After our adventures in the Masai Mara we had to do a seriuosly quick road trip to get down to Dar Es Salaam in time to meet Brett, Stu and Clack before heading over to Zanzibar. We were intending to get from the North to the capital in a day.
We were however dreading the crossing back over into Tanzania. Our short 12-hour trip into Rwanda had invalidated our visas for Tanzania, as Rwanda is not part of the East African countries. This would mean another u$50 to get our skanky
butts into the country... Fortunately the border was really busy when we arrived. A
truckload of Korean tourists had arrived moments before us, complete with cameras around the necks and all. We managed to slip our passports to the official, get them stamped and get the hell out of dodge in time, and not have to pay the extra bucks!! We also managed to get away with paying only US$5 for the car, professing to be in transit. We knew well right that we'd stay for longer than the permitted 7 days (going to Zanzibar and all), but took the chance anyway!
We drove long and hard to get to Arusha from the border. The sun had already started to set when we left the border, but the road was relatively quiet, with the odd truck or matato (minibus taxi) passing. Finally, way after dark, we pulled into Arusha. Andy wasn't keen on paying for accommodation (having been inspired by reading Malachite), so we tried our luck at one of the hotels. They allowed us
to pitch our tent in their parking lot, after we gave them a sob story about some delays we'd had. We didn't have showering facilities, but that was
OK.
The music from inside the hotel was quite loud when we arrived, but we figured it was OK, and since it seemed relatively empty, we sort of expected it to die down within an hour or so. How totally wrong we were!!!! As soon as
we put our heads down to sleep, a couple of taxi loads of young party people arrived and the music turned up.
We could feel the bass beating in our temples and it seemed to go on forever! Finally, at about 3am, they mercifully turned the music off. We were up again at 05h30 and on the road to Dar-Es-Salaam.
The vegetation was lush and tropical as we approached the capital city after a number of hours on the road. Palm trees and banana trees lined the roads as they started getting busier. Large buildings sprung up on either side. We had arrived in Dar!
Ahead of us, we could see a desperately blue sea. We were as excited as children to be back at the coast! The architecture was a mixture of Eastern and Western
combined. The roads were narrow and busy. Black and Indian Muslims lined the streets as we slowly made our way to the port. We got half lost in the many one-way roads and barely made it to the port on time. We got there with half a minute to spare. As we drove onto the ferry, they pulled the ramps up and we were off.
Makadi Beach is situated on a peninsular just off Dar, 5 minutes by ferry. In fact, it is practically across from the harbour. We were hoping to meet Brett there (and also
Stu and Clackie who had flown in from SA). As we drove into the camping area at Makadi, we saw Mr. J and knew that we hadn't missed them! Seeing Stu and Clack was really cool, a contact with modern society, and a link with home. We had such fun catching up!!
Andy had gotten very quiet on the ferry trip over. He had been having doubts as to whether he wanted to go to Makadi or stay on the mainland. But as we had no time to spare when we reached the ferry, he was forced to go with us. He knew however, that his trip was coming to an end. Soon he'd have to leave to go and work in London.
Andy however soon forgot his worries when we met up with the boys at Makadi and the beer started flowing. It was Stu's b-day at 12pm that night so after copious amounts of alcohol and a test drive of the pipes Brett had made in Malawi, Farouk was introduced to the people in Mkadi's bar.
Clack had brought a "gum-gaurd" thing, that made a person look like a real hillbilly (Billy Bob or something like that). He'd also bought a Muslim Fez in Dar earlier that day. As the b-day boy, Stu was elected to have to wear all the gear and order a round of drinks. Needless to say "Farouk" got many a stare and a snigger behind his back as he tried to start conversations at the bar with anybody who would listen.
In the mean time Andy had met up with an overland truck driver who offered him a lift down to Malawi (which is where he left his car) and hitched a lift for the
following morning, 5am!!! It was really lucky that he managed to hitch a lift so soon and that the truck would take him directly to Chitembe Beach too. But as he packed his stuff, he went quiet again. His trip had now come to a definite end. Having to pack and clear his things out of our car, caused reality to hit him hard. But knowing that it was his last night with us, we had a belter!!! At 5am he left.
