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Off The Beaten Track In Kenya Africa
e are looking forward to clock at Mbita point and soon we
visiting the light house are at the gate of Lake Victoria
at Lake Victoria Safari Safari Village. The sign on the
Village at Mbita point. Spending entrance promises relation at the
a few days in it will be a new beach, bird watching and
experience. The landscape from excursions on the Lake.
Kisumu to Luanda Kotieno on the
shores of Asembo Bay, off the The light house stands stark
road to Bondo, is full of ancient white against the blue sky and
features: age-old Cambrian rocks the blue waters of Lake Victoria,
fill the Hills along the tarmac making a perfect picture for a
road and Kit Mikaye, the gigantic post card. The Islands of
borders sitting atop each other. Rusinga, Mfa’ngano and the
At Ndori we turn left onto the smaller twin’s one called Mbasa
dusty murrum road to Luanda sit calmly on the Lake. The local
Kotieno to catch the 11oclock fishermen ‘colorful boats sail on
ferry to Mbita point. It runs the roughening waves, there white
like clock work so if you miss it sails at full mast. Finally we
you have to wait for the next get to Lake Victoria Safari
three hours for the next trip. Village, a creation of odd Bredo,
engineer of repute.
The Lake is calm, with water
birds here and there and in a We are so excited about the white
distance a strange dust devil house that we waste no time
appears. It’s a whole cloud of climbing up the stairs and into
the harmless minute flies that the room with a view. Its Bredo
breed in the water and sometimes dream house as he tells us about
in the swamp places. the building of the light house,
which could be the only light
Forty-five minutes later, we house on the Kenyan side of Lake
Victoria with justifiable pride. Maasai necklaces on the walls and
a small blue table and two chairs
“I build bridges,” says Bredo a by the window. Blue is the
Norwegian. He has worked in many traditional color of lighthouse
countries in Africa and it was decor. A platform with a
during one such project that he collection of stones that once
landed at Mbita point and met his belonged to his mother forms an
wife Louise, and set up a new artistic showpiece of colors and
home on the shores of the Lake. shapes. There is nothing
That was in 1990 in between ostentatious or expressive in the
building bridges, Bredo’s busy room but it is a place you would,
working at Safari Village with nevertheless, want to live in.
the latest addition, the
lighthouse. The platform conceals part of the
staircase leading from the room
The lighthouse is stunning. It to the bathroom below. If ever
reminds of calendar from Greece, there was a bathtub with a view
with pictures of stark white these has got to be it. Maya’s
houses surrounded by blue skies [my niece] audible expressions
and waters. say it all. If the wall wasn’t
there, the bath tub would blend
We climb up the stairs and onto in with the Lake. No wonder the
the patio eagerly waiting for lighthouse is the honeymooners
Bredo to open the door to the dream hideaway.
light house. The white washed
bedroom is spacious with windows After our guided trip around the
opening to the Lake’s blue lighthouse, and having unpacked
waters. It’s a beautiful and lounged on the bed
roundavel with a four-poster bed overlooking the sea. I mean, I’m
facing the Lake, blue beaded a water person so I’ am totally
sold-we join Bredo in the garden Growing up in Norway, Bredo spent
for a cold beer. The bird life is many summer holidays in light
just awesome. Within a few house which his father rented. It
minutes at the lighthouse, I have became a boyhood dream to build
seen a tiny malachite kingfisher his own one day.
flit past in resplendent hues of
blue and orange, pled kingfishers “Now I have the time to build
and the regal African kingfishers one,” says the jovial
out of the horizon from behind Scandinavian. With a team of
the lighthouse and sweep down to local artisans, he built the
grab a fish from the Lake. lighthouse in a year and opened
it in October 2005.
The garden is filled with yellow
weaver birds busy building nests “A lighthouse needs a very solid
on the thorn trees and Maya is foundation because it’s
busy building sand castles on the surrounded by water and sand and
beach. built on a rocky peninsula. The
walls are reinforced with columns
“The lighthouse is a structure and slope inwards.”
for guiding ships using sharp
lights,” Bredo explains,” but The place is magical. Its sunset
they are going out of fashion and Bredo has a table set on the
because of the GPS [Global beach from where he wants to show
Positioning System].In the olden us a perfect sunset. The sky
days light houses where marked on turns gold, orange and red, with
maps. In those old days people the blue getting faint as it
lived in lighthouses to take care darkens. The sun, a ball of gold,
of the lights and operate the fog begin to slid in the dark waters
horn to guide the ships.” bang in the middle of the twin
Islands of Mbasa.Its stunning,
its surreal. that surrealism in nature. It
comes with an appreciation of it.
“The sun sets between Mbasa
Islands from December 23. It then FACT FILE
begins to move true west,” he
explains, pointing at Mfangano It’s a beautiful lodge and very
Island” and you see the sun economical. Drive to Kisumu, take
setting there on September 23.It the road to Mbondo and turn off
keeps moving and sets on the at Ndori, drive on the murram
pointed peak[facing us]on Rusinga road to Luanda Kotieno.Its three
Island on June 23,after which it hours from Kisumu. Alternatively
shift back to true west by March drive via Kisii.Full direction
23 and back to the twin Island by can be got from landmark
December 23.” safaris.com. These are eight
bandas and the lighthouse. Great
The world is fascinated but it for families or those who want to
takes special people like the get off the beaten truck you can
Bredons, the Fleur Ng’wenos and visit Ruma National Park.
the Wangari Maathai’s to show
About the Author:
Robert is a tour consultant in Kenya and has planned business and vacation safaris for over 10,000 tourists in the East African region. He is a tour operation- major and involved in National tourism policy development in Kenya. For more info visit: http://www.landmarksafaris.com/planner
Read more articles by: Robert Muhoho
Article Source: www.iSnare.com |
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