Why Kileleshwa traded its leafy suburbs for high-rise apartments

In parts of Kileleshwa, the jacaranda blossoms still fall onto clay-tiled roofs, bringing back memories of old Nairobi. Low-rise apartment blocks sit behind mature jacarandas, their design reminiscent of a time when Kileleshwa was calm and mostly residential.

But turn a corner, and that image disappears. You step into a whole new world of high-rise apartments with flat roofs, stacked floor after floor, with rooftop swimming pools and gyms, and short-stay listings advertised from nearly every entrance.