Zanzibar spices and smells

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We are leaving Zanzibar today. I write these lines from a small hotel http://mbweni.com about 7 Km from stonetown where we stayed the last two days.
When leaving Dar Es Alaam to Zanzibar we came by speed boat whith a wonderful view of both harbours. Sorry again no pictures as this ancient computer doen't have a slot for my usb stick. Well, Zanzibar is an interesting, smelling decaying place with an impressive collection of mouldy buidlings in various stages of desintegration. Its rich history and being a world heritage site seems not to stop the decay. The dirt and filth is just creeping in everywhere and the locals are as enthusiastic to change that then the tourists are eager to overlook it and book it under "ok, that's Africa". We took a tour through stone town, saw the fihmarket ( still had fish that evening), chickenmarket (won't have chicken for some time) and spice market. What a feast for the senses. The local population is by far not as genuinly friendly as the rest of Tanzania. One pics up an underlying hostility, covered by good business sense, as Zanziba moves away from agriculure to tourisme. Well, they have along path ahead as all monuments and museums are in a shocking stage of neglect, dirt and filth. It does all sound a bit horrible when I write this, but it is at the same time thrilling to be here and get a look on a rather unspoiled early stage of tourisme. Once it has been streamlined and commercialized it will have also lost its decadent charme and cosmopolitan feeling. You see a completely covered muslim woman, face and all and a minute later a european girl in a bikini. The small hotel we stayed at was inexpensive and with a typical Zanzibari bed (180 cm long) no duvet, just a sheet and quite central. I walked as much as I havn't done for a long time. In a few hours we are back to the boat, but for now we will have a nice lunch on the beach. One has to see this island but it did not intreaged us to stay longer. After two hard nights on Zanzibari beds we look forward to our cosy and soft landrover bed with proper cushions and a wll stocked fridge. we hear bad news about northern and southern Kenya and need more info about it, as the local news are few. Caroline, if you read this do you have any more info? Our route will be via Mombassa to the north, but we are open for changes. Regards from us to you all. By the way the waether is tropical with medium humidity and very pleasant temperatures.

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Comments

[Richard and Elna]

Hello from Australia
Dear Rolf and Vanessa We are still all good, just can't wait for our Phuket and SA trip. We will leave on Thursday night and be back in Melbourne on the 17th of July. That same day 2 Korean students will arrive to stay with us for 3.5 weeks. At the moment i am frantically busy to reorganise the house, pack, etc. Thank for all your wonderful blogs. Take good care of yourself. lol Elna

[Andreas & Sabine Braunsteiner]

weiterhin sichere Reise
Hallo Ihr Beiden! Es macht soooo viel Freude Eure Reiseberichte zu lesen, vor allem sind Eure Eindrücke ganz frisch und kommen so auch rüber. Ich hoffe dass Ihr sicher durch Kenya kommt - hier im Ösiland haben wir bis dato nichts beunruhigendes gehört (aber das heißt ja auch nichts) - wir hoffen für Euch, dass es nicht so schlimm ist und Ihr gut und sicher weiter kommt - halten Euch ganz fest die Daumen und freuen uns schon auf die nächsten Berichte. Alles Liebe Andreas & Sabine

[Lionel]

From Lionel
Hi Rolf and Vanessa, Sounds as if you are having a marvellous trip. Don't forget to contact us when you are in Kenya and let us know around when to expect you. My cell is 0720775163 and Mum's is 0721738187. If you have an international satellite phone, just add the dial code-254-remove the "0" of 072 eg [phone]. Tribal skirmishes and cattle rustling ongoing but you should be fine. Looking fwd to seeing you. Lionel