On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.
From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.
swiftfox
My first thought was to skip this part of the trip. I was going for the wildlife, not history. But I changed my mind as this part of the trip was supposed to be a less driven, more relaxed end to the trip.
The room with a view.
Recycled coraline stones to be used in future construction.
Plastered and unplastered wall of a building.
Motorcycles are often used as a pickup truck would be in the US.
I haven’t seen a three-wheeler since USPS used them until the early 70s.
Fish market vendor. As a commenter in TripAdvisor stated, it’s dirty and smelly. The water drain is in the lower right corner. This is a picture where underexposure is the best choice. The meat market was said to be worse. One of the women in our group tried to view the fish auction but was shooed out by the all-male contingent.
Slave trade memorial depicting how slaves were transported. The historical center has an extensive display of interpretive signs covering the history of slave trading in Africa.
Red bananas at the spice and tea farm. There was a lot of interest in buying spices here but the selection was about the same as in any US grocery chain. I bought a package of banana tea and two packages of saffron.
Rooftop view from the Ellsworth Spice Hotel. We had a very nice fixed price dinner for $40 USD.
We were “detained” at the Zanzibar airport terminal as they told us that our carry-on bags exceeded the weight limit. Despite our photo guide showing them what the weight limits were, they insisted on some sort of payment. Our photo guide asked where the ATM was where people would get money and the terminal clerk said the only ATM was in their office. If citing people for exceeding the weight limit was normal practice you would think there would be an ATM handy. Our guide used his corporate card to pay them the $250 cash limit and I guess that was enough.
The safari was a great experience. Tanzanians are a very happy bunch. As one of our safari guides told us, the country has/had a program of busing kids to different tribal school districts and there has been so much intermarriage that everybody learned to get along.
Would love to return for prime birding season. Zanzibar, no. Not even for the Freddie Mercury museum.
eclare
What a great trip! Thanks so much for the series.
Ole phat Stu
Reminds me read Stand on Zanzibar again.
stinger
“everybody learned to get along”
Balm to my soul to know it’s possible.
Doug
@Ole phat Stu: Held up for me the last time I re-read it!
thefrumiousconsortium.net/2015/06/16/stand-on-zanzibar-by-john-brunner/
Good grief, can that be almost ten years ago? Tempus done went and fugit again.
Doug
Billy Joel has a tab at Zanzibar
youtube.com/watch?v=0rDJQ3tBhB4
Kent
Thanks for the photos from a part of the world that I’m unlikely to ever visit. My wife being from Chile means nearly all our discretionary international travel is to South America.
I will say that Zanzibar has to be just about the coolest name ever for a city (or Island). Whoever came up with that one nailed it.
way2blue
Too bad your wildlife tour ended on a sour note. Sounds like if you focus on birds next time—you won’t be jockeying for space with other safari jeeps… Did you mention how many people were in your tour group? I’d love to return, but the epic long flights from the west coast are daunting.
Steve Crickmore
There is a bar in Stonetown, Zanzibar on the ocean, Mercury’s bar, beside the ferry port that plays slightly incongrous loud Western rock music and a small museum at the house where Freddy Mercury grew up. Zanzibar was known as the Spice Island of Africa, so there is always a commingling of East and West. At the biggest night club, on a rooftop I went to in Stonetown (I don’t think they allow openly homosexual clubs or did when I went about ten years ago), there were mainly men dancing together. One could easily see the future leader of Queen emerging from this exotic environment.
A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan)
@stinger: Tanzania has many tribes, so they learned to get along because no one tribe was a majority. They chose Swahili as the national language even though it is the second language for many Tanzanians so they have a language in common. The Masai are the most famous tribe, but a lot of other tribes think they are assholes. Sort of like how the other French think of the Parisians.
The Golux
This was a big favorite on long car rides when our kids were young.
swiftfox
@way2blue: One person dropped out so there were 7 plus photo coach and Land Rover driver/guide. There were three Land Rovers so that everyone had plenty of room. Next year’s trip will have nine people plus the photo coach.