Tuesday, 10th August 2004
Having spent the last week learning to dive, we decided it was time to put ourselves to the test, so we migrated over to the east coast, to Matemwe Beach where some of the best diving is supposed to be.
We had booked into the Matemwe Beach guesthouse run by Gail, wife of Gary, one of our dive instructors (who actually owns One Ocean dive centre). This meant an hour’s bumpy minibus journey from Stonetown out to the east coast, eventually reaching the guesthouse at the end of a long sandy path through the bush.
We had an early start, so we arrived quite tired and hungry, but the place was just stunning. The communal area is so welcoming - a lounge open to the elements all the way round, with low seating in blue-cushioned alcoves surrounded by billowing curtains. Local craft-work and books on Africa are casually scattered around the lounge, together with board games and packs of cards. The longest side to the lounge looked directly out onto the coral-white sand and turquoise ocean. Paradise?!
As there had been no standard rooms available, we had splashed out on one of the newer bungalows. This turned out to be a beautiful whitewashed thatched hut. Again, mostly open to the elements, there was a cushion-scattered lounge leading into an enclosed, cool bedroom. The toilet and shower were again open-rooved, but the best part of all were the stairs moulded into the whitewashed walls led up to a flat roof-terrace under the thatch, where there were low-slung hammocks, and a fantastic view of the palm-fringed bush. The atmosphere was completed by the wafting aroma from burning coils of citronella-infused incense.
As we had some lunch (a choice of two simple dishes), the weather turned, with clouds moving in to cover the sun. So we played a game or two of Scrabble in the lounge and then went for a wander up the beach. There is almost nothing around here, a very small fishing village, and another resort about 20 minutes walk away. As we strolled, we passed fishermen repairing their nets, and the usual group of kids playing “footy-ball”. We stopped at the other resort and tried their bar, but soon set off back as darkness descended (and to avoid an irritating American woman complaining about her Kilimanjaro trek).
In the evening, we retired to bed early, to find two small miniatures of Amarula cream liqueur waiting by our beds... a nice touch to finish a great day.
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