Hi all,
A post about Dar is below from yesterday.
This morning we were up at 4.50, packed our stuff for Zanzibar and then set off. This involved a short trip in the truck, and then our driver Gladman dropped us off at a public ferry. It was packed! Kids were going to school, people to work and people even had carts of stinky fish. This took us to Dar's port where we had some time to walk around before boarding the 9.30am ferry to Zanzibar.
I first heard of Zanzibar when I was at The Body Shop with Mum as a kid. A body wash was scented and named Zanzibar, and I was so curious I went home and googled it! Ever since I have always wanted to come.
Zanzibar has 1.5 million residents, and about 70% of these people are born here and never leave at all. Even though it's technically part of Tanzania, all the people here seem to refer to it as a "country".
The ferry was very windy and took 1.5 hours. Once we arrived a local guide picked us up and we walked to our hotel. Yes, you read correctly, HOTEL. Even though the bed is hard as a rock, we have an air con and a roof above our head. Happy days!!
We set off on a day tour next. First we went to a local restaurant and had some Indian/Arabic food. Zanzibar over the years has been controlled by the Arabs and by the British. What you end up with is a tropical island in Africa that makes you feel as if you're in Turkey or Egypt. The architecture is gorgeous and I love the beautiful alleyways and doors of all the buildings.
The food was incredible - we tried it all! Then we were taken for 20 minutes on a bus to a 300 acre spice plantation. We saw, smelled, ate and touched lots - bananas, jackfruit, cloves (the smell of which reminds me of my wisdom teeth operation - they put clove oil in your mouth. Yuck!), nutmeg, vanilla, black pepper, anato (which stains your lips red!), cinnamon and lemongrass. Then we tried a few different teas. I bought some tea and perfume - the customs officials are going to have a field day with me in a couple of weeks!!
Some of the workers there made us funny hats and jewellery out of coconut leaves.
Then we headed back to Stone Town for a walking tour there. We learned that the name "Tanzania" comes from 'Tan' from the original mainland country's name of Tanganika, 'Zan' from Zanzibar, 'i' from independence and 'a' from association.
Our first stop in Stone Town was the sight of the old slave markets. The slave trade began here in the 15th century and was instigated by the Portuguese and then taken over by the Arabs. Slaves were taken to chambers and housed there until their masters were ready to sell them. We went into these and they were dank, dark and claustrophobic. Up to 75 people could be kept in one of these at a time, and many died. In 1871 a Bishop started here called Edward Steere. He didn't like the slave trade and did a lot of work trying to abolish it. He bought a lot of slaves and set them free. He also ordered a church be built here. We went inside and saw his grave, as well as a cross carved from the wood of the tree by which David Livingstone died. There was a circle on the altar that apparently was the sight of a tree to which slaves used to be tied and whipped before being sold to see who was strongest.
The slave chambers were called Mkunazini, and after seeing them we went to a short exhibition about slavery. Back when slavery was rife here, 2/3 of the population of Zanzibar were slaves. Many slaves were forced to work at plantations like the one we visited today, particularly to produce cloves. There was heavy turnover as 15-20% of these slaves died.
Thankfully in 1909 after many years of legislation, slavery was made illegal here. Sadly though, many slaves were still bound to their masters and didn't know another way of life. I was also sad to read a piece at the end of the exhibit about slavery today, which is apparently still happening quite a lot more than I realised. The whole experience was very haunting, but like concentration camps and other similar experiences, I felt I was paying my respects to those involved by visiting.
Our guide then explained that the doors in Stone Town represent different things. Flowers meant a rich family lived there, chains meant they were involved in slave trading. Brass knobs were an Indian tradition to stop elephants pressing up against the door.
Next we got to Freddie Mercury's house. We were very rushed here but I will go back tomorrow and have some info for you then. I got a photo for you though Mum!!
Tonight we are going to wander around and find some dinner, and then hopefully have a good night's sleep!!
Morning in Stone Town and then off to the north beaches tomorrow.
Love to all
Claire
Xoxox
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