Al Johari Stone Town

... which ended up being only 18 when that was all I had and my mastercard was (again) rejected by the ATM (always take a visa debit and a mastercard....avoid this cashlessness..though in this case, rather chuffed to be rejected) but Precision Air took off on time and I landed into Jomo Kenyatta during a general power outage.<br><br>Which made it hell... the only way to survive? Lounge. There was no electricity, it was dark, the uninterested lounge hostesses couldn't care ...

... to museums or offices. <br><br>Eventually we found ourselves back in the narrow twisting roads with shops in the quarter of town we had visited on our first trip there. Gabe found some sort of meat pastry and ate it with relish, enjoying the cheap price as much as the food. I held out for something more reliable and when we turned the corner we ran into the girls. Everyone was hungry so we went in search of a café together, finding one ...

... from. Many of the plants we were not able to recognize at first, but as Jimmy (the Irish bloke on our tour) says "every day is a school day". <br>The guys at the spice plantation also let us try some of the spiced tea and some of the fresh fruits. One of the guys even climbed a super tall tree to get us a couple of fresh coconuts.<br>

... ornately carved doorways and occasionally opened out onto pretty squares. The town is right on the coast and a favourite spot was Africa House, an old British club looking over the food market and the sea &#8211; decorated in such a beautiful way that you could easily imagine the gentlemen in their khaki jackets being served by butlers wearing fezzes, the cocktails might have been expensive but at least you didn't begrudge ...

... 2 days R&amp;R in a real bed (Sunset Bungalows = 3 star beach side resort = US$25 per night including breakfast) were after 2 medium length travel days (300 km and 400 km) travelling east from Arusha to Dar Es Salaam. Despite leaving each morning at 8 am we still got into our evening's campsite with just an hour to spare before the sun set just after 6 pm. Somehow we lost time at the various stops along the way. An hour to pitch tents and then to get dinner underway on either the ...

... to work on this 700 word story but am worried it won't convey all that I've experienced here. I will continue to work on this peice in the next couple of days and hope to send it off by the end of the week. I hope it makes it into print and that more people at home are exposed to the situation here in Tanzania. I only hope to inspire more people to reach out internationally. If one person is changed by it, I've done my part. Lots of love from East Africa, Erin

... contacts which turned out to be a rookie mistake. The following day we said goodbye to Russ and Virginia after a whirlwind trip though Africa. The following day we decided that one day snorkeling was just not enough and Latha put her contacts in and we headed for a marine wildlife reserve. Again, what a great experience and it was wonderful to see the fish in Finding Nemo up close. Latha really enjoyed it this time and would point ...

... the sea and has never really been in past his knees and even though I'm a really strong swimmer I don't feel totally comfortable in the sea either. To see John in there up to his chest and clearly enjoying just bobbing around made me extremely happy. The water was really buoyant and if you just laid back and relaxed you just floated around without having to do anything to keep afloat - we were in there for a good hour. After splashing around we went and found a shaded spot under ...

... Finally met another American, some English and Irish girls, and a really cool South African man on the boat. I am off to see some of the old arabic architecture and tonight I will go to the Forodhani again for dinner to stuff myself with Zanzaibar pizza, calamari, lobster, and red snapper.., a festival is going on so after I can dance till three in the morning to the local Taraab beats! Until next time.... Two more nights to go!

... and I nip in for a quick dabble and make about $400 between us in about 15 minutes. We cash in and head back to the campsite with Tim looking over his shoulder to make sure that there aren't a hoarde of casino staff following him to steal his winnings back. We get back to the campsite and find that Jules has been a gem and cooked dinner for us, so we all eat and then head to the bar for a last couple of drinks with Anita before she heads off back to the UK.