Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania - Africa!

Instead of continuing to travel through Asia or like some other travelers to continue traveling to Australia, I took a slightly different route. In October, I had already decided to make a detour to Africa. I had long wanted to visit the continent - because yes, I had never been there before, not even to Egypt or Tunisia.

Another reason was the chance to see a good friend again. Maria has been living in Uganda for some time now, and I had long planned to visit her there. But since she also wanted to escape her everyday life for a while during Christmas, we decided to meet in Zanzibar first to celebrate Christmas and New Year's Eve together. But above all, to enjoy the wonderful beaches.

On December 21st, it was finally time. I flew from Bangkok via Muscat to Zanzibar City. I arrived at the tiny airport in the middle of the night. There were no baggage belts or display boards. The luggage was carried into the entrance hall (because it had suddenly started raining, which is unusual for this time of year). But despite the apparent confusion, I finally got my backpack. Getting the visa was also much easier than I feared. My entry papers were hardly looked at and were piled together with hundreds of others, then I paid 50 dollars and - boom - I already had the stamp in my passport.

The driver I had previously arranged then took me safely to my hostel in Stone Town - the first of three stops we wanted to make on the island in our two weeks there.

After Maria arrived by ferry from Dar es Salaam the next morning, we explored Stone Town for the first two days.

"Stone Town" is the oldest part of Zanzibar City, as the houses there were mainly built of coral stone (and mangrove wood).

We spent our days strolling through the narrow streets, most of which are lined with small shops selling oil paintings, clothing, or other small souvenirs. In between, you can admire many of the old, artfully decorated doors that are typical for this part of the city. We also visited the Old Fortress from the 17th century, which was used as a prison in the past and later as a tennis club. In the evenings, we mostly enjoyed a delicious meal (mostly fish and seafood, which are naturally very fresh there) and also some good wine (because it was actually quite difficult to find in Asia).

However, I have to admit that the heat and especially the high humidity on the island were difficult for me, especially in the first few days. And so we also spent a few hours in front of the fan in our room every day...

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Maria for making this great vacation possible and for generously providing me with the many beautiful pictures she took during our vacation, not only for this blog entry but also for the next ones. If you want, you can also read more detailed reports about our adventures on Zanzibar on her blog: www.mariawinkler.wordpress.com

Instead of traveling through Asia or, like many other travelers do, continuing to Australia and New Zealand, I took a different course after Thailand. In October, I had already decided to visit Africa because, yes, I had never been there before! Not even Tunisia or Egypt (which are or were popular destinations for many German tourists).

Another reason to fly to Africa was the chance to meet a good friend there. Maria has been living in Uganda for a while now, and I had been wanting to visit her for some time. However, she also wanted to escape her everyday life for a couple of weeks, so we decided to meet on Zanzibar first, where we would spend Christmas and New Year's together, but most of all enjoy the beautiful white beaches.

On the 21st of December in the middle of the night, I arrived at the tiny airport of Zanzibar City - no digital screens or baggage carousel. Each piece of baggage was carried through the (heavy and unusual for this time of year) rain into the arrival hall. I had almost given up on finding my backpack, when it finally arrived.

Getting through immigration was easier than I had feared. My immigration papers were hardly looked at and quickly stacked on a huge pile of other papers. More important were the 50 Dollars I paid and just like that I had a stamp of the United Republic of Tanzania in my passport. The pre-arranged driver then drove me safely to my hostel in Stone Town - the first stop of three during our two weeks on Zanzibar.

After Maria arrived with the ferry from Dar es Salaam the next morning, we started to explore Stone Town. Stone Town is the oldest part of Zanzibar City. It got its name from the houses built from white coral stone (and mangrove wood). The next two days we strolled through the narrow alleys of Stone Town which are full of small shops selling oil paintings, clothes, and other souvenirs, and admired the many old, heavy, and artfully decorated wooden doors typical for Stone Town. We visited the Old Fort from the 17th century, which had been used as a prison and later also as a tennis club. In the evenings we enjoyed delicious seafood dishes and the one or the other glass of good wine (which had been really hard to find in Asia).

I have to admit, that I had some difficulties adapting to the heat and moreover the humidity on the island in the first couple of days. So every afternoon we would also spend a couple of hours napping under the fan in our room....

At this point I would like to thank Maria, who did not only make this wonderful vacation possile, but also agreed to providing me with all the wonderful pictures she took during the two weeks. Almost every picture for this and the following blog entries was taken by her. Thank you Maria!