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Oct 27, 2017
6 min

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part VI)

The return back to the hotel was fairly quiet and calm. I think I can speak for most of us when I say that these days have been wonderfully long, filled with more action than a normal day, covered in a dab of residual jet lag. We all silently walked into the hotel and went to our rooms. It was kind of nice to be back. I started to unpack my items from the day. When I got to the very bottom of the backpack to remove shells that I had collected, something caught my eye. I could

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Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part V)

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part IV)

Carla Joelle Brown

Oct 22, 2017
5 min

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part IV)

Those that had not already headed back to the boat were summoned. I tried my best to kick at lightning speed since I swum a reasonable distance from the boat. It seemed that the other tourist groups had been asked to do the same. While we weren’t quite side-to-side with the other boats, we were all within eyesight of each other. Anchors were raised, and all boats were underway. After closer examination back on the dhow, a travel mate noticed that jellyfish had stung her too,

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Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part III)

Carla Joelle Brown

Oct 21, 2017
4 min

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part III)

After we made our exit from the lagoon, we set sail for our snorkeling site. One of our travel mates was starting to feel under the weather. The expression on her face was the look of something that I have felt before. It was a look of trying to remain calm, even when you know your body is telling you something else. We all felt bad for her as she tried to settle her stomach with the carbonation of the soda, and I believe that this might not have been something that she exper

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Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part II)

Carla Joelle Brown

Oct 19, 2017
3 min

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part II)

And with each click of the camera, the minutes lapsed. Our time was no longer, and we hustled up the street barely in time to board the shuttle, already occupied by the rest of the group. The drive was another lengthy thread of streets and bends through and out of Stone Town - people and cars and bikes coming and going. Although we were only a minute at best from the water, and we had embarked there for our trip to Prison Island, this ocean bound journey was leaving from at l

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Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part I)

Carla Joelle Brown

Oct 12, 2017
3 min

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part I)

Photo by Kibuuka Mukisa Oscar @kibuukaphotography for Travel Noire FRIDAY, JULY 28, 2017/PART I By now, I started to feel a slight bit of a routine waking up in Zanzibar. I prepared myself for the day ahead. On the itinerary today was the thing I was the most excited about - snorkeling. I had to put some thought into what I was going to bring and wear for the day, even though I honestly had the entire wardrobe planned based on activity before the trip, in an OCD kind of way.

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Carla Joelle Brown

Sep 30, 2017
6 min

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part VI)

As an attraction, the history of the Old Forte is not the only draw. Oddly juxtaposed within the old brick walls, there are numerous vendors selling souvenirs; everything to colorful textiles, to regional artwork, hats, bags, and jewelry. The souvenir world was your oyster here. If you were interested, you could even get henna painted on your hand from a woman called, “Big Momma.” Apparently, the old has seamlessly mixed in with the new, as the locals have created a multi-pur

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Carla Joelle Brown

Sep 29, 2017
5 min

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part V)

The high intensity of the green that shrouded the island transitioned to an earth brown. What we were now standing in looked similar to a zoo, with a palisade (wall of vertical sticks), the surrounding trees, and designated walkways railed by larger pieces of crossed wood. There were a few small thatched roof structures, but otherwise, it was open space. Only because of their size, and not because of any rash movements, would you have noticed the inhabitants. Virtually perfec

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Carla Joelle Brown

Sep 28, 2017
5 min

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part IV)

Somewhere along the way, we all decided on the shuttle bus that we wanted to go to Prison Island for the second half of the day - for our free time. Our, “experience designer,” who I will now call the ED, made arrangements for us with a guide since the entire group was interested. Prior to venturing on this trip, Prison Island was on my mental list of things to see and do while in Zanzibar. It was nice to know that this was going to happen, with everyone, and so quickly. The

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Carla Joelle Brown

Sep 21, 2017
5 min

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part III)

We smelled and sampled a few more spices in our seat. Once the courses were underway on the fire, the one chef started cutting the coconuts. After they were opened, she used this jagged tool built into the end of the chair to cut out the meat of the coconut. We were all given the opportunity to try, and a few did. It took some practice to do it with the same ease as the chef. I was curious, but I did not volunteer. My back and my knees were asking me not to stoop that low, bu

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Carla Joelle Brown

Sep 16, 2017
4 min

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part II)

THURSDAY, JULY 27, 2016 Sightseeing in the shuttle was a dizzying vision. To say Zanzibar was not an electric current of activity would be an understatement. It was easy to get wrapped up into looking at every little lively detail without trying to focus on it in those few tenths of a second it was visible. During the drive we talked and participated in a few more icebreakers to wake the group up a bit. At first, I would admit that I am not an icebreaker activity type, but I

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Carla Joelle Brown

Sep 15, 2017
5 min

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part I)

