A frigate bird flying next to the ship hinted at the presence of land.


This was our first view of the coast of East Africa—we were south of Zanzibar, off the coast of Tanzania.

Amir watches closely for pirates as we cruise northward along the coast of East Africa; fire hoses stand ready to push off unwanted boarders.


Seventy-seventh Day (Monday, April 6, 2009)-- We are at sea today, circling south of the Seychelles in our roundabout route into Mombassa to skirt the area of pirate activity. Captain Olav had breakfast with Squeekie this morning and informed her that our scheduled stop in Nosy Be, Madagascar, has been cancelled due to the political turmoil in that country, and instead we will spend one extra day in Mombassa, Kenya. I am joyful over this because the extra time in Kenya allows me the opportunity to take the train up to Nairobi and back.

We are sailing southwesterly through the Somali Basin, passing south of an island group known as Les Amirantes (originally so named in 1502 by Vasco da Gama on his second voyage), which are a part of the Seychelles “Outer Islands.” West of these islands the ocean floor is rather deep, in some cases over 13,000 feet (4,000 meters). There are three important ocean currents in this area: the Equatorial Current flowing eastward, the South Equatorial Current flowing westerly, and, as we near the coast, the East African Current.

This morning was spent in the Crow’s Nest trying to catch up on my blog which is so far behind—but it seems that I never do catch up. Oh, well. . . . In the afternoon we called Leslee on the cell phone and had a nice chat catching up on events. Then we tried to call Nairobi to obtain a reservation in the sleeper on the train in Kenya. The electronic world of the cell is very nice at times!


Seventy-eighth Day (Tuesday, April 7, 2009)-- Another day at sea as Rotterdam circles toward Mombassa and the coast of East Africa. Early today we passed Aldabra Island, a raised coral atoll which is a part of the Seychelles even though it is more than 700 miles (as the sea cormorant flies) west of Mahe and Victoria. This island is home to the world’s largest population of giant tortoises; over 100,000 live on this protected site. I spent the day writing and working on pictures.

Just after lunch we had our first sighting of the coast of East Africa—a low land with palm trees. This was the malarial coast of Tanzania south of Zanzibar; we turned north to follow the coast up to Mombasa. I noted that our security staff had manned numerous posts around the ship, mainly on Deck Three. I went down and spoke with Amir, one of the guys I have gotten to know on this voyage, and learned from him some of what they are trained to do in the event of contact with the Somali “pirates.” Fire hoses are mounted at various places along the railing, ready to be used to wash off (with their powerful spray) attempts at boarding. Amir also wore a special vest; it was not bullet proof, he said, but it would protect against knife thrusts. He scanned the horizon with special binoculars—I think that they were designed to pick up human body heat. All in all, short of carrying major weapons, I think our security forces are prepared to deal with the pirates—at least those pirates who do not use heavy weapons themselves. Since the capture of the American container vessel and the kidnapping of its captain a few days ago, concern about pirate activity in this area has increased. I am pleased that Holland-America has responded in this way, rather than just flat out stopping all sailings into areas threatened by these evil persons.

Tonight was a formal night and Suzie joined us as our guest. She and Roy have become news items on the Rotterdam since the Pajama Party, and people wish to meet them. Tonight was Suzie’s turn.


Seventy-ninth Day (Wednesday, April 8, 2009)-- For the first time on this grand voyage, Squeekie has become bored on at sea days. Yesterday and today she seemed uninterested and could not focus on doing anything. This caused problems for me as I continue to struggle to catch up on my writing and getting our downloaded pictures organized and sorted.

I am excited (and a bit nervous) about the forthcoming train trip. I had great difficulty getting through to agents in Mombassa and Nairobi, so at last I turned to our Front Office staff and they were WONDERFUL. They worked through their shipping agent in Nairobi and all is taken care of—reservations, sleeper, entry to the museum. I do confess, however, at a little fear if I should have an attack while traveling alone, but Chantal solved that one for me. We wrote out an instruction sheet of what to do and I will carry one copy of it in my Passport and another in the pills I am taking with me.

This evening was another special dinner in the Pinnacle Grill, the Italian Dinner. We were joined at “our” table by a couple from North Carolina. They had taken the overnight excursion to Delhi and the Taj Mahal (differing from the daytime trip Squeekie had taken) and Squeek was eager to trade observations with them. I just sat there and listened, while going over in my mind my thoughts on my upcoming train trip.


Eightieth Day (Thursday, April 9, 2009)-- We awoke this morning to find Rotterdam already docked in Mombasa. Both Squeekie and I were VERY excited because this day marked the beginning of adventures! She was thrilled because just after breakfast she would be leaving to go on her overnight safari to see the animals of Africa. I was keyed up because this afternoon I would catch the train to Nairobi. Yes, it was an energized morning! I joined Squeekie for breakfast on the back deck, and then saw her off on her expedition. She was sooooooo happy—it was a good sight to see. I then spent the rest of the day preparing for my train trip.

In the two blogs which follow, you can read Squeekie’s account of her safari to Masai Mara, and my account of the train trip to Nairobi and my visit to the National Railway Museum.

Before we go away (to the two next blogs) to tell of our adventures, however, just a short account seems to be in order of the local history of Mombasa. Mombasa is the second largest city in Kenya, and that county’s primary port. It is also the centre of the coastal tourism industry, with close access to some nice beaches and high-quality hotels. The city is built upon an island, which today is connected to the mainland by a causeway which carries the railway and a road. In the local Swahili dialect the city is called “Kisiwa ya Mvita,” which means “Island of War,” referring to its many changes in ownership over time. Arab traders recorded the existence of a port at this site as early as the twelfth century AD; it may have been an important embarkation point for the Arabic slave trade which predated the European slave trade by over five hundred years. The city also was referred to in written Arabic accounts as the “seat of the Zenj (black African) kingdom.” Vasco da Gama charted the East Coast of Africa at the end of the fifteenth century, and in 1505 a Portuguese convoy arrived at Mombasa to set up a military base allegedly to protect the local people, but in fact to form a safe re-provisioning base for Portuguese ships making the long voyage to and from India. Fort Jesus, which still stands over the entrance to the old harbour in Mombasa, is a remnant of this time. Designed by Portuguese-Italian architect Joao Batista Cairato, it was erected by Portuguese troops near the end of the sixteenth century. The fort was occupied in turn by Portuguese, local, Omani, and British troops, indicating changes in ownership over time. The Sultan of Oman controlled Mombasa for much of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, apparently to control the slave trade into the Islamic world. This control came to an abrupt end in 1886 when the British navy moved in and took control of Mombasa (and other points on Africa’s east coast) specifically to end the slave trade. Mombasa then became a focal point of British efforts to control access into the interior of East Africa and the headwaters of the Nile River. For additional history of this area, please go to my later blog about my railway trip into the interior of Kenya. But before I go to that one, I am including a blog written by Squeekie describing her safari to the Masai Mara National Park.