We were tired and hung over the next day and spent most of it cleaning our clothes and us. That night, as we gathered to make a chicken potjie (with real meat and not only soya!), we felt like something was missing; it was Andy.
From our ship that ferried us on a three hour journey starting in Dar Es Salaam, we could see Stone town approaching. The aqua-blue water of Zanzibar caressed the boat gently as we disembarked.
All the buildings seemed to be 3 or 4 storeys high. Some were really leaning with their roofs nearly touching. The roads that cars were supposed to use were generally only one lane, with maybe an extra meter or so for an approaching car to squeeze past. Driving in Zanzibar obviously requires a special skill! We marveled at all the
buildings and people everywhere we looked. It reminded me of a toy town! Somehow, it didn't seem real.
As soon as we had settled into our "hotel", we decided to go out and find a pub, which cold provide the boys with acold beer to celebrate our arrival in Zanzibar as well as Brett's birthday!! We had a street map of Zanzibar, but this didnt help us much. The narrow little streets winded and criss-crossed between the high buildings. We felt like mice in a maze. People were everywhere, walking as if they knew where they were going (we sure didnt!!). Every now and then a bicycle would ring a bell or a scooter blow its horn (usually in the tune of a song!!) to warn us. Then they would whiz past in the extremely-too-narrow-for-both-people-and-bikes roads and
narrowly miss us.
Cats slinked around each corner and across the pavements. They were as plentiful as rats.. and obviously theyre there for that reason! The cats were dirty. Some had broken tails, some were OK. We turned a corner and found a kitten. It had quite obviously been dead for a day or five. No one cared to remove it from in front of their shop door
We came out at a fruit market. Colorful arrangements of tomatoes, oranges, bananas, spices, etc. were laid out on tables. Some vendors had peeled their oranges and sold
them to passers by for 50 cents a piece. There were even watermelons and pumpkins. I got the impression of a massive carnival of fruit.
We made our way down the coast and found ourselves at another market. This was a fish market (or the Forhadini night market as the locals called it). It seemed as if the whole of Zanzibar came here to eat. I can best describe it as the Rand Easter Show for seafood! The only difference was that we were still in a third world country, with great poverty and low levels of hygiene (even when it came to food
preparation). But the locals did their very best!!
Imagine a fish braai in downtown Soweto, but situated right next to the sea!
There were masses of food, displayed on rows of tables and one could choose from the "buffet". There was octopus legs (complete with the suckers on!! Arranged from small to extra large), calamari in steaks or pieces, chicken- and beef sosaties, tuna-baracuda-marlin-kingfish-or-whatever-else-you-like-fish on sosaties, lobsters, lobster-look-alike-pink-stuff, salad, chips, bean cookies and chipaties (pancake sort of stuff). It was an absolute feast!!! To wash it all down, we had freshly squeezed sugar cane juice.
It was Brett';s b-day, so we decided to go and shake our shoes at the local "Garage Club"!! By the time we had finished jamming, it was the early hours of the morning.
It was time to go home. Home?? We had no idea of where we were and decided it best to get a taxi. Five of us, plus the driver squeezed into the taxi and drove a whole three blocks to the hotel!
The next morning, Brett, Clack and Stu made their way to the north, while Daz and I waited another day for Heather to arrive.
We set out to explore Stone Town. All the little shops were open, with the shopkeepers calling to us to go inside. We had a blast and prices were always negotiable. This seems to be the thing in Africa and we joked that we would
bargain with the manager at our local Pick n Pay when we get home!
Sarongs, jewelry and artwork were the order of the day. Before long we had gotten ourselves lost in the small windy streets of Zanzibar again and loved every moment of it!!
Seeing Heather was great!! We had planned to take her to the market for dinner and were quite excited about showing her around (confident that we couldnt get lost again) She just loved Zanzibar from the word go! We took her to the market, following the narrow winding alleys (which she loved) and introduced her to the feast of seafood that we had enjoyed for two nights before. To top it of , we had
sugar cane juice (of course!) and some ice cream with a banana-and-chocolate-pizza!
