Back to Civilization . . .

My apologies for the lack of entries as of late. Internet access was again, not really present, one could say. We officially have been gone from Kilimanjaro Base Camp & Maasai land for almost two weeks. There is so much to be missed, & in ways it all feels like a dream, but with Maasai spear in hand, indeed it was not. We made one last jaunt in the Landcruiser, took in the "roads" of southern Kenya & headed north for Nairobi. Saying goodbyes were strangely harder than I suspected. Totally lost it when saying farewell to Susan. It is a strange thing. You become so close to people, & you say goodbye, a real one. The probability that I will ever see any of these people again is so slim. As widespread as technology is, Kimana is a place that things like Facebook have not yet conquered. But as all things must end, we departed & entered back into the world of Nairobi, which is a bustling, overwhelming city in its own right. Me back in a city= major culture shock. Taking a proper shower, looking like a girl again, all of this was grand. The girls and I brushed our KBC cobwebs off & took ourselves out to a delightful dinner at a place called Carnivore. If you are ever in Nairobi, don't miss it. Basically, it is a Brazilian steakhouse gone Kenya, delicious. With a good bit of meatclub members present, we dominated. After a few days in Nairobi, which included buying off police officers & all sorts of delightful ventures, Anna and I headed south for Tanzania. 

We boarded a total T.I.A. situation of a plane & flew into Zanzibar, which equaled heaven. We stayed at this little magical place called the Beyt al Chai. A hundred year old tea house turned bed and breakfast. The architecture in this place is phenomenal. Stonetown, the main city in Zanzibar, is rich in African & Persian influences. It is highly Muslim & Christian, and one of the safest and most beautiful places I have ever traveled. Anna and I took in the sights, and just spent hours walking through the narrow streets, each leading to a new area of town. There is a good bit of history here. One of the major ports where African where sold into slavery is here, & the platform is truly haunting. Culture is just bursting out of this place. Life happens here, & as a tourist, you are just fortunate to observe. It is so unique and in many ways, untouched, the perfect place for us to uncoil from our past experience in the bush. The sunsets are truly stunning. Places like the Africa House, Fodoriani & Mercurys are highly recommended. The nightly fish market was such a gem of a find. Skewers of all the fresh catches of the day paired with traditional spices, heaven. In true Zanzibar form, a spice tour was high on the agenda. I know more about spices than I ever thought I would, but so fascinating. Not to mention out palm leave hat & purse, added bonuses, classic TIA moment. The Abdi shirts were definitely brought out for that one. After three days in our magical tea house, we had to pry ourselves away and head up to the north coast. We thought we were in for a relaxing couple of days in Kendwa, so you can imagine my surprise over lunch on the beach when the chumba started blasting 50 cent, and mzungas were everywhere. I still have no clue where all these white people came from, but it was a little spring break cancun. We were still "adjusting" back to society, so that was an interesting pairing. However, probably the most stunning beach I have ever been too. Dhows (traditional boats) were everywhere, and the water is crystal blue, just grand. A nice surprise were the Maasai. We didn't think that there would be any in this area, this is totally not where this tribe resides, but many come to work as guards. Walking down a desolated beach past two Maasai men, was certainly not something we were expecting, however, I am sure they were not expecting us to greet them in Maasai. It was really refreshing to both sides. Decision to turn 3 days in Zanzibar into one week, perhaps the best decision ever made. We departed so sad, but I feel so lucky to have gotten the chance to be there and see this gem of a place. Back to the land of Nairobi . . .