Banco and Omar Nero: Beach Boys of Malindi, Kenya

At last my boyfriend and I managed to leave for Kenya (they gave us the holidays). We set off from Milan with a Eurofly flight, excellent; on arrival in Mombasa we're already in an African mood. Bus journey from Mombasa to Malindi, a bit long but worth it: you go from the crowded city of Mombasa to the true Africa, of a red colour that's almost startling. We chose the Tamani Jua because it's small and quiet, the food is good and it's clean; a bit expensive on extras, but in the centre there are little local restaurants where you eat chicken, fish and beef at truly ridiculous prices. As soon as we arrived, two beach boys were waiting for us, contacted from Italy through their blog and by e-mail blali2003@yahoo.com. Their names are: Banco and Omar Nero; they're very professional and helpful, trust them, they speak excellent Italian.

We booked the safari in Tsavo East with accommodation at the Ndololo Camp tented camp; it's very good and clean, and the contact with nature is stronger and more realistic than in a brick lodge, plus the blue safari at Sardegna Due, complete with a lobster and barracuda grill on the white atoll in the middle of the sea and snorkelling on the coral reef of the protected area of the marine park. We also had ourselves taken to the Toya Oya orphanage in Mutangani — what an emotion, so many children from 0 to 14 years old; you should have seen their faces when we arrived with clothes, pens, exercise books and sweets — I know, they're bad for teeth, but for them it's a great joy. I fell in love with a child and I think we'll adopt him from a distance.

Let's get to the safari: wake-up at 5.30, departure with Omar Nero, our beach boy, in the jeep, better than the minibus for off-road; he was there to meet us outside the village, super punctual. A journey of about 2 hours during which you stay glued to the window, because you see the true Africa: barefoot children walking to school kilometres away, houses made of earth that dissolve in the heavy rains, various farmyard livestock, women with yellow jerrycans on their heads going to fetch water from the well, sometimes kilometres from their village.

Once inside Tsavo it's immediately a celebration: we see the trained crocodile that comes out of the water when they give it crackers, a blue iguana that even poses to be photographed, then lots of zebras, endless elephants, buffaloes, ostriches, hippos, and also the lionesses — they had torn a buffalo apart and were enjoying it; on the second day we saw the cheetahs. The tented camp is truly welcoming and the tent is equipped with every comfort: bed with mosquito net, washbasin, shower and WC; it's also very atmospheric, because after dinner around the fire a Masai tells the story of his proud people, rich in traditions.

The blue safari is a wonderful trip to the Malindi nature park, rich in colourful fish and corals; even staying on the boat, those who can't swim can see these marvels by throwing some pieces of bread into the sea, or with just a mask and snorkel you can swim among hundreds of fish. Then the boat heads towards Mayungu, where at low tide a white sand atoll emerges that would make the Maldives envious; there you sunbathe and eat tasty lobster and barracuda cooked on the spot over the embers. Unfortunately our week was over in a flash; we warmly thank our guides Banco and Omar Nero, who in the end became friends and showed us their Africa, letting us see breathtaking landscapes, women and children always with a smile on their faces despite hunger and poverty, and telling us about their way of living and facing life day by day. THANK YOU BANCO AND OMAR NERO …...............

WE'LL SEE EACH OTHER SOON, AFRICA BLUES HAS INFECTED US!!!!