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Zanzibar Beautiful Beaches
The beach between Donqwe and
Jambiani
This endless sandy beach, about 13 miles long, is backed by thousands of
coconut palm trees. It is commonly referred to as simply as The East
Coast. It is quite far and part of the road from town is in a very bad
shape, but this area is slowly becoming the favorite holiday destination
for many local residents - at least for the wealthiest of them - as well
as for foreign tourists who may overnight in several very good hotels or
in many small but very nice guest houses. Also in the past wealthy Arabs
longed for a cottage here. Prove is the same name given to the village of
Jambiani: in Kiswahili jambia is the short curved dagger that was worn at
the belt by every Arab man. The coastline is interrupted by several large
villages of very cordial fishermen who, unluckily, cannot always take the
risks of the open sea. The last here can be very rough and dangerous, and
sometimes it happens that some of them don't make it back.
The 1000 dolphins bay at
Kizimkazi
Menai Bay has become increasingly famous for its dolphins. So popular that
it has been nicknamed "the 1000 dolphins bay". These friendly
creatures are so accustomed to human presence that it is frequently
possible to swim right in the middle of a numerous school. Several local
fishermen organize daily excursions starting from the beautiful Kizimkazi
beach. One of the most ancient mosques in east Africa, Kizimkazi Mosque,
can be found slightly northwards, near a small village. Inside, just
behind the mihrab, an ancient Kufic inscription informs that: "Sheikh
Said Amran, may God grant him long life and destroy his enemies, ordered
the building oft his mosque, on the day of Sunday, in the month of dhul
Kaadi in the year 500 AH". The date coincides with 1107 AD. Today the
only original sections are the foundations and the wall where the ancient
inscription is, for the mosque was restored in 1770, when substantial
modifications were made.
The beaches west of Ras Nungwi
They definitely have the reputation of being the most beautiful of Unguja.
The sea has marvellous colours and is almost always very calm (it is quite
rough only from mid December to March, when the impetuous kuzi, the
north-east monsoon, blows). In addition, there is always deep water even
at low tide. Quite a remarkable fact, considering that in Zanzibar the gap
between low and high tide can reach more than 15 feet. A couple of
excellent Diving Centres offer spectacular snorkeling or diving, not so
afar away, or in the splendid waters of Mnemba Atoll or, even better, at
the hammerhead shark's Leven Bank. Right on the beach are several small
but nice guest houses, amongst them a mention definitely goes to Amaan
Bungalows and Paradise Beach Guest House. Big hotels doesn't exist here,
for investors considered this area as too far from Zanzibar Town and, as a
determining factor, that there wasn't enough soft water.
Mnemba Atoll
For the sake of accuracy, Mnemba is not an
atoll but simply a towering formation of corals, on whose western edge
emerges the homonymous islet. he surrounding reef, 13 miles in
circumference, is a partially Protected Area which is considered a real
paradise by scuba divers and snorkelers. There are more than 15 different
and fascinating diving-spots, reached by all of the best Diving Centres of
Unguja. Underwater visibility is almost always good. An incredible variety
of living corals and a copious assortment of tropical fish can be
observed, and their dimensions proportionally increase according to the
depth. Apart from the very frequent encounters with dolphins, between
December and April can happen to meet enormous but inoffensive whale
sharks and, at the end of August/September and in January again, one can
watch the humpback whales migration.
The beach at Kiwenqwa
It is considered as one of the nicest beaches
on the Island, both for dimensions and colours of its sea: all of the
tones of blue are there between December and June, and emerald greens from
July to November. The reef, about half a mile offshore, is interrupted by
the natural pass of Kiwengwa, the only East Coast's absolutely safe
passage to the ocean. The external waters here have the reputation of
being particularly abundant in fish. Behind the shore, between the local
villages of Cairo and Kiwengwa, several nice hotels had been built. The
Archipelago's only horse-riding centre is also there. The activities of
the local villagers are entirely connected to tourism, including those of
many children who spend the whole day trying to get something out of
tourists. This can appear folkloristic, but represents a serious problem
for Kiwengwa's children, as many of them play truant at school: in a few
days they can earn more money than their fathers in a month.
The small isles facing Stone
Town
A pleasant day can be spent visiting by boat
some of these small but interesting islets: the most popular excursion
includes the visit to Bawe, Prison and Grave islands, and requires about
two hours of navigation. It is worth snorkelling around Baa, for the
variety of its corals and colourful tropical] fish. Prison Island, locally
known as Changuu, hosts a few peacocks and several giant tortoises, the
last probably were imported from the Mascarene Archipelago around 1750.
Initially owned by a rich Arab slaver, the island was used for holding
unruly slaves. After the official abolition of slavery, it was bought by
the British who built a prison in 1893, but the building was exclusively
used as a quarantine Station. There is a small trail that circles the
Island and reaches a natural lagoon. Snorkeling is excellent and there is
a small sandy beach, only at high tide.
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