Trains - Planes - Automobiles - Tuk Tuks

Well the train trip to Mombassa turned out to be one of the more "interesting" and TIA (this is Africa) of my times here - 25 hours after leaving our home we finally arrived at Watamu - 2 hours from Mombassa where we were staying. Taxi - train - taxi - plane - taxi - matatu - tuk tuk. I have now been on all modes of transort EXCEPT the motorbike and not sure if I am game enough for that - although I could have to do that to get back on Sunday. Why would I want to come home after experiencing all this FUN. Got to swim for the first time in a lovely bay and then a pool, the thin air is doing me good I think - and saw some awesome countryside - so much like Australia, the red dirt and cactus of the outback - how can I be homesick? Saw many different villages and people and ways of living as well as Mombassa - by the way, don't bother planning a trip there - the two rubbish dumps in the middle of town really don't do anything for those who can smell at all! Found a quiet beach far from everything the last night we were there - was absolutely beautiful - enjoy the pics, they will tell the story (sorry some are sideways and don't have time to change them now). And yes, saw my first snake - right next to the car - a big cobra - reared up at us. Amazing!

Yep a big cobra rearing up at us right next to the car. I was even excited and not scared!

Beach Babe - last beach we stayed at - was beautiful

At the train station - I think I was upper class!

Naa didn't even look in here!

Joy and I in our compartment ready to travel - excited as teenage girls on their first trip!

Got off the train after the 11 hour stop and had to have a look around. As you can see, the seat needs a few repairs

All Aboard - Boarding the train for the first time

All aboard again - BACK to Nairobi

And ... the train loo



Waiting - will this train ever move again???

I know you aren't supposed to do this but hey who could resist - had to watch all the animals, gazelle, wildebeest, zebra, etc - sooooo much fun

The slum areas right beside the train tracks



Tuk Tuk ride - reminiscing of our time in the tuk tuks in Thailand together

This hartebeest wasn't impressed I was walking in his territory and was snorting at me

Like a true Maasai (note the shuka over my shoulder) - looking towards Mount Kilimanjaro (I saw it behind the clouds)

My shuka was a great accessory as it was rather chilly in the early morning on the mountain

Elephants had passed before us

camping for the night - just in case it rained as we didn't want to put up the tent flys

Yep I went in the cave - then looked down and noticed all the animal footprints and realised lions and leopards LOVE caves - so I didn't go where it was so dark I couldn't see!

Slum areas beside the train tracks coming into Nairobi

Tuk Tuk stuck in the sand - I think we were a little too heavy!

More slum areas coming into Nairobi

ditto - notice the "shops" right beside the tracks

A very old part of Mombassa town - historical area - very narrow alley ways

And yes you have high level and low level toilets!

Could this be the Aussie outback?

Walking the beach - beautiful - but heaps of weed

Sunset looking out over the beach from our verandah - Tiki Beach

Will we make the bridge?

One of the two rubbish dumps in Mombassa - the smell from BOTH was totally disgusting!

Gorgeous little girl in the back alleys

Stop for lunch beside the road

Mangoes - $3.50 for the whole container full

Monkeys always turn up everywhere

This is how you carry your water on a motor bike and this is where you dump the gravel/dirt to fix the road, and leave it here for 6 months until you get more money to go ahead and fix it - fun trying to navigate through this - with vehicles coming in the opposite direction

In an old ruins of Gede - an ancient town mainly from the Arabians and Somalis - Muslim - in the early 1300's

Star fish I found - I even picked it up!

Sunset view from my window at Watamu