A friend of mine lives in Las Palmas, Canary Islands. He recently wrote me about Lanzarote, an island of contrasts -according to him- where  long ocean beaches coexist with the lunar atmosphere of the National Park of Timanfaya.  Harsh in some ways, this island can surely surprise me with its beauty that now I wish to discover. Meanwhile I’m only browsing the Web and searching among heaps of  low-cost deals, I found out that these cheap flights to Lanzarote are really worth checking! The island is the easternmost of the Canary Islands and is about 170 km from the African coast. My friend wrote that probably  the first thing I’ll notice -as an architect, is the elegance of Lanzarote buildings: white traditional style buildings never exceeding a certain height, with green or blue shutters.  It is the result of a plan strongly supported by architect Cèsar Manrique, who wished to preserve and protect the natural heritage of the island. Manrique,  born in 1919 in Arecife, after living in Madrid and New York, returned to his beloved island in 1968 and began a series of works, with the sole goal of harmonizing the landscape in the artistic creation. The otcomes of his work are scattered throughout the island and make it a unique place in the world. His house, Taro de Tahiche 5 km from Arrecife, was carved out of a solidified lava flow: it is the result of  a game of surprising contrasts that includes the blinding white of the structure and the black volcanic rock. My summary representation of Taro de Tahiche relies on a photo found on the Internet; it’s  just a personal reminder until I’ll be able to pay a visit to my friends in Lanzarote…

I am quite an organized fellow when it comes to plan my trips. Since I’m going to be “on the road” usually for long, I always try  to arrange as many details as I can before leaving: booking in advance  is a must for me. Off course many people simply let their customary life-style go on:  late deal holydays is a perfect choice!  I know that a last minute rush to get organized can be fun and exhilarating and, I have to say, I experienced this special frenzy a few times when booking my flights as little as 24 hours before travelling! I suppose that my last last-minute flight happened a couple of years ago, while departing the  pictoresque Manda airfield (Kenya). Actually my first plan included a bus trip to Mombasa. I would left the island within a week so spending a few days more by the beach. Travelling by bus in Africa is a time consuming process, everybody knows, a bit demanding too but quite enjoyable to me. Yet some sudden news from home made my plans changed:  I had to hurry, in order to attend to my exhibition opening that had been anticipated. Fortunately enough the local air carrier had a vacancy on their Nairobi flight next day.  A lovely and imponderable last minute chance which made me feel suddenly happy and brazenly lucky!  The day after I found out that the plane was not exactly crowded: perhaps ten passengers all in all, and, among them a lovely red hair woman I had met a few days before…

For us Westerners, born and raised by the concept of “fixed price”, bargaining may seem a strange practice at first, or more benevolently, a waste of time. On the contrary Africans think that every bargaining is a challenge to immagination, a friendly way to “duel” with the customer, to value his ability and patience. Despite our different ideologies both of us look forward to get the best value: actually  a holiday deals is the golden rule of everybody who travels on the cheap. But even travellers who have no definite plan but not going home soon, need to bargain. So who cares if an hotel room deal or some souvenirs purchase turn into a time consuming process? The very thing is getting the right price, and even more important, being positively influenced by the local habits. How could I forget, for instance, the never ending deal I had in Mombasa with The Hydro Hotel indian owner some 30 years ago? How to forget his lethargic manner, purposely “provocative”, that included scores of apparently inconsistent questions and ended with a cup of chai sipped togheter, after he had appreciated my skills and before fixing the room final price: 18 kenyan shillings a day. A great price! So when I went back in Mombasa Old Town in 2009, I could not escape the feeling of paying a visit to the old and lousy Hydro Hotel which, I found out, was not changed at all. I climbed the stairs  and reached the same wooden desk at the reception, as in dream. The young clerk listened to my story, laughed a lot and said that the old baba retired just a few years ago…

Illustration Friday topic is: influence

Sitting on the terrace of the house in front of mine there is a blonde middle-aged woman who reads. Every night, before leaving my book on the big bench made of gray wooden planks and slowly going  to bed downstairs, I rest a moment to look at her… In the clear air of the African night, swept by the breeze, this still figure intrigues me. I find out difficult to give myself a reading as deep as that of the woman, and I wonder about her book content, something which keeps her on that windy tiny terrace night after night: adventure? Philosophy? A romance of the crime? A travel book on Flights to Florida? Soon she too will lay her book on the floor and turn her face around for a while – I fancy, before I go down the steep stairs to my room. Actually she never did it…

Illustration Fridays topic is: swept

Kenya wildlife is the main attraction to many visitors. The country offers a wide selection of National Parks were it is easy to watch wild animals. Young travellers really on a shoestring might think to avoid them at first, due to the cost of lodging there. Moreover you need a car since there no public transportation which allows tourist to freely wander within a Park boundery. So car hiring is the only chance, but usually  the main car rentals are not exactly cheap. Yet it is possible hiring private cars from individuals, or retail car shops, so making your cheap holiday a cheaper holiday. That’s what I did with my friend Andrew, a fellow traveller from Perth, who I met one morning at Uhuru Park in Nairobi. An almost brand new Toyota Corolla rented from some Indian car traders at a very reasonable rate at our disposal! What else? We just had a great week in Amboseli National Park hanging around among enormous elephants all day long, and camping at night in confined and secure sites: yes!

