Zanzibar-Matemwe

After a beautiful week on the island of Pemba, we flew back to the main island to spend some time on the Northeast coast.  The Northeast coast is known for its beautiful beaches and the amazing diving around Mnemba Atoll.  As diving was a main focus of this trip we scheduled to spend a few days in the area. 

At Matemwe we stayed at a small Italian operated beach resort.  I can't boast the same good things about it as the other places we stayed but I guess it was a place to sleep.  We were less than impressed by the cloudy pool, mediocre menu and horrible service.  We tried to not let this get to us as we spent most of our days exploring the other resorts and sampling food from them.  Most days we spent our afternoons at Seles Bungalows, a quaint backpacking joint just down the beach.  They had the most amazing food and lots of games to play.  It was a great atmosphere and we even ran into a lot of the dive masters at night.

Matemwe beach

Most of our time in Matemwe was spent diving.  Josh and I had made reservations with One Ocean Dive Center which has about 5 diving facilities on the main island of Zanzibar.  Its one of the most highly recommended companies on the island and after diving with them for three days I can see why.  The first day was a bit crowded with about 10 divers and 5 snorkelers but we all fit comfortably on their large dhow Caroline (for the entire three days I had the song "Sweet Caroline" in my head!).  The dive masters split us up into groups of four and we got to do two dives each.  The first day we had beautiful visibility and were able to dive two of the best spots on the reef.  We saw frog fish, puffers, groupers, nudi branches and even a Spanish dancer! 

The second day Josh and I split up for the first dive.  He went with one of the dive masters to a 40 meter wall on the east side of the atoll.  Despite the high winds and uncomfortable boat ride, he had an amazing dive.  He says the minute he was in the water and looked down he could see the bottom.  I went with another group and did a more shallower dive.  The visibility wasn't great and my dive partner had a hard time maintaining buoyancy.  I definitely have more to learn in this field but it does get frustrating when a member of your group constantly drags their fins along the sandy bottom.  It really limits the visibility of everyone else.  The second dive Josh and I got to do together and were able to see an octopus and a small reef shark! 

On the diving boat ready for another day in the water!

The third and final day of diving was probably the least exciting of all but it was still great to get into the water again.  Josh took off to do another deep dive and I got ready to go with another group.  Just as I was getting ready to go in my fin strap broke.  Luckily the dive masters had brought along an extra set of fins.  Even though they were about 3 sizes too big, I made them work.  I was going into that water!!  We didn't see anything new during our dives but we did experience some strong currents.  I had never really done a drift dive before or felt currents underwater.  It was a new experience and I was happy to see that I could handle it.  On the way up of our last dive, the dive master Omar took some pictures of Josh and I.  Its so funny to see these pictures after the fact because you feel like you're smiling but you don't really look happy at all! 

"Smiling" for the camera

"Nope.  I'm not taking this regulator out for anything, not even a kiss!"

The diving was really the highlight of our time on Matemwe and despite not seeing any whale sharks or manta rays (our main purpose in diving on Zanzibar) we had an amazing time.  I don't know if we'll get back but I would love to check out some other dive sites around the island and make our way south to Mafia to see those whale sharks and rays!

Zanzibar-Return to Stonetown

From Matemwe we made our way back to Stonetown via the spice plantations in the central region of the island.  Zanzibar is known for its spices and still produces about 70% of the world's cloves.  We heard that a spice tour, although a very tourist thing to do, is a definite must to on the island. 

 As we walked along the plantation, our guide would stop to break off a leaf, dig up a root, or scrape off the bark of whatever plant we were nearest too.  He would let us smell it and in some cases taste it then ask what we thought it was.  Needless to say we didn't know many but it was interesting to see all the different spices they grow in one place.  I learned that vanilla bean is very difficult to grow and must be hand pollinated.  This is why its so expensive to buy those vanilla beans! 

