Buggages

Unfortunately this weekend is marred by reporting deadlines that are unavoidable. I had planned to visit Stone Town on Unguja so I still did so, only with my laptop as a unwanted accompaniment.

I headed to the ferry terminal in the city centre. ‘Strickly two pieces of buggages’ are allowed per passenger, according to my ferry ticket. I feel like I’m carrying some work buggage from recent days with deadlines I couldn’t get to as I was trying to participate actively in the last two days of workshop. I don’t like to go to meetings and sit there in a corner, typing away. In this, I am in the minority.

A packed ferry ride wasn’t conducive to whipping my laptop out so I watched the ocean, hoping dolphins would pop up.

I arrived on Unguja and enjoyed exploring Stone Town, the oldest part of which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Some streets and alleyways are bedecked with tourist trappings and vendors use the phrase hakuna matata to attract the attention of visitors, as it’s the main aspect of Swahili culture that westerners understand.

Hakuna matata means ‘there are no worries’ but hamna shida (no problem) is much more commonly used in Tanzania. I’ve only heard hakuna matata in Stone Town, uttered by traders who think that having watched the Lion King means people want to purchase souvenirs. And they’re probably right. Hustlers remain nothing if not enterprising.

Stone Town is bursting with things to see and learn. I think I’ll treat this first visit as an orientation and come back and explore for longer. The Forodhani Gardens are in the heart of Stone Town and I lingered here for a while on the sea walk. After a while I was hungry so I did what anyone would do whilst in Zanzibar and ate some noodles at a Japanese restaurant.

It was report writing through the evening but reasonable progress was made. Observing the winding narrow streets of Stone Town, hollering townsfolk and very rickety shutters, if I can sleep beyond 6am I will be amazed.