Zanzibar, a holiday within a holiday

COUNTRY: Tanzania
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Building, renovation & conservation
WRITTEN BY: Abi Gordon

Arriving back in Tanga yesterday evening was both happy and sad. Happy because we were greeted so warmly by the group as well as camp leaders Elphas and Anderson, and sad because we had just left Zanzibar, our holiday within a holiday.

Leaving Tanga for Zanzibar was eventful, when after hauling out bags into the taxi at five in the morning, and driving for just five minutes, we came to a screeching hault. Abi realized she had left her phone behind. After a quick sprint back to camp we were on our way again. 6 hours later we arrived in dar es Salam for our stop over, armed with a few lonely planet books and fanny packs, ready to "stay vigilant and remember our training" - as recommended in a concerned text by one stressed out mother.

We arrived in Stone Town, Zanzibar the next day by ferry, and walked a short distance to our little hotel. There we indulged in free wifi, actual warm showers and napping. In the evening we had dinner at the busy night markets and ate tall stacks of chapati, freshly cooked lobster skewers and bannana Nutella chocolate pancakes.

Then we sat on the pier watching some of the locals dance, until they started counting down and flinging them selves into the water. Full of food, very tired, and having convinced Beth not to jump off the pier, we walked back to the hotel. The next morning we celebrated Larissa's birthday by publicly serinading her at breakfast, and then cake and cocktails in the evening. Shopping however, was the main event of Stone Town. Getting lost in the winding little streets was so much fun, and allowed us to discover the house of spices restaurant ( lots of delicious pizza) and a tiny little coffee house (lots of delicious cakes!).

We perfected our haggling skill too, and always asked for 'rafiki price'. The next day we went on a spice tour just out side of Stone Town. A man climbed all the way up a coconut tree and made us leaf hats, an Sophie earnt her nick name 'pilli queen' after she ate a raw chilli called 'pilli pilli ho ho' - the hottest chilli in east Africa. We then set off for nungwi and arrived just in time for dinner at sunset on the beach.

Our main activity for Nungwi was our boat trip, where we went scuba diving and snorkeling. The ocean was so clear, and we saw dolphins and huge star fish. We all got very awkward wetsuit burns and got home for some hammock time and dinner. The rest of the trip mostly consisted of food sun and sleep, as well as a reggae party in Kendwa rocks. Before heading back to Tanga we had one more night in town, whee everyone fished their last minute shopping. We bought tonnes of clothes, paintings souvenirs and Hannah and Beth bought a hat for mikki, a boy who lives in the village back in Tanga.

In camp, progress has continued on the trust house whilst we were gone, and plastering, windows and door frames have all been finished! The next day however, we had to say goodbye to our British and Dutch friends, for who it was all time to go home. we also had to say good bye to fellow Aussie Hannah, whose presence in the group will be surely missed! Zanzibar was amazing, and a lovely break, but I think it also made us appreciate our little home we've made in Tanga even more.