Wednesday, April 15, 2009

We have just spent 5 glorious days on Zanzibar. It is the spice island and known for its winding streets, doors and the area where the slaves were traded. The food was excellent and we had sea food at least twice a day. The prawns were huge and delicious- cooked in many different ways.
We stayed in Stone Town for most of the time, and spent a lot of time wandering the quaint streets, looking in all the shops and trying to resist the high pressure sales-types. They were quite pushy but harmless. One day I went snorkling- it was totally amazing and it was one of the best reef I have seen. the coral was beautiful -all shapes ,sizes and colors. And so were the fish!
We had our nails and toes "done" and were generally tourists .We went to the north part of the island one day and were treated to white sand, blue skies, very few tourists and generally a little paradise.
We booked a sunset cruise and had visions of champagne, canapies, men,and a sunset! The reality was an old wooden dhow with a ripped sail, no life jackets, and two young men on their maiden sailing voyage. The champagne turned out to be orange pop with a bag of chips but we had a lovely sail and our captain and one crew member got us back alive!!!
In Stone Town we found many spots to view the ocean and did so usually accompanied with some local beverage.
The ferry ride was an adventure in itself. Going over we took the slow ferry which is the same as the chicken bus in Guatemala!! It was overloaded by at least 200 people-and no life jackets to be seen.
Coming back we thought we would be smarter and took the fast ferry. Also much pushing and shoving to get seats but finally we are off! The first thing the did was hand out barf bags and we soon figured out why. The next two and a half hours were spend rock and rolling!!!!The sounds and smells were a test.
We are now back in Dar es Salaam. Have spent a day here poking around the shops and looking for new places to eat- always a priority.Its a big city and hot as hell and humid.
Tomorrow we leave for Zambia and a visit with Sarah.
Will keep you posted.
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7 comments:

  1. AnonymousApril 15, 2009 at 2:12 PM

    You two kids - what fun you are having! Wish I was there.

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  2. JudyApril 16, 2009 at 9:23 AM

    Hi Helen and Donna
    Sounds like you are having a great time. I am sooooo jealous. I just wrote a long note but I think I lost it when I tried to post it. Not going to repeat it until I find out what I am doing wrong. Write to you soon. Judy

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  3. JudyApril 16, 2009 at 9:36 AM

    Hi Helen and Donna
    Don't know what I did wrong the first time but will try again. Also, don't know if I should be posting this letter here or sending it to your email address. Sounds like you are see lots of new and exciting things, tasting wonderful food and lots of the local beverages not to mention the excellent information you are getting from the guides. Golf courses were supposed to open on Tuesday but we got a dump of snow. It didn;t last long but it is very wet. People are out on the driving ranges in full force. We are booked to play on Saturday so we are keeping our fingers crossed. I am sure it will be a little different to your game you had as we will probably be wearing toques. Just heard yesterday that Craig MacT was fired as the Oilers coach after not making the playoffs again. I think it is time to move away from the old boys club. Martin lost the final of the world curling championship on Sunday after making a huge blunder. They were tied going into the final end and Martin had the hammer. After the Scottich skip threw his first rock Martin was sitting one. Martin then decided to play his first rock through the house despite the protests of his team who wanted to put up a guard. The Scot skip then played a beautiful shot and left himself lying two. Martin then missed his final shot and lost the game. Boy are people ever disappointed in Martin. Arrogance will get you every time. Masters was played on the weekend and the Argentinian Cabrera won in a playoff against Kenny Perry. No Canadians did any good. Nothing much happening in the economic world other than it is still all bad but who cares you say. I was going to go to the driving range today but it doesn't look very nice out there. We have not had a good spring. Hope you continue to have a great time and leave some room for that great South African wine. Judy and John

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  4. Darlene SApril 16, 2009 at 12:26 PM

    As always, is sounds like you are having quite a time. I would imagine it was a little scary not have enough life jackets and the overcrowding...but once more you have an exciting story to tell us when you get back. Our snow is melting, which is a good sign. I'm leaving for Kelowna this weekend to see my friend. Take care of each other. Until next time.

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  5. JeniApril 20, 2009 at 5:31 PM

    Lol!!! Did you learn nothing from our swimming with the dolphins expedition on that very island? I'm sure you shared that with Helen while on your "sunset cruise". Glad to hear you're having new ridiculous adventures! Love you.

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  6. UnknownApril 22, 2009 at 7:58 PM

    Think of you often and your great adventures. Leah was so happy to hear you went to Zanzibar. They also had such a great time there. Looking forward to seeing you both when you get back and getting in some golf this summer.

    Be Safe !!
    Jude

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  7. BettyApril 24, 2009 at 6:37 PM

    I can just see the look on your faces in some of these adventures.
    For sure this video will have to be show and tell.
    Judy updated you on all the recent news. OUr Premier and his disciples are screwing up daily, it's friggin' cold and want to go back to warmth.
    Keep laughing your pants off - well, careful about that and safe journey ladies.
    Hugs,
    Betty

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