mnoonthego
OUR FAMILY ON THE GO
Traveling where life takes us (assuming they allow kids)
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Day 31- Watamu Beach Life
Today we didnât get up to much. More time at the pool, wandering the shops, beach combing and beach walks before heading to the Crab Shack at Mida Creek for a sunset dinner.
The maintenance man at the apartment canât believe how much the girls love the pool. He has commented multiple times that they are still in or back in the pool.
Mid day we decided to head out to look at the shops. Bad planning on our part as it was so hot and no cooling breeze so we went for gelato instead and then headed out again. We didnât really find anything we needed but it was fun to look at all of the carvings, beaded jewelry and beachy clothes. Many of the clothes are second hand so there are racks of marks and spenser, gap etc.
After our wandering shopping trip, we headed back to the apartment to clean up (aka wipe off the sweat and dirt) and then head to the beach. We walked down Sunset Beach to the Marine Park. The beaches are so fun to people watch. Some are playing in the water, others are strutting looking hoping they are being watched, there is always a big group of guys playing soccer (we only ever saw one woman join in) or at least some game the resembles soccer, multiple people will approach us trying to sell us something or hoping we will follow them to a restaurant/bar/hotel/taxi etc and kids are everywhere. That is one of our big take aways, Kenya has a LOT of kids! Â
When we arrived at the Marine park my hands were full of garbage that I collected as I knew that there would be a garbage for plastics. We were recognized by one of the parks workers from our visit there yesterday and he came rushing over to greet us and to help me with the garbage (and thank me- Iâm not sure if the staff at the apartment feel the same, as I bring home garbage everyday from the beach and put it in our house garbage). He asked what we were up to and we said that we were heading to the Crab Shack for sundown and so he asked if he could call us a Tuk Tuk. We appreciated the offer and while we waited we went back to see the baby sharks (singing the song of course!).
The Crab Shack, on Mida Creek, was built by Dabaso Creek Conservation Group to promote eco activities, protect the mangrove forests and provide education for the Mida Creek fishing communities who donât have a lot of commerce. The Tuk Tuk took us through the communities which are pretty basic with mud huts and some paths meandering through. Once you get to the parking lot, the entry to the restaurant is via a 200 metre boardwalk, through the mangrove forest and Creek channels so it felt like an adventure just getting there.
The menu is known to be locally sourced seafood and the crab samosas are famous in the area so I was super excited to be there. Added bonus, the family we had met yesterday at the lunch and who had recommended the restaurant were also there! We ended up joining them for a fun evening full of laughs! We even ended up with a calendar picture of us all (you know when the photographer comes to the table and then later shows up with a printed picture to commemorate the evening) that of course we had to buy!
Mark and Oriana had the king fish which they said was really good and I ordered, and shared, the Giant Mida Creek Crab. I am a bit of a crab snob as I think Dungeness Crabs are the best but I must admit the Mida Crab was pretty amazing. I wouldnât say better but definitely up there. Tamsyn who isnât a big fan of fish, was thrilled to have spaghetti and enjoyed the crab samosa.
I thought it was interesting that the crabs are sustainably farmed as part of the eco initiative and the fish are caught by local Creek fishermen. So you feel good eating here knowing that it really does support the local community and conservation efforts! What a great night for our last night!
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Day 30- Back on the Water
Today we took our first tour, a snorkelling and dolphin boat trip in the Watamu National Marine Park and Reserve. It was a bit shocking to suddenly be spending the day with 20 other people. I was impressed that we were told that no single use plastic bottles were allowed to be brought into the park. (Single use plastic bags were banned in Kenya prior to 2020). The amount of plastic bottles littering the beaches, streets and wilderness areas throughout Kenya has been disappointing and overwhelming.
Our first destination was to find the dolphins. It was a bit like the Masai Mara of the Ocean, a number of boats all started to crowd the pod of bottlenose dolphins. I talked to our captain about the regulations and was glad to hear that there were some and then a few minutes later I spotted the Parks boat coming out to talk to those that were infringing on the dolphins space. That said, it was still beautiful to see them!
