To a casual observer plying the busy Nairobi-Mombasa highway, Maungu township is just a sleepy business outpost, with few business activities and a sluggish lifestyle.
The scorching heat and swirling dust might also be unsettling to newcomers and travellers using the busy highway, who stop briefly to refresh before continuing with their journey either to the coastal town of Mombasa or other towns along the way to Nairobi.