Zanzibar Part 2 – Spice Tour and Prison Island
The Road Chose Me Volume 2 OUT NOW!!
The Road Chose Me Volume 2: Three years and 54,000 miles around Africa
We head into the center of the island for a tour around a huge spice plantation. Over an entire morning we see, cut open and sample more different spices and tropical fruits than I even knew existed! Each is unique in the way it is grown, harvested and eventually used for cooking. At the end of the tour we sample all the fruits, all of which are super fresh and downright delicious!
Aptly named star fruit
I like this spikey ball fruit
This red stuff was used for lipstick and makeup
This is pepper!
All the spices are bursting with flavor
Inside one of the large fruits
Cutting the bark off a tree to sample
Another something
Something tropical
These are cloves – I had no idea they grow like this on a big tree
Our guide made as some presents. This is the first time I have worn a tie in longer than I care to remember!
In the afternoon we hop aboard a small boat and cruise out to Slave Island, not far from the big island. The highlight here is the giant tortoises, which defy belief. They are absolutely enormous, and very passive. Our guide shows us just how they like to be rubbed, and we feed them many green leaves.
He has some teeth!
Em feeding the tortoise
Rubbing the tortoise just the right way makes them stand up
Before heading back we wander the island, then jump in the water for a snorkel on top of the nearby reef. There are a huge amount of coral and tropical fish on display, and with the water temperate right near body temperature, there can be no mistaking we’re in paradise!
The boat ride to Prison Island
The view from the dock at Slave Island
-Dan
All photos in this post taken by Emily – www.emilysheff.com
Wow, amazing photos, it looks so beautiful! For the spices, do they export them or primarily use them in their community? How’s the local cuisine affected by the diversity and availability of these spices?
Hi Wesley,
Zanzibar is a massive exporter of all kinds of spices – it’s a big business.
The local cuisine is simply delicious – absolutely bursting with flavor and subtle spices. I could live here eating street food for a very long time and be a happy person!
-Dan
Hi Dan,
The fruit that is cut into two and captioned ‘another something’ are the same, its cocoa. The whole world needs them to produce chocolate. Spiky big fruit captioned ‘something tropical’ is Jak, delicious when ripe or can be cooked in raw form..one of our favourites in Sri Lanka.
Thanks for the info Leo!