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May 9th
The ferry that would take the 8 of us to Zanzibar was to leave at 10:30 in the morning, so we were able to sleep in a bit more than normal. As a group we decided to take a couple taxis back over the bay and to the Zanzibar ferry, this was nice and quick, although a bit more expensive than going in a
matatu. We waited for what seemed like an eternity to get on the ferry but the time did come.
It took us about two and a half hours to get to Stonetown, the port for the island. My stomach wasn’t happy so it was nice to get some sleep on the side of the ship, with Wendy and Nico as my body guards. I was expecting Stonetown to be more like than Lamu, but it really isn’t, although they both have a lot of charm and character.
After Daniel sorted us out with the immigration office we walked ot the hotel and had a very short amount of down time. We were wisked away to do the Spice Tour of the island. Zanzibar is also known as Spice Island. It was also
a hub of the slave trade in the 1800’s. It’s been part of many countries territories, I was told it has had Portugese and Arab leaders at various times in it’s history.
The beginning of the tour started at a friend of Danny’s house. We all had some lunch there and it was delicious and very authentic. After that we headed up to one of the spice farms. A couple of us (me included) were party poopers and didn’t really feel up to it so we didn’t do two-thirds of the tour. We did still enjoy the tea party after wards, where we try different flavors, like lemongrass, masala, and ginger. They also gave us some local fruit that was really tasty! I tried climbing a coconut tree at the end of the tour,
after seeing a guy climb about 150 feet to the top. It was insane! After the tour we headed back to Stonetown and the beach front to watch the sun go down. It was too cloudy but it was nice to have some down time finally. We walked over to the Night Market and got some food. The night market was incredible, you can see a video of it
here.! I’ve never seen anything like it! Tons
of people are milling around, chatting, eating and enjoying themselves. We all tasted grilled fishes and crabs, lobsters and the local pizza (it was more like an omelet than a pizza).
Full of food we all walked back to the hotel to get a good nights sleep in an air conditioned room with satellite TV, to watch the news, and of course check on the final table for the English Premier League. Another top 6 finish for Villa, happy days!
Xuxa hurt her foot right before going to bed, she cut her big toe open actually. I played nurse (well actually more than anything I was the medical supplies clerk) and Wendy played doctor and fixed her right up. She was already in pain and discomfort from all the mosquito and sand fly bites that it all culminated in her squeezing my hand so hard she broke my pinky finger….just kidding.
A good nights sleep and a rest for my still upset stomach came soon after the operation and I was out pretty quick, dreaming of the beaches on the north shore and the freedom of doing what I want for 5 days in a row.
Until next time mis amigo y familia!
Pura Vida and Hakuna Matata!!
-Brendan
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