Built by Portuguese sailors and traders in the mid-16th century, the Portuguese Chapel served as a small church and a burial ground for European sailors who died in Malindi. St Francis Xavier, the Jesuit missionary and co-founder of the Society of Jesus, is believed to have buried some of his companions here in 1542 while en route to India. The chapel is tiny by any standard, a single nave with lime-plastered walls, a simple altar, and a whitewashed exterior punctuated by a modest wooden cross. Its power lies in its longevity: for nearly 500 years this little building has weathered monsoons, colonial handovers and independence, sitting a stone’s throw from the Indian Ocean. The surrounding grounds contain a small cemetery with weathered coral tombstones inscribed in Portuguese, a poignant reminder of the men who never sailed home. The chapel is now a national monument administered by the National Museums of Kenya and forms the third leg of the classic Malindi heritage triangle alongside the museum and the Vasco da Gama Pillar.