Hotel Cliff beach villas
on 12 Months in Kenya (Kenya), 05/Jan/2010 08:49, 34 days ago
Well just returned from paradise, Zanzibar island, where I spent 12 amazing days. Most days were spent on the beach rusting my skin as Kenyan children would say. I rusted so much, I turned pink, then purple patches and now parts of me are white again.I headed to Zanzibaralone on the 18thas Icouldn'twait for the other volunteers who were traveling overlandoochon the 22nd. I flew with fly540 only to be greeted by customs who insisted that Irish citizens should pay 100 dollars for the visa. Ididn'thave such currency on me so luckily a chap from the dive centre atKendwabeach helped me out. I still made a scene if only for the drama of it. I do like confrontationsI met Jose Carlos, a Spanish beach boy, on my second day. Like the local beach boys, he spent his days hanging out, chatting, laughing and making sure he had a good time.MealegrequeverteCarlos.Hastapronto en NairobiI have beenpractisingmy Spanish ever since. Swahili is taking longerChristmas eve and day were spent on the beach and nights inKendwarocks and Sunset dancing till 3. How the locals dance here. Dancing just for the pure enjoyment of it. No selfconsiousbehaviour. Pure rhythm and lots of practice.Beach boys work out on the beach everyday. Some of them are bursting out of their own bodies in muscle. Its too much for my delicate sensibilities. Little hassle here, a welcome relief from the constanthussleandhastleof NairobiThen it was time to leave forTiwibeach, KenyaThatswhere we checked into Cliff Beach villas and then the drama really beganI managed to get bitten by a stone fish on the first night followed by bed bugs on the second night! Great way to ring in the new year!I also discovered that I left some of my clothes in Zanzibar, only my favourite ones of course. A fiasco with the laundry inMalindiguesthouse,Stonetowncaused this as well as my own carelessness when rushed and under pressure to move.Its very difficult to rush when one has turned into a beach girl not that I was ever known for my punctualityHere is a poem written by the hilariousRachealTuckley, aVSOvolunteer, about our 4 day New Years experience at Cliff beach villas:Hotel Cant Afford YaOn a longmatatuhighway,hot wind in my hairWarm smell of oldtilapiaup through the airAt the end of a long bumpy road,I finally sawlightsIwas looking forward to chilling out,We were due to stay 4 nightsThere we stood in the doorway;We heard warning bells,We were thinking to ourselves,This could be heaven or this could be hellShe asked for my valuables and,told us her family way,Don’t you trust me, she said,and we thought…It’s only for a few days…Welcome to the hotel cliff beach villaSuch a dodgy placeSuch a potential spacePlenty of scope at the hotel cliff beach villaBut you can’t be cool - no water in the poolHer mind seems definitely twisted,has she got the paranoid bends?She got a fewmasaaiandaskariboys,weirdly don’t wanna be friendsHow we laid in our bedrooms,trying not to sweat.Most days to remember,every night to forgetSo we talked to the captain,she said,‘I don’t want to shout…Please don’t bad mouth me…I should have thrown you all out’How does she hear our talking from so so far away???Flooding wakes you up in the middle of the nightHow much longer shall we stay?Welcome to the hotel cliff beach villaOver-priced foodWill put you in a moodBreaking into your room at the hotel cliff beach villaWhat a nice surprise,if your towel arrivesNo water in the toilet,No champagne, or ice,And we thought we are all just visitors here,of our own deviceAnd in various mattressesBed bugs gathered for a feast,We don’t know who last slept in these beds,Maybe they were deceased?!!!Last thing I remember,we were Squirming to our cabAnd trying to negotiate fairlyWithout feeling tooWe destroyed our financial details…And she shouted as we leave…“Please don’t destroy my property”…and“Were you talking about me?”Now I'm relaxing in another paradise.How much fun can one woman have?Donkeys are the mode of trasnport here.I walk to the beach everyday, passing a maze of narrow streets, lined with pink flowers and coral stones. Kids yell out "jambo, jambo" beach boys "do you want a boat ride" or :wannw ride a donkey today?No hastle if you dont want anything. I walk right on by.Ninjas warriors and Massai watch me stroll the streets,wondering where I have come from and how much money I haveI feel slightly underdressed when walking alongside muslim women in their black veils or Bui BuiSo thats all the news of Christmas.I hope you all had a wonderful time and hope to see you soon.My friends are in my thoughts as always