2/19/14: KIZIMKAZI, ZANZIBAR - PARADISE AT LAST!

2/19/14:  KIZIMKAZI, ZANZIBAR - PARADISE AT LAST!

The short sentence is: Kizimki is Paradise found!  

L'Oasis Hotel - means Dolphin Hotel - is where the dolphins hang out, the water is calm, blue, warm, the reef is very close to the shore.  Here are photos of the artwork by each room, all of which face the Indian Ocean:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is our bed:

When we arrived we immediately secured snorkeling gear, courtesy of the hotel, and swam out to the reef with Genia's wife as guide.  We made plans to dolphin search and go to a beautiful coral reef in the morning.  

We both slept well in a much milder climate, with fan whizzing, woke up for breakfast at 7:15 am, preparing to go out on a boat along with our Russian friend Genia.  

We found the dolphins!

Our captain behind us!

We were on an open motorboat with the boatman and our guide, Ibrahim.  We learned that most of the boats went out earlier, at 6:30 am, to swim with the dolphins just close by, to the left of the hotel.  I had been hoping we could see them right by where we are staying but the waters are too shallow.  Anyway, it took about an hour of boating to catch up with the dolphins, who were now fishing for calamari almost halfway back to Paje on the east side of the island.

We jumped out of the boat three times when the boat got in front of the dolphins.  The first time we saw several swimming together, the second time I saw a momma and baby, the third time we saw about ten swimming together.  It was all quite fast.

Our guide was happy we had found them and thought that the others coming along after us would be out of luck.  The dolphins would be coming back in the late afternoon as Kizimkazi is their home.

We then came back just a bit farther than the hotel docks, right in front of the town of Kizimkazi, to a gorgeous place along the coral reef to snorkel for 45 minutes.  Such beautiful, large coral!  Many schools of fish, plus very colorful loners or small schools swimming around, just as good as what we saw by Nemba Island in the north.

 

When we returned we swam in the swimming pool, lounged around a bit, then got ready to walk at low tide into town,

 

 

 

where we were met by one young 16 yr old named Rama, who took us to the old mosque.  He had someone call the Imam, who showed up by bicycle and took us into the mosque, first helping us wash our feet under a row of water spigots.  The small mosque is well preserved and protected by outer walls.  It was originally built in 1107 and includes inscription in ancient Perisian, Kufic and Arabic. Several notable imams are buried right outside.

 

 

 

 

Rama, the young fellow who guided us to the mosque
and brought us to have lunch at his home

 

Graves by mosque

Rama then tried to help us find a late lunch but the few places were closed, so he took us to his home where his mother was cooking fish.

We watched the whole process as first potatoes were brought in, peeled and cooked in hot oil, salad brought, then peeled and prepared.  We had small, whole white fish, chips (French fries), salad of tomatoes, onions, grated carrot, with lime and tomato sauce from a very large container.  It was all delicious.  We decided this was both late lunch and early dinner.  Yehudah paid his mom 10,000 Tanzanian Shillings, or a bit over $6. 

Rama's Mom and youngest sister

Rama  walked us all the way back to the hotel entrance and Yehudah gave him 1,000 TSh or  about 60 cents for his help.  Rama told us that Ibrahim pays for his schooling as he helps him get customers for his taxi and dolphin tours plus the more expensive daylong Safari Blue. 

Yehudah spent hours on the computer while Joanie slept on a comfy couch under a large grass awning, missing the gorgeous sunset Yehudah photographed and posted on FB. 

 

Tomorrow, sadly, we leave Zanzibar.  We will go swimming out to the reef early morning, maybe encounter dolphins on our own if they are out in the same spot we will see all the boats congregating. If not, we can still go snorkeling with Genia.  We are running out of Tanzanian shillings and there's no ATM here.

Then, breakfast, then catch the dalladalla, then find Jackson, get paintings, buy a few more items, catch the ferry by 3:30 pm or even the earlier one at 1 pm, walk around in downtown Dar, make our way to Marshad's.  Then we have a final day in Dar as planned.

What we have missed doing is: Spice Tour and Chumbe Island - but, having found Paradise, these will wait for another lifetime.