Awake at 4:15 this morning because our flight from Nairobi to Zanzibar was to leave three hours earlier than originally scheduled. It's a four hour drive from Loitokitok back to Nairobi, hence our early departure. Sunrise was spectacular and Mt. Kilimanjaro stood unveiled against our rear horizon. And the crowd of giraffes crossing the highway halfway back to the city gave us a new perspective on the concept of potential road kill.
Our flight to Zanzibar was smooth and uneventful . . . until we arrived at the Znz airport to find the visa fee for Americans is $100.oo per passport (every other country in the world--except Pakistan which has a $200.oo visa fee--is half that much.) Imagine our surprise when, between the six of us, we could only come up with $300.oo AND the ATM in the airport was out of order. The immigration agents had our passports and wouldn't give them back lest we flee into the mayhem of the parking lot. Luckily, the driver that was waitng for us outside turned out to be a gem--he drove back to his house where he apparently has quite a stockpile of U.S. currency (we did NOT ask questions at that point) and returned to bail us out of 'jail.'
Now we are comfortably put up at the old Tembo Hotel, right on the beach in Stone Town. We stayed here six years ago and had fond memories of the grand old Arab architecture, the antique Arabic furnishings and the location smack in the middle of the historic district. And we were not disappointed on our return. We basically hit the beach as soon as we arrived--the girls were ecstatic about the sunshine, the aquamarine sea and the very warm tropical temperature. We had a lovely, relaxing afternoon then a very enjoyable dinner at an Italian restaurant. Basically, anything that wasn't Kenyan stew-flavored would have worked for us, but pasta and salad were perfect! (Brenna is still waiting for that hamburger!!)
Photos: dhow, Zanzibar; sunrise, Loitokitok; Mt. Kilimanjaro; locals on the beach, Stone Town, Zanzibar; Tembo Hotel, Stone Town.
Now we are comfortably put up at the old Tembo Hotel, right on the beach in Stone Town. We stayed here six years ago and had fond memories of the grand old Arab architecture, the antique Arabic furnishings and the location smack in the middle of the historic district. And we were not disappointed on our return. We basically hit the beach as soon as we arrived--the girls were ecstatic about the sunshine, the aquamarine sea and the very warm tropical temperature. We had a lovely, relaxing afternoon then a very enjoyable dinner at an Italian restaurant. Basically, anything that wasn't Kenyan stew-flavored would have worked for us, but pasta and salad were perfect! (Brenna is still waiting for that hamburger!!)
Photos: dhow, Zanzibar; sunrise, Loitokitok; Mt. Kilimanjaro; locals on the beach, Stone Town, Zanzibar; Tembo Hotel, Stone Town.
Peg - we'll make sure Bren gets her hamburger first thing when she gets home - beautiful pictures!
ReplyDeletePeggy, We have so enjoyed your blog. Thank you for the commentary and the pictures. We, too, love Kenya and have such wonderful memories of places, people, lessons learned. Thank you for bringing it all back for us.
ReplyDeleteMeredith Joss
Great pictures! And what a story -- methinks your driver might have an "arrangement" with immigration officials. Glad you're off having fun. Zorro and Oliver send their love from the garage floor, which they find cool and relaxing.
ReplyDelete