I thoroughly enjoy cooking so taking a spice tour on Spice Island (Zanzibar) seemed like a no brainer but, after mixed reviews, I waited until my last full day in Zanzibar to book the tour. For about $20 I hopped on a private taxi to some of the neighboring spice farms. We drove past a town called Bububu named phonetically for the sound the old passing train would make as it rumbled through the small town. We started to drive through more rural towns, the real, less touristy Zanzibar , until we arrived at a nondescript spice farm. We wandered through the forest on dirt paths as Sabri, our jolly guide, pointed out different herbs and spices. We weaved in and out of trees, bushes and brush learning loads of information as we went along. Although I have not cross checked any of his facts, I feel that overall it was a fun and informative tour. For example, did you know that cinnamon comes from the bark off a type of evergreen tree or that nutmeg clears up congestion and is used in many cough syrups?
As I was busy absorbing all these new facts the tour crescendo happened as a local shimmied up a coconut tree while singing "Jambo Bwana". Four ripe coconuts fell to the ground for us to enjoy. The perfect refresher after a great tour!
No comments:
Post a Comment