ITCHY FEET TRAVELS

Mombasa, Kenya

Aug 11, 2024

Manbasa as the Arabs called it, was in a prime location for all the spice traffic along the sea routes between Asia and Europe. From its beginnings in the 10^th century CE, it flourished on the edge of the Indian Ocean.

In Mombasa there is still a building that was once the spice market but the market is tiny now with much of the trade dispersed elsewhere. But I see the connections in the huge blocks of tamarind, sliced betelnuts and bright red, smoking hot peppers from southern India. I see it in the piles of cardamom, coriander and black peppercorns from south-east Asia. I see it in the dried hibiscus petals used for tea in Egypt.

Old town Mombasa like all old towns, is a maze of narrow streets that straggle at random. They are a delight to get lost in! This is no museum though but is lived in with little corner shops and neighborhoods where everyone knows their neighbors. Some of the colonial era sprawling villas now house banks and offices.

The wooden balconies of the houses in the old town remind me of the ones I saw in Al Balad, Saudi Arabia just last winter . The galabiyas men wear are like those in Oman. The fancifully carved doors too are familiar as are the odd monument of coffee runs in parks.

Like any other busy port, Mombasa has been a melting pot for many a culture and religion. One look at the tapering, domed white minaret of the Mandhry Mosque tells us it is one of the oldest, dating from the 12^th century. Newer are the Jain and Hindu temples rubbing shoulders with other mosques and a couple of churches. The Fort Jesus, standing guard at the shore harks back to the days of the Portuguese in the 16^th century. Much newer are the famous tusks, a landmark of this city, built to commemorate visits by the British Royal family in the 1950s.

Much in Mombasa maybe old and known but it can still surprise. It was in Uhuru Park that I saw something I did not know or expect. Bats! Hundreds of them, gibbering, chattering and roosting in the trees. They were everywhere, hanging like fruit in clusters.