A dhow is a sailboat used in the Indian Ocean. We saw them all the time on the Mozambican coast and could spend hours watching them bring in goodsand fish to shore. Stand on Zanzibar is a dystopian New Wave science fiction novel written by John Brunner and first published in 1968. The book won a Hugo Award for Best Novel at the 27th World Science Fiction Convention in 1969, as well as the 1969 BSFA Award and the 1973 Prix Tour-Apollo Award. With beautiful beaches and the azure Indian Ocean, Zanzibar island is a little slice of paradise and has many stunning beach resorts including Kiwengwa on the east coast and Nungwi to the north. It also offers some of the best diving in the world, with vibrant coral reefs and a diverse range of sea life to spot on a boat tour including dolphins, turtles, whale sharks, and manta rays. The capital of the archipelago is Zanzibar City, and its old quarter of Stone Town is also an excellent place to discover the local culture, best seen on a Stone Town tour. A visit to a spice plantation is a must. And for a unique wildlife experience, head to Prison Island, home to endangered Aldabra giant tortoises.

To get the full Zanzibari experience, stay in a real Zanzibari-style hotel. There are tons of great and reasonably priced ones, including this reasonably priced, beachfront hotelwhich is just a short walk away from Forodhani Gardens, or this seafront hotel, which is really close to the ferry terminal. Hotels mostly accept credit cards but expect to pay a surcharge of 4-5%. Restaurants and bars outside of a big resort are mostly on a cash basis. ATM Fees are outrageous The building was built by an Omani slave trader and later turned into an English Club, now it’s a hotel and bar. The decor of the hotel is a mix of Zanzibari and colonial style and whilst it’s not cheap, it has a lovely terrace that looks out over the ocean. You’ll see traditional dhows sail past as the sun slowly sets below the horizon. There are only a handful of hotels on this big island so expect to pay more for your trip here. This is not a budget travel destination so plan for it that way. Continue Reading:Sure, he was a bit too optimistic regarding genetic engineering and too pessimistic regarding totalitarian tendencies, but some passages could be out of a present time history book. More social sci fi than focused on action, Brunner describes a complete unleashed market, PR- and commercial industry in a dystopian world as a mixture of Huxley and Orwell with a focus on showing the most perverse and extreme manifestations of such social constructs. Zanzibar has more than enough to keep you occupied for weeks. The island is huge and different areas will give you something different. Paradise on Pemba Island Whilst you’re planning your trip, you’ll want to think about when to visit Zanzibar and what you want to do on your trip. Whilst a lot of people speak English, knowing a little bit of Swahiligoes a LONG, LONG way in Zanzibar (or any part of Tanzania).

Ferries from Stone Town run on Wednesdays and Saturdays and do the return journey on Thursdays and Sundays. Flights depart daily and you can compare prices here. Go on Safari Blue If you’re on the east coast – don’t worry, you can still enjoy the sunset too. There are a few companies that sail from Michamvi and takes you around Chwaka Bay (the only place on the east coast for sunset). Go Deep Sea Fishing Brunner’s books, while fascinating because of the almost impossibly real ideas he was playing with, are not always what I’d call a joy to read: his prose is dry and very heavy on dialogue, but he favors short chapters, which redeems his other flaws. His book are nevertheless very important, because while not as well known as other sci-fi novels of the same era, they are filled with a desperate anger that feels very relevant to read about today. Both this one and “The Sheep Look Up” also have a character who plays the part of Cassandra: an academic who can see the writing on the wall, screams it at the top of his lungs and gets shunned socially as a result of their clear-mindedness. You can buy paintings, jewellery, material, wooden carvings, Maasai bracelets, Zanzibar chests, and tasty spices. A lot of these shops sell the same mass-produced stuff you find all over Africa, but you’ll find the odd unique item and it’s cool to say ‘I bought this in Zanzibar’. If you dine outside your resort at a local restaurant, you can expect to pay in shillings. In essence, locals mostly always use shillings so it’s good to have some Tanzanian cash on you.

It´s a long read with many worldbuilding details and all these amazing news reports, news flashes, and hundreds of integrated mini-stories that help to push the narrative forward and give depth and extra layers to it. They´re also part of the creepy predictive power, because some could really be seen as 1 to 1 real news reports of past or current events.