My Favorite Part of the Summer...The Beach!!

HOT weather...white sand...the sound of the Indian Ocean lapping against the beach...This was how I spent last week in the beautiful coastal town of Mombasa! After arriving from Maua on Friday, July 16 (and going into work that night - look at the dedication!), I spent another 9 hours in the car for a drive to the gorgeous beach town. Patricia, the professor I'm working with, arranged free transport for me with her driver, since he was going to be working for her in Mombasa over the same period. We made the journey together, and picked up my friend Lena, on the way.

Immediately upon arriving, we joined the other German interns (Jan and Jasmine) at our large rental apartment and headed toward the beach! We walked, swam, met interesting "beach boys" who were trying to sell things (or themselves to any willing muzungo), and enjoyed all that the beach had too offer!

Beautiful Mombasa 

The living room, dining room, and patio of our large apartment on Nyali Beach (North Coast)

Me on the beach for the first time!

Lena acting goofy

Lena attempting a cartwheel...

Nyali Beach

The view from our balcony

Since we had a self-catered apartment, we cooked a yummy feast for breakfast on Sunday. Unfortunately, it was pouring rain the rest of the day, so we spent most the day hanging out in our apartment. We did try to take a walk, but we ended up very wet...We decided to redeem are "wasted" day by going out for a night on the town! We had a lot of fun but learned something important about the coastal culture, a phenomenon which I call: old white men finding young Kenyan women...(maybe, as Lena suggested, I should do my research about this :) )

Lena and I enjoying breakfast while the others finish cooking in the kitchen

Jan and Lena on the beach

Lena and I, ready for a fun day at the beach

Jan and I discovered it was really windy!

Some "beach boys" were offering camel rides. I did not take one.

Me posing in front of the caves on the beach. Today, the tide was low enough that we could pass by.

We are soaked after our attempt to walk on the beach

Trying to get dry!

Ready for a night out!

The whole gang

The weather was beautiful again on Monday, so we spent it on the beach! We did A LOT of walking with our new friend and "tour guide" Duncan, did some swimming, "assisted" some local fisherman, and then went back to our new favorite club!

Me on the balcony

Lena, myself, and Jasmine

Fishermen fishing on the beach

The fishermen caught a puffer fish. I tried to hold it but it pricked my hands!

Say cheese!

Jan playing with a lobster

Me and Jasmine with the fishermen in the background

Jan, Jasmine, and I "helping" the fisherman pull in the net. It was hard work!

Swimming.

Me on my new fabric, with a bottle of Kenyan Tusker

Me, Jan, Duncan - a guy who decided to be our beach "guide," and Jasmine

Myself and Duncan

Ready for the evening!

As much fun as I had in Mombasa, I also had to do some work! I took a matatu to Zion Health Clinic, where I administered some client satisfaction forms to the HIV+ patients (with the assistance of 2 translators). Through talking to Pia - the clinic's CEO, Duncan - the lab technician, and several staff and clients, I had an opportunity to learn about the amazing work that this community-based health center is doing for people living with HIV/AIDS in the community.

Duncan, the lab technician for Zion

Duncan at his desk by the CD4 count machine

Me administering the client satisfaction forms at Zion

Zion Health Center

After spending the morning hard at work, I met the others in Mombasa town for a day of sightseeing. We started in Old Town, where we saw Fort Jesus, did a walking tour, and enjoyed a traditional Swahili meal. We finished the night off with a late evening swim, and said bye to Jan. We also met Husnah, a human rights lawyer, and her husband Iddi - from a contact a received in Maua.

Me in the back of a tuktuk on the way to meet the others

Oh matatus

Tuktuks!

The front of Fort Jesus. We didn't go in because they wouldn't negotiate the price.

This is clearly a public health concern...

Jasmine and I

Jan, me, and Jasmine in Old Town

The view from our Swahili restaurant

Bon appetite!

Mmm...tuna with coconut sauce, yellow rice, and tamarind juice!

Me in front of the old port. You can take an 8-hr boat trip Zanzibar for only 1000 Kshl (just over US$10)

Since Jan had left already and Jasmine was leaving Wednesday evening, Lena and I packed our belongings and tried to figure out where we would stay for our remaining day (which we later found were days) in Mombasa.  Our plans for a day at the beach was spoiled by - you guessed it - the rain, so instead, we spent some quality time at the local shopping center, complete with a restaurant, a bookstore, and ample opportunity for people-watching. We stopped by a hotel to look at prices for a room (way out of our range), and instead discovered a beautiful resort that made for a beautiful picture backdrop! When the rain finally stopped, we said our goodbyes to Nyali Beach.

Enjoying the view at the Reef Hotel, since it was a little out of our budget

We were debating whether or not we should stay and swim

Chilling at the mall

Notice the really old muzungu (left) and the young Kenyan woman (right). This is a very common site in Mombasa, especially at the clubs.

Goodbye Nyali Beach!

We will miss you!

Then, to top off the evening, Patricia arranged for Lena and I to join the International Women and Law Conference final dinner. I had an opportunity to mingle with some lawyers from all over the world, and got to enjoy a four-course meal on the famous Tamarind Dhow dinner cruise!

Posing by the sign for the Tamarind Dhow

Lena, Anne (Patricia's assistant from the university she is starting), Mony (a family friend), myself, and Chloe (Patricia's 13 year old daughter)

A beautiful sunset. Can't wait to get on the boat!

Posing in front of the dhow

The Tamarind Dhow

A live band performed kiswahili and international hits

A view of the boat

Preparing for dinner

My complimentary cocktail

Course #1: asparagus and passion fruit salad

The chef cooking our food right in front of us

Lena and her steak fillet 

Me ready to ravish my jumbo prawns. Delicious!

Mony and Chloe perform three songs for the ship

Myself and Patricia dancing

The lovely Dhow

Sounds like it should be the end of my vacation, right? Little did Lena and I know that we still had another eventful day ahead! In need of a place to stay, we accepted an invitation to stay with Husnah, Iddi, their 4 children (ages 1 - 9), and their househelp in the nearby village of Kiembeni. They were such a lovely family and really welcomed us into their home! Husnah took us shopping in Mombasa town on Thursday morning, where I tried some delicious tropical fruits and bought some fabric. Then, Lena and I made the 1 hour journey via 3 matatus and a ferry to the breathtaking South Coast, where the beach was even more stunning! The night concluded with dinner with the family and an excursion with Raz, our taxi driver, to taste manazi (also known as palm wine!!). Mmm good!

Breakfast with the kiddos

Husnah and Iddi's 1 year old twins!

Mombasa town

The popular marketplace

This gentleman let me try dried mango and baobab fruit coated in sugar and spices...yummy!

This is jackfruit...

Myself eating jackfruit with Husnah

The ferry

After nearly 2 hours, we finally arrived at Diani Beach, South Coast!

Clean water, big waves, big fun!

Our "host" family! We will miss you all!

Raz and myself enjoying a small cup of manazi

Raz and his friends after too much palm wine...

All in all, my time in Mombasa was perhaps the highlight of my summer experience! I worked hard, I played hard, and I got to experience a very different aspect of Kenyan culture. Asanti Mombasa!