THE COAST TRIP

Hi all,

Long time no see! I just came back from my one week trip to the Kenyan coast yesterday.

The trip was great! But my sunburn is terrible. As I told you, we were 7(3 Japanese, 2 Scottish, 1 Chinese, 1 Dutch). We left Nairobi for Mombasa on Friday on a train, then went to the North along the coast visiting Malindi, Watamu, Lamu. I can write a lot about each of the days, but let me just tell you about highlights of the trip.

Vasco da Gama Pillar in Malindi; the famous sailor is said to have built the monument on the sea shore of Malindi. The sea, the beach, the sky were not white but grey when I visited there and it was windy, but it made the white cross even whiter and look serene.

Lamu; it's really a small island town, having only one car, the main road being less than 300 meteres long, most streets being as narrow as for one way. But it is registered as the World Heritage. For what? For its distinct atmosphere, I think.
The culture of the coast is quite different from the other parts of Kenya, with Muslim residents. I felt the difference the most in Lamu. Men are dressed with a hut, long white dress, while women with a black Buibui(in which you only show your eyes to others). Restaurants are closed during daytime, because now it's the season of Ramadhan(actually we had some troubles finding food!). Many people are not as black as those in Nairobi, under the influence of Arab countries. Historically, Lamu(and many coastal cities) experienced the rules of Bantu people, Arab emirates, Britain in this order, so its culture can be expressed as a kind of mixture.
Anyway, it was a cozy town.

By the way, my departure is just around the corner, in fact two days later. I need to say many goodbyes from now. I really hope I will see my Kenyan or other foreign friends.

See you and take care,
Kei