Oct. 11-13 - last blog

Thursday, Oct. 11; Friday, Oct. 12; and Saturday, Oct

Well, this is my last blog, and I have no photos to offer because we were on the ocean Thursday and Friday - literally. I didn't know what to expect in terms of whether I could keep the camera dry, so I didn't bring it.
With that being said, I am attaching two photos Abdul took on our Safari Blue adventure on Friday. And I did take a portrait of us in front of our Jambiani Villa.
It's my last blog because we intend to do nothing the next two days, our last two days in Zanzibar and the last two days of our two-month adventure.
We're trying to ease back to reality. We watched a John Oliver segment about Kavanaugh and a Samantha Bee segment also. What a mess, and we missed it (thank goodness). I read some stories in the New York Times, but not many, because it makes my stomach turn - for lots of reasons. I also watched PBS NewsHour yesterday, and I hope to watch a live streaming this evening of the third round of the LGPA Hana event. Anywho, I digress.
We went snorkeling Thursday with quite a lively young man - Ibraham - who was a good guide. But, as you may have figured, I'm done with hiking, and the description of the snorkel trip did not say anything about hiking down the beach a quarter of a mile during low tide. And that was after we hiked a quarter of a mile from where the vehicle was parked through a resort (it was a pretty resort with beautiful flowers but….).
The morning began with a half-mile hike down the beach to the other Jambiani Villas, to eat breakfast. It's where the restaurant is located. The first morning we were here, they delivered breakfast but then I was told that they don't have "room service," and they've been taught how to be courteous when declining guests wanting their breakfast delivered. Breakfast is included in our daily rate. Whatever.
Catching my drift? Yep, we had hiked at least a mile before we even got into the boat.
(Beth inserts: Cindy sounds really crabby, but really it's just that her hip hurts, and we are ready to come home : ).
Aw, but once we were in the boat… we were under a motor and went to what they call Blue Lagoon. It was low tide, and it was very calm, and the water was shallow enough that you could float just inches above the coral.
       It was about 11 a.m. when the sun is just beginning to be at its burn-your-skin brightest, and we're only six degrees south of the equator. Did we wear shirts? Naw. Should we have worn shirts? Yes.
We snorkeled two sites. Ibraham guided us through the coral so we could see tiger fish and a plethora of other fish that are beautiful but we can't identify. Note to self: know your fishes next time you snorkel.
He also coaxed a large clam to open so we could see it. It was at least 24" across! He even scared up a lion fish. There were about five of them hidden beneath the coral so he kind of harassed one to get him into the open. He was beautiful. You can see why they're called lion fish.
They provided water and fresh fruits between dives.
I must mention the fresh fruit here. It is absolutely excellent. Fresh pineapple is my favorite but we've had watermelon, oranges, coconut, papaya, mango, passion fruit - all fresh and so yummy. The fruit juices here also are wonderful.
We snorkeled for about an hour and got back to our villa about 3 p.m. Went immediately into the pool, where we remained until we cooked up some hash for supper. The hash consisted of potatoes, onions, some chicken I previously grilled and some "beef sausages," which are really hot dogs. We bought a package of them, and I swear there were 30 in the package so I'm obligated to eat most of them before we leave Monday afternoon. :
Friday was another adventure that began at 6 a.m. We were up around 5:15 a.m., ate some toast and drank some coffee - and greeted the sunrise.
First thing: the driver who picked us up (can't remember his name) had an odd comment as we were driving to our first spot of the day. He said he felt like he was the car with his father and mother. We didn't know exactly how to respond so we questioned him about his parents. Ha!
A 30-minute drive and we arrived at Kizimkazi Mtendeni, a fishing village on the west coast of Zanzibar. Apparently, the village used to be a walled city but now is home to lots of boats for hire to take tourists off shore to watch bottlenose dolphins and swim with them. Our guide hired a boat called "Ladies Free" to take us to find dolphins because we were supposed to swim with them.
