Jannat House Lamu

... some emergency US dollars. Dan please bring us some more I think you have better bring 400, as the cashpoints are often unfriendly. Anyway, when we arrived in the pouring rain, we found that Lamu has installed one cashpoint since the Lonely Planet 2006 edition was written and it was a friendly one. Our next new friend, Ali ...

... our goals and had a few beers in the middle of the day...at this really cool outdoor beer garden kind of place, chatted with a masai guy who was going to university... heard his awesome lion hunting stories! And.... We also snuck into the Hilton to use their bathrooms. Well... we didn't exactly sneak in. Given that dignitaries stay at the Hilton and Nairobi has a history of bombings.... You enter into the hotel through high security surveillance... metal detectors etc. I just ...

... aus Afrikan**n, Arab**n und Ind**n. Die waren einst an d** gesamten ostafrikanischen Kuenste von Somalia bis Tansania vorzufinden, ab** besond**s seit dem 20. Jahrhund**t haben sich dort wied** mehr und mehr "normale" Afrikan** angesiedelt, was "echte" Suaheli besond**s in Kenia eh** zur Seltenheit machte. Nicht ab** auf Lamu. Dazu ist jeglich** motorisi**t** V**kehr auf d** Insel v**boten; die einzigen Fahrzeuge sind d** Range Rov** des Commission**s ...

... so lots of people had come to watch loved ones graduate. It was nice to see families together dressed very smartly, with graduates wearing the gowns and mortar boards, swanning their way through the traffic, as walking was much faster. It didn’t help that Trixie and I got the last two back seats on a matatu, and when you are above average height, a) you can’t get your legs in the gap between the seat in front of you and b) you can’t fit ...

... the police. Yup. Gotta love it. The police run the 'take away' liquor store. This is definitely an 'off the beaten path' kind of place. There are not enough tourists here to beat a path! There's no traffic (heck, there's no cars, only donkeys!), no TV, barely any internet access (about 3 or 4 tiny internet places with awfully slow connections) and not a whole lot of night life. The primary mode of transport here is foot ...

... t et si on ne fait pas de mouvement brusque, on peut les approcher suffisamment pour les photographier... Ils sont si mignons et leurs regards transpirent l'intelligence... ... après, je suis rentré en matatu faire une sieste à mon hôtel, pendant laquelle un sentiment de méfiance s'est développé quant à mon capitaine. Vers 7h, je croise notre ami par hasard qui me dit que nous partons le lendemain matin au levé du soleil et que je peux dormir sur le bateau, qu'à cela ...

We know, two entries in two days, but we're catching up with ourselves. After the safari and Nairobi, we hopped on the coach to Mombasa another hot and dusty ride. We stayed there for two days, saw an old Portuguese colonial fort called Fort Jesus. It was ok to look around, but expensive for what was there. Also we went on a day when there was a group of Kenyan students having a field trip there and they all kept approaching us and ...

... for this scam and saved a few other tourists from being caught out. In 2001 Lamu was added to Unesco's list of World Heritage Sites. The winding streets, carved wooden doors and traditional houses surrounding you are simply captivating. It's a different world wandering around the narrow lanes immersed in the sights, aromas, sounds and energy of a bygone era that seems to have stood still. The only motorized transport on the island is a white Land ...

... t* c*me. Result: L*ads *f en**gy spent ****ing up ev**y *pp*rtunity given t* me! That is the st*ry *f my life. Test aft** test, **** up afit** **** up! But still having fun. And y*u kn*w what! Bring it *n! If it is g*ing t* be like that, I have learned t* be ready! N* need t* c*mplain! N* need t* try t* change things! Because my brain leads me t* wr*ng directi*ns, I will c*ntinue using my heart f*r a guide. I make decisi*ns in my life just by l**king ...

... The town is very muslim and the mosque beside the hotel (literally next door) looked lovely during the day. However when the call to prayers was blasting out of the loudspeaker at 4.30am, I was cursing it. Also the local donkey decided this was a good time to start screaming too. Perhaps he was just saying his prayers. Needles to say after a few mornings of this we were ready to send that donkey to the ER ...