We finally
made it to the hotel and it was beer-thirty!
After a quick shower and change we all met up in the pool’s bar and
enjoyed the sea breeze and view of the Indian Ocean. Here, low tide is good for long walks all the
way to the outer reef and swimming is only possible at high tide. The beach was nice for strolling or bike
riding at any time. I must say, it was
very pretty, but I was somewhat underwhelmed.
I was hoping for pristine, white sand beaches but the seaweed (which
they harvest here) was more abundant than I expected. It was definitely relaxing though and a
perfect way to wind-down after the safari!
We mainly
chilled out poolside or down at the beach under thatched umbrellas during the
day, met up for drinks in the evening, gorged ourselves at dinner and then went
to bed – rinse and repeat! You’re basically pretty stuck at the resort as
there’s nothing nearby except other hotels.
A different type of live entertainment
was provided each night, from various bands to a “chill out party” to acrobats (somewhat cheesy, but older couples danced on the band nights, which was cute). It catered to all types, from
newlyweds to families with small children and everything in between (this was
one of the bigger resorts with 70 rooms).
One day we
went into Stone Town (the old part of Zanzibar City) which is on the other side
of the island near the airport. We were
sure to take a picture of our taxi’s license plate, who was going to meet us in
the same sport at the fish market at promptly 3:00 PM. Can’t be too careful here! The architecture in Stone Town is a fusion of
Arabic, African, European, Indian influences and is a UNESCO World Heritage
Site. It’s a labyrinth of little winding alleys and
the carved wooden doors are its true gem.
It was dirty and pretty crumbly, but also interesting and diverse. We bought some souvenirs, enjoyed a snack on
the beachfront, wandered through the alleys and ended with coffee/tea at the
Serena Inn. Everyone was actually really
friendly and we had to ask for directions a few times. The alleys didn’t have street signs or
anything! By some stroke of luck or
magic, we made it back through the unmarked alleys to the fish market where we started, to meet up
with the taxi.
We also went
snorkeling one morning and the German guy we met on safari was there too, small
world! The lagoon was approximately 8 KM
up from the hotel. The snorkeling gear
was a bit unwieldy for me (didn’t fit so great) but we did see a lot of fish
and the water was like bath water, so warm.
On our last afternoon
Matt and I took a final stroll up the beach at low tide. Upon returning, there was a message waiting
for us. Apparently, our flight was
delayed and we had to get on an earlier flight in order to make our connection
in Dar es Salaam to Zurich. They gave us
15 minutes to shower and change! Luckily
we were ready, but being so rushed was no fun at all. And then on the way to the airport, our taxi
driver stopped first for gas and then for some fruit! Guess we weren’t in too much of a hurry. Upon arrival at the airport, the airline was
confused but issued us a handwritten ticket.
Good enough for me! The fine
print on our initial booking form said “flight times are estimates and may vary
depending on routes”. I guess “Air Excel”
isn’t so excellent after all! It was
fine, but when we arrived in Dar es Salaam we walked down a sketchy corridor
with hanging wires and then couldn’t check in for our Swiss flight since the
airport has only a few counters to use. Ugh, and the waiting area was *outside*! So random.
Molly and Shaun didn’t have any better luck when they left the following
day. Their flight was delayed as well
and they were stuck sitting at the teeny tiny airport in Zanzibar for several
hours. Oh, the joys of traveling in
developing countries – patience is required.
We heard horror stories of lost luggage too, but we all got our luggage,
phew.
Upon our
arrival in Basel (where it was snowing - brrrrr), Matt took our luggage home
and I went straight to my German class! Fun stuff.
All in all,
it was an absolutely amazing experience! We’re
so glad we had the opportunity to go to Africa – all the research/planning/coordination it took as well as the vaccinations and meds we loaded up on was well worth it!
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