No sleep in for us today as we had booked a snorkel trip
on a glass bottom boat for 8am. We asked
if we could go later, but they said due to the tides we had no choice but to
leave at 8 which was okay as we had the wonderful meal last night, just a few
drinks and in bed at a decent hour-we were looking forward to getting out and
having a swim in the Indian Ocean without the hassle of beach sellers, Masai sellers
and the leery stares from the locals. We
scoffed some breakfast as we were told not to be late, which is quite funny
coming from a Kenyan, but we did the right thing and met at the Dive Centre,
paid our 1500KSH (20AUD) each and were walked at a very brisk pace down and
across the beach to the glass bottom boat that was waiting for us right on the
dot of 8. We were dropped off at the
boat into the hands of 2 crew, were pushed out and we were motoring on our way
to the sandbar. The water remains
shallow near shore, and this is where we navigated around the coral reefs 1km
from the shore. One of the crew stood at
the front of the boat and helped the boat driver make sure he didn’t hit or
damage any of the reefs. It was cool
being in the glass bottom boat with the water being crystal clear and the underwater sandbars near the surface which allowed a clear
view of the sandy bottom and we got a great view of the underwater world. The boat driver stopped to show us some of
the coral reefs and named some of the fish along the way and the second crew
member also dived into the water and bought up some of the underwater world to
us. He had 3 beautiful red and white
star fish, a small shell like star fish, a sea spider and a pin cushion type of
creature. We were allows to hold them
all and I the pin cushion creature had hundreds of little spikes that moved
when it was in your hand, it was such a weird sensation and I was the ONLY one
to hold the sea spider. It took a few
attempts, asking if it had teeth, did it bite, was he sure and I had to get over
that it looked like a spider, and when it was placed on my hand it moved like a
spider too. But after the scare factor
it was cool to be able to touch these creatures of the ocean. We did another stop where driver boy got back
in the water with some bread. He cleaned
the bottom of the glass and then fed the fish so we could get some photos of
them flocking around him and the glass. There
was a final dive to show us the very dangerous sea urchin. He had to pick it up off the sea floor with a
bucket and he didn’t handle it with his hands as a small prick from the sea
urchin and you could die.
15 minutes further and we made it to the sandbar aptly named
Sand Island, and we couldn’t believe our eyes when we got there, there were
only 3 other people there, but there was also a beach seller! Imagine.
It was hilarious-even on a sand bar 1km from shore that was no bigger
than half a football field, here he was!
We got fitted up for flippers, snorkel and mask and we were told that
they had to go and pick up some more people, so they would be back for us in
around an hour. We were fine with that,
but we did remind them not to forget us because when high tide comes the
sandbar disappears and we would have to swim our way back to shore! But with a promise to not forget we were left
with a handful of people and the beach seller so I told the gals to go for
their snorkel first and I would look after our gear and then we could switch
when they were done. The water was a little
cold, so I know that I wouldn’t be long, and I am not a big snorkeler anyway. I have this fear of the ‘bigger’ underwater
animals that want to eat me eg: sharks so my time will be limited today in the
water. While I was waiting the beach
seller showed me his wares and I have to say I fell for the conch shells he had
in his woven basket. They were beautiful
and reminded me of a shell that my Dad bought back from Fiji or Vanuatu when I
was a little girl. I asked his price and
told him to not give me a mzungu price and he said 2 for 500KSH (7AUD) which I didn’t
even bother to haggle with and paid the money.
I guess it is worth his effort to wait on the sandbar for some tourists
to arrive!
We did a switch after about 30 minutes and I decided to
put my flippers on before I got to the water and I just walked backwards into
the ocean and I am not sure if that was easier or not, and I am sure I looked
like a goose! If I do snorkel I
generally like to have a buddy, a system where you hold hands with someone, but
I was on my own so I stuck to the closest reef to shore and it is a pretty
amazing world below water. Snorkelling
in the Indian Ocean really is an amazingly easy way to see the aquatic marine
life that Kenya is famous for. The
Indian Ocean is the third largest of Earth's five oceans. Due to the fact that
it is the warmest ocean, the water temperatures do minimize the possibility of
some plants and animals thriving there. Despite the warmth, many species of
animals and plants, including fish, turtles and flowering plants, make their
home in the Indian Ocean. There were a
lot of fish and they didn’t look that fussed that I was there. They would just swim right in front of your
mask and just as I was starting to get comfortable one of the damn fishes kissed
my arm and it spooked me and I was done.
I was in for around 10 minutes-that was enough for me and I was out
quick as a flash. When Jo and Jess and
came out of the water they said that they saw a sea snake and that shook me to
the core and I am just glad that I didn’t see that thing as I would have
freaked out BIG time and there was definitely no way I was going back out
there, even if I wanted to knowing there was a sea SNAKE out there. No siree.
We then went for a walk around the sandbar and got some amazing pictures
as a storm was starting to roll over and the colour of the sky just added in
some dimension to the crystal blue water and the perfectly white sandy
beach. This part of the world really is
paradise and we were lucky we got to enjoy it as we walked back we could see
the approach of at least 10 boats and they were full of people. There goes the serenity and we were so glad
that we did get up early to be the first to arrive and have the place to
ourselves before the influx of 100 people and with the storm clouds coming in,
it was a perfect time to leave as our boat arrived with another 25 people.
