Zanzibar, December 2015 − Travels − Captain Tom

Zanzibar, December 2015

After Mai Bpen Rai in Thailand we now hear Hakuna Matata (everything is alright) and polepole (slow, don't hurry). We are on our annual Christmas holiday trip and we went to the Equator to enjoy the beautiful island of Zanzibar, part of Tanzania.

I have compiled some topics below which I found particularly remarkable.

1 The Flight

The flight went over night from Frankfurt to Zanzibar. Not much to see outside. But the arrival gave a first impression of this beautiful green island.

I can see the island
Zanzibar town
The airport
Island
On our way back we pass Kilimanjaro
and in Sudan we can see river Nile
2 The Hotel

The hotel is a nice resort named Neptune Pwani Beach, Resort and Spa

The hotel beach offered deck chairs in white sand under palm trees
and they had pools
Very beautifully arranged
Good food and nice dinner area
There was a show every single evening
3 The beach and the sea

Beach and sea are directly attached to the hotel. A white beach and a lagoon with a reef. In low and in high tide very nice. Water is about 86 F (30 C), it feels warm and is not refreshing.

Life on the beach
East coast of Zanzibar is kite surfer's paradise
Floatsam
Sea Urchin
Seaweed farms in shallow water
I go and ride a jetksi almost every day. I learn how to jump the waves at the reef. A lot of fun.
The guys from Extreme Water Sports get my toy ready
Then it is all about riding
But you can simply have a swim instead.
4 The animals

There are crabs on the beach

A hermit crab came to visit us
At night (seen with the camera's flash light) there are even more crabs.
And there are little wizards everywhere
5 The Spice farm

Zanzibar is known as the island of the spices. So we had to make a tour to a spice farm.

Nutmeg
Nutmeg tree
Cassava
Cinnamon
Clove spice grows on trees
Licorice tree
Avocado
Starfruit
The jackfruit is big as a watermelon and tastes quite good.
Cardamon
Coffee
Pepper
Lemongras
Vanilla
Pineapple
The lipstick fruit is used to dye things - not just your lips
We let them make fools of us
6 The Jozani Chwaka Bay National Park

You need to go the the National park because of the monkeys which live only there

There are red monkeys
and there are blue monkeys
And there is a mahogany forest
Tiny frogs
A mangrove forest
with red handed crabs in it
7 The tourist flight

I book a tourist flight in a small airplane. Mohamed of Palm Tours has arranged for a flight with Cedriuk of ZRP.

The tower of Zanzibar airport
Heavy airplanes ahead
Zanzibar Town
Sugar cane farms
Beach at Mkokotoni
Nungwi Beach, Northern end of Zanzibar
East coast
Mnemba Island
Pwani Beach Extreme Water Sports Jetski Station
Neptune Pwani Beach, Resort and Spa
We scare some tourist with a little nose dive at Iwengwa Gulioni
Seaweed farms at Pongwe Beach
Kite surfers at Paje
Uzi Island top and Vundve Island bottom
Niamembe Island
Approach to Zanzibar airport
Back at Zanzibar airport
Here is a map with the route taken

Map 2015_12_31_sansibar

8 The sun and the moon

I had the chance to watch the full moon rising and the sun rising the morning after. Very beautiful

The moon shimmers at the horizon
There it is
Sunrise in the morning