Week 8

Tanzania – Zanzibar

What we did

Bit of a combination of week 7 and 8 here as we’ve been a touch shellshocked after Kilimanjaro and just needed some rest and recovery. Thankfully, we have been in the perfect place for just that – Zanzibar. After leaving Moshi via bus on the Saturday before last, we made our way into Dar es Salaam. We had a comfortable night there, staying in an Airbnb with a lovely Indian family, near to the docks. On the Sunday morning we caught the fast ferry with Kilimanjaro Express across the waters to the island of Zanzibar.

We had ten days planned there, starting with the historical Stone Town in the south west of the island. Stone town is a fascinating place, steeped in history and sadness. It is where so many souls forced into slavery, were shipped to, surviving horrific conditions upon the slavers’ dhows, only to then be auctioned for sale to the highest bidder in the squares of Stone Town. Now a tourist paradise, it is brimming with shops, cafes, seaside markets and a few museums.

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After a few days of gelato and tasty dining experiences, we moved on from Stone Town to our next destination, Jambiani, on the East coast of the island. We had three nights booked here at the idyllic Savera Beach Houses. With a small beachfront villa all to ourselves, we had a few vey lazy days of reclining on sunbeds, a few good books to devour, several cocktails to drink and cake to eat on Tim’s birthday, which also happened to be in this little window.

The tide on this side of Zanzibar is quite dramatic in its ebb and flow. The water’s edge retreats several hundred metres back across the rocks and coral. Jambiani is a bit more sheltered from the waves than the neighbouring beaches, thanks to the wall of coral reef that sits around 500 metres back from the high tide line. It’s a beautiful sight at all times, though – low tide sees it full of coral and seaweed farmers, whereas high tide is crowded with passing dhows.

Favourite thing we did

While just laying back with a good book on a beach chair is our personal version of heaven, eating gratuitous amounts of cake is a close second. For Tim’s birthday we caught a taxi from our hotel to a nearby café that had a few varieties that we sampled – lemon meringue, classic chocolate, banana, passionfruit cheesecake. We got back to our hotel a little later, only to be surprised by the hotel staff who – with a delightful song and dance – presented us with a huge slice of chocolate cake. The name ‘Tim’ was scrawled onto it in lime green icing, as though Hagrid himself had put his deft hand to the task.

Least favourite thing we did

The bus from Moshi to Dar es Salaam was a bit of a horrid experience. On the recommendation of one of our guides from Kili, we booked two seats on the BM Coach. Looking them up online, they seemed like a sure thing, with their VIP range buses being just three roomy seats wide, with air conditioning and onboard toilets. What showed up the morning of our departure was the two by two seater however. There was air conditioning, an onboard toilet even, but the leg room was the worst we have seen on any full-size coach ever. What was meant to be a ‘luxury’ vehicle was a pretty far cry from it – and coming off the back of our traumatic experiences on Kili, was not what the doctor ordered. Thrown in for extra fun was some blaring pop music video channels and a rather insensitive passenger who left the empty seat next to him (the one in front of Kirsten) fully reclined for almost the entire trip, and refused to put it upright when we asked because ‘he was planning to sit in it later’. The best part was the loud beeping noise coming from the control panel (like the noise a car makes when you haven’t put your seat belt on, but louder) which continued for the ENTIRE 10 HOUR JOURNEY. It was almost more than we could bear in our fragile post-Kili states.

Favourite thing we ate                                              

In Dar es Salaam, on the advice of our Airbnb hosts, we visited a vegetarian Indian restaurant just down the road from their place called Swastik. A pretty nondescript joint both inside and out, we placed our orders with little idea what to expect. Almost as soon as we had ordered, the place began to fill up quickly with locals – reassuring us we had made the right call. Within minutes, our food was arriving. First course; Samosa Chat, followed by Paneer Butter Masala accompanied by healthy portions of cheese and garlic Naan. It was the first time post-Kili that we had actually enjoyed a meal, and we will definitely be hitting the place up again on our return from Zanzibar.

Favourite thing we drank

Zanzibar served up all kinds of delicious beverages – fresh juices, tasty smoothies, quality coffee, generous cocktails. However, one drink in particular stood out this week – our first bottles of Kilimanjaro beer. A fairly light, refreshing affair, that tasted like distilled victory – this drink is our birthright.

Biggest splurge

We wanted to stay somewhere special for a few nights around Tim’s birthday, but finding somewhere nice that didn’t completely break the bank on Zanzibar proved to be a difficult task indeed. It was difficult to justify spending three times our nightly budget on places that didn’t seem that much better than where we stayed normally, and anything 4 stars or above was WAAAAAY out of our price range. We ended up choosing Savera Beach Houses in Jambiani, which was absolutely perfect. It was a big splurge, at triple our nightly accommodation budget, but for that we got a beautiful cottage 10m from the ocean, a wonderful, clean bathroom and an incredible multi-course breakfast served on our veranda overlooking the beach every morning. It’s a small family-run property, and it’s evident from the level of care that has gone into every part of the resort, with lots of little thoughtful touches to make life easier.  

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Best deal

Our Airbnb in Dar es Salaam was a great find. It was the first time we’ve ever stayed in a shared house type Airbnb. Our hosts, a lovely Indian family, were incredibly warm and welcoming. They had lots of great, honest advice to give. Best of all, they included a delicious breakfast for us as part of our stay.

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