       The ocean was pretty rough with swells about three feet high, which made the boat rock pretty good. We motored around for at least an hour and didn't see any dolphins Our guide, poor guy, got sick and was hanging over the edge of the boat throwing up. Finally, we spotted some boats on our way back to disembark and, sure enough, there was a pod of about 10 dolphins BUT there also were a pod of about 20 boats, all of which raced to the dolphins. It was insanity, much like the land safaris when the wildebeest were thought to be crossing. We felt sorry for the dolphins. Neither of us had any desire to throw ourselves in the water to swim with the dolphins 1) because it would be difficult to get back in the boat for two old women with a three-foot swell and 2) we needed to return because we had to drive to our next spot and be there by 9 a.m. (Beth adds: 3) we didn't want to get run over by the boats.)
       Another drive to a launch where, again, there were several boats. Most all of them had at least 20 people on them but we paid for the Safari Blue Deluxe so we got our own dhow for the day with four crew members.
       After wading some distance (it was low tide), we successfully boarded the dhow and took off. We were under motor for about 45 minutes before we stopped and two crew members stepped off onto a "private island," where they took ashore various cooking items and coolers.
       We continued to Kwale Sandbank where there were at least eight boats with people in the water snorkeling. We chose to continue to the other side of the island where Abudl wanted to show us a baobob tree. A boat of Muslim women landed with their various items for sale at what was sort of a bazaar area set up for all those people who were snorkeling and visiting the sandbar. Abdul helped carry items. We were not asked to help, which was fine as - you guessed it - we hiked a quarter of a mile in the hot sun over slippery rocks at low tide.
       The baobob tree was interesting because it looked like it had been blown over, yet the roots were reaching down and the tree began growing on its side, and up from the felled trunk section. We were invited to climb it - yeah, whatever. I declined; Beth tried it but didn't get too far, as there was a step so high she couldn't do it.
       We hiked back to the boat and went back to the snorkeling spot. Everyone else was on the sandbar so we were pretty much the only people snorkeling - for a little while.
       We snorkeled for about an hour, and the site was quite different from the previous day's site. The water was deeper so the coral was much larger, and we saw some different fish such as the rock fish. We also saw an octopus.
       I struggled getting my fat butt into the boat but finally did so and we motored back to the private island where we were served lunch: coconut rice with a traditional tomato stew; a salad of chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, onions and carrots (did I say carrots are big thing here too?); deep-fried octopus (which was chewy and pretty good); some kind of fish; shrimp; and rock lobster. Yep, it was delicious, and we felt very pampered.
       Abdul and the others erected some shade for us (see attached photo), and we took a brief nap after lunch. Abdul and the others napped longer than we did.
       We watched crabs excavating the sand, where they live. They don't live in the water. So we watched them get closer and closer to us, as the tide was coming in, and our little strip of beach was getting smaller and smaller - waiting for the boys to awaken.
       It was late afternoon, probably around 4 p.m. before we left the island - under sail this time - to the mainland.
       All in all, it was a terrific day although we were a little alarmed that one of the crew members was constantly bailing water from the dhow when we weren't in it. But we did notice a life jacket (yes, just one jacket) on this boat. There were no life jackets on the boat the previous day.
       We were very pampered, and Abdul was pole pole (slow) and patient with us.
       We were pretty much exhausted when we got back to our villa around 5:45 p.m. We did our best to stay awake until a reasonable hour but we took a nose dive around 9 p.m.
       We rested well and got up around 7 a.m. and hiked down for breakfast.
       We are going to do nothing the remainder of the day nor tomorrow (Sunday) hike to breakfast, swim, read and relax before Ozman picks us up at 2 p.m. Monday for our arduous trip home: we leave Zanzibar at 5:30 p.m., arrive in Doha at midnight, fly from Doha at 6:50 a.m. (yes, we'll be in the airport overnight for nearly seven hours) to Chicago - a 13-hour flight; a couple of hours in Chicago before we leave around 4:30. Destination: La Crosse at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Abdul brought his phone (everyone here has cell phones) and took this photo of him and us when we landed to go view the baobob tree.

