STONE TOWN — Is located on the west coast of the main island. It is a place of winding lanes, ornately carved wooden doors, circular towers, raised terraces and beautiful mosques. Important architectural features are the Livingstone house, the Guliani Bridge, the House of Wonders and the Aga Khan’s Old Dispensary Building.
Stone Town is an extraordinary place to explore; the ancient maze of narrow streets is a romantic hotch-potch of historic old stone buildings built close together for cool respite from the tropical island sun; shaded by elegantly carved balconies, loggias and verandas that cling precipitously overhead. Stone Town gives a glimpse of the essence of Zanzibar, the sights, the sounds and smells of the market, restaurants, harbor and mosques.
An exceptional resound of the past, Stone Town reveals a rich architectural inheritance and a long cultural heritage. Once a noteworthy trading point, with servitude and spices the fundamental export, such days might be since a long time ago finished yet their presence on the substance of Stone Town is emphatically felt and structures a unique backdrop for exploration.
The nineteenth century added extraordinarily to Stone Town’s engineering store and thus it’s covered with beautiful subtleties of style and impact. The Portuguese left their engraving amid the slave exchange, with a tremendous fortification set on the shoreline front, while Omani and Indian suggestions are likewise present. Be that as it may, it is maybe Stone Town’s Swahili pizazz for which it is best known, with fine models absorbed into the royal residences and chateaus of the day. On account of Stone Town’s remaining as a notable fortune trove it has earned the respect of UNESCO World Heritage Status.
There is bounty to do while remaining in the old town, with Spice Tours best of the rundown. Aided by a nearby guide set out on a sorted out visit, visiting spice plantations and relishing Swahili lunch thereafter. You can also catch a boat to islands off the drift and walk through the thin streets and back roads on strolling visits. Taking in the various sites around the towns such as the Palace Museum, the House of Wonders, the Old Arab Fort and Forodhani Gardens.
Your Stone Town tour of Zanzibar with BookmySafary.com will be marked by many moments of wonder as you view the charms of this old metropolis that has retained its essence, but also has favorably, albeit cautiously embraced the elements of modernization. Every nuance of its vibrant history is evident in the beautiful buildings, some that whisper about the Omani advent in Zanzibar and others that speak about the origins of Swahili architecture fused with a Persian Shirazi influence. The narrow streets are lined with many residential houses that preserve their original Swahili-Omani themes with exquisitely carved doorways with metal studs, overhanging balconies and latticed windows. Side by side, you will see churches that are evidently continental due to the colonial presence and the many mosques commissioned by the olden Sultans of Zanzibar. Step into the House of Wonders and visit the 17th-century built fort. You could also check out the one-time slave market that Zanzibar was repentantly renowned for. To lay your finger on the pulse of the old town, you must take a walking tour through its enchanting labyrinth alleyways. Begin your journey of exploration of Zanzibar’s market where locals buy just about any perishable from reaped fishes just from the deep waters to recently harvested vegetables and outlandish fruits like shoki-shoki (rambutan), custard apple, durian, fenesi and bungo to name a few.
With the taste of the flavors still on your tongue to sample the fruits, head out to the Anglican Church that was built to bond religious gaps and in celebration of the end of all traces of the slave trade. Its foundations stand at the exact location where slaves were traded and the church altars were built in place of the whipping pole that stood in the slave bazaar. Here, you will learn that the Sultan of Zanzibar abolished slavery in 1873 in a treaty with its commercial partner in slavery, the British Empire, as a result of the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 under English law. Next, your well-informed BookmySafary.com guide will lead you to Sultan’s Palace Museum (Beit-al-Sahel) and House of Wonders (Beit-al-Ajaib) that houses a collection of personal items from the royal rulers of Zanzibar. Go on to the Tippu Tip’s House, Africa House that was once a British Club, the Old Fort, Khoja Shia Ithna-Asheri Jamaat Dispensary and Forodhani Gardens. End your journey on this leg of your cultural and historical vacation in this part of Africa with a souvenir extravaganza at the small stores along the narrow streets and haggle for delicate jewelry, distinct Swahili clothing, hand-carved curios and paintings.
