Safety, social life & cost of living in Kenya

1. How safe is to stay and move around near the Parkland/Westland/Riverside areas? How safe are houses from threats of burglary, etc.? How safe is it for women and kids?
Those are the "upmarket" parts of Nairobi so they tend to be pretty safe. Most of the homes in these areas have private security which makes them considerably safe.

2. How strong is the Indian expat community in Nairobi? Are there any specific clubs for Indian communities?
There is a HUGE Indian community in Kenya, though most are Kenyan-Indians. I'm not sure though how the Kenyan Indians relate with Indians from India, but they do have clubs, organisations, hotels etc. The Kenyan-Indians aren't secluded so even in their clubs and hotels you'll usually also find other communities.

3. How friendly are Kenyans to Indians (specifically co-workers, juniors, shopkeepers, restaurant owners, etc.)?
People are as friendly as you are to them. As I said, the Kenyan-Indian community is huge in Kenya and considering they aren't secluded, people react to them like they would to anyone else. If you're friendly, they are friendly back but if you aren't them you get the same. This ofcourse is different when the relationship is between service providers and clients.

4. Is it better to buy a car or to use cabs/public transport for a daily work/leisure travel of around 20 kms?
It's definitely cheaper to buy a car and hire a driver than to use a cab everyday.

5. Is it cheaper to rent a semi-furnished, unfurnished or a fully-furnished house in terms of total cost of ownership?
Fully furnished homes are more expensive than unfurnished, but considering you have nor furniture, then the fully furnished makes sense. The cost of furnishing an apartment can be quite high.

Thanks a lot for your answers!

I am moving to Nairobi as well and I am currently looking at houses on Kilimani/Hurlingham/Ngong Road is it safe? I was thinking mainly Hurlingham because they have som great houses that would be perfect for me.

Thank you