to wear. Please allow 48 hours for carpets, curtains and upholstery.

FISH BOWL NIGHT EVERY LAST THURSDAY OF THE MONTH Fish Bowl Night has returned to the Bush Bar at Pinks. All Members are cordially invited to come and dive into the spirit of our wildly exotic and colourful Fish Bowl Cocktails. Pinks Bush Bar 31 October from 6.30pm and every last Thursday of the month.

SUNDAY BRUNCH SPECIALS On every last Sunday of the month, for a fixed price, Members can enjoy “bottomless” Prosecco, Sangria or Mimosas with a sumptuous Brunch Menu at Pinks.

RETURN OF THE DESSERT TROLLEY By popular demand, the Dessert Trolley has been 're-instated in' the Main Club Dining Room and the Cheese Trolley will remain.

CAR WASH SERVICES MCC is now offering Car Wash Services. Members can arrange to have their cars washed, vacuumed and polished. Meanwhile, why not have a delicious lunch, or a game of tennis, or a relaxing massage or swim and collect your car afterwards, shiny, clean and smart. The Washing Bay is near the Goods Entrance. For more information ask at the Front Desk.

WORLD CUP RUGBY LIVE AT THE CLUB For Rugby enthusiasts, MCC is screening all of the Rugby World Cup Matches Live in both the Garden Room and Pinks.

One of the major challenges the Club has been experiencing in using email as a form of communication, is bounced back messages. These mainly occur because email addresses are out of date.

Members are asked to ensure that they send new email address notice to secretary@mcc.co.ke.

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Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

Members not receiving Club information through eflashes should: - Check junk folder of the email system or promotions tab in Gmail - Add domain name @mailer.clubhouseonline-e3.com to the safe list to make it a trusted source - Let the Club know so that it can be followed up. www.mcc.co.ke

staff news

EMPLOYEES of the MONTH MAY - JULY 2019

From left: May 2019 Silvery Onyango – Driver, Administration June 2019 Dennis Omondi – Waiter, Club Dining July 2019 Joseph Orono – Security Officer, Security.

New Employee Loice Muholo Spa Therapist We are delighted to welcome Loice Muholo who joins the Club as the new Spa Therapist. Loice has over four years of experience as a Spa Therapist. She trained in Thailand at the Banian Tree Academy and has worked as Spa Therapist at the Angsana Spa Sankara. Loice is offering Members a wide selection of wellness therapies and massage treatments. (For more details about MCC’s new Spa

and Wellness Treatments see Page 11)

Retirees 2019 Bosco Mutie Maluki Senior Barman Bosco joined the Club in August 1988 when he was employed in the Bar Section. He worked diligently and was promoted to Senior Barman where he has been serving Members for over 31 years.

Long Serving Employee Awards From Left - Eric Wafula Commis Chef (5 years); Judith Akinyi Osoro Senior Public Area Attendant (5 years); Fridah Kagendo Mulonzi Floor Supervisor (5 years) and Peter Njue Kariuki Glass Washer (5 years.)

Food Safety Champions ISO 22000-2005 Certified MCC Food Safety Champions ensure that the Club’s Food Safety management system (ISO 22000-2005) is implemented, maintained and updated. ISO 22000-2005 certification is an internal Management System for Food Safety, which covers the preparation of food, employee training and the upgrading of kitchen equipment.

MCC was awarded this certificate in 2016 and, after a rigorous audit in September, it has just been re-certified for the next three years by SGS (Standard For Global Services) based in Geneva. This is a major achievement as MCC is the only Private Club in Africa to have been awarded this certification.

Michael Mwangangi Ngui Waiter Michael joined the Club in April 2000. He was employed as a Waiter in the F&B department where he has remained ever since. Michael retires after after 19 years of loyal service. www.mcc.co.ke

October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

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events

Chamber Music & Two Violins Show A small but rapturous audience of Members and friends were treated to a fabulous repertoire of Chamber Music given by the very talented violinists Paul Chege & Ken Mwiti, accompanied by equally gifted pianists Gicigi Kunga & Cynthis Mungai (pictured above from left.)

The delighted audience was offered a selection of sonatas and duets by Bach, Elgar and Fauré and included Chamber Music dating from Baroque through to the twentieth Century.

Hendrick’s Cocktail Soirée Bespoke Hendrick’s Cocktails were the order of the day at the Hendrick’s Banquet. Members were treated to a combination of different gin cocktails to complement and enhance the banquet menu. Pictured here, Mary Collis mixing it up with Hendricks Brand Manager Kevin Dunlop.

If you want to try mixing the Sensory Negroni at home it is made with……..

30 MLS HENDRICKS GIN 30 MLS MARTINI ROSSO 30 MLS CAMPARI …and NEGRONI It was a great night of extra-sensory indulgence.

HIP HOP - A CLASSICAL TALE The cast of Maad Orchestra made their debut performance at MCC, bringing together a wide, eclectic range of performers who delighted the audience with a fusion of Classical Opera, Hip Hop, Jazz and drama, taking them on a musical journey through Africa, across Europe and to the Bronx.

Nairobi Laugh House

Different Strings

MCC recently hosted its first ever Stand-up Comedy night. A group of local comedians from the Nairobi Laugh House took to the stage and cracked up the audience.

From left - Comedians Ciku Waithaka, George Waweru, Shazz Nderitu, Ty Ngachira, Maina Murumba and John Ribia.

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Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

Classic violin and Flamenco guitar is not an obvious marriage of music styles but the immensely talented David Ralak (violin) and Kevin Munyi (Flamenco guitar) strummed, plucked and entwined their different strings into a wonderfully harmonious pot pourri of melody. They were accompanied by Michael James on piano and soprano Ciru James. Kevin, David and Michael are pictured above.

This was an OPERAtion Classics performance in aid of Opera for School Fees. www.mcc.co.ke

events

Poppy Ball 2019 Friday 8th November 7.30pm – Dawn

101 years after the end of the Great War Muthaiga Club will once again be hosting the British Legion of Kenya Poppy Ball. This is always a glittering occasion with medals and uniforms in abundance. It also raises muchneeded funds for the annual Askari and British Legion Kenya Appeals.

Tables can be booked through events@mcc.co.ke Muthaiga Country Club will hold the annual Remembrance Service to honour the Fallen of the Great War in East Africa and all wars across the world, at the MCC War Memorial, on Saturday 9 November, at 10.30am.

To celebrate Halloween MCC will host a Trick or Treat party for children, who are invited to come in their scariest fancy dress. Halloween Trick or Treat will be on Saturday 26 October with a special Halloween Lunch at Pinks from 12.30pm.

Larry Soffer

Mentalist, Illusionist and Magician Larry Soffer – Mentalist, Illusionist and Magician – has been conjured - back by popular demand. This Halloween weekend Larry will be performing some mind-bending tricks and serving up a few real (or maybe not so real) treats for two evenings of thrilling magic – if you dare!

Larry will be performing at MCC on 30 & 31 October at 6.30pm.

Book early or miss the magic!

The hit stage play that’s taking East Africa by storm is coming to MCC! The musical “Mrs Lucy Goes to AFRICA” is a stage production filled with laughter, drama and great music.

On her first visit to Africa, eighty-year-old American Mrs. Lucy finds herself in the middle of an African family drama. Thought provoking and enjoyable, ‘Mrs. Lucy Goes to AFRICA’ is a captivating, joyous and hilarious Broadway that will keep the whole family entertained and delighted. Not to be missed, “Mrs. Lucy Goes to AFRICA,” features a stellar cast and will leave the audience with much to think about.

“Mrs. Lucy Goes to AFRICA” will be performed on 15 & 16 November, in the Ballroom, at 6.30pm.

Book tickets early as this will be a sell-out event. www.mcc.co.ke

1920s Young Members Prohibition Party Members, Friends and Bootleggers are invited to come and celebrate the glamour, glitter and decadence of the Roaring 20s.

Saturday 12 December 2019 in the Ballroom 7.30pm until dawn.

October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

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forthcoming events

Ghetto Classics Ghetto Classics is a community programme that involves over 500 children in Korogocho - one of Kenya’s biggest slums, using music education to provide young people with opportunities to better themselves and their community. The programme also provides them with income generating opportunities.

The main objectives of the programme are to create harmony through music to bring together people from all races and communities and to make music part of the culture in Korogocho and other under-privileged areas.

In the ten years since its creation Ghetto Classics has discovered many hidden musical talents. Even without its humble beginnings and incredible achievements, this is a spectacular live orchestral event by a collective of young, dynamic, local talent that deserves all the success they have earned.

OCTOBER 2019

Ghetto Classics will be performing live at the Club on 9 November, on the Chairman’s Lawn at 4.00pm. Book now as this promises to be a heart-stirring performance from Korogocho’s seemingly bottomless pool of musical talent.

Fo r t h c o m i ng E v e n t s

Film Screening - African Twilight by Alan Donovan EAWLS Evening – 10th Anniversary Celebration Club Night – Happy Hour (50% off all drinks) Halloween - Trick or Treat & Halloween Lunch Tennis Tournament – "Cup of Nations" Mixed Doubles Classic Car Show Ballet Night –‘Othello’ Larry Soffer – Mentalist & Magician Fish Bowl Halloween Edition

17 October, Ballroom, 6.30pm.

18 October, Ballroom, 6.30pm.

25 October, Chairman’s Lawn, 5.30 – 7.30pm.

26 October, Pinks, 12.30pm.

27 October, Tennis Courts, 9.00am.

27 October, Chairman’s Lawn, 10.00am onwards.

28 October, Ballroom, 6.30pm.

30 & 31 October, Ballroom, 6.30pm.