Our next stop was the reef for some snorkelling. Unfortunately, we forgot Orianaâs underwater camera which was so disappointing as I would love to be able to revisit the seascapes we swam through. Snorkelling from Shela was good but this was great! I donât know the names of most of the fish but the colour and movement was spectacular and the amount and diversity of fish was impressive. The coral was washed out in most places but there were a few patches of the brightly coloured coral you hope to see return on mass in the future. My favourite spotting was an octopus that was tucking its self under a rock when I spotted it! There were lion fish (we didnât get close), tons of parrot fish, angelfish, damselfish, butterflyfish, clownfish, pipe fish, blue stripped snappers, red snappers, puffer fish and so many more. We also saw a bunch more of the giant clams that we had seen in Shela. I donât know how it is possible to get cold but eventually that is what took Tamsyn and I back to the boat. The girls both raved about what they saw and I am so proud of their ability to swim and snorkel. Mark has taught Oriana how to dive while snorkelling and so away she would go to have a closer look at something of interest.
By this time we had worked up an appetite and were excited to head up Mida Creek for lunch on a small island. This is tour life so our boat and four others pulled up to the island and walked the short distance to a covered area with about 20 tables. After we were served our drinks, the courses started to arrive. Prawns, King Fish and lobster were all on the menu! What a feast!
Although the food was good the highlight of the lunch was meeting a lovely family who were visiting from Nairobi. Their daughter Joy had recently moved to Toronto to work for a software engineering firm and so we instantly had a connection. They were the nicest people and had all kinds of insight on growing up in Kenya. When we were getting ready to head back to our boats, Eileen handed us a gift- a bowl with a carving of an Elephant and the word Jambo on it. She had been surprised that we had chosen Kenya of all of the vacation destinations in the word and wanted to be sure we wouldnât forget out trip (how could we??). She mentioned that the word Jambo isnât actually used by locals and is only used when interacting with tourists. I couldnât believe it! Here I thought we had been so smooth in adopting a Swahili word for greeting others. I refused to use the word for the rest of the day!
On our way back to the beach we were lucky enough to see a few turtles but they were a fair distance so Iâm not sure what type they were. When we arrived at the beach we headed to the tiger shark nursery. Typically you donât want to be anywhere near a tiger shark but the babies are ok and you know that the momâs arenât around (they are on the other side of the reef) so it was very cool to walk into the water to observe them.
We were so full from lunch that, other than Mark, we werenât hungry. As he was craving a hamburger and we just wanted some more of that amazing gelato, we headed out. The gelato place was closed so we tried the tex-med place that had a table with comfy looking chairs that was street level and therefore would allow for people watching. Mark and I started with margaritas and the girls had milk shakes. The margaritas came with a side of shots!? The bartender said that Tequila is just summer water with a side of lime. I think as far as the girls were concerned, the best part was the restaurant kitten. Finally they had a cat they could pet and cuddle. My highlight, the âboy bandâ (a bunch of young boys with a water bottle drum) that sang Jambo Bwana, a popular song heard throughout Watamu, to us from the road. Mark loved his hamburger and I think the onion rings were the best we have ever had! We ended up having an interesting conversation with the owner, a Frenchman, his wife (kenyan) and their son which just added to the success of the evening.
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Day 29- Exploring Watamu
After a morning swim, we dragged the girls out and walked to the snake farm. We had heard great things and werenât disappointed. The farm is to educate people on the role of snakes and how to coexist and also to âmilkâ them to make anti-venom. We learned about the various cobras, boomslangs, pythons and more. Watching the milking process was fascinating! AND⌠I had never heard of a âterrapinâ and have been calling all turtles, turtles so that was something new for me.
Instead of taking the Tuktuk back to the apartment, we only made it as far as the gelato place where we had some of the best gelato of our lives. After lunch, the girls just wanted to hang out in the pool so Mark and I enjoyed a relaxing afternoon of reading and taking dips in the pool while they played and played! It being 30 degrees means that the pool is a lovely reprieve from the sun!
Before dinner we headed to the beach. Our apartment is in a cove on Blue Bay (thus Blue Bay Cove Apartments) and the beach in front of us is quite different from the bay beside us. Our beach is lava rock with a shelf that extends into the ocean quite a ways and patches of white sand. There are TONS of small tide pools filled with loads of different creatures but especially black sea urchins. After exploring our beach and the point, we walked across the high bank rocks to Sunset beach. Our cove is small and only has our apartment building and a private home so very quiet whereas Sunset Beach looks like a beach resort beach as it is lined with bars and restaurants and there are throngs of people playing in the water and on the beach. The sand is gorgeous! It feels like you are walking in flour- so soft and light! Â
After dinner, the girls headed back into the pool until they needed to clean it and they had to get out.
