India: Jetting off

I've been battling with blog content lately and this is because I delay my posts and it's harder to recall all the details. I've decided that it wouldn't be a bad idea to write diary posts instead.

It's  Thursday 2 July 2015 just after 3 am. I am probably flying over Zambia heading to Nairobi for to connect to Mumbai. Our flight  was slightly delayed but we managed to have our wheels up by 02:10. I am slightly worried that I will miss my flight to Mumbai. It wouldn't be a bad idea if I did.

The past couple of days I have been missing East Africa. I'd be happiest in Kampala but Nairobi, Dar and anywhere in the Swahili coast will do right now. I even played around the idea of not taking the Nairobi to Joburg leg of the trip and head to Zanzibar instead. My planned return is on 16 July and Eid is likely on the 17th. I've always fantasised about  Eid celebrations at Forodhani Gardens. Friday evenings after prayers are already so beautiful. Imagine how Eid would be.

Back to the flight. I really wouldn't mind missing the flight and getting  on the next flight to Mumbai later today. I would then spend the day in Nairobi. I actually wouldn't mind just walking around the city and have all this food I've been craving. I'd be especially happy with chips mayai  (a dish made of eggs and potato chips) or nyama choma and the nyama must certainly be nyama yambuzi. If u make it to the flight I won't be mad. I will just have Fanta Orange and kenyan chevda, my favourite Kenyan snack.

Earlier today I had dinner with mates of mine. It was really nice to have such a beautiful send off  (I have hijacked it and I am deciding to believe that this was not a catch up session but more a send off. It's strange that as a lone (almost) frequent traveler I still like to have someone send me off.

I'm actually excited AND nervous about India. I will reveal more as I go along. I will write again on the Nairobi to Mumbai leg if I make it to that flight. Cabin crew assured me that they will wait for us. There goes my grand plan!

Till later then. Let me try and nap. Okay.. that might not  happen. We have minor  turbulence all of a sudden.

India: KQ Experience

It's now 13:56 (Mumbai time) and we are about 80 minutes away from touch down. I have a glass of Rupert and Rothschild in hand and a very big smile. I wasn't going to blog but I felt compelled to.

We left Nairobi about 5 hours ago and I had mixed emotions. I somewhat felt like changing  my flight to come back earlier. I don't have a particular reason why. I think it was fear. Fear of the unknown. Remember I said I wouldn't mind missing my flight and go to Mumbai a day later after partying in Nairobi. That didn't happen. I guess that's where  the mixed emotions come from.

NAIROBI CONNECTION
The connection in Nairobi was very easy. We didn't need to go through immigration. We only had to go through security and everything was done. I was worried about my 55 minute connection time but it took me about 20 minutes. In addition, we waited for a plane from West Africa that was delayed.

BOEING 787-8
We flew the Boeing 787Dreamliner on this leg of the journey. I can't decide which aircraft I like between the B787 or the A380. When we took off from Nairobi I swear I had goose bumbs. So beautiful. Didn't even feel that we aren't on the ground anymore. I had a huge smile. I wanted to tell someone. There was no one who looked like they would be interested in my story. Aah well. I love love love their window 'shutters' and mood lighting.

The journey was  very smooth. A few bumps up and down along the way and strange enough nothing that got me worried. I'm waiting for the landing. I will update on the next post.

KQ HOSPITALITY
The one thing that you can always count on is the warmth of the East African people. The KQ cabin crew was amazing. But before I continue about about that I need to mention how awesome their liquor selection is.

The liquor cart was filled  with good goods. Think Absolute Vodka, Bombay Gin, Rupert and Rothschild...  need I continue. And the cabin crew were very generous with those baby bottles of booze. Bless them!

I will be spending two nights in Mumbai before heading to Delhi. The next post will be about my Mumbai experience. Adios

NaiRobMe

Remember I took a cab from the station to the hotel? Well I was also worried that the cabbie might rob me by overcharging me since the hotel was just a hop and a skip away. He didn’t but someone else that was smarter robbed me. My hotel, Hilton Hotel, was in downtown and I thought it is the ideal location. I had a tough time deciding whether I should stay at the Hilton or Sankara in Westlands. Sankara was more expensive by about $35 dollars. I then stuck to the Hilton at $185 per night and good lawd was I robbed. The hotel was nowhere near all the Hilton’s I have been to (remember Hilton Windhoek?). It was aged. It needed renovation. It was comfortable all right but for $185 I felt robbed. They don’t call it Nairobbery for nothing. Funny I spent most of my time in Sankara. But then again there are many other reasons why I chose to stay at the Hilton. Maybe one day I will explain.

