Tabaka, about 20 km west of Kisii, is where the Gusii soapstone famous across East Africa is dug out of the ground and carved into bowls, animals, chess sets, candle holders, eggs and figurines. The hills around the village are pitted with small open-cast workings — men hammer chunks of stone out of the soft rock, women and children polish and smooth the rough carvings with sand and water in their compounds.
Tabaka is well worth a half-day trip. You can wander between the workshops along the dusty main street, watch the carvers at work, and buy direct from them — prices are perhaps a quarter of what you would pay in Nairobi. Most of the workshops run as cooperatives. Matatus from Kisii take about 45 minutes; a hired taxi for half a day is straightforward to arrange.