I Love Work, I Could Sit and Watch It All Day

We made an early start and met our new guide, Omar, at about 5.30. He immediately set off at a pace which would not have disgraced some military route marches, through the rough back streets of Nungwi. This was a bit of a shock to those of us expecting, and shod for, a gentle walk along the beach.

Activity around the fish market was much less manic than in Stonetown, but we got to see some very large fish including rays and marlin being landed and then auctioned. While there was no sunrise to speak of, once the sun started peeking through the trees to the east the boats were lit beautifully.

We opted for the beach route back to the hotel and breakfast. Circuit 1 complete, 4km.

After breakfast we met Omar for the official village tour. We returned to the back streets of Nungwi, first stop the school where we had a very interesting talk / fundraising exercise from the school principle. This was almost heart-breaking. He and his staff are obviously caring, determined educators, but they are battling with large class sizes (80-100 in some cases) and close to zero resources. The school’s textbook store (for almost 2000 pupils) is not much larger than my office bookshelf, and they have to teach “sending an email” in theory because they don’t have any computers for pupils. They will be receiving the contents of my “goodie bag”, plus a more substantial donation when I get home.

Apart from that there wasn’t a great deal to the back streets of Nungwi. Most of the adults would prefer not to be photographed. Most of the children are less concerned, but we attracted the attention of a group of very excitable youngsters who made it a challenge to take photos. I got a nice photo of a pretty young girl, but what you can’t see is that I took this one-handed with the camera in my right hand, while my left hand was holding back the naughtiest young boys from trying to photo-bomb her.

Village toured we set off back to the hotel for lunch. Circuit 2 complete, another 5km+.

The geographic challenges of Nungwi were becoming apparent. All the hotels are on the west side, stretching down the long beach. The village and other photographic targets are on the northern stretch, and it’s a fair hike between them. This would be less of an issue except for the sweltering heat, and by lunchtime one member of the party had retired with heat exhaustion, and I was distinctly wavering about going out again.

Fortunately I did. I came up with the eminently sensible and simple solution of getting a taxi from the hotel back to the fish market. This didn’t save any time – the roads are so bad the taxis struggle to maintain a walking pace – but saved the energy and legs of those who opted for it.

The afternoon session focused on the dhow builders. This was absolutely fascinating. These highly-skilled craftsmen work with the simplest of hand tools to fashion mangrove and mango wood into the beautiful boats. The sequence is that first they lay down the keel with prow and stern timbers, then they build up the hull on the keel with temporary side supports, and then they fit the ship’s ribs into it. I must have spent an hour or more watching a chap take a curved length of tree trunk, and work it with a hand adze into a perfectly-fitted rib with a square profile and surfaces smooth to the touch as if they had been planed and sanded.

With the sun setting we walked back down the beach. Circuit 3 complete. My FitBit reported that the day’s activities amounted to 18.5k steps and 14km, and I’d taken a taxi for one of the legs (well, both my legs, but you know what I mean)! That may be a personal best for a trip of this nature. Hard work, but rewarding when you find the right subject.