The bus from Malindi to Lamu was just as I remembered it - bumpy. The rumor that they had paved the road was obviously false. As soon as I arrived I spotted my friend, Karemi, who was waiting for a bus back down the coast to Mombasa. It took him a minute to remember me. I showed him our group photo from five years ago. He gave me a story for each member of the crew. For the most part, things were just as they were when I was here before. I was devastated to hear that Maina drowned some time ago. He was as good a man as they come.
Karemi and I ate some sukumawiki (greens) and chapati before I boarded the ferry to Lamu. I quickly found Guitaa next to his table full of tourist-targeted art. I showed him the photo and talked him into letting me hang my hammock in the new Culture Studio (culturestudio@yahoo.com). They rent most of a four-story coral block building for living and making their art. It is unfinished and there's no running water. I'd hang my hammock between pillars of coral block on the fourth floor. The wind rocked me to sleep every night.
The landlord's son and his friends are always hanging out on the fourth floor. They're all about to graduate from secondary school. Almost half of them are named Mohammed. I enjoy telling them what Amerika is really like, and playing reggae for them.
Someone now sells palm wine out of the old Culture Studio, and my friends are some of their best customers. Little has changed. They still spend most of the little money they make on palm wine.
I reconnected with Ben and Karanja. I had a long walk to see James. He now sells art at Shela Beach. Ben and James have both married since I've been gone, and they both have step children. Ben also has a daughter of his own. They seem more settled than the others.
Karanja was ill when I arrived. I gave him some neem leaf and moringa leaf powders. He was fine in a day. Also living in the house are Mongi and Morage. I kept my bag in Mongi's room. He was happy to help. Morage is the patriarch. He is also the coconut art expert. Everyday he sits between two piles of coconut shells on the fourth floor, sawing and sanding for eight hours per day.
I found out that they started their own NGO in 2002 called the Lamu Environmental Arts Youthgroup. They showed me the certificate of recognition. I'm not sure what projects they did in the past, but now the organization's account is broke, and they've stopped calling meetings.
Lamu is great. The island separated from the mainland and other islands by mangrove-lined channels. Most of the island is a forest of coconut palms. The dunes behind the beach are covered with another palm which also produces edible fuit and palm wine. The coconut palms also produce a natural wine. Both trees are tapped the same way. After a day of filling a large jug the wine is ready to drink and the tree lives on to produce again later.
Here, as everywhere since Tanzania (I should have mentioned it earlier), the local shops sell mira, or chat (Catha Edulis). This plant grows in the mountains around Mt. Kenya and is transported to every corner of the country, where it is in high demand probably because it is addictive. Fewer people chew it in Lamu because its more expensive here (for distance traveled). It is a natural stimulant like caffeine or ephedra, but with other effects as well. I'm not sure what the active constituents are. You chew the stem. It tastes sweet, like stevia, but very astringent. It dries your mouth instantly. I haven't been able to put enough down to feel its effects. The shops hang the leaves out front to advertise that they have it. Some guys like it way too much. They chew it all day and always have green crap all over their mouths. They say it keeps them going strong at whatever work they're doing.
Every morning I drink a green coconut. Every night I eat fried fish. In between, there's tamarind juice, fried casava, chapati, beans, coconut rice (you can smell in the streets at dinner time).... Old town is made of mostly old buildings made of coral and/or some cement mix. No two buildings are alike, and there's only enough space between for donkeys. There's one car on the island. I forget who owns it. The only place it can drive is along the water front and through the coconut palms behind old town. Here, everything is transported by boat, donkey or handcart. Ganja runs about 300 shillings per cob of schwag wrapped in brown paper.
Most folks are muslims, some more seriously than others. A few of the women cover their whole bodies save their eyes. The Afrikan Afrikans call them ninjas. Otherwise, there are all sorts of beautiful styles and accessories to the women's black robes. The men where nice clothes, too. In fact, I would say that Lamu has the most beautiful and comfortable clothes anywhere I've seen. The colors, fabrics and styles are diverse and cool. Plus, there are enough seamstresses willing to make or alter anything you want.
I happened to be in town for a great Muslim festival (name?), the one that celebrates Mohammed's birth. Folks came from all over the world to celebrate in Lamu.
There are more cats around than I remember. They all look healthy and well fed, no doubt from the scraps of fish and meat that are produced everyday. (The most popular street food is beef shish kabobs.) The only dog I met in Lamu was the pet of one of my student housemates.
I also found my old dhow captain, Hassan, and one of our crew, Ali. I spent some time hanging with Ali. He is now a captain of his own dhow.
It is the begining of the long rains, but it hadn't rained much until the latter part of my time here. Then it rained all morning two days in a row. With the heavy rain came mayflies and giant frogs out of nowhere.
My last night I called a meeting of the Environmental Arts Youthgroup. I talked to them about meeting in a circle using ordered council. I also talked to them about diversifying their products so that they can sell something daily, to locals, and I told them some things about fundraising, which I had just learned from Margaret in Kilifi.
The next day I tied up a few loose ends and bid my homies a happy farewell before taking the boat to the airport. The flight to Nairobi was smooth.
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