Zack and I have gone to Nungwi for a week so Zack can dive. He hasn’t been able to persuade me to take a beginners course (I am too much of a scardey cat) but I am absolutely fascinated by the coral world, often referred to as the ‘rainforests of the sea’. We are staying at the Sensation Divers guest lodge the Bagamo Spice Villa which only has 3 rooms and is only for the dive school customers. It’s a private villa on the edge of Nungwi village with a gorgeous tropical garden and the luxury of satellite TV in the lounge area. I’ve been taking advantage of catching up on the news lazy style instead of trawling websites while Zack’s been out and it’s been raining.
Nungwi is famous for it’s buzzing nightlife and very laid back vibe. This northernmost tip of Zanzibar is the heart of the island’s budget tourism industry and teaming with student back-packers and ageing hippies reminiscent of somewhere like Goa. The actual village of Nungwi is still a traditional fishing village and is the centre of Zanzibar’s dhow-building industry. It’s at night time the beaches are alive with bonfires, drumming sessions, crowds of partygoers and music from the bars. A far cry from the tranquillity of Pongwe. Zack and I are planning dusk till dawn bar crawl after his dive course. Yippee!
Zack has gone to dive at Leven Bank today. He’s a qualified diver and this is a site only recommended for experienced divers as it’s 18-40 meters deep and often has strong currents although the water of the Indian Ocean is fed by the South Equatorial current that sweeps in from the distant Southeast Asian regions and is warm and clear. Leven Bank is situated north of Nungwi. There are honeycomb and pillar corals on the bank-like reef and it’s common to spot stingrays, white tip reef shark, whale shark, grouper and moray eels. Not for me!
An intriguing starfish
The coral world goes back over 350 million years and comprises the highest density of living creatures found anywhere in the oceans. Coral is also a creature which flourishes in the shallow waters of the tropics. Individually they are known as polyps and the effect of millions of polyps living in colonies produces the massive limestone structures called reefs. There’s loads of literature here warning divers about the effects humans can have on this delicately balanced ecosystem. It sounds hideous but the coral has already been damaged by oil spills, unsustainable fishing practices such as trawling and the use of dynamite, human sewage, sedimentation and coral collectors. Not to mention the carbon dioxide build-up in the atmosphere leading to global warming.
Aliens?
However, the Zanzibar Archipelago offers some of the best dive sites found anywhere in African waters and I only hope that the majority of divers dive responsibly. You are warned against encouraging hawkers by buying coral, seashells or any other marine souvenirs on sale in beach stores. Even though all this stuff is freely available, it’s actually illegal for them to sell it to you.
Coral
While Zack’s been in deep water, I visited the turtle sanctuary in Mnarani Natural Aquarium. Unfortunately turtles have become an endangered species here as the hawksbill turtles have always been hunted by locals in Zanzibar for their shells and for their meat. Until recently, female turtles were also traditionally hunted during their nesting periods, while fishermen stole their eggs to eat. This Aquarium was opened to protect them in 1993 and is built around a natural tidal pool in the coral rock behind the beach. It is amazing to see the turtles even though the aquarium was smaller than I had envisaged but there are dozens of the endangered hawksbill and green turtles to watch. I might go on a snorkelling trip as well but the rain has been a bit erratic so I think I’ll take full advantage of watching the TV and getting on with a bit of work until it’s time to hit the beaches and the nightlife!