Blogs from Africa - page 24

Finding Nemo in Hurghada - Piprey on wheels Hurghada is an Egyptian Red sea coastal town, famous for snorkeling, scuba diving and a beach holiday. If I took a flight, I had to change at Cairo. The best option was to take a train from Aswan to Luxor and then bus from Luxor to Hurghada. Train and bus journey from Aswan to Hurghada To catch the early morning train, I arranged a private ferry to the jetty closest to the railway station. I pulled my suitcase for the last leg of 300ms to Aswan railway station. No tea but grabbed a nice lebanah baguette. As soon as the train pulled off, I was staring at my clock. Was it not supposed to reach Luxor at 7.49am? I even stood at the train compartment door with my ... read more

Crocodile and other temples of Egypt -Piprey on the wheels My cousin had mentioned as not to be missed and I was determined to see these magnificent ancient temples. I went the Egyptian tourist board at the Luxor train station to book a private car. After a lovely breakfast of Brinjal (Mesaqa'ah), Ful medames (fava beans with olive oil and cumin), ommlette, red hibiscus cold drink and tea, I was picked up in style by a private car. I asked to see the Esna temple but the tourist agency said that it would be de-tour as it was on the other side of Nile. The countryside was simple with some banyan trees, tall kash grass and cultivated in a narrow strip of land by the river. At every checkpoint, the police checked the tourist permits and ... read more

Egyptian series: Ace of Alexandria -Piprey on wheels Alexandria is an ancient port city on the Mediterranean Sea. It is located on the fan like delta of Nile and named after the Macedonian conqueror, Alexander. I caught VIP train (second class) at 8am from Cairo Rameses train station to Alexandria. To tide away time, I bought a 3 LE Pretzel and 5 LE Egyptian tea. The station was as chaotic as any other megapolis with newspaper men, shops selling thin, small baguettes with cheeses and processed meats, a variety of fruits, locks and keys etc. A comfortable journey to Alexandria after 3 hours or so and I was hungry. Ate a falafel sandwich at a local eatery and followed my nose with the sea breeze to the marine promenade. Alas, there was a line of cafes/ ... read more

We held a commemoration celebration for the Rastafari Community Development Office on Saturday the 3rd of December. On the Ethiopian calendar, this is the day of the Kahinate Semaye (heavenly priests) who appear in the Book of Revelations. It was an appropriate day, we felt, to praise His Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie I and to celebrate the opening of this mission for community development. InI the founding members (Ras Franklin, Ras Simba, and myself) were joined by some Sistren and Bredren from the greater Mombasa area who made the trod to visit the library for the first time and join us in Ilabrations. We held Nyahbinghi ises, ate exclusively fruits, and held reasonings. We were joined by video call with Ras Untunga of THE ETHIOPIAN WORLD FEDERATION, INC, who made a powerful presentation on the importance ... read more

Mwarauka (man of the morning), Ras Jimmy Kaingu, and Ras Nicholas John Nakis Amha Selassie. The 3 lions reunion. I’ve known Jimmy forever, since we were both much younger men with no children yet. His family have been friends with Chelly’s family since school days. In fact, it was his sister Christine who first brought Chelly over to Thailand. His brother Steve was one of the first people I met on the very day I arrived in Mombasa all the way back in 2007. He took me to train at his backyard gym and I became a regular visitor for reasonings around Jimmy's yard. While Steve's gym was a gathering place for anyone who wanted to train the body with exercise, Jimmy's yard was a gathering place for those who wanted to train the mind with ... read more