Day 222 - Bohemian Rhapsody

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Today we woke up in a proper bed and with air-con and Sky News. All relative luxuries for us these days. We had a day where we could do as little or as much as we pleased, and being able to decide for ourselves was a refreshing change after 5 weeks on the truck. We chose to wander around Zanzibar's main town called Stone Town. It's very rich in heritage, having been an important trading post in days gone by and with significant Omani influence, but these days it's in a poor state and is mostly just crumbling down. And the main contemporary influence is Freddie Mercury - this is where he was born. The main reason for its current state is that most of the properties were nationalised in the 1960s with predictable results (rich merchants leaving and taking their money with them; poor Zanzibarians being given big houses by the government that they couldn't afford to maintain).

We wandered around the labyrinthine streets, deliberately without a map so we could enjoy the sensation of being utterly lost, and bought a few gifts and trinkets. We ate a delicious lunch in the Passing Show for GBP1 each, hammering home the suspicion that the amount we are paying for food on this trip (everyone contributes $705 to a kitty for the 6 weeks) is a bit steep. And then we checked out the 'House of Wonders', the sultan's old palace that had Africa's first elevator or something, which was well worth the visit.

Finally we went to Forodhani Gardens for something to eat in the evening - it turns into a ready-to-eat seafood market at sunset and was amazing. We had Zanzibar Pizza, Red Snapper, Spiced Lobster kebabs, banana and chocolate pizza. All washed down with pressed sugar cane and lime. And all really cheap - this is definitely not to be missed if you ever come to Zanzibar.

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