He also took this photograph of us lounging in the shade he and the others erected for us and before we were served lunch that included octopus, shrimp, fish and rock lobster.

Consider this a self-portrait of us at our Jambiani villa in Zanzibar. :)

Oct. 9-10

       The day has arrived that we can leave the city behind and lie around on the beach for the next five days. Woohoo!
We got a free breakfast at Abuso today (it normally costs $15 per person) because Becka is the breakfast host - and he loves us. He made each of us an omelet, and we got fresh papaya, watermelon, an orange and a small banana. And as much instant coffee as we wanted. Ha!
We visited with him some more about basketball and gave him the money we and our generous friends contributed to buy his girls uniforms then we went and packed.
Osman, Becka's friend who drove us to and from basketball practice last night, picked us up at the appointed time (10 a.m.) to take us to Darajani Market to purchase a suitcase. Becka told us Osman knew all the vendors, and he was right. Osman took us directly to a place that sells suitcases, and we purchased one for about $35.
We returned to the hotel and packed what we bought at "Memories of Zanzibar" the previous day, which we'll check for the flight home.
       We threw everything in Osman's "taxi," and off we went to Jambiani Villas on the east side of the island. It is DEFINITELY what we hoped for - a really nice reward for our almost two-month trip.
We have a two-story villa with a kitchen that looks over a nice pool, and beyond is the beautiful Indian Ocean.
       We unpacked, put on our swimsuits and hit the pool. And we stayed in the pool most of the afternoon, although we did trundle out to the ocean when the tide came in.
After a nice shower, we hung out until around 5 p.m., walked along the village road (because it was high tide, and you can't walk on the beach) for about five minutes to a bar for a couple of drinks before shifting to the Jambiani Villa restaurant next door.
       Supper was pretty good. If I haven't mentioned the soups they make here, I must tell you that I have never had better soup than the soup we were served in the bush camp, and the seafood soup we had last night. We've got to figure out how to make them when we return. They are all very smooth, a little creamy, and seasoned so beautifully.  Last night's had seafood in it - fish, shrimp, and octopus.    Yum!
       We returned to the villa via the beach - it's a new moon so we don't expect to see it at all while we're here, although we might see a thin crescent on Saturday or Sunday night.
       We submitted our grocery order - we are going to cook in the villa because it's cheaper than eating at a restaurant but we may eat lunch at a local eatery. We also asked that breakfast be delivered to our room at 8:30 a.m. tomorrow.
       Sleeping was very comfortable.
       We awoke early - around 6:30 a.m. - to briefly watch the sun rise under a bank of clouds, clouds that are very persistent this morning. We had coffee on our terrace, read the day's news and waited for breakfast to be delivered.
       Breakfast was yummy because we both were hungry. Omelete, toast and fresh fruit - what could be better.
       We also made arrangements yesterday for a full day of sailing, snorkeling and swimming with dolphins on Friday. We start at 6 a.m. (because that's when we'll see the dolphins), we'll snorkel several sites, have lunch and, apparently, get back to the villa around 6 p.m. I suspect we'll be exhausted but contented!
       Beth got a one-hour, full-body massage this morning, and we had no other plans for the day.
The staff delivered our groceries so we can cook in the villa the remaining time we're here (until Monday afternoon) so we ate hot dogs for lunch. We were in and out of the pool, went into the ocean around 3:45 p.m. when the tide was almost in, read and basically, just took a holiday. No sweating, no bouncing, no voyeurism into the lives of locals. Just a real holiday.
       I also sent some inquiries to two other dive centers to get prices on snorkeling. We can do the Chumbe Island Coral Park, a marine reserve, but it's USD 90 per person with a USD 80 two-way transfer. Just thinking about a transfer back to near Stone Town makes me grimace so I've contacted two places within three miles of where we're staying. If nothing else, we'll just do the trip on Friday.
       Bingo!
       We're snorkeling tomorrow. They're picking us up at 10:30 a.m. - don't know how long we'll be out but the USD 35 per person includes transfer, water, fresh fruits, boat and snorkel gear. Hope it's a good day; if it is a good day, perhaps we'll do it again on Saturday!
       I asked for a grill tonight, as we ordered a ton of chicken in our grocery delivery so we're cooking 'em all tonight!
       I had an interesting conversation with Diana, one of the staff who brought the grill to us. She was kind of cautious but she asked how things were in the United States. I told her we very much disliked Trump, that he was an idiot and had done everything to alienate any allies we possessed. She agreed; she said no one in Africa likes Trump, and it was a very bad situation. All I could do was agree. She invited us to move to Tanzania (they pronounce it as Tan (with a long a) - zania (with a long a). It's not the first time we've heard the sentiment.
       BTW, I'm almost through half of Louise Erdich's latest novel. Very dystopian - but very good. I love her writing!

Our first sunrise at Jambiani Villas on the east coast of Zanzibar. We're here for another 5 days; we leave Monday afternoon for our monster trip home.

Low tide in front of our villa. Our villa actually opens directly to the swimming pool, above, then you can see the fence of sorts where we can go directly into the ocean.

A woman gathering seaweed at low tide.

Some men on a boat in the Indian Ocean. They just took down the sail and you can see the guy in the back propelling the boat with a long stick.

A young female that was hanging out at the steps to the ocean in front of our villa complex.

Beth enjoying herself at the villa.

