The Coast...part 3

Although it may sound like we spend the whole of the vacation diving, we did get out of the hotel once in awhile. One of our first excursions was to Arabuko Sokoe National Park. This is a forest that has very diverse plant life and very distinct boundary lines where one part of the park vegetation starts and one ends. We took a quick morning hike around the nature preserve and scrambled up a tree house to get a bird's eye view of the forest. Being scared of heights, the tree house definitely tested my fear. Normally I am fine with heights as long as I feel secure. The missing steps, rickety wood and wobbling tower definitely did not omit that security. Although we didn't see many animals it was nice to get out of the hotel and stretch our legs a bit.



Josh and I uptop in the treehouse.

Besides the forest we also made it to the neighboring Milda Creak. This is a small inlet off of the coast that is a combination salty and fresh waters. The combination provides the ideal environment for mangrove trees and the creek is home to 4 species. Here we took a short nature hike again not seeing many animals. We did see a few crab and snails even though they were quick to hide in their holes. From the banks we crossed one of those swinging bridges (again playing with my fear of heights) to a lookout over the creek. Since the tide was out, we had to cross about 1 km of sand banks to board our canoe and go into the creek. After the short ride we retreated back to the camp for a cold one before heading back to the hotel. Next time we vowed to come back during high tide so we could canoe among the mangrove trees.




















A lizard in the Forest

Even though we initially flew into Malandi we spent the majority of our time in Watamu. For this reason we chose to take a quick trip to the city to see if it was worth moving up there for the last day of our trip. The city was quiet and had an Italian flair. We stopped at "I Love Pizza" for lunch and enjoyed a little taste of home. After lunch we ventured to the pier to enjoy the ocean and take a few quick photos. Malandi we decided couldn't really compare to what we had in Watamu so we headed back.




















Low tide on Mida Creek.

Besides the diving the hotel also provided many other ways to keep busy. Of course for those who's idea of vacation was laying by the pool and ocean there was definitely plenty of that, but the staff also held daily water polo games and gave free windsurfing lessons. I didn't partake in the water polo (Josh did) but I did try my hand at windsurfing.















Josh and I on the lookout on Mida Creek.

Wind surfing is where you use a normal surf board with an attached sail to propel yourself across the ocean rather than wait for a passing wave. It does require a bit of instruction as the way you hold the sail, stand on the board and even position your body has an effect on the movement of the board across the water. At first I had a hard time balancing on the board but I quickly got the hang of it. The hardest part, and probably the most important, was learning to turn around. Definitely don't want to keep heading off to sea! My only regret is not trying this sooner in our trip. We got the lessons the last day and were not able to continue our instruction after that.

All in all the coast was amazing. Between the forest, ruins, scuba, and surfing it is definitely a trip that I will not forget anytime soon. Besides our adventures it was also just great to get away and relax. A perfect ending to a birthday!

The Coast...part 2

Let the real vacation begin!

The next day after the conference we set off to the hotel's dive shop to inquire about scuba lessons. The main goal of our vacation was to see if we could each take a diving course to get certified. Now I was excited, a little nervous, but definitely more excited about the possibility. Before this trip I really hadn't spent much time in the ocean (I'm not sure dipping your feet in counts) and was interested in seeing everything that was offered in the ways of water sports.

My course was led by the head instructor at the hotel, Erwin a European who had retired to Kenya with his wife to teach diving at this resort. What a life he had! Spend all day doing what you love and teaching others to do the same. To obtain your PADI open water certification you have to complete 5 pool dives and 4 open water or ocean dives as well as a little course work that included book quizzes and videos. We started in the pool the very next day. After an explanation of the proper procedure of putting together the gear, Erwin left me to get acquainted with the equipment. In the pool he started with the basics of scuba and let me try breathing underwater for the first time.

Now in the book they tell you that you will probably freak out a little bit. It just isn't human nature to believe that we can breathe underwater despite knowing we have oxygen coming to us via the tank on our back. Sure enough when I submerged I held my breath thinking this just wasn't going to work but of course it does. Its kind of surreal that first breath and a little nerve wracking. Soon you realize though that scuba is a form of relaxation. You have to be able to control those natural nerves to safely swim underwater.

The pool dives continued with learning scuba skills mainly focusing on the things that could go wrong and how to recover from them. Erwin demonstrated what to do if your regulator fell out of your mouth and how to use your snorkel. We soon moved up to water entry techniques and quick exits if your tank became empty. Overall I was catching on fast. The only thing I can truly say took awhile was learning to clear my mask. Under water you have to have a face mask that encompasses your nose. This is so that if water enters it you are able to clear it underwater. Basically this is accomplished by taking a big breath from your regulator and breathing out of your nose while slightly pulling your mask away from your face. The air should expel all the water leaving your mask clear. Mastering this skill took a few tries but by the end of the week I was fully taking off the mask, putting it back on, and clearing it completely with ease.

