A Very Short Break in Canada

 

Like everyone else in the world, my travels during the summer of 2021 were stressful. First of all Turkish Airlines has completely fallen off my Christmas card list. I was booked to fly Mombasa/Istanbul/Toronto/Istanbul/Mombasa. 

What I ended up flying was Mombasa/AddisAbaba/Istanbul/Toronto/Istanbul/Nairobi/Mombasa. The flights were changed last minute in both directions, and Turkish Airlines didn't even cover the last flight from Nairobi to Mombasa! I'm now looking for another go-to airline after many years of loyalty. 

And then of course, there was the whole Covid nightmare. And yes, I understand that my Covid nightmare is one of inconvenience and expense, not illness and death. And I am very very grateful for that. However.....

Covid tests - 

#ONE in Mombasa, and a bit of a nightmare on the day I was flying out looking for a place to print out the email that stated that I was negative. And good thing I did, because I  had to present that piece of paper before I even entered the terminal at the Mombasa airport. 

#TWO in Toronto, upon arrival at the airport. 

#THREE in Oshawa, in my sister's basement, watched by someone from ..... on skype. 

#FOUR in Oshawa, at a cost of $150, to get back on the plane to fly to Kenya in August. 

Extra expenses - I had to prebook and prepay a hotel room at the Toronto airport for three nights. Over $900, no refund. Within 24 hours I had the results for the covid test at the Toronto airport. I could have paid for 1 night only. Someone somewhere made A LOT of money with this deal. 

View from the hotel room at Toronto airport. Not the best view I've ever had...

After I was released from the hotel jail, I had to spend 11 more nights in quarantine in my sister's basement. Luckily, my sister is an amazing human being who made sure that I was super-comfortable. And she has a beautiful backyard. I was contacted many times during the quarantine period to make sure I was obeying the rules. 

The sweet room created for me by my sister. As a friend put it, I was 'embraced by love.'

On July 3, I was finally free of all restrictions. On July 5, the Canadian government ended the hotel stay and quarantine requirements. Argh.....

Because of covid restrictions, this particular summer holiday was very relaxed and intimate. There was very little racing around trying to get things done. Every morning, I went and sat in my sister's beautiful backyard garden and had tea. Every afternoon, Darlene fixed a fancy coffee and we sipped it, you guessed it, in her beautiful backyard garden. Cathy came to visit a few times a week, and I got to spend time with my fabulous friends in Oshawa. 

Two pairs of scarlet tanagers made my sister's garden their home this summer. 

I took two excursions out of Oshawa, to visit the lovely Christie in western Ontario, and with the sisters to visit the cottage in Madoc. I didn't bother to get a mobile phone plan for the few short weeks that I was 'free' in Ontario. When I drove to visit Christie in St.Clemens, I thought I was okay with the directions I had written down from Google Maps. Um....I got seriously lost, and ended up going to a Wendy's to use their wifi to What'sApp Christie. Her reaction when I told her where I was? 'WTF???' I cleverly screenshotted directions from the Wendy's to her house, and drove the backroads, pulling over every few minutes to consult my screenshots. It took me a very very very long time to get there. Using Christie's house as a base, we visited St.Jacob's, Elora, and Fergus. These places were just opening up, and my heart broke for all the restaurant, cafe and gift shops in these little towns that depend on tourism for survival. When I left Christie's, she gave me VERY VERY VERY detailed directions on how to get back on Highway 401. That day, there happened to be a big accident on the 401, so again, I spent a VERY long time in the car...But it was worth it to spend time with her...

Christie and I decided to turn back when we were confronted with a huge mama who didn't look very welcoming...

The second excursion was with the sisters. Darlene and I drove to Madoc to see the progress that Cathy has made on her cottage, and to survey my land nearby. It was pretty awful to see the damage that the gypsy moth caterpillars had done to the trees. Walking around my land, we were swarmed by the moths. 

As usual, leaving the sisters was awful. It never never gets easier. I know that I have a pretty exciting life with my travels to different continents, but goodbyes suck. 

Friends of Fort Jesus

Soon after I moved to Mombasa, I became a member of Friends of Fort Jesus. No, it's not a religious group. It's a group of people who a long time ago got together to try to work to conserve an old Portuguese fort called Fort Jesus. 

My reason for joining the group was for the birding adventures. Once a month a few members get together for a birding walk. I have really enjoyed the company of my fellow birders, and have joined some of their other excursions. I have even given a talk at Fort Jesus about my time in Turkey! 

On one such trip, we drove up the coast to Malindi. In Malindi, we visited the pillar of Vasco de Gama. The history of this monument is interesting; the original pillar was erected in 1498 as a celebration of the warm welcome he received from the Sheik of Malindi. However, the placement of the pillar bothered some of the local population, as it was a cross placed near a mosque. The pillar was later re-erected to stand on the edge of the sea. 

Malindi is also the home of Saint Francis Xavier Chapel, which has been standing for over 500 years. 

On our way to Malindi, we stopped at Kilifi Creek to visit the ruins of Mnarani. The Swahili city dates from the 15th century. What a peaceful place to walk around and imagine life 600 years ago. Tombs and remains of the mosque and medrassa are visible. We walked a little way into the forest to visit some beautiful old baobab trees, one of which is a living shrine to this day. And to make the visit even more interesting, we were able to read information in both English and Swahili about the history of the ruins. Guess who provided the funding for these wonderful signs? The Friends of Fort Jesus!

 

STILL CATCHING UP

Living in Paradise

Sunbird

Firefinch

For a year now, I have been living in a complex/gated community (I don't know the correct phrase) called MacKenzie Point. Mackenzie Point is a plot of land by the beach owned by you guessed it, the MacKenzie's. They purchased the land back in the 1970's. Nigel is an architect, and Elizabeth has trained herself to be an awesome gardiner. The plot of land is dotted with unique little buildings housing one or two apartments, all hidden by exuberant gardens. 

This baby Black-faced Vervet monkey was gazing at me curiously while I was sitting on my balcony. 

Of course, these gorgeous gardens are a haven for birds and black-faced vervet monkeys. Oh, and a few Monitor lizards, and lots of red-headed rock agamos and millipedes and strange beetles and butterflies and and ants of every size and other bugs that I can't identify...

Mousebirds are definitely on my favourite list. They have a ridiculous crest which makes them look like wannabe punk-rockers, and long tails that seem to have a life of their own. When they land in trees and bushes, they seem to come in horizontally, so it always looks like they're crash-landing.