THURSDAY, JULY 26, 2017 According to our printed itinerary for the week, each morning we were to meet for breakfast between 7:00 – 8:30 am. Our days were neatly compartmentalized for us, and it was a matter of simply showing up at the time indicated. This however meant that I had to purposefully set my alarm clock to make sure I did not miss the boat (shuttle, or meal.) It had been a while since I was that ready to go to bed like I was the night before. I didn’t have any prob

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Carla Joelle Brown

Sep 2, 2017
7 min

Dulles Day One (Part IV - End Scene)

We knew were meeting other travel mates to take the 4:30 shuttle to our hotel. We walked out into the Zanzibar air, and glanced around for somewhat familiar faces and/or the driver we were expecting holding a sign. The area to the sides of the walkway, exiting the airport was almost like a mini amphitheater, minus the major slopes. With its rectangular concrete features for you to sit or lean on, it was a natural gathering spot. It didn’t take long to notice two young women w

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Carla Joelle Brown

Sep 1, 2017
9 min

Dulles Day One (Part III - Whoa)

The plane was ginormous but slowly filling up. I was under the false impression that on a regular old Tuesday there wouldn’t be a lot of passengers headed to Ethiopia. It didn’t take much longer for me to accept that I shouldn’t expect a row to myself as I had hoped. The plane was a 777 with probably 50 rows of 9 seats, 3 right side, 3 middle and 3 left side. It is possible that all the seats were occupied by the time we were ready to taxi. My row was full and I am thankful t

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Carla Joelle Brown

Aug 31, 2017
6 min

Dulles Day One (Part II -Geeze)

As we talked and slowly advanced a step here and there, we watched the other passengers, specifically their chest-high piled luggage. There were large cardboard taped boxes, large suitcases, and all stacked high on the luggage dollies or getting pulled by hand. I even saw a flat screen TV box later that was the size of a wall, placed near the line stanchions. Were they moving, or building a home theater? Another thing we noticed was that a lot of people were putting locks on

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Carla Joelle Brown

Aug 25, 2017
7 min

Dulles Day One (Part I)

My mother has a habit of sneaking pictures of me at weird angles TUESDAY, JULY 25 I woke up after having a night that was uneasy, forced and filled with anxiety. There were tons of boxes to check for this trip that I had not had to mark before for travel. This trip required real sh*t, like a visa, travel insurance specifically for any needed medical evacuation, and a recommended but not required trip to the local travel medical services clinic for vaccinations and medication.

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Carla Joelle Brown

Jul 25, 2017
3 min

20 Hours To Think

This could be my shortest post ever, but I like to mark time with writing. Tomorrow I leave for Zanzibar. Zanzibar, Tanzania - Tanzania, the East African country. Most would know Tanzania because of Mt. Kilimanjaro (the highest mountain in Africa) and Serengeti National Park. Zanzibar is an island off the coast, in the Indian Ocean. This tiny island is known for its crystal cool beaches, white sands and its place in history as a spice trade center of Arabic, African and Indi

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Carla Joelle Brown

Jun 20, 2017
10 min

Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow

PRE POST: CURRENT Source photo courtesy of Y. Alston, 2017 *As of this post, Aruba is officially over, and in the past. My timing was spot on, because as of next week, I will be out for the count. I do not anticipate that I will post during this time. Recovery time for my surgery is around 6 weeks, and my only true goal will be to focus on that only. After surgery, I have major plans, and getting back to 100% is paramount. This recovery time will not be only physical. It will

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Carla Joelle Brown

Apr 28, 2017
15 min

Jumping Ship

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2016 During this entire trip, this is the only morning, besides the day I return home, that I had to be serious about obeying the alarm clock. This is also the only morning thus far that there was not a bagel somewhere in my hand with a coffee. Because of the time, and the fact that I would be fed on the ship, trying to run out for a breakfast sandwich seemed like a waste. When I purchased the ticket for the cruise, I was told that I was to go to Pelica

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Carla Joelle Brown

Apr 21, 2017
13 min

Lost & Found

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2016 Song "Lost and Found," courtesy of Shafiq Husayn, feat. Bilal and Jimetta Rose, 2009 Most days, when I wake up,Monday through Friday, it is with a scowl. Scowl at the alarm clock for disrupting that final hour of the best sleep ever, scowl for reminding me that I have to get somewhere by a certain time, and lately a scowl for rebooting all the thoughts that I had finally managed to quiet. While I have been on my “life sabbatical,” when the alarm c

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Everyone But Two

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part VI)

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part V)

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part IV)

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part III)

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part II)

Snorkel, Sea and Smörgåsbord (Day Three - Part I)

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part VI)

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part V)

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part IV)

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part III)

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part II)

That's Got Flava Day Two (Part I)

Dulles Day One (Part IV - End Scene)

Dulles Day One (Part III - Whoa)

Dulles Day One (Part II -Geeze)

Dulles Day One (Part I)

20 Hours To Think

Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow

Jumping Ship

Lost & Found

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