Our stay on Zanzibar Island

Zanzibar lies in the Indian Ocean, some 6° south of the equator and just over 20 miles from the East African coast. The island has an area of 640 square miles, and around its coast the long white sandy beaches slope gently into clear blue water, contrasting well with the abundant greenery of the interior.

HISTORY:

To this island came Sumerians, Assyrians, Hindus, Egyptians, Phoenicians, Portuguese, Arabs, Chinese and Malays. From these shores the great African explorers Burton, Speke, Grant and Livingstone set out on their journeys of discovery. The island became a focus of the slave trade in the 18th century, although later it was at the centre of the move to have slavery abolished. By the mid 19th century, the Arab influence was so strong that the Sultan of Oman moved his capital to Zanzibar. In 1890 the Sultanate became a British protectorate, and in 1964 Zanzibar gained its independence and became part of the United Republic of Tanzania. (source: Zanzibar Tourist Corporation)

ARCHITECTURE:

The different races that settled in Zanzibar over the centuries have left their mark on both the people and the architecture. Castellated buildings with arches are Moorish in origin. The simple stucco work in the Kidichi Baths reminds one of the former Persian presence, and as one walks through the cool narrow streets one can admire the Arabs' brass-studded carved doors. (source: Zanzibar Tourist Corporation)

What did we do on Zanzibar?

• On September 25th, Phil (G3SWH) and his wife Jan visited us at our hotel. We spent some fine hours together. I believe Phil and Jan will remember the delicious lobster at Juma's Restaurant.

• One day we went and saw Irene and Michael Seitz (5H3IS/5H3MS) in Dar es Salaam and thanked them for their help in getting the licence.

• We vistited several times Zanzibar Town, the island's capital. The main points of interest are the towering Beit-El-Ajab, the House of Wonder, the old Arab Fort built in 1700, and the Shirazi Mosque, which dates back to 1107 AD. At the Zanzibar Town might market you will find a great selection of delicious food.

• We went to Kizimkazi Village in the south. There we went into the sea and swam with dolphins. It was a great experience to watch these beautiful animals close up.

• We visited the Jozani Forest with its Red Colobus monkeys. They are one of Africa's rarest primates, that is found only on the island. They have been isolated there for at least 10.000 years.

• One day we visited the small Changuu Island (Prison Island), where seven large turtles between the ages of 150 to 200 years and hundreds of baby turtles live. They originally came from the Seychelles. We enjoyed feeding leaves to the turtles.

• Zanzibar is rightly called the Spice Island. We went on a spice tour and saw lots of different spices at various places.

If you ever come to Zanzibar, please visit Uroa. It is a small village with some hotels. We would recommend the White Villa Hotel. This hotel has only 5 double rooms, very good Zanzibarian cuisine and welcoming owners: Marina and Kadir Mwadini, P.O.Box 2424, Zanzibar, Tel. 0811/326874 and Fax. 33430, e-mail - Mwadini@zitec.org

We usually had dinner at White Villa, Juma's Restaurant or Sound Restaurant. The restaurants are made of palm trees and leaves and the cooking is nevertheless delicious. In our opinion, the Sound Restaurant makes the best fried prawns with garlic sauce, and Juma's Restaurant has the best lobster. If you need a bicycle or other things, ask Juma to get one. If you want to go on a tour, look for the Chemah Brothers Tour & Safaris Ltd., Shangani Street, P.O.Box 1865, Zanzibar Town, Tel./Fax:(054)33385. They offer tours at fair prices.

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