Blogs from Tanzania, Africa - page 387

Question: How many times does one need to go to Zanzibar? Well…… when you are invited along to attend the official opening of the luxurious Italian resort in Kendwa, the answer would be = at least three. The troublesome trio of Alex, Jessica and myself flew to Zanzibar a few hours before the inauguration to do some shopping in Stonetown. It was Jessica’s first time in Zanzibar but sadly, she only became very familiar with the shopping district of Stonetown (Kenyatta Road), where the touts sneak up and sing “Jambo, jambo bwana, habari, nzuri sana…” in an attempt to convince you to by their CD wares. Alas, while you may not have the musical tracks to blast in your stereo, the noxious noise/song does not quickly leave your brain. After a few hours of shopping, the ... read more

According to one of Jessica’s colleagues, you can just show up at Ubungo bus station and hop on any number of buses heading in the Iringa direction- easy, no problem. Following this advice, we made it to the crazy chaos that is Ubungo just after 7:30am. Now being accosted by the aggressive touts is no fun on any given day, but becomes especially unpleasant when they haul you around to the various bus counters and in the end, you have nothing to show for it. After close to half an hour of bouncing from counter to counter, we were rapidly losing hope of finding any vehicle even remotely heading towards Iringa when we come across a random guy sitting around who showed us to the minibus that was leaving for Iringa sasa hizi (immediately). After haggling ... read more

WHAT? Hot water? Fresh pineapple juice? Lounging on the private white sand beach? Sailing on the Indian ocean in a laser? Walking barefoot? A pool right outside my hotel room window? Sun salutations on the beach in the morning? Lovely pasta at every meal? Sugary cookies for breakfast? Italian espresso? Yup, that’s right, all of the above and then some! Just got back from a fantastic, luxurious and relaxing weekend in Paradise (note the capital P) arranged by the wonderful and witty Alex. Roughly translated, Gemma del Est means “Jewel of the East.” It is an “Italian Resort for Italians” (and this time, for a few Canadians and Swiss) located near Kendwa Rocks on the northeastern tip of Zanzibar. Now this was definitely a change from the last time I visited Zanzibar, which was still a ... read more

it was our last day in serengeti. our mission: cheetah hunting. we drove about an hour from our hotel to enter a different section of the park where cheetahs are known to frequent. in this area of the park you are allowed to drive off-road. we start driving through the plains and circling the kopjes, or rock formations, that are common in serengeti. these rocks are often hangouts of lions, where they are often found basking in the sun. we drove for hours. nada. to give you an idea of the size of serengeti, it's roughly the size of england. and here we are trying to find the fastest, and one of the most elusive, animals in nature. "it's like trying to find a cheetah in the serengeti" should be the expression. finally after circling another ... read more

As promised, this is Part III of Vacation… and yes, contrary to some belief, I am working, not just vacationing! Despite some apprehension about the bus from Lushoto to Tanga, the “Umba” turned out to be the best bus experience in Tanzania thus far. Why? (1) The Umba was surprisingly punctual, (2) it did not stop for unduly long periods of time in the towns along the way, (3) the driver was actually quite cautious and slowed down around the sharp corners, and (4) best of all, the windows too high for the touts to reach up and open (this, however, did not prevent them from propping things on a stick and shoving them in your face…). All in all, a rather impressive, even comfortable, journey………and for only 4500 Tsh. Arriving in Tanga at the scheduled ... read more