31 October, Pinks Bush Bar, 6.30pm onwards.

NOVEMBER 2019 Guy Fawkes Night – Fireworks, Bonfire & Circus Book Club Meet - ‘Normal People’ by Sally Rooney MCC Annual General Meeting Poppy Ball Remembrance Service Tennis Tournament - "Les Grands Combatants" (55+) Mixed Doubles Broadway Show – ‘Mrs Lucy Goes to AFRICA’ Opera Night – ‘La Cenerentola’ (Cinderella) Club Night – Happy Hour (50% off all drinks)

2 November, Tennis Pavillion, 6.30pm.

5 November, Blue Room, 6.00pm.

07 November, Ballroom, 6.30pm.

8 November, CDR, Terrace & Ballroom, 7.30pm until dawn.

9 November, MCC War Memorial, 10.00am.

10 November, Tennis Courts, 9.00am.

15 & 16 November, Ballroom, 6.30pm.

28 November, Ballroom, 6.30pm 29 November, Popsy Bar, from 5.30 – 7.30pm.

DECEMBER 2019 Tennis Tournament – Christmas Crackers – Mixed Doubles Live Concert – The Moipei Sisters MCC Christmas Draw – Lunch & Mini Draw Book Launch - by Colin Church Live Concert – Ghetto Classics Children’s Christmas Party Christmas Carols Service Christmas Eve Dinner Christmas Day Lunch Boxing Day BBQ Club Night – Happy Hour (50% off all drinks) New Year’s Eve Ball – Moulin Rouge Theme New Year’s Day Brunch

1 December, Tennis Courts, 9.00am.

05 December, Ballroom, 6.30pm.

07 December, Centenary Lawn, 11.30am.

10 December, Ballroom, 6.30pm.

13 December, Chairman’s Lawn, 4.00pm.

14 December, Pinks Lawn, 12 noon onwards.

15 December, Ballroom, 6.30pm.

24 December, Club Dining Room, 7.00pm.

25 December, Club Dining Room & Centenary Lawn, 12.30pm.

26 December, Pinks & Pool Area, 12 noon.

27 December, Popsy Bar, from 5.30 – 7.30pm.

31 December, Club Dining Room & Lawn, 7.30pm until 2020.

01 January 2020, Pinks & Pool Area, 11.30am onwards.

Dates and times of events were correct at the time of going to Press.

They may change post printing so please check with the Events Office events@mcc.co.ke when making your bookings.

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Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

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bowls, fitnes s & squash

2019 MCC CLOSED SQUASH CHALLENGE CUP

The MCC Closed Squash Challenge Cup is the main Squash event of the year and has been held annually held since 1914.

In its 105th year sixteen players entered the competition, four of whom were former Challenge Cup winners. All the matches were played in a best of 5 games format.

The Greens have been quiet over the holiday season with many of our regular bowlers away but we were delighted to welcome a few newcomers to the green to try out the game.

And with this in mind we will be holding a Committee meeting late in September to discuss several new initiatives aimed at encouraging new and younger members - I hope to be able to implement some of these very soon.

The Knock-Out rounds were fiercely disputed but the Semifinalists were Kunal Bid against Kavan Shah and Spence Dry against Jeremy Clayton. In both semis, the older more experienced players triumphed winning their matches in straight games and Kunal met Jeremy in the Final. Kunal went on to win this also in straight games 3-0.

Jeremy Clayton (left) runner-up and Kunal Bid (Champion) of the The MCC Closed Squash Challenge Cup 2019.

NINA BELL TROPHY Club players who did not reach the semi-finals of the Challenge Cup were able to participate in the Nina Bell Trophy. Altogether eight competitors took part and the much-prized trophy was fought over ferociously, but at the end of the Knock-Out rounds Walter Kuoni (Squash Captain) played 2018 Nina Bell Cup winner Frank Meifels in the Semi-finals and Vicky Chawla Nina Bell Cup winner 2017 played Jonathan Somen. It was Walter and Jonathan who wen through to the Final where Jonathan triumphed in straight games and took home the splendid Nina Bell Trophy 2019.

Bowls Report

From left - Challenge Cup Winner 2019 Kunal Bid, Squash Captain Walter Kuoni, 2019 Nina Bell Trophy Winner Jonathan Somen, Club Secretary Christian Vater and Club Sport Manager Mousa

At the end of September we had the annual Club Triples Tournament kindly sponsored

by Maria Cunningham and in October twelve of our members are joining a private bowling trip to South Africa and I wish them success in their matches against five different Bowling Clubs in Johannesburg.

Ian Stamp Bowls Captain

FORTHCOMING SQUASH EVENTS OCTOBER – Team Multi-Challenge 2019 - Mixed racquet event including Tennis, Badminton, Table Tennis and Squash DECEMBER – Christmas Handicap Squash Tournament 2019 JANUARY 2020 – MCC Tennis Club vs MCC Squash Club

SQUASH MIX-IN – We welcome all interested Squash players of all abilities to join us at the weekly Squash Mix-In, which takes place every Wednesday fro 5pm – 8pm.

Walter Kuoni - Squash Captain

There’s lots going on at the Fitness Centre…

As well as the arrival of our fabulous new Spa Therapist Loice, the Fitness Centre is now offering wireless headphones for Members to use while they work out in the gym. They can now exercise to their favourite choons or get inspired by a TED talk while they pump iron, or jog their way through a movie on the new 32-inch TVs, which have also been added to the treadmills.

And when they are done they will find a Complimentary goodie bag with toiletries in their locker – as will Squash and Tennis players.

And for swimmers – Pool opening hours have been extended from 6am to 9pm. Swimmers can now bathe under the stars with underwater lighting. www.mcc.co.ke

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tennis

TENNIS REPORT MCC Wimbledon Tournament

The Herring Cup Challenge 2019

The MCC ‘Wimbledon’ Mixed Doubles Championships attracted some twenty participants, which is a big increase in numbers from last year. With teams representing various cities in the UK, five pairs competed on a Round-Robin basis in two separate Pools. By the end of the morning, the team from Southampton emerged as the overall winners (1st Pair -Tamara Krautkramer/Harold Zagunis and 2nd Pair – Naomi Ndolo/Philippe Dongier). The team from Manchester also performed well by finishing in second position (1st Pair - Pamela Ndemo/Rupert Mclellan with Suzi Tilson/Mark Crocker as 2nd Pair).

Once again, Muthaiga Club hosted the annual Herring Cup Weekend Competition. This Mixed Doubles event was originally introduced by Captain Herring at Makuyu Club in 1924. Apart from a couple of years during WWII, the illustrious Herring Cup has been fought over annually ever since.

MCC U.S. Open Tournament This annual competition attracted enough players to put together two Pools of mixed pairs who competed amongst themselves within their appropriate Pools and, by the end of the morning, by combining both sets of results, we were able to determine the winning pairs. The dynamic team from Los Angeles was the outright winners of this prestigious tournament (1st Pair - Charlotte Mohn & Richard Wootton and 2nd Pair -Alexandra Lehmberg & Bitange Ndemo).

This year was particularly well attended with a record seven Clubs competing and, for the first time, a team representing the Maasai Mara was entered. Consequently, some fifty-six players competed this year. The participants were split up into graded groups of players competing on a round-robin basis within their own appropriate Pool.

By lunch time on Sunday, having played all day on the Saturday (and with a wonderful evening event in between in which some players performed on the dance floor much better than they did on the courts) we were able to total the sets won to find the winning team. With methodical calculations being supervised and worked out by a number of officials and players, the final results revealed that, with a total of thirty-six sets, the team from Limuru emerged the Champions, closely followed by the Red Herrings who won thirty five sets. Both teams put up a tremendous performance throughout the weekend and, in fact, all players must be praised for making this year’s Herring Cup Challenge a most enjoyable weekend of high quality tennis!

We look forward to welcoming more teams next year.

John Goodwin Tennis Captain

Limuru Tennis Club Herring Cup Winners 2019.

Forthcoming Tennis Events SUN 27TH OCT SUN 10TH NOV

SUN 1ST DEC

“Cup of Nations” Mixed Doubles “Les Grands Combatants” – (55+ players) “Christmas Crackers” – Mixed doubles

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Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

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tennis

T H E H E R R I NG C U P B A L L The Herring Cup Ball is held traditionally on the Saturday evening of the weekend tennis competition – which usually levels out the talent for the Sunday matches! Having played all Saturday and having enjoyed a superb dinner courtesy of the MCC catering team, those diners who had any energy left, were able to stay on in the Ballroom to promote their dancing skills assisted by D.J. Idi. It seems certain diners were demonstrating unusual dance sequences on unusual platforms at 3am. However, despite finishing very late in the Ballroom, players reported to the tennis courts at 9.30 am on Sunday morning to continue their match schedule.

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It was a splendid evening of entertainment for those who attended though, disappointingly, two teams did not make an appearance.

Altogether it was a most enjoyable weekend for all players and spectators and it has even been suggested by the Nanyuki Team Captain that they might even be able to produce a second team for next year’s Herring Cup! Any other teams up for the challenge?

