Zanzibar is steeped in history because of its prominence as a coastal trading hub over many centuries. Stone Town, the old city quarters, is a Unesco heritage site where Swahili, Arab, Asian and European influences come together.
A guided tour through the narrow winding streets of Stone Town is recommended. Many buildings have carved Zanzibar doors, their intricate ornamentation once a mark of wealth and prestige. We passed by interesting places like the old British consulate, where European explorers Speke, Burton and David Livingston once stayed, and the house of Tippu Tip, the notorious slave trader.
The Freddie Mercury House is the birthplace of the legendary lead singer of the British rock band, Queen, born as Farrokh Bulsara to Indian parents.
The Anglican Cathedral sits where the infamous slave market was and still has slave chambers in its basement. The Cathedral’s slave exhibition is informative about this dark era, and on the church grounds is the Slave Memorial, a dug pit with stone figurines of chained slaves.
