Lamu is the black hole of laidbackness. The gospel of African travel is peppered with stories of travellers who have drifted into Lamu intending to stay a few days and ended up hanging around for months.

Apocrypha, perhaps, but that is hardly the point: spend a few days in this small island town off the north coast of Kenya, and you can hardly fail to succumb to its addictively lethargic atmosphere.

For us, the spell was cast even before we set foot on Lamu Island. From the resort town of Malindi a light aircraft operated by Air Kenya flew us over a glittering coastline studded with expansive blue estuaries, jungle-lined rivers, tall green dunes, and the occasional isolated mud dwelling. The plane touched down on Manda, a low, mangrove-covered island separated from Lamu by a narrow channel which creates an almost riverine aspect to the town. From Manda, we crossed to Lamu on a dhow built to a design that has changed little in centuries, entranced as the row of whitewashed Swahili buildings that comprise Lamu's atmospheric waterfront drew closer.

Much of Lamu's charm lies in the manner in which it has embraced tourism and adopted outside influences without having sacrificed its soul. This is probably the most culturally and architecturally cohesive town of its size in East Africa, yet paradoxically it is also among the most cosmopolitan. If one single image can be said to encapsulate traditional Lamu, it is the Swahili women, draped in their black bui-bui veils, who glide through the shaded alleys, silent and inscrutable, only to vanish around a corner or into an ornately-carved wooden doorway.

The adaptability of the townsfolk is illustrated by the row of inexpensive restaurants along the waterfront, where delicious traditional Swahili fare and seafood are offered alongside such backpacker staples as curries, pancakes, yoghurt, spaghetti and garlic toast-not to mention a vast assortment of indecently yummy fresh fruit purées. If there is better eating to be had at a comparable price anywhere in Africa, point me to it!

Lamu's waterfront is the first sight to greet most visitors to the town, and one of its most enduring images. Contrary to appearances, however, the present waterfront is a relatively modern addition, dating to the 1830s, when the densely packed layers of rubble that had accumulated at the water's edge were reclaimed and built over. Otherwise, the street plan of Lamu probably dates from the early eighteenth century when the town peaked as a centre of maritime trade, architectural innovation, literary enterprise and Islamic scholarship.

The antiquity of Lamu is difficult to ascertain, but as early as the fourteenth century it was entrenched as one of the thirty-odd autonomous city-states that dotted the Swahili Coast between Somalia and the Zambezi Delta. Lamu was by all accounts a relatively minor power at this time, certainly not comparable in stature to the great medieval gold-trading emporium of Kilwa Kisiwani in southern Tanzania. And, in common with those other city-states that have survived to the present day (Mombasa and Malindi for instance), Lamu has been rebuilt and restored so many times over the centuries that its earlier incarnations are lost forever.

To gain some idea of what medieval Lamu might have looked like, you need to visit the ruins of one of the contemporaneous cities that were abandoned during the Portuguese occupation. Of these, Kilwa Kisiwani and Gedi (near Malindi) are the most inspiring, but for visitors to Lamu the ruined city of Takwa has the distinct advantage of proximity. Situated on Manda Island, Takwa lies an hour by dhow from Lamu at high tide, and its attractive old mosque, ruined houses and impressive pillar tombs throw rich illumination on Lamu's past.

Surprisingly, Lamu boasts few noteworthy historical landmarks. The fort built in 1821 by the Sultan of Oman is one; the informative and well-organised national museum another. Ultimately, however, it is the dream-like atmosphere of the old town that seduces so many visitors into staying on another day... and another... Lamu is best experienced whimsically, by drifting aimlessly through the alleys, occasionally climbing to the rooftop of one of the town's many multi-storey, open-plan buildings, or stopping for a cold drink and chat in one of the local cafés.

One can hardly fail to notice the sense of community that binds Lamu. The old town cannot easily be divided into residential, business and commercial sectors: many people work in the ground floor of the house in which they live, while children play and old men gossip and smoke pipes on the busiest of thoroughfares. The obvious point of comparison, Zanzibar's Stone Town, is now a traditional enclave in a large modern city.

The old town of Lamu, by contrast, stands alone. Where the alleys of Zanzibar have been infested by murderously manic motorcyclists, the roads of Lamu are imposed upon by a heady total of three motorised vehicles-one tractor, one motorbike and one Land Rover. On Lamu, life is lived literally at walking pace: whether on one's own legs or on those of the island's ubiquitous donkeys.

The old town comes first, second and third on any list of Lamu's attractions. Whereas this mesmerising enclave of traditional Swahili culture and architecture represents a unique slice of living history, the beaches and reefs of the Lamu Archipelago are approximated in many other parts of East Africa. Still, it would be remiss not to mention that Lamu does boast a couple of superb beaches, and some upmarket lodges to match. A short dhow ride or walk from the old town, Shela Beach is a gorgeous 12km stretch of red sand and blue water, making it an obvious point of escape when the narrow alleys of Lamu town become overbearingly sweaty.