John Goodwin Tennis Captain

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Conquering Mount Everest Since 2003, over a thousand wildlife rangers have been killed protecting Africa’s endangered species.

shape and form with huge lumps of blue ice, scrambled all over the place, split and mashed from the main Khumbu Glacier. It is becoming more technical and treacherous to navigate.

ForRangers is a group of individuals who undertake ultra-endurance events across the globe to raise funds for the welfare of these rangers who put their lives on the line every day.

There’s a possible break in the jet stream in the next few days and the wind is dropping. We plan a summit push on the 23rd (June.) We will have some winds on the summit, perhaps as much as 30mph, but this is OK, the team is feeling strong.

Earlier this year, Sam Taylor (son of MCC Member Emma and the late Jim Taylor) and Pete Newland - the founders of ForRangers attempted to climb the highest mountain on earth, to raise funds and awareness for the welfare of Wildlife Rangers across Africa.

We leave Base Camp on the 20th. Although full of trepidation, it feels good to know that this really is it. We’re feeling strong and reacclimatised. Pete seems good but is deliberately pacing himself – monitoring his heart rate closely.

Here is Sam’s awe-inspiring account of their attempt to summit Mount Everest.

We have been on the mountain now for over two months. We have rotated through the higher camps, acclimatised, rested and trained.

We have aborted one summit attempt. One of our party has already pulled out and Pete has developed a bad cough.

Daily we check the weather forecasts. The days are getting warmer and the icefall is changing 14

We move through the maze of the glacier into the Khumbu Icefall. It is an extraordinary place. I feel like a half-squashed fly making my way through a giant sorbet. Huge pillars of ice loom above us, glistening blue-white in the sun. We leap small cracks and jumar ourselves up ice walls. Occasionally the fissures are too wide to step over, and we move across precarious horizontal ladders, staring at our feet to make sure our crampons are on the rungs of the ladders, trying to ignore the 500foot chasm below.

I had discarded dignity and created a ladder technique all of my own – which involved an eyes-shut technique, crawling (and wailing) like a baby over the horizontal ladders balanced over bottomless crevasses, to the endless amusement of my climbing colleagues.

But the day has been a mishmash of terror and absolute wonder. I have never been anywhere quite so beautiful, nor so treacherous.

Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

The climb to Camp 2 is relatively uneventful.

The next afternoon, we will push on to scale the Lhotse face and set up at Camp 3, where we will sleep on oxygen, and prepare for what essentially is a long 24-hour push for the summit, with a small rest at Camp 4.

Across the pass to Lhotse, underneath squawking crows fighting the wind, we are surrounded by hundreds of cairns dedicated to the climbers and Sherpas who have died in their attempt to summit these magnificent mountains. Suddenly, the seriousness of what we are attempting hits us all. We are starting to venture into altitudes where the human body is not meant to be.

We slog out towards the face and, as I strap on my crampons, I see Geth and Pete, shaking hands. It suddenly dawns on me what the handshake is all about. Pete is turning back.

This must be serious. His cough has not improved and his chest is causing him severe problems. I’m not entirely sure what to do.

We have been training, planning and saving for this for the last two years. I awkwardly hug my mate and turn back to the others. I’m still with three highly competent and accomplished mountaineers, but somehow without my mate, and staring up at the 300m wall of ice that is the Lhotse face, I feel extremely vulnerable. We are now four – but on we climb.

After a restless night at Camp 3 and an exhausting climb over the Yellow Band, over the Geneva Spur and into the “Death Zone” we reach Camp 4. It is a hard slog, but we do it in relatively decent weather, and at a decent pace.

(Pace is a relative term here – there are leeches that move with greater urgency.) I try and get comfortable between bodies, packs and oxygen bottles all crammed into the 2-man tent. www.mcc.co.ke

We are going to leave for our final assault on the summit at 8pm. It is strange moving at night.

One’s imagination is confined to the prism of light in front of your nose, and the ability to distract your mind from anything other than your immediate pain is impossible.

As we move, the initial 45 minutes feel like a horror film. We step aside as a climber is lowered down on a pulley system by three Sherpas. He’s groaning but conscious. Then comes another, similar package - this time a woman - and her head lolls around. We try and hold her head still as they lower her down the icy slope, but she is unresponsive. I am certain that she is already dead.

No sooner have we clipped on and continued climbing, an Indian man is being half dragged, half pushed by his Sherpas down the mountain.

He is screaming and tearing at himself, his bloodshot eyes rolling around. Again, we step aside from the rope as his Sherpas struggle down with him. He is in the advanced stages of HACE (High-Altitude Cerebral Edema) and it is truly terrifying to witness.

Forty metres further on, we unhook to move around a corpse illuminated by our head torches. This man has clearly fallen, he lies face down, frozen solid.

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I am unnerved. I contemplate turning back, but the thought of moving past all that again, without my colleagues, drives me forward on my uncertain stagger up the icy slopes, but I can remember only pain and exhaustion and an emotionless struggle for a seemingly neverending length of time.

And then, the sun rises and with it our spirits.

Suddenly we are at the Hillary Step, and we all know we will summit. The Step is exposed with thousands of metres drop either side. It’s terrifying but I realise I’m smiling. I’m going to finish this.

On the summit, I ‘posted’ a postcard I had written to my father, which was caught by the winds and I left a plait of hair from my wife and two daughters. We then held the Kenya flag together, and the ForRangers flag, as I had promised Pete, I would do. We took a few photos and then we turned around, and we climbed down. That was it. There was no elation. No euphoria. We had done what we had set out to do. That was about as emotional as my oxygenstarved brain would permit.

My father died in an accident on Mt Kenya when I was a small boy leaving my mother to raise me and my sister single-handedly. But this wonderful country and the community that banded around to support my mother, played

an enormous role in making sure that, as a young boy, I was given every opportunity and the space, freedom and wilderness to grow up rounded and happy.

So it seemed fitting to take the Kenya flag to the top of the mother of all mountains, and to place the ForRangers flag there too – the charity that supports the people who protect the wilderness that is the lifeblood of this beloved country. And I feel extremely honoured and proud to have done so.

Sam Taylor Co-Founder ForRangers Kenya

Sam will being giving a talk about ForRangers and a fuller account of his successful summit of Mount Everest at the Club soon.

Photos by Tom Martienssen

October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

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members’ honours

Kenya’s Chipu Play for Africa in Brazil The three young MCC Members who played for Kenya in the World Rugby Under 20s Trophy in July, in Jose dos Campos in Brazil did Kenya proud.

Dominic Coulson, Michele Brighetti and George Kyriazi (all Old Pembrokians) now playing in the Under-20s Kenya team - popularly known as Chipu (Imps) – represented Kenya in the Under 20s World Rugby Trophy in Brazil in July.

Billy Coulson sent this report from Brazil….

In their opening match in The Martins Pierera Stadium in San Jose dos Campos, Brazil, the Chipu were brought down to earth with a thump at the hands of Uruguay losing 63-11.

Undaunted and showing great strength of character, Chipu dusted themselves down, regrouped to win their next match against the hosts Brazil, in a fiercely fought challenge, with a last minute penalty by Dominic Coulson, to win by the slimmest of margins, 26-24.

Their glory was short-lived, because in the following match they faced the best team and eventual World Rugby Trophy Champions - Japan. Despite losing, Chipu played their best rugby in this match. Both teams scored some spectacular tries and, at one stage, Kenya was only trailing by two points with 20 minutes to go. Unfortunately, Japan’s superior firepower overwhelmed the Chipu and beat them 48-34. But Chipu can hold their heads high, only Portugal in the final scored more points against Japan.

It was a tremendous experience for the young Kenyans and in the end Chipu came sixth out of eight, defeating both Brazil and Hong Kong. Two players from the Kenyan team were mentioned by World Rugby for being recognised amongst the top ten players in the tournament - namely Winger Geoffrey Okwatch and young MCC Member, Fly Half Dominic Coulson.

Billy Coulson

It was a true honour representing the Kenya under 20s in Brazil. Lining up alongside my fellow team members knowing that we were not only representing Kenya but Africa too, was very special. The tour drew players from widely diverse backgrounds and together we exceeded our expectations and showed the world that there is a tremendous amount of young talent and a bright future for Kenya Rugby.

Dominic Coulson Fly Half U20s ‘Chipu’ Rugby Team, Kenya

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Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

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members’ honours

MCC Member Jeff Koinange, top Kenyan journalist and TV Talk Show host, has been awarded the prestigious ‘Best Journalist of the Year Award 2019.’

From a list of 100 candidates, a team of judges undertook the task of determining whom among them had the biggest impact in the media industry in Kenya in 2019.

Defining journalism as the activity of gathering, assessing, creating, and presenting news and information, the judges assessed each candidate on the quality of their interviews, experience, diversity of talents and skills, as well as their ability to set the agenda for the nation.

A list of the top 100 journalists in Kenya was compiled and Jeff Koinange was voted ‘Best Journalist of the Year Award 2019.’

Jeff’s distinguished career spans 25 years having served previously as the Africa correspondent for CNN International, during which time he covered the crisis in Darfur, the civil wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone and the famine in Niger, for which he won an Emmy award. He was the first African journalist to do so.

