It’s been a minute, Mombasa “001”
Earlier this month I had a visit down at the coast. Part of the reason was to debut on the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR). I know I am late into the game, but better late than never. The journey starts with the first stop at the railways’ station in the Nairobi Central Business district (CBD) to board a train to Syokimau. The ride was not that smooth, but the trip was somewhat soothing, where you can listen to music or chill. The Syokimau Nairobi Terminus ushers you in with a view similar to the airport. The size of the terminus is an embodiment of the vast infrastructure projects President Uhuru has undertaken during his term. My booking was for the Thursday 10 pm train and I was amazed by the sheer number of commuters. At precisely 10 pm, we hit the rail and 5hrs 35mins later; we were in Mombasa. The train journey is quick, safe and pocket friendly at 1,000 Ksh for an economy class ticket.
Of course, you guessed it, my accommodation was an Airbnb apartment in Bamburi, Mwembeni. Bamburi area has upcoming new modern apartments which are attractive to working professionals to live in. I enjoyed sampling the local delicacies in restaurants and entertainment joints during my stay. On Friday, I thoroughly enjoyed biryani, which left me licking my fingers. Bamburi Nightlife is just on another level. A stretch of 700m by my rough count had 12 clubs. Clubs and restaurants are more than shops.
I preferred using public transport, a mix of matatu and tuk-tuk. Matatus and bongo music are synonymous. While heading to Haller park on seeing the gate and the driver was accelerating I shouted from the back of the Matatu, “Shukisha Haller park!” The conductor responded while banging the door, “Oya! Bwaga huyu mtu wa bara”. I had just given up my identity that I am from Nairobi. After the roasting by the conductor, I had to reset my vocabulary: mandazi is mahamri,cooked rice is wali, that’s it. I am good to go. Another exciting term is Nyanya is for granny; for them, they say tomato.
Haller Park is a rehabilitated quarry developed and maintained by Bamburi cement company. I felt it looked similar to the National Museum, which gives you a zoo-like experience with animals such as giraffes, hippos, turtles, crocodiles, snakes, and a butterfly pavilion. The icing on the cake is a feeding show in the afternoon for giraffes, crocodiles and hippos.
I had a chance to visit the new temporary Likoni floating bridge. While I was walking, I could feel and understand the importance of the infrastructure project that Uhuru keeps talking about in his speeches on the news. The bridge is used as a substitute for the ferry for the public. The trip isn’t complete until you visit the Moi avenue Tusks. Yeah, this place is Iconic growing up. If you wanted to know someone was at the coast, you just had to view the album when you visited them and see a photo of someone with the tusks in the background. So yes, I had to keep up with the tradition.
To wrap up the day, together with a couple of friends, we went out to the new VIP Volume Club, the talk of town owned by former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko. The club epitomizes luxury and class. I remember when the Uber driver came and asked “Mwaenda wapi?’’ When we told him VIP Volume Club, he jokingly said “Endeni muone pesa ya Nairobi county ilikuwa inaenda wapi?”
Whenever someone (my siblings and friends) was calling and I told them I was down at the coast, they were on my case to carry something back for them. The first thing that came to mind was coconuts, but that would be too heavy for me. So I brought achari, mabuyu and tende. Plus Dera for my sis and mum, which was quite weird there were only two sizes, large and medium.
That marked the end of the short and exciting visit. I am not done yet; there is a lot to explore next time, like seafood and returning to the beach, which I skipped intentionally.
So what else should I sample next time and what is it that you find peculiar or interesting while at the coast? Please leave a comment and subscribe for more blog posts.