Situated on Shela Beach, the Peponi Hotel is a venerable Lamu institution, combing elegant Swahili and colonial architecture with a world-class menu and winning air of hedonism. Better still, in our estimation, is Kipungani Lodge on the landward side of the island, an organically-constructed retreat that sprawls lushly along an isolated palm-lined strip of travel brochure perfection.

For excursions further afield than Shela, most travellers work through the profusion of hustlers who hang out along Lamu waterfront. Lamu's touts have been described as the most relaxed in the world, and so they are. We were approached daily by a host of familiar faces-Captain JJ, Captain Bubu, Captain Whoever-with fresh suggestions for activities: a dhow ride to Takwa, a snorkelling excursion on the dazzling reefs of Manda Toto, a donkey trip across the island to the dhow-building village of Matondoni. Choose wisely, because many of these characters are so permanently stoned that I'd be loath to entrust them with any task more taxing than rolling another joint. What did impress, however, was the touts' unerring ability to maintain a friendly demeanour. You'll be accosted with great frequency in Lamu, but only rarely will you be hassled.

When I first visited Lamu in 1993, the backpacker traffic, which has always been the mainstay for the island's independent touts, had been reduced to a trickle as a result of bandit attacks along the bus route from Mombasa. On my last morning on the island, I sat on the verandah of Petley's Inn-the oldest and most atmospheric hotel in town-nursing a beer and watching the dhows billow past in the company of a tout who I'd befriended over my stay. As my pal returned, somewhat wearingly, to his pet topic of how tough times had become without any travellers passing through, a pair of young backpackers stepped off the boat which ferries new arrivals to the island. "Stop moaning," I suggested, "and try to do a bit of business". My friend raised his head half-heartedly and sighed: "It's too late for business." I looked at my watch. It was midday in the black hole of laidbackness.

Lamu factfile

Getting There
Most international visitors fly into Lamu. Air Kenya operates daily services between Lamu and Mombasa (and Nairobi). The airport is on Manda island, a short dhow trip to Lamu.

Getting Around
Motorised dhows can transport you from Lamu village and Shela, and there are regular dhow and ferry services connecting Lamu with Paté island.

Accommodation
Undoubtably the two top-rated establishments on Lamu are Kipungani Lodge and Peponi Hotel. There are also a number of very good (mostly self-catering but well-serviced) guest houses, of which your African travel specialist should be able to recommend a few. Budget hotels in the middle-to-cheap range are abundant, but these are largely restricted to Lamu town itself.

And Don't Forget Pate...

Any notion that Lamu exists in some kind of time-warp will be placed in perspective by a visit to Paté Island.

An utterly captivating anachronism, Paté town consists of a disorientating maze of alleys hemmed in by tall stone buildings. When we walked through Paté, we felt as if we were deep in the heart of a vast traditional city, and even after two days we were constantly getting lost. Yet when viewed from the rooftops, it is clear that this urban labyrinth stretches for no more than 500m in any direction, giving way abruptly to dense mangroves and coconut plantations. The population of what might well be the most isolated block of high-rise buildings in Africa is estimated at 2000!

Paté was founded in the ninth century, and in its fifteenth and eighteenth century heydays it was at least the equal of Lamu as a centre of trade and learning. That Paté was favoured over Lamu by Portuguese and Omani settlers is writ large on the cosmopolitan facial characteristics of its people. The tobacco fields on the outskirts of town are delineated by a set of ruined medieval walls more extensive even than the famous Gedi Ruins, though the site is less well-preserved. The modern town, reputedly an eighteenth century entity, has been erected phoenix-like using lumps of coral-rag removed from the walls of its more illustrious predecessor.

If Paté town leaves you hungry for more, its smaller and even more obscure neighbour Siyu unveils further facets of thehistorical treasure trove that is the Lamu Archipelago: a nineteenth century fortress, a cluster of overgrown tombs and ruined mosques, modern habitations with an open floor plan reminiscent of the ruined houses seen at sites such as Gedi and Takwa...

All in all, Paté Island is a superb goal for adventurous travellers. It is connected to Lamu by a motorised dhow which departs daily at high tide, a two-hour boat trip followed by a 45-minute walk to Paté town, where anybody will be able to point you to the private guesthouse in the tallest building. Siyu is a 90-minute walk from Paté town.

Philip Briggs is a regular contributor to Travel Africa. He is the author of eight African guide books, including the Bradt Guide to Kenya.

Published in Travel Africa Edition Eleven: Spring 2000 Text is subject to Worldwide Copyright (c)