Zanzibar, is part of the Spice Islands and used to be it’s own country made up of 50 something islands on the Indian Ocean, until it became part of Tanzania. It is a quick jumper flight from the mainland of Tanzania and is one of the most magical places on Earth. It is no wonder why Terrence and Karen, my couple from South Africa, decided to have their wedding there.
Zanzibar has a lot of Indian and Arabic influences in their architecture and culture, yet boasts a huge population of Masai Warriors and also many Italian tourists. This blend made the island feel so exotic and was a photographer’s paradise. I think my favorite photos from the entire trip (other than the wedding of course:) were the ones taken on this island. The FABULOUS Sarah Natasha Horowitz joined me on this part of my journey and our epic photo adventure began.
We all became so close with the friends and family of Terrence and Karen, because we spent everyday together eating our meals family style, sightseeing in Stone Town, diving, and of course volleyball, swimming, and the wedding!! Sarah and I got to know the Masai Warriors by name and everyday they yelled at us form the beach and loved joining in during our photo shoots. It was SO hot there, that I braided my hair most of the time and when I took it out it created this wild mane that deserved it’s own photo shoot 
In Stone Town, we got lost walking through the narrow bazaars, took photos of the old, crumbling, gorgeous buildings, did some shopping, walked through the Spice Market, and OF COURSE I jumped in a pick-up soccer game on the beach….probably the most chaotic and dangerous game I have ever played in my life with 50 people playing all at once!
Every morning, during low tide, you could walk almost a mile out into the ocean and it was only a foot deep. The water is emerald green and as warm as bath water…here, the locals farm seaweed and you can see them out “working in the fields” as far as you can see out into the ocean. The women wear these gorgeous, colored sarongs as they work out in the ocean and it was one of the most stunning sights I have seen as a photographer. The curious Masai, loved to pose for us as well and help “style” our photos. They sort of became Sarah’s and my personal bodyguards on the trip.
Other highlights from Zanzibar were:
-Diving and photographing with sea turtles and other exotic fish
-Air conditioning!! (after being in the African bush on Safari the week before, it was SUCH a luxury!)
-Having ALL of our meals and drinks all inclusive and eating fresh sea food every day!
-Terrence surviving “The Incident”, where after our first night of free drinks, he dove into the shallow end of the pool and split his head open while Karen was fast asleep. Sarah and I not only helped keep Terrence’s head together while waiting for the doctor, but we documented the entire thing while in bikinis! How’s that for being a photojournalist?:)