Preparing the grill for supper tonight. :)

Oct. 8

       Today has been interesting. We didn't have anything on our agenda, really, so we slept until 9 a.m. then walked down to Stone Café. It is rumored Stone Café has the best coffee - and it delivered! It actually was brewed coffee, something we haven't had since leaving the bush camp.
We lingered over two copper carafes of coffee, and we each had a Spanish omelet. Pole pole (pronounced pola - long a) is a Swahili word for slow - and everything is pole pole here. Perhaps it's the tropical humidity, but everything is very slow.
We spent at least two hours at breakfast, then we slowly (pole, pole) made our way to a curio shop that accepts Visa and did some shopping. Not much - a bedspread, a wooden sign that says Hacuna Matata (which means 'no problem" in Swahili), a serving bowl, a shell-covered basket, a frig magnet, a village depiction made of palm and a beer opener.
We were back to our hotel room before noon and spent the next two and half hours downloading and editing photos, and just lolling around.
When we returned from breakfast, an employee here that we see in the morning during coffee, was on his computer on the rooftop where we were sitting. His name is Beka. He actually arranged the spice farm tour for us yesterday.
He was watching YouTube videos of basketball skill training, and he told us about the basketball teams he has organized. One is for women, (20-25 years old), one is for young men (15-19 years old) and the "Big" team is composed of young men 20-25 years old.
Of course, we were very interested so we spent time visiting with him about his teams and what he does as a coach. He was explaining the costs involved that most of the kids can't afford i.e. uniforms, travel - all the things associated with traveling basketball teams. But he also takes the team on field trips to museums and such so they can learn about history, and he has a program in which the kids go to primary schools to help with the younger kids. The team members also volunteer at various places including a "sober house," where they speak with other kids about the dangers of drugs.
The women do not have uniforms, and it costs only USD $70 to outfit them so we got on the horn to our women basketball buddies to inquire if they were willing to contribute - and they came through with enough to outfit the entire women's team!
I gotta say that I love those women and so appreciate their contributions. USD money goes a long way here.
Anywho, Becker invited us to watch them practice, and we accepted his offer. We were there for nearly an hour - they practice at a military facility on a concrete court that, unfortunately, has sand on it and is a little tricky to navigate but we only saw one of the girls slip and fall. Because it's at a military facility, they only practice 5-6:20 p.m. during the week and not everyone can attend, as some are in school at that time. They get a longer practice time on the weekends.
They all were working very hard, and the men played exceptionally well. A few were wearing jerseys - Oklahoma City Thunder and the Lakers or an NBA shirt. I don't know how they watch the NBA, but they do.
We watched them practice - they staggered the teams in a scrimmage. The women were much shorter and less aggressive than the men but there were a couple of good ball handlers among them.
I got my photo taken with each team, then with all of them. I think they were thrilled we were there, especially since Becker told them I had once coached women's basketball (which I did in my younger days).
It was fun being with them.
We returned to the hotel and went to eat at a Tapas bar, which was alright. After dinner, we slipped into the bar to have a drink and watch some soccer coverage.
I gotta say that we're just about done with things. Our hotel room is not what the previous accommodations have been. For instance, there are no hand towels (just one bath towel each), there have been times during our stay that we have had no hot water and there is no coffee maker in the room!
It's very humid here, and we both are having a bit of trouble with it. It makes everything very uncomfortable.
Then there's the folks trying to make a living, who hit you up the minute you get on the street and follow you around trying to sell you something. It, too, is uncomfortable because we know they need the money but we can't give money to everyone that hits us up to buy something. It gets annoying after a while, as you can't walk anywhere without being approached, followed and pestered.
That being said, we are leaving tomorrow for the final week of our trip to Jambiani Villas on the east side of the island. It's a resort so I think we can isolate ourselves from having to go into the village. We actually asked them today to stock the frig with some beer, wine and sundry other munchies so it'll be cold and ready for us when we arrive early tomorrow afternoon.
First things first, though. Becker arranged for a friend (a cab driver) to pick us up and take us to Jambiana (about an hour drive on roads that probably resemble the African massages we've had previously) but we first are going to Darajani Market (where you supposedly can find anything you want) to buy a suitcase so we can pack our African memorabilia and check it on the way home. After that mission is completed, we're off to a five-ay holiday in a resort on the ocean.
Our villa has a kitchen (and we can order cooking ingredients), it has air conditioning, it has a pool and it has a beach. We don't intend to do anything but lie about the resort, swim, snorkel, maybe go sailing one day, read and - well - chill out before we do the 30-hour return to home.

