An Anglican church steeple and a Mosque Minaret

We have been in Zanzibar for four days and I love our apartment. It is very comfortable and spacious. When we were in Washington DC, this summer we visited the National Museum of African Art and they had an exhibit on the sounds of the market in Lagos, Nigeria. It was an interesting exhibit, but also very familiar having visited many open markets in African countries. Two of the things I am enjoying are the sounds we hear and the winding streets. I will stand outside on the balcony at different times of day and look outside and watch the different people from many different places and with a wide variety of dress styles walking down the narrow passage.

One of the streets near us

Our apartment is well ventilated so we are cool with the ceiling fans and windows open, but this also means we hear lots of different sounds throughout the day. In the morning, the roosters and sounds of people washing and working remind me it is time to get up and in the afternoon we hear lots of children outside playing. At sunset we have calls to prayer from different mosques that compete for the airwaves. In the evening, we have different types of music and cats. Because this week is the Eid celebration, I am not sure if the music is just for Eid or if it will continue after the celebration is over.

Another street

To get to our apartment, we walk up 4 sets of winding stairs, but it is worth it. We just have to remember to hold on and turn the light on. This will help us get our exercise.

Our stairs remind me of stairs in a church steeple in Europe, but only 4 flights.