White sand, Blue sea and a camel….. A Beach in Kenya
Kenya, a land divided by the Equator, leaving it half in the Southern hemisphere and half in the Northern Hemisphere. Its coast line is one of the nicest on the African continent. It boasts some of the best beaches. It has been and still is a major sea port country. It was responsible for most of the trade in the days of the Arabic, Indian and Persian times. It still is a major port and that is the reason why we are here.
I had originally hoped to ride from Cape Town to Cairo and then ship to Turkey and ride back to Europe. But Ethiopia has closed it’s borders. It demands a hefty 600 US dollars nonrefundable fee to cross the border for the bike. But also the border into Sudan is closed. It is impossible to go further North on this route. This is a popular route for travelers or overlanders as they are known by. Everyone is stuck in Kenya. People returning to Europe are shipping to Oman and crossing Iran or Iraq to get back to Europe again. I had seriously considered doing this but on weighing up all the factors I decided to cut the trip short and ship back to Rotterdam. There were a number of factors that made me decide to do this. The most important being the bike. Tiggy moondust has been really fantastic, never missing a beat but there are a number of little problems that have to be fixed. One is my clutch, it is starting to slip. I am carrying a spare set of plates and gaskets so that is not a major issue. She is also having some starting issues and I am not sure if it is the battery or the starter solenoid. I would have to get it to a workshop to run some tests. But if it is the solenoid then I would have to wait for one to come from Europe or South Africa. My cam chain is also rattling and I am not sure if it is the automatic tensioner or the chain. Once again I would need to strip it and look and wait for parts. I also have a massive dent in my front wheel, courtesy of Zimbabwe and a busted front mudguard held in place by duct tape and zip ties. All in all we are not looking our best. We need to hole up somewhere and do some major work. But also there is another little factor. Tiggy moondust is too heavy to be doing a lot of the roads that we did. She weighs in at 235 kg ready for the road. I am carrying 40 kg of luggage including water and food. The tiger 800 XC is a top heavy bike without the luggage and is not brilliant off road and I am also not brilliant off road. She is also from 2014 and she has done 136,000 km on really heavy roads in different parts of the world. A small part of that was done in Europe but the most is done outside of Europe. She is my travel bike. I have a Moto Guzzi Norge that I use in Europe. More on that later. Tiggy Moondust is going back to Rotterdam on a ship. But we are still in Kenya.
After being held up for a couple of hours with the puncture we, I was still travelling with Phil, got through the Uganda – Kenya border in good time.
It was kinda scattered. First we had to go to Uganda customs on the Uganda side to cancel out our Carnet.Then ride, drive to the Kenyan side to a one stop border to get our passports stampe d out of Uganda and then into Kenya. They also did a medical check… temperature and checked our yellow fever vaccinations. Then we had to search for Kenyan customs to get our carnets stamped. After a while we found them, they were in an office marked Uganda customs…. Yep role changing. Then we had to pay road tax 40 USD for Phil and 20 USD for me. This is was where the fun and games took place. They were a cashless office but also didn’t have credit card facilities. They gave us a paper and we had to go to a special bank inside Kenya, make the payment, they gave us another paper and we had to walk back to the customs post, who then stamped that paper and we were good to go. This in the hot sun, with me dressed in my bike gear. A fixer had offered his services early on and we refused him. He hung around pointing things out to us. I told him that I wasn’t gonna pay him but he just kept following us. He did show us were the bank was though and got us up front of the queues. I did relent and I gave him a tip.
We made it to Kismu and a place on the banks of lake Victoria called Dunga Hill Camp. This was a really neat little place with a good vibe. We were both starving by now and had a good dinner on the lakeside. Dunga hill camp is owned and run by a Dutch Kenyan couple. He is a biker. Every weekend they have live music. They offer basic camping facilities. It is a really nice place in a good location. I think that a weekend could be fun there.
One happy man with food, Phil …. Kismu…. Dunga Hill
Dunga Hill, Kismu on the banks of lake Victoria.
We had a long run to do About 350KM. It doesn’t seem like much and in European terms it’s just down the road. But out here distance is one thing but the Time that’s what matters. Google maps gives a constant driving time of over 6 hours to do this distance. Phil was the route planner and he led us on a merry little route. It went B1 to C34…one major potholed road to C35 really scenic to A104… main road bumper to bumper trucks.