I got my photo taken with all three teams individually but here is aphid of me with all three teams: the women's team, the men's junior team and the men's "big" team.

This is Beka coaching the women.

Boke passing the ball.

Boke going around the defense.

An NBA Junior attempts to take the ball away from Jokha.

The kids practice at a military base so they can use the court from 5-6:20 p.m. only on weekdays. After practice, they have to remove the backboard from the court, especially tonight because a net ball tournament was scheduled for the court the next day. Beka said this was "the real Africa."

Oct. 7

       Another somewhat eventful day. Beka, an employee here at Abuso Inn, arranged with his friend to take us on a spice farm tour.
We wandered over to the Tembo Hotel across the street, a hotel we can't really afford, to eat breakfast. We had checked with them the previous day if we could eat breakfast and the cost. The receptionist said they accepted Visa.
The breakfast here at Abuso Inn is shit, and they charge $15 each. The breakfast at Tembo was omelets, toast and variety of other Zanzibar breakfast food, like beans. It cost us only $10 each.
We returned to Abuso and had a cup of instant coffee, and our guide showed up. We weren't the only ones on the "tour." There were about 15 of us, all crammed into a Zanzibar van. I'm not complaining because it beat the "public transportation," which is a small van with a bed with a cover over it, and in which there are a lot more people jammed into it.
We left about 9:15 a.m. We were the last to get on the van. We drove north of Stone Town over roads that aren't meant to be driven, and the van did not have the suspension the four-wheel drive vehicles in the Serengeti possessed.
We ended up at a state-run spice farm about an hour and half later. We did not know we were going to hike two miles but we did.
We stopped here and there to learn about the different spices, which was interesting. We saw cardamom trees, peppercorn vines, vanilla vines, curry trees, turmeric root, ginger root and coconut - among others including 24 different kinds of bananas. One of the guys climbed a coconut palm and knocked down several, of which another guy used a small machete to peel it and then cut it open so we could drink the juice. They were still green so he could cut them. Then he shared the coconut meat. It was quite delicious.
We then tramped through a village. Didn't see many of the villagers but we ended up where they were selling creams, oils and soap. We got some delicious lemongrass cream and ylang-ylang soap.
We got back into the van and went to another spot where they were selling spice. We got some cinnamon, some biriyani spice mix and cardamom pods.
Then we ate lunch in a small enclosure. It was rice pilaf with different spices and a vegetable stew with lots of okra. The rice pilaf was good but we didn't really like the vegetable stew.
We piled back into the van and was asked if we wanted to visit the slave cave where escaped slaves hid from British colonists or go to the beach. Everyone voted for the beach, thank goodness.
I'm sure the slave cave was interesting but we're done with that sort of stuff. We're all about the beach.
We got to the beach, and it was small landing place for lots of fishing boats the locals use. And there was a ship that apparently had run aground and was just sitting on the beach.
We were not told we were going to the beach so we did not have our bathing suits but we waded up to the edge of our shorts. The water was fine.
It reminded us that in less than two days, we're going to be in a beach resort on the other side of the island.
After a half hour or so, we piled back into the van for the trip home. It took at least an hour over more bumpy roads with lots of traffic and people.
We were sweaty and ready to be done. We got back to the hotel around 2:30 p.m., took a nap and then met Pilgrim to pay him for our dhow sunset cruise at 5 p.m.
We putzed around then headed down to the ATM before we stopped at our favorite Happy Hour bar to have a beer before boarding the dhow.
For whatever reason, we got on the wrong boat. A guy came up and escorted us to a boat - it wasn't a dhow, which made me suspicious, but it wasn't until we boarded and he asked if we wanted to go to Prison Island that I figured it wasn't Pilgrim's boat. Lucky for us, I guess, he was Pilgrim's friend and escorted us (for a tip) to the right person.
We boarded the dhow, along with about five other people (one of which was a young German woman who talked incessantly but was very engaging).
       There were two musicians on board, a violinist and a drummer, who played Taarab music the entire time we were on the water. The two young men who helped with the sails and made sure we had wine, beer and aperitifs were fun. They didn't know much English but they made sure we had everything - and they sang and danced with the musicians.
       We sailed by the port area over to where there was a "luxury" hotel that we had seen from the road. It was gargantuan, and it was making its own beach for guests. It had a "water sports" area that included waterslides and such. It was located right next to the petrol storage area that we also saw from the road.
       We turned back toward Stone Town just as the sun was setting. It wasn't nearly as nice as the first night here (when I left my camera in the room) but it was pretty from the water.
Our next and last place is on the east side of the island so we're not going to see the sun set but we intend to get up early to watch the sun rise.
       It was a really nice evening. We landed and headed for our favorite Indian place that accepts a Visa credit card and ate some supper.
       Got back to our hotel, and there was no hot water for a shower. So goes it… a cold shower and a good night's rest.
       Nothing planned for tomorrow except to visit a curio shop that accepts Visa to see if we want to purchase anything then I'm downloading photos.
       We are in pursuit of a suitcase but that may never happen!