Josh gives it a try

At the end of the tour we were treated to some fresh coconut milk.  A local boy climbed up a tree for us to get it.  Josh thought it didn't look too difficult and tried his hand at making it up.  He got about half way before realizing it might be best to come back down.  Next we were adorned with coconut leaf crowns, purses, rings, ties, necklaces and bracelets.  Josh was excited because now we finally had an official engagement ring! :)

In all our coconut attire

From there we were treated to a fruit feast sampling bananas to jack fruit.  Most of the fruit I had had before but it was a treat to have them right off the tree/vine.  Our tour ended, as most do, with a visit to the gift shop or in this case an open air stall with bags and bags of various spices.  We got cloves, pilau rice mix, tea, coffee, vanilla beans, and cardamon. 

After the plantation we headed back to Stonetown where we settled into our hotel and wandered around the city for the rest of the night.  We stopped at a delicious small cafe for lunch and were treated to fresh fruit smoothies.  Later that night we made plans to eat at a nicer restaurant and enjoyed a quiet dinner next to the water. 

A red colobus monkey and her baby

Our last day in Zanzibar we scheduled a trip to Johanzi forest to do some hiking and see the red colobus monkeys.  The red colobus monkeys can only be seen on the island and are endangered.  Josh and I were amazed how close you could get to them and they didn't seem disturbed at all.  We got especially close to a mother and child.  Josh got some amazing shots of they youngster clinging to his mom's back.  We then wandered into the swamp portion of the forest.  During the rainy season that area is usually underwater although it was dry during our trip.  We didn't see a lot in terms of animals but did get to admire the huge mahogany trees and the vast fern overgrowth.  From there we went to the mangrove boardwalk and got to see how that environment is so different from the rest of the forest.  It was really interesting how these sections could be so close together yet so unique.  Our guide was really knowledgeable on the different types of mangroves and gladly jumped into the trees to show us examples of seeds.

The mangrove boardwalk

After the forest we headed back to town stopping shortly at a local market.  Although we were the only tourists in miles it was nice to walk along the stalls and look at the vast amount of fruits and vegetables they had to offer.  One man was selling rice and I never realized how many different varieties their were.  He tried to explain which ones were used for which dishes but I'm not sure how much of it I caught! 

Josh shows how close you can get to the monkeys

The rest of the day we explored Stonetown again.  You really could spend an entire week wandering the streets and not see it all.  We picked up a few final souvenirs and then decided to try the open air market for dinner. 

I have to admit I was a little on the fence about the market as I heard that most people who eat here get some kind of gastric issue.  Josh encouraged me to give it a try so we wandered around looking at what was offered.  Basically there are three kind of stalls in the market: fish stalls where you can get anything from shark to octopus, cane juice stalls where fresh sugar cane juice is squeezed right in front of you, and Zanzibar pizza stalls.  We enjoyed a glass of the fresh cane juice before deciding on dinner for the night.  Josh was more adventurous and got a few different kinds of fish.  Although his fish was good, the real highlight of his meal was the felafel.  Definitely a treat I haven't had in awhile!  I got a Zanzibar pizza which is rice, veggies, egg, cheese and mayo all grilled in a dough.  It sounds a bit strange but its delicious!  If we hadn't been so full at the end we would have gone back to try the dessert pizza!

Last sunset of our trip

The next day we headed to the airport for the short flight back to Nairobi.  It was a little disappointing to be be headed home but at the same time refreshing.  We had an amazing time on the island and made a ton of memories.  Zanzibar will always be special to us because not only was it the trip of a lifetime but it was the start of our lives together.

More Kenyan Baking Adventures....

So the mood struck me again today.....so I broke out the baking supplies and tried to find a few recipes that would work.  Josh really isn't a huge sweets fan so I made him some cheesy-garlic biscuits.  I on the other hand LOVE sweets so I made some cinnamon-chocolate scones.  Of course I had to do a few substitutions but again it turned out pretty good!  Who would have thought you could make Bisquick and heavy cream with Kenyan materials...



