Stone Town

We spent one afternoon in Zanzibar town which is known as 'Stone Town'. The town is full of white-washed stone walls, small corridors with little shops, and cobblestone streets.
Zanzibar is such an interesting place...there are the beautiful beaches on the coast, but the town doesn't really feel like Africa because of it's Arab and Indian influence. Islam is the major religion and Arabic is spoken as well as Swahili. Zanzibar has it's own president and I think they want to be their own country, however, they are still apart of Tanzania. Zanzibar is known for their ordiante wood doors all over town that are just beautiful! They are also known for their wooden trunks that have a special 'secret' hiding place made into them.
Here Bethany and I are after our henna tattos (i'm on the right, don't worry they wash off in 2-3 weeks). Henna is a very common in Arabic and Indian cultures. They most often paint designs on their hands though. It's a form of decoration, like jewlry, and they often do it for weddings or other big events. After getting our 'paintings' we asked the lady why women do this in their culture, and she said women get henna in order to please their husbands, or fiance', or boyfriend. I just laughed when I heard that one. I don't really have someone I am trying to 'please', but I thought it looked pretty cool. It's always fun to expereince new cultures.