Lazy Daze

Well the inevitable happened, woke up to clouds and a few sprinkles here and there. Sun has been trying to make it out but can't seem to stay out. Probably just as well. My shoulders are still sunburned a bit and Geoff is not doing too well this morning. A slight tummy disorder that hopefully will clear up before we are back in the bush tomorrow night. We did talk to David and Tara (the owners) this morning - if G is still not up to snuff, we have a bungalow so we can stay at the lodge and not have to camp - which is sounding better to me all the time, especially since Tara said it is one of the nicer accommodations. So we will see how it all plays out.

There were lots of hugs and goodbye kisses last night, as we wished our new friends safe travels on the journey home. We will miss them. It may even prompt a trip to Kent, England one day. After the goodbyes were done, we made a couple of phone calls on our softphone from the computer. Talked a bit to Lucy, Aunt Barbara, and tried B&K (G's parents) but no luck there. We had called my brother, Jerry last week from Stone Town. It is always nice to hear voices from home when we are away for so long. It reminds me of when I used to go to camp for the summer. All is well with everybody, and they all enjoy reading the blog.

Lucy wanted to know more about the human side of things - what the people are like. Since I have the time, I will try to explain how I see things. After we left Usa River, it seemed the hustling began. We had such a great experience with the people in Usa that I was a bit disappointed. Whenever the jeep stopped, we were swarmed by kids selling all kinds of junk and sticking it in your face. On the road to Serengeti, you pass by lots of Maasai. There are many herding their cows and they will wave or smile, but you will also see many Maasai children along the road begging for food or money. I wanted to stop once, they absolutely break your heart. But Kiki said that if you give them money, they do not share it and the village doesn't benefit. So that is why we went to the Maasai village. There the proceeds go for the good of the whole. No interaction with locals except those working in the camp when in the Serengeti.

Stone Town was also full of usually young men hustling (1/4  to 1/3 of the country is under 25 mainly due to AIDS) - wanting to sell you tours, food, necklaces,etc. On occassion, you can get past the show and actually talk to these guys and they are very friendly and like to talk. But not wanting to be harrassed all the time, we mostly tried to avoid them. We were told if you want to get a guide, look for an older gentlemen. Actually, that is what happened when we finally found the restaurant we were looking for. The older men won't try to hustle you and are very interested in sharing their country with you. Out here in Nungwi on the beach, there are many guys trolling for tourists but there are also the ladies on the flats that we tried talking to yesterday, or the guys who fish for a living. Even if they don't speak good English they always say "Jambo, how are you?"  Communication here is harder because English isn't as prevalent. As for the village, it was pretty quiet when we went through, everyone was busy and not paying too much attention to us.

One thing that sticks out the most on this island is the children. Education is very important and we passed by hundreds of school kids on the way up the island. The little ones are adorable and love waving and saying "Jambo" every time tourists pass through. You see them playing with the most amazing stuff. No Toys R Us here, so they make do with whatever is available and have a ball doing it. They are also not attached to Mom 24/7. They run free - whether it is down the road with traffic zipping by or down the beach through the minefields of sea urchins. There must be a great deal of trust. Something that seems to be lacking in our part of the world.

Unlike some other places, where the resorts are all off by themselves, in Zanzibar they are mixed in with the local culture. You see the differences the minute you leave the gate. Again as I said about Usa, some tourists are uncomfortable with this. I'm not so sure how the locals view it. Our taxi driver said that Zanzibar is doing better and better. Lots of jobs, health care, and with greater tourism, more prosperity. Not sure what we will encounter in Sadaani. I certainly believe that if you are going to be a tourist, it is good to get out and actually see the country you are in and not just hang out at the pool! You might as well go to Miami if that is what you want.

Speaking of the pool, the clouds are breaking up and our pool man is just about finished. Looks like its time to get out there and hit the chaise. Geoff woke up around 11:30ish and we headed for the sea urchin minefields. He was a bit woosy but managed to get out there anyway. Spotted some more starfish - mainly what we saw yesterday. Had a Jerry B. moment - he is now officially part of the Indian Ocean.

The honeymooners have gone and now there is a French family of four in the next villa. Time to be moving on. Don't know when my next posting will be - won't have wifi till Sadaani lodge - so it all depends on if we go camping or not. Till then..

One more thing - Tundra Girl wants to know what the "look" is. It is that look when you have had just too much vacation. You yearn for your own bed, pillow, and toilet. You walk around in that fog on your last day not looking forward to what is in store for the journey home - because you never know what will happen and how the airlines will somehow mess it up. That is the "look".

Next time... On to Sadaani