Madaraka

Apparently, Michelle and I like a train. My 40th birthday was spent in a carriage rattling through rural Tanzania, and we went on the very scenic train to Mallaig during our Scottish adventure.

This morning we boarded the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), otherwise known as the Madaraka Express, from Nairobi to Mombasa. Madaraka refers to ‘internal self rule’, and there is a Kenyan public holiday marking the date on which this was established, a couple of years before the country won full independence from Great Britain.

The train terminal included an inordinate number of baggage and ticket checks, including a sniffer dog line-up as if it was a prison we were entering. However the train left within a minute of its official departure time and six hours later pulled into Mombasa with the same punctuality. A win for timekeeping, if not for paranoia. And also a win for wildlife spotted from the window as we travelled through the large Tsavo National Park. Elephant, giraffe, zebra and buffalo in copious numbers.

On the Kenyan coast the air was hot and humid. We completed our journey to Tiwi village which has a very quiet and chilled beach. We had a relaxing evening eating fish curry on the terrace of our accommodation, whilst a bold and cheeky bushbaby hopped inside Michelle’s room.

Yes, this will do very nicely as a place for a birthday weekend.