This is annatto.

This is cardamom.

This is nutmeg. The red, which looks and feels like plastic, is mace.

This is turmeric root.

Beth stepping into the Indian Ocean when we stopped at a beach after the spice farm tour and before heading back to Stone Town. We didn't get the memo that we were stopping at a beach so we didn't have our swimsuits or towels.

There were several young men climbing aboard a rather larger boat that apparently was beached on the beach we visited.

Women getting off the public transportation in a village north of Stone Town.

The Taarab musicians and one of the crew on the dowh sunset cruise.

Some of the children who were waiting for us when we stopped to buy spices and eat lunch not he spice farm tour.

Oct. 6

       We kind of slept in today; had coffee on our rooftop terrace after wolfing down some muffins from our lunch yesterday.
Then we took off to explore Stone Town. There is no reason to have a map, as the "streets" are not marked and they basically are long, narrow passageways that were muddy (it rained before we got up and about) and rocky.
The passageways were lined with shops, if you want to call them shops. First thing, Beth spotted one with dresses and the like and bought herself a skirt and two blouses. She was happy.
Our first mission, however, was to find an ATM because very few of the places take Visa cards, only Tanzanian shillings. We found one, but it didn't work so we continued through the passageways and found one at which I got some shillings then we found another one at which Beth got some shillings. They don't go very far, as the exchange rate pretty much sucks. For 200,000 shillings, we only got about USD $81. But hey! A beer is only about 10,000 shillings.
Anywho, we got lost. We did get to the Darajani market, where there were tons of people and tons of things to buy - everything from fish to spices to fresh fruit. We didn't spend much time there, as we're kind of Africa-ed out. It was busy, muddy, dirty and, well, just not what we wanted to do so we took off again through the passageways, hoping to find the ocean again where our hotel is located.
We made a huge circle but it was fine. We were out of the tourist area and actually got to see a part of Stone Town that was local.
We asked several people where the hell we were, hoping to get back to the ocean and, lol, realized we had made a big circle of about an hour's walk and were back at that same market. But finally, we found our way back.
Besides it being crowded and African-like, there are many "vendors" in the street that will hit you up to purchase their goods and/or give you a "guided tour" for money. I totally understand that it's how they make a living but, to be honest, I'm really tired of being nice and telling them we're not interested or, at worse, that we must tell them no outright.
So we're looking for places that accept Visa because the shillings disappear quickly. Got to the "Floating Restaurant" on the beach, asked about credit cards and were told they accept credit cards. Not. We had to shell out shillings for lunch.
It was very pleasant at the floating restaurant. The Indian Ocean is a beautiful aqua color, and there are tons of dhows in the area.
We went back to the hotel for a nap. Our room is air conditioned, thank goodness, because it is very humid here. I am yearning to get to Jambiani where we have a villa on the ocean where we can swim in the ocean or the pool.
We arranged for a spice tour tomorrow and a sunset dhow cruise tomorrow evening then took off for the local bar we found that is on the beach to watch the sun set. I took my camera, and I got some pretty good photos of people swimming as well as the sunset.
Note: small lizards creeping up your leg or your back can make you jump right out of your chair.  I know: I jumped.  Yikes.
Around 6:30 p.m., we headed to the restaurant "Monsoon" where there was Taarab music. We ate supper then we were escorted into an air-conditioned space, very Arabic with large arches. We sat on pillows. Well, they provided me a low chair as I would have difficulty getting up from the floor.
We had a few drinks and listened to the music. One of the women who greeted us to sit down for supper told us she was singing and sure enough, she came in and sang with the four men in the "band." It was interesting music. They riffed on Bolero by Ravel (!) for about ten minutes.  It's like jazz.  I felt like we should be smoking sheesha, like we did in Doha, but none was offered.
We came back to the hotel. I'm writing the blog on the rooftop terrace where one of the employees gave us a delicious fruit juice.
By and large, it was a good day although we're tired and we're becoming fatigued from just being here for so long.
We ran into Becka at coffee this morning, who arranged a spice tour for us tomorrow (much cheaper than what I found), then we're doing the dhow sunset cruise.
Monday is a non-day, as we're not in the mood to go to any museums - the Palace Museum, for instance, or the House of Wonders where, apparently, the sultan had his harem living.  Nor the Slave Market where slaves were kept before they were sold. We're getting ready to be done traveling I guess.
We're looking forward to getting to Jambiani Villas on the east side of the island where we can chill - snorkel a little, swim a little and just do a five-day beach vacation before we head home.

