DAY16:23/08/10 ( Bamburi Beach: Mombasa)

Morning: For the very first time in many days we slept-in and did not have to be up@ 08:00, we went down to the pool side for breakfast.
Our breakfast was made up of a bowl of wheatbiscuits and flakes cold milk, then Spanish eggs and toast (brown) bread with some bacon and susages which we politely ignored.

The hotel staff were so nice you wondered if they were real people, but yes they were and very much so when they are not on the job (we ran into Ali whom we nicknamed Alibaba, once and he was supper nice on the street too, big smile very warm and happy interaction with us)

Joan had a cup of Kericho tea while I had some coffee (we drank our cups with relish reflecting flavor of the time we spent with the people who actually grow and havest these products-we passed a tea plantation near Sotik on our way to Sondu some couple of days back.

Days flow quite slowly here and we did our best to make the most of them. We went out to the shopping mall to buy some food stuff and had to take the famous Matatu (mini bus) for 20 Ksh. (20cents)

Noon: We went for a walk on the beach but most of us were disappointed when we saw how dirty and how unkempt the place was, but strange enough Peter and Raquel loved it and seemed trilled by how soft and sweet the sand was and we all agreed that the people were super nice and friendly and quite entertaining

We haggled with sellers of divers gift items; we also got a good deal to go out and see the marine park and to do some snorkeling.

Some of us had some issues with the whole process of haggling for everything, but it was fun for me and I enjoyed it a lot and I bet the people here love to have that human exchange that is very central to the African way of life.


Evening: We went on a 10 min ride on the Matatu (mini bus) to the Nakumatt shopping mall to buy some groceries and to have a look around

We found the place to be nice and neat.

We made our own lunch in the penthouse kitchen and sat around the table for lunch like one happy family. (Joan and I went out, sometime later to check out some of the nearby hotels and were amazed at how much price value we have at Kahama and wondered how they managed to keep the prices as low as under $17 per person/night (minimum room price) Cecilia and Joan made the food while Caesar and I help with some other tasks.

Joan was not feeling very strong so we let her have some rest and prayed for her speedy recovery

Night: We all went downstairs to the bar area to hang out while they sprayed the apartment with insecticides to eliminate the mosquitoes .

Peter and Raquel were already there having a drink and watching the Manchester Liverpool match on big screen.

Marina and Cecilia were there together while Caesar was nowhere to be found, probably he had gone back to his room early?

Joan and I chatted a bit with our new-found German friend Wagner who has two wonderful daughers of which the oldest is Melanie (11yrs) and her younger sister.

He told us that he works with some Lutheran ministers around the Oyugis area where we had spent about 3 days during our mission outreach. He gave us some of the contact addresses and phone numbers. He and his daughters will be heading to Eldoret by weekend he said.

I found it quite amazing how he handled the girls alone, because their mother who is Kenyan, was back in Germany while he stayed back with the girls.

" Kenya Kaptivated"

We had ample time to share our mission and vision for the people of Kenya and found some helpul insights in what he shared about his own experience working here for the past 12 years.

It was crystal clear to us that there is something captivating about this place and about the people that keep you hooked once you've had a taste of it. Our prayer is that God keep the fire of our passion burning to glorify Him among the nations of this region.