We motored straight back to our hotel, again navigating
the shallow coral reefs, getting back at 10.30am. While we were out and about all ready Jess
and I decided to hit the small kikoy stall that was set up on the beach a
little ways down from the hotel. Jo and
Katie headed back to the hotel and the pool and we would catch up with them
after. The dark clouds had disappeared
as fast as they had come and the sun was high in the sky! We didn’t get accosted at all walking to the
beach shop, shop being a literal word as it was basically large bamboo towel
like racks that had kikoys (sarongs) hanging from them in all colours and
designs. I have found the sellers very
aggressive down here and you just have to look at one of the kikoys and they
would be pulling it off the rack and opening it all up for you to see the
complete design, when you really weren’t interested in it in the first
place. Even getting a price from them
was a mission as they said it depends on how many you buy, but we don’t know
how many we could afford until we knew the price. See, a little frustrating right!? Between Jess and I we only had 5000KSH and I
only wanted to get one or two things where Jess wanted to stock up on some
presents so we picked out what we wanted and then had to bargain down to the
actual cash that we had. We came pretty
close to what we wanted to pay and I had to chip in additional 20USD and we
walked away with 11 pieces and we were happy campers with that. There was also small hut that had some
handicrafts in it that we felt a little obligated to have a look around. Most
of the stuff there I had seen at the Masai Market and was easy to get in
Nairobi and beside we had no money left, which we didn’t tell them and after a
quick scoot around we left back to the hotel.
Walking back, there must be some sort of signal, as we
were flanked by beach sellers. They are
nice, but obviously want to sell you something and it is a shame that they just
can’t be nice to be friendly, but I guess that is not going to pay their bills
and they have to ask as I am sure tourist do buy things from these guys. Another thing, besides the beach and the
beach sellers that Diani Beach is famous for are the camels. You can pay to ride them up and down the
beach and there is an annual camel race each year called traditionally held by Forty
Thieves Beach Bar on Boxing Day, December 26th.
The camel races are open to those who have or have never been on a camel
for an affordable 100KSH (1.20AUD). But
they are around all year and we saw the camel guy on our way back to the
hotel. We stopped to get some pictures,
and we asked camel man if it was okay and he said yes and we after we had taken
a few pictures we were waiting for him to ask us for money, which we would have
given a few hundred schillings, but he didn’t and we were introduced to the 3
camels who were named Mustaf, Alex and Adam-all boys, as the female was back at
home looking after a baby (camel of course).
I am not a camel rider after I fell off a camel in India back in
2007. I really hurt myself and it has
long stayed with me since. I did get
another camel in Morocco last year, but it was out of necessity rather than
choice and I was scared stiff the whole time I was on the back of that animal
and unless the world was ending and the only way to escape (which I am sure would
never save me anyway) I still wouldn’t do it.
So needless to say the camels on Diani Beach were safe from yet another
mzungu climbs on their back. The people
we have seen actually didn’t look that comfortable on them anyway. I’m a no camel zone. A Beach Masai also stopped to show us all his
beaded work he was selling. It really is
beautiful stuff, but again we had no money but also asked if we could get our
photo taken with him which he agreed. We
got one of our new found friends to take the photo and not only did he take
one, but when we checked them after getting back to the hotel he had taken
16!!!! At least we got some good shots,
actually they looked amazing with the incredible blue sky, the white sandy
beach, the Masai in his trademark red blanket and of course us in the photo as
well. We were again expecting the Masai
to ask for money from the photos which again we would have paid something, but
he didn’t ask and we made it back to the hotel with only 2 sellers walking with
us.
We dropped off our shopping loot and headed for the pool
and some more sun. I had to be careful
though as I was still really burnt from yesterday. I even did the smart thing, well the next
best smart thing, after not going in the sun of course, and I applied +36
sunscreen and laid back and read a book.
All that and it was only 11.15am!
So with lunch thrown in, more sun, more pool, more reading we were to be
ready to head to Fort Thieves for a few drinks at 4pm before Jo and Jess had to
leave for their flight back to Nairobi tonight.
They did get a message yesterday from Fly540 that their 7.40pm flight
had been changed to 10.40pm-talk about unlucky, but at least they were notified
in advance this time and were able to change the pickup time with Moussa to a
little later. It seemed that they had
just gotten here and they were leaving already.
So with beachside seats once again Forty Thieves was actually a hive of
activity on a Sunday. They had a live
band playing and there were people everywhere.
It had a great vibe and what a great way to end a great weekend, even if
the girls weren’t able to stay another night with us. They left at 6pm and Katie and I stayed on to
have dinner and were lucky enough to view a full moon over the Indian Ocean and
what an amazing view it was and a great way to finish off what was another
incredible day in paradise. We are so
lucky to be here and again after dinner and only a FEW drinks Katie and I were
back to the hotel at 7.30pm. I hope this
isn’t old age kicking in, but we are both on the same page at the moment and
are happy to have alcohol free days (or little amount) and feel human the next
day. Call it what you want, but not only
is it good for our health it is also good for the hip pocket and who can argue
with that? Either way we are loving and
embracing the change.
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