28/11
If m\Malindi beach (north of Mombasa) is little Italy because of all the Italians then Diani beach is little Germany. The charming mix of grumpy retirees and quarelling tourists makes me proud! This is topped though by the beach boys. As soon as you step on the nearly deserted white sand one of them pops up from somewhere tells you that he is a specialist in making key chains or some other things you really really need. I still remember the beach boys being very persistant 10 years ago but today they do it in nearly perfect German. "Wir sind alle die selben! Nur Hautfarbe anders. Brauchst keine Angst haben wir fressen keine Menschen."
On Friday night we took a bus at 9:30 to spend 4 nights in Diani beach before Anne leaves on the 5th of December. We found a bus company that treated us to a snack, drinks, a movie, pillows and mos surprising of all it was actually an intact bus. Once again however, what I once waved off as a stereotype came true again as the inside of the bus was at least 40 degrees. Africans need a sweater and a winter jacket when the temperature drops below 30. "Can you even leave the house when it is 0 degrees or do you freeze?" Is a common question I have heard 5 times already. This made it practically impossible to get a good rest. We arrived at 5 in the morning and somehow managed to get to the ferry that brings you back to the main land. It was still dark and we just wanted to get to Diani so we will have to get a good look at the city one of these days.
The beach is beautiful. Although a little rocky the sand is white, the palm trees give you the little shade you need, there is a cave like place on the beach where you could even have dinner if you carried a table down and the cottage is 30 seconds away from all that. Another unique thing about Diani and especially our cottage (www.vindigocottages.com) is the amount of monkeys. To observe them when they are far away is interesting as the similarity in human/monkey gestures is extremely funny but their eagerness to steal all sorts of things is less funny. So far we have lost 5 bananas, a bread and pieces of mango. If the beach boys were to disappear miraculously (by the government creating some jobs for example...) it would be more than idylic. The only thing missing is Caroline.
Lets rewind time. On Friday last week Musyoki, Peter and I drove to Nairobi. I had invited the two latter to experience "my" food, which however was doomed due to complications in actually getting there so we ate at Java House instead. Great food but established as the first coffee house by Americans it had things from Mexico and the US on the menu. This did not really matter however as both ordered in Swahili and the only thin I understood was "kuku" and "chips": friend chicken and fries. The experience of eating different food was apparently not tempting enough and so it all turned into eating the known things just better quality. At least something! They were greatful and happy though. Anne and I stayed with other volunteers we met there when Musyoki and Peter had to leave.
After that Anne, Laetitia and I went back to the KVDA house to see KK and Moses again who greated us warmly. I heard from Syvia that they were planning to have a BBQ that evening and Laetitia joined Anne and I, the weekend could not have started better.
The remaining days with the Moellers remained that good with a cinema visit and me being invited to Muthaiga Country Club for a buffet, pool and the Kibaki family (the president for those of you that do not read the news) family celebrating the baptism of their daughter, accompanied by 5 black Mercedes and 2 military jeeps. Ironic that the president chooses to celebrate in one of the last symbols of colonialism.
On Thursday the seminar started at the KVDA house and we spent two days exchanging our good but mostly bad experiences. It was nice to meet the other volunteers but the stories were less delightful. One girl nearly got raped by her host father, another heard from the orphans she was sent to help about the daily abuse they had to live with, a third was kicked out of his host family because the money did not arrive and he nearly had to sleep on the street and Konstantin is still in jail in Mombasa.