ZANZIBAR, TANZANIA Part III

Stone Town, Zanzibar is a very special place. It is a World Heritage Sight and deservably so. The city itself is the oldest continuously inhabited ancient city in Africa. The people of Zanzibar are mostly of Bantu African origin with a smaller minority of Indians and Arabs. They speak Swahili, which I think is a wonderful sweet sounding African language made up of a mix of many languages, mostly Bantu. Many also speak English. Most of the inhabitants of Zanzibar settled in the west coast around and in Stone Town. Those who live in the countryside farm and fish.

While mainland Tanzania is a mix of Muslim and Christian, Zanzibar is predominantly Muslim. The architecture of Stone Town is striking with it's beautiful carved and studded doors, narrow curving alleyways and mix of mostly Indian and Arab architecture. John and I really enjoyed our wandering inside the city. Our guide explained to us that the East Indians built porches in order to catch the afternoon breezes off the ocean; while the Arabs built enclosed courtyards to keep their women from outside view. He also explained that even the shape and style of the beautiful carved doorways is different depending upon the builder's ethnicity and when it was created.

We visited the House of Wonders, now the Zanzibar National Museum of History and Culture. It was the first building in Zanzibar to have electric lighting and the first building in East Africa to have an elevator - hence the name -"House of Wonders". Inside Stone Town there is the outside shell of the old Arab Fort. The Anglican Cathedral - Church of Christ - stands where the Slave Market used to be,built in 1873, a combination of elements of Gothic and Islamic design.

We walked for hours within the narrow-streeted marketplace (much like the sooks of Dubai) where vendors in small shops sold everything from leather sandals to household goods, foodstuffs and clothing. We had to contantly step aside for scooters, bicycles and the occasional cart. Some streets were so narrow, two people could not pass at the same time without stepping into a doorway. We also went to the night market, held near the harbor in a new park area. There seafood vendors,cooked their fresh shrimp, lobster, king fish and squid to order by the light of kerosene lanterns. They also sold the fresh squeezed cane juice we saw everywhere in Zanzibar.You could also get dessert crepes, made fresh. Quite a sight!