Places we visited….
Zanzibar
Zanzibar was a regular stop sailing southbound on the East African coast. It will always be associated with spices and the sight of Dhows. Cargo working at anchor was slow and leisurely and dominated by the aroma of spice sacks being stowed by hand.
Zanzibar’s main industries today are spices, raffia, and tourism. In particular, the islands produce cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, and black pepper. For this reason, the Zanzibar Archipelago, together with Tanzania’s Mafia Island, are sometimes referred to locally as the “Spice Islands”. Tourism in Zanzibar is a more recent activity, driven by government promotion that caused an increase from 19,000 tourists in 1985, to 376,000 in 2016.
The ‘ white ships’ of Andrew Weir were regular callers. Anchoring was a ‘must’ and they were in frequent use on this coast and in the islands and inlets.
The 1950’s
A tourist hotel today
