Here's an in-depth look at the social, economic and health situation in Pemba Island in Zanzibar, Tanzania. It's quite a revealing insight into how the citizens of Zanzibar are treated by the government, especially regarding medical care. For all the natural beauty in this area, from the white sands of the Indian Ocean to the Serengeti further inland, I do wish the Tanzanian and Zanzibar governments were able to better look after the people. Although I never visited Pemba myself, certainly our experience in Zanzibar was quite isolated from what the local population endures on a daily basis; so in many ways I am equally guilty in spending my tourist dollars on sight seeing rather than volunteering or donating to other causes in the region.

06/19/08 by visitEarth
Tags: Pemba, Pemba Island, Zanzibar, Tanzania

 

Here's a nice 6-minute video of the indigenous Red Colobus Monkey in Zanzibar, Tanzania on the East Coast of Africa. When we visited Zanzibar last year, these monkeys in Jozani Forest was one of our highlights - they are very comfortable with people and cameras, and like to run around, play and even sleep right in front of you.

05/08/08 by visitEarth
Tags: Zanzibar, Tanzania, Africa, monkey, colobus, red colobus, Jozani

 

Produced by the Zanzibar Association of Tourism Investors, this is quite an excellent and compelling look at this island off the east coast of Tanzania. There's a great deal of historical and cultural information and does quite a good job at selling the region!

04/01/08 by visitEarth
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Here's a brief video showing a coconut tree climber in Zanzibar, Tanzania. First he climbs the tree and uses a machete to fall the coconut; he then takes the fallen fruit, hacks the top and offers the coconut milk inside as a drink. It's a fun video to watch!

We experienced this first-hand last year as part of our Spice Tour and even Elizabeth (who hates coconut) enjoyed the fresh, clear, sweet liquid inside. Here's a photo of Elizabeth taking that drink while our guide Ali laughs in the background:

03/18/08 by visitEarth
Tags: Zanzibar, Tanzania, Africa, coconut, tree, climbing, spice tour

 

Beautiful video and a very interesting concept - that the people of Zanzibar, Tanzania and the Maasai (Masai) of Africa as being works of art themselves. The culture, clothing and personalities are indeed very colourful, and the images and music really celebrates that. Well done!

02/18/08 by visitEarth
Tags: Zanzibar, Tanzania, Africa, people, culture, art, Stone Town, Maasai