After spending three weeks devoid of running water and electricity in the dust filled plains of rural Kenya, I made the decision to travel to the tropical coastal city of Mombasa to experience a weekend of retreat and decompression. Not knowing when I would return to Africa again, I concluded it would be a wise choice to explore the various regions of Kenya while I had the opportunity.
I trekked from Kajiado to Nairobi as dawn broke and took an overpriced taxi to the airport to make my 10am flight to Mombasa. A big kudos to Kenya Airways who kicked off my journey right with spacious seating, ice cold fruit juice, and a delectable chocolate fudge brownie. For the first time in nearly a month, the taste of succulent warm chocolate satisfied my sweet tooth as I observed Mount Kilimanjaro come into view from outside my plane window.
When I landed, I found my driver awaiting me at the airport. The weather was striking; a bit humid, but the environment supported vast plant life which was a nice change of scenery from the arid desert where I had been residing. I checked into the five-star beach side resort, Sarova Whitesands, at noon alongside a slew of American military men in the lobby. They caught my eye but as I was covered in soil and likely carried an unpleasant odor, I doubt that I caught theirs.
Later, after having an hour long shower and enjoying the gorgeous weather, I went to Coco Beach bar to grab a frozen mango Daquiri and met an inebriated Texan named Chance. At dinner, Chance came to join me at my table where we chatted a bit. He told me he was with the other ten American military men I had seen in the morning, but left the details of their trip to Mombasa fairly vague. Secretly, I had an inkling that they were involved in a special operations mission and this peaked my interest.
Intrigued, I joined their group at the Coco Beach bar and shared my journey thus far. The men we are aged between 28 and 35 years old all had tales from their personal lives. Amongst them were Shawn – a 35 year old Californian who sported a long beard and shaggy hair, who they nicknamed “Jesus.” Chance – who had an affinity for restoring old cars and the lifelong dream to invest in late ‘50’s Chevrolet’s from Cuba, and ship them to the States. Jimmy – 28 year old from Vermont who loved to ski and worked on the side as a parttime skydiving instructor. But of all the men in the group, it was Jason, a 35 year old from Detroit who was a Red Wings hockey fan, who captivated me the most.
I enjoyed the custom alcoholic beverages including “Dawa”, which is a local drink consisting of Kenya cane rum, brown sugar, honey, and lime. The unrivalled (and slightly selfish) advantage for me as a girl surrounded by a hoard of men was that I did not need to bring any money with me to replenish my drinks. It was karaoke night at the Coco, and as an avid singer for most of my life, I promptly took the stage and sang Hey Jude and backup for Gimme Shelter.
After a late night dip in the ocean with the boys, I went back to my room to freshen up and received a text on my Safaricom phone from Jason. The attraction between us was electric and undeniable, and as I made my way to his hotel room, the sporadic thumping of my racing heart was all I could feel.
I entered and was immediately pulled in by this mysterious, fetching man. As my lips touched his, it ignited a firestorm of passion that would not be contained. The next few hours proved to be the wildest sexual encounter of my life. It may have been the sheer thrill of the unknown, or that fact that in both our hearts, we would never see one another beyond this weekend, but whatever the reason – the hunger was insatiable. We ended our night at 4:30am as he had to be up at 6am for work.
The next few days, we were inseparable. Whenever he was back at the hotel, we spent time at the buffet, lounging around the pool, making love, and enjoying one another’s company. He treated me to a spa day while he was working, and left me wanting more.
Sadly, on our third day he had to depart with the group early one morning and woke me up to let me know that I could have his hotel room for the remainder of my stay and keep the boxed wine we started the night previous. We said our goodbyes and shared a fleeting stare before he departed.
I left to go back to the village a day later and it changed my perspective of life going forward. Upon exiting a volatile relationship prior to heading to Africa, it was reassurance that when you are not looking for anything, it can find you in the least expected place.
I can never forget the time I had while in Mombasa. And those few incredible days are forever imprinted in my memories.