After the first 3 pool dives we headed out to the ocean. I was excited about this first dive because it was the first one I was able to do with Josh and frankly there really isn't anything exciting to see at the bottom of the pool! I was also very nervous about being in the ocean as well. Like I said I hadn't really spent anytime in the ocean before and being the off season the water was a little choppy. All of these fears disappeared as soon as we started to descend. I stuck close to Erwin and we explored the coral reef that is in the bay near the hotel. He pointed out numerous fish that I had only seen in photos before. I got really close to a crocodile fish almost putting my hand on it. These fish like to blend into the coral and sand making them really hard to see. Luckily these fish don't live up to their name and are relatively harmless AND I saw it just before my hand got to it. We also saw sting rays, catfish, clown fish, puffer fish, and lion fish on that first dive, not to mention the beautiful coral formations lining the bottom. This dive will definitely stay in my memory and I immediately knew this was something I was going to continue to love to do.

We resurfaced and switched tanks going down for my second open water dive this time practicing some of the skills I learned in the pool. The next day we continued this pattern finishing my 4 and 5 pool dive and my last two open waters. Again Josh got to come out with me in the ocean as he was finishing two of his dives for his advanced certificate. Coming up to the surface the last time was such a relief. I knew I had done it. I passed and was now officially a certified PADI open water diver. I am so grateful that I overcame my fears and tried it. I had a great instructor and the benefit of one on one instruction. Guess the only thing left is to plan another trip!

The Coast...part 1

Although my birthday was quiet, we definitely made up for it the following week and a half with a packed vacation to the Kenyan coast. The trip got off to a shaky start when I came down with a fairly high fever the day before we were scheduled to leave, but no worries. Like I mentioned before I was whisked off for malaria testing and immediately instructed to take antibiotics. Those Walter Reed physicians (Walter Reed is affiliated with the U.S. Army) sure know how to cover all bases!


The pool at the hotel. As you can see I am already relaxing...

Feeling about 80% we boarded the plane from Kisumu to Malindi. Even with the 8 hour layover in Nairobi I felt pretty good when we got in that evening. After a short taxi ride to the town of Watamu we were there and let me tell you it was gorgeous. The coast is known for its tourism and many Europeans take holiday there. As a result the landscape is a lot better kept than here in Kisumu and many resorts dot the landscape. We stayed at Turtle Bay, an all inclusive hotel right on the water. The plan was for Josh to attend a conference for work the first day and then the remaining time would be ours for vacation. After settling into the room we headed down to the buffet dinner and enjoyed a local native dance group.


The beautiful Indian Ocean
The next day I started my vacation the best way possible by changing into my swimsuit and laying on the beach most of the morning. The Indian Ocean was a site with the crashing waves and the very blue water. I was a little worried as we went in the off season, but despite the large quantities of seaweed on the beach it was beautiful. That afternoon we headed into the neighboring town to check out the Gedi ruins.


An archway in the ruins

The ruins are the excavated remains of a Swahili town from the early 1200s. The site is composed of many buildings and mosques with an outer wall surrounding the entirety of the city. Many artifacts including a pair of scissors, glass shards from plates and pottery, and jewelry have been found by archaeologists during the initial excavation. It is thought that there is still a large portion of the town that has yet to be recovered. Unfortunately, as many things go in Kenya, the community is awaiting the funds to continue the work. The site was beautiful and a little overwhelming at times. It was interesting to wonder how this once thriving town vanished into thin air around 1600. What happened? Where did these people go?
More ruins.

Turning 24 in Kenya

This was the second year in the row that I spent my birthday overseas. Although I miss celebrating with friends and family back home I had a great time here as well. This year was pretty quiet. No rain forest adventures or world cup games watched just some quality time in Kisumu. Josh took me out for lunch at one of my favorite places, Green Garden where we split two really good dishes. After that we headed out to the outskirts of town to do a little hiking on some hills. Its a pretty easy climb and there are some great views of Kisumu once you get to the top. We were just toasting my birthday on a boulder near the top when we heard the thunder rumbling in. Sure enough ten minutes later we found ourselves in a downpour. Hey whats Kenya without getting trapped in a rainstorm! Needless to say we packed up our things and headed back down. What's a little rain?

Below is the only picture I took of the hike. Too bad I don't have an image of us after the rain :) (Also my eyes may or may not be shut....oh well)

The mosquitoes...they love me

The mosquitoes love me. I'm not sure what it is about me in particular that they find appealing or why covering myself in 34% DEET doesn't even seem to work. Despite this constant practice and actively killing 4 to 5 each night I am still covered.

What is even more interesting is all of my bites seem to be concentrated on my left side. Even the one I got last night on my eye (yes I got bit on my eyelid last night) is on the left side. Normally I would think location doesn't matter but the concentration of itchiness on my left is starting to get old. The least they could do is spread themselves out evenly across my body :)

A mosquito bite here, a mosquito bite there generally wouldn't bother me, if I was in the States. What scares me is the risk of malaria associated with them here. I'm not on any kind of antimalarial being the long duration of my trip and about a week ago I came down with a pretty high fever. In the States we would just take an antibiotic and not think twice but I was immediately taken to the lab for a malaria smear! No worries it was negative, but it was definitely interesting and a little scary to get pricked and tested. And of course being the science minded person I am I had to have a picture taken of the whole process! (Picture to come)