Later he became chief reporter at K24 and served as the Chief Anchor for Arise Television based in Johannesburg, before joining Citizen TV. As well as his hit Talk Show, ‘Jeff Koinange Live’ on Citizen TV, Jeff also co-hosts the breakfast radio show on HOT 96 and is a judge representing Kenya at the new ‘East Africa’s Got Talent’ show that premiered in August this year.

I am humbled and privileged to be honoured with the ‘Best Journalist of the Year Award 2019.’ It takes hard work, consistency and team work to achieve such an honour and I shall continue doing my BEST everyday to make sure I live up to this Honour.

Jeff Koinange ‘Best Journalist of the Year Kenya 2019’ www.mcc.co.ke

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members’ ac hievements

OPERATION WARRIOR In the Christmas Draw last year, MCC Member Kevin Rodrigues won the prize kindly donated by the British Army, which was for him and his brother Dr. Chris Rodrigues, to spend 24 hours training with an elite team from BATUK (British Army Training Unit Kenya.)

Here Kevin, who works in investments for the Liechtenstein Global Trust, recounts a weekend he and his brother will never forget.

When we arrived at the BATUK barracks in Nanyuki, we were met by Regimental Sergeant Major Ian Walker, who introduced us to the eightman team we were joining. They were all experienced soldiers who have completed active tours in Afghanistan and who now train new recruits ready to go to war.

Over the course of the day we were given crash course training in various aspects of army drills. These included recognising IEDs (improvised explosive devices), marching formations for different attacking drills, map reading, weapons training (we used the L85 A3-SA80 machine gun with blanks), how to use night vision goggles, hostage rescue techniques, patrolling, camouflage techniques and how to cook up our army rations!

It was very physical and a lot to learn in one go, but the team were extremely friendly, accessible and generous with their knowledge and experience.

At dusk we were given our brief, OPERATION WARRIOR, which was to recce a site where a hostage was being held by the enemy, to report back to the rest of the team and make a rescue plan. We were issued our uniforms, cammo cream, night vision goggles, water, rations, guns and ammunition. We were driven out in armoured LandRovers and dropped in the bush to conduct reconnaissance of the village where the hostage was held, assess enemy numbers, the lie of the land and the layout of the buildings, all the while we were carrying heavy equipment in the dark, surrounded by lions, elephant and buffalo! I was concentrating so hard on not being shot, the wildlife was the least of my concerns.

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Once we had completed our reconnaissance, we reported back to the team to debrief and agree on a mode of attack to rescue the hostage. We got two hours sleep, then at 0400 hours we were transported to the site where we carried out our hostage rescue in the dark, relying entirely on our night vision scopes and being fired on continuously by the enemy.

By 0600 we had rescued the hostage and we were airlifted back to Nanyuki where we had a huge breakfast, shower and de-brief.

It was an incredible experience. The highlight was carrying out the rescue mission in the dark, in the bush, surrounded by wildlife, under fire, acting on our wits, evading the enemy and being part of a highly trained team. The worst part was the exhaustion and realising how unfit I am.

No gym workouts prepare your body for that kind of beasting!

It was also an illuminating insight into the work of the British Army in Kenya, both in their work with local communities around Nanyuki, and in preparing British army recruits for active service in war zones.

Northern Kenya’s hot and high savannah, mountain and desert terrains offer the perfect environments for the training scenarios recruits need to prepare for war in Afghanistan, and it seemed a great way to teach young people leadership skills, to build on their strengths and confidence and form the trust and camaraderie that comes between men who are dependent on each other for survival.

As a teenager, I once flirted with the idea of joining the army, after this experience I rather regret that I didn’t.

Kevin Rodrigues

The MCC Christmas Draw will be held 0n 7 December this year with over 240 fantastic prizes, so be sure to buy your tickets now. (See Page 25 for more details.) www.mcc.co.ke

members’ achievements

Alive & Kicking in KenyA Alive & Kicking is a social enterprise that produces hand-stitched quality sport balls in Kenya for children to play with all over the world.

This far-sighted organisation was set up in Nairobi by a team of partners including MCC Members Martin Bernard, Wanjiku Kiragu, and the late Jim Cogan, with the aim of increasing children’s access to play, raising health awareness and education through sport and creating employment for vulnerable sectors of the community.

Since it was established in 2005 Alive & Kicking has won numerous international awards including the Football for Good – International Impact Award 2015 and 2016 and Beyond Sport – Quality Education and Employment Award 2017.

It is a common sight across Africa to see children making improvised footballs from plastic bags and string. Since 2005, Alive & Kicking (A&KK) has made over 940,000 sports balls, and each one has given some child, somewhere in Africa, the chance to play with a real ball, often for the first time. Netballs, volleyballs and even footballs for the visually impaired, are also made at A&KK. The balls are hand-stitched by individuals from vulnerable backgrounds, including people living with disabilities.

The balls meet FIFA standards and the production process adheres to international ethical trade standards. A&KK makes and sells approximately 40,000 balls annually with the majority of sales in Kenya but also exporting across Africa and to Europe.

The hand-stitched A&KK balls are made from tough Kenyan leather to withstand the harsh African terrain. Recognising that sport is an ideal way to engage young people and give them the means to live healthy and productive lives, A&KK www.mcc.co.ke

increases the impact of their work by printing the leather balls with simple messages, turning the balls into health educational tools.

Working with specialist outreach programmes, A&KK has trained over a thousand community coaches to educate about health, using sports drills to teach vulnerable young adults about HIV/ AIDS and malaria. By customising the balls they are able to promote a range of causes, from Peace & Reconciliation, Health & Wellbeing and Wildlife Conservation.

Over seven million young people have used A&KK balls in 36 different countries around Africa and the world and 88,000 young people have been reached through sports Health & Wellbeing programmes.

Since launching in Kenya, A&KK has opened workshops in Ghana and Zambia and of the 940,000 sports balls made by A&KK since 2005, over 170,000 balls have been donated to schools and community projects around the world that would otherwise be unable to afford them, allowing children to play and learn. And each one was hand-stitched in Africa.

It is so fulfilling being able to employ vulnerable sectors of the community – women, the physically challenged, the under-educated – and to give them a skill that helps others. It is a child’s right to play and we are giving them that chance and at the same time imparting life-changing knowledge that we hope will not only improve the quality of their lives but also impact positively on generations to come.

Wanjiku Kiragu Board Member Alive & Kicking Kenya October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

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edita’s ballet and opera programme

'La Cenerentola' For Opera Night, in the hopes of attracting some young Members and friends who may already have started their Christmas holidays, I have chosen the fairy tale of Cinderella which continues to delight adults and children alike.

This production comes from La Scala di Milano with the longest list of accolades I have ever seen - “I was in a state of continual amazement at the sheer inventiveness of this performance, a continual bombardment of sublime music and side-splitting humour …” “..like a hybrid of Mozart and G&S-ish in its silliness and froth..”; “ I have never seen an ensemble realized better than this”.

I totally agree with all of these and could add more.

‘La Cenerentola’ (Cinderella) will be screened on Thursday 28 November in the Ballroom at 6pm.

'Othello' I have only recently discovered this fabulous, powerful rendition of Shakespeare’s well-known tragedy ‘Othello’ presented through the medium of Classical Ballet. The intriguing blend of classical choreography with some powerful modern dance arrangements, which dramatically describe the strong emotions and ultimate tragedy of the play, this spectacular performance by the San Francisco Ballet received rave reviews.

‘Othello’ will be screened on Monday 28 October in the Ballroom at 6pm.

'Live Performance by The Moipei Sisters' There is a slim possibility that those incomparable National Treasures that are the Moipei sisters will be coming home for Christmas on a brief visit, so I have seized the opportunity to book an evening for them to perform at the Club in December. They are still in the United States where, having finished their university studies, they are actively pursuing a very promising career.

Immensely popular and in great demand the girls have not yet been able to confirm their Christmas visit. I would not want for MCC to miss out on such an opportunity to host them, so a date is booked and all is in place for a show on their arrival.

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Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

'The Sleeping Beauty’ Ballet But if this should not happen this year, I have a consolation replacement lined up. Still with young people in mind and taking into account the special time of the year leading up to Christmas I have chosen another fairytale ballet - one of the most frequently performed all-time classics, “The Sleeping Beauty” arranged

by Marius Petipa. With its vibrant sets, glittering costumes all danced to Tchaikovsky’s richly layered music, ‘The Sleeping Beauty,’ performed by the Royal Ballet, captures all the magic and virtuosity that ballet has to offer.

It is hoped that the Moipei Sisters will be performing live at MCC on Thursday 5 December in the Ballroom at 6pm. In the event that they are not available on the night, the ballet version of ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ will be screened instead.

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book reviews

New Arrivals COMBATANTS, A MEMOIR OF THE BUSH WAR & THE PRESS IN UGANDA by William Pike Born in Tanzania, Pike was trained as a journalist in London and arrived in Uganda to find himself with Museveni and his National Resistance Army, which was to end Obote’s oppressive regime, after Idi Amin had all but brought the country to its knees. Could the ‘Pearl of Africa’ ever recover from the severe internal strife it had recently experienced?

Did it have the personnel or the potential after such destruction? Later Pike was invited to run the government newspaper “New Vision”. What he experienced there reflects an exclusive account of Museveni’s carefully planned new Uganda. Pike’s book, taken from diaries he wrote at the time, is more of a unique historical document, than a recreational read, and a remarkable account with details that might otherwise have been lost forever.

