One of the miracles of the internet is that it connects people who would otherwise never have communicated. I say this because I have just received some comments on earlier posts about the last house we had in Mombasa (above) from someone who lived in it between 1979 and 1995. One of the comments he made was, "We had great memories too." Yes, indeed, it was a house of very happy memories.
I would be very grateful if the correspondent could add a comment on this post so I can get in touch with him.
Hello Jon. Thanx for posting this. I still ask myself why was there an under ground bunker? Was it a wine cellar?
ReplyDeleteHi Abdul - good to hear from you again. I have no idea what that room was built for. I doubt it was a wine cellar as the temperature wouldn't have been right and, in any case, my parents and their friends rarely drank wine! They tended to use it as a store room. Jon
DeleteHave you visited mombasa recently since you departarted from this beautiful mansion? The sad news is, they tore it down early 2000 and was replaced with a sky scraper.
DeleteI went back to Mombasa for two weeks in 1963 but not since. I could never face the way the place and the people would have changed from the way I remembered it. Ok, so I had an exceptionally privileged life there! I did, however, have several holidays in the early 2000s in Tanzania, which brought back all the memories. So the house was pulled down in 2000! How sad!
DeleteI would love to know a little about yourself: like, how old were you when you lived in that house?
Am 45 we moved in 79 when I was 2, while my father worked for Kenya Customs authority. I schooled at MEPS too but it was referred as Mombasa primary school and it was a public school. I can share my WhatsApp number and send you photos of places that you would wish to see how they look like at the moment.
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ReplyDeleteMost of the photo Albums are still with my dad, but I will make a point to scan them when I visit him over the holidays.
DeleteI really admired the cast iron stairs at the rear near the kitchen, as it swirled down. As I read your articles, I find it interesting.
Once again, thank you Abdul for getting back to me, and thank you for taking the trouble with the pictures. Yes, as a boy I loved those stairs - my brother and I used to escape down them to meet our friends when we were supposed to be having a 'siesta' on our beds - my mother's generation thought that a siesta helped combat polio!
ReplyDeletePlease keep my email address as, for security, I will shortly delete the post which displays it.
Please keep in touch - it has been very interesting to hear about the house of which I have so many happy memories.
Jon