My mal d'Afrique is dedicated to those who have never been in Africa.

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The Kiswahili language, originally from the coast of the same name that goes from the north of Mozambique to the Horn of Africa and later adopted also by the rest of East Africa, particularly by...

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Bad news does not always bring as much bad news, sometimes it rains in the dry and not in the wet...

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The Indian Ocean also has its "Big 5". It is not only the savannah of Kenya that

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It all began in 1997 when a group of local residents from Watamu decided it was time to take action to protect sea turtles in the area and Watamu Turtle Watch was born. Fast forward to today, 21 years later, and Local Ocean Conservation

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The beauty of nature around Watamu is the first calling card of this wonderful resort in Kenya.
Twenty kilometres before Malindi, arriving from Mombasa and Kilifi, after the...

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Kachumbari is a fresh and light salad very popular in East Africa, particularly in Kenya, but also in Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda. It is the perfect accompaniment to dishes, not only to meat or fish, but also to pilau rice or ugali...

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We live in a historical period where art, in addition to the intrinsic and historical value as bearer of beauty and stimulator of the mind, assumes an important social role; it fights for the protection of the environment and community between peoples.
Viewed this way...

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It is a spice native to the Indian sub-continent, present on the African coasts of the Indian Ocean already in 1300 and brought to Europe by the English in the past centuries. Its name is..

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The elephant, as well as a species to be protected for its precious tusks, can increasingly prove to be a friend of man and Nature.
Certainly the biggest, but also the most useful in things you would not expect. A study by the American Lifesaving has found that even...

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The ugali, composed of posho or sima, i.e. cornmeal and a side dish that can be meat, fish or vegetables, is the unique dish typical of Kenya and especially of the coast.

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That's about 20 in the world, one per country.
In the Black Continent only in Kenya, Uganda, Ghana and South Africa. And the Kenyan one is in Watamu

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As every year, at this time of year, we find ourselves commenting and marveling at an effect of marine nature, which, thanks to the currents and water temperature, favours the migration of yellow fin tuna, which pass between

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The Bio Ken Snake farm in Watamu is definitely one of the most interesting and useful places to visit in the tourist town.
The structure that houses the largest collection of snakes in..

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Cumin is one of the most popular spices in the world and grows on all continents.
It comes from a herbaceous plant (Cuminum cyminum) with leaves as long as 10 cm and arranged in a comb, which has very ancient origins.
The seeds of cumin are practically similar to those of fennel or aniseed.

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From ancient Arabic writings, we know that the Arabuko forest stretched from just outside Malindi almost to Kilifi and was populated by wild beasts, poisonous snakes (cobra especially) and elephants, who often came down to unexplored beaches and bays protected by barrier Reef.
There were no docks for ships, but dangerous "dry" so to Kilifi was good habit for travelers, surf off the coast until he glimpsed the Bay of Malindi.
Around 1300, the Arab community of Gede town, of which the ruins still remain today, makes a way in the forest in order to reach an outlet to the sea, in the Watamu Bay.
From there he developed a fishing village and the Arabs now established on the coast mingled with the local Giriama, creating a Bajun community that began flourishing boat trade with Lamu and Takaungu.

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Cutlets, snacks similar to our potato croquettes, are very popular on the Kenyan coast to be eaten on the street or in the many local restaurants.
Usually they are filled with meat, but we offer a tuna version, easy and quick to prepare at home with few ingredients.

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The beauty of nature around Watamu is the first calling card of this wonderful Kenyan resort.
Twenty kilometers before Malindi, arriving from Mombasa and Kilifi, after the villages of Chumani and Matsangoni, you meet...

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Richly owned, Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe), also known by the English name Ginger, is a perennial herbaceous plant, about 90cm high and belonging to the Zingiberaceae family...

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Tsavorite, the green stone named after the Tsavo National Park, was discovered in 1967 by the Scottish geologist Campbell Bridges.
Since then it is more and more famous abroad than in Kenya and Tanzania, the only countries where it is found.

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Kenya is increasingly the ideal environment for tamarind, present on the Swahili coast since it was brought and planted from India a thousand years ago.
Tamarindus Indica is a majestic, long-lived evergreen belonging to the leguminous family.

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Gede is located between Malindi and Kilifi, in the coastal region of Kenya, 94 km north of the city of Mombasa.
Its ruins tell of historical un'insediamento, one of the oldest in the coastal area of ​​East Africa which has remained track. The town, which seems would host 3,000 people, was abandoned in the late 1500s the abandonment causes uncertain, but it is likely that it was an attack of the dreaded Somali Galla tribes, driven out of Malindi, destroying a large part of that civilization.

