Pongwe Beach Hotel

Did I mention that I stay in the staff quarters here? They are absolutely lovely, spacious rooms – I can’t complain – but we’re not on the beach so don’t have the waves lulling us to sleep or the stunning views the hotel guests enjoy first thing in the morning. By now I feel like part of the furniture here. I indulgently watch the honeymooners’ eyes shine as they arrive as if I were their host. Pongwe has become more than a temporary home.

So imagine my surprise when Zack announced he was whisking me away for a mini-break to a five star resort. He was probably tired of sleeping on my floor but whatever his motive, I packed with the anticipation of an excited child. Zack had booked us a night at the end of March at Matemwe Bungalows through Pongwe staff, who are friendly with the management there. (Matemwe closes in April and May for the rainy season.) We travelled up by taxi which took 3 hours and was a bit of a mission as a lot of the roads are either in the middle of being built or are stony dirt tracks. There is a lot of development along the coast and I’m sure that in a couple of years time (or less) a network of freshly tarmaced roads will lead to a plethora of shiny resorts.

Matemwe bungalows are perched on a coral cliff on the northeast coast of Zanzibar island overlooking the Mnemba Atoll. Next to the coral outcrop is Matemwe village, the last village on the East coast. It’s a classic Swahili fishing village with a huge white beach bustling with village folk, some dragging nets or sacks of seaweed or balancing baskets on their heads, their children winding behind them. The sea is often so shallow here you can wade all the way out to the reef at low tide. If you’re not up on marine life you can hire a guide on the beach who will provide you with special shoes to protect you from the spiky sea urchins and will point out a multitude of varieties of colourful fish, starfish and shellfish.

As we drove through the dusty lanes of Matemwe village narrowly avoiding chickens and cockerels sprinting in our path, little children ran after our car waving and shouting greetings at us in broken English. And after a few more turns and bumps we saw the unobtrusive entrance to Matemwe Bungalows ahead of us, a simple sign over an arched gateway and a trellis of flowers. No cars can drive up to the reception so we parked outside the gate and unfolded our cramped limbs from the car. A porter was waiting for us to help with our bags and he led us up the winding path to the reception area. As we followed him in a daze we drank in the luscious surroundings. Mature landscaped gardens ablaze with flowers. All we could hear was birdsong and the occasional gecko scurrying for shelter.

We checked in with the charming manager and armed with two enormous coconuts and straws we followed the porter through the gardens to our bungalow. Each bungalow is built of local stone and crowned with huge thatched roofs. Even though the designs are Swahili, I felt the bungalow had a Moroccan feel to it with its solid white stone walls, patterned floor cushions and low tables with incense burners and elegant teapots. Our generous sized veranda overlooking the ocean was decorated with a double hammock and a broad solid bench to laze on and contemplate the unbroken skyline. After running around and snapping each other swinging in the hammock we set off once more in the direction of the lunch buffet.

I could eulogise about the buffet lunch (the skewered prawns in particular), the extraordinary variety of plant life, the chess board with pieces half the size of me or the cool green pond visited by flamingos carved from stone… but I must mention the only thing that irritated me about my experience at Matemwe – the constant strong breeze from the ocean. I’ve never been happy with wind. My hair flies all over the place and makes me feel unsettled. Matemwe bungalows have plenty of sheltered spots but all my favourite ones such as the hammock on the veranda were windy. The bar however is a sheltered spot and after lunch and escaping the windy poolside we stretched out with our cocktails and books on the wide sofas, sheltered by decorative dhow sails and overlooked by the enormous skeleton of a killer whale by the bar. (Apparently the poor creature was swimming off course and washed up in the shallows on Matemwe beach years ago).

The objective of this trip was to relax together as I’ve been tapping away on my laptop for two weeks while Zack’s been off diving so we didn’t plan to visit Mnemba island (a coral atoll with a tropical forest) but I shall save that for another trip. The bar felt cosy and private and after several cocktails Zack and I were deep in conversation. By the time we went back to our bungalow it was dark and the wind had died down. The moonlight reflected on the restless waters was so bright and mesmerizing we sat chatting outside until hunger beckoned us to dinner. Perhaps it was having a bungalow to ourselves, or the sense of being totally separated from the outside world perched on the cliff but we both felt the need to address the ‘bigger questions’ in life that evening. And without giving too much away… a little romance blossomed…