Adventures in Diani and Mombasa

Last weekend I went on a wonderful trip to Mombasa and Diani beach with fellow UNC social worker, Julie.  We spent two full days in Diana, an idyllic beach resort area south of Mombasa.  It was absolutely gorgeous.   Getting to Diani was no easy feat, however.  We took an overnight bus from Nairobi to Mombasa, during which we feared for our lives as our driver swerved in and out of traffic and we came dangerously close to collisions several times.  Traffic is always crazy here, but that was one of the more terrifying rides for me.

Finally, we reached Mombasa in one piece, but exhausted as neither of us was able to get any sleep on the bus.  From there we took a taxi to Likoni ferry, then a matatu (public transportation van) to the small town of Ukunda.  From Ukunda we took a tuk-tuk ( a 3 wheeled motorcycle carriage vehicle) to Diani Beachalets.  Needless to say, we were very relieved to finally arrive at our cottage.  We stayed in a cottage for those on a shoe string budget, but it was great.  We had a place to sleep, showers, and running toilets.  Best of all, we were right on the beach!  We spent most of Thursday enjoying the beach, though it was hard to get any quiet time as many "beach boys" approached us offering jewelry, crafts, boat rides, and seafood.  This grew tiresome very quickly.

On Thursday we also met a tour guide at our cottage who offers boat tours, snorkeling, and trips to Wasini Island off the coast.  On Friday, we got up early and made the long drive to a marina, where we boarded a dhou boat (wooden sailboat with a motor) with a few other tourists and took off for a ride on the Indian Ocean.  After about an hour, we stopped near a coral reef for snorkeling.  We also were fortunate to come very close to several dolphins.  Snorkeling was great fun, though we didn't see much other than fish.  After snorkeling, we headed to lunch on the quaint island of Wasini.  We had a delicious lunch of crab, white fish, seaweed curry, chipati, potatoes, rice, coconut sauce, and fruit for dessert. We were very full and no dinner was needed that night!  After lunch, we took a tour of the village.  About 2,000 people live on the island and most of the people practice Islam.  It was a wonderful day.

After a couple of days in Diani, we made the trek back to Mombasa to visit the markets and buy some kanga, the colorful Kenyan cloth that many women wear here.  Mombasa is an interesting city with a strong Middle Eastern and Indian influence. We also enjoyed a good lunch at a Lebanese place.  Overall, however, I found Mombasa to be tiring and a bit overwhelming.  It was not a place I would stay in for very long. I actually prefer Nairobi.

Sunday was Julie's last day in Kenya, so despite our exhaustion after an overnight bus ride, we made a trip to the elephant orphanage and a giraffe center.  Both were well worth the time and money.  We  spent about an hour with several baby elephants and heard their rescue stories.  At the giraffe center, we all got to feed the giraffes.  Such beautiful animals!  We then headed to a local mall for some delicious sushi, a nice break after the Kenyan fare day in and day out.  Julie headed out that night and this week I am back in the CFK office finishing up interviews for the research project.

Our Tuk-Tuk to Diani Beachalets

Diani Beach

Our Cottage

On the way to snorkeling

Wasini Island

Giraffe Center

Elephant Orphanage