Hi, The baby elephant orphanage and the giraffe feeding centre are great--both a little way outside city centre. (earlier poster included link to those.) I also enjoyed visiting the Kazuri Bead place. Kazuri was set up to provide jobs and health insurance for single mothers, and now exports brilliant jewelry around the world. Kazuri, Langata giraffe centre and Karen Blixen sights are all relatively close so would make a nice day out of town. A little less typical, but I also enjoyed a brief drive through the Kibera slum as a lifestyle contrast to the shady lanes of Karen and Langata. My friend Jacob is a Luo and a taxi driver and took me through the Luo section of Kibera, which he decided was safe enough for a white lady from NZ.

Just to reply to my own post on good things to do in Nairobi. The elephant orphanage is an absolutely must see - it is wonderul.

if you wish to experience a different life style you can as well do a slum adventure to one of the slums in Nairobi and you will be welcomed by smiles from the residents.i did so with kairi Tours and Safaris,the link is here http://www.kairitravels.com/index.php/slum-adventure.html