Forced to leave Egypt with very little notice, I chose to fly to Tanzania, for a few good reasons - visas are issued on arrival, it's relatively cheap, I haven't been there before and there's a ton of things to do (safari, Kilimanjaro, Maasai tribes). Tanzania would be U.N. country #108 for me. There was a mandatory temperature check on arrival and a standard form to fill out but securing a three month tourist visa was quick and easy.
I withdrew some cash from an ATM and got a taxi from Julius Nyerere International Airport to the ZanFast Ferry Terminal and purchased a one-way business class ticket to Zanzibar for $20. It was a bit of a mess getting onto the boat with every passenger trying to board at the exact same time, but once upstairs and in my airconditioned seat it was smooth sailing for the two hour trip across the archipelago to Stone Town. Another temperature check on arrival, a heaving mess at baggage claim where all the porters wanted to help and another medical form to complete before escaping the ferry terminal.
Stone Town is gorgeous. It was sunset as I walked the short distance from the ferry terminal along the seafront past big tree beach to the Double Tree Hilton hidden away behind Freddy Mercury’s childhood home. I circled the thing a few times before a kindly security guard help me find the front door.
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| Zanzibar at sunset |
The Double Tree was beautiful. It was a warm evening when I arrived and shortly after settling in I retreated to the rooftop restaurant to relax and reflect on the chaos of the last few days. As Covid was ramping up around the world, I’d just passed through five huge international airports and a bustling ferry terminal armed with nothing more than a bottle of hand sanitizer. No masks in Africa yet. In fact, none will be seen for the next six weeks - not until the day I would finally leave this country.
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| The Anglican Cathedral in Stone Town |
Stone Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site - by definition a place judged to contain cultural and/or natural significance and considered to be of outstanding value to humanity. There were lots of options and plenty of time so the plan was to take a few days on foot around the old city to stumble upon;
- The Old Anglican Cathedral - made from stone with a lovely alter and slave chambers next door.
- The Persian baths - built for the former Sultan of Zanzibar.
- Zanzibar coffee house - a cafe and hotel with excellent food (and super fast WiFi)
- The People’s Palace Museum - a 19th palace, sadly closed to tours
- Big Tree Beach - next to 'the big tree' and close to the ferry terminal, it's a bustling part of town with lots of little cafes.
The next day was set aside for Freddy Mercury’s House, some shopping and a trip to Prison Island to visit the giant tortoise sanctuary. I forget how many tortoises are on the island - safe to say more than 50 - but some are much older and more revered than others. They have their birth date painted on their shells and the oldest one I saw was over 150 years old.
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| One of the tortoises on Prison Island |
After a couple of wonderful days cramming in as many sites as possible it was time for a change of location and a change of pace. In the very north of Zanzibar is a small village called Nungwi, known for great diving, excellent seafood and the second DoubleTree Hilton on the island.
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| Leaving Prison Island |
I booked three nights but ended up staying five. My ocean front room was too good to give up without a fight, plus I needed time to plan my next move. Each of the next few days followed a familiar pattern - watch the sunrise, quickly followed by the news for any Covid updates, breakfast, pool time, lunch, more news, beach time (mainly taking photos versus swimming), news, dinner timed to watch sunset from the beach. Interspersed with this routine were various conversations with other tourists either planning their early route home or, like me, holding out for better news in the hope that I could get my trip back on track.
Per my original plan I should have been on the island of Socotra in Yemen, off the Horn of Africa. It was hard to be unhappy where I was but I had a sinking feeling that I was either going to to be forced home early, or get stuck somewhere. Turns out both scenarios would play out.
With each passing sunrise and sunset in Nungwi, the DoubleTree guests at breakfast and by the pool and sunning themselves on the beach and wandering the grounds, dwindled noticeably. The morning I checked out was eerie. I was the only guest at breakfast. I wandered to the empty market and arranged a taxi to take me to the airport. At the checkout desk I asked how many rooms are at the resort. Ninety four was the answer. How many rooms are occupied was my next question. The answer; “After you leave, just one.” Two hours later I was at the airport about to head to the mainland, for safari, for wildlife, for adventure. And I was about to get an awful lot of alone time. Next stop, Arusha.
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