Our next stop was Jungle Junction in Nairobi. Jungle Junction is really aptly named. It is named after the Disney cartoon series about a group of motorized, adventurous animals, living in the jungle. {In the series Zooter is a pink pig with two wheels, Hippobus is half hippopotamus and school bus and Ellyvan is an pink elephant on 4 wheels, just to name a few}. It is a meeting place for travelers from all over the world. It is run by Chris, a German biker, two dogs and his other half. Jungle Junction offers camping spots on level ground with green grass, dormitory rooms or private rooms. It is set in a really nice suburb of Nairobi, it is about 15 km outside Nairobi center.
Jungle Junction occupants Rosa Bussarna… a Swedish tour company
This truck belonged to a young German couple. It was outfitted in Holland. But there were some problems so the company flew out a technician, Willem from Breda, to fix them…. Service with air miles
I stayed here 3 nights, first two nights camping and the last night in a dorm as I wanted to pack my tent up totally dry. The place is amazingly clean and well equipped. A lot of travelers leave their vehicles here for extended periods of time when they fly home for a while. There is also full garage workshop facilities and a lot of people make use of this. Phil got his Toyota serviced. Chris is a trained BMW motorcycle mechanic and has a full blown motorcycle workshop on the premises.
Full blown motorcycle workshop of Chris…Jungle Junction
Jungle Junction is many things for many people. But one of it’s main functions is to serve as a meeting place for travelers. All roads seem to lead to Jungle Junction. On arriving, Phil had a happy reunion with two South Africans… Lynsey and Theo, in a Landcruiser with rooftop tent.
I also ended up chatting to two Saudi Arabian bikers on BMW’s. One of them was an enduro champion and knew how to handle his bike. He has a YouTube channel, I will try and post a link. They were really nice people.
Saudi Arabian biker at Jungle Junction, Nairobi
Saudi Arabian biker at Jungle Junction, Nairobi
These are their insta and YouTube channel
When South Africans meet they always immediately start setting fire to everything. They get the Braai thing… we call it a BBQ and a fire pit out. But I have to admit they really create some fantastic evenings around the camp fire and the Braai. I was invited and it was really good. Lynsey made some really nice grilled veggies and potatoes on the Braai and the men all set about setting fire to their meat. It was a fantastic meal and a really nice evening around the campfire sharing stories.
Campfire Jungle Junction…sharing stories
My little home scene…Jungle Junction, Nairobi
The next day we walked to Giraffe Manor and Giraffe center. The Giraffe center was created by “the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife”. This in it’s turn was the creation of the late Jock Leslie-Melville and Betty Leslie-Melville. It was created as a rescue center for the Rothschild giraffe that was threatened with extinction. It was also a way to educate people about the world’s tallest animal, the giraffe.
Giraffe at Giraffe Center
At the Giraffe Center you can interact with these fantastic animals. The entrance fee includes a bowl of food which you can then feed to the giraffes. There is also an info center where you can attend a lecture to learn more about these animals. It was really good.
Me feeding a Giraffe
Lynsey feeding a giraffe
We then attempted a hike in the nature area but everyone got bored quickly and went back to the camping. I carried on but it was not really a good hike. I ended up in the village drinking fresh fruit juice with the locals and having a good time.
Nature trail
Masai warrior on his mobile
I ended up in the village drinking fresh fruit juice with the locals and having a good time
Every evening, back on site, the South Africans lit a fire, cooked and invited me to join them. It was really fantastic. I have some fantastic memories of Jungle Junction, the little market and the camp fire with good people.
My camping spot in Jungle Junction
But it was time for me to move on to Mombasa. For the first time on this trip Tiggy Moondust refused to start, she didn’t want to leave. Chris came with a battery and we jump started her, even then with difficulty.
Mombasa is about 500 km away. Too much for one day. So I stopped off half way in a town called Mtito Andei. This area was famous for the two man eating lions. These lions held up the building of the Uganda railway in 1898. At night time they would drag a sleeping man out of his tent and drag him off into the bush. About 35 people disappeared before the lions were killed by an Irish military man and author Lt. Col. John Henry Patterson DSO. In his book, The man-eaters of Tsavo, he claimed that they ate 135 people but that is disputed. There was also a film made called the Ghost and the Darkness that was inspired by the Man eaters of Tsavo.
