safari ya kenya :: Day 6 :: in Marereni and Malindi

Tuesday, June 17

Today we had breakfast on our porch. Then we went back to Halima's house and said goodbye to Mama Esther. We had a short conversation, interpreted by Rod.

As we left, we stopped by Joyce's store. She was so excited to see Rod! He actually did hug her. Halima prodded Rod to buy several things, for her, Mama, her daughter, and me.

We finally got out of the store and went to wait for a matatu to take us to Malindi. Katoto went with us. He seemed to wait for a driver he knew (he is also a matatu driver) so he could have a free ride. It was a long ridiculous wait, pointless for Rod and me.

In Malindi, Francis met us at the bus station, took us to a hotel where we could stay - you can get a single room with a view of the Indian Ocean for $10/night. The one he took us to is not near the ocean, but they serve breakfast for no extra charge.

We had lunch at Francis' house, under a mango tree. Then he took us to check email. I got Mom's measurements and we passed them on to Beaty. She had already finished Mama Esther's dress!

We stopped in a Safari place to see what a Safari would cost. There is a big park nearby - Tsavo East and Tsavo West - where safari tours go. But a 1 night / 2 day trip cost 25,000 KSHS. We don't have that much money.

Rod's nephew Moses works near that safari office and internet place. So we sat at a nearby cafe and drank sodas with him and Francis. They all went to Mombasa Baptist High School together. Moses was one year behind Francis and Rod.

We missed naptime, so we got some take out from that cafe (which is little black plastic bags of food) and went to our hotel to have a nice easy evening.