Bronwyn Larner’s Diary
 Tidal Forests of Kenya

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July 25, 2009: Meet the mangroves

 Forest_edge Jambo! I have spent the previoius week on safari through the Maasai Mara and Serengeti parks where I saw a plethora of amazing African animals (and yes, I did see the ‘big five’). I arrived in Mombasa this morning from the overnight train ready to meet the rest of the Earthwatch team at the New Palm Tree Hotel. After meeting Gustavo and Ray we headed into town for a feed and to explore Fort Jesus. At 2 o'clock Tim and Martin (one of the principle investigators from Bangor University Wales) also turned up and we were ready to head to Gazi. First we had to cross the Harbour at Linkoni, which seemed like a long wait for the ferry. On the way Martin told us how the rain is late this year, and has driven the inland dwelling Maasai people further afield, even as far as Gazi. This has caused some social and environmental problems in Kenya. We arrived at Gazi Village where we quickly settled in and went for a walk around the area and had our first introduction to Kenyan mangroves. After a hearthy Swahili dinner we introduced ourselves and spoke about our hopes , fears and expectations for the expeditition then headed to bed ready for the next day’s marathon.
1 comment

Wow Bronwyn, it sounds like a great adventure and the connections with other sources of information make your blog extra interesting. I understand the concept of a hearty meal but does "hearthy" mean you ate it right next to the fire? It's very interesting what you mention about the social disruption flowing from weather and climatic perturbations. It has been this way throughout history.


Greg Peterson | Posted Wed 29 Jul 2009 8:06AM

Click image to enlarge.