More Culture

BAILEY: In the words of Furgy, we were “flying first class up in the sky…” Not really, but this morning we woke up bright and early to make it to the ferry to ride “first class” from Dar Es Salaam to Zanzibar. Most of the two hour ferry ride consisted of sleeping, seeing as we did not get a full nights rest from the previous night as it was imperative for us to watch the football match (in Tyler’s language, “American”, that means soccer game) between AC Milan and Liverpool where the Italians prevailed 2-1.

Once we arrived at our nice hotel in Zanzibar we quickly were led on a tour of Stone Town through an old Portuguese and Arabic fort and to the House of Wonders which was originally built by the British. Currently it is a museum, so we had the opportunity to walk around and learn about the culture and history of the island. One of the coolest cultural things about the island is the boats they use for their source of trade. They are called dowds (that is a spelling error) which are wooden ships both small and large that travel up and down the East African Coast, to India, China, and the Far East following the trade winds.

After our tour of Stone Town we enjoyed lunch at Freddy Mercury’s restaurant (lead singer of Queen). Oddly enough, Mercury was born here in Zanzibar, actually on the same street as our hotel. We came back to the hotel, and Mama Yusta gave us the rest of the afternoon off to peruse around town at all of the different shops. Tyler, Scotty, and I found us some sweet Zanzibar soccer jerseys for 10,000 schillings, but beyond that, there were no extravagant purchases. Around 5:00, nap time was in the schedule for myself and a few others before a nice dinner at the African Hotel right up the road. Afterwards most of us stayed at the outdoor balcony/bar and enjoyed looking at the stars (we were able to see the constellation “southern cross”) and listening to the waves of the ocean as we enjoyed a cool breeze.

Our first day in Zanzibar was a blast. It is definitely hot here and humidity is prevalent, but we were excited to reunite with the Maymester group and begin learning about Zanzibar and its history. I must say that the culture of Zanzibar is very different from the mainland. The island is 95% Muslim and you can hear the prayer call five times a day from anywhere on the island (including our hotel rooms around 5:30 when we were trying to nap today). Another aspect of Zanzibar that is very different is the architecture and colonial influence. We are currently in Stone Town which derives its name from what the buildings are made out of. There is also a very strong Arabic influence on the island. Throughout the course of history, the island has been inhabited and colonized by the Arabs, Portuguese, and British, all at different times, and they have all left their mark on the island. That is what separates the island from the mainland. Arusha and Dar Es Salaam do not seem like they were once colonized by Europeans, but I immediately noticed this the second I walked off the ferry this morning at Zanzibar. I felt like I was in a different country once again, and now in the next couple of days, I must immerse myself in this culture and learn as much as I can while I am here.