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Day 12 - Wednesday 21 August 2002
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An early start for the long drive to Dar-es-Salaam by private bus. The scenery is varied, passing the forested Usambara Mountains, sisal plantations, and numerous villages with colourfully dressed African women hard at work (the men are busy supervising!). We reach Dar in mid afternoon and take the last boat to Zanzibar (a journey of about 100 minutes), arriving in Stone Town in time to settle into our hotel - a nineteenth century Arab merchant house where little seems to have changed - before taking dinner in one of the excellent local restaurants. Hotel.
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Awoken at 5am for our journey down to Dar es Salam. After breakfast and the loading of our luggage on the roof of the bus we set off at 6.30, First of all down a dirt track and finally onto a tarmac road for the rest of the journey.
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Even at this time of the morning there were people waiting at the side of the road. Besides ourselves the only other vehicles seem to be occasional mini buses, so we were able to make good progress.
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On the way to Himo we passed through rich farmland and by pedestrians walking along the road who were sent to the verge with a peep of the bus horn.
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To our left the Usambara Highlands could be seen as we passed into a more arid landscape broken with sisal plantations.
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But before leaving the mountains the landscape became more lush again with trees including palms.
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The road wound beside a small river and through groves of oranges before we reached our stopping place for a break at Segera.
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Continuing on through the changing landscape, thatched huts with mud walls replaced brick walled buildings. The previously cloudy sky became littered with many small cumulus clouds and the temperature slowly increased, windows of the bus were gradually opened wider.
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We all occupied our time with catching up on sleep, making notes and just generally gazing at the landscape.
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The land through which we are passing seems quite fertile being covered in thin forest, bushes and long grass, we wonder why it is not being put to more productive agricultural use.
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As we approach the Wami river gorge we were slowed down by a series of severe speed humps, on passing over to the other side we could see the reason with burnt out vehicles, including a petrol tanker, laying in ravines by the side of the road.
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At Chalinze, a junction town with many small shops, we turned left.
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Finally we reached Dar es Salam and fought our way through the traffic to the port, arriving with over 30 min to spare. Porters were eager to help us with our luggage but we had determined that we would handle our own and so resisted their offers, pilling it up on the quayside while we waited for embarkation, which soon arrived. Again we scrummed with the porters and other passengers to get our bags on board and create a storage space, with some success.
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Entering Stone Town
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The crossing to Zanzibar was fast, relatively smooth and enjoyable, as we sat on the upper deck in the evening sun. On arrival we allowed most of the other passengers to disembark first before we plunged in to the melee. Our bags were loaded into a small wagon and we boarded our bus for the short ride to a point as near to our hotel as possible in the narrow streets of Stone Town. Walked the final couple of hundred yards through the narrow streets to reach our stop for the night.
The Hotel International was a former 19th century merchant's house with much character but internally it seems to have been last modified in the 1950s. A good architect and interior designer could work wonders on the place, doubling the number of rooms, which are currently 20ft high, and improving the run down character.
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To reach our evening meal we walked through the narrow streets of Stone Town, which is triangular in shape, bordered on two sides by the sea and the third side by a broad road that was once a creek.
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Before going into the Blues restaurant, where for 22,000 Tanzanian shilling ( 14) we enjoyed a quality three course meal and ample drink, we walked through stalls selling a wide variety of barbecued food.
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At the end of the evening we retraced our steps back through the narrow streets to our hotel and surprisingly avoided becoming lost in the maze.
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Day 13 - Thursday 22 August 2002
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The morning is free to discover more of Stone Town, exploring the twisting, narrow streets, buying some souvenirs, and visiting the former slave market. Another option is a spice tour; much of inland Zanzibar is dominated by the production of exotic spices and we can visit several farms with a professional guide, with the chance to taste and buy! Small villages set amidst coconut palms are an additional attraction. We then regroup for the transfer to Jambiani on the east coast of Zanzibar for a late lunch. The afternoon is free to relax on the beach, to indulge in some water sports, or to wander around the unspoilt village. Hotel.
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Awoken at 5am by the Imam calling the faithful to prayer, but managed to get back off to sleep again.
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Before breakfast we decided to go up to the hotel roof to look out over Stone Town. We shouldn't have bothered negotiating the steep steps as the view over the tin roofs was just as run down as the street level view, what was once a grand town of the east African coast has greatly deteriorated.
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For the morning we opted to take a visit to see spices and tropical fruits being grown and hear about their uses; cloves for toothpaste flavouring, tooth acre, cooking and oil; cinnamon bark and leaves for cooking, the root for nasal congestion - vick; turmeric root, ginger and vanilla for cooking; anato - the lipstick plant for red colouring; papaya leaf for wound dressing, papaya sap for bee strings; lemon grass for tea and also as a mosquito repellent. Jackfruit, papaya, star fruit, grapefruit, avocado and coconut were some of the many fruits we saw and tasted.
We were also shown the 'touch me not' mimosa whose very sensitive leaves would fold up when touched
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Butterfly collecting coconuts
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Returned at midday to be taken by bus to Jam an elongated village on the east coast of Zanzibar Island. The east coast is not as lush as the west but it had sandy beaches protected by a coral reef facing on to the Indian Ocean. Our hotel was the Sau Inn.
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The afternoon was spent relaxing, swimming and sun bathing followed in the evening by a meal at the Cocoa Cabana which we reached by walking about 500m along the beach, lit by a full moon.
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We were a bit doubtful about their ability to cater for 18 of us, as well as other people who came drifting in, on a two-ring cooker. But we were not disappointed, the red snapper was amongst the best 10 fish dishes we have ever eaten.
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Strolled gently back along the beach to our hotel.
