The Weekend Vacation – Part 3, Moving From Mombasa to Diani
As I mentioned earlier, the Mombasa SGR Terminus is quite a distance from Mombasa town hence need for extra transport. There are two transport types, one you could take a taxi which is more expensive but more comfortable, the other option is to board a bus. We decided to take a bus. Taking a bus meant we had to take multiple connecting routes to get to Diani.
The first bus charged 100 Ksh each person to Mombasa town. The ride was about 1 hour long because there was a massive traffic jam. The bus was too hot and at some point, we stopped at a road near a dumping site where flies welcomed themselves into the bus. I observed the town outskirts as we went. I was disappointed at how the place looks. There are many dilapidated sheds where workers were busy selling their products. There are many dumping sites.
Maybe this comes from the fact that when I think about Mombasa, I see this beautiful place with palm trees and coconuts. My disappointment continued when we arrived in Mombasa town. The town is less busy than Nairobi. The buildings are old and most of the paint is chipped. I texted Lou (Her family lives near the area) . about it, she said that the humidity makes buildings wear off quickly. Which could explain why they looked like that.
We wanted to buy some supplies from a supermarket, unfortunately, we were all new to the place. We asked the bus conductor where the nearest supermarket was. He was kind enough to tell us to walk right ahead to where it should be. He forgot to mention that right ahead was almost a 10 minutes walk. We were stranded for some time, asked a few more people, who also said it was just right ahead before we got to it. I think those people need to be educated on the meaning of right ahead.
The Tuskys supermarket is huge with well-stocked shelves. We bought a few supplies including some sunscreen as I would definitely need it.
We then boarded a matatu (14-seater vans) to take us to the ferry.
At the Ferry, we waited for about 20 minutes before we could get in. The ferry is massive, it carries both people and cars across the ocean.
Mombasa Ferry
The site was quite a catch, almost making the hassle worth it. Almost.
View from the ferry
After a few minutes, we got to the other side. We used the stairs to go to the stage to board a matatu to take us to Diani. The matatu fare was only 100 Ksh. The ride was about 40-50 minutes. Once we got to Diani, I realised it was just a normal town. Killing all fantasies I have had about it being an awesome green place with palm trees and coconut trees. It is a beautiful place though in its own way.
I called the owner of the apartment I had booked. He told me that we needed to board a tuk-tuk (a three-wheel car) to go to the hotel.
We finally got to the Mangro hotel.
Well to give a summary, we took 5 different rides to get us to the hotel. The bus from the terminus to town, the matatu from town to the ferry, the ferry to cross the ocean, the matatu to Diani and finally the tuk-tuk to the hotel. You can also take a taxi service like Uber or Taxify to get there if you aren’t all a bunch of cheap humans like my dear friends and me.
This is the third part of the weekend vacation series. Previous – The Weekend Vacation – Part 2, The Train Ride. Next – The Weekend Vacation – Part 4, The Nightmare Apartment