TAKE SIX GIRLS, THE LIVES OF THE MITFORD SISTERS by Laura Thompson This is the fascinating story of all six Mitford sisters. Laura Thompson knows her subject and never loses her narrative’s thread, dealing masterfully with the complicated interrelations, not only between the girls themselves, but with their varying associations with their parents. It is hard to imagine what it must have been like bringing up six such talented children whose individual needs differed so vastly, while coping with the appalling tragedies the family suffered. Each daughter was so determinedly individual one can trace few similarities in their characters.

The sisters did remain united among themselves, but nonetheless had their differences. A brilliant book – readable, analytical and yes, un-put-down-able.

THE DOLL FACTORY by Elizabeth MacNeal In 1850s London, Prince Albert’s Great Exhibition is about to open, and in the art world the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood artists fight for recognition. Iris is a frustrated artist-in-themaking. She shocks her family by abandoning her job in the doll factory, taking painting lessons from an artist, in return for becoming his model. She has auburn hair - a predilection of the Pre-Raphaelites. But in so doing, she is disowned by her family and she abandons her twin sister Rose, who continues at the Doll Factory, bitter at Iris’s rejection. More disturbing is a man obsessed by passion for Iris. Only Albie, a young boy, seems aware of this danger, but nobody listens to his warnings until a disconcerting incident at the Royal Academy. This book is reminiscent of John Fowles’s ‘The Collector’ another ‘riveting read'.

WE CAN SEE YOU by Simon Kernick Kernick’s plot moves at the rate of knots. A child is kidnapped, a nanny is killed - two incidents that change couple Brook and Logan’s lives forever. ‘We are watching you’ the kidnappers claim, they demand a ransom and warn against police contact.

However due to another ‘happening,’ the police, of their own volition, do involve themselves. Brook is even more desperate to find their five-year-old daughter. Her course of action becomes progressively threatened, both by the law, the criminals and a Californian arch-criminal and his wife. The story keeps you reading, but what a place to live! It’s staggering what everybody can get away with, especially the police. It appears all very lawless and disorderly. www.mcc.co.ke

The Chameleon Who Went to the North Pole …Almost!

Life Member of MCC and recipient of the prestigious Chief of the Burning Spear (CBS) in 2018, Mary Epsom has written her first book for children. “The Chameleon who went to the North Pole… almost!” is based on a true story about Mary’s son Paul when he was a little boy in 1966.

As a typical Kenyan boy, Paul always had a snake in his pocket or a chameleon on his shoulder, and Mary’s delightful story for children, tells how, on the flight to Europe on leave with the family, Mary saw to her horror, at 32,000 feet above the Sahara Desert, a chameleon walking across the back of Paul’s seat in front of her. There was no alternative but to bring the little chameleon, who Paul had named Mugia, along with them for the rest of the holiday.

The book relates the stories of the family’s 17,000km journey through Europe, visiting nine countries as far as the Arctic Circle, as seen through Mugia’s eyes.

The book is both an enchanting memoire of a happy family holiday in Europe in the 1960s in the company of a charismatic little chameleon, and a nostalgic reminder of the freedom of travel in the days before airport security and border controls (and although Mugia was put into her own shoe box when the family went through customs, Mary strongly advises children not to try this trick today!)

Paul died in a road accident in 2014 and “The Chameleon who went to the North Pole…almost!” is dedicated to him.

Published by Steve Mills, with delightful colour illustrations by Samira Matthews, this makes a very special Christmas stocking-filler for children aged 6 – 10 years old.

Mary after launching her new book for children “The Chameleon who went to the North Pole… almost!” at the Club last month.

October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

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a day in the life of...

Interview

A Life in the Day of …

Maia Lekow – Musician Maia Lekow has been hailed as Kenya’s Premiere Songstress. With her band ‘Maia & The Big Sky,’ she has built a formidable reputation as one of Kenya’s most exciting live acts. With her magnetic vocals in Swahili and English, Maia and her Big Sky Band has graced festival stages throughout Africa and Australia and Maia is the winner of the Sondeka Judges Award 2018, as well as the recipient of two African Academy Awards for her track ‘Uko Wapi.’ In 2013 she was named Goodwill Ambassador for the UNHCR on World Refugee Day. Maia has just finished a tour of Southern Africa performing in Mozambique, Johannesburg, Swaziland and Reunion Island. She is currently working on creating some new music.

Maia and the Big Sky

What does your work entail?

I’m a singer and guitarist. I front my own band Maia and the Big Sky. When we’re on tour we travel a lot, performing at music festivals all over the world. When we’re not travelling I read a lot and loiter on the streets of Nairobi for inspiration for new material. I compose music for film and, as I’m my own manager, I plan and organise for future shows within East Africa and beyond.

Your typical day starts at…?

No day is typical because when we are on tour we are travelling or performing every night, but when I’m at home I get up at about 7am and start the day with a little exercise – yoga, a walk or meditation. Then I write my ‘Morning Pages’ (just whatever is in my head) – it’s an exercise that helps to open up the creative flow. Sometimes it works and I will find the lyrics for a new song or the inspiration for a new video concept. I’m always humming!

How did you come to do this?

I’ve always loved music. My father Sal Davis was a great musician (although he wasn’t around much) but my mother, Maggie von Lekow, was a big jazz and salsa enthusiast, so I was immersed in music from birth. When I was about 17 I started singing in a band. We played mostly jazz and rock cover versions, but then some friends clubbed together and bought me my first guitar, so I started to write and compose my own songs. I graduated in Hospitality Management and worked at that for a few years, but I never gave up my music and eventually I made the break and set up my own band. It was tough at the beginning but today we only perform original material and we have a more Afrofusion-esque style of music.

The band meets once a week to rehearse. There are five of us in the band. I write my songs just on my acoustic guitar and then take the tune to my bassist Radanz Nirina (who has been playing with me for 10 years now and who is my musical rock!) He adds his own touches and then the rest of the band will give their input and we find the song from there. It’s great fun working out a new track together. At the moment we’re trying out a mix of Afro beatHipHop. In the afternoon I try to get any admin out of the way.

On a tour day I will wake up and join the band for breakfast. Sometimes I’ll just chill and rest in the morning, other times I might go out sightseeing. In the afternoon we have to prepare for the gig. I will go through my vocal exercises, check my wardrobe and make sure all my outfits are in the right order for quick changes. I usually put my own outfits together. I have a tailor in Nairobi who is great if I need something special made. I also have a network of close friends whose wardrobes are open to me to rummage through to find any additional things. I do my own hair and make up. Finally we’ll all do sound and lighting checks at the venue. When everyone is happy we’ll return to the hotel to rest and shower and try to focus on what to bring to our fans.

What is your most memorable occasion?

There are many but probably the one that stands out was my first time performing on a huge stage. It was thrilling to have 80,000 people listening to me sing songs that I had written and then have them all applauding. It is an electrifying feeling and a totally unforgettable one.

Another occasion was playing at a festival and meeting one of my all-time favourite artists Ben Harper. I have always been a huge fan of his and speaking to him and giving him a copy of my latest vinyl was very exciting.

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Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

www.mcc.co.ke

a day in the lifeInterview of...

I was completely star stuck! And then I saw him again a few days later at the airport when we were leaving and he came over and asked me to sign it for him. I was thrilled.

What is the best part of your job?

The best part of my job is hitting that vibe in a performance when the whole audience just flows along with you. Being able to lead and guide the audience through an incredible experience is an amazing feeling. Getting everyone in the audience feeling the energy from the stage is a powerful sensation. from Lesotho and a wonderful female jazz singer from Jo’berg. I really enjoy all that – it’s always inspiring and I’m always learning. And if I still have time I will do a bit of sightseeing in between.

What is the worst part of your job?

I get terrible butterflies before a performance.

And this is made worse if travel arrangements are tight. On a few occasions we have had to go on stage within an hour of arrival at the hotel with no time to warm up or psyche up. I really don’t like going out there feeling unprepared. I don’t enjoy traveling between gigs at unsociable hours either, but it happens sometimes – it’s part of the job.

What do you enjoy doing in your downtime after work?

After a live gig I’m exhausted. I give it all my energy – we all do. Depending on the line up we sometimes finish very late but it takes a while to come down from a live concert and we’ll all have a drink together and a de-brief. I’ll usually go straight to bed then, especially if we have another performance the following night. I have to be very careful with my voice – no smoking or screaming!

I try to avoid too much physical interaction with people to prevent colds – I’m always popping Vitamin C and I will sip honey and lemon every few hours throughout the day. I eat a lot of vegetables and fruits and drink plenty of water.

In between performances I will do a bunch of interviews with Media Houses and network with other artists to try and get collaborative work with them. I recently teamed up with a Rapper www.mcc.co.ke

But when I’m at home I love watching movies and reading – I can really relax with a feel-good Rom Com or a futuristic fantasy. I go for walks and do Yoga and listen to music – I’m currently really into Anderson Paak, London Grammar, Masego and Bon Iver. It all helps me unwind and get new inspiration. And I love cooking. Chris, my husband, and I travel a lot for work, so it’s just nice to be at home, be grounded and cook our own food.

If you weren’t a singer what would you like to do?

