Day Fifteen

Today’s journey started with an hour-long drive to see a historical site in Mombasa known as Fort Jesus. On our drive, we were all amazed by the amount of Kenyan women who were balancing baskets/containers on their heads while walking. We also noticed there was a higher number of tourists here compared to Nairobi. We’ve been told you cannot visit Kenya and not go to Mombasa, so maybe they have heard the same!

We arrived at Fort Jesus, met by our lovely tour guide Vivian. She showed us around the fort and gave us a plethora of information related to the history of the site and Mombasa broadly. Fort Jesus is built in the late 1500s out of 75% coral rock from the coast. The corals are corroding due to old age, producing sand. When it was an active military fort, the outer part of the structure would be coated with something slippery like honey, so enemies wouldn’t be able to scale the walls to invade. The fort is shaped like a human lying down with a head, arms, a torso, and legs. Each part of the body was used as a different area throughout the eras. 

We entered through the passage of arches, which led us to the ammunition store where soldiers kept their weapons and ammo. The ammunition store was also used as solitary confinement at times. You might be locked in there for a week. Some prisoners in solitary confinement tried to dig their way out, leaving holes in the walls for us to see. 

Fort Jesus was built in Mombasa at the order of King Felipe II of Spain/Felipe I of Portugal, because all ships must pass through these waters to move up the coast and access the inland by boat. It served as a good way for those using the fort to spot incoming enemies and keep track of which ships entered and exited the bay. Even now in 2026, Mombasa is still recognized as the main import/export center in all of East Africa. The Fort has gone through various eras of use. The Portuguese used it as a military base; the British used it as a prison; and the Omani Arabs used it as a barracks. The Portuguese stayed for 105 years at Fort Jesus. The Arabs stayed there for 198 years, but during their time, they invited the British to grow trade, who took over Fort Jesus and used it as a launch pad for their colonization efforts. In 1958, the Kenyan government recognized Fort Jesus as a historical place. 

When we went to the higher area of the fort there were “talking points” that would look like cracks in the wall to enemies from the outside. These were used to talk to allies who would be sailing by boat. During the Portuguese occupation of Fort Jesus, they used paintings to communicate. The Portuguese did not have engines on their boats, so when they had information to relay to Portugal, they needed to sail around the entire African continent to get back to the Iberian Peninsula. However, it took a year to get to Portugal, and a year to return. 

Before leaving Fort Jesus, we made a stop in the gift shop and tried mabuyu. Mabuyu is a popular Mombasa street food consisting of baobab seeds coated in a sweet, spicy, and tangy red-coloured sugar syrup. After we left, we toured the city a little. We saw the governor's office and parts of Old Mombasa. While driving around we stopped at some shops selling fresh coconuts (though they are not fully mature). Everyone tried them, and the majority liked it!

We also stopped to try some potato chips. The people in Mombasa usually eat their chips plain (not salt or seasoning), but there was an option to get some chili seasoning and lime on your chips which was very yummy! We also got some ice cream to cool us down from the hot weather.

After site-seeing, it was time for lunch so we headed to a restaurant called Forodhani. It was a beautiful. They had outside seating with a view of the beach. Everyone really enjoyed their food, they had many food options to choose from.

After lunch we got to do a little more shopping in the area, and a few of us were able to spend the rest of our Kenyan Shillings.

After we returned to the resort, most of our group went down to the beach to swim and roam the sands. There is also a pool at the hotel that some enjoyed as well. 

Ameena, Sylvia, Dr Jalloh, and Dr B decided to forgo swimming to instead take the opportunity to see a Mombasa masjid (mosque). They arrived to pray Maghrib, the sunset prayer. Surprisingly, there where not many people there, particularly in the women's section. Dr Jalloh said that, even though today is Jummah (Friday), most attendees probably prayed in the afternoon when they heard the adhan call at 1:30. Also, most other prayers can be prayed at home, so attendance at the masjid is often more sparse for the mandatory 5 prayers. Ameena and Sylvia were two of four Muslims there to pray. Dr B observed and then tried her hand at making the proper rakat. 

After Maghrib, everyone joined up again to go to dinner. They had a host of options, including pasta pomodoro, a welcome change from the staple diet of rice, vegetables, and meat that has been our usual fare during the trip. 

Switching up the vibe, plans were then made to go to a club in Mombasa — the Yacht Club. This time more of the group joined for the fun, and we gathered at reception at 9 pm to drive over together. The Yacht Club was an interesting club with nonsmoking and smoking sections, plus a hungry cat seeking food inside. Those who had gone to the club in Nairobi all agreed they had enjoyed the other club more. The music in this club was often interrupted by air horns, and it was very crowded and rowdy in comaprison to Covo. People would come close and grind against you. Some were very persistent even after being told no. (Don't worry, Bagby, Caro, and others took care of business!) There were also fewer non-alcoholic drink options for those who do not partake. (The drinking age in Kenya was recently raised from 18 to 21, the same as the US.)

A fun night was had by all, but it is lucky that tomorrow will be a laid back day!