Hapana Sante–Stone Town, Zanzibar

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If you read my last post (see here), you know that my G Adventures 35 day Overland Truck tour had a 13 hour day yesterday, driving through Tanzania, to Dar Es Salaam, where we spent the night camping.  The next morning we were packed up and left by 7:30am via Tuk Tuks, with Stone Town, Zanzibar as our destination!  Stone Town (a World Heritage site) is 95% Islam with an average life expectancy of 48 years and the main sources of income are tourism and the sale of spices.

Our Tuk Tuk drivers transported us onto a ferry for a short ride to the main ferry that goes to the island of Zanzibar, located approximately 20 miles off-shore and takes about two hours to reach.  We arrived at 11am and this was my first view of the island…

We made our way to Mazson’s Hotel, where we would stay for one evening, before heading North to a beach resort in Nungwi, which is located about an hour away.  This was my room and my roommate’s name was Suzanne.  She is from Belgium!

This was the view across from the Hotel…

Because this was an ending and/or beginning point for G Adventure trips, new people joined our group.  I met Samantha and Kathleen, Scientists from America, and they said they had gone out walking around Stone Town and didn’t like the assertive touts trying to sell things to them.  We had learned how to say “No Thank You” in Swahili, “Hapana Sante”, so the three of us set off to get lost in the winding, narrow streets of Stone Town.  It was an odd feeling to not consult a map…to just walk and not care if you didn’t know where you were.

This is Samantha…

And here’s Kathleen…

I had a good time saying “Hapana Sante” with a smile on my face and the touts seemed to like it!  It became a game!  It reminded me a bit of Egypt, but they weren’t as aggressive… or I was just more prepared.

The architecture, people and culture of Stone Town, Zanzibar were very intriguing to me!

34 thoughts on “Hapana Sante–Stone Town, Zanzibar”

  1. I haven’t yet had the pleasure of going to Zanzibar but it looks a lot like Mombasa. The architecture has a Muslim influence. I absolutely love your blog.

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  4. I know the wildlife and the scenery over the entire trip were very special, but for me, the posts about the people, the towns/village/and people, the culture, etc … is what intrigues me the most. Thanks.

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  9. Hi,
    Great photos, It must of been fun walking around those narrow alleyways and seeing what was around the next corner, it all looks fabulous, and the room looked nice and clean as well. 🙂

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  13. Wonderful photos … from buildings and street life – love the photo with the women in the their colorful shawls and black dresses and the street with all the open window shutters, stunning … Have friends that has been in Zanzibar
    And they loved it too … so colorful and exciting … magical and mysterious.

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  19. You are certainly having a tour of a life time, I only recently started to follow you, and must go back to see where you started, probably in my country RSA.. enjoy your trip further as much as I am enjoying your adventure via the blog…

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