The ancient Norsemen held their sailing vessels in the highest esteem, even being buried with them as transport to the afterlife. A modern version of this old, hallowed bond was re-enacted when the Norwegian Halvor Astrup walked along the sand on Lamu island off the Kenyan coast three decades ago. He came across a large wooden dhow lying on its side like a forlorn beached whale and his interest was piqued. He was told her name was Tusitiri – Swahili for ‘may God shelter you’. Determined to save her from an ignominious fate, Halvor bought the elegant carcass and began to bring her back to life.
Built in the Lamu village of Matondoni, which has a very proud history of dhow-making for the spice, mangrove-wood and ivory trades, Tusitiri started life in the 1960s as one of the last trading ships. ‘She is, in fact, a jahazi, which is larger than a dhow,’ says Halvor’s daughter Ina, who now operates Tusitiri as a luxury private charter – a sister offering to the family’s safari camp of Enasoit, at the foot of Mount Kenya. ‘My father was absolutely fascinated by her history – she travelled to Oman and Yemen in her trading days. Even, perhaps, as far as India.’
Ina’s father’s restoration mission is a fitting one given the family’s long association with marine trade, as the Astrups are one of Scandinavia’s oldest and most prominent shipping families. Spending large portions of the year in Kenya, Ina lives and breathes her adopted culture and has a way of describing even humdrum events with a sense of magic. Explaining the making of new sails, she talks of it being ‘a ceremony in itself, with a goat slaughtered and prayers offered for the next voyages’.
From following the old trade winds, the majestic boat has found a new calling operating along the coast. ‘It is an authentic and memorable way of exploring the Lamu archipelago and beyond,’ says Ina, as we sit drinking sundowners and listening to the azan (call to prayer) from a nearby mosque, the sound floating across the waves like a bird call. ‘We travel as far south as the idyllic Quirimbas islands in Mozambique, but the local islands – Lamu, Manda, Pate and Kiwayu – have so much to explore.’
Passionate about interior design, Ina has deftly conjured the feeling of a country house floating on the Indian Ocean. She has softened the deck with cushions covered in Zoffany’s ‘Annapurna’ ikat and Persian kilims, which cover the wide, polished planks fashioned from mbambakofi wood. At the side of the deck, there is a picture-perfect open-air shower.lentiful cushions make for comfortable lounging. BOTTOM ROW Dinner is prepared and served on
Gin and tonics are enjoyed sitting on Zanzibari antique planter chairs strewn among bronze hippopotamus sculp-tures, books on African art and copies of glossy magazines such as Tatler and House & Garden piled up on low tables.
Meals are prepared by peerless chef Lewis Tsoiri – ‘he can even bake bread without an oven,’ says Ina – in a sunken galley at one end of the deck and served at a large table dressed with coloured glass and silver. All the bounty of the surrounding waters is here – succulent tiger prawns, spiny lobster and fleshy mangrove crab – paired with the finest wines, and tasting of sea-salted adventure.
Over smoky Swahili coffee after dinner, Ina observes, ‘The beauty of Tusitiri is that you can sail between anchorages and explore remote coves. We also have lots of toys for those who want to keep busy and active – amazing water-skiing, paddleboarding, even deep-sea fishing.’
Ina also shares an exciting new project unfolding with the building of a ‘little Tusitiri’ – smaller and made in the Mozambique dhow design. ‘My dream is that she will be tied behind Tusitiri at night and become a floating main bedroom,’ she says laughing.
With a crew of seven to look after 12 guests, overseen by charismatic Lamu local Mia Miji and his wife, British-born Kirsty Tatham Miji, there is a sense of quiet luxury that seeps into the senses with every ebb and rise of the waves.
As darkness falls, immaculate linen sheets are produced and our beds appear as if by magic on the deck, lit with lanterns. As my head sinks into a pillow and my eyes focus on the diamond-pinpricks embroidering the inky sky above me, Tusitiri’s spell reaches a climax. No palace chamber could feel more privileged, more commanding of awe. The heavens are the ceiling, the sphinx-like Kenyan moon the illumination – all is tinglingly silent and still.
‘We often lie and watch meteors shoot across the Milky Way,’ muses Ina in the darkness. ‘I love knowing that families are on board, children jumping off the deck, relishing the liberation of the far horizon.’ As I drift off, pondering her words, I feel the anticipation of the next day’s paddleboarding along the coast, past the mangroves, to a lagoon for swimming. Can any last thought before sleep be happier?
Ways and means
‘Tusitiri’ (enasoitcollection.com/about-tusitiri) is available for private charter, with trips costing from $4,500 a night for six and $750 for each additional guest, full board. Day hire costs from $1,520 for eight and $170 for each additional guest.