In addition to my music, Chris and I have a small film production company called Circle and Square Productions. When we are not touring, we codirect and produce feature documentaries. We are currently trying to tie together the last strands of our latest feature-length documentary, which will be released at the end of this year. I really enjoy working behind the camera instead of in front of it, which is where I am when I’m performing. It gives me balance! Especially as Chris becomes my Tour Manager when we are on the road. It’s sometimes hectic working together, but its also very fulfilling.

What ambitions/future plans do you have for your work?

My music is always morphing. I try to be open to different sounds, exploring different rhythms, maturing lyrics and being comfortable in myself.

I plan to keep experimenting with sounds and creating music that inspires me as I move forward.

We have performed all over Africa and covered a lot of Australia but, apart from one concert at the Southbank Centre in London, I haven’t worked in Europe. That’s my next big project – I’d like to break into the music scene and perform at the festivals in Europe. I want to keep pushing myself forward as an artist and at the same time, keep pushing Kenyan music onto the global stage.

Maia with her film maker husband Chris King.

And as a child, what did you want to grow up to be?

As a child, I wanted to be an airhostess. They were so elegant and they travelled the world for free!

October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

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bird quiz

Bird’s Eye View You know what to do!

Identify the birds and if you are feeling creative, add captions and fill text balloons for one or all of the images. Answers on page 29.

1

2

Captions & 3

4

Conversations 5

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Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

6

www.mcc.co.ke

christmas draw

MCC Christmas Draw & Lunch 2019 7 December | Chairman’s Lawn | from 11.30am Tickets for the MCC Christmas Draw 2019 are out and on sale both on-line and at the Club.

Still at just 200/- each, tickets for the MCC Christmas Draw 2019 can be ordered directly through the Accounts office on accounts@mcc.co.ke and they can also be bought on line – just click on the Christmas Draw tickets link http://www.mcc.co.ke/Member-Central/Christmas_Draw_ Form.aspx available on Members’ central web page after logging in. For those who prefer to sign a chit tickets are also available at the Main Reception and in all the Rooms and Public areas of the Club.

With spectacular prizes ranging from International airline tickets (the Top Prize winners in the last few years have flown to Los Angeles, Shanghai, Delhi, Vancouver, Dubai and Connecticut in Business Class, courtesy of tickets donated by Swiss Air and Ethiopian Airlines.) This year the Top Prize will be two international Business Class airline tickets to anywhere in the world, and Second Prize will be two Economy Class airline tickets to any destination in Europe.

Other winners have had the chance to stay at some of the most exclusive Camps and Lodges in Kenya, get techie with top-of-the-range iPhones, Samsungs, Go-Pro cameras and Fitbit watches; many have enjoyed Gourmet Dinners, Deluxe Christmas Hampers and luxury beauty treatments, and this year we have all kinds of other exciting indulgences and prizes setting up this year’s Draw to be another recordbreaking Christmas Extravaganza!

As one of the social highlights of the year, the MCC Christmas Draw has become a epic occasion in the Club calendar, launching, as it does, the festive season with a spectacular event, where Members and friends get together to win hundreds of fabulous prizes followed by a great Christmas lunch party.

Thanks to our generous Members and friends who donated many of the wonderful prizes, the Club gave away more prizes than ever before last year, and this year looks set to challenge even that record, and we very much hope the numbers of you in attendance on the day will also be a record-breaker.

www.mcc.co.ke

The Main Christmas Draw is always preceded by a MiniDraw - also with dozens of fabulous prizes - for Members who attend on the day. Mini Draw tickets cost 100/- each with a maximum of ten tickets per Member. And this is followed by a sumptuous pre-Christmas Lunch.

The Club welcomes all Members and their families to join in, and there will be entertainment and an informal lunch at Pinks for Members with young children who don’t want to miss out on the fun.

The MCC Christmas Draw is a lively, fun day out and just the beginning of a fantastic Christmas season at the Club so bring the family and join the party - this year promises to be an even bigger and better occasion than ever before.

October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

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reciprocal clubs

The New Club Edinburgh 86, Princes Street, EH2 2BB Sex, as the old Edinburgh joke has it, is what the coal comes in. Fusty, means smelling stale, damp or stuffy, as in “the fusty odour of decay”. Or just old-fashioned in style or attitude.

Somewhere between the two, lies the New Club. Fun to find, if you’re driving, because although the entrance is on Princes Street, directly opposite the castle, you need to wend your way along famous, mostly pedestrianised Rose Street, still overflowing with pubs, into Rose Street South, before discovering it’s a block away, on a different Rose Street South.

Round you go again and eventually find number 87. Squeeze your way in and ring a bell. A lovely man with an indecipherable accent – probably, on balance, not Scottish – comes down to direct you and your car into the lift. A lift with a thousand scrapes and scratches from earlier arrivals. Tuck in the wing mirrors, hold your breath, leave half an inch on every side – and then reverse out again, a floor or two below.

It’s an exacting entrance to an unexciting Club but it is Scotland’s oldest and foremost private Members’ Club. It was founded in 1787, and some of it shows. In best Edinburgh style the ceilings are high, with full-length paintings, portraits and mirrors adorning every available wall.

It’s probably safe to say the Committee hasn’t much truck with political correctness. Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh has been the Patron of the Club since 1952. Ladies weren’t admitted until 1970, and only offered full membership from 2010. Nevertheless, its Chairman is a lady, in finest meritocratic fashion; but she’s still called a Chairman – as in “the Chairman sends her condolences”. Better than being an inanimate “Chair”, “Chairperson” or, worse, “Chairwoman”, so easily confused with the office cleaning lady.

I digress. The Club’s location is perfect and the bedrooms are small but comfortable, reasonably priced for reciprocating members at less than Ksh20,000 for a double room, Ksh9,000 for a single. Breakfast is what you make of it, with haggis, black pudding, neeps & tatties on offer. The 20-foot-high portraits of centuries ago are faintly intimidating, but the service is warm and attentive. Lunch is good, in the Long Room, looking out along Princes Street and across to the Castle, while supper is, well, I’ve no idea, because it’s much more fun to walk out and about.

Recommended. The welcome is the epitome of East Coast Scotland – brusque, proprietorial, efficient – but warm enough for foreign travellers. Try it. You’ll like it.

COMPETITION

Question: Who is this? (image bottom left) What made him famous? And in which decade was the photograph taken?

Prize: The first correct entry that we receive will win dinner for two with a bottle of House Wine in either Pinks or the

Club Dining Room. Please send your answers to communications@mcc.co.ke Answer to our April June 2019 Competition QUESTION: Name this person and what he was famous for in Kenya?

ANSWER: Herbert Binks - Photographer and astronomer, and one of Kenya’s earliest English residents (1880-1971.)

WINNER: There were no correct entries to this competition question.

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Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

DID YOU KNOW? Herbert Binks (1880-1971) was a photographer and astronomer, and one of Kenya’s earliest English residents. ‘Pop’ was a well-known figure in Kenya for over sixty years. He opened a photographic studio in Nairobi and sold his first photos in 1904. Many of his photos of people and places still exist, but unfortunately the photo collection he gave to the Kenya Archives was ruined in a flood. Binks was a brilliant man who was also very interested in astronomy. He built an observatory with three telescopes in his garden on Ngong Road. He ground his own lenses and silvered his own mirrors with which he took excellent photos of astronomical objects. At one point he was consultant to the University of Leiden, which was building an observatory near Mau summit. A number of Binks’ inventions in aerial photography were adopted by the RAF in WWII. His astronomy won him honorary life fellowship of the Royal Astronomical Society, and he was awarded an OBE ‘for public services to Kenya.’

www.mcc.co.ke

obituaries

October 1924 - March 2019

John Weymouth Poulton John was the third child of four born to Pearl (Margaret) and Billy Poulton on their farm, Kenjockety in Molo.

During the Second World War John was an RAF pilot. He saw active service in Palestine, the Near East, India, Burma and the Far East. He flew many different aeroplanes (Tiger Moths, Thunderbolts, Hurricanes, Beaufort Bombers) and spent hundreds of hours in the most iconic of RAF aircraft – the Spitfire.

Coming back to the safety of Kenjockety and peace was a huge contrast to the war experience. Sheep for wool and meat were an important source of income after the War and the wool cheque was the saviour of many farmers. Ros Agnew came out from Australia to visit her brother, Barry, who was farming nearby. She and John became engaged but Ros agreed to marry only if John would spend a year in Australia on her family’s property.

The wedding in Coolah, New South Wales, in 1950 was a very happy occasion. However, the newly weds made medical history for being the only

couple in Australia - perhaps the world - having to spend their honeymoon in hospital having their appendixes out.

Nevertheless, they went on to have six children- Anne, Penelope, Carie, Andrew, Celia and Naomi.

John was a much-respected farmer in the Molo area and, with Ros, built up a first class Corriedale sheep stud, however, in 1975 they sold Kenjockety and John became Manager of Ol Pejeta Ranch in Laikipia, which John managed with his usual practical outlook. The 15 years in Laikipia were happy and successful.

When John and Ros retired they bought ten acres near Portalegre in Portugal, built a house and developed a wonderful flower garden. John was active well into his eighties but his mobility began to decline and in 2011 he and Ros moved back to Kenya and spent the last few years with Naomi in Laikipia where she cared for them devotedly.

