The Sweet Life!

Tag 42

A few days ago, I moved from Mombasa to Malindi. I went up the coast to the north. Unfortunately, when I arrived there, I fell ill. Until today, I've been sick in my room and waited until I recovered. High fever and diarrhea were on my daily agenda, instead of the beach and pool. Because of the fever, I called a doctor who did a malaria test, which turned out to be negative, luckily. Personally, the procedure of the test was also extremely negative for me, as malaria is tested with blood tests. This means that the doctor takes the patient's finger and pricks it with a sharp needle until blood drips out. Then he spreads it on a plastic template similar to a corona test. Of course, for someone like me who can tolerate blood and the idea of such undertakings without any problems, it's not a big deal if the doctor has to prick three or four times until something actually flows. Wonderful. Anyway, as long as the result is negative, I can overlook it twice or even three times. Nevertheless, those were not pleasant days with the parasite in my stomach and I'm glad that it seems to be getting better again.

Here in Malindi, more precisely in Watamu, a small coastal suburb where I am, the Dolce Vita reigns! I have already heard and read in advance that there are many Italians here, and it is actually true. The Italians invade large hotels in the entire region. In the hotel where I am, 95% of the guests come from the country of my longing. It is still absurd and a bit strange that such masses settle here in the region to continue their lives normally. Here in the hotel, there is Italian food (stone oven pizza, as well as a buffet with antipasti, fish, pasta, and more), the hotel staff speaks Italian, some of them are even Italian, and the menus in the bar are in Italian. I mean, why would you travel to Kenya then? Of course, I still benefit from the culinary delights, and it's not bad to be able to eat from the best cuisine in the world after the relatively one-sided Kenyan food.

The weather is fantastic. It's about 32 degrees Celsius and there is a gentle and very pleasant breeze. In the morning, when I look towards the beach, the water is in the distance because it is low tide. It stays behind small rocky islands, which adorn the panorama of my morning view. When the afternoon comes, the water also comes and you can indulge in the largest bathtub in the world (29 degrees Celsius water temperature). And when the water is out, you can take a little walk and do a small tidal walk. There, I discovered a few small starfish in the remaining puddles. Otherwise, you can relax very well here. Lounging by the pool, lounging on the beach, with a fresh mango juice in between. The Italian language around you transports you to the Adriatic Sea.

Now I'm sitting on a sofa at the pool bar with a view of the sea. The setting sun creates a magical light that makes photographers and filmmakers' hearts beat faster. It's pure luxury here. The atmosphere, the surroundings, and all the Italians. It's a complete contrast to much of what I have seen so far. I wanted to experience this diversity. The contrast.

And as I look out at the ocean now and see the seagulls circling above the green and sun-drenched islands, many thoughts cross my mind. How distant the time at Lake Victoria feels. How distant it actually is, I am at the other end of the country after all. How long I have been traveling in this country now. Alone. For two weeks without a fixed location. And that it won't be long until this ends. When I observe the seagulls out there, I think that they probably only know their little islands here in Watamu. And they don't even know that thousands of kilometers to the north, there are relatives of theirs in the Baltic Sea. I will greet them. Soon.