Arriving at the The Zanzibar Pearl Boutique Hotel
While staying at Zanzibar, we went to the north side of the Island along with. We stayed at a cool hotel called The Zanzibar Pearl. We arrived at 8:30 pm. It was very hot outside, and bug’s were everywhere. I loved the smell of the ocean when I stepped out of the car.
Joshua, the activities manager, showed us around the hotel. Now, this hotel wasn’t like your regular kind of resort. Instead of only connecting rooms, these rooms were more like villas or tiny guest houses. When Joshua showed us mom and dad’s room, mom got very angry. This was not the ppm set up that we had booked! On the other hand, the kids room was a gorgeous villa with front beach access, a cold tub, hammock, and our own monkey guard who was a Maasai Man! Me and kb got one room, and after a while of sorting our who was going to stay in which room, we all headed to dinner. Despite all of the bad reviews about the food at this hotel, it was actually quite delicious! I think they got a new chief.
After a good and filling dinner, we all headed to bed. Mom and dad were going to stay in the other room in the big villa, and me and kb were going to stay in the same room. The boys got mom and dad’s old room. When me and kb entered our room, we were surprised to find the bed was maid ready for sleeping. We also found out that the mattress was rock hard, and the air was very hot. I was excited to play in the water the next morning!
The Driving Hunt for Dinner
An existing part of our trip was our “hunt for dinner”. Mom and dad had wanted to go out to dinner, but we left so late that we weren’t so sure we wanted to still go out. But we did.
The First Stop
The first stop was The Royal Zanzibar. It was a very nice hotel, and we got to call our good friends the Sandeno’s! We waited about 10 minutes before the person at the front desk told us that the restaurant was full, and only open to guests who were staying at the hotel. It was empty, so we left.
Driving Around In Crazy Alleyways
We drove around for the next hour. Getting stuck in back alleyways with piles of bricks dumped in them. We also got blocked in by a truck, and almost hit by another one.
Finally Getting To a Restaurant
After an exhausting and exhausting past hour and a half of driving, we finally arrived at a good restaurant at the beach. We had planned to go to Mama Mia, but there was also another restaurant that we ended up going to. It was quite lovely, and they had a butchering stand right on the beach for the fresh caught fish they used. It was very impressive.
Two eventful things happened while at dinner. One was when I showed mom the video I had taken on Kb falling through a chair. It was so funny that it made mom cry from laughing so hard. The second was when a group of male acrobats performed on the beach. They would do handstands on each other’s shoulders, and make human pyramids! It was incredibly cool.
Fresh fish! 
The acrobats ➡️⬇️ 
An after dinner treat of Gelato
After an eventful night, we drove back to The Pearl and had a good night’s rest. As good as you can get when sleeping on a rock-hard-mattress!
Under the Sea: Diving in the Indian Ocean
One of the best things about traveling is that you get to see all the cool things on the surface of the earth, but what about underneath? I am very lucky to have been fully scuba certified when I was 12 years old.
While staying at The Pearl, my family and me (excluding my dad because he had some lung problems) got to go diving. Before we got on the boat, we first had to fit flippers, Goggles, wet suits, and BCD. BCD stands for Buoyancy Control Device. It is the most crucial part of all you hear besides the air tank.
I love diving, especially with my family. On our first dive, it was incredibly clear. I had never seen such clear water when diving, and our guide said that it was not very good visibility! We saw many cool fish, eels, sea urchins, and more fish. So many fish!! The water was very cold compared to what we anticipated. And the water was very wavy/choppy. If I had to rate the first dive from 1-10, I would say it was about a 7-8.
The second dive was somewhat more eventful. We got to see a turtle!! Kb got a little freaked out because she had gotten scared and got a bloody nose while underwater. Bardez didn’t come on the second dive because he had gotten so cold. Bardez is practically Skin and bones, and he was only wearing a short wetsuit.
The rest of the day was great, and I even got my hair braided!
Swimming In the Indian Ocean
One of the best things about the pearl hotel, was that they were right in front of the beach. I played for about 2 to 4 hours each day with my siblings in the Indian Ocean, and had lots of fun. The water was very very warm, about 80 to 90°F. The sand was also very fun. It was super soft, and I made two Sandcastles with my brother and sister KB and Bardez. They did not last in the high tides. The second Sandcastle was actually a “fortress“ for the captured hermit crab that Bardez had caught named Fred. As soon as the high tide came in the fortress turned into an island there is a breach to the jail! Fred was also a very good escape artist, so we had to chase him down a lot and make sure he kept his coconut shell. It was very fun.
Hair Braiding
While on the beach one day, I was playing with Bardez building our first Sandcastle, when a lady came up to me and said “Hair braiding hair braiding, henna, souvenirs!“ I had really wanted to get my hair braided while in Africa, but my mom was skeptical about it. I had told that I wanted cornrows, a type of braiding, that I had gotten while I was in Mexico. I told Natasha, for that was her name, that I would think about it and that I would meet up with her at 4 o’clock the next day at our hotel. The tide was coming in, so I headed back to the Villa with Bardez. I told mom about the hair braiding, and we discussed which kind I would get. We settled on box braids, which is another type of braiding. It also looked much better on white girls.
Getting My Hair Braided
The next day after scuba diving, I met Natasha at our villa, and she was happy to do box braids. It took about two hours for her to do them because I wanted them so little. (The smaller you get them, the longer they last.) KB loved them so much that she also decided to get her hair braided! Getting my hair braided didn’t hurt at all!
Me getting my hair braided ➡️ 
How my mom reacted to my hair
My mom absolutely loved how my hair looked. And I loved it too! The braids are supposed to last about one week. 🤞
Kb’s braided hair! 
My braided hair! 
Kb getting her hair braided