Pick up from your hotel and proceed to Fort Jesus built by the Portuguese in the 16th Century. The site chosen was a coral ridge at the entrance to the harbor and was built to secure the safety of Portuguese living on the East Coast of Africa. It has had a long history of hostilities of the interested parties that used to live in Mombasa. Omani Arabs attacked the Fort from 1696 to 1698. Between 1837 and 1895, the Fort was used as barracks for the soldiers. When the British protectorate was proclaimed on the 1st of July 1895, the Fort was converted into a prison. The Fort is now an important historical landmark in the East African region.
Your day takes you down an intriguing maze of cobbled narrow streets, ancient mosques and picturesque residential houses evoke the islands medieval past, overhanging balconies and through mysterious doorways to bustling markets filled with exotic spice, fruit and colorful fabrics. Then drive through the Elephant Tusks on Moi Avenue and call in at the Akamba woodcarvers, where you can see the carvers at work and a great opportunity to purchase some of the wonderful crafts and other souvenirs of your stay in Africa.
Have a lunch break. You can have lunch at Tamarind Restaurant ( own expense)- Non Seafood & Veg options available). In the afternoon, visit Dr. Rene Haller's Nature Park (Haller Park), former quarries now reforested and home to many animals. Currently, Haller Park plays host to a variety of wildlife including hippos, giraffes, buffalos, and antelopes, crocodiles as well as smaller mammals and birds. The Park consists of a Game Sanctuary, Reptile Park, a small demonstration Fish Farm area, Palm Garden, Crocodile Pens and a Giraffe viewing platform, offering a variety of attractions at the various points to educate and entertain the over 160,000 visitors who visit the park every year.
The diversity of vegetation is considerable, from mangrove palms and majestic indigenous shade trees to coastal forests where several of these plants are rare and endangered; a haven for botanist. Yet each plant plays an important role in the overall harmony of the ecosystem.
Return to hotel in the evening.
