Zanzibar!

We just returned from a week on the island of Zanzibar...not a bad way to spend the holidays! Above, a picture of Stone Town (the main town on the island), which used to be the capital when Zanzibar was an independent nation. We spent most of our time on the other side of the island, which was quiter and had great beaches.

Above, the three of us girls sporting purses woven from leaves, made for us on a "spice tour." The island grows cloves, nutmeg, cardamom, and all kinds of other spices and fruit...and we got to sample it all fresh! Delicious. Speaking of delicious, there was a fresh fish market in Stone Town where we just walked up to one of the above stalls and they BBQ'd shrimp, lobster, calamari, shark, etc. for us on the spot. Yums.

One of the beach towns had a music festival on the beach...great bands and dancers from many countries, and time for some poker too! Ann and Grant, on the right, are med school friends from Minnesota who joined us from their current location in Uganda. We made some hilarious makeshift poker chips using cement chips and bottle caps, which worked out beautifully: For Christmas, my mom sent us some decorations so we could feel more festive while away from home. The champagne told us to wear them like the Masai do:

All four couples at Christmas dinner.

We had lots of good beach time, including swimming with dolphins (amazing!), and some beautiful sunrises:
Brandon and a Masai man, chillin on the beach:

These last two are from a fantastic New Year's Eve spent by the ocean:

Happy 2010!