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Day 28- On the move again (January 5)
Today was packing up day in order to move from Shela down the coast to Watamu. As our flight didnât leave until later in the day we had the morning to chill and absorb the last bits of Shela. Our first stop of the day- our favourite beach front juice cafe. We have been really spoiled by our daily mango and what ever other flavour we fancied juices. We thought we would enjoy chapatis with our juice as this has become another favourite. Unfortunately, they didnât have any chapatis so we enjoyed our juices and the people, donkey and cat watching. Tamsyn is working hard on me to get a cat when we get home. There are so many strays here in various states of health, they really need someone to start managing the population! As you can imagine we have named a number of them although I wonât let the girls touch them.
We decided that we really wanted some chapatis before we left so we headed down the beach to another seaside cafe that was recommended for its Swahili dishes. They said they had chapatis so we decided to have an early lunch and try some other traditional dishes- prawns and fries, coconut beans and chapatis and grilled Swahili fish and chapatis. There are some other dishes we thought we would try but they were out and the server seemed quite put off that we didnât know that they no longer offered them (although they were on the menu!?!). It was a great meal to finish off our time in Shela. As we sat in the cafe, which is open to the âsidewalkâ we were amazed how many people walked by and said hi as we had met them at some point during our visit to the island.
Where ever Mark and I travel, we always chat about if we could live there. Sheila is the only place in Kenya so far that I would consider. I think it would be quite a project but it would be very cool to renovate one of the many run down buildings and fit in with the daily groove of the community. That said, it wouldnât be easy living.
After lunch, we meandered back to Faraha House to finish packing up, which is a big ordeal as each flight has a different baggage weight restrictions. Its like a game of baggage Jenga to fit it all in and thank goodness we travel with a luggage scale. Â
When it was time to go we headed done to the âpierâ to get our taxi dhow over to the airport. It is a gorgeous way to leave a place. Â You can look back to the island and reflect on all of your experiences as well as enjoy the trip its self. After our experience with the baggage coming on to the island, we had a plan that we would decline any offers of help with our luggage and make our own way hassle free.
Thankfully the flight from Shela to Malindi/Watamu was a short one as it was one of the hottest flights (ask me about flying over the Florida Everglades) I have ever been on and I was VERY thankful to have my fan.
We were surprised to see that the tiny Malindi airport was an international airport.
From the airport, we took a 1/2 hour taxi to our Air BnB apartment in Watamu. Malindi seems like an industrious little town busy with trade and commerce and a lot of mangos farms whereas Watamu is the tourist hotspot due to the gorgeous beaches and clear water. As we were driving in, Watamu reminded me of Mexico. There are big resorts (although not chain hotels) lining the beach and behind big gates and miles of small stalls selling everything from fish and carvings to beach wear and bedding.
We are super excited about our apartment! It like a great location with easy access to everything- the beach is right there, shops, restaurants etc. The apartment itself is two levels, with the bedrooms downstairs where it is cooler, and the girls are thrilled that we are right beside the pool.
We havenât tried a TukTuk yet so we thought that would be a good way to get to the grocery store to get some supplies for the next few days. TukTuks are 3 wheeled vehicles imported from India that run on a two stroke engine and are popular taxis. As per normal, what seemed like a simple trip ended with some drama. We thought we had negotiated the price of the ride but go figure when we arrived back, the price was different. Dealing with a âhangryâ Mark is never a good idea and at this point, we are tired of thinking things are one price and then suddenly things change. Anyway with the help of the staff, we got it sorted out. In the big scheme of things it isnât a big deal but the feeling that you are constantly being targeted as you are a âMuzunguâ (foreigner) gets a bit much.
Tourists here are 80% Italian and the grocery store reflected the audience. We grabbed some pasta and other provisions and felt set up for our visit. Mark was happy to find more decaf coffee as he hadnât had any for a few days and was feeling a bit desperate in the mornings.
Back at the apartment, I was searching for the light switch in the bedroom when I realized I hit the security alarm by mistake. I went running outside to tell the onsite security guard, what I did, which led to a bit of a language and process confusion, and he put in an urgent call to the security company so they didnât arrive to investigate.
