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Zanzibar used to be the world's largest producer of cloves, and its history was heavily influenced by the this activity.
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Mtwara in Southern Tanzania was the site of one of the British colonial movement’s least successful enterprises, the ill-fated Groundnut Scheme. The Labour government of the 1940s wanted to grow peanuts in the area to provide cooking oil, still scarce in the postwar rationing era, but a combination of poor climate, worse soil and striking workers meant that the scheme ended in disaster.
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In 1890, Germany swapped the island of Zanzibar with Britain for Heligoland, an uninhabited rock in Europe’s North Sea.
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Mzungu, meaning white person, comes from the Swahili word kuzunguzungu ‘to wander around aimlessly, as though drunk or mad’…
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Zanzibar's paradise beaches are fringed by an abundance of coconut palms. Unlike most tourists, the local people see these trees as more than aesthetically pleasing flora! Nothing goes to waste, and apart from the famous nut, the coconut palm yields an impressive variety of products, among them materials for weaving, building, eating and drinking. The roofs of many houses in Zanzibar (particularly in rural areas) are constructed using makuti palm thatching, made from palm leaves. Its many uses makes the coconut palm one of the most versatile of all plants.
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Tanzania has over 130 tribal groups, making it the most diverse nation in Africa, but one of the most peaceful.
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Arusha's clock tower is supposedly situated at the midpoint between Cairo and Capetown, therefore representing the halfway point between the two terminii of the old British Empire in Africa. The clock tower is currently adorned by the logo of the Coca-Cola Company.
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The late Freddie Mercury, who was lead singer and front man for the band Queen, was born in Zanzibar on 5 September 1946. His name then was Farouk Bulsara, and his father was an accountant working for the British government in the House of Wonders in Zanzibar Town. His family had emigrated to Zanzibar from India but were originally of Persian extraction.
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The rare Kirk's Red Colobus monkey is only found in Zanzibar, predominantly in Jozani Forest. More on this in Touring Zanzibar.
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Dar es Salaam, and sometimes the whole of mainland Tanzania, are known as ‘Bongo’, and its inhabitants are known as ‘Wabongo’ in Swahili. The word Bongo means ‘brains’ and it’s thought this slang expression comes from the harsh years of the socialist era, when you had to have brains to survive…
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Zanzibar had the first steam locomotive in East Africa. A tiny two foot gauge engine to haul the Sultan to and fro from his summer palace in the 1880's. Zanzibar also boasted a seven mile railway to Bububu, built in 1905, which became notorious for setting the countryside alight.
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Stone Town has been designated one of the world's few heritage sites by the United Nations.
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Zanzibar celebrates the Persian New Year, known as Mwaka Kogwa, each June, making it the only place in the world where this ancient festival is still celebrated.
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The Shortest War in History was fought in Zanzibar in 1896. On 25 August, Sultan Hamid bin Thuwaini died, and two hours later, an usurper broke into the Palace and declared himself ruler. In a show of Victorian Gunboat Diplomacy, the Royal Navy was asked to evict him. At precisely 9 o' clock on the 27th, three warships opened fire and in 45 minutes reduced the Palace to rubble, and deposed the usurper. The bombardment has since been called the "Shortest War in History" as verified by the Guinness Book of Records.
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Favourite Tanzanian foods include Maharagwe – red bean stew, Ugali – maize or cassava porridge, and Nyama Choma – grilled meat, all accompanied by Kilimanjaro or Safari beer.
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When famous explorer David Livingstone died in what is now Zambia, his body was carried by his two faithful attendants, Susi and Chuma, for thousands of miles, and rested in Zanzibar’s Anglican Cathedral on its way home to be buried in Westminster Abbey. The wooden crucifix in the cathedral is made from the tree under which his heart was buried.
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At last count, there were 560 carved doors in Zanzibar.