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With the change of season and the winter and monsoon "Kuzi" wind, the mouth of the Sabaki River is filled with rare, colourful and beautiful tropical birds.
It is now a custom, but every year...

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Let's pick up a passage we translated, taken from an amusing, ironic and by now unobtainable booklet by the Kenyan journalist and writer Binyavanga Wainaina, who unfortunately left us in May last year, who makes fun of the commonplaces of Western writers who are struggling with the African subject.

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Few people know Lake Chala.
Located half in Kenya and the other half in Tanzania, under Kilimanjaro, between the towns of Taveta and Loitokitok, Chala is a crater four square kilometers in diameter surrounded by greenery.

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Chapati is a traditional bread brought to Kenya from the Indian tradition, but then evolved throughout the country and today baked in the streets, in poor places as well as in high level establishments as an accompaniment for dishes.
Its simple and quick preparation makes it a tasty and filling dish to pair with beans, vegetables or meat dishes and soups. 
HERE THE RECIPE

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On the coast of Kenya there are many trees of Baobab (adansonia digitata) and many, in addition to the statuesque beauty that is one of the symbols, almost a "logo" of Africa, have also discovered its wonderful properties....

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Mood in Kenya is indeed an essential component of life and not only for man, who often finds here the "peace of the senses" or the sense of his earthly path. Science now tells us that some animals can completely change their connotations depending on how they feel inside.
This is the case of...

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The coconut is the fruit of the coconut palm, scientific name Cocos nucifera, a plant belonging to the Arecaceae family and native to Indonesia, but thanks to the ability of coconuts to float on seawater and maintain the ability to germinate after 110 days of immersion (a period in which they can travel up to 5000 kilometers) has spread naturally in many places around the globe. 

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The Galana Conservancy is one of the true wildlife treasures of County Kilifi and Kenya.
This 60,000 acre wildlife paradise is located on the eastern border of the Tsavo East National Park, on the northern banks of the Galana River, about 120 km from Malindi and thanks to the new paved road can be reached in less than an hour. The protected area is home to many wonderful species, some unfortunately endangered and threatened.

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We are well aware of the history and travails of the African continent: few strains and thousands of tribes scattered over an area of about 30 million square kilometers, who have paid a bitter duty to the evolution of the Western world, suffering equal treatment in every corner of their wild and sunny land.
Like the peoples and nature, the cuisine has suffered from European colonization....

It was 1898, in the port of Mombasa British ships began to arrive from India, loaded with goods and tools to build the famous railway that would connect what was then the first city of Kenya, as well as the most important port in East Africa, with the protectorate of Uganda.
Many of the Queen's subjects had already gone inland and had identified the marshy area that the maasai called Nai'robi (cold water field) as the crossroads of the new railway line.

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Many famous labels of spirits and distillates in the world hide, behind their sometimes curious names, sometimes resounding, curious legends or interesting implications related to their founders or places of production.
This is the case of Kenya's national beer, now a real trademark of the country, not only for thousands of domestic consumers, but for tourists and travellers.

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East coast of Africa. 
The boundaries of that linguistic and cultural unity known as Swahili culture range from Mogadishu in the north to Cape Delgado in Mozambique. 
A long coastline shared by a single language: the kiswahili, a mixture of Arabic and bantu, whose texts date back to the 12th century. 
But a strong visual element, a fashion system that dominates women's clothing, imposes itself in this area in the eyes of the traveller. 
It is an explosion of colour, a display of shapes and symbolic elements, a touch of elegance that not even the poorest woman could ever give up: kanga. 

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The Swahili cuisine of Kenya, as we know, is a mixture of the cultures and people who have landed on the coast, and the products of the territory they have learned to use. The example is offered by the use of coconut for boiling and stirring rice and mango, which the English culture has also transformed into "chutney" sauce, using onions, spices and chilli pepper.
So here is the recipe for beef with mango chutney, accompanied by coconut rice.

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The natives call it “Nyari”, a giriama word that means “the place crumbling naturally by itself”.
Marafa village is in Magarini district, just forty kilometres down Malindi area, less than one hour drive, mostly on a good dirt road studded by baobabs and mangoes.

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The great American writer Ernest Hemingway was almost 35 years old, when he saw Kenya for the first time.
He, a great vivour and passionate of strong emotions, a hunter of women and animals, had long been fond of deep-sea fishing.
From the Florida villa, with the Pilar boat, purchased with the proceeds of the first novels published at home, he decided to carry out an expedition in the heart of Africa where he could match the passion for marlin and shark fishing to big hunting.

