SAWAHIL TO USWAZI.

 

Sawahil(Arabic for at the coast/edge of the coast/ocean)

As the chilled Serengeti oozes on the quixotic ambience by the Riverside bistro I reminesce, quite elated this 2025.On a fun sunny day in the Kilimanjaro township all lush green and calm, meeting  Rafiki_on_tour (click on hyperlinked text in red to see more of rafiki on tour web and socials) kick-started my morning in this Tanzanian township.

All euphoric as we catch up and exchanged our to’s and from’s , travelers are the most jolly souls as we speak some Deutsch and she is stoked! “Meine arbeit ist eine reissefuhrer,ich bin  ferien aus mtwapa….a little banter as Kilimanjaro’s crown quite snowy cannot be ignored.It’s our subject of discussion as it’s kili climb season.

Matters Tanzania it all started with a sawahil sundowner moment as in asked at the jetty afore me were yatchs. Catching up with some cool maasai friends I met in the quintessential land of safari along mtwapa creek,kilifi has always won my heart.

Am briefed of a possible sea route to pemba island as one of the yatchs around me sailed a couple of days ago.phyuks!..An alternative of the long haul lunga lunga road trip.

By the seaside I reflect in the gentle breeze, from hinter amboseli,taitaland of python rock circumnavigating mudanda rock, the tsavos Kilimanjaro waters trickle am at peace after my year routine circuit.

Am humbled to live my mantra, adventure’s our nature, my visceral greatness of existence from lion roars by the lone campfire nights calling on mates, close encounters with red spitting Egyptian cobra, twilight bike rides spotting elephants by the fence, co living with dwarf mongoose next to my bell tent, hosting newly met friends and acquaintances,great buddies like ngabulai,crazy banter with ngabulai I laughed till I cried in the wild,rich biophony as I lay in the hammock,before dawn bike rides spotting in the sanctuary -my gratuity cannot be understated!

At times you gotta defy the odds, I reminesce forodhani dinner , skateboarding the giant quartets of ivory (built in commeration of corronationof queen Elizabeth II) in my maasai regalia, manoeuvering via kwame Nkurumah road Allidini visram monument inbound to ndia kuu to guiding my mum outside kenya’s 1^st hotel-Africa hotel 1901.

From Basheikh alley to Mbarak Hinaway road am at Yusuf Iqbal’s  curio, destination forodhani as ambient lit English point marine ballads paints the festive moment.old Swahili architecture post and the present intertwine to form a satisfying whole epitomized by the lovely laid back authenticity  that permeates the alleys of mji wa kale(old town Mombasa).Flanked by 19^th century homesteads notable by fretwork balconies and zanzibari doors from victorian era.

Dinner is served in dhows afloat overlooking legendary maritime routes from sultanate eras to the  present.I drift in my backdrop of yatchs afloat in still waters to melodic saxophone ambience.Nothing quests the zeal like the aroma of freshly baked cheese pizza and a wine glass in hand to a jamboree of family on good vibes to a karaoke night out in the stars fringed by the palms .

Ich bin glukklich I’m die strande und kilifi ist schon.keine problem, hakuna matata! Ich gerne kilifi. Memoirs of la marina take me Tuscany /Casablanca on a mind trip as I sing my melodic India Arie x Bien rendition,”every girl deserves to feel like a star , and I know you are, every man deserves to feel like a king and I know you are” as thoughts of shela, ras kitau, pate, Manda, tundwa, bajumwali,uvondi, ndau,siyu,kiungamwina ,kiwayu and Hindi fill my wanderlust.

By saitabau castro- guide Castro/ Bunduzman.