Kilifi

Growing up as a Kenyan student we all learnt about the ruins of Gedi. How well do you remember your history? With buildings from the 11th and 12th century, another known location in this county was the Mnarani ruins – indicative of how far back our urban history goes.

The walled area of the city covers almost 45 hectares suggesting it was a bustling town of almost 3000 people. Laid out on a grid of narrow streets, Gedi had two mosques, an intricate water system, a palace, and pillar tombs reminiscent of Swahili settlements that ran from Mogadishu to Mozambique. The ruins remain jealously guarded by the remains of the great Arabuko-Sokoke Forest which was the largest coastal woodland system in the region. Century-old trees and their roots systems have made their way through the walls of the ruins, reminding us that nature always wins. A walk through the ruins transports one to another time and place and one can almost hear the laughter of buibui-clad women, witness the passage of donkeys, and the sounds of children running through the magnificent town of yesteryears. The Kipepeo Butterfly Project adjacent to the ruins is one of the largest exporters of butterflies in the country. Farmers in Kilifi harvest pupae, showing that economic options abound so long as one has a little creativity and the right climatic conditions!

While Kilifi may be better known these days for its bustling trading centre of Mtwapa, the stunning Mida Creek where Jason Dunford trained to swimming glory, and the last outpost of Italy known as Malindi, the county is also home to one of the region’s largest medical research centres. Yup! That’s right, Kilifi hosts the KEMRI – Wellcome Trust’s Centre for Geographic Medicine Research, home to over 100 research scientists dedicated to finding ways of combating malaria and other tropical diseases. A state-of-the-art health research facility, it is the engine that drives many of the medical advancements that we witness in the country and elsewhere between the tropics.

Hell’s Kitchen, better known as Nyari, is a natural sandstone canyon once considered a sacred site, and is indeed burning hot but also a magical natural formation that is worth the thirty minute drive from Malindi.

One last little fact: if you love your cashewnuts, chances are you have the rich coastal soils of Kilifi to thank for them as they have been in production there since the 1930s!

Our featured photographer is Sammy Njoroge a commercial Photographer and Cinematographer based in Nairobi, but in all honesty – pretty much all over the place depending on where the assignments take him or where the sunsets look most dramatic. Sammy focuses on Travel & Fashion photography, and Documentary Films. Find him on Instagram and Twitter @idfied_ to keep seeing his Kenya!