Good Life: Zanzibar

“An alpha female traveling alone always finds people who want to take care of her”—Anonymous

By Guest Blogger Amyrae

I’ve found that the most gratifying way to experience culture while traveling, is to do it through the eyes of the locals.

Whether you go with a friend who is a native of the land, or you make acquaintances with the bartender from the hotel bar, being exposed and open to the everyday happenings of life with a local offers unparalleled cultural learning.

On a recent trip to Zanzibar I had an interesting encounter with a Masai transvestite, which I could never have anticipated prior to befriending some local fishermen at a bonfire on the beach in Paje. 

It all started innocently enough…they were cooking up the catch of the day and offered me my first taste of barracuda and a nice cold beer to go with it.  Hours and many introductions later they filled the fire pit with sand and said that they were moving on to party at an all night disco and asked if I wanted to come along.  The local females who had joined the group by this point were also very friendly and welcoming, so I felt plenty comfortable accepting their invitation.

In typical Zanzibari fashion, we chased down a ride along the road out of town, piled in on top of laps, cargo, even a chicken, and headed to the disco.   Shaking it to the Bongo flava and Taraab beats, I found myself dancing next to an elaborately dressed Masai woman who had her own exotic moves to share.  It was one of those thrilling moments that really makes you appreciate all the excitement life has to offer! 

It wasn’t until one of the Muslim men that I arrived with became agitated that I stepped away to show my respect.  I had no idea what his problem was at the time, I was having a blast, but looking out for my way back home, I didn’t want to upset him.  After his revelation that “that is not a woman” I couldn’t help but see the humor in the situation and I was awed once again at the cultural experience and learning.

Another great way to meet and experience local culture is to seek out the popular pastime activity. 

In Paje it happened to be scuba diving.  I went to the dive center, located right on the beach, and although I soon realized that the excursions were a little out of my budget, I befriended a few of the dive instructors who were happy to entertain me with their underwater adventure stories. 

Once again, after hours of great conversation, they invited me out for beers and local cuisine at a spot far more interesting, not to mention affordable, than the resort setting I’d been staying in. 

Another night of dancing, great food, great company, and even an invitation to go snorkeling the next day (for free) left me feeling like a local…and by the end of the week I had an invitation to become one.  It was a tough offer to resist!

** Stay tuned for more info on Alphanista Zanzibar 2020 trip.

Amyrae is in Brooklyn, NY and an aspiring writer, humanitarian, world traveler, and philanthropist living and loving life one day at a time, checking things off of her ever expanding TO DO list.

Originally posted 2020-04-26 21:25:06.