Backdate: East Africa trip Aug 2015 Day 2 - 11th Aug - Kendwa beach + Zanzibari hotel + Essque Zalu resort & spa + Nungwi beach + dinner @ SS's home

11/8/15: SS woke up early to get her make-up done for the outdoor wedding shoots at the beaches. *YJ and I were to be their "personal assistant" for the day lol.* Uncle Kai were our driver for the day~ he was so hospitable!

Kai first drove SS, John, Alex, YJ and I to Kendwa beach. It was about an hr's ride from SS's place. The main roads were fine, but man the small roads were pretty bumpy~ *macham a prelude to our Safari trip later on~* Road signs were pretty scarce from what I can rmb, so unless u hav a Google map with u or u are familiar with the routes, u can get lost. 
We got down the car and walked a bit before we saw the sea! When we saw the TRUE BLUE seas, we were in awe! *Pretty much "jaw-dropping" sea sceneries everywhere in Zanzibar!*

There were few ppl in the morning, but the sea breeze was really cool! *The clouds looks a lot like cotton candy~ my photos even came out looking like paintings!* We even saw one seller clad in the traditional Maasai warrior style costume. *He brought us to his stall but we didn't buy anything la~ 2nd day only mah.* Alex and the couple were there combing for suitable backdrops for the wedding shoot, while YJ and I were happily taking photos and enjoying the scenery.

Next, we came to a hotel nearby, and Kai knew the owner it seems. The Zanzibari boutique hotel is located at the North Eastern tip of Zanzibar.I think Kai built this hotel previously, and then it was bought over by a Caucasian to run the hotel business. 

Above is the Dhow bar and restaurant, which explains the Dhow there. 

See how scenic the view is!? 

Then, Kai drove us to Essque Zalu resort & spa, which was a 10mins drive away. He spent some time talking to the staff, before we could go in and take photoshoots! They have a private beach, and omg it had the most relaxing feel I'd seen in my life!

Yes, and it stretches out to the private jetty~ *Guests can jump straight into the sea to swim wor, from what I see in their promotion video!*

The sea was pretty calm, but the tide started to get higher later in the afternoon. *Saw a crab on the steps haha, and we could feel the stairs shake when the waves washed past~ woo!*

Meanwhile, the couple were doing their shoots, and that's when YJ and I started to carry their stuff, following them ard. *Lol~ I was very professional hor~ took note of her make-up and outfits etc.* Oh the two of us were happily playing at the same time hehe!

Halfway through, YJ and I started wandering away cos the sun was starting to heat up. We took shelter at the bar, and Kai treated all of us to juices from the bar. I think I had their mango juice~ nice yo.

Nungwi beach was another famous beach in Zanzibar, so Kai drove us over, which was about 20mins away. SS's mum alrdy made us chicken burgers and chicken wings, and so we had that for lunch. While we were eating, we saw a bunch of kids playing soccer nearby, and one of them came to ask for food. We had quite a lot, and thought it would be wasted if unfinished, so "angel SS" began giving away the food to them. 

We pretty much walked ard aimlessly for a while, until we chanced upon Nungwi Mnarani Marine Turtle Conservation Pond. Kai paid for us to go in, and there was an English-speaking guide doing the explanatory for us along the way.

The Mnarani Marine Turtle Conservation Pond is a community based NGO established in 1993 as an effort to conserve the population of sea turtles native to Zanzibar island. The Stone Town based Eco & Culture Tours NGO was the initiator of this project, and empowered the local villagers to take this conservation initiative into their own hands. Hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) have traditionally been hunted around Zanzibar for their attractive shells, and Green turtles (Chelonia mydas) for their meat. 
And so we saw the juvenile turtles, as well as the big ones, all separated at different areas according to their ages. The sea turtle pond that we saw was actually a natural lagoon separated from the Indian Ocean by a few metres of old reef rocks. I rmb the guide saying that one of the breeds there can bite wooh. *He said that there's no sharks and crocodiles in Zanzibar too... hmm I wonder?*

Anyway I found their website... http://www.mnarani.com/. 
We walked for a while more, and saw a pri sch in the vincinity. SS was pretty excited and telling us how her previous sch was alike back on Pemba island.

The pri sch kids were very excited and happy to see us I reckon, cos they were looking at us as if we were aliens haha~ The flr was all cement, and u could see that the sch was nt as clean. Oh and us being tourists, we naturally would like to take photos, and maybe Alex's huge camera caught the attention of the sch discipline master or principal, so this guy came up to us and told us no photography allowed. *Somehow he sounded like he wanted money leh.* Anyway Kai talked to him for a bit, and he "let us off". 

After the whole afternoon at the beaches, we had to head back to SS's place as her family's inviting her relatives over to her place for dinner that night. The gathering was to take place at her open rooftop. I think SS's dad, mum, maid, Jenny, SF, ST and Pi were helping out with preparing the dishes while we were out. *Pi and I took photos at their stairway while helping out. No handles, a bit dangerous but pretty cool.*

*Zanzibar rambutan is called "shioki-shioki" in Swahili! I found them not as juicy as ours, but still sweet. According to SS's mum, the locals have different fruit seasons every mth too.*
SS's dad's worker and himself cooked the food at one corner. Their relatives arrive one aft another. *So long since I saw so many Chinese in Africa haha!* About 30+ ppl? 

The idea of the dinner was to announce John and SS's engagement, and to give out invitations for their wedding dinner to be held in 2016 in SG. *SS爸爸的脸上洋溢着满满的喜悦呢！* Anyway, the rice was very nice~ *Alamak I almost couldn't live without the Chinchalok chilli sauce in Africa leh!* The apple juice above was darn sweet.
And of cos a grp pic to end off the happy day!