Blogs from Kendwa, Zanzibar, Tanzania, Africa - page 2

After two weeks of waking up before the sun to carry sloshing 18-litre buckets of water on our heads to fill the big blue water bucket, after calluses and blood blisters and even a scorpion bite incurred as what was an empty field in the Shamba countryside became a building, Zanzibar was what most would dfine as paradise - pristine white beaches and clear turquoise ocean, groves of palm trees waving in the spice-scented breeze, coffee, and flush toilets. I spent every day wondering how the next thing on the schedule could possibly be more luxurious or fascinating or delicious than the last; to even attempt to describe an experience like snorkeling (such an ungraceful, awkward pimply word for such a beautiful thing) off Chumbe Island among outer-space formations of vivid coral and iridescent schools of ... read more

Hi all, I had a really great time in Zanzibar. Got the bus at 7am on Friday, feeling very tierd and slightly hungover from the night before. Arrived at Dar es Saalam at 3.30pm, the last ferry to Zanzibar left at 4pm so it was a mad rush to get in a taxi and then buy the ferry tickets. I managed to get there with 10 minutes to spare, and thew up on the 2hr crossing! Eventually made it to Kendwa rocks (a beach resort at the north of the island) by 8pm. I met a South African guy there, Warren who is an interior designer for all the Zain stores (telecom company) in Africa. Woke up Saturday and headed down to the beach and wow! never seen a beach like it, the whitest sand, and ... read more

Hello again! I suppose I should start from last Monday leading right untill this moment in this little internet cafe actually overlooking the beach! I went to KiliKids as they were having their offical christmas party on the Monday for a couple of hours before doing my packing and last minute bits and bobs. It was great to see the kids one last time but what I forgot to mention before, which I think is worth mentioning is that I saw a live goat get killed - African style. I never thought before that I was squeamish about seeing blood and the likes and I understand that it has to be done as part of the 'food chain' and blah blah blah but seeing it get slaughtered was really quite horrific. They tied all its legs ... read more

Awoke to thesound of rain and went to the rooftop restaurant for breakfast, It was very grey where we were headed so I was prepared for dissappointment. However by the time we had left to walk to the matatu, it had stopped and the sun was peeping out. The drive was about 2 hours long through little towns and villages and lush green vegetation. It is a really beautiful and bountiful island. Because of the tour yestersay I was able to spot many trees and shrubs. I even spotted another Kodak Palm, which is a palm that everyone takes photos of because it is so curly. This was because when it was growing, it had a bigger palm above it and so was bending this way and that to look for the best light. The result ... read more

On the 9th September after about 10 days of hectic waking up Gestapo style and having the tents down, breakfast out, dishes washed, then queuing single file to be hosed down and de loused before we got back on the van at 6am, we set off for a nice relaxing few days on the island of Zanzibar, which is a two and a half hour ferry ride from the port of Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania. We were crammed into the bus at 5am and driven to the port, which was filled with hundreds of locals selling cashew nuts, bananas and copies of the Guardian. Many locals were also boarding the ferry to go and work in Zanzibar while Lizzie popped about 57 seasickness tablets. We boarded the ferry and after sitting in the port for about ... read more