Everywhere across the country are election posters for the CCM and opposition parties. The whole place has become a giant billboard covered in yellow and green or purple posters. Mafia Island is no different. A few days after the election I walked to Kilindoni, the main town on the island, to see the market and… Read More »
I had always considered Mafia Island to be too expensive for me, preferring instead the cheaper option of Zanzibar. I was pleasantly surprised when my Turkish friend told me the deal she had got with Butiama Beach Resort for three nights and the flight was very cheap for residents so there was no excuse. The… Read More »
Everything has been on hold for weeks in the run-up to the general election. It has been frustrating not to be able to progress any business. I was really looking forward to it being over but a few days before the election I went to work to find that the internet had been cut. The… Read More »
It’s hard to find quiet back lanes in this part of Dar because it’s generally full of immense white-washed houses in private compounds. There are a few smaller houses on our road but I cannot imagine them remaining like that for long as the price of plots much put pressure on the owners. It was… Read More »
The newspapers are full of news of a new COVID-19 spike in Mombasa and Nairobi. Even in the yacht club in Dar es Salaam they are talking about the increase in deaths in the neighbouring country. In Uganda too, the situation is not looking too good. But of course, in Tanzania we are COVID-free. There… Read More »
(post script. Since I published this article I have learnt that 17 people lost their lives in these flood in Dar) It was raining buckets when I set out from home to go to a breakfast meeting at 7am. It then continued to rain as I made my wet way to work. At 10am I… Read More »
By the time we reached Kizimkazi on Zanzibar mainland we were all hungry and desperate for a shower. Several of our group were suffering from sunburn and a couple of people just wanted to go to sleep. We spotted the cats lined up on the beach as we approached land. They had sped past us… Read More »
We had been sailing for about 4 hours in light winds before we arrived at Kwale Island for lunch. We anchored a short distance from shore and watched the cats come ashore as we waited for a dinghy to pick us up. In the end, the water was so shallow that the dingy dropped us… Read More »
When I saw the opportunity to get to Zanzibar on CQ with Paul and his crew and a handful of others, I leapt at the chance. I hadn’t been out of Dar in months and I was going stir crazy. For $120 it was a cheap option and to be even on the periphery of… Read More »
In China the ex-pat population is predominantly young, with many foreign English teachers looking for a few years adventure some exotic. But China is on the up and there is energy everywhere – you can feel it wherever you go in the country. People are starting businesses, expanding, dreaming up new initiatives and young people… Read More »