***Delayed because there was just so much to say about Lamu.
I have struggled to settle on a theme for my solo trip to Lamu. So much beauty, so much diversity that I can't find a common thread haha. Yet to me, Lamu was a soulful experience. I spent so much time reflecting such that when I caught up with my closest trio plus siblings, I kept saying "You know I really thought about that when in Lamu." or "When in Lamu, x and y dawned on me." That being said, being by myself totally unplugged social media wise was just a beautiful blessing. On solo travel ventures, I rarely have an itinerary, just an idea of what activities I want to get done in the area by the time I leave. There's no particular order or time to carry out the activities and somehow, everything always falls into place. So actually let me pen down just how the entire itinerary came together and what each moment made me think or feel. How Lamu made my heart and soul smile.
Walk around Lamu town - first order of leisure as soon as I landed in Lamu was to take a walk around the town. I put my earphones on and called a good old friend just so that the beachboys would see I am genuinely unavailable and leave me be plus it had been a long while since I had one of those DMCs (Deep Meaningful Conversations) with this friend. We talked for a long while, laughed and cried until I spotted the Lamu museum. Those who are close to me know how I keep saying I wouldn’t go into another museum because I have been to enough of them but sadly, they're always the starting point for a newbie. I bid my friend goodbye and walked into the museum. Katana was the guide that walked me through the museum. He shared Lamu's history briefly - the Swahili culture and the life of the ocean. Katana was so kind that he gave me a town tour and also walked me through Lamu fort (the museum ticket gives you access to Lamu fort on the same day so remember that should you want to walk by yourself). He recommended my next stop be the Floating bar and my next activity in my non-existent itinerary was set. Thinking about the entire start, I experienced Katana's kindness, his gentle spirit and generosity. He told me about his six children and how he came to settle in Lamu from Kilifi. His story showed me how we HUMANS strive to do better and be more…selfishly so initially but ultimately it benefits those within our care.
The floating restaurant - my Airbnb host in Lamu kindly organized for a free boat transfer to the floating restaurant. Looking back, the only thing other than eating, was observing in silence. I didn’t talk much to anyone at the restaurant but rather just watched. A boat came to drop off more customers and I talked a bit with the captain whose name is Shee. We talked some more about the life on the ocean. How it is all they know and grow to love. How the water is their only source of livelihood and everything is created around it. He shared a bit about his life and why he named his boat Asante Sana. He then showed me how to roll up the sail of the boat and to me this felt as close as I could ever get to their life on the water.
A full day of sailing - Quick backstory: On this day, I had decided to take a walk to Shela beach. Started off with a solo tour within Shela village then the plan was to go and just lazy by the beach. But Lamu had an even better plan yet to unfold. As I was walking within Shela village, I bumped into someone I had spotted at the Floating restaurant the previous day. I decided to just stop him and talk a bit. He happened to be a 'beach boy' but because of the many connotations to this word, I will use beach operator. His work was to walk along the beach, spot any new faces and organize activities for them. I asked what his plan for the day was and he mentioned he had guests that wanted to swim with turtles close to Takwa. I had taken a mental note from my museum trip to get to Takwa ruins. So I requested to join in on condition that he gets me to Takwa ruins and he agreed. I joined the guests at an even lower rate (you'd be shocked at how much lower you can pay as a solo traveler joining on pre-arranged trips lol - perks of riding solo) and off we went. Unfortunately we were late to catch the turtles but we swam nevertheless and the tide was too low for us to get to Takwa so we just kept sailing, went to town again for a bit (I collected some items I had pre-ordered) then got back to Shela. We enjoyed another two rounds of sailing - a sunset sail and a moonlight sail. Both so heavenly. I already love sunsets so I enjoyed it alright but the moonlight sail was absolutely something else. I will be grateful to God for the fact that I, a non-swimmer, went into the deep of the night, sailing on the ocean with 4 men - total strangers, yet felt safe. It did cross my mind once in a while how risky I can be but you know what, God truly had me :). These men chanted in the night, they shared their school drop out experiences, they smoked weed, drunk palm wine and I watched in awe. Completely dazzled at life - how pain and beauty can be so interwoven. I have never sailed in the dark and now every time I look at the moon, I smile for all the beauty it holds over water. Watching them have dinner together was another really moving highlight. It humbled me to see how humbly they live, yet hold so much joy and generosity within their hearts as they shared a plate.
Manda Toto trip - So on the previous day - I had discovered a street food joint run by Ali - a wonderful gentleman. The chicken mmmmh - Swahili dishes are as tasty as it gets. So while waiting up for my marinated chicken to grill over the fire, one of the night sail boys introduced me to another beach operator who was apparently taking a group of 8 to Manda Toto the next day. Honestly when starts align, they truly align, in perfect harmony. So I negotiated my prices (again waaaay lower than the organized trip cost) and the next day, I was up and ready to go for the Manda Toto tour. It's a full day activity. We snorkeled and prepared food on the dhow. I once again had fun conversations with strangers - got to know what their dreams were. It was mostly high school students from England in their gap year but fun talking to them nonetheless.
Mararani village and sand dunes walk - when we got back from Manda Toto, there was some more time to kill. So I called up one of the moonlight sail gentlemen, Tasi, and requested him to be my guide for the Mararani village and dunes sunset walk. We walked through the village - and all I did was take it all in. Smiled at the little children walking barefoot in the really hot sand (I tried and couldn't stand it after three steps haha). I watched as the young men played pool. Passed by women cooking samosas and bought some and on we walked. Tasi got a call and had to go attend to other guests and the rest of the way seemed pretty obvious. He introduced me to one of the villagers who was walking around with his son Konde. So Baba Konde pointed me in the right direction and on I went. Passed by a well where the villagers drew their water from and started my ascent. When I got to the peak of the first sand dune, I looked back and saw Baba Konde and Konde still looking out for me. I waved back and nothing in this life can match what I felt in that moment. It was just unique. The sunset view was beautiful and I took it all in with all the love there was. I continued up and down the dunes as the sun set behind my back. Then I eventually emerged at Shela beach. I walked by the shoreline back into Shela village, dancing to songs that soothed my heart and felt perfect in that moment - back to Ali to grab dinner. As I sat there, the only pending to do on my list was Takwa ruins. As I contemplated on how to do that, I waited on the universe to continue it’s perfect choreography as it had since my arrival into Lamu. However, this time, I had to do it myself and it is so with life, that there are moments that will piece together like a domino but others, we have to make the effort for.
So I will miss Lamu. I will think of it every time I see photos of people who go to Lamu after me because now I have my personalized lens of Lamu. Usually, it was the one-sided influencer perspective with a roof top infinity view from Forodha. But I know Lamu for the donkey dung across the streets, for the motorbikes, the barefoot walking, the beauty but yet still the dirt side of it. The community oriented living, the respect for women, the need to be decently dressed when there. The narrow streets, the Swahili/Omani doors. The strangers I met, their hardship stories and their joys.
