Breathtaking, gorgeous Zanzibar

While in Tanzania our group flew from Moshi to Zanzibar for a weekend. Zanzibar is a tropical island in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Tanzania, near Dar es Salaam. When we arrived at Stone Town (also called Zanzibar Town), the other volunteers decided to skip the city area and spend their three days relaxing at the beach in Kendwa, on the northern part of the island. But I was feeling adventurous and stayed in Stone Town by myself for the weekend - there is just something about the crazy hustle and bustle of a city that boosts my energy, and this place certainly has a unique atmosphere!

Stone Town is an old, fascinating city with a labyrinth of narrow streets that are impossible to read on a map. It is truly a unique and exquisite place, like nowhere I've ever been! The maze-like streets are too narrow for cars, so everyone is on foot or bicycle. Thankfully, the city itself is small and on a peninsula-shaped part of the island, surrounded by water on three sides. It was overwhelming at first, but I quickly lost my fear of navigating alone through the streets when I figured out that if I kept wandering around, eventually I would end up back at the water.

On Friday I found a local guide and took a walking tour of Stone Town to check out all of the "must see" tourist sites. One of the unique things that Stone Town is known for are these huge, old, elaborate doors that you see everywhere. The oldest one dates to 1694! There are more than 500 of them on the island and I found it fascinating to stumble across them in the strangest places (like in the middle of a small, dark alleyway). For more images of Stone Town’s doors check out www.zanzibarstonetown.org/gallery/doors/.

Another historical aspect of Stone Town is the former slave market - the slave trade was a major line of commerce on the island from around the mid-1800's all the way up to WWI. It was officially outlawed on Zanzibar around 1873, but continued illegally for a long time after that. When the official edict was signed to outlaw the slave trade in 1873, the Anglican Church built a cathedral over the site of the former slave market. I mean LITERALLY over the market...they kept some of the chambers intact beneath the church as a memorial. This video shows the small, hot, stuffy chambers I visited (the rooms were so dark that my camera wouldn't capture the images). It's incredibly heart wrenching to go down into those tiny rooms and try to image 75 people crammed in there for days or weeks on end, starving and living in their own filth.



Speaking of the Anglican Church - one of the many facets of Zanzibar that I fell in love with is the religion. Yes, you read that correctly, the religion. Allow me to explain...

Zanzibar itself is ~95% Muslim, and you can see that from the moment you step off the plane. Most men are dressed in long tunics and kufi hats, while many of the women are covered from head to toe in robes, with only a slit in the fabric for their eyes. Regardless of one's opinion about traditional Muslim attire, it is impossible not to feel nearly naked in "traditional Western attire" when everyone else is covered from head to toe. Considering the intense heat, I dressed conservatively in t-shirts and capris (covering shoulders and knees) during the weekend trip, and still felt like a street-walker sometimes! But I digress...

What I "fell in love with" about the religion on Zanzibar is the openness, acceptance, and complete lack of conflict over religious differences and beliefs. Although the vast majority of Zanzibaris are Muslim, they live side-by-side with Christians, Hindus, and non-believers with absolutely no problem. In fact, I found this to be true throughout Tanzania, but it was especially noticeable to me in Zanzibar where I saw the Anglican church, a Hindu temple, and several mosques all right next to each other on the same street. In my opinion, we Americans perpetuate religious conflict and differences by proselytizing and insisting that OUR way is the RIGHT way. I have basically quit watching the news because I can't stand the the fear-mongering in our own politics and media. In contrast to my experiences in America, I had several friendly, open discussions about religion in Tanzania and Zanzibar without feeling pressure to change my beliefs or judged because of them. It was so refreshing!

Anyway, here are a few more photos from my weekend in Stone Town. I did a very poor job of capturing the bustling bazaars and markets, the exquisite beaches, the old palaces and elaborate Arab mansions, the hidden slave caves used during the illegal years of the slave trade, the lush green of the spice plantations, the beautiful calls to prayer that punctured the mornings and evenings, and the hundreds of other interesting sites that I saw or heard. Most of the time I spent just trying to soak everything in and experience it as deeply as possible.

“It is a city of brilliant sunshine and purple shadows; of dark entries and latticed windows; of mysterious stairways, and massive doors in grey walls which conceal one does not know what; of sun-streaked courtyards and glimpses of green gardens; of barred windows and ruined walls on which peacocks preen. It is a town of rich merchants and busy streets; of thronged market-places and clustered mansions. Over all there is the din of barter, of shouts from the harbour; the glamour of the sun, the magic of the sea and the rich savour of Eastern spice. This is Zanzibar!” - Major FB Pearce, 1919

For those who want to learn more about Zanzibar Town, here are some interesting facts.