Our hotel in Zanzibar was very nice, located on a gorgeous beach with a huge bar. Our accommodations were in small little houses built just off the beach, each containing two rooms. The weather was not ideal as it stayed warm but pretty overcast for most of the day. I actually preferred this to the scorching heat that Melissa and I had endured for the last 5 weeks, and found Zanzibar a wonderful break from our travels.
During the day most of us went for a dip in the warm waters of the Indian Ocean which was definitely the most beautiful clear water I had ever seen. The sand was an amazing white color and when the water washed up on shore it was transparent on the sand making a really beautiful effect. I took a much needed run down the beach to explore and get some exercise, which was really fun. The sand was flat and soft for at least a mile down the beach and I was able to run barefoot the entire way. Melissa was very excited about doing some yoga on the beach so she awoke early and made her way out to the beach. She quickly picked up two friends, some very friendly brown dogs that "live" at the hotel. They proceeded to show her downward dog and then jumped around her thinking her yoga was an invitation to play. After about 10 minutes they settled down and just took a spot on the beach and watched her for the next 30 minutes. When she did a headstand, one dog curled up around her head to help her balance.
In the evening the bar prepared a beach-side dinner for us along with entertainment. This turned out to be one of the best dinners so far on the trip. They killed and barbecued an entire goat for us and had been cooking it for most of the day. We were served some vegetables and rice followed by some huge chunks of tender goat. After the goat they brought us out some fish that they had caught that morning which was really well prepared. After dinner the entertainment came, which was three African men in grass skirts with their faces painted white as ghosts. They performed some dancing as well as various feats of balance and skill. The head of the party did a handstand on top of a table and some very precariously balanced blocks about 20 feet off the ground. For the finale they did fire swallowing and even had about three volunteers from the audience swallow small flaming balls (which were cotton balls soaked in kerosene).
After the entertainment left we still had a number of hours to relax on the beach and have a couple of drinks. The tide had gone out tremendously and Melissa and I decided to explore the beach a little. We were able to walk about a quarter mile from the bar out towards the ocean without even getting much above our ankles wet. We found a giant starfish and just admired the beautiful stars while standing in the dark where hours ago the ocean had been. It was one of my favorite moments of the trip so far.
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