Lamu is a town, port, and island in the Indian Ocean off the East African coast, 240 km northeast of Mombasa. A former Persian, then Zanzibari, colony, Lamu Island rivaled Mombasa until the late 19th century as an entrepôt for gold, spices, and enslaved people. The town of Lamu, the oldest of its kind still in existence in Kenya, is one of the best-preserved examples of Swahili culture in East Africa and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2001.
Some parts of the newly built road from Malindi to Lamu were already heavily damaged, so it was tough for our little Suzuki Alto to cross that. However, we made it to Mokowe, where we left the car in the secured parking at the harbor (200 KES / 24 hours). Then, we took a public boat (300 KES, 10 min) to Lamu (choose the one with life jackets).
One Swahili proverb states that a man without a donkey is a donkey. There are 3000 donkeys active on Lamu and they are used as the main form of transport here. But we hired local fishermen (2500 KES / 3 hours) to explore centuries-old Swahili settlements to avoid getting lost in the fragrant labyrinth of tiny streets in Lamu Town. We admired carved Omani and Swahili doorways and explored the atmospheric and somewhat chaotic quintessential Lamu market.
We tried local food in a well-rated Mangrove restaurant. The quality was awful (shawarma with coke – 450 KES), and the place was filthy, so after that bad experience, we only went to Lamu House, like other tourists. We also tried a milkshake (350 KES) in the Whispers Coffee Shop, but it was not our cup of tea.