We then tried to make dinner usually a rather uneventful process. To start off, Mark grabbed a frying pan from under the sink but I guess it has been stashed there as someone didnât want to clean out the left over grease so that went everywhere. Of course, there were no paper towels or rags so we resorted to a roll of toilet paper to sop it up. After we got the worst of it up we then discovered that someone had diluted the dish soap so a little squirt went everywhere and we continued to work through the roll of toilet paper. Air BnBs are notorious for their poor knives and cheap pots. We had to laugh at the pasta pot. Based on the look of it, it was once a teflon pan but maybe not for the last few years. The next challenge, starting the stove. After various attempts we figured out how to turn the gas on but we couldnât get it started. So back out to the security guard to see if he could help. He went in search for matches and we were back in business and were able prep our dinner.
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We blew up the laptop charger a few days ago so I was trying to blog on my phone however I seem to be inept at saving and posting my drafts?!?
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January 4 (day 27) relaxing
I feel like we have had a lot of relaxing time on this trip which is something I donât tend to make a lot of time for in my regular life. I think for this reason I feel a bit guilty even on holidays doing it. I feel like we should be rushing around seeming things or doing something but others feel differently so Iâm trying to understand and respect that. We did go for another leisurely walk around the town. This time Mark had a very engaged conversation with the boat builder about tools and techniques. They are experiencing a succession issue in that the next generation of potential workers is not interested in the craft and so there is a lot of question as to whether the style will die out. It would be quite a shame!
Our next stop was the pizza place. Last time we tried they were out of mozzarella so there was no pizza available but we were in luck this time. It was worth the wait! A lovely breeze, a seaside table, great people watching and tasty pizza!
After lunch we headed back to the beach where the girls would have played for hours. Mark had successfully negotiated a price for a new to him book (the book looked like it had already been read by 100s of travellers and therefore he wasnât willing to pay the asking price of $6 US; he got it for $2.50!) and so he and I sat and read. With the wind today it felt chilly compared to other days. Itâs hard to imagine that 30 feels cool?!?
We had Nyama cook for us tonight and we had chosen prawns and salad. It was another great dinner. It is interesting how it is so much more affordable for us to have him buy groceries and cook for us that to go out. I think it is about a third of the price and makes for a nice change!
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Day 26- Chilling (January 3)
Shela is known as a place to chill so today we decided to try that out. We headed to a local restaurant for breakfast where I was thrilled that they served chipatis and jam as a breakfast food! I also decided to try Swahili tea which as I understand it is marsala tea, cardamon, ginger, cinnamon and milk. Oriana and I liked it; however, the others decided it was a bit too much.
After our late breakfast we wandered the labyrinth of paths around Shela to admire the architecture, the donkeys, the cats, the carved doors and the artisan shops. Aman had some beautiful clothes that suit this hot but modest climate. I wanted to take pictures of the dĂŠcor of the shop but that seemed inappropriate although I did discretely take a picture of a fully beaded chair that might not be comfortable to sit on but was quite spectacular!
Tamsyn and I have decided that if we lived here, we would need to start a cat sanctuary. There are cats everywhere; however, many of them arenât looking very healthy and much to Tâs chagrin we arenât letting her pet them all.
After our stroll, we came back to the house to enjoy some reading, napping and general relaxation. After lunch we decided to explore more of the beach as we had explored one way, on our walk to Lamu Town, but not the other direction. On our first day here, we met a henna artist, Zena, and the kids have been asking to use their âSanta moneyâ to get a henna tattoo since the interaction. When we went looking for her the other day, we didnât have any luck so we were excited to see her soon after we hit the beach. The girls now have ½ sleeves of henna and I have a bracelet of flowers and vines.
Compared to our first day at the beach, there was nobody at the beach today! I guess due to it not being a holiday and a little cooler, everyone packed it in. This beach goes on forever; we walked for a couple of hours but still couldnât see the end. Also, when you head towards Lamu Town there is consistent evidence of inhabitation; however, in this direction once you leave Shela there is no real development. There are large sand dunes and two houses, one that looks like a big sandcastle due to its colour and a huge, lengthy sandy beach. It sounds like at one point a lot of celebrities would come to the area and you can imagine the appeal of these beautiful beaches and no one around. I thought it would be a great walk for beachcombing; however, the shells are very small clam shells so not as remarkable as I thought we might find. We did see a dead red snapper and a dead parrot fish which were both interesting to see up close.
