Nakuru town, the clean city that goes to bed early

It’s 7:45 pm in Nakuru – Kenya’s 4th largest urban centre.

As a guest in the town – my inquisitive eyes pick anything and everything.

The Central Business District (CBD) is deserted. I can only count one or two people – which is unusual for someone coming from Nairobi.

In Nairobi people 'don’t sleep' – which is why you will find many souls lining to grab a matatu back home at 10:00 pm. Many others will be arriving in the CBD at this unholy hour.

But this is Nakuru – and almost all the businesses have closed for the night. The air is fresh.

The general CBD areas around Kenyatta Avenue, the upper sides of Afraha stadium, Nakuru Central Police station are largely quiet.

There are only a handful of vehicles on the CBD roads. A few motorbikes can be seen rushing people back home after a long days’ work.

The road network – obviously designed by the British – is amazing. It’s like driving in a giant maze. The roads are more expansive than what we are used to seeing in Nairobi.

It’s not easy find a house competing for space with a road. Pedestrians walk miles away from the roads – in most areas of the CBD.

Of course it’s a slightly different story when you visit areas around the main bus stop – where it can be chaotic.

The road network would be something to marvel at especially if one was to look at it from the sky.

It’s a web of roads meticulously interconnected at junction points – and serving its estates just fine.

It’s difficult to find pedestrians walking on these parts of the streets and its immediate surroundings at this time of the night. It’s obvious the town goes to sleep early.

According to the residents – Nakuru is a town that likes to go to sleep early. Just like Kisumu.

“There is not much happening especially on weekday’s night – and that’s why you will find people retiring to their homes early,” said James Karanja, businessman in Nakuru.

It gets so quiet and deserted in certain parts of the CBD – and can raise questions about security especially if you find yourself alone on the deserted streets.

One thing stands out especially if you are visiting from Nairobi; paved walkways (donning clean cabro), and clean streets, and alleys.

“Residents don’t have to worry about matatus because they are confined to certain roads, certain areas of the town,” said Karanja.

“It’s hard to notice them because of some level of order I believe,” he adds. The pavements extend to the road, and so dust is a rumor in most parts of the city.

“It’s easy to walk on foot because the city is not very congested,” said Karanja.

Nakuru was established by the British as part of the White highlands and has continued to grow into a cosmopolitan city. It received township status in 1904 and became a municipality in 1952.

Over the years, the town has been known for its cleanliness -- a mantra many believe it lost, but still it is very clean, and so is Kisumu.

Did you know that both the first and second presidents of Kenya; Joma Kenyatta, and Daniel Arap Moi had semi-official residences in Nakuru?