The Tree of Life

As a child, I was a bit of a tomboy; I enjoyed playing garden cricket with my dad and wrestling with my boy cousins. A home with a treehouse was the ultimate dream — gardens with big “tree-climbing trees” a good second prize. Our family home had a large avocado tree with branches I manhandled daily: higher and higher I climbed, testing the tree, testing myself, annoying my little brother who tried to keep up but couldn’t follow. Climbing trees made me feel brave, connected to the natural world and truly alive.

I’ll never forget the first time I saw a baobab in real life. It was the 1990s and my family had made the long journey from Cape Town to Zimbabwe by road. We stood around an enormous, ancient baobab with our arms outstretched, embracing it in a giant hug as the six of us tried to reach all the way around it. We couldn’t; it was that big, and I was fascinated to learn these trees were hundreds of years old, about their resilience and all the ways in which their fruits were used. Seeing baobabs was the highlight of the trip for me — along with the fast white waters of the Zambezi, the sweet taste of Mazoe Orange (a local orange cordial) and golden family memories.

Had I done my homework, I might have been prepared for the beautiful baobab trees that greeted me as I arrived in Kilifi, a small coastal town on the Kenyan coast. But travelling with three small children and my mind otherwise occupied with projects on the go… Needless to say, I arrived in awe. Our welcome briefing was a blur as I took them all in along with the incredible views, the sweet smiling staff and the decorative frangipanis welcoming us to our home for the next few days. As my children pulled on my clothing and nagged “When can we swim?!”, our host kindly told me a little more about the trees. Each had its own pattern and shape — some were in full bloom while others were completely bare — and its own view, with more than a lifetime of stories to tell.

While my children dropped their clothes and jumped straight into the lovely warm pool, Steve entirely in his element discovering more about the house, the beaches and what was on the dinner menu, I was transfixed by the two baobab beauties that stood at the very front of the property, stealing the ocean’s thunder.

We spent a wonderful few days exploring this lovely coastal town, the creeks, Bofa beach. The simple pleasures of warm sun-filled days in the water, delicious seafood and restful nights with the sounds of the sea and the frogs singing us to sleep we truly relished. And everywhere we went we were accompanied by baobabs standing humble and proud, representing centuries of life. For me, they added a layer of intrigue, of unexpected beauty and magic that kept me transfixed.

Thank you to our kind friends at Nderit House for inviting us to stay and for hosting us so graciously — sticky fingers, sandy feet and all. For a private home on the Kenyan coast, with sea views and gorgeous baobabs, this one is hard to beat.