Tag: market

Zanzibar, Tanzania in 4 Days Travel Blog

Zanzibar is a semi-autonomous region of Tanzania. It is composed of the Zanzibar Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, 20 miles off the coast of the mainland. It consists of many small islands and two large ones: Unguja (the main island referred to as Zanzibar) and Pemba Island. The capital is Zanzibar City. Its historic center is Stone Town, which is a World Heritage Site. I stayed in Stone Town at Stonetown View Inn. If you wish to stay in a hostel, Lost and Found is the popular hostel that most volunteers stay at in Stone Town. Another popular area to stay is on the East coast at Jambiani Beach. Although this is a more picturesque beach, I preferred to stay in Stone Town because there were more accessible restaurants, markets, and nightlife. I took 2 day trips to the East Coast for very cheap so I think I made the right decision. Stone Town is also close to the airport making it nice on your arrival and departure days. Stone Town in Swahili means “Old Town” and is the old part of Zanzibar City. The newer portion of the city is known as Ng’ambo, Swahili for “the other side”. Stone Town is located on the western coast of Unguja. Day 1 : Stone Town On my first day in Zanzibar, I explored Stone Town by walking along the waterfront, strolling on the beach, and exploring the main market. Darajani Market has everything- from spices, fresh fish, meat and chickens to shoes, household goods, and electronics. It is all set out in a series of covered halls and overflows into the surrounding streets. If you’re buying food, come in the morning when everything is fresh, although it’s much busier then. After the main market, I explored more of the town by walking through the maze of streets filled with various souvenir shops. Be sure to bargain!! I also took a visit to the Old Fort (free of charge). The Old Fort overlooks Forodhani Gardens and the ocean. It was built by Omani Arabs when they seized the island from the Portuguese in 1698, and over the centuries it’s had various uses, from a prison to a tennis club. There is a line of souvenir shops and a nice cafe/bar here. I walked past the Old Dispensary historical building. It is located on the seafront, halfway between the Palace Museum and the harbor. It served as a dispensary in the first half of the 20th century. It now has a small museum about the history of Zanzibar. One thing that I did not get around to doing in Stone Town was visiting Sultan’s Place. I did, however walk by it. It is a 3-story building located on the seafront. The palace was built in the late 19th century to serve was a residence for the Sultan’s family. After the Zanzibar Revolution, in 1964 it was formally renamed to People’s Palace and used as a government seat. In 1994, it became a museum about the Zanzibari royal family and history. For dinner, I ate at the local street market in Forodhani Park where several food vendors prepare food along the waterfront. Each evening as the sun sets, Forodhani Gardens transforms into an open-air food market. You can eat while you watch the locals dive into the water during high tide. Another restaurant option that you can consider is the Floating Restaurant. I also went to Tatu night club to dance and have a drink. Tatu means three in Swahili and this place has three floors: a well-stocked bar on the 1st floor, a pub-style restaurant on the 2nd floor, and a rooftop cocktail lounge on the 3rd floor where you can soak up the ocean views and dance the night away. Day 2: Prison Island and Nakupenda Beach The next day, I took a private tour of Prison Island and Nakupenda Beach. I got contact information from reading reviews on Trip Advisor. You can contact Ali on WhatsApp at +255 773 518 781 or Mohamed on at +255 777 576 383. At first Ali wanted to charge me $120, but I told him that it was mentioned on Trip Advisor for $50 so he agreed to that cost. You seriously have to bargain with EVERYONE in Tanzania. They want your business and know that other companies are doing it for next-to-nothing so are willing to go pretty low. The $50 included hotel pick-up, entrance fee to Prison Island, the boat ride, snorkel gear, and a delicious seafood lunch. Changuu Island, also known as Prison Island, lies about 30 minutes by boat from Stone Town. The island was formerly owned by an Arab and saw use for confinement of slaves. It also became a quarantine station for yellow fever epidemics. Prisoners were never actually held here though. The island was bought by General Lloyd Mathews and his goal was to make it into a jail. The jail was built in 1893 and is still there today and hence the name “Prison Island”. In 1919, the British governor of Seychelles sent a gift in the form of four Aldabra giant tortoises to Changuu. Presently the species is considered vulnerable and has been placed on the IUCN Red List. There is a dedicated foundation on the island which looks after the tortoises’ welfare. The oldest tortoise at the sanctuary is 192 years old. The average weight of the tortoises is 200kg. While on the island you will be able to observe and feed the tortoises, swim, sunbathe, and snorkel. After two hours walking around and taking some time to relax, I got back in the boat where the two co-captains/guides took me to Nakupenda Beach. Nakupenda in Swahili means “I love you” and is the name of an amazing sandbank located just off of Stone Town. After another 30-minute boat ride, I took a walk in the sand and went snorkeling as the guys cooked lunch. For lunch, they cooked lobster, squid, octopus, fish, and

