A week ago, I was in a 3-day holiday in the island of Zanzibar. Zanzibar is one of the major tourist destinations in Tanzania. “Zanzibar” is from the Arabic word “Zinj ib – Bar” which means Land of Black – probably alludes to the dark and pivotal role the island played in the 19th century slave-trade, traces of which can still be found in historical Stone Town ( source: Frommer’s Kenya and Tanzania).
Zanzibar is an island in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of east-central Africa. The main island; Zanzibar City is about 97 km (60 miles) in length and no more than 32km (20 miles) wide – which is known as Stone Town ( please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zanzibar for more information about Zanzibar).
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| the ferry port in Dar es Salaam |
From Dar es Salaam (Dar), the city is accessible by a 45-minute flight or by less than 2 hours through ferry/boat ride. The ferry ride is Tsh 23,000 (one-way ticket of a first class seat for local residents (glad that I have my Exemption Certificate), and for tourist; it’s Tsh 35,000 (1 usd = Tsh 1,500).
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| our ferry leaving Dar for Zanzibar |
Ate Mina, John and I left Dar around 10 A.M.; the departure time was delayed for 30 minutes (Ate Mina; a fellow Filipino VSO Volunteer and John was a former Peace Corps Volunteer 20 years ago in Tanzania and came back for a short visit for his dissertation. Ate Mina met him at the St. Benedictine’s Lodging House in Dar). We chose to stay at the upper deck of the boat instead of staying at the airconditioned-deck for the first class seat passengers. We had a smooth-sailing trip along the peaceful Indian Ocean.
Arriving in Zanzibar
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| the Zanzibar Port |
While getting near the Zanzibar Port, the Stone Town is the first sight to be seen.
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| the Stone Town |
At the departure area, the immigration officials are not too keen I think. They check passengers based on the color of their skin. If you happen to be black and you are American or Canadian or British passport holder; they will never know you are a tourist unless they talk to you in Kiswahili and you can not respond them. (Zanzibar is a semi-autonomous government. It’s a separate state from Tanzania and with its own legal system. The entry visa issued for Tanzania is the same when you enter Zanzibar. However, this should be presented to their Immigration).
We were picked up by Brian (a friend fellow VSO volunteer; his placement is in Zanzibar) at the port. By rented taxi cab, we went straight to his “palace”. We passed through busy narrow alleys at the Stone Town. It’s hard to tell if these alleys are for vehicles or for pedestrians – there were passing cars, bicycles, motorbikes and people. I had a brief glimpsed of the Stone Town. Brian told us that we come back on the late afternoon for a walk to explore the town.
Brian’s Palace
Brian lives nearby the airport. His 4-storey Indian and Arab style apartment is like a mini palace. After resting for a while we went back to Stone Town for lunch and left afterwards for Paje Beach.
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| Brian's Palace |
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| infront of Brian's Palace |
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| this small hairy creature wants to crawl my leg after the picture taking |
We stayed at Brian's Palace for our whole visit in Zanzibar. Each of us have its own large bedroom with toilet and bath - it was a total luxury <thank you so much Brian for accommodating us:-)>.
Going to Paje Beach
Beside the road are lands that are bountiful of agricultural crops, vegetation and fruit-bearing trees. It looks like the people in the island are self-sufficient. Based on statistics, 90% of the income of Zanzibar comes from tourism; which means that the farmers/villagers are indirectly benefited from the ample tourist arrivals in the island.
We also passed by small areas of forest with mini safari and butterfly kingdom. We saw some cute monkeys on the trees.
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| the cute monkey on the tree |
Before we reached Paje, our rented taxi cab was halted 2x by policemen (they are policemen according to the driver but they were not in uniform) for “security” check. For the 1st stop, the policeman and the driver were into some kind of argument. The conversation was in Kiswahili that we did not understand anything. The driver told us later that the policeman asked pesa (money) from him because he was carrying tourists and he should pay a community tax. He explained to the policeman that we are not tourists but we are volunteers in Tanzania and we ‘re in Zanzibar for a short holiday. We were allowed then to go without paying anything. Then after few minutes, another “security” check. The same issue. But instead of giving money, Brian offered the policeman some shoki-shoki (or rambutan– a small rounded fruit with red-hairy skin; it tastes like lychee). The policeman was surprised and laughed at us but accepted the fruit.
