Okay nothing new right?
Well in short, this time I planned the exploration of a private island in the middle
of the Mozambique Channel South of Mafia island in the Indian Ocean Tanzania.
You may wonder why a rude bush man like me "but quit saying 'that!
if you are rude I am a Lord", in fact dedicates my attention to the sea
and its secrets.
Simple answer:
1) because it is a spectacle of nature at the same level
with that of the bush, come on be a bit open-minded!
2) because exploring and learning about new places is always
the best thing I can do, it gives me a feeling of admiration and surprise, like
a child, and this I can not and I do not
want to live without.
3) because as a professional guide you can apply the “guiding
way “ in every situation, from the bush,
which remains the "home of my heart", to the peaks of the mountains,
where I was born, grew up and where I learned to have respect first of myself
and then of nature, the most important
lesson, and where I will return and I will arrive (don’t worry here we're just
at the beginning), to the sea, where strength, depth and delicacy meet one each
others.
4) because it’s fucking cool (technical term of course), and
because life is Rock n 'Roll, why should I limit it?
That said, let's move to the important things.
The island is called Fanjove or as I prefer to call it,
Treasure Island. Is 8 ° 34 '18.11 "S - 39 ° 34' 27.02" E on the
Tanzania’s coast.
I called it so because while I was there, I saw the most
beautiful couple I have ever seen: a father with his little girl. His princess
named the same as my daughter and have the same
age, she behaves and speaks in the same way, she has long blond hair just like
my love and she was so happy to be with her dad.
Now you can only imagine the storm of feelings that went through my heart, stomach
and mind in those days while I watched
discreetly father-daughter dynamics. I will not go further, these are private
things.
The wonderful thing that I want to draw attention is that his father, a
man that everyone should admire, hid in
the sand a little treasure, drew a map and discovered the treasure chest hidden
by pirates with its small princess. He has done for her what everyone should do
for others and for himself, he lived her dream. Something rather rare in these
days. And that the child will remember forever.
Wonderful.
Fanjove in itself is a jewel from
various points of view. Formed by an ancient coral reef and now consolidated in
the island, it has a number of interesting things to do and see. White beaches
with sand so fine that it seems like talcum powder that is a pleasure to walk
on, coconut trees sloping to the sea, inhabited by "prehistoric
monsters" as the Coconut Crab, a giant wonderful crab, lush vegetation along
the trails which are safe to walk day and night,
flowers of all kinds and trees both native and not surrounding the landscape, a
bird sanctuary at the North - East where you can see beautiful birds nesting,
resident or migratory.
The reef surround the island for 3 sides and is a little
bit far, it forms a ring that it can be admired very well at low tide and you
can walk day and night on the beach that becomes a new world to explore with
its unexpected inhabitants.
There are dolphins, bottlenose (Tursipos aduncus) and spinner ones (Stenella longirostris), migrating
whales and green turtles nesting on the beach between the bandas or bungalows
as you prefer to call them, you can explore the island's coast by kayak, a
great way to discover the hidden corners and unusual sights between magnificent
caves and crabs climbing on the rocks. Then
there is my favorite activity at sea: diving. (DIVERS)
It's beautiful to feel you dive. Especially after four
months of abstinence from diving, you do not forget anything, it's like riding
a bike, so it's easier, it's like breathing.
Underwater.
First session inside the reef ring, not bad I would say,
Hakim, the divemaster in charge of sports activities on the island and I, no rush,
just pleasure. We throw the small boat navy seal style, now you know how to do
it, and then down to the Reef, maximum depth 29.3 m BELOW the sea level, nudibranchs,
corals, and a green turtle. Second session instead out of the Reef, diving spot
found, drift dive from the big boat, along the reef and go down on the plateau,
the drop off is not far away, 23, 8 m, observing the blue that attracts me more
like a mystical appeal, I see a familiar silhouette, grey shark. Great I'd say.
We continue, big green moray under a beautiful table coral and a salad coral prairie,
as I call them, they remind me that what can I do? We hear the whales singing, they
are not far from us, we hope to dive with them, but we find not them. We rise up. We are on the way back
and here are their splashes, 5 Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) including a calf, they move fast and we are following them for a
while, unfortunately the fuel is not enough to spend the entire day with them
and we have to go back. Smooth and pleasant sailing, the sun beats down, but
there is a nice breeze on the coast. Afternoon spent discovering
the island by foot after a nice nap. Wonderful. It’s really a treasure
island, the treasure of discovery.
Obviously I will bring my daughter here.
To search for the pirate treasure.
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