Dal Law Reunion

Me, Sarah and Moira

This month, we have a steady stream of visitors coming to stay with us. We started December with a bang, as two friends of mine from Dalhousie Law School, Moira and Sarah, came to explore the wonders of Tanzania. Moira made the long trek from New Brunswick to Dar, while Sarah hopped up to Dar from Johannesburg. It was great to spend time with old friends and to have a little slice of Canada in Tanzania. Later that same week, Wes, my boyfriend, touched down in Dar for a month long hiatus.

Moira, Sarah, Wes and I headed over to Zanzibar to celebrate our informal Dal Law Reunion. For scheduling reasons, Moira and Sarah went ahead to Stone town on Friday while Wes and I caught the early morning ferry the next day. It was a crowded 30 minute shuffle from the customs office onto the ferry, which was bulging at the seams with televisions, people and leafy, green vegtables. We burbled out of port about 45 minutes behind schedule only to stop 10 minutes into the trip for the crew to fix the ferry's engine. It was not a confidence inspiring move. Thankfully, we made it to Stone Town in one piece. After rejoining forces with Moira and Sarah, we were on our way to the beautiful and secluded beaches of the east coast of Zanzibar. As always, the beach was amazing and we had a very chill 24 hours, which were spent enjoying the sand, the sun and a couple of drinks. Unfortunately, I was feeling a bit under the weather, as I experienced my first rumblings of the equivalent of Dehli belly. Thankfully, it came and went fairly fast.

After a flying visit, Sarah and Moira headed back to Cape Town to explore the winelands and give shark diving a try. Wes and I stayed on in Stone Town for a couple more days to explore the attractions that we did not have a chance to see on our previous visit. The extra days gave us the opportunity to go snorkelling. As long as you can swim, you can snorkel. However, it doesn't necessarily mean you can snorkel well. I spent the first 15 minutes of snorkelling trying to figure out how to stop inhaling sea water. Eventually, I decided on a whale-like manuver of puffing all the water out of the tube every 5 minutes or so. When I had my face mask in the water, it felt like I had stepped into an episode of National Geographic, as I watched schools of fish dance by and a lone angel fish hoover the sea floor. As we were having a wildlife-themed day, Wes and I also went to feed the giant tortoises that make their home on Prison Island. The tortoises were a gift to the British in the 1900's and have been breeding on Prison Island ever since. It was fascinating to watch their wrinkly necks unwrinkle as they extended them to snap at the greens in our hands. There is definitely no chewing going on here.

Later this month, Wes and I will be changing places with a couple of the other CBA interns, Roanna and Prasanna. We will be heading down to South Africa, while Roanna and Prasanna will be heading to Dar from Grahamstown in South Africa and Addis Abba in Ethiopia respectively to spend their Christmas breaks with Cristiano. Wes and I are taking a slighter longer route to South Africa. We are taking the train from Dar to Lusaka in Zambia before catching a flight to Johannesburg. It promises to be an interesting journey.