We walked the 20 steps back to our porch and read for a while until we headed over to the dining cabin for breakfast (omelets and fruit). We packed up, took our bags to the office to store them, and went over to the pool to kill an hour or two before heading to the airport. We relaxed in the pool and had a nice lunch. We showered in the lobby facilities and the taxi picked us up for our flight.
Upon arriving at the airport, the gate agent informed us that our flight was closed and that we could not get on the plane. Confused, we looked at another itinerary and realized that the one we were using was incorrect. The agent told us all flights to Nairobi were booked for the rest of the day and that we could fly out tomorrow.
Considering our flight from Nairobi to Cairo was leaving at 5:15 the following morning, leaving Zanzibar the next day was not an option. After discussing our problem with a manager he walked back to his office to see if he could figure something out. As we were working out a plan for the worst case scenario (where do we sleep for the night, what do we do with our hotel in Kenya, how do we contact EgyptAir to get another flight, how do we contact the Egypt tour company, etc., etc.) the manager returned with great news. They were able to get us on the next flight. What a relief!
Once in the air they offered us drinks (including Tusker beer) and snacks. That was a nice change from flights in the US. During the hour flight, we lucked out and flew right past Mt. Kilimanjaro. We could even make out the famous snow fields that they estimate will no longer exist within 10 years. It was pretty cool that we'd been lucky enough to have seen two of the seven summits (Mt. McKinley in Alaska and Kilimanjaro in Africa) this year.
As we approached Nairobi we could make out the Nairobi National Park just outside the city limits. We could even spot a few herds of animals as we flew by. We landed in Nairobi and we immediately noticed change from Arusha and Zanzibar. The airport was fairly modern and Nairobi was by far the largest city we'd been to since our travels began. We had the hotel arrange a taxi and we spent the ride listening to the driver tell us about the violence that occurred from the political unrest early in the year. Very interesting story. Apparently it was not safe even for Africans to go where they pleased. Now, after the political problems have resided, it is safe for everyone.
To be as safe as possible (since we made the reservations months prior) we stayed at the Intercontinental in the city center. When we arrived at the hotel, security checked our van for bombs using mirrors and dogs and allowed us to enter the compound. The hotel was really nice, definitely first class even by American standards. We checked in, took the elevator up to an extremely nice room. They even had security guards on each floor, which was surprising. We got cleaned up and went downstairs for a very nice Italian dinner (figuring we wouldn't be eating much Italian food in Egypt). Even in the short amount of time, we quickly learned how incredibly friendly and welcoming the Kenyan people were. Their smiles will be something I will always remember.
On our way back to our room, we setup a wake up call for 3AM to catch our early morning flight to Cairo.
No comments:
Post a Comment