Nairobi to Zanzibar

We said goodbye to the Mt. Kenya Safari Club, and hopped the 35 minute flight to Nairobi. Back to the whistle and bustle of the big city! Nairobi has a population of over four million, and many of these people live in slums. We went to one such slum and visited a community that an organization called Amerishare was helping. They are sponsored by our safari company and give washable maxi pads for girls so they can go to school during their monthly cycle. For each person Micato takes on safari, they sponsor one child and pay for their school uniform and school supplies. They also have a community center where kids come to study when they are not in school, and generally give kids a safe place to be that's not on the street.

After our visit to the slum, we went to a gift shop and then checked into our hotel (the Fairmont Norfolk Hotel, the same hotel where there was the chocolate bar debacle when we checked out last time). We got checked in, and this time, they wanted to charge me for Internet. I told them I didn't have to pay last time and didn't understand why I had to this time. Eventually we got that settled, without my paying, and then we had a farewell drink with Blake and Megan (our co-travelers!) and then dinner. We said our goodbyes to one another, and then went to bed, because we had to be up the next morning at 4:30 to catch our 8am flight to Zanzibar. When we got back to the room, we noticed we hadn't had turn-down service and there were no bottles of water for us to brush our teeth with (the tap water is contaminated).

We were up at the crack of dawn, had our breakfast, and ordered a bottle of water with breakfast so we would have water to drink and brush our teeth went. We then checked out and upon check-out, I was given a bill for $10 for the bottle of water, which apparently was not included with our breakfast... Long story short: the Fairmont is a shitty hotel that will nickel-and-dime you for every little bit they can get. I will be writing a strongly-worded letter when I get home...

At any rate, we got checked out, taken to the airport, said goodbye to Dennis, waited for what seemed like an eternity in line to check in, then another eternity to get through immigration. It took even longer than it should have because people who were "late" for their flights kept getting to jump ahead of us in line. I finally said that I wouldn't let anyone come in front of me because I was being punished for getting to the airport on time, and they were being rewarded for coming at the last minute.

We finally made it through customs and had about ten minutes before our flight boarded. I can see why they made us get to the airport as early as they did as everything moved "pole pole" (Swahili for slowly). Our flight to Zanzibar took an hour and twenty minutes. We went through the cluster that was Tanzanian immigration, then waited for our bags, then met our driver and guide in Zanzibar (Mussa) who took us to our hotel for the next three nights (the Baraza Resort and Spa). The drive took an hour, but was well worth the wait. The place was beautiful and there were hardly any other guests. It was like having an island paradise all to ourselves!






Our villa was a two-bedroom apartment, with two bathrooms, a patio overlooking the garden and with the ocean in the distance, and we even and our own private plunge pool!











We had lunch, then a tour of the grounds, then I signed up for a dive and then we spent the rest of the day relaxing on the beach or on our private patio next to the plunge pool. Then we had dinner and called it a nit, since we had been up since 4:30am and we are getting picked up in the morning at 9am for our tour of Zanzibar.


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Location:Zanzibar, Tanzania