John’s greatest achievement was his long marriage to Ros – they had 68 years together and brought up their children

Peggy Barkas

John was a member of MCC for 45 years.

October 1927 - June 2019

but when they left Europe bound once more for Africa by boat, the trunk packed with all the china dropped overboard, never to be seen again!

After two years in Rhodesia training recruits with the Kings African Rifles Rogue was posted back to Lanet Barracks in Kenya and in 1958 he retired from the army and they moved to their farm at Umande.

Peggy, eldest daughter of Roddy and Lady Mary Boyd, and sister to Jane (Tatham-Warter) and Robin, was born in London in 1927 but grew up on their farm in Laikipia. She went to school at St Andrews, Turi followed by Limuru Girls School. She met Anthony (Rogue) Barkas soon after leaving school and they were married in Nanyuki in May 1946. Rogue was in the army and they were based in England and Berlin. Peggy delighted in sneaking over to East Berlin to buy beautiful china at greatly reduced prices, www.mcc.co.ke

to be responsible caring adults. John was someone to rely on in a crisis, yet also someone who appreciated the little dramas and comedies of life.

He was warm-hearted, loved nature, farming, aviation – especially Spitfires – reminiscing and chocolate. He was the kindest of men and he is very much missed.

By this time there were five children and life was full of fun with endless parties, racing and polo. Peggy loved entertaining and the house was always full of friends and children. In 1967 they sold the farm and moved to Nanyuki where Peggy became an active member of the EAWL and Horticultural Society and won many cups and prizes for her cooking, knitting, sewing and flower arranging, but her lasting legacy are the beautiful hand-painted trays, tablemats and photo frames which she created over many years.

Everyone who knew her, and many who didn’t, have a set of Peggy’s place mats, or a tray in their house.

When racing stopped at the Nanyuki Sports Club Rogue and Peggy converted the grandstand into a nightclub called The Wagon Wheel, which became immensely popular, with Rogue running the bar and Peggy the disco.

Peggy was very sporty in her youth - a great snow skier, very proficient at tennis and a good squash player, she was also an accomplished horsewoman and a crafty fisherman. She loved Scrabble and was a cunning Backgammon player right up to her last days.

Peggy was beautiful, vibrant and full of joie de vivre. She was a loving mother, sister, aunt, grandmother and great grandmother and is greatly missed. She leaves behind her five children – Zan (Corry-Reid), Ant, Adam, Mandy (Kenyon) and Sim, ten grandchildren and six great grandchildren.

Peggy and Rogue joined the Club in 1946.

October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

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obituaries

1943 - June 2019 October

Margaret Anne Vaughan

“Annie” Vaughan, née Buckle, was born in Derbyshire in October 1943. At the age of three she travelled to Kenya, with her mother Mary Buckle on HMS Chitral, to join her father David, who had settled in Kiambu after the War. Annie went to Parklands Primary and then Kenya High School where she was in Kirby House. She then worked at National and Grindlays Bank to finance her further education at Christie

College, Cheltenham. Annie married John Vaughan in October 1963 and settled in Naivasha where she had three much-loved daughters - Caroline, Ruth and Pauline. She kept herself busy with ‘Stitch & Bitch’ mornings, supporting the Deaf School and playing tennis with her great friend Jean Knight. Annie was an avid supporter of the EAWL and won many cups for her amazing handicrafts.

She loved travelling, exploring new cultures and meeting new people, a passion she funded by spinning her own wool and making her famous handknit sweaters.

Annie was very social and loved people and going out or entertaining. In her later years, her favourite games were Bridge, Canasta and Mah-jong, with the odd quiz, darts or movie night thrown in. In Diani she took up gardening and created a beautiful garden full of birds. Annie was very charitable and supported the Naivasha Deaf School, Spinal Injuries and the Butterfly Trust. She adored her grandchildren - Cielle, Troy, Clare, Tana and Lili-Anne and was immensely proud of them and loved them coming to stay.

After the girls left home, she moved to Nairobi to work for Africa Expeditions, she also worked for Alan Root, at the Yaya Centre and later, Heather Stewart.

Annie was a great tennis player and loved her tennis evenings at Muthaiga Club, but she had to give up tennis and retire early, to recover from a bad car accident that happened while travelling in Ethiopia to see the Easter Festival at Axum. She then moved to Diani to look after her mother.

Annie remained cheerful and busy to the end, never to be seen without knitting needles or a crochet hook in her hands. She passed away peacefully at home leaving behind her brother John Buckle, sister Jane Bowen, husband John and her daughters and grandchildren. She will be greatly missed by all who knew her. She was a Member of MCC for 27 years.

March 1938 – May 2019

Bryan Harris Bryan Harris was born in Malta and moved to Kenya with his mother at the age of nine to join his father who was serving with the Royal Air Force at Eastleigh. Bryan attended Nairobi Primary, Parklands Primary and Saint Mary’s schools before joining the Kenya Regiment and then going on to university in the UK. He had many different occupations during his working life, but his main career was as Economist with the Commonwealth Development Corporation, which took him to Africa, the Caribbean and the Far East.

He returned to Kenya permanently in 1991 and became a Kenya Citizen a few years later, which he claimed to have been the best move he ever made.

Bryan was an adventurous traveller, an Egyptologist, a railway enthusiast, a keen gardener and his many other interests included tourism, history, 28

classical music and the Arts. He was an able writer on all these subjects and his articles and stories have appeared in local and international magazines and newspapers.

Bryan enjoyed his golf and bowls and was a keen Member of Muthaiga, Karen and Mombasa Clubs. He suffered a stroke shortly after his 75th birthday from which he recovered physically and lived for another six years. The stroke, however, robbed him of his sharp mind and sociable nature and slowed him down, but it revealed true friendships and an appreciation for the simple joys of life.

Bryan is survived by his life partner Sally and his two sons and two grandsons. They, as well as his many friends in Kenya and elsewhere, remember him fondly. Bryan was a Member of MCC for 15 years.

Muthaiga Country Club October–December 2019

www.mcc.co.ke

candidates being considered for membership CANDIDATES BEING CONSIDERED FOR MEMBERSHIP 1ST OCTOBER TO 30TH NOVEMBER 2019

SWEEPSTAKES AUGUST 2019 Prize

Member Name

Amount

Proposer Candidate Category

1st

Nova Morgan-Woods

71,295.00

Prem Gidoomal

Meenal Gidoomal

Full Town

2nd

Peter Denton Scholes

35,647.50

Joel Mugo

Mugo Nyoike-Mugo - Judy Muiruri - Njeri Nyoike-Mugo

Full Town Full Town Under 7

3rd

Melanie Lois Richards

20,370.00

4th

Adrian mark Durston

20,370.00

Rory Maxwell Nightingale

15,277.50

Willem D’Olleman Jr.

Navraj Sagoo

Full Town

5th

Gathoni Wanjihia

Claire van Enk - Pieter Prickaerts - Elle Prickaerts

Full Town Full Town Under 7

6th

Nathaniel Kang'ethe

10,185.00

7th

Maria Cunningham

10,185.00

Bashir Awale

Fibian Nyorita

Full Town

8th

Jon Anthony Cavanagh

10,185.00

Stephen Mills

David Cracknell

Full Town

9th

Rainie Samuels

10,185.00

Bhavana Mills

Aslam Khan

Full Town

Neville Warren

Vivien Mather

Full Town

Mbugua Ngugi

Ali Thobani - Rehanna Merali-Thobani

Full Town Full Town

Prize

Member Name

Amount

Peter Ngori

Jagit Ahluwalia - Balinder Ahluwalia

Full Town Full Town

1st

Deborah Fowler

71,045.10

2nd

Martin Kobke

35,522.55

George Kariuki

20,298.60

SWEEPSTAKES SEPTEMBER 2019

Michael Macharia

Ruth Kagia

Full Town

3rd

Isabelle Ochola-Wilson

Kevin De Cock - Sopiato De Cock

Full Town Full Town

4th

Raphael Nzomo

20,298.60

Isabelle Ochola-Wilson

Mariam De Cock

Full (18-29)

5th

Christine Fox

15,223.95

Isabelle Ochola-Wilson

Samoire De Cock

Full (18-29)

6th

Anthony Clegg-Butt

10,149.30

Edward Davis

Oliver Benham - Joanna Turner - Aurora Benham - Rawdon Benham

Short Term Short Term Under 7 Under 7

7th

Ian Ngene

10,149.30

8th

Geoffrey Nightingale

10,149.30

9th

Brian Lees

10,149.30

Graham Shaw

Jane Marriott

Short Term

Answers to Bird Quiz

DEATHS

1

2

The Club regrets to announce the deaths of the following Members JOHN ASHTON on 24 April 2019 ANNE VAUGHAN on 16 June 2019 PETER WALKER on 26 June 2019

Captions & 3

4

JULIETTE DYER-MELVILLE on 19 July 2019 PATRICK FOX on 25 July 2019 NICK MURIUKI MUGWANDIA on 26 July 2019 GRACE MUTHONI GITHEGI on 27 July 2019

Conversations 5

6

ANTHONY BISHOP on 2 August 2019 JOHN GORDON BELL on 07 August 2019 JOHN BROOKS on 4 September 2019 MWANGI MATHAI on 14 September 2019 If anyone would like to publish an obituary for a Member who has died recently, please send a tribute and photograph of the deceased to the secretariat@mcc.co.ke

www.mcc.co.ke

1. Red-billed Hornbill 2. Common Bulbul 3. Pin-tailed Whydah

4. Sacred and Glossy Ibis 5. Striped Kingfisher 6. African Goshawk

October–December 2019 Muthaiga Country Club

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MCC reciprocates with 114 Clubs in 24 countries around the world. The Reciprocity Committee invests a great deal of time ensuring that these Clubs are worthy of our association and Members are encouraged to submit brief reports if they visit or stay at any one of them. These reports will be published for the benefit and interest of other Members who may be planning to travel overseas.

