Zanzibar: Arrival and First Impressions

After two overnight flights (Chicago to London; 9 hours hanging out in Heathrow airport; then London to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania), our descent into Dar was one of the first noticeable features: descending from extreme cold temperatures of the upper atmosphere into lower altitude, the humidity was so intense that it was not possible to even see out of the windows because of the extreme condensation. Once on the ground, walking out of the airplane into the terminal was a shock: the new reality of heat and humidity hit me in the face (and lungs) immediately! We had to wait for an hour or so to catch our 15 minute flight to Zanzibar – on a small plane! Once on the island of Zanzibar our group was met; our luggage was quickly loaded and before we knew it, we were in Zanzibar Town, and more specifically, the old quarter, known as Stone Town. Richard Burton, an early British explorer described Stone Town in 1857, “The streets are, as they should be under such a sky, deep and winding alleys, hardly twenty-feet broad, and travelers compare them to the threads of a tangled skein.”

After getting to our hostel, adjacent to and operated by the staff of the Anglican Church/Diocese, we settled into our rooms, had a traditional Swahili lunch and took a walking tour of Stone Town to get our bearings (and to keep us awake to help with our jet lag). We learned that there are just a couple main streets (these are paved and form a somewhat incomplete triangle around Stone Town), so if we get lost and can get to one of these we could find our way home (a theory which has already been proven in my case...). The most beautiful part of Stone Town is the ocean front – the Indian Ocean, that is...the water is beautiful, there are some beautiful gardens, the old Sultan's Palace and some other historical buildings. Sunsets on the Indian Ocean are really gorgeous! Getting to the ocean is the challenge! There is a maze of narrow alley-ways which are shared by pedestrians, motorcycles and bikes. Only slightly larger alleys/”streets” also include cars. Some of these alley-ways are paved, though small rocks and sand are everywhere so you have to watch where you are walking.

As the term, Stone Town suggests, many of the buildings are two or three stories and built of stone; there are several distinct kinds of doors: rounded arches and doors with more ornate wooden carving although there are a lot of ordinary looking doors as well. Many buildings have wide double doors that open to reveal endless numbers of shops with everyone calling after you to come in and take a look. These are in addition to the large market off of one of the main streets where you can get every kind of fish, meat, poultry, vegetable, fruit, clothing and many other things.

It is not difficult to realize I am in a predominantly Muslim culture: many women are fully covered in black, polyester-like burkas; some with scarves over their heads, some women with just tiny slits to see, even young girls wear veils. Apparently there has been a move toward a little more decorative aspect in recent years, as I often see women with brightly-colored scarves on their heads and some with overlays of bright colors, even some with sparkly trim. The non-Muslim women wear more African-like clothing. It is a little difficult to discern at times, as there is a wide continuum of more strict to less strict followers of Islam and the Africans, but regardless, it is a colorful and fascinating place to people-watch. Some men don traditional Muslim clothing, but more often they are dressed more casually, even wearing jeans. The disconnect between the gender's clothing is notable, especially when one considers the heat and humidity. It sparks my righteous anger to see the women having to wear, what I consider, oppressive clothing, but that is a subject for another time...