Mombasa Markets: Bustling with Merchandise, Shoppers and BARGAINS!The busy Mombasa markets and bazaars are a source of everything from BARGAIN African cloth, Kenya art, African art, to spices and juicy tropical fruits. African ClothLooking for African cloth? Then head for Biashara Street. You will be spoilt for choice there as the shops stock oodles of khangas and kikoys.A khanga is a bordered brightly colored fabric inscribed with a Swahili proverb while a kikoy is a smaller more subtly colored cloth frilled with skillfully knotted tassels on either side. Both these cloths are a vital part of the Kenya coastal culture and while they make perfect sarongs, they can also be used as tablecloths and bedlinen.
If you want some trendy African wear made to order, check out the excellent tailors in Old Town. Kenya ArtMoi Avenue has loads of souvenir shops selling African art such as sisal baskets (kiondos), soapstone and wood carvings. Be on a lookout for the black ebony carvings, the most elegant of which are, in my opinion, the intricate figures whose limbs and bodies intertwine into larger columns known as the Tree of Life.
However, woodwork is the coast's specialty and you find plenty of beautifully carved furniture such as chests, reclined chairs and magazine racks with the trademark Swahili brass or copper finishing. The mini-chests are portable and make excellent jewelry boxes or gifts. Be sure to pick up a piece of Kenya from one of the Mombasa Markets. Tropical Fruit and SpicesIf it's tropical fruit you want to savor, head to Mackinnon Market where you will find lots of coconut, passion fruits, bananas, oranges, pawpaw, avocadoes, huge juicy pineapples – that are over a foot long – and mangoes.
For exotic fruit, try jackfruit, that delicious brownish green oblong fruit with a thick blunted-spike skin (yeah, this description is mouthful but it will help you recognize it:-). Weighing well over 10 kg (22 pounds), it is probably too big for a medium sized family but you can buy it by the segment. However, because it is difficult to wash the white gummy latex off your hands and virtually impossible to wash its stains off clothes, ask the seller to remove the edible yellow bulbs for you. If you want to spice up your life, there's a series of shops behind the market that sell spices such as cloves and cinnamon, as well as tea, coffee and sweets.
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