We were on our way to Kendwa Rocks (in the north) by 8am. The drive took 1.5 hours, but it felt a lot shorter! The vegetation was extremely tropical, green and dense. As we drove, we listened to a Swahili version of Bob Marley and gawked at the gorgeous mud-huts lining the roads. Heath was in seventh heaven!!
It was then that I realised that, on this trip we have seen so many beautiful places and we were reaching a point where we werent fully appreciating the beauty and exotic element anymore. Zanzibar was just another gorgeous place, with ice-white beaches, aqua-blue sea and evergreen palm trees.
How could one ever take a scene like that for granted?!?! And I wondered whether I should go back to work to fully appreciate a holiday again..?
Kendwa Rocks probably has the most gorgeous beaches that I have ever seen. The sand was way whiter and the sea way clearer than anywhere I had been before. This was paradise.. and I felt relieved to realise that I could still appreciate it for what it was!
We stayed in bandas made from palm leaves, overlooking the beach. Our days were filled with sunbathing, swimming, writing and reading. Every now and then, a local lady would come up to us, offering a choice of henna tattoos, hairbraiding or massaging. Children offered coconuts and bananas, men offered fishing and snorkeling trips. Every afternoon wed take a stroll up the beach to check out the
dinner menus of all the restaurants for the day. Our food was cooked for us. All we needed to do was chill!
All this time Stu, Clack, Brett, and Daz would entertain themselves with drinking games, fishing trips, evenings around the beach campfire and general relaxtion. What more could the boys ask for (except maybe for the Swedish bikini team)
Heath made a really profound statement as we spent our time in the north. She said "Wouldnt it be great if the size of your back garden was determined by the tide?" What a life and we were living it!
After staying two nights in Jambiani, we moved on to Paje. The beaches were just as gorgeous as in the north. They were desperately huge . Bob Marley and Tracy Chapman played from the radio in the bar, as we drank our coconut milk and lazed in the sun. I am truly happy!
The days in Zanzibar just flew past. We ate very well every day. Breakfast consisted of bread, fruit and coffee. Sometimes, if we were lucky, the hotel would throw in an egg or two. Lunch was either skipped or consumed in the form of a green coconut. Dinner..mmmh.... ;dinner was either fish or some sort of "kuku wa kupaka" (chicken in coconut milk). That was our favorite!!
On our last day in Paje, we hired mountain bikes and cycled up to Bwejuu before dinner.
Heath and I hit Stown Town! We were adamant to go and shop till we dropped!! Stone Town has really good prices and we each bought 3 kikoys. We managed to find some nice gifts for the folks back home and also acquired some jewelry for my brothers wedding. I really enjoyed Stown Town. It was so rustic. Sometimes, when one looks up, one can find huge spiders waiting patiently in their webs, spun between the balconys of two houses. It was old, but had style.
Our last day with Heather was spent doing a Spice Tour. All the while Brett had decided to remain in Kendwa after Stu and CLack left because he felt he was enjoying chilling. We've all decided it was to let his liver and lungs recouperate after their whielwing 7 days!
Daz and Lou decided to go back to Paje to spend some time with Alon and Orly (Israeli's we'd met in Uganda). It was so cool being with Alon again and we laughed and spoke of the times we spent with Johnny and Andy. We soon grew to like Orly too, being a really easy person to get on with, but missed Eli. We spent 2 days with them, lazing in the sun, playing on the beach and relaxing together. Too soon it was time to say goodbye. We had spent lots of time trying to convince them to come south with us. They had spent lots of time trying to convince us to go to Ethiopia
with them. But it was not to be. So, it was with a disappointed heart that I said goodbye, but promised to go and visit them in Israel.
Pajes ice white beaches with the blindingly bright sun winked us a fond farewell. Tracey Chapman sang in the background as the guys behind the bar buggered around with a soccer ball. Extra hammocks were erected. The tide was far out and the locals were gathering seaweed. Tourist lazed on the sun beds. It was excellent, but it was time to say goodbye.
The idylic Zanzibar was made even more special by having friends and family join us for a real island holiday. Although slightly more expensive, the Zanzibar experience was definately worth it
Average cost of accomodation : $10pppn
Average cost of meals: $3 for an average meal