Located 35 kilometres from Nairobi Central Business District (CBD) and overlooking the beautiful Ngong Hills, is an expansive picnic site that has become a go-to spot for Nairobians seeking an adventure.
Shallom Picnic Gardens, in Ngong, Nairobi, sits on an eight-acre plot of land and includes well-manicured lawns with exquisite features such as conference halls, offices, makuti bandas, tents and cooking sites.
Dating back to the early 2000s, a former high school teacher, took a huge risk which ultimately paid off with the picnic garden, still soaring.
Grace Kimathi sold her house in the posh Runda estate for Ksh2 million. Seeking to establish a Christian retirement centre together with her husband, James, she settled her business investment on an upcoming estate at the time, Ngong.
"This was the only way I could get money to buy four acres of land in Ngong town to pursue my vision," she stated previously in a media interview.
The decision to ditch the idea of building a Christian retirement centre was influenced by lack of funds, so the couple decided to build a picnic site instead.
Pumping all her her retirement benefits into the project, the woman developed the piece of the land in the course of four years.
"We built the place over four years and that is how Shallom picnic site came about, though we rebranded to Picnic Gardens," she noted.
As the site began drawing attraction, guests pushed Kimathi and her husband to build a guest house, to which the duo obliged.
For Kimathi, developing the picnic site has not been without its fair share of challenges, financially as well as low stream of customers.
"You have to work hard and sacrifice a lot. You also have to have a good rapport with your clients, patients, and good public relations," she pointed out.