Seen in Central Park, Nairobi City Centre

One thing you will know about East Africa is that you end up wanting to speak Swahili as well. Everyone, I mean everyone, in the region knows at least a few phrases in Swahili. The basic phrases were in songs playing in all foyers of resorts and theme nights. The hotels and restaurants greet you with a “Jambo! Karibu sana” and warm smiles that you don’t have a choice but wish to converse in Swahili as well. The worst part is when you hear Europeans speak in fluent Swahili. It kills me. I should know Swahili better than them, it is an African language!

Back to Nairobi. I couldn’t sleep on the train. I think I slept on average three hours a night. Upon arrival I went to my room and took a long shower and thought I would take a to hour nap before heading to the city. I looked outside the window and had the most beautiful view of the city ever. The city was abuzz. The traffic is a mess! I wanted to be with the masses and try out my Swahili. Needless to say, after my shower and brunch I headed to the city. Walking down the streets and avenue of Nairobi felt like a giant African history library. Each street was names after great African liberation struggle heroes.  I am talking Kenyatta, Moi, Nyerere, Mandela, Luthuli etc.

Moi Avenue in Nairobi

I met up with an “old friend” at Tacos , an unofficial gay bar near the hotel which was later closed down. We had a few drinks and he took me deep into town to show me how they chase tail in Nairobi. The place was real dodgy, like most cruise spots all over the world. All eyes were on us as we got to the bar. We joined a small table of obviously gay men in a bar full of what seemed like straight men. Unsure if it would be wise to share what I experienced in the bathrooms but I can share with you that I was quite shocked that THAT happened in Nairobi.  One day when I write my tell-all book I will indulge the details. PS: I did nothing at all. PPS: You will totally not believe me.

Nairobi City Centre. Below is a view of the main Matatu Rank in the city.

You know they say Nairobi is a city that never sleeps. They are right. Every evening was a special evening for me. There was a new party/ club to go to. There were new places to dine out , of course this is after sundowners at Sankara. From SkyLux to Pavement to Black Diamond to Gypsy to Hidden Agenda. I found a few gay friendly spots, which I was sworn to secrecy not to reveal them.

Remember I told you about cockroaches in the last post? I also mentioned that they come in all forms and shapes according to the European gentlemen I was on the train ride from Mombasa with. What would Nairobi be without cockroaches? I got bitten by one. One of the evenings when I was out I met a lovely young man who instantly fell in love with me. Yeah, I kinda liked it but I knew this was not genuine. Showered me with the sweetest words and got me blushing the next thing I know his entire crew was around and I was expected to buy drinks for his friends. I was a traveler on a budget and there was no way that I was going to buy drinks for his friends. Of course I ran a mile the first opportunity I got.

I don’t know what it is that draws me to Nairobi so much. It may be because it is so Afropolitan. Or perhaps it may be because of the hot boys that adore me (and want free drinks).  Whatever it is I know that Nairobi has captured my heart and will be seeing more of me in the future.

Safari Njema

Just as Mombasa was beginning to feel like home I had to bid farewell to this lovely beach city. It was only three days ago when I trekked into town to go buy my first class train ticket to Nairobi. You should have seen the shock in my face when I went to the counter to buy my ticket. It looked like a Spaza shop. But hey, it said First Class on the window.

 

The train was scheduled to depart Mombasa Station at 19:00. My oh-so-efficient cab driver mentioned that we needed to leave the hotel at 17:00 because there is going to be a lot of traffic on our way from Reef to Town. There was always traffic in the city no matter what time of day it was but got worse in the evenings. We arrived at the train station at 17:55 as he had predicted and the car was searched for bombs, Kenyan style.  It took a while to understand what was going on until I linked it to the bombings.

I walked around the train station looking for the platform and was greeted by loud African music and happy people. Of course I knew I was in the right place. The excitement to go to the nations capital could not be missed in the locals’ faces.

I really need to stop being paranoid. As I waited for the boarding announcement I needed to go to the train station tuck shop. I wanted to take my bags with me because I was worried that they would be stolen, typical South African. There was a young man that was sitting close to me, he didn’t look like he was going to board the train. I wanted to ask him to watch my bag while I went to the tuckshop. I had ‘profiled’ him and worried that I would come back to no bags. I took a leap of faith and I asked him. Needless to say, I came back and I found him standing there with my bags. A huge sigh of relief.

