My new favourite place!

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Two months later…my apologies for not writing sooner, the time has just been flying by!

I just got back from my second trip to Zanzibar, and since I didn’t write about the first time, I figured I could mesh both trips together. Zanzibar has been on my bucket list for years now, and I am so incredibly happy that I was able to visit more than once.

My first trip was to Kendwa which is located at the Northern tip of the Island, and has some of the most beautiful beaches I’ve ever seen. It was a nice and relaxing vacation with most of our time spent tanning and napping on the beach with the exception of one very nauseating boat trip. We snorkelled around a beautiful coral reef, which in my opinion (my friends would disagree) made up for the uncomfortable trip in. We saw beautiful fish and the water was perfectly blue and warm. The only downfall to our trip was the constant harassment by the people trying to sell us anything they could while we laid on the beach. I held my ground for as long as I could, but eventually caved and bought a $6.00 Sarong…it was worth it 😊

My second trip to Zanzibar was to Stone Town, which has made it one of my favourite places in the world. The name comes from the use of coral stone in most of the town’s architecture. Most of the buildings are former palaces, churches and mosques and they all have distinctive features of Arab, Persian, Indian, African and European traditions. It is small hilly town with winding roads and small alleys, we got lost a few times but eventually learned our bearings. My Stone Town trip was originally inspired by Sauti Za Busara, an East African Music festival, but I wanted to seize every opportunity that I had and decided to pack in as much as I could. I ended up going on a spice tour and getting my PADI diving certification as well. We saw a lot of talented musicians, all of which were new to me. It was more of a chill atmosphere which was nice after having a full day of scuba diving. Our hostel was near the festival, so we were able to walk there every day. We were also within walking distance of Forodhani Garden, which is a small park that hosted a huge food market every night from 7pm-2am, I ate dinner and post-party snacks there every night. My favourite treat was the Zanzibar pizza, which is basically a chapati stuffed with a variation of ingredients and can be done both savoury and sweet, I also tried their tandoori lobster and drank fresh pressed cane juice.

I really pushed myself to the max between partying all night at the festival and Scuba Diving all day in the Ocean, but it was worth it. The reef was absolutely breathtaking and I swam alongside some beautiful fish. I also saw a couple of giant clams, lobsters, and a giant squid. I descended down to 18m so I unfortunately couldn’t take any pictures since my camera is only built to go as far as 5m, but the view will forever be in my memories.
I’m having a hard time deciding what I enjoyed more between diving and the spice tour, because you really haven’t experienced cinnamon until you eat the bark off a cinnamon tree. Along with a farm full of spices, there were a bunch of fruit trees as well. I always grew up listening to my parents tell me stories about eating mangoes right off of the tree, but you really have to experience it to understand. Our tour guide picked one off and sliced it up right in front of us, it was warm from the sun but that made it all the more better!

If any of you are looking for an exotic vacation that is filled with relaxation, culture and adventure, Zanzibar is the place to be!

For those of you who don’t know, I have booked my flights home and will be back on April 13th! Moshi has really started to feel like home, but I am ready to head back to the True North!

Official Countdowns:
9 Days until I run my first half marathon
32 Days until I hike Mt. Kilimanjaro
39 Days until I meet my sister in Italy
53 Days until I’m home

I can’t believe I’ve already been here for 5 months and I still have so much to look forward to! I will try to update my blog as much as possible while I’m still here! I miss you all, and can’t wait to see you back in Canada…hopefully winter will actually be over by then 

Swahili word of the day: Sauti which means Sound, the name of the music festival translates to Sounds of Wisdom

Peace&Love

- Lisa

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Photos

A kid that lives on the farm made us crowns, necklaces, ties and bracelets out of banana leaves