African Adventures Pt.4 Zanzibar Spice Tour and Final Days. Visiting a spice plantation in Zanzibar as well as a brief tour around Stone Town.
Welcome to part 4 of our African adventures – Zanzibar spice tour and final days.
You can’t go to Zanzibar without going on a Zanzibar spice tour like we did during the final days we spent on the beautiful island.
Spices, in particular cloves, account for nearly half of Zanzibar’s GDP.
The island has a number of thriving designated spice plantations definitely worth visiting.
Lady Lynne and I were lucky enough to visit here in December as part of our continuing trip of a lifetime.
BTW. You might want to check out the previous posts first:-
African Adventures Pt.1 Glasgow to Uganda
African Adventures Pt.2 Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
African Adventures Pt.3 Zanzibar – Wildlife and Sightseeing
just to bring you up to date with where we are before you continue to read below. 
Well, we weren’t to know that the day we’d booked for our Zanzibar spice tour and visit to Stone Town was the day that a tropical storm would choose to unleash itself.
Still I suppose it was only one day out of our entire 8 days holiday in Zanzibar. All of the other days had been hot and sunny. So we were greatful for that.
But why oh why did it have to be that particular day?
Spice Tour Zanzibar
It was Tuesday 15th December and we made our way to the hotel reception for our taxi pick up at 07.50.
The ground was a little wet underfoot from a night of light rain but there was nothing in the sky to give us a clue as to what was to come!
It was only once we were in the taxi and on our way that nature began to unleash it’s heavy tropical storm which then proceeded to go on all day!
We arrived at the spice tour and found that we were the only ones there due to the weather.
We had to huddle under an umbrella as we were taken around the plantation and shown all of the spices and exotic fruits that are cultivated and exported from Zanzibar.
Above you can see a Nutmeg seed in it’s pod. Just look at the river of water flowing past us too!
We had to dodge these rivers as they formed, flowed and filled up the trenches around the growing crops. It’s also worthwhile noting the temperature drop from it’s usual 30 odd Degrees to 22 that day. And we felt it!
As we come from the Northern Hemisphere there were just so many plants that we had never seen or even got close to in their original state before.
We normally just see fruits like pineapples on our supermarket shelves so the actual plants they grow in totally fascinated us.
And as for fresh Coconuts. Wow! We’d never had a coconut so fresh before.
A guide actually climbed up a palm tree for us (the main image at the top of this post) to retrieve a coconut.
He cut the top off and let us taste the sweet nectar that came from within the shell as well as the fresh coconut flesh itself. I’d never tasted anything quite like it!
By this point the socks and shoes I’d worn (thinking I was sensible) had been swapped for a pair of flip flops I’d had to hire from one of the plantation guides.
Let me tell you that walking in those flip flops having accidentally sun burnt my feet a few days earlier was extremely tricky painful! 😮
Do we look wet? We were!
Lady Lynne made me post this photograph. She said it was “funny”. I’m never sure of putting photographs of me up. Lynne’s so much more photogenic.
But anyway what do you think of the cool hats that the plantation guides made for us? 🙂
I could have sold them easily as “rain hats” back in Glasgow if they wouldn’t have rotted by then!
Above is our Zanzibar spice tour hoard.
Now here’s a challenge for you!
See if you can match the names of the spices and exotic fruits in this list below to the actual spices in the picture above:-
- Cinnamon (there’s two!)
- Red pepper
- Black pepper
- Coriander
- Cloves
- Iodine
- Cocoa
- Ginger
- Lemon grass
- Cardamom
- Vanilla pod
- Green orange
- Lime
- Star fruit
- Flower cotton
I wish I could have flown all of these home with us, exactly as they are in the picture.
It would have been great being able to show our friends and to let them experience the smelling, touching and tasting part of the Zanzibar spice tour.
Despite the wet we absolutely loved the Zanzibar spice tour. It was absolutely brilliant and a “must” for your to-do list if you ever go there.
I did manage to bring home a selection of dried spices though for neilshealthymeals cooking purposes!
Some cinnamon sticks, cloves and ginger, which I’ve already been using in plenty of recipes!
Stone Town Zanzibar
While the Zanzibar spice tour was fantastic. Despite the rain, it had JUST been possible to do it.
Unfortunately not so with what was to be our afternoon touring around the world heritage site of Stone Town.
Stone Town is the old and historic part of Zanzibar City.
It’s the soul. It’s filled with beautiful churches of all religions, cobbled streets and a mixture of buildings built from the Arabic, Indian and European influences that have taken place in Zanzibar over the centuries.
As you can imagine Stone town has lots stunning achitecture to view. This is of course when you can look up, without getting soaked in the process.
Try though, we did to navigate around the narrow, ancient and historical streets, with our poor guide trying desperately to keep us enthusiastic and dry under the one umbrella.
Above I managed to capture the Anglican Cathedral Christ Church Zanzibar. But unfortunately that’s all the photographs from Stone Town I could get. I had to protect my precious camera from the ongoing deluge.
I felt guilty walking wading past shopkeepers standing in their doorways trying to entice us in to show their wares. But we just wanted to get back to hotel to get dry!
Stone town would have to wait until another time. And possibly another visit?
Of course, no sooner had we returned to our accommodation (pictured above – we were in the lower part) at the Hideaway of Nungwi, the rain went off and the sun came back out again!!
Our final days here were spent with a routine of going to the gym at 07:00, breakfast, lounging by the pool, cocktails, lunch, lounging by the pool, cocktails, get dressed for dinner, dinner and repeat. Not a bad life really.
Even though we were this close to the beautiful blue sea and golden beaches, as it was pretty hot for us, it was easier to spend time by the pool where the bar was as it was nearer.