Cheesy-Garlic Bisquits

Cinnimon-Chocolate Scones

Zanzibar-Pemba

From Chumbe Island we headed back to the airport to head to the small island of Pemba.  Pemba is a beautiful little island just to the north of the main island.  The best part of the island is how little has changed as the result of introduction of tourism.  Currently there are only two major resorts on the island in comparison to the hundreds on the main island.  The diving is absolutely spectacular due to little activity on the reef and the locals do not see the tourists as money source. 


Our small plane to Pemba. Flying matatu style!

After taking what can only be described as an airplane version of a matatu, we arrived at the small airport of Pemba.  From there we headed north on through the capital city of Chaka Chaka to the northern tip of the island.  What never ceased to amaze me throughout our stay in Zanzibar was the quality of the roads.  You have probably been in Africa too long when you are shocked to be driving on a tarmac road with lines!  The drive was beautiful especially as we weaved our way through the Ngozi forest, a small piece of rain forest still protected. 

First sunset on Pemba

I can't say enough about our hotel.  We stayed at the gorgeous Manta Resort and never felt anything but welcomed.  The hotel was stationed on top of a bluff looking down into the crystal clear swimming pool and turquoise water.  Everyday we were treated with a free spa treatment (massages, pedicures and manicures, oh my!) and delicious fresh sea food.  It was by far the best service and facility that we stayed at the entire trip.


Enjoying some fresh coconut milk.

Most of our days were spent on the beach in Pemba.  We quickly claimed our chairs and hammock (yes hammock) and pulled out the kindles.  When the heat got to be too much we ran for the ocean and enjoyed the cooling high tide.  The white sand was gorgeous and made for some nice walks on the beach.  One day we were also able to take out a kayak out to two small islandetes and Josh did a bit of snorkeling off the boat.  There wasn't many fish but there was a fun tunnel that he was able to swim through.

Besides lazing around we did managed to get in a few dives.  I went down four times while Josh ventured out for a night dive on top of the four.  We were treated to amazing coral gardens and lots of colorful reef fish.  We also saw a sea turtle and a lone dolphin from the dive boat.  It was great to get back in the water and test out my diving skills.  I had a few mishaps with an accidental accent and a soapy mask but it was good to get my feet wet again, so to speak :) 

The last day on the island we decided to tour the island as you cannot dive before flying.  We hired a driver/tour guide and set off.  Our first stop was the northern ruins.  Two mosques and one grave site still remain of an old Arab village.  The story goes that the second wife of the village elder got jealous of the time he was spending with the first wife walking to the mosque, which was closer to the first wife's home.  The second wife built another mosque so that he could be closer to her when he went to pray.  The funny thing is both of the mosques are still the same distance away from the second wife's house! 



Josh practices his call to prayer.

From there we went to the fish market in Tombe.  Fish munglers from all over the island come to this market each day to bid on the catch of the day.  On one hand it was really neat to see the large colorful fish come in off the boats but on the other hand it was a little sad after coming off of some amazing diving.  I wanted to see them live underwater!  We also enjoyed some local jack fruit and watching the colorful sails come into port.

Red snapper at the fish market

A giant Napoleen Wrasp

Our last stop on our day was to see the Pemba flying fox.  The flying fox is not really a fox but a large fruit bat that hangs most of the day in the large coconut trees around the island.  We were able to get a few photos of the hundreds of bats before heading back to the hotel for the night.

That night was amazing as the staff of the hotel set up a candlelit dinner on the beach.  We feasted on a seafood platter filled with lobster, tuna, calamari, prawns, salad, rice, baked potatoes and dinner rolls.  I feel like we barely made a dent in it!  The Manta Resort was one of the most beautiful resorts I have ever stayed at.  Not only was the food amazing but the service and overall feel was great.  It was sad to leave but we were also looking forward to more time on the beach and another three days of great diving!  On to Matemwe!



Dinner on the beach.