It's a Gavination

Zanzibar is a beautiful island, full of exotic spices and cultures. Stone Town is a great city – very walkable and full of great food and entertainment. We stayed in the city for a couple of days before heading to an Air BnB apartment on Kiwengwa Beach Village on the East coast. It’s just South of Matemwe beach and atoll which is one of the “bigger” tourist resort areas. We were excited about having a place with a kitchen but shopping for groceries was a bit of a challenge.

We spent the first day exploring our area, the market (loosely defined), the beach, and our neighborhood. Then we went scuba diving on the Mnemba Atoll. We don’t have an underwater camera, so no pictures but it was pretty awesome. Sadly I got the worst seasickness that I’ve ever had on the boat ride there. I felt the urge to vomit while breathing with a regular in my mouth which made it dicey to say the least, so I only did one dive but it was worth it and loads of fun. Sean did two dives and told me the first was better – so hooray. No underwater vomiting and a good time had by all. Zanzibar Photos.

Why must men on the street and beach hassle every single white person they see? If we wanted to buy cheap crap that we saw in every single town, we’d walk right up to the shop and buy it. I could no longer manage my anxiety while being chased down the street by vendors and hustlers telling me what a great deal they were going to give me, even after we had purchased things. I really just wanted to be left alone.

And why in a country this poor, is it impossible to get an even slightly nutritious vegetarian meal. Rice and potatoes are in the same food group and do not constitute a good or healthy dinner. It felt like as if the only people that had been nice and genuine to us in all of East Africa were taking money from us. 

With recent lessons learned under our belt we’ve decided to move on and out of Africa. We need a break from the day-to-day living in a “developing country” so we booked a one-way flight to Munich Germany, where the air is cooler, the beer is good, and water, electricity, trash service, and centralized sewers are a certainty. Why Germany? The mountains were calling! So between rolling blackouts, which meant we didn’t have any running water or way to cook, we booked our flight. We planned to explore little mountain towns in the Alps in hopes of finding a place where we could stop for a few days, do some hiking and enjoy modern living. We didn’t have an itinerary just an idea. Germany and Austria Photos.

Takeaways:

• Destin Florida has the nicest beaches on the planet (yes the planet). Okay maybe not on the planet but they’ve got to be in the top five for stateside beaches.
• Tropical beaches in a developing country aren’t super spectacular UNLESS you’re staying at a fancy resort, where security keep the hagglers away.
• There are many scammers in Africa taking advantage of white people. Not in a big dollar way but if you accept help from anyone prior to purchasing something you can be assured that you are paying extra. The shopkeeper gives the “helper” a kick back after you’ve gone. So never talk to anyone accept the shop keeper. Sounds easier than it is.
• Shopping for groceries in a small village of a “developing country” is quite difficult.
• East African food and Thai food aren’t really too different