I took a trip to Kisite-Mpunguti Marine National Park, a protected wildlife area that covers part of the sea on the far south of Kenya’s coast, close to the border with Tanzania. It is one of the most beautiful places I have been to, and was so good that I went twice, making the trips […]
I found a video of driving in Kitengela. The video starts a bit slowly as it begins on the outskirts of town, but gets much more interesting after the first minute. It shows places I used to go to all the time, like Eastmatt – and after 3:00 (and once the truck moves that is […]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=egZToiVIDvM&feature=endscreen Video: Travelling through the region of Kenya where I lived, to a Swahili music soundtrack. This video is of driving from Nairobi towards the Kajiado province, in which Kitengela lies. It begins on the Nairobi to Mombasa highway, then takes a turning off south towards Athi River. This road is very similar to the […]
On Tuesday I packed, played football and Lego with Peter, and walked through Kitengela for the last time, on its market day, saying goodbye to the litter-strewn streets and the roadworks rising out of the dust. I left Kitengela in the evening just after Storm Over Paradise had started. David drove me to the airport, and […]
My last day in Kenya. Strangely I feel a bit sick and nervous just like I did before I came here. It’s because the whole world is about to change for me… in the next 24 hours… and Nothing will be the same. I am also looking forward to it, to getting home and seeing […]
Just before sunset yesterday I left my hotel in Nkrumah Road, Mombasa. I took a tuktuk to the station, booked in and got onto the train. I tried to read my book during the one and a half hour wait that followed, as the train sat in the station, but it was far too hot […]
Today is Jamhuri Day, Independence day in Kenya. All the shops are closed, apart from the large supermarkets. Yesterday I walked to Fort Jesus and sat on the harbour wall looking out to sea. There are old, rusting canons strewn about everywhere around the Fort, even some laying on the small, rocky beach. And lots […]
Last week I spent my remaining time on Diani swimming in the sea, reading (Amitav Ghosh’s The Glass Palace – incredible book!) and eating. In my delight at having a kitchen I cooked three large, warm meals per day, and put on lots of weight, reclaiming all the pounds I had lost during the previous […]
So much has happened in the past few days. The first thing is the weather has changed and is now so extremely hot that it’s worthy of comment. It began on Sunday afternoon, and through Monday it was almost unbearable. It probably sounds like a lot of fun to you who are stuck in winter-gripped […]
On Saturday I went on a marine safari to Kisite Marine Reserve. I got picked up in a private touring matatu from my cottage at 7.15am, and we drove along the strip picking up other passengers from their hotels. This also enabled me to see some of the other hotels along the strip – some […]
Four days ago I left Kitengela behind me, and set off alone into the big wide world. I took the matatu to Nairobi, but having caught it halfway along the road in Kitengela I didn’t realise it wasn’t from the matatu stand in town, but had come on a different route. This route ended up […]
All my bank problems have finally been resolved, and I am so happy! For a week I have had no access to any money… but now I have a new pin and my card is actually working in an ATM here in Kitengela! The good old Kenya Central Bank (KCB) has given me cash…! Now […]
Today I have returned to Kitengela. Sophie and I have been travelling for the past six days, we have seen and done so much, both been ill, crossed a border and got a new stamp in our passports, and are now very tired after the adventure. On Friday 6th we travelled from Kitengela to Kericho, […]
Last Sunday two things happened: there was a nationwide power cut across Kenya, and the rains finally arrived in (and flooded) Kitengela. The internet has been down since last Saturday so I am really excited that today I can blog again! It’s 4.25pm and I have just got back from school. Last weekend was quite […]
So I have arrived in Kenya, and met my lovely host family. I’m living in Kitengela, a small, rapidly growing town about 30km (19 miles) south of Nairobi. Today was my first day at school. It was overwhelming meeting the kids as they all attached themselves to me and took me off to classrooms 1-4 […]