The Railway Shop

At 18:30 a boarding announcement was made. I still had no idea which coach to get on. I just followed the white people. There was an eclectic mix of people awaiting to board the train. 99% of them looked like tourists from Europe. I spotted a lesbian couple with what seemed like their adopted baby girl and I wanted to go say hi to them. It was obvious that she was adopted, she was black and they were white. Everyone stood on the platform waiting to be told where to go. Turns out that our hand-written tickets had details on which cabin to board.

After minutes of trying to find the right cabin and berth I finally settled in and the train left 30 minutes later. It was going to be a long ride. I was actually very happy that I didn’t have a berth mate for the trip. We all stood by the windows and bid Mombasa farewell. Some even waved white handkerchiefs, just like in the movies.

Moments after we left Mombasa and into the darkness that I believed was Tsavo the dinner bell rang. As first class passengers we were called into the dining room. At this moment I need to mention that this first class berth was nothing like the first class I imagined.  It was beautiful and rustic nonetheless..

There was a bunch of festive European travellers. They came from Belgium, Sweden and Germany. At dinner I met this Swedish gentleman that lives in Nairobi. We had a lot of Tusker beer while in the dining room until we were asked to leave. I had forgotten to get cash for the ride and only had 100 Ksh. My friend bought me so much beer I could never thank him enough.

The best beer in a minute.

The topic of conversation that dominated was black ladies. Coming from Mombasa you will understand that there are many “cockroaches”, prostitutes, and they come in different forms. The gentlemen mentioned that they liked a few black ladies they saw in Mombasa. The ladies liked them back. But they worried that these ladies might not be genuine. They might be long-term prostitutes, seeing them as meal tickets. I couldn’t help but wonder.  Multi-racial couples were a normal sight in Mombasa. What was more distinct was that the white partner would be older. I aint trying to start nothing here, so I ma stop.

We arrived in Nairobi at nine. Two hours late. I am grateful that I took the train. As we were approaching Nairobi I got to see the poor conditions that many Kenyans live under. There was a shantytown next to the railway; I assumed that it was Kibera. Kibera is the largest slum village in the whole of Africa.

Nairobi City Centre

I was so happy to get to Nairobi, I actually wanted to kiss the ground. The city was abuzz. I was really lazy to walk through the traffic and find my way to the hotel so I hailed a cab. The cab looked like it would break down but it didn’t matter, I was in Nairobi.

Nairobi Railway Station

Mombasa in pictures

I had the time of my life in Mombasa. I literally cannot find the words to describe it so I am posting pictures instead.  Enjoy 

The first thing I did after checking in was head to the beach and got myself a drink to celebrate my arrival in Mombasa. I, naturally, headed straight to the bar and ordered a cocktail. It has to be a Dawa. Dawa is medicine in Swahili and this cocktail was quite medicinal. Made of honey, lime and vodka. To this day, every time I get to any destination in East Africa I get a Dawa to celebrate.

The reason why i came to Mombasa, the Mombasa Tusks. These
two pairs of giant aluminum elephant tusks were commissioned in commemoration of a visit to Mombasa by Princess Margaret in 1956 (PS: I said the queen in the last post, Princess Marg was the right person). These tusks are so impressive!

Moi Avenue, the main road in Mombasa Town.

My tour guide in the Fort Jesus. This was built in the 1500's by Portuguese leader, King Philip the First.

This was the first Swahili door I laid my eyes on. I will do a blog on Swahili doors. They tell so much and are a common scene in Old Town Mombasa and other areas in the Swahili Coast.

Young girl in Mombasa. She is apparently mentally ill. This was the first time I met her. The third time I saw her in the Old Town she recognised me and started having small talk with me in my broken Swahili.

This is me in a Matatu going back to the hotel in Nyali, Reef. This was my first day in Mombasa and East Africa. I didnt know that men are not allowed to wear shorts that go above the knee. When I got in the matatu the gentleman behind me knew I was a Mzungu but that did not stop him from giving me the disapproval look.

Octopus at Tamarin restaurant in Reef. Very beautifully cooked. Was my first time having octopus.

