Mombasa, Kenya
Alemitu went off the ship for an overnight safari. She looked good, although she did her laundry last night so didn’t get much sleep. She will be rooming with one of the cruise staff, only a few years older than she and a native of Peru. Should be fun.
One of the nurses had the morning off and wanted to go into town, so I agreed to accompany her. She was on a mission to buy souvenirs, whereas, I was there to look. I don’t need anything new in my house! Plus, most of the things they are selling they were selling duplicates 30 years ago.
We took the shuttle bus into town and walked to the fort. On the way a guide attached himself to us and no matter what we tried to do, he would not budge. At first it was annoying, but since he was a pleasant fellow, he began to grow on us. After 3 hours, he was almost family! Anyway, he spouted history, led us thru alleyways to shops we would never have found, and eventually started showing us around “old town” which is much like Zanzibar with narrow, labyrinthine walkways, overhung by fresh laundry, full of mud and rubble. We saw markets like crazy, many Muslims in full garb, and smelled the putrid fish market. After a very short time, the nurse and I were lost. I began to get a little frightened because I would never have found my way out, but our fearless guide managed to get us back to where we needed to be so we could catch a car back to the ship. My friend had bought something more expensive than she had anticipated, so the shop owner let us use her driver and car to drive back to the ship where the driver waited until we returned with the money. The transaction was completed and we both collapsed from the heat and humidity. She, however, had to give up her wooden purchase for several days because the ship is freezing all wooden objects to kill the critters which inhabit them.
Win
March 5, 2006
Mombasa
Alemitu has returned with stories galore – many of them involving insects.
Security here on board has changed since we left Cape Town. We now have a security officer on desk 24 hours a day. The usual frogmen are here, but still most of the security is unobserved. Carter speaks with the officers all the time, so I am probably a little more aware than others. The men are particularly visible on the back end of the ship because there is less view for the officers on the bridge.
The dock area close to the ship is filled with vendors who have set up their wares on the ground. Many of the things are the same as the next guy’s, but the people are very friendly and very persistent. Alemitu is getting tired of them greeting her as “my sister”. They all promise a “good price” and Carter is in his element bargaining for hours. I just couldn’t stand the heat, so I left him with Alemitu and they continued the “work”. They will enter the room with their booty and be so proud of the prices they paid. As expected, Alemitu is stunning in her purchases. They definitely look more natural on brown skin.
Winnie
posted by Hills @ 12:16 PM
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