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HOMA BAY |
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At first glance a scruffy and unremarkable place, the small port
town of HOMA BAY , the region's main centre and also a good base for
visits to Ruma National Park, Rusinga Island and Simbi Lake, is in fact
one of the friendliest towns in Kenya.
The town itself admittedly has nothing much of interest, just a few
dirty, pot-holed streets and an unusual straw-hat-shaped Catholic
cathedral atop a low hill behind town, with an open-air central altar
and great views. However, if you're into traditional Luo music , Homa
Bay is the place to track down tapes of nyatiti (lyre), orutu (single-stringed
bow fiddle) and onand (accordion) music, as well as the ubiquitous
gospel pop. Most of the town is strung out along the main street, which
starts at the jetty and runs uphill towards Rongo. On its way, it passes
a turn-off for Kendu Bay (passing the Co-op Bank), a street that leads
to Barclays Bank (with ATM), and another leading to the post office (where
you'll find Postbank), then the matatu stage, with buses parked up in
front. The market is between the street with Barclays Bank and the
street with the post office.
Homa Bay used to have a busy port, which provided the focus for most of
the town's activities (fishing, trade and a little tourism), but in June
1997 this, and much of the shoreline around, became completely hemmed in
by over a kilometre of thick, vibrantly green water hyacinth . By all
accounts, the weed infestation happened quite quickly, leading to some
boats becoming trapped for several days. Six people actually walked for
4km over the weed to safety, and one woman gave birth to a baby boy -
whom she named Victoria Junior - on a trapped boat. Boats to Kisumu and
Mbita were suspended, and most of the local boats sold. The government
has since had the dreaded hyacinth mechanically cleared, and fishermen
keep the remainder at bay by hand, but the port is a shadow of its
former self although passenger ferry services have been resumed. The
shoreline of the lake is accessible by turning left just before the
pier, by the Homa Bay Hotel (a cheap canteen, not a place to stay).
There's a handful of reasonable accommodation options, the most modern
being the Hippo Buck Hotel , 2km out on the Rongo road (PO Box 274 tel &
fax 0385/22032; B&B Ksh1000-2000), with clean s/c rooms including
spotless bathrooms with hot water, a nice garden and good restaurant
(especially fried fish). Look out for live orutu and onand music here on
Friday and Saturday evenings. Opposite the Hippo Buck is the much more
basic Hill View Guest Lodge (PO Box 829; no phone; B&B Ksh500-1000),
currently being renovated. In town itself, the best choices are the
cheap, bright and breezy Bay Lodge , behind both the matatu stage and
the post office (PO Box 96 tel 0385/21436; under Ksh500), and the quiet,
respectable Summer Bay Hotel , opposite Barclays Bank (PO Box 856; no
phone; B&B under Ksh500), which also offers safe parking. Above the
matatu stand, Doves Den Restaurant offers large but basic rooms (under
Ksh500) if you need something very cheap indeed, but the cheapest place
in town, with very dingy though in fact self-contained rooms, is the
Snack Hotel opposite the matatu stage (PO Box 402 tel 0385/22689; under
Ksh500). Finally, a recommended option with great views is the
Swedish-NGO supported Women's Centre , on the hilltop, all the way
through town (signposted; Ksh500-1000).
As to food , there are lots of inexpensive hotelis almost everywhere.
One of the best is the Doves Den Restaurant in the Salama Building above
the matatu stage; from the pier, head up along the Rongo road, turn left
after the market, then take the second right. Also worth trying are
Snack Hotel opposite the stage by the Akamba bus office, and Akiras
Restaurant in the same street as the post office.
Homa Bay is not especially hot on nightlife , but it does have a few
bars worth checking out of an evening, including the Cave Inn on the
main road, the Lake View on the same road as Barclays Bank, and the
Victoria Day and Night Club opposite, which has live bands at weekends.
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