Kenya - Mombasa Island Old Town & Fort Jesus

The famous Tusks of Mombasa

An early breakfast today and off to see Mombasa, in particular the Old Town. We had a driver 'Morris' who picked us up from the hotel.

We first of all had to catch the Likoni ferry that connects the south coast to Mombasa Island. It can be a nightmare at rush hour , but we were fairly lucky and the crossing was plain sailing so to speak.

It was wonderful to see the 'iconic tusks' that arch over Moi Avenue. The tusks are famous because of their history and the many things that they symbolise and represent. They were initially commissioned to commemorate the visit of Princess Margaret (Queen Elizabeth’s sister) in 1956, when Kenya was still part of the British Empire.

Looked at from the correct angle, the four elephant tusks make the letter,  'M' and represent the name of the city, 'Mombasa'. 

The gateway not only to the City but Africa itself.

Up close I have to say the tusks are not quite so impressive. They are made of aluminium and not solid at all.

Fort Jesus

Our next stop was the famous 'Fort Jesus'. We parted company with Morris temporarily, and after a bit of bartering used the services of a local guide 'Mohamed'.

Mombasa is much more diverse than the capital Nairobi. There is a heavy Asian and Arab influence evidenced by the fifty plus mosques. There are also plenty of Hindu and Sikh temples. So you get the feel of a very oriental setting.

We wanted to see 'Fort Jesus' but we didn't want to spend the most part of the day catching up on it's long history.

The Fort itself is a great example of 16th Portuguese military fortification and a landmark. Built in 1593-1596 to the designs   of   Giovanni Battista Cairati to protect the port of Mombasa from invading hordes.

Our Guide went to great lengths to explain that the architecture of the fort represents the rough outline of a person lying on their back, with the head towards the sea. Personally I couldn't see it but was happy to take his word for it .

The height of the walls is 18 meters. The original Portuguese fort had a height of 15 meters,but the Oman Arabs added 3 meters upon capturing the fort. You can't beat a bit of extra security I suppose?

 The World Heritage Committee Committee inscribed Fort Jesus on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2001

The Portuguese and British presence is preserved in the presence of their respective cannons.

The Portuguese cannons had a range of 200 meters and are longer than the British cannons which had a range of 300 meters.

From Fort Jesus there are some great views of Kilindini Harbour.

Kilindini is an old Swahili term that means "deep". The port is so called because the channel is naturally very deep.

It is 25-30 fathoms (45–55 meters) at its deepest center.

Local artwork for sale

In the Spice market

From the fort we took an interesting Tuk-Tuk' ride around the back streets of Old Town Mombasa. It was like being in a James Bond film the way we hurtled around narrowly avoiding walls and other larger traffic.

Plenty of colour in the indoor spice markets

The markets are a a sensory overload of colour and smell! Because of it's location on the Kenyan coast and once an important trade route, Mombasa has some culinary influences from India starting with the spices.

I loved the hustle and bustle , the shouting and yelling all going on . Much better than the fish market that we called into earlier which made me feel a bit queasy to be honest.  All sorts here from; cardamom, peppers, turmeric, curry powders and Baobab seeds.

 When we stopped for lunch I did have to chuckle at this sign on the wall in the toilets. Some sound advice on the etiquette required when doing what you have to do!

We caught up with 'Morris' after a light lunch and it was back on the road again.