"Blue Paje" Paje by Waxbag

Today was the most beautiful day in Zanzibar. We had an early morning shower but it was clear skies for the rest of the day. As the tide went out and the sun rose in the sky the ocean transformed its colors from a deep blue to aquamarine and turquoise. Men went out around 10 am, as the tide was still high, in their outriggers and dugout canoes to go fishing. Women waded in the clear waters fully dressed to collect seaweed or tend their neatly staked seaweed gardens (Seaweed is a high price export used in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals). Dhows swiftly sail past the crashing surf on the horizon in search of bigger fish game like tuna, kingfish or blue marlin. The water nearly emptied the entire beach leaving ripples of white coral sand and shallow fingers of clear sparkling pools trapped from the ebbing tide. We walked nearly one kilometer into the sea and barely reached knee-deep water. We saw several crabs including a wicked red and orange crab with a gnarly shell on its back and white spots with black trim. Sand colored fish darted back and forth and leaped out of the water in front of us. We occasionally saw a black spiny sea urchin sitting still on the white bottom. Hundreds of locals work pulling out the seas bounty as the odd tourist walks or swims through the warm azure waters. As the tide flooded back in the outriggers and canoes were poled back to shore laden with the days catch. It’s mind blowing that the sea could possibly be so light and transparent blue all the way to the horizon! I took many photos today in an attempt to possibly capture the magic.

White Coral Sand

We are now in paradise! We arrived three days ago in Paje, Zanzibar. There are hundreds of Palm trees, a beautiful beach, and the most crystal clear water I have ever seen. I couldn’t have even imagined this place. The water is so shallow all of the way to the horizon and the colors of blue and green change with varying depths of the water. Our banda is just off the water on the beach and is shaded by palm trees. We wake up in the morning to the sound of the ocean and a beautiful view of the sparkling water as the sun rises. We are served breakfast and watch the women in the ocean harvesting seaweed and the fisherman pole out to deeper water. It is quiet and although it is high season, we feel as though we are the only ones here. People are so spread out, each have their own slice of paradise. I could have never imagined our honeymoon to be like this. We are only here because of the trouble we had with our video camera but as usual, something good has come out of something bad.

• Pros:One of the most beautiful and serene beaches in the world
• Cons:A bit on the expensive side but not too bad
• In a nutshell:Every shade of blue you can imagine ... Paje