I also get easily annoyed by beach sellers hassling you to buy stuff you don’t need so I tend not to go near beaches when on holiday.
I mean I know they’re just trying to earn a living and they’re mostly pretty decent people, but I just cant abide those pushy ones who won’t take a “no”.
Zanzibar has such beautiful sunsets. The picture pretty above says it all.
This was our daily view in the early evening as we walked the short distance from our accommodation to where food was served.
The food was also amazing. So much to choose from like goat curry, fresh grilled fish and lots of fresh fruit and salad.
Both Lynne and I almost always finished our dinner off with a home-made pistachio ice cream!
When we flew back from Zanzibar to Nairobi to catch our home flight connection we were 2 of only 4 passengers on board.
I think it was because it was such an early flight. We had to wake up at 0200 and travel to the airport to get a 0530 flight!
I thought this one final photograph, was rather appropriate seeing as we started with an airplane photograph in part 1, albeit that shot was a good deal wetter!
Plus it was a really nice surprise seeing Kilimanjaro from the airplane. How stunning is that? And I said to Lady Lynne “we really must look into climbing that”.
It’s since been added to the bucket list. 🙂
Lady Lynne and I love sharing our holidays with you.
This was more than just any holiday. As I mentioned several times it was a “holiday of a lifetime” and we were extremely greatful to have been able to experience it.
Judging by the comments on these 4 posts you guys enjoyed these. Thanks for your positive contributions and taking the time to read and comment.
You make it all worthwhile, so much so we’ve decided to plan something fantastic for 2017. We’re already saving hard. I’ll update you in February as to where exactly that is and we’re going to.
I am absolutely, positively envious of your travels, you have NO IDEA. I have wanted to go to Africa my ENTIRE LIFE!
It’s happening!
You so should GiGi, it really is a complete eye opener. You will love it!! 😀
Okay so I know that I see lime and starfruit in your stash, buuuuuut that’s pretty much all I’m 100% sure about 😆 I’m definitely a little envious, though — how amazing must those taste?!?! And that shot you captured of Kilimanjaro from the plane just gives me shivers. It would definitely be an amazing experience to be able to climb that!
Before I went on the spice tour, I probably would have only got the lime and starfruit too!
Oh you should so come and climb Kilimanjaro with us! We haven’t planned it yet, it’s only on the “bucket list”, but it would be amazing wouldn’t it?
Wow whoa, and egad. That spice tour sounds like a real eye opener, even in a deluge. I love love love how you and Lynne are no-holds-barred travelers. You truly immerse yourselves into your expereicnes, and I think that is omething that so few people do. Sure, You have your beach and sun days, but you really go after ADVENTURES, not just things to do. Bravo. And I can’t wait to hear about the next adventure! Maybe with a stop in Chicago?? To pick me up on the way, of course 😀
There’s just something about touching, holding and smelling those spices that takes you right back to nature.
I love to immerse myself into the whole thing! The food, the scenery, the travel, the day trips and try to see as much as we can. I often think “I’m only here on this planet once” and I just want to try and grab every experience and make the best of it.
There’s also the fact I’ve paid a lot of money, and being truly Scottish. I’m going to get my money’s worth. 😉
A spice tour sounds amazing! Isn’t it incredible that God made so many awesome spices?
It was amazing Emily. Such beautiful smelling spices and exotic tasting fruits. I’m very grateful for everything this world has to offer, yes 🙂
I would be in heaven on the spice tour!!!
And that sunset :O No words!
As a fellow foodie, like me, you would probably spend a lot of the spice tour thinking about what dishes you would use certain spices for! 🙂
Yes. That sunset. Say no more…… 😀
That’s really interesting about cloves, I never knew they were such a big deal to them.
Also, I only recently discovered that was how pineapples grew. I am not sure how I thought they grew before haha.
I only really had a vague idea of how these spices grew at all, so the cloves thing was even more of a revelation!
And yes, I always thought pineapples hung down from trees. I thought I’d better take a picture to prove to everyone back home, they don’t! 🙂
Can I come on your next adventure?! Lol I’ll squeeze in a suitcase. Luke can stay in Glasgow. 😉 I’ll say it again, I’ve had friends and family go to Africa before but this really captured the experience as a person visiting should. Thanks for sharing your adventure!
Thanks Erin! 😀
It was great for me to re-live all of the fantastic adventures we had in Africa, as I wrote up these 4 posts.
The only problem I had was trying to fit in, only the most interesting parts and the best photographs, when I actually had loads of pages of notes and hundreds of photographs! 😆
Lady Lynne and you make a good looking pair – and, have you tried selling those hats as “rain hats” yet? 🙂
I have so enjoyed these posts on y’alls trip of a lifetime and cannot wait to hear what’s next!
Now – about those spices – I thought there’d be an answer key? Photo? I am so curious …
Gorgeous photos from throughout your trip – feel like I was there with y’all and that final photo from the plane of Kilimanjaro is GORGEOUS!
Ha ha ha, why thank you Shashi. Lightroom makes some good adjustments on me eh? 😉
Thanks so much for following our trip with us. We love how you enjoy them so much and you’re really enthusiastic about them. Yeah, sorry I should have done an answer key to the spices photograph shouldn’t I. Next time I do something like that, I will.
Isn’t Kilimanjaro amazing. We were so lucky to see it at that time we were flying in the morning because usually it’s covered in clouds. I hope one day that we’ll climb it. 😀
LOVED reading these all- I wish you had time to check out the Ngorogoro Craters- most amazing experience! PS- Have you finished off the malaria tablets yet 😉
Thanks Arman 🙂
Hopefully we’ll get to the Ngorogoro Craters one day!
Yep, finally finished off the malaria tablets a few weeks ago. I’m not too bad with them, but they seemed to be making Lynne feel ill at the end of her course.