A Malta holidays presents an opportunity to discover a country and a different culture only a short distance away from Sicily. The island strategic position, in between Europe and Africa, half way Gibraltar and the Middle East made it a perfect stronghold for the consecutive colonizers. The Phoenicians, the Romans, the Arabs, the Angevins, the Aragonese, the Knights of Saint John and the British were amongst them – all with just one goal: to control the middle of the Mediterranean. Traces of these cultures can still be found throughout the island: Phoenician tombs, The Roman Villa and several Roman and early Christian catacombs; The ancient city of Mdina with its Arab past (as does the place name itself). The capital city of Valletta is an open history book on the era of the Knights of St. John, when Malta was the southest  stronghold of European Christianity. This role seems to work even nowdays: Malta is on the route of the boats carrying migrants from Africa, but the Maltese government, just like the Italian one, does not shine in providing help and hospitality. Recently a leading Italian NGO has filed a report to the International Criminal Court  and the International Court of Justice in The Hague calling on them to investigate Malta’s ‘failures’ to adhere to international maritime rules with regards to search and rescue. While the Italian, Maltese and French governements debate on the grotesque topic, if the migrants status is that of political refugees or clandestines, at least 1000 Africans shipwrecked and drowned since January 2011, in the effort of  reaching our coastlines. Long live Fortress Europe!

You might ask what on earth there is to do on an Islamic Island at night? The answer could be join a full moon party, a must almost for every tourist!  The party happens at the Shela beach and usually music is played by small  portable music systems. The local boys, especially the dhow captains and their friends love to dance and make friends with tourists- especially women. According to a dutch girl who stayed at my same guest house, they are “…nice enough and its a great experience! “. Sometimes locals play chakacha, traditional drum music; more often reggea and hip hop are very popular, so that you would believe to be in your caribbean holidays rather than Kenyan! Don’t worry! There is  true African disco in Lamu: the friday nights at the A.P Canteen have a reputation for being fun and wild; this is the only place to go out late at night. A.P. Canteen is run by the police, which also run the nice wine shop next door. At  A.P. modern pop African music is played, particularly  bongo flavas from the the neighbouring Tanzania. Along with dancing, the main activity is getting drunk and screw around with good looking girls, just under the big trees outside. Tourists are usually welcome especially if they get in with some local friends.

Lamu, Kenya’s oldest living town, was one of the original Swahili settlements along coastal East Africa. The town was first attested in writing by Arab travellers during 15th century. Lamu’s years as an Omani protectorate mark the town’s golden age. During this period, Lamu became a center of poetry, politics, arts and crafts as well as the trade. Lamu’s unique stone townhouses, many dating back to the early 18th century, are celebrated for their intricately carved wooden front doors. During my last trip to Lamu, in 2009, these beautiful carved doors inspired me greatly. The very thing to do was reproducing those ancient wooden carved patterns, by laying a sheet of paper over  them  and then rubbing with a soft pencil. This art technique, called frottage, is due to the German surrealist painter Marx Ernst, who invented it in 1920′s. I spent two months wandering along Lamu narrow and shady   alleys to do the job until I had 20 large drawings ready. It was an interesting experience for me. Several times the locals stopped me and asked what the hell I was doing upon their doors. Somebody asked some shilling which I was glad to pay as a part of the game…Lamu used to be a popular destination for backpackers in search of an authentic experience or cheap holidays. My first stay in the island dates back to mid ’80s. Nowdays you meet plenty of short term tourist or rich white residents: it seems they are taking over the island…

Illustration Friday topic is: shadow

The road trip from Malind to Lamu is a time consuming one. I found out that the road conditions have not changed much after 25 years. My second trip to Kenya dates back to 2009 and actually the very reason to get back,  was my need to compare the changes: changes inside me while travelling those same places that possibly had changed: just a game, a sort of time machine. These were my thoughs on the crowed bus which slowly headed to Mokowe Jetty : there I would catch a cheap boat to Lamu Island, looking for the same cheap boarding house were I stayed 25 years before. Yes, my holiday seemed just a sentimental journey. The bus stopped one more time for a while, somewhere: a sudden rain was falling. I watched trought the bus window  and curiously saw an old black man, a giant indeed, bathing happily into a sort of mini swamp filled with muddy water. There he sat, gazing an old broken bycicle nearby and smiled to the clean rain falling on his body and his bald head: was he thinking words of wisdom, perhaps?

Illustration Friday topic is: soaked

Someone told me on the Vietnamese boat people who had landed on Pulao Kapas’ beach many years before.  I came across the boat’s wreck a few days later. The boat’s left over, nearly completely buried by the sand, really struck me. I stopped and stayed by that unplanned and clandestine monument a long while and   felt distinctly the very tragedy that was behind it…
Since a few years Italy is first in Europe for illegal immigration by sea. Some 25.000 desperate people somehow reached our shores in 2008. During the last three days, from dec 24 up to dec 26, about 1500 African  migrants have landed in Lampedusa Island, nearby Sicily.
Due to jingle bells and the like, Italians mostly have not paid much attention to this significant occurrence, while the ghosts of Christmas ideals rerun on Prime Minister Berlusconi’s Channel Five…

Illustration Friday’s topic is: clandestine