After 45 minutes (including the delays), we 're at Paje Beach. It is a fishing village located at the south-east coast of Zanzibar Island. The stretch of white powdery sand beach is quite stunning. I backed out to swim when I saw the overwhelming waves. The beach is also a place for kite boarding (surfing with a kite attach on the body).
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the powdery white sand of Paje Beach
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| kite boarders |
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| kites for rent |
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| fishing nets |
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| the stretch of powdery white sand beach at Paje |
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| Masai's crafts |
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| the Masais who sell their crafts to the tourists |
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| African Paintings |
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| bought these trays at one of the souvenir shops at Paje Beach |
When we left Paje, we were stopped again along the road by the policeman who was given shoki-shoki. He asked for more. Stone Town or Mji Mkongwe (Kiswahili for "old town” )
We explored the Stone Town through its narrow paths and alleys that are like labyrinths. The town is very much alive. The old buildings are residentials, hotels, souvenir shops, restaurants, etc. The influenced of Arab is so strong in the area. I noticed that all corners have mosque (there are 51 actually – Zanzibar is called Islam country in Tanzania).
This town was one of the major trading centers in the Indian Ocean region in the 19th Century and well-known as a commerce for spices (mostly clover) and slaves (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_Town). It was called Stone Town because the major material that was used in building the houses was a coral stone. The designs of the structures are reflections of the traditions of Oman, Persian, Arab, Indian, European and Tanzanian. These nationalities were all part of the rich history of this town (the Stone Town is a declared World Site Heritage by UNESCO in 2000). Forodhani Gardens
We went straight to Forodhani Gardens. It is located beside the port and at the main seawalk of Stone Town. This place is very popular among the locals and tourists for its food market every night. There are varieties of food to choose from –grilled seafood, meat, samosa, chapatti, etc.
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| the food and crowd at the Forodhani Gardens |
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| while having our food at Foradhani Gardens, we had this view of Indian Ocean |
For USD 3, I had a complete meal (1 bread, 1 boiled potato and 1 stick of sea food). We had a full stomach when we returned to Brian’s Palace.
We returned to this food market on our second (last) night in Zanzibar. Short stroll along the Seawalk of Stone Town
Before we dropped John to the ferry station, we strolled along the seawalk of the Stone Town. He spent only 1 night in Zanzibar since his flight going back to his country (US of A) was on the next day.
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| Old Dispensary - a charity hospital in the 19th century - now a museum |
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| the old fort |
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| the House of Wonders - it was the Sultan's Residence in the 19th Century - now a museum |
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| Palace Museum - another Sultan's Palace in the 19th century |
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| the baywalk |
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| the Fhorodani Gardens during the daytime |
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| the beautiful and..... |
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| interesting people |
Local Market
After the ferry station, we went to the local market. It’s a usual kind of market place. We went there to buy shirts. Everything is there – like bags, shoes, clothes, etc. ; made in China for sure (except for the traditional clothes).
Brian’s Specialty
Brian cooked for us a very good meal for our late lunch. I watched him while he was preparing it. I asked the name of the recipe but he said that it is a just typical western food.
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| the steamed rice with cooking oil and a bit of salt - it was really good |
It is a baked meat (chicken and beef) with sweet potato, ordinary potato, and carrots. He put some Zanzibarian spices that enhanced the taste of the food. I will try to cook this when I go back to the Philippines (more months to go).
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| Brian's Specialty |
Time to say Kwaheri (Goodbye)
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| fellow passengers at the ferry |
Brian took us to the ferry station. We thanked him for the the great time we had in Zanzibar.
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| final glimpsed of the Stone Town |
Visiting a new place is always interesting but what it makes special is the time you spend with the company of people you are with – the laughters, good meals and spontaneous conversations.
The Ferry Ride back to Dar
The Indian Ocean was not friendly during our trip. It was like a roller coaster ride. We chose again to stay at the upper deck. I was thinking of morbid thoughts. There were no life jackets at sight. I didn’t notice this when we left for Zanzibar. Perhaps, because I was too excited. I saw 2 air beds but those are not enough in case something happens. And my worry was - I can not swim.
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| approaching Dar |
We arrived safely to Dar. We were too dizzy. We stayed for a while at the reception area to get back our normal breathing. While resting, I said a little prayer and thanked God that He made us safe during the trip.
