Lamu - cradle of Swahili culture

I have asked Cosmus (a taxi driver I had gotten to know a few days ago) for a ride 🚕from Diani Beach back to Mombasa and it’s Airport. Like on the way coming to Diani Beach, the time flew by while we were chatting about my experiences at Diani Beach and many other things. I arrived well in time for my flight ✈️ to Lamu and was probably one of the first to check in.
The flight with the small airplane was short (40 minutes) and since I was sitting in the front where the emergency exit was I had plenty of legroom. 😊
On arrival at Lamu airport, an assistant waited for me to guide me to the guesthouse where I was staying. The airport is actually on Manda Island. So, at first we took the boat 🚤 to Lamu Island which is really just across the Lamu canal. Then we walked approximately 10 minutes through the narrow alleys of the old town until we reached the „JamboHouse Lamu“ - my accommodation for the time in Lamu. It was still hot and humid (like in all other places at the east coast) and although I had carried my luggage for only a few minutes I was sweating like crazy 🥵
On my arrival day I just chilled in the afternoon on the cozy terrace of the guesthouse and went for a walk at the seafront during evening hours. I had left my mobile phone in the guesthouse to recharge 🔋and the whole old town experienced a power outage after dark. So it was pitch black which made me worry about finding my way back to the guesthouse. 👀 Luckily, the power outage was only brief. Otherwise I probably would have had a tough time navigating a town that I only knew for some hours by then. 😅

On the next morning, I coincidentally met Jack (from Australia) at the breakfast table - I knew him already from my time in Nairobi. 😊He was leaving that day but I also started talking to Austin (from the U.S.) who was sitting close by. We both went on a DIY walking tour 🚶through Lamu old town - guided by the instruction of one of the old „Lonely Planets“ (which still had all of the helpful info in it). 😩
Walking through the narrow alleys of the old town again and with more time for observation I noticed the many cats and donkeys 🫏 as well as their donkey poop 💩 in the streets. In the old town, donkeys are the major form of transportation (when you don’t want to walk). A few younger people also possed motorbikes 🏍️ ; the streets are too narrow for anything else. Moreover, automobiles are not allowed into the old town. 🚫
Our first stop was the Lamu museum which extensively informed us about Swahili culture and history. ℹ️ The 'Swahili Coast' is the region extending from Mogadishu (Somalia) in the north to Sofala (Mozambique) in the south, including the Lamu archipelago, the islands of Pemba, Zanzibar, Comoros, and the western coast of Madagascar.
The Lamu Archipelago in the north of the Kenyan Coast offers a rich cultural heritage and has been referred to as the cradle of Swahili civilization due to its numerous living settlements and ruins 🏚️ of ancient abandoned cities. Lamu Old Town‘s existence can be traced back to the 12th century which makes it the oldest town and the heart of an over 700 years old Swahili heritage in East Africa. The buildings of the merchant stone town and its traditional way of life sets you at least 100 years back in time 🕰️ and highlights the high level of sophistication attained by Swahili people from the 9th century throughout the golden ages of the 15th and 17th centuries. But it was the map 🗺️ with trade routes between Swahili people and settlements going as far as Arabia, Persia, India, China and Indonesia in the museum that impressed me the most. Swahili settlements were maritime and trade oriented. It was through trade that Swahili people were able to travel overseas and at the same time foreign Muslim scholars and craftsmen reached the East African Coast using monsoon winds. 🌬️ Travelling the sea for trade exposed the Swahili coast to cultural influences across the Indian Ocean, Arabian sea, and the Gulf of Aden - with the Omanis 🇴🇲 seemingly having a particularly high influence.
Next we visit the Swahili house museum. As the name suggests it illustrated how a Swahili house 🏠 typically looks like. The entire way of life of the Swahili strictly follows the Sharia Islamic law 📖 and encompasses very high moral standards coupled with uttermost cleanliness, adherence to their faith and accordance of respect to all living things.
We continued our journey and visited some galleries with African art, the local market, the biggest mosque 🕌 in town as well as the fort on the way. There was even a german post office museum but it was closed.
In the afternoon Austin and I went back to our guesthouse to relax for a little bit before we went out for dinner again. We went to the Moonrise restaurant which served excellent food. 👌

On the next morning I went to the Whispers Cafe for breakfast - I had forgotten to inform Arnold (the host of my guesthouse) about my breakfast wish. 🤦 But that also gave me the chance to test out something new. It’s a theme that runs through all restaurants in Lamu: many things on the menu cannot be served because the ingredients are missing. The reason is simple - only mango 🥭 and coconut 🥥 grow naturally on Lamu island. In addition, chicken 🐓 and eggs 🥚 as well as fish 🐠 are raised or caught by the locals. Everything else needs to be imported. So, you have to be a bit more flexible with ordering. The fried eggs with toast and the coffee where good anyways. 😅
At lunchtime I took a boda boda 🏍️ to Sheila beach and stayed there for the afternoon. It was very hot and I didn’t want to risk another sunburn. That’s why I stayed most of the time in the shade and went for a refreshing beer 🍺 to the very cozy Pepino Hotel. The food is expensive (and excellent) there but the drinks are reasonably priced. I walked a bit through Sheila town as soon as the sun didn’t shine as strong anymore. Many Europeans own the houses or resorts/hotels there. I guess this is the main reason why it appears cleaner 🧹and more geared towards tourists but at the same time lacks the cultural aspects and true feeling for the live of the locals, in comparison to Lamu Old Town.
At 5 pm I met Salim - my guide for the sunset 🌅 hike to the sand dunes near Sheila town. We passed a small village and I had the chance to taste coconut wine in a local bar of the village. It was not really my cup of tea. In fact, it tasted horrible 🤢 but this is what the locals drink here after a long working day. In contrast to my initial thoughts, it is made from the juice that a coconut tree reveals when you cut its branches. The juice is then fermented as is for a day or two and voilà - finished is the coconut wine. 🧪
After the tasting Salim and I continued the trip to the highest point of the sand dunes where we had a great overview of Lamu island. Even during dry season it was very green with lots of palm trees 🌴 and other vegetation. After sunset we walked back to Lamu town and ended the tour. Despite the better temperatures then it was still a sweat breaking endeavour. 🥵 So, I took a mandatory shower at my guesthouse before I went to the Moonrise again for dinner. I had the catch of the day - red snapper filet in garlic sauce with coconut rice and chargrilled vegetables. Needless to say that the food was excellent again. 😌

My next destinations on the east coast of Kenya is Malindi and Watamu (a bit further south than Lamu). I will report in a couple of days how it is there. Stay tuned! 😎Read more