Anyway, Africa still rules. I'm just not convinced that Kenya and Tanzania qualify as Africa anymore. It feels more like disneyland.

written by  Jason Kester on May 7, 2003 from Moshi, Tanzania
from the travel blog: Africa, 2003
tagged Safari
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For two weeks, I was convinced that both Kenya and Tanzania were lost causes. Anywhere you want to go is overrun by the tourist industry, and any westerner is just a big sack of cash for the locals to harass.

Zanzibar town is a definite step forward. There's still the full-court press in the market and near the tourist shops, but you can get away from it and get lost in the back alleys of a pretty cool town. It's like 4000 years old and all funky winding alleyways between ancient stone buildings with intricately carved ebony doorways. Sun and nice beaches on the shore, shade and cool breezes blowing smells from the spice markets through the streets. Yeah, I can deal with this.

The rest of the island is supposed to be your standard-issue tropical Paradise, completely ravaged by tourism. I'm bracing for the worst.

written by  Jason Kester on May 10, 2003 from Zanzibar, Tanzania
from the travel blog: Africa, 2003
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Check me out, I'm walkin' around in an African capital city at night, and I haven't been robbed, beaten or killed even once. Nobody is following me around trying to sell me jewelry and wood carvings. No crime, no hassles. Civil war is your friend.

Not to worry, I'm sure that this place will turn into another Arusha inside of ten years. But for now, everybody's just too happy that the war is over to think about exploiting the few tourists that are coming in.

So yeah, Uganda gets the thumbs up. Too bad I've got to leave tomorrow. It's off to Dubai and Cairo next. Here's the final Africa tally:

8 countries
75 days
20 hot showers
140 hours in busses
12 hours swimming in bilharzia contaminated water
30 rhino sighted
4 class 5 rapids rafted
2 flights
15 varieties of local beer

Good value!

written by  Jason Kester on May 19, 2003 from Kampala, Uganda
from the travel blog: Africa, 2003
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