This is my tour guide at the Ngomomgo Village. This is an eco-cultural tourist village in Mombasa created for tourists to find out about the tribes of Kenya. It was very informative and fun too.

Ngomongo Village

A Luo gentleman in Ngomomgo.

I bought this belt in the village. I dont know if the person selling it/ made it knew what they were making. I just had to have it! Beautiful.

My Tuk Tuk Driver and I in Reef. The coolest guy ever.

Kongowea Market in Mombasa. Easily one of the biggest markets in the area that feeds other smaller markets.

Bombasa

This post was written while on the plane to Mombasa from Johannesburg. Additional comments that were added later are in italics.

I could not sleep! I could not sleep even one wink! I slept at 23:45 on Sunday, 01/04/12 in anticipation of my long awaited trip to Mombasa. I was wide-awake at 04:00 getting ready to depart at 05:15. I rang a cab up to come and pick me up from my apartment to the Gautrain station. The real reason for my sleeplessness is because I was very nervous. Yes, this was my first trip to East Africa and no that is not why I was nervous. On Sunday, 01 April 2012, I woke up to the news of a church and restaurant that were bombed in Mtwapa, Mombasa City, the night before. I didn’t know if I should cancel my trip and wait it out or just go. It was a bit too late that night because I had already checked-in on that flight.

On days subsequent to the bombing Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack and this has been going on for the past three years. You probably know of the attacks in a Nairobi mall that left many people tragically killed.

I was so excited about this trip that I was really not going to let anything stand on the way. I bought a new, lovely bag that i was going to use to 'backpack Africa' with. Well, I didn't backpack, i just liked the idea of my new designer bag. My friend, Lerato @madamafrika, treated me to a beautiful coffee ceremony in Yeoville and bid me farewell. I will never forget her tales of East Africa. 

Lerato at the coffee ceremony.

The fabulous 'I-am-backpacking-africa' bag

 

I am flying to Mombasa on 1Time (a South African low cost airline); the tickets are not too expensive in comparison to Kenya Airways that goes via Nairobi. I am still surprised to see that not a lot of people travel up to East Africa. The plane must be at 30% capacity, I have the entire first row to myself and I feel like I am on Business Class. It is school holidays; I expected to see more families on the plane. I am quite selfish because I don’t want this route to be discontinued. Something in me tells me that I will love Mombasa. I knew I loved it the moment I picked up an in-flight magazine on a British Airways flight, High Life, and I read about the Mombasa Tusks that were built for the Queen’s visit. I kept that magazine and brought it to this trip with me. In 2010 when I was in London Prince William got engaged to Kate in a Kenyan village. I never bothered to find out what village this was but I just always imagined it as Mombasa. And I have been 'learning' KiSwahili since 2003 when Safi taught me how to greet. To this day this is all i know, I feel that I need to learn a bit more while I am in East Africa.

The Mombasa Tusks on Moi Avenue, Mombasa.

1Time was liquidated and one of the first routes that was suspended before the inevitable liquidation was Mombasa. I was so heartbroken! I still have the High Life magazine. I almost cried when I saw the tusks in the city centre. I love Mombasa, I have returned there one more time and will return again a couple more times. I went to a remote Kenyan village too, Watamu, and no I didn’t get engaged nor was I with a Prince William. I still don’t know what the village that they got engaged in is called. Perhaps I should Google it? Oh and I can now hold a small conversation in Swahili, there is much more to learn. Perhaps another trip to East Africa.

The aircraft is quite loud; one needs something to filter the noise, the music is helping. I am listening my collection of African music. Baba Maal, Salif Keita, Angelique Kidjo, Tuku, 4 Etoles. Vusi Mahlasela, Busi Mhlongo, etc. This music is the reason why I am traveling the continent and braving a few weeks of my life to explore East Africa. A four-hour flight without entertainment can be quite painful. Thank God I had brought entertainment.

I have arranged Airport transfer with the hotel (Reef Hotel in Nyali) following the events on Saturday night.  I had planned to take a matatu or tuk-tuk to the hotel so I can meet people. I am not about to take the risk of being in a crowded area in case there are more bombings. I have decided that I would much rather stay far from any busy areas until I have had a chat with the locals. My driver is Julius. He called me last night to confirm that he will be there at 12:45 to come and get me. Bless him…. Two more hours yawn.

Julius was a great driver. He assured me that there would be no retaliation by the Christians because Muslims and Christians in Mombasa have lived alongside each other in peace for years.