Then, our trip continued to Kenya’s southernmost fishing village, just 24km east of the border with Tanzania. Most of the fish consumed in Diani is caught here in Vanga. The village has played a significant role in both local and global history. In WWI, the border between British-occupied Kenya and German-occupied Tanzania emerged as a considerable battleground, as the British feared that the Germans would capture Mombasa further north. Vanga served as a German post for two to three years – a history etched into the village’s very foundation, whose streets are laid out in a grid formation traditional to German design. At the center of the village is a fort (known as ‘Vanga Seawall’) that reportedly dates to the 15th century. Unlike its contemporaries elsewhere along the Coast, this fort is a marvelous sight despite severe disrepair.