Los Angeles, California in 6 Days Travel Blog

After receiving a $500 airline voucher, I decided to fly to the West Coast and explore Los Angeles, California for the first time. My mom met me out there and we spent 7 days trying to fit in as many touristy things in a week as possible. LA has so much to see and do that you could live there for years, and still not have done it all. I bought the 5-day Go Los Angeles city card pass that gave me admission to 35+ Los Angeles attractions and experiences. The pass is also available in 1,2, 3, and 7 days, although Universal Studios is only included in the 3+ day options. The pass comes with an easy-to-use app with a guide of the city. This helped me plan out our days. I used the pass for 5 days on days 2 through 6 of my trip. I also made an itinerary on Sygic Travel that you can view. Day 1 Miracle Mile After traveling for 24 hours, I was exhausted so the first day of the trip was a day to relax. We stayed at the Renaissance Hotel close to the airport on the first night before transferring to our AirBnB the following day. After getting settled in, I walked to the La Brea Tar Pits, which are a group of tar pits around Hancock Park. Natural asphalt has seeped up from the ground in this area for tens of thousands of years. Over many centuries, the tar preserved the bones of trapped animals. You can walk around and see the tar pits without paying for the museum. The George C. Page Museum is dedicated to researching the tar pits and displaying specimens from the animals that died there, including several animals from the Ice Age. The price to enter the museum is $12 or can be used with the Go Los Angeles card. However, I did not start my 5-day pass until the following day. Directly beside the Tar Pits, is the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. This art museum is located on Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile vicinity. It is the largest art museum in the western United States and holds more than 150,000 works spanning the history of art from ancient times to the present. In addition to art exhibits, the museum features film and concert series. The admission price is $25. Here, you can also find “Urban Light“. Let there be light – is definitely the thing that will come to your mind when you see the 202 street lamps arranged into one sculpture by Chris Burden. Even though the lamps are of the same color, they differ in heights and types so it is not a totally uniform sculpture. Right down the road from these two attractions is the Peterson Automotive Museum. Tickets cost $25. I did not go in, but it is something to consider if you are in the area. The night I arrived, I went out to two bars in Venice. One was The Lincoln and the other was Roosterfish. Day 2 Santa Monica, Malibu, and Venice Beach Today was the first day that I used my Go Los Angeles pass. I started off by catching an Uber to the Santa Monica Pier. On this popular pier, you will find many attractions like an amusement park, aquarium, arcade, shops, an iconic carousel, and many places to get food. I arrived right at 9AM and went straight to the Starline office to ask if there was room on the 9:30AM celebrity homes tour. I was in luck! This is free with the Go Card on a standby basis so as long as they still have room on the bus, then you can go. There were only about 9 people on the tour and the bus could fit roughly 20. On the tour, I enjoyed the bus ride from Santa Monica to Malibu along the pacific Coast Highway, where I admired elite beachfront communities. Homes I saw on the tour included: Leonardo DiCaprio, Bruce Willis, Cher, Adam Chandler, Jennifer Anniston, Courtney Cox, Matthew Perry, Ellen, David Beckham, Paris Hilton, Jim Carrey, and more. These are there summer/vacation homes, so don’t be expecting anything overly extravagant. My favorite homes were actually the ones on the hills, like Cher, Ellen, and David Beckhams, versus the beachfront homes. The tour lasted about 2 hours and ended back at the Santa Monica Pier. Our tour guide, Leo, recommended a few places to eat at for lunch. I ended up eating at an authentic Italian restaurant called Bruno’s. It was very good. After lunch, I headed back onto the Santa Monica Pier. I took photos with the Route 66 sign. This was cool seeing because I just taught my students about it when learning about the Westward Expansion. U.S. Route 66, also known as the Will Rogers Highway, the Main Street of America, or the Mother Road, was one of the original highways in the U.S. Highway System. US 66 was established on November 11, 1926. The highway, which became one of the most famous roads in the United States, originally ran from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, covering a total of 2,448 miles. US 66 served as a primary route for those who migrated west, especially during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. I next used my Los Angeles Go Card to redeem my unlimited ride wristband at Pacific Park. This normally costs $35. This park looks directly out on the Pacific Ocean, in the direction of Catalina Island. It is the only amusement park on the West Coast of the United States located on a pier and LA’s only admission-free park. There are a total of twelve rides in Pacific Park, including the world’s first and only solar powered Ferris wheel that provides a view of the Pacific Ocean and a roller coaster that circles the majority of the park. It has appeared in over 500 movies and television shows, so was definitely

Livingstone, Zambia Travel Blog