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Lamu Island, Kenya: Peak hour in Kenya's oldest and best-preserved Swahili town

By Julie Miller

Updated October 21, 2022 — 4.46pm

Guests can still watch dhows, brought to East Africa by Persian sailors in the 14th century, from Shela's shores at the Peponi Hotel.

"Stand back, traffic coming through," our guide Ali warns, shuffling us back against a carved wooden door, adorned with a floral flourish and studded with brass. With a muffled clip-clop, a train of dorsal-striped donkeys is passing by, ears flopping in unison and tails swishing at flies as they disappear up a narrow alleyway, hessian panniers bulging with building materials.

It's peak hour on the Swahili island of Lamu; and on the hectic waterfront, daily life is unravelling as it has for 700 years, cargo of every description – wooden beams, bags of potatoes, cement and dirt – unloaded from wooden sailing vessels and transferred to the backs of tiny dun Equus asinas, the primary form of transport on this largely Muslim settlement off the coast of Kenya.

Donkeys and dhows: it's been this way since the 14th century, when Persian sailors headed south on the prevailing Kaskazi trade winds from October to March with precious cargo of carpets, fabrics, perfumes and spices, pausing to repair their masts, sails and ropes on the coral beaches of the Lamu archipelago before returning north again on the Kusi winds, laden with gold and ivory.

Women dance during a celebration in Lamu.Credit: iStock

Today, the labyrinthine cobbled back streets of the now World Heritage-listed Old Town of Lamu reflect this crossroad of cultures, its architecture a unique fusion of Omani, Indian and European styles utilising traditional Swahili techniques, local materials such as coral limestone and mangrove timber, and the skills of craftsmen from India.

Austere and seemingly impenetrable from the outside, the double-storey houses – marked by thick walls, tiny slit windows and behemoth wooden doors and sometimes linked by sky-bridges – conceal cool interiors built around open courtyards, with a series of diminishing galleries facing north to Mecca embellished with ornate niches, friezes and hand-carved stucco plasterwork.

On street-level, men chew the fat and conduct business in shady barazas, or public sitting rooms; while women, faces concealed behind traditional black buibuis, leave the sanctity of home for shopping excursions, robes billowing in the draft that permeates the narrow passageways.

The boutique stay has been called "loveliest hotel in Africa".

Ali's tour along these un-named alleys reveals more hidden treasures: wood craftsmen at work, chiselling photo frames and house signs as well as Lamu-style furniture; a silversmith, creating unique jewellery from smashed Chinese porcelain recovered from an off-shore shipwreck; and the gallery of Australian ex-pat Kate Baracka, an incredible showcase of African art collected from her extensive travels. Meanwhile, Lamu Recycled Arts and Crafts sells quirky gifts made from beach waste, including love hearts made from rubber thongs, and fish-shaped wall hangings crafted from driftwood and the decorative bows of old dhows.

ISLAND MASCOTS

On the waterfront behind a thatched palapa entranceway is the Donkey Sanctuary – one of the world's largest equine charities founded in England in 1969 by Dr Elizabeth Svendsen. For 30 years, the Lamu arm of this global charity has provided veterinary care for the island's 3000 donkeys – until recently, the only form of land transport permitted, but now joined by buzzing motorbike taxis. Sadly, many of these sweet-natured and stoic creatures are sadly abused or over-worked; and as well as emergency care, the sanctuary team also strives for better working conditions, improving the design of harnesses and carts, training local vets and educating local owners about the economic value of caring for their beasts of burden.

While donkeys are the backbone of the Lamu economy, another creature reigns over the island's narrow streets – cats. Kitties by the hundreds, lounging around like Lord Muck on sun-drenched steps, symbols of the Swahili catchphrase 'pole pole' (slowly slowly). It's said that these elegant animals are the only remaining descendants of Ancient Egyptian cats, carried to Lamu on dhows; and with their wide foreheads and prominent ears, they do indeed resemble the cats found in hieroglyphics and entombed statuary.

A sign on the door of the Safari Vet clinic in Shela – a village that clings to a hillside on the south-east corner of Lamu, a 15-minute dhow ride or 45-minute walk from the Old Town – explains that visitor donations help to control the cat population with a free feeding, neutering and vaccination program, its outreach supporting hundreds of animals and educating communities on animal welfare.

BAREFOOT AND BOHO

With its whitewashed, coral-lined walls swathed with magenta bougainvillea, cool cobbled laneways and boho boutiques, luminous Shela stands in stark contrast to the Old Town's ancient dark warren, its air of prosperity largely due to the sway and swagger of the legendary Peponi Hotel that occupies the waterfront promenade.

Owned and operated since 1966 by the Korschen family, this boutique hotel – which has been called the "loveliest hotel in Africa" – is the social hub for Lamu's expat community, while its unpretentious barefoot luxury lures A-list celebrities, from Mick Jagger to Kate Moss, who fly under the radar in an island bubble where fame holds little context.

Regardless of social status, as one of the only places on the island licensed to serve alcohol, every visitor to Lamu eventually makes their way to the vine-shaded terrace of Peponi for sundowners, soaking up the views and convivial ambience over ice-cold Tuskers or a signature Old Pal cocktail – an enticing blend of vodka, angostura bitters, Lamu limes and soda water served with a sugary rim.

Meanwhile, hotel guests can indulge in an authentic Swahili feast, presented poolside amongst verdant tropical gardens on a low table with plush cushions; while a sunny rooftop overlooking the sparkling inlet invites a long lazy lunch of fresh sushi and sashimi, locally-caught crabs and vegan Buddha bowls.

Like a purring Lamu cat, I curl up after lunch with a book on a swinging day bed on my private first-floor terrace, watching donkeys and camels perusing the shoreline; then, forcing myself from my sloth, I join them at low tide on an obligatory stroll along the white sand beach that stretches west for 14 kilometres in increasingly lonely perfection, white breakers and rolling dunes replacing centuries-old civilisation.

As the afternoon wanes, my friends and I step onboard Venus, a Mozambique-style wooden dhow, for a sunset sail. Reclining on cushions, Old Pal cocktails in hand, we set sail across the Mkanda Channel towards Manda, a largely uninhabited (save for the airport and a smattering of hotels on the foreshore) coral island fringed with mangroves.

As seamen have done for aeons, the captain and his crew unfurl the sail to catch the breeze, canvas flapping to reveal a bold message stitched in red: Happy Birthday! It's not, of course, mine or anyone else on board's special day – but we're happy to run with the cheery sentiment, making a toast to the slow life as the sun dips over Old Lamu Town in a blaze of African glory.

DETAILS

FLY

Emirates flies from Sydney to Nairobi via Dubai, see emirates.com. Lamu can be reached from airports in Nairobi, Mombasa or Malindi. Flights land on Manda Island, with guests for Peponi Hotel transferred by boat to the hotel.

VISIT

A visit to Lamu is a great add-on to any Kenyan safari, with three to five days ideal at either Peponi Hotel or in a villa. An overnight stay on the island is also part of the 14-day Great Walk of Africa, the relaxing finale after a 160 kilometre walking safari in Tsavo National Park. See classicsafaricompany.com.au

STAY

Bed and breakfast at Peponi Hotel starts from KSH 18,500 ($A230) a night for a standard single room.The hotel is closed in May and June. See peponihotel.com