We had big dinner plans, so we made our way back down the beach enjoying the warm sand and water, cleaned up and headed down the âroad.â Peponiâs has a reputation as a great restaurant, so we had made a reservation yesterday (Mark had to sweet talk them to let us come as they were fully booked) and used our Christmas money to not feel guilty about the splurge. After a pre-dinner drink in the more casual bar area, we were shown to our table in the dining room. I had a wonderful seafood risotto with squid, a few types of fish, prawns and crab with a glass of bubbly! Tamsyn was thrilled to have a âtotoâ (kid) menu and of course choose a pasta dish so was super happy. Mark was craving beef and was excited to try the filet mignon which did not disappoint, and Oriana who is usually quite adventurous in her food choices, played it safe and went for a pasta dish which she enjoyed. We were all stuffed but managed to share a delicious piece of frozen mango cheesecake. While at the restaurant a freak rain shower happened soaking many of the guests. We were lucky to be seated under a thatched roof so not impacted by the shower as they rejigged the tables to get people out of the rain. Again a wonderful day enjoying this laid back, beachy town!
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Day 25- On the Water
I think today is going to be one of the more memorable days of the trip, which is saying a lot! A perfect day of sailing, snorkeling and good, fresh food! We have been admiring the wooden boats which are called Dhows. Of course with his boat builder roots, Mark has been looking at them and talking to people about the design, how they are built (there are three different types of wood used) and how they sail with their unusual mast-boom alignment. For our trip, our three person crew had a Mozambique style Dhow which is beamier/wider than the more sleek, racing Lamu style. As we made our way up the mangrove lined channel, our captain Mohab told us about the history of this family. His people originally came from Oman and were on a smaller island before the Portuguese killed their king and they fled to Lamu Island (hundreds of years ago). His family is one of the eight original families in Shela. Â
About an hour in, his fishing rod got a hit and he was able to reel in a nice sized Grouper, nothing like fresh fish for lunch!
The channel, which lays along side the mainland, we sailed up was dredged to allow for bigger boats to come in and also to ensure that it was always passable. Previously, there were elephants and other animals that would come seasonally and would walk across to the islands at high tide.
With the warm breeze powering us, we had a lovely sail resting on the day bed and cushions laid out on the boat. When we got to the reef, we were the first boat to arrive so when we jumped we had everything to ourselves. Tamsyn is new to snorkeling, when we were in the British Virgin Islands a few years ago she wasnât comfortable wearing her mask and snorkel so just floated around on the surface, but she sure has the hang of it now! Many times, I had to grab her by the flipper and motion for her to slow down. She was the first to spot a giant clam! We ended up seeing a few others, a new sight for me! Similar to our experience elsewhere in the world, the coral is having a tough time. There were a few spots where the brilliant yellow or florescent purple coral seemed to be growing but mostly it was white and looked quite dead. They had a tsunami come through in 2004 and this did a lot of damage to the coral but it sounds like it wasnât doing that great even before that. That said, we saw a number of fish- loads of blue parrot fish, sergeant fish, angel fish, what I think may be damselfish, robust ghost pipefish (that I thought was some kind of floating seaweed), a blue fish with a black dot near the tail that I must have discovered as no one else knows that I am describing and schools of tiny fish which I canât name and a bunch of others that I canât even remember how to describe. We had Orianaâs underwater camera, however; the clarity wasnât great so not sure I will be able to identify more. Additionally, we saw sea urchins, and various coral such as: stag horn coral, wavy branched pavona, brain and of course others, those are the only ones I recognize.
After our snorkel, (by the time we got out of the water most of the boats that had arrived were now leaving), we had a beautiful lunch. Grilled grouper and squid, mango salad and my new favourite chipatis! We washed it all down homemade Tamarind juice which I quite like! It almost has an iced tea flavour.
It was a great sail back to Shela. Both girls took the helm and learned how hard it is to keep a course when all you can see is mangroves and more mangroves. Mark also took a turn asking all about how to tack or jib the boat with this style of rig, how to trim the cotton sails where there no winches and more. Both the captain and Mark think any other boats in the near vicinity means a race, so the race was on (we did overtake both of them eventually).
That night we had arranged for Nyama to cook dinner at the house and he grilled a red snapper and served it with coconut rice. The sauce he made to accompany it was amazing! I have to say, Swahili cooking has way more flavour that the traditional Kenyan foods we have experienced to date!
After dinner, the girls wanted to watch a movie and my request was some tie to Africa so they picked Madagascar 3. A fun finish to another great day!
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