"Smile Ur in Zanzibar"

As much as I love Shirati, I am at my core a city boy and so I have gotten very restless in the small, rural community of Shirati and the outlying villages.  I’m running out of things to peruse at Monday Market, I’m running out of reasons to go to town, and although I will never run out of books to read (Esther has a library that rivals DC’s), my mind needs something new.  The cure?  A mini trip to Zanzibar!  I’ve heard awesome things from CSPS Class 5ers and three of my SHEDmates have planned a trip, so I tag along.  Plus, with the internet capabilities in Mwanza and Zanzibar, I plan to download all the necessities for the database I’m trying to build for Roche Health Center.  I’ve tried downloading it on “Shirati-net” twice only for it to give up on me after about 15%, so this trip is dubbed: business.

After a 5 ½ hour cab and bus ride to Mwanza (the second-largest city in TZ), an 1 ½ hour flight to Dar, and a 20 min puddle jump, we arrive on the famed “spice island”, ZANZIBAR!  And what is the first thing we see?  A nice topiary that reads: “Smile Ur in Zanzibar.”  Damn right!  What a great and positive greeting!  I think for CSPS orientation we should have a topiary that says “Smile Ur at the Clinton School.”  What do you think, Dean?  The three of us left in Shirati joined our friend, Avi, a recent visitor of the Kilimanjaro summit and headed to the beach.  We are to spend two nights on the east coast (yes, my first experience with the Indian Ocean!) in a beach village called Bwejju and then two nights in the capital and main city, Zanzibar Town, more commonly known as Stone Town.  However, before heading to Bwejju, we decide to grab dinner and a drink.  Avi: “So do you guys want to be next to the beach or ON the beach?”  Hmm…when he said “ON the beach,” he was serious.  We enjoyed the evening at a restaurant where I literally had my feet in the sand.  This is a great start to the trip.

Of course, there’s always a catch.  As we’re heading out of Stone Town, we notice that a lot of the restaurants and clubs are dark.  After inquiring, the cabbie laughs and says, “Do you guys not know what today is?” –No... “The first of Ramadan.” –Wow, way to go team! This should make for an interesting trip as Zanzibar is 95% Muslim.  Let the good times roll…