STONE TOWN, ZANZIBAR

Situated on the Indian Ocean, Stone Town, on the semi-autonomous island of Zanzibar, in Tanzania, is a beautiful city combining much of the beauty of East Africa into in small, wonderful, and unique maze of history, food, and culture.  A city reflecting it history as a melting pot for various people from all across the Indian Ocean and the world, Stone Town melds architectural aspects from Europe, the Middle East, and East Africa, creating a hodgepodge of styles that results in a colonial style house, complete with latticework awnings and huge East African carved wood doors.  Perhaps the most iconic style, however, is what gives the city its name: the coral studded stone and mangrove wood buildings towering over the winding alleyways that define the city's shape and feel.

Amongst the alleyways and along the shoreline streets life moves at a leisurely pace. This attitude can best be captured by the Swahili word "polepole", a combination of mantra and lifestyle that essentially means, "calm, slow, take it easy, relax."  This is visible everywhere you look, from the women slowly browsing wares in the market to the man unhurriedly riding his bike down the street, a whole fresh tuna slung over his rear rack, to the fishing boats, languidly bobbing in the harbor, the blue of their hulls echoing the deep blue of the sea.

As a center for both the spice and slave trades, Stone Town has a checkered history, but it has recently transformed itself into a center for tourism, embracing its complicated history and sharing it with the world.  This past, coupled with its unique culture and attitude makes Stone Town an amazing place to see, a relaxing and contemplative counterpoint to the hectic buzzing of Nairobi or Kampala, a small bit of breathing room in the claustrophobic mega cities and booming growth of East Africa.