Delivering sugar cade in Stone Town.

A typical street in Stone Town. They very narrow, and they wind and wind. We got lost, actually, and made a big circle until someone pointed us to the ocean!

A woman at the fish market at Darajani market.

A young woman in Stone Town.

A vegetable vendor at Darajani market.

Two of the four men playing Taarab music at the Monsoon restaurant. I don't know the instrument the guy is playing that is in his lap but I think it's a cross between a dulcimer and a autoharp. :)

This is portion of the room in which we sat and listened to Taarab music for a couple of hours.

A boat of fishermen as the sun set.

Beth enjoying a passion fruit colada while we listen to Taarab music.

Another kind of fishing boat as the sun sets.

Friday, Oct. 5

       Today was our last day in the Serengeti Wilderness Camp. Beth suggested a morning drive before getting to the airport for our 10:30 a.m. flight so we slept in - got up at 7 a.m., brekkie at 7:30 a.m. and off we went with Severin and Baracka in tow (Baracka went out with us yesterday; he's an apprentice).
It was a beautiful morning - the sun was shining, not a cloud in the sky. As we approached a hillock, you could see across the plains to the escarpment to the west and Kenya to the north.
The first thing we encountered was a pride of lions. The lioness was the same one we saw yesterday, we believe, because she was injured. She had four cubs with her. The male was eating a zebra. I got a few photos of the cubs before the lioness decided to move them and hide them. She actually approached our vehicle and growled at us. She was not happy that we were blocking her way. So we backed off and let her and the cubs pass.
In the meantime, we positioned ourselves so we could see (and I could photograph) the male eating the zebra. It was a full-grown male with a full mane - something I had told Severin I wanted to see. He delivered! The lion tore at that zebra, tearing off a leg at one point.  Wow.
Our flight to Stone Town in Zanzibar was about an hour and 35 minutes. Nothing much to report except we saw the peak of Kilimanjaro. It was clear when we left but by the time we go to Kilimanjaro, it was pretty cloudy but its peak was jutting up above the clouds. So we did see Kilimanjaro!
Landed in Zanzibar City, took a cab to our place in Stone Town. We're six degrees south of the equator. It was cloudy and humid when we landed and by the time we got into our hotel, it poured down rain. I think that's a normal thing here in the tropics. It's very humid. Thank goodness, we have air con. We checked email, turned on the air con and took a nap before seeing what we want to do here.
We sauntered down to the beach front and found a bar where we could have a beer and watch the sunset before having a delicious Indian supper. Then we briefly visited the nighttime market at Forodhani on the shore.
I did not take my camera but will tomorrow. The sunset was beautiful with dhows sailing around.
Stone Town has a really Arabic feel in the architecture a s well as a Muslim presence. I would speculate that most are Muslims, and we heard the call to prayer from our hotel. I think the mosque is nearby. The streets are very narrow and busy. We're going to do a tour tomorrow. I'll photograph the architecture as well as the street happenings. Don't know how many photos I can post.
       Stayed tuned!

These were the lion cubs that were with papa (who was eating a zebra) and mom (the lioness we thought we spotted yesterday dragging the zebra). The lioness, or she and her girlfriends, kill the meal but the male always eats first, then the lionesses and then one lioness is charged with protecting the remainder of lunch.

The male lion enjoying an early lunch of zebra.

A resting crocodile. They always sleep with their mouth open as it facilitates breathing. 

This is Severin, our guide for the four days of safari in the Serengeti.

A mother baboon and her baby.

