FROM ARUSHA TO ZANZIBAR

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Day 11: ARUSHA - ZANZIBAR (KIZIMKAZI BEACH)

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Today is the first day that we don't get up early in the strict sense of the word. We meet at 10 in the morning to leave the hotel and go to the Arusha airport to catch a plane that will take us from Arusha to Zanzibar.
We have quite quiet breakfast, we pack our bags and at 10 in the morning we are all ready to start the second part of our trip.
After an hour, crossing Arusha again, we arrived at the airport.
The first impression impacts us. It is a mini airport.
Our guide speeds up procedures and so we will not have to show passports, just weigh the bags. We can carry a hand bag, which does not weigh more than 10 kilos and a suitcase (not rigid) that does not exceed 15 kilos.

We go through shifts and all, more or less, we carry those kilos. Although some, the most and the least, we have strained some extra bag.
As we are 18 passengers, they divide us into 2 groups, one of 13 and one of 5.
The duration of flight from Arusha to Zanzibar It is 1 hour 40 minutes.
Now it is time to wait for half an hour in a waiting room of the most rudimentary, when the boarding time arrives.
At that time, we said goodbye to the guide and staff and left behind our 11 days of safari in Kenya and Tanzania.
The guide tells us that the staff is very happy with us, so we imagine that the tip that we have left, has seemed quite good, because the truth is that we had no reference and we did not want to fall short.
The truth is that they have been great, both the cook, as the driver, as the assistant ... people who take their work seriously and collaborate to make a trip like this become unforgettable.
Before we know, we say goodbye and return to the room of Arusha airport, where they will call us to board the flight of Arusha to Zanzibar.
After a few minutes they call us to the first group and we walk along the track, until we reach the plane.
There we settled down and at the beginning we all go with a little fear, it is the first time that we ride by plane, but after 5 minutes we are already at home.

Flight from Arusha to Zanzibar

I take the opportunity to write some postcards and read for a while and especially to look at the landscape from the air that is spectacular.

Flight Arusha to Zanzibar

Suddenly we begin to see sand atolls in the middle of the sea, we approach Zanzibar

Flight Arusha to Zanzibar

It has started to rain and we got off the plane with a fine rain, which masks the humidity and the heat it does a little.
We go directly to collect luggage and exchange money at one of the agencies of the Zanzibar airport.
We are impressed, as among the agencies they try to remove customers, improving exchange offers.
After picking up our bags, we are going outside, where a mini bus is waiting for us, which will take us to our next hotel for 3 nights, to the Karamba, on the beach of Kizimkazi.
We wait for the next plane, where the remaining 5 of the group come and we begin to notice (and in what way) that the heat begins to become unbearable.
Once we are all accommodated in the mini bus, we get on our way and take an hour or so to reach the hotel in Zanzibar.
I have tried by all means to be awake, to see the landscape, but I only endure for a while. I fall asleep without remedy, until we enter the village of Kizimkazi.
I'm surprised to see the vegetation and the town. Maybe I expected something less from this place and seeing it with "such a good roll" creates a huge satisfaction.
Once we arrive at the hotel, the owner receives us, a girl from Sabadell who married a Senegalese and rode thishotel in Zanzibar, the Karamba Resort.
There we see that the type of hotel is impressive. It's nothing fancy, but the views are stunning and it's all focused on relaxation.
There is an armchair area, chill out plan, playground and bar, dining room ...
This is the area we see at the moment, since we have the food prepared (the guide had told him to prepare it for when we arrived) and we decided that the first thing is to eat and then we will be given the rooms.
We put a combined plate of fish with potatoes and salad that tone our stomachs that since this morning we have not loaded with energy.
They already warn us that dinners will be more abundant than other meals (we have breakfast and dinner included).
It's 4 in the afternoon when we finish eating and start to distribute rooms. They have 3 types and will give the keys to a draw.
We are fortunate to choose the one that is best for us: the outdoor shower.

Our hotel in Kizimkazi, in Zanzibar

So we settled and rested for a while, enjoying a spectacular environment.
And above all we enjoy the outdoor shower, seeing the palm trees in front. What else can we ask for?
When it starts to get dark, we go outside and take the opportunity to lie down in hammocks and enjoy a unique show that nature offers us.

Our hotel in Kizimkazi, in Zanzibar

Some of the group take advantage of the pool, or bathe in the sea, taking advantage of the high tide of Zanzibar.

Our hotel in Kizimkazi, in Zanzibar

The hotel is at the foot of the beach and the views are spectacular.

Enjoying a sunset at our hotel in Kizimkazi, in Zanzibar

In this part of Tanzania the tide change is very noticeable and when it falls, you have to walk a kilometer to get to the water. It's amazing the landscape that stays then.

Zanzibar Island in Tanzania

Today for having eaten later, we have prepared dinner for 9.30 at night, a little later than usual.
At that time we are already hungry, so we are impatient and we are not hungry or disappointed. The food is very abundant and of quality.
It is clear that in this travel through Kenya and Tanzania We are eating very well and we will not lose a kilo.
After dinner, we go to the bar area, have a drink and the owner will tell us about the excursions they organize.
We also take the opportunity to connect to the Internet, which is the first day that we have connection throughout the trip and we want to update some things.
To who Zanzibar We no longer have a guide and we can do what we want. For us, who are used to traveling for free, this gives us a little "respite", so we can move on our own and be more "free" in this part of the trip.
Roger and I decided that the next day we will rent a taxi for a few hours, to tour the beaches that are further north of the island.
Our idea is to be about 6 hours and eat at a restaurant that we recommend. So we talk to Gemma and she tells us that she will be hired directly by the taxi and that she will charge us $ 40. The truth is that it is not cheap, but at this stage of the trip, we prefer not to go around with bargains and accept the price.
He recommends the beaches to visit and a couple of restaurants where you can eat well.
The rest of the group hires an excursion to a nearby atoll that will surely be spectacular, but we prefer to take off a little and go these days for free.
So with tomorrow already organized we return to our room at the Karamba Resort, but not before doing a ritual that we will follow every day we are here.
We go to the hammocks and we have a good time looking at the sky and commenting on the day ...