FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX: From The Mountain To The Ocean

Time to say goodbye! Today we began our experiment for a non-cruise way to prevent the end of holiday blues. If an all-inclusive resort stay overlooking the Indian Ocean in Zanzibar doesn’t do it then nothing will. The day started well with breakfast, a cute packed lunch and lots of hugs at the airport as the Chins headed towards Cape Town. The journey had the potential for hiccups with a drive of two hours, two light aircraft flights and another drive, but fortunately all the connections were smooth and the flights were mostly on time. After the third leg it was a huge bonus to see someone holding up a priority pass sign at arrivals in Zanzibar as we walked off the tarmac. There was no food, papers or showers, but it was the best lounge we’ve ever been to because it had it’s own immigration service! Instead of lining up in the heat with everyone else we were able to sit on a couch in an airconditioned room with cold drinks, fill out our forms, have our passports checked and get everything done without getting off the couch. We were then let into the baggage claim area through a door that was on the other side of all the lines.

One last look at the crater

Our packed lunches. Nothing like child labour...

Sandwich and frittata

Goodbye Chins! Thank you for being such fun and fantastic travel buddies

The first flight

Yes the plane is that small that you can see the pilot and co-pilot do everything

The second flight. I believe that is...Ocean!

Our one-hour drive through Zanzibar to our resort Diamonds La Gemma dell'Est in Nungwi was uneventful. The weather is completely different to the cool altitude climate of Ngorongoro Crater. Here it is hot, humid and the umbrella trees and grass lands have been replaced by palm trees, sugar cane and huge durian trees. As we reached the north of the island the hundreds of incomplete houses were replaced by gates to luxury resorts. Tourism is a big industry here catering mostly to the European market on first impressions. At our resort, we noted that menus and the boutique were all priced in Euros.

By the time we checked in and settled into our rooms, it was already past 5pm. We managed to do a quick reconnaissance of the grounds and included perks of the resort. Thursdays was African dinner day! Rather than being at the usual restaurant, it was by the beach with Maasai entertainment. The buffet was surprisingly good. We were impressed with the variety offered and the quality of food. The chicken curry African style was delicious! As we had already seen the Maasai “performance” several times, we opted to head back to our rooms. To the shock of the staff, we were in and out of the dinner within 31 minutes flat. Sleep ins for the next 5 nights….bliss!