Dance and music as Dunga Hill Camp welcomes a new art space

The last time I was in Kisumu, a city I had lived in for three years, was in 2012. So when Bethesheba Achitsa, the Creative Arts Space in Kenya (CASiK), Project Coordinator asked me to accompany her to the launch of a new art space, the Dunga Hill Camp, a fortnight ago, I couldn’t resist.
This was a chance to revisit my old hometown. I was curious to find out if anything or something had changed.
Landing at Kisumu International Airport and driving into the city, I was amazed at how sparkling it was. How clean the streets are down to the slum suburb of Nyalenda. This wasn’t the norm back then, the town organisation was shambolic and dusty. There are sidewalks now and the beautification is on point with trees, shrubbery, and other greenery neatly planted in between some of the main street roads. Kisumu is beautiful and as clean as Moshi in Tanzania, a town where you will easily get arrested by plainclothes ‘Wamgambo’ (kanjos) for dropping a cigarette filter.
Then it rained.

It’s weird whenever it rains in Kisumu. It's eccentric. Kisumu should be sunny, bright, and hot, just like the Coast. Nobody should ever have to wear something warm in Kisumu. The sight of a wet and gloomy sky was an oxymoron of sorts.
 

Victoria Suites
We were booked at the Victoria Suites, a 3-star luxury hotel located in the high end suburbs of Milimani Estate, off Tom Mboya Drive. If you’re looking for a trendy affordable hotel in Kisumu, with a breathtaking view of Lake Victoria, then look no further than Victoria Suites. It comprises 70 studio suites, a unique blend of modern design and urban chic with a cozy garden restaurant and a bar. The Terrace bar and the restaurant serves continental cuisine with a variety of wines, spirits, and beers. If you are a sucker for seafood platters, you may want to check out the Roan Rooftop while staying at Victoria.
 

You can leave your car in the spacious parking lot. The territory has a green open space and a blooming garden. There is a bicycle rental service available, a banquet hall and non-smoking rooms. The West End Shopping Mall and Masai Craft market are worth checking out if shopping is your agenda. If you wish to experience much of the area’s natural beauty, then you can explore Kisumu Impala Sanctuary which is 1.6km away and Hippo Point a further 2.7km.

Dunga Hill Camp
Unfortunately, I wasn’t there for the Vasco da Gama moments. I was there for the inauguration of the newly built Dunga Hill Camp Art Space, by the French Embassy through CASiK.
 

Dunga Hill Camp has been open since December 2013. The camp is not far from Hippo point and neither is it from the Dunga beach, which in essence is not your typical beach but a landing bay for the hundreds of fishermen who reside in Dunga.
 

“This place was just bush and stones when we started recreating it. That was 10 years ago. The camp basically started with a single tree where creatives would converge under it and just do art. There are those who would come with guitars, others drums and music would be played,” recalls Jagpal Sandhu, the founder and owner of Dunga Hill Camp.
With the site gaining popularity with its live performances, Sandhu and a group of creatives first erected a small amateurish stage which they moved one too many times to accommodate the growing crowd.  A new set of benches, seats and tables were also installed in the expansive area which boasts of indigenous trees that form a canopy.
What is now left of the stage is a spot that dots the ground. The space is now occupied with benches and tables, after CASiK came on board at the beginning of 2022 and injected Sh4 million to build an ultra-modern art stage that will now host various live performances and art forms from Kisumu and its environs.  A further Sh3.3 million was committed by CASiK equipping the art space with lighting and sound systems. There is a new bar and a restaurant at the camp as well.
The facelift has not only made Dunga Hill Camp better but scenic complementing its natural arrangement at the shores of Lake Victoria. The site offers a 360-degree unrivaled view of the lake, the best sunsets and the surrounding Kisumu city.
It's an ideal scene for an outdoor cookout or a sluggish evening with friends. One can likewise go out in the lake with Kayaks or speed boats, added to give the place a wearing component.
It is likewise a perfect site for kayaking, barge riding and unlimited bird watching which make the Dunga Hill camp a quiet scenic spot to acknowledge nature.

When evening came, the live performances to inaugurate the stage began, and the evening breeze from the lake whirled the camp perfectly blending with the soothing folk songs from Kent Mugenda the 23-year old Nyatiti player.
The Youths Accosted with Arts (YAWA) dancers a contemporary dancing Duet of Diana Adhiambo and Predictor Lodenyi had everything to prove on stage with their sleek moves against the backdrop of King Kaka’s Swahili Shakespeare poetic song.
 

“This is just the beginning of the good things that are yet to come out from Dunga Hill camp. With our ideal location, the local talent that you have witnessed, this venue will soon become a venue for cultural tourism. With what we have achieved, I now hope to finally provide a stage for dance and theatre which has been lacking in Kisumu,” Sadhu beamed.
Then came the  nine member Loko Band who gave an electrifying performance showing versatility as they performed cover records across all genres from benga, mwomboko, mutibo to reggae. By now, the sun had set, and the darkness was creeping in.
As I finished my stout it began to rain again.
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