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Day 14 - Friday 23 August 2002
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A free day at Jambiani. You may choose to watch the fishermen bringing in their catch, to see Red Colobus monkeys at Jozani Forest, or to swim with dolphins at Kizimkazi. The beautiful beach, the colourful reef, or a bicycle ride may also appeal. Total relaxation in our very comfortable beachside bungalows or at the swimming pool might be an option too! Hotel.
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Fishing boat
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For the morning we decided to go snorkelling. As it was low tide and the lagoon is quite shallow we had to walk out quite a way to get to the local fishing boats that were taking us closer to the reef, avoiding the spines of the sea urchins on the way. The boats, called ngalawa, have two out riggers and a sail like a dhow, the sails were made from polyprop grain sacks sown together. Even out at our diving site the water depth was only between half and 2m, so we were able to watch the fish with our heads just below the surface.
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After an hour the swimming tired our walking legs and we returned to spend another lazy afternoon in the dappled sunshine under a tree. A stiff breeze gradually developed from the south to keep us all cool.
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The evening meal was a barbecue by the pool. This turned out to be a bit of a disappointment, the food was not great and 5 members who had set off on a bike ride earlier in the afternoon did not get back until late in the meal and so everything was a bit fragmented.
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Day 15 - Saturday 24 August 2002
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A morning transfer to Stone Town, which gives you time for some last minute souvenir shopping, for more exploration of Stone Town, and for lunch in one of the waterfront restaurants. We travel by boat to Dares-Salaam in the late afternoon for a farewell dinner, before taking the overnight flight KL571 at 23.40 to Amsterdam.
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Time to think about leaving. We had spent two weeks on a variety of activities, moving on each day to another place and never really knowing with certainty what day it was but now it was Saturday and time to go.
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As we left the hotel we were told that our flight had been 50% over booked and that KLM were looking for passengers willing to take a flight 10 hours later in return for $300 and a room at the Holiday Inn for the night. We accepted along with 8 others in the group.
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The cloudy skies that had hung over our hotel that morning turned to rain as we return to Stone Town for the ferry. On reaching Strobe Town the rain turned into a deluge, this is supposed to be the dry season!
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Spent a while dodging into shops but in the end retired to the cafe inside the fort to enjoy a leisurely lunch before joining the others at the Blues Restaurant ready to re-board the bus to the ferry.
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Again the ferry embarkation was a bit of a fight this time made more interesting by the heavy rain, but soon we were all on board with our luggage stowed as best as possible in the dry for our trip to Dar es Salam.
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The sailing was a little rougher than the outward trip, not because the sea was any worse but because we were now in a small, overloaded, single hulled craft rather than a catamaran. Some passengers were separated from their lunch. After 2 hours we arrived at Dar es Salam.
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Again scrummed for the last time and hacked our way to the bus to take us to the New Africa Hotel for an enjoyable all you could eat buffet dinner at 10,000 TSh ( 7). The sign above the door said 'dress smart casual', but they still let us in anyway. We took the opportunity to thank our leader Simon for the outstanding way in which he had kept us all in check a got us about. We also presented him with what was felt to be his greatest need - a new patch for the seat of his trousers.
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Soon we had to move on so that those flying that evening could get to the airport, the rest of us being dropped of at the Holiday Inn a western style hotel only opened earlier this year. After the best shower we've had for weeks we adjourned to the bar to await with the rest of the group the return of Simon with our $300 per head bribe and flight tickets.
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The tickets didn't turn up until 2.30 in the morning and then it was only a list with our names on saying that they would be issued at the airport.
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Day 16 - Sunday 25 August 2002
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Arrive in Amsterdam at 08.10 for flight UK2043 to Birmingham at 10.00, arriving at 10.15.
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The planned itinerary had been abandoned. Our alarm call awoke us at 6.00 and after briefly packing and a quick breakfast we were ready for the airport at 7.00, just needed to check out. But minor complications arose, the paper jammed in the printer, items appeared on the bill that were being paid for by KLM and the receptionist was in no hurry anyway.
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By 7.20 we were on our way and soon reached the airport, getting in was the next problem as the luggage x-ray machines were just inside the door and a large melee of people we blocking the entrance. We managed to get through in the end and made sure that each our bags had a security sticker on it which were being scattered around like confetti. If one fell off because it wouldn't stick to our dusty bags we replaced it with one taken from a bag with spare stickers.
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Our next problem was check in. Armed only with our list the check-in girl was not able to issue us with tickets but promised that if we stood to one side a Swiss Air rep would be with us shortly. Reluctantly we moved over and very soon, to our relief, the rep showed up. He promised that although he could not issue us with our tickets immediately that we would all be on the flight and that he would be back in 15 minutes, and with Swiss efficiency he was.
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Finally negotiating check in and emigration we arrived at the gate as boarding was taking place so we proceeded straight through. All our seats were scattered throughout the aircraft, a little negotiation brought them closer together but not next to each other, perhaps this was the price of being paid $300 to be dumped or perhaps it would have happened anyway.
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With Swiss precision we rolled away from the gate at exactly 9.00 heading for Birmingham calling in at Nairobi and changing at Zurich.
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Being a Swiss airline going to Zurich, naturally many of the passengers were Swiss, but one lady was the very caricature of a Swiss matron from the bob of her flaxen hair to the sensible leather sandals on her feet, with a blue checked dress and a grey cardigan bearing a pattern of Swiss men and women in weather vain formation. Devoid of makeup, she carried a stout leather hand bag with which to do battle with to any impure thoughts that may have come her way over the last 50 years
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After a wait in Zurich and then a delay in take off due to a thunder storm, we left an hour late on one of the smallest aircraft we have been on, one seat on one side of the isle and two on the other. Even then the plane wasnt full.
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Arrived back in Birmingham and were very soon reunited with our bags enabling us to reach home before midnight.
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