The Hungarian Architect Who Helped Shape Nairobi

When walking through the streets of Nairobi, few realize that some of the city’s most iconic landmarks were designed by a Hungarian architect. György Vámos, born in Budapest in 1910, left an indelible mark on Kenya’s capital, blending European training with African modernity. Vámos studied architecture in Vienna before World War II disrupted his path. Serving in the British Army, he was interned in Uganda as a foreign national. That unexpected chapter became transformative: Africa captured his imagination, and after the war he chose not to return to Europe. Instead, he settled in Nairobi, where he co-founded an architectural practice with Heini Lustmann. His iconic works are among others Nairobi Central Post Office (Tel Posta Towers) – a central hub of communication and commerce. Our National Pride, Jomo Kenyatta Mausoleum – the resting place of Kenya’s first president, now a national memorial.

Imre emléke

 Following an unexpected surge, who knows why, sometimes I have a call to remember my old Hungarian friend Imre Loefler a Hungarian aristocrat. We usually met in Nairobi Hospital once a week, where he was a senior surgeon, to enjoy a tee and endless discussions. I am still fascinated with his wisdom and storytelling skill and please note he that he was the only one having two Hungarian thoroughbred “vizsla” here in Kenya, a breed of the loveliest pastoral dogs, smaller but a lovely shape, loyal and with contour like our Africa ridgeback breed. I enjoyed all his stories peppered with frequent airplane crashes of his light plane and added evenings in Nairobi Aero Club after the hospital, established by him also, as one of Kenya Wildlife Service pioneers.

Those were some of the best times of my 30 years Kenyan life. Fighting the ever-present universal forgetfulness understanding life of our best Hungarians, I would like to recall with a short tribute of his life to the readers. So, what he was according to the official sources – forgive me the official language of my sources, which may sound clumsy but factually true, and I was lazy enough to do more than necessary editing to pretend that it is my brainchild:

He finished philosophy in Heidelberg, then emigrated to Britain before the second world war, where he established his career. Imre Loefler was a Hungarian‑born surgeon who became a legendary flying doctor, pilot and conservationist in East Africa; he spent decades operating, teaching and patrolling the bush from the air, and helped shape surgical training and aviation culture in the region. Born in 1929 in Budapest, Löffler survived wartime upheaval and trained in medicine in Europe and the United States. His restless curiosity and taste for adventure drew him to Africa, where he found a life that mixed surgery, teaching, flying and wildlife—roles that would define him for the next half century.

Loefler learned to fly while building academic surgical departments in southern Africa. He became an avid private aviator who used light aircraft not for sport alone but as a tool of medicine: every week he would fly to remote hospitals to operate, teach and mentor local clinicians, turning the airplane into a mobile operating theatre and classroom. His flying was practical and purposeful—bringing surgical skills to places otherwise unreachable by road. He served as chairman of the Aero Club of East Africa and conceived flying competitions and rallies that kept the pilot community connected and skilled—events that linked Nairobi to other regional hubs and celebrated the pioneering spirit of East African aviation. As an honorary game warden and conservation advocate, he used aerial observation to support wildlife management and to write persuasively about ecology and stewardship. His public essays wove together medicine, natural history and moral urgency, making him a distinctive public intellectual in Kenya.

A prolific writer columnist, Loefler published widely on surgery, philosophy and conservation. He helped found and edit medical journals, trained generations of surgeons, and left a practical legacy in textbooks and institutions that continue to serve low‑resource hospitals.

So is the official source. What can I ad?