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The coral reef is one of Watamu's and Kenyan Indian Ocean attractions.
Off the tourist resort, the first barrier is present from the entrance of Mida Creek to Malindi without interruption and has allowed over time and thanks to the tides, the formation of the famous sand atolls off Mayungu.
The first barrier, when the low tide is particularly low, emerges at the water level and is also walking on foot, although their beauty is to be discovered by snorkeling, or swimming deep in mask and fins if Not in "diving" with even oxygen cylinders.

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Among the thousands of possibilities to enjoy Nature that Kenya, and particularly its coast, can boast, there is certainly the sea landscape dominated by mangroves.
These plants, which have their roots in soils which feed on water from the Indian Ocean, form really particular landscapes.

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Watamu the beautiful.
Malindi the magic.
Watamu the young and sparkling.
Ancient Malindi but still interesting.

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In the 13th century recipe book "Kitab al tabeek", the writer Muhammad Bin Hassan Bhagdadi, whose original manuscript is still kept in

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"Africa."
How many times have we heard this word, this evocation, in a piece of music?
Hundreds are the pop songs whose title bears the name of the Black Continent, every language and nation has its own song.
Here is the playlist of malindikenya.net with the 10 most beautiful songs for us dedicated to Africa.

READ, WATCH AND LISTEN

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Chutney is a typical English sweet and sour sauce made with fruit or green tomatoes. It is excellent as a sauce to flavor meat and fish foods....

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An ancient Swahili legend says that before the arrival of the Portuguese, the natives of the Kenyan coast did not eat avocado but only used oil, because they did not consider it as fruit or vegetables.
When the Portuguese decided that...

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In Kenya, potatoes are particularly tasty.
The local population loves them fried, so much so that they are the ideal accompaniment to the national dish, the "nyama choma" (grilled meat almost toasted).
But there are many other ways to cook them.
One of the best known recipes for a side dish that can also become a single dish is "Viazi vya rojo" (stewed potatoes).
Here is the preparation according to watamukenya.net

On the African shores of the Indian Ocean, combining fish with fruit is not a gamble, but a pleasant contrast.
On the other hand, if the fish fauna goes so well with lemon, why not also dare with passion fruit, mango, pineapple and papaya?
Here, for example,

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Global climate change, which also affects Kenya in part, has both positive and negative effects on the fertile land of the African equator.
One of these, given the ever closer temporal and climatic connection between the great rains, between May and July, and the small rains of October and November, is the presence of the edible fungi on the Kenyan territory.

Kenya is one of the most varied and extraordinarily rich in unique opportunities, emotions for everyone and attractions for every kind of enthusiast or adventure expert. If for many people the African country is above all synonymous with wild nature, relaxation and immersion in a world opposite to the western world, for others it has become more and more a destination for those who want to experience "strong sensations" or devote themselves to extreme sports, as well as enjoy new shows from incredible views.
Here is a list of ten organized adventures that Kenya can offer to tourists and travelers when they return to this beautiful country.

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The mango ( scientific name Mangifera indica ) is a tropical plant belonging to the family of the Anacardiaceae.
Native to India, it was spread also in Africa and Latin America thanks to the Portuguese.

Crab soup with ginger is a traditional dish of the Lamu archipelago.
The local people, especially on the island of Pate, usually eat this dish with coconut rice or chapati.
Here is the original recipe reworked by watamukenya.net

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The "white world" of the Kenyan coast is about thirty kilometers north of Malindi.
After the golden beach of Che Shale, beyond the Italian base of the San Marco aerospace project, the view of the ocean disappears and miles and miles of...

The goodness of free-range chicken in Kenya is no mystery. In most cases it is simply cooked on the grill, but there are dishes of Swahili cuisine that contemplate other pleasant encounters of flavors. One of these is tamarind chicken (kuku wa ukwayu).
HERE IS THE RECIPE OF WATAMUKENYA.NET

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Kaimati are characteristic sweets of Kenya, and particularly of the Swahili coast, similar to our carnival tortelli, not stuffed.
They are often garnished with a caramelized icing and sprinkled with white sugar.
HERE IS THE RECIPE

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The success of Watamu in this season (first coastal destination for influx of tourists, the best "leisure" destination in Kenya, second only to Zanzibar in all Sub-Saharan Africa) is due not only to those who...

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