For more information and contact details of reciprocating Clubs please contact the Secretary’s office.

MCC reciprocates with 114 Clubs in 24 countries around the world. The Reciprocity Committee invests a great IRELAND UK AUSTRALIA deal of time ensuring that these Clubs are worthy of our association and Members are encouraged to submit Kildare Street and University Club Dublin Army & Navy Club London Adelaide Club Adelaide brief reports if they visit or stay at any one of them.

These reports will be published for the benefit and interest The Stephen’s Green Hibernian Club Dublin Buck’s Club London Athenaeum Club Melbourne of other Members who may be planning to travel overseas.

Cardiff & County Club Cardiff Australian Club Melbourne Melbourne JAPAN Carlton Club London Commonwealth Club Canberra For more information and contact details of reciprocating Clubs please contact the Secretary’s office.

Farmer’s Club London Melbourne Club Melbourne Queensland Club AUSTRAL IA Club of Australia Royal Automobile

Brisbane Sydney Melbourne Adelaide Brisbane Melbourne Hobart Melbourne Sydney Canberra Melbourne Perth Melbourne

Royal Automobile Club of Victoria Adelaide Club Tattersall’s AthenaeumClub Club Tasmanian Club Melbourne Australian Club Union, University & Schools Club Commonwealth Club Melbourne Weld Club Club Melbourne Savage Club Naval Military and Airforce AUSTRIA of South Australia Adelaide St. Johanns Club Club of Australia Vienna Royal Automobile Sydney Royal Automobile Club of Victoria Melbourne BOLIVIA Tattersall’s Club Brisbane Tasmanian Club Hobart Circulo de La Union La Paz Union, University & Schools Club Sydney United Service Club Brisbane BELGIUM Weld Club Perth Western Australian Perth International Club Club Chateau Sainte-Anne Brussels AUSTRIA CANADA St. Johanns Club Vienna Granite Club Toronto B OLIVIA Rideau Club Ottawa The Hamilton Club Hamilton Circulo de La Union La Paz The National Club Toronto B ELGIUM The Ranchmen’s Club Calgary International Chateau Sainte-Anne Brussels Union Club ofClub British Columbia Victoria University Club of Montreal Montreal CAN ADA University Club of Toronto Toronto Cypress Club Medicine Hat Vancouver Club Vancouver Granite Club Toronto The Hamilton Club Hamilton CARIBBEAN The National Club Toronto West Indies YachtClub Club Caribbean The Ranchmen’s Calgary Terminal City Club Vancouver CHILE Union Club of British Columbia Victoria University Club of Montreal Montreal Club De La Union Santiago University Club of Toronto Toronto Vancouver Club Vancouver FRANCE CH ILE Cercle de l’Union Interalliee Paris ClubTravellers De La Union Santiago The Club Paris F RANCE GERMANY Cercle de l’Union Interalliee Anglo-German Club E.V The Travellers Club Union International Club GERMANY Anglo-German HONG KONG Club E.V Union International Club The Hong Kong Club HONG KONG INDIA The Hong Kong Club

Paris Hamburg Paris Frankfurt Hamburg Frankfurt Hong Kong Hong Kong

Tollygunge Kolkata IN DIA Club Ltd Umed Club Jodhpur Tollygunge Club Ltd Kolkata Ootacamund Club Ooty, Tamil Nadu Umed Club Club Jodhpur Secunderabad Secunderabad Ootacamund Club Udhagamandalam, Tamil Nadu Bangalore Club Bangalore

Tokyo American Club

Tokyo

ILUXEMBOURG NDI A continued Secunderabad Club Secunderabad Cercle Munster Luxembourg Bangalore Club Bangalore MALAYSIA I RE L AND The Royal Lake Club Kuala Lumpur Kildare Street and University Club Dublin NETHERLANDS The Stephen’s Green Hibernian Club Dublin The Nieuwe of Littéraire Sociëteit De Witte The Hague JAPAN Royal Industrieele Groote Club Amsterdam Tokyo American Club Tokyo NEW ZEALAND LUXE M BOU RG Christchurch Club Cercle Munster The Canterbury Club Inc. M AL AWBay I Club Hawke’s The Northern Club Mulika The Wellington Club

Christchurch Luxembourg Christchurch Napier Auckland Blantyre Wellington

NE THE RL A N D S PAKISTAN The Nieuwe of Littéraire Sociëteit De WitteThe Sind Club Karachi Hague SINGAPORE N E W Z E AL A N D Tanglin Club Christchurch Club The Canterbury SOUTH AFRICAClub Inc. Hawke’s Bay The CountryClub Club Johannesburg The Northern Durban Club Club The Wellington Inanda Club Club Kelvin Grove Club SPort I NG APO R ESt. Georges Club Elizabeth The Pretoria Tanglin Club Country Club Rand Club S OUTH AF R IC A SPAIN Cape Town Club Circulo Ecuestre The Country Club Johannesburg Real Club de Polo de Barcelona Durban Club Real Gran Peña Inanda Club SRI LANKA Kelvin Grove Club Port Elizabeth The Hill Club St. Georges Club The Pretoria Country Club SWEDEN Rand Club

Singapore Christchurch Christchurch Napier Johannesburg Auckland Durban Wellington Johannesburg Cape Town Port Elizabeth Pretoria Singapore Johannesburg Cape Town Barcelona Johannesburg Durban Madrid Johannesburg Cape Town Port Elizabeth Nuwara Eliya Pretoria Johannesburg

Club Sällskapet S PAI N

Stockholm

THAILAND Circulo Ecuestre

Barcelona

Real Gran Peña The British Club, Bangkok

Madrid Bangkok

STURKEY RI L ANKA The Hill ClubCercle d’Orient Buyuk Kulup

Nuwara Eliya Istanbul

T HAI L AND The British Club, Bangkok

Bangkok

Garrick Club London U K Hurlingham Club London Lansdowne London Army & NavyClub Club London Leander Club Henley-on-Thames, Boodle’s London Naval Club Buck’s London Norfolk&Club Norwich Cardiff County Club Cardiff Northern Counties Club Newcastle Carlton Club London Oriental Club Club City of London London Oxford &Club Cambridge Club Farmer’s London Hurlingham London Phyllis CourtClub Club Henley-on-Thames, Ipswich Suffolk Club Ipswich Reform & Club London Lansdowne ClubClub London Royal Air Force London Leander Henley-on-Thames, Royal Automobile Club London Naval London Royal Club Over-Seas League Northern Counties Club Newcastle Savile Club London Nottingham & Notts United Services Nottingham The Athenaeum Liverpool The London The Oriental Boodle’s London Oxford & Cambridge London The Caledonian Club Club London Phyllis Court&Club The Cavalry Guards Club Henley-on-Thames, London The Club London The Reform Clifton Club Bristol Royal Air India ForceClub Club London The East London Royal Club London The InAutomobile & Out Naval & Military Club London Royal Over-Seas League London The New Club Cheltenham Savile Club London The New Club Edinburgh The Athenaeum Liverpool The Norfolk Club Norwich The Caledonian Club London The Royal Northern & University Club Aberdeen The Cavalry & Guards London The Royal Scots Club Edinburgh The Clifton Club Bristol The Sloane Club London The East India Club London The New St. James Manchester The ClubClub Cheltenham The New Western Glasgow The ClubClub Edinburgh Travellers Club London The Norfolk Club Norwich TurfRoyal Club Northern & University Club Aberdeen London The Ulster Reform Belfast The Royal ScotsClub Club Edinburgh The Sloane Club London USASt James Club The Manchester The Club London The Travellers Army & Navy Club Washington DC The Western Glasgow Cosmos Club Club Washington DC The TurfClub Clubof New York City London Harvard New York Ulster Reform Club Belfast The Explorers Club New York Vincent’s Club Oxford The Princeton Club New York The Buffalo City, NY State U S ASaturn Club The Standard Club Chicago The Army & Navy Club Washington DC Union Club of Boston Boston Colony Club New York University Club of Cincinnati Cincinnati Cosmos Club Washington DC The Princeton University Club Club Washington DC The New York The Yale Club of New York City New York The Saturn Club Buffalo City, NY State The Standard Club Chicago ZIMBABWE Union Club of Boston Boston The University Club Bulawayo Bulawayo of Washington Washington DC Harare Club Harare The Yale Club of New York City New York ZI MB A B W E Bulawayo Harare Club

Bulawayo Harare

MU THA IGA C OUNTRY CLUB P.O.Box 16526, Nairobi 00620, Kenya Email secretary@mcc.co.ke, accounts@mcc.co.ke, reservations@mcc.co.ke,exec.chef@mcc.co.ke, events@mcc.co.ke

www.mcc.co.ke