All roads lead to Nairobi....

All roads may lead to Nairobi – but not very many of them are good for driving on!

Had wonderful 11 hour sleep to make up for the odd 20 minute burst during the overnight flight to Dubai ( 33 deg C at 7 in the morning), and then onward flight to Nairobi.

Megan from St. Cuthbert’s, Preston had arranged to meet me at the Methodist Guest House, and with one of her team colleagues drove me to AIM Nairobi Guest House. I think I should have tried to arrange to stay there: it would have cut out two hairy journeys on Nairobi’s highways, and with the MGH proudly proclaiming it was a Christian institution, where no alcohol would be allowed on site, there was no opportunity to get hold of a nerve-calming single malt! All of these guest houses were protected by gates and security staff who all had a very intimidating military-like appearance.

Megan took me along to meet those members of her AIM TIMO team who were not poorly – Joseph, Safia, Christy, Angelica, Jose – at one of their regular team meetings where they share studies and readings. This meeting was mainly given over to discussing their study programme for the final 6 months of their time together. They all sent waved greetings back to Preston.

And then it was off with some of them for a 2for1 Wednesday lunch burger, (all deference to my recently diagnosed diabetes is on hold until this adventure is over), and some wonderful chat especially with Joseph, before back to MGH dodging potholes, pedestrians and lane-hopping matatus.

So what about the iron road?

An early start with James, the MGH driver, saw us in rush hour Nairobi – without the traffic it would be a lovely place. He drove me through very leafy suburbs, past the university and state house, and never lost his cool – or his wing mirror! He dropped me off at the Kenya Railway Museum – the access road to which past the main railway station has to be experienced to be believed. Is there a collective noun for matatus – the little minibuses – a nightmare? I had allowed more than enough time, before James was going to come back, so had a gentle couple of hours looking at a very small museum – some of the more interesting exhibits are shown here. Also enjoyed the company of an university undergraduate studying tourism and doing a vacation an internship in this quite derelict place, where on a good day they might see 15 visitors.

Then, no more than a quick journey to Wilson airport for the internal Air Kenya flight to Malindi via Lamu. What a treat, no hassle at security or check-in – in fact the really friendly security guard then walked with me back out of the departure lounge room with cushioned benches) and out of the airport main gates to a place where I could change USD to Kenya Shillings. Dollars are not really much use here – esp. big notes, the KES is a much stronger currency, it just takes a bit of getting used to with one too many zeros as 100KES = £1. Mobile phone texts 10p to UK and 3p local calls.

Sat and watched luggage stowed onboard 30-seater turbo prop plane, whilst a number of school trips had a good look around – from on the tarmac! There was no mad scramble for seats – only 14 passengers! 2 hours and one stop off en route) Lamu departure lounge!) saw me greeted by taxi driver Chula who drove the 30 mins to Arocha where I was given a lovely warm welcome by quite a number of the staff.

Getting acclimatized

Belinda told me this was the coolest room on the Arocha site, but nevertheless still very warm by Preston UK standards, so fitful sleep after supper of pilau rice and tomatoes. Met some very interesting fellow guests – Andrew studying as an undergraduate in environmental sciences in USA, a native Kenyan intending to return to Kenya after completing his studies; Nick and Kylie ( Check out their amazing blog on http://www.afrojaunt.co.za/) travelling overland in their 4-wheeldrive from South Africa stayed a couple of days, and they kindly invited me to go snorkelling with them, but I managed about 1 metre from the shore before having to give up – you can’t wear glasses in snorkel goggles, and without glasses nothing can be seen!

However, the early morning beach was packed with these crabs, and I did not need glasses to hear the monkeys on the roof disturbing my mid-morning snooze - I am still getting acclimatized!

Spent an hour or so with Stanley, Tsofa, John, Rony and Colin as they tried to work out a funding application strategic document for the Arocha ASSETS scheme, which provides bursaries to enable local primary school children to attend high school. The deal for them is that their families agree to not cut down trees for domestic use or unnecessary land clearance, that they won’t use traps to catch bush meat, and that they won’t use illegally small fishing nets. Apparently, an international charity donated a large number of mosquito nets in the Malindi area, many of which were being used instead to catch fish in the Mida Creek.

It was a fisherman in Mida Creek that had accidentally caught this

four year old Green Turtle that was brought back to the beach at Mwamba for re-release. This was the beach where it had hatched, and had survived the 1 in 1000 chance of reaching reproductive maturity. Mida Creek is the nearby water-way which provides an abundance of food for juvenile turtles.