Pwani, a love affair

I spent last month (May 2025) traveling through the Kenyan Coast, and I laid my eyes upon great beauty. I left Nairobi for Kilifi on a whim; it was all spontaneous. I was seated at my desk on a Friday afternoon when the thought crossed my mind: what if I booked a bus ride to Kilifi and spent the weekend there? The following Monday was a holiday at my workplace, so everything looked to fall into place.

But where would I stay? I quickly logged into the Airbnb page and started browsing through the catalogs of awesome units available for rent. I found a lovely studio apartment that fit my budget, and instead of booking it for two nights, I had a change of heart. I booked the studio for seven nights, and so the adventure began.

I arrived in Kilifi early Saturday morning, had a quick meal, and went straight to bed. The journey from Nairobi to Kilifi by bus is long and mostly tiring. But Kilifi is worth it. My first stop upon waking up was to return to a place I had longed to be since my first visit to Kilifi three years ago: Vidazini Beach, located along Bofa Road.

The roads leading to Vidazini from my rented place are glorious. The Kilifi terrain makes for good walkways, with the rocks providing a pavement-like surface and the magnificent Mkilifi trees giving shade to counter the hot coastal sun.

It was at Vidazini that I met most of my friends during my stay in Kilifi. The first of these chaps were Davie and Hussein. I was enjoying the ocean breeze when they approached me; they saw I was alone, touristy, and looking to have a good time. I mentioned that I wanted to have some coastal food for lunch, and coincidentally, a fisherman happened to be passing by with a nice catch from his morning’s work. We purchased some, and off we went to prepare our lunch.

We left the beach and walked a few meters towards a place near Kwa Sungura (Rabbit’s place), where Davie and Hussein are acquainted. We found some fellows already preparing lunch, and we joined them. Here’s where I had my first experience with the realization that the coastal way of life is a little different from what we’re used to on the continental mainland. Here was a bunch of young men who had set up a fire below a tree and were in the process of making their lunch. We didn’t have to go into a kitchen to prepare food; just put up three stones, gather some firewood, look for a sufuria, and you’re set. Davie and Hussein did that work, and they made us a great meal.

It happened that there was a mangwe (drinking den) next to the place where we were preparing our food, so Davie took me to check it out. The mangwes mainly sell mnazi, wine harvested from palm trees. It’s at this mangwe that I’d spend most of my time in Kilifi. I met beautiful people and made good friends. It’s here that I learned Mnazi is classified as either fresh or kilalo (one that has been left to sleep over), and the choice between the two is a matter of personal preference. Fresh is sweeter than kilalo and consumed within a few hours after tapping. It reaches an alcohol percentage of up to 4% within 2 hours of its tapping after the natural fermentation process begins. Kilalo, which is typically left to ferment for up to 24 hours, has a sour taste and is more potent when consumed as an alcoholic beverage.

I stayed in Kilifi for two weeks, and all I have are good memories and a longing to return.

Next, I headed to Mombasa; I hadn’t had enough of the coast (it’s hard to have enough of the coast). I had never stayed in Mombasa before, so I decided to pass by and say hello to a friend who lives there. I found a nice place in Bamburi, and upon arrival, I was astounded at how similar Bamburi is to Nairobi. Here, life is quite rushed, with lots of traffic and nightclubs, a clear contrast to the chill and slow vibes of Kilifi.

Bamburi has its perks. I met a friend called Simon, who helped me explore the nearby areas of Shanzu and Mtwapa, and we found ourselves in quite a few mangwes here as well. Bamburi is also close to Mombasa town. One day, I boarded a matatu and went to town, with no clue what I’d do once I got there. The matatu dropped us at a ferry station, so I boarded a ferry and crossed over to what I would learn was the Likoni mainland. The ferry crosses what’s known as the Kilindini Harbour, connecting Mombasa Island to the mainland suburb of Likoni.

At Likoni, I walked for a few minutes and found myself at a place called Senti Kumi (ten cents), a beachside residence overlooking Mama Ngina Waterfront on the other side of the ocean. Senti Kumi is lovely and serene, and I went back there a few times to swim in the sea and drink mnazi (I met a friend who pointed me at a nice mangwe not too far from the beach).

I didn’t go looking for anything in particular when I left Nairobi, but I made new friends, shared meals and laughter over cups of mnazi, and had what I like to think of as a great adventure. Now, I remember the coast with a bit of nostalgia, and I hope it doesn’t take me too long to return.

To my friends Joy, Jackie, Davie, Hussein, Gbaba, Shuku, Tiwi, Carol, Lynn, Simon, Alex, Romez, MJ, Maggie, Ben, Kevo and Mary, you made my stay beautiful and memorable. Ahsanteni sana, ladies and gentlemen. 💙