Oct. 4

       It was our last day of safari, and it was a big one!
We had coffee, as usual, on our veranda before brekkie and took off around 7:30 a.m.
Before 8:30 a.m., we saw a cheetah. She (or he) was lying in some tall grass. Another vehicle had spotted her/him so we drove up and watched her for a few minutes before she got up and moved to a shady area under a tree among the rocks. We watched her for a while then took off.
With our mission for the day already having been achieved, we started driving through the rocks where lions and lionesses can be found.
Not too far into the rocks, and we spotted a lioness with a zebra kill. The male lion had already eaten, as had the other lionesses who helped with the kill. The lone lioness was charged with protecting the carcass. And even though she had an injury (we think she might have been kicked by the zebra, and her leg was injured), we watched her drag the carcass about 150 yards. She would drag a bit, then stop to breathe. We could hear her panting. She finally got to a crevice in the rocks and dragged the zebra into the crevice before climbing the rock to protect it.
We then spotted a troop of baboons eating in a ficus tree, which is a type of fig tree that doesn't grow fruit large enough for humans but the baboons like them. We tarried there for at least a half an hour, watching the baboons feeding and grooming. There were some tiny baboons, too, that attempted to climb the tree, and they were fun to watch.
We began driving along the Mara River and saw a large harem of impalas that we watched for 15 or so minutes. The dominant male was being pretty pushy, challenging the "bachelors" and herding his harem across a small river. There was a juvenile male who had taken off with a female, and the dominant male took off after him. He was bellowing at the juvenile and sounded a lot like an elk. The female took off back to the harem, and the dominant male stalked the juvenile. We were hoping to see a showdown but no go. The dominant male eventually returned to his harem without a fight.
       We got closer to one of the areas where the wildebeest cross the river and sure enough, we saw a herd of wildebeest so we stopped and watched, hoping they would cross. As they did previously, they went back and forth, back and forth and were indecisive about crossing.
So we took out our box lunches to eat while watching. We had barely begun eating when the crossing started. It wasn't nearly the size of herd we watched cross on Tuesday but it was sizable.
Severin positioned us just above where they were crossing so we got a good view.
This time, there were several crocodiles in the river just waiting to get a wildebeest, and we saw one latch onto a small wildebeest. As you can see in the photo, he barely had the haunches of the wildebeest in his jaws so he couldn't take it down. He had to hang on. We watched for about 20 minutes to see what would happen (we also were eating our lunches), and the wildebeest did not go under.
       It began raining but not nearly as much as the previous day.
       The wildebeest with the croc on his butt struggled to get up the embankment but dragging his weight and the weight of a six-foot crocodile just wasn't working for him. Eventually, the croc was joined by at least eight other crocodiles.
Together, they tossed the wildebeest over to disorient it and drown it. They tossed it twice before it went under. The crocodiles had a good lunch.
It was pretty exciting to watch. There was a vehicle next to us in which a woman started crying. Go figure. She couldn't watch it so the guide moved the vehicle. Okay, so you go on safari and you can't watch animals doing what they do in order to survive? It's like going on safari without binoculars. What are you expecting?
Anywho, we started back along the river and spotted several birds we had never seen. We wanted to see another secretary bird, close enough to get a good photo, but never saw one.
We returned to where the zebra kill was located, and there were two lionesses hanging out. They had eaten again and were lying around with full tummies.
It was a little before 4 p.m., and Severie headed back to camp. Everyone is really quiet about this time of the day on a full-day safari. We're all tired but still alert to seeing something.
And indeed, we saw something. Something very unusual. I sighted a civet running through the grass. A civet is a small cat, and it is nocturnal. Even one of the staff guys at camp has never seen a civet. But we did. We stalked it for a while so I could get some photographs then let it go its way. No one knew why we saw him in late afternoon but it was special.
Back to camp, shower, download photos. It began getting cloudy again and threatening rain. By the time we got to the campfire, we could see a pretty good lightning show in the west.
There was only one other couple in camp tonight besides us. They were young. He worked for a travel agency, she was a digital marketing person. They are moving to Dubai later this week to begin new jobs. They said they couldn't afford a home in London, and Dubai is a good step up in terms of salary, and it's a "challenge."
The sky tonight was just glorious. The rain clouds left, and you could see the Milky Way and thousands of stars.
Perfect for our last night in the bush and probably, our last ever safari.
We're off to Stone Town tomorrow in Zanzibar, and we're just four days from the beach in Jambiani for the remaining time of our adventure - on the beach with a little snorkeling.
       Uploading takes forever, here's three photos of the day's activities:

The second wildebeest crossing the Mara River

A cheetah resting.

A civet, which is a nocturnal cat. This was a bonus!