Our short trip to the coast began Friday evening with an overnight train trip to Mombasa.

We left Nairobi station in darkness...

and awoke to rural vistas and Mombasa on the horizon

The dump just outside of Mombasa was stunning in its size and stench

 

Local art and other Mombasa street scenes

After shopping for kangas on Biashara Street, we moved on to Fort Jesus....

Our host at the coast: Ahmed Sheikh Nabhani

Fort Jesus: a well-preserved Portugese fort in Mombasa

 

A break for Picana (local mango juice)

The view east from Fort Jesus

 

 

We enjoyed a brief lunch stop on the way north from Mombasa to Malindi....

.... before visiting the Gedi ruins... an ancient Swahili town

We also encountered some local tour guides...

 

In Malindi, we got a lesson on the proper attire for the region

 

The varied kangas that students chose created a beautiful mosaic of color...

Even the boys got in the act

Before long, everyone was ready to be seen in public

Then we visited the Mosque College in Mamburi

Thanks to our wonderful hosts, we learned a great deal about Islam and its importance to coastal Kenyans