Tsavo Inn, Mtito Andei
In every little village you will find these communal games … Mtito Andei
Local busses, Mtito Andei
Mombasa is the deepest sea port from Africa and is a melting pot for Africans and foreigners alike. There is an old Swahili proverb that goes ”Mombasa is famous, but it’s waters are deep, so beware” Mombasa is intoxicating, it is a bit like Dar es Salam, a mixture of Arab, Persian and Indian. That all gives it a unique charm and feel. It is captivating. I was in contact with a shipping agent and delivered the bike off at his warehouse.
The Road to Mombasa
Tiggy Moondust arrived to shipping agents warehouse in Mombasa
The clearing agents
Tiggy Moondust… the star of the show
Then I was free to explore. I explored the old town. A maze of alleyways twisting and intertwining. I also visited the old Portuguese fort of Fort Jesus, this is an UNESCO world heritage site. Once the bike was safely in the warehouse I moved out to Mombasa beach. This beach and Nyali beach have kilometers of palm tree white sand with the Indian ocean lapping gently on it’s shores.
Sightseeing in Mombasa…Fort Jesus
Fort Jesus Mombasa
Harbour of Mombasa as seen from Fort Jesus
Old Town Mombasa
Streetscene Old Town Mombasa
Mombasa
Nyali Beach near Mombasa
Nyali Beach near Mombasa
There is a fast train running from Mombasa to Nairobi called the Madaraka Express. It is a hyper modern train built by the Chinese. They even built a special new track all the way to Nairobi. They also had to build new terminals at each end, because the Kenyan Railway is meter gauge and the new train is standard gauge. I took this train to get to Nairobi. It was nice and it passed through some really nice countryside.
Nairobi, a bustling thriving cosmopolitan town. With skyscrapers and shanty towns. It has a horrendous traffic problem. It’s layout defies logic yet people rave about it. It’s actually an ugly city as cities go. One thing about Nairobi is that its cold here. Night time temperatures drop to 14c. I have rented an apartment in the center. I need good WIFI and I need to do a few things. Visited the National museum and the Kenyan Railways museum. It was the railways that formed Kenya. The Uganda line running from Mombasa to Kampala crossed a river where they built a depot. The Maasai people called that river Enkare Nairobi, meaning cold waters. From that little shed a city was born. I have spent the last days writing this blog from my notes and making the photo album, but also wandering around town, taking in the sights, smells and sounds. The center is kinda modern and will ease the culture shock that I always experience on returning to Europe.
National Museum Nairobi
A Siwa… side blown horn made from Ivory and a symbol of unity. Swahili leaders were the sole Guardians and it was believed to process supernatural and magical powers.
His name was Sudan, the last male northern white rhino. With his death in 2018 the world witnessed the extinction of a subspecies robbed of its life and space to exist among other races in Africa.
Tanganika railways number 101 saw service up until 1970. It was also this engine that was used in the film “Out of Africa”
Jamia Mosque Nairobi
Nairobi
Nairobi bus
Get the kettle on, make a nice wee cup of tea, grab a creamy cake and your mouse and click your way through the like named photo album on my Facebook page. Facebook album Kenya 13-7 to 30-7-2023 Experience for yourself the sights of this fantastic country.
I really want to embrace in a warm hug, all you people that have been reading the blogs and looking at the photos. The silent ones and the ones who commented and reacted, thank you very much. You are all unique and special people who have shared a journey with me, through Southern and Eastern Africa. It goes to show that you, like me, share a desire and a longing for fun, adventure but above all to meet new people and new cultures. To share a moment in time with the locals in the villages and towns, to learn from them and to enrich our own lives and in so doing enrich the lives of our families and friends, slowly creating a better world without prejudice, fear and hate. A world of love, unity and understanding.
I am returning to Amsterdam for a short time. I will go to a music festival in England, The folk Fairport Cropredy Festival, then on to Hungary for a couple of weeks and then, late October, November, on to a new destination that is already planned out… well kinda… I am not so good at planning. So watch this space
Harkuna Matata Marafiki … A Swahili expression meaning there are no problems my friends. My real time location is back in Amsterdam. Asante Sana… Swahili for thank you very much