Memories of Zanzibar
(1) https://alwyn-mendes.blogspot.com/
(2) https://alwyn-mendes.blogspot.com/
I just completed 5 pages of my memories of Zanzibar during the late 50 and 60's.
If I emailed all the pages it would be overwhelming so I thought
of posting 1 page every 2 weeks.
I am
hoping that this would encourage dialogue, and addition to the memories.
These are some of my childhood
memories of Zanzibar and would like to take you down memory lane with me .....
Should you wish to add more or amend
any part, please do so to make this a great “Childhood Memory of Zanzibar”:
Starting at the Tunnel from Old Fort
to Smith Mackenzie, the place was called “Down” and I have no recollection
how that name originated.
It was the “Boys” meeting place. Traffic moved one-way from Old Fort going to Shangani Road, and for safety purposes there was a huge mirror on the Building across the Tunnel exit a safety feature for on-coming traffic from PWD, below Rohington Singaporia’s houseTraffic going the opposite way was by the side of the tunnel closer to the ocean that housed the ice cream parlor call “Alakafak” not sure if I got that spelled correctly.
At the foot of the slope from the Post Office was the Office of Smith Mackenzie.
They handled clearing and forwarding Cargo documents for the shipping companies, and even sold tickets for those going to India on passenger ships like “Karanja”, “Kampala”, and “Amra”.
I remember Eustace Pereira and Tony Nick typing away on the old Olympia typewriters, whilst slamming the carriage of the type writers from left to right preparing Manifests with Carbon Papers.
Smith Mackenzie were agents for the
BISNCO (British India Steam Navigation Company) they also handled other BI
ships that did the London to Cape Town run.
“SS Kenya” and “SS Uganda”. The big event for us, was when the passenger ship Coronia (Green in Color) would stop in Zanzibar. There was always this hustle and bustle with the tourist in town. Also remembering the Zanzibar Government ships the Al Hathra replaced by Salama and the Al Said which were replaced by Sayeed Khalifa.
After the Revolution the smaller of the two vessels Salama was renamed “Afrika” and the Sayeed Khalifa was renamed “Jamhuri”
In two weeks I will post page 2
Cheers, Take Care and Stay Safe
Alwyn
Here’s page 2 of my Memories of Zanzibar Shops on Main Road, I will cover in my next Chapter Portuguese Street, Sokomogo Vuga Kiponda and Kitaroni
Further up the street going towards the post office between Mr. Pashao Curio shop and Brooke Bond warehouse, (that’s where we got the plywood boxes for the home made double Bass),on the outside wall of the Brooke Bond Tea warehouse hung 3 large 8 X 4 Canvas Movie Posters that were painted with white Chookaa with Blue lettering showing the dates and times for the shows of the Cinema halls “Sultana” “Empire” and “Majestic”. the movie “Hercules” and “Tarzan” Movie poster, come to memory. They also advertised the 1 shilling all around Sunday Matinees at these Movie Halls’
I do recall witnessing the Fire that destroyed Majestic Cinema, and after the rebuilding the Tenants included East African Airways on the ground floor and above that was the Italian Restaurant called “Pigale”. The closest I ever got to that restaurant was the Miskaki Man below Tommy Timooro’s house. Which now leads me to the nick names for some guys, such as Tony “Nick”, “Mapera”, “Mabungo” “Kunazi” and “Kilolo Juma” just to name a few, with Joe “Kaplay’s” help we gathered another 67 nick names.
Then we had the 3
so called Supermarket’s “Colonial” Store,… “Soto’s” and
“Economical” Store. They sold high-end Consumables mostly to the
Ex-Pats. I do remember my Mum buying Kraft Cheese in a round blue tins,
from these stores.
Our sporting goods store was “Gimex” where Tony “Leao” got his red Adidas Boots and was the envy of every boy who played football. Whilst Jonell Lobo had his custom made by Surti on Portuguese street across from Megji
The Confectioner or Candy Store was owned by Mr. Simon whose Shop was further down towards the Askari who controlled the traffic at the Junction of Bandstand,…. our School and the main road.
Bata shoes and Chunilal hair dresser were below Osbert and Osmond’s House
Our “Toys-R-Us" store was called “Noorbhai’s” where I got my first
Meccano.
Set # 1.
The pharmacies were “Janowalla” and “C.P. Jani” (Across from the Post Office) who took over from Jessa’s Department store that sold everything from Comic Books, (Beano Dandy Beezer & Topper) to pillows Paint, etc. Our Book store later became Island Book Store on Portuguese Street.
The other stores
were “Safi Ice” below the Spry’s, that sold Ice and bottled Soda Water, these
bottles did not have a cap, instead there was a marble that kept the Fizz
inside. The opener was a Wooden round Cap with a Stem in the middle to push the
Marble down. They also sold soft drinks Portello was a favourite, and there was
a second soda store besides JJ De’Silva Tailors….. Sandis was the Tobacco
Company attached to Africa Bar that sold State Express 555 Cigarettes in flat
Metal Boxes (20) or the Bigger packs in round Tins, (30) Cowjee Dinshaw the Liquor Store was around Bombay
Bazaar and Impex Traders, and W.H. Hamilton. (Bandula) There was a little
barazza in that triangular opening that we younger boys would argue about
Shangani versus Baghani. Below the Moniz and Figuera’s flat was Fatma Jessa
Hair Dressing Salon I think it was called “Pompadour”…… The entrance to the
Spry’s, housed Ranchod’s Photo Studio. Bright lights back drops the
works.
We also had our own “7/11” Stores, the Sheree shop and Gulamhussein across from the Rodriguese in Shangani and Bernard’s shop in Baghani. I do recall Jo mentioning that they would shop for bread by dropping from their top window a Kikapu on a rope with money in it, and yell to the shop keeper below who would in turn place the goods in the Kikapu, and they would hoist it up. The same was with Agnel De’Silva and John Batist’s Families.
The Bars and Bakeries were mostly run by Goans. The “Africa Bar “run by Fernandes,(Florence & Maria) “English Bar “by Vaz,(Sabin & Benji) “Lusitanian Bar" By Palad Lobo (Rom & Juliette) “Central Bar” (Patrick & Priscilla) Costa Bar (Alda & Olga) and "Red Lion Bar” in the Market area. This one I do not recall, but was told by Joe Kaplay.
The Bakeries were Indian Bakery, Agapit’s Bakery, Almeida Bakery in the Market area and Alban Dias in Darajani (Over the Bridge)
We had 2 automobile sales companies “Auto Sales” near Sultana Cinema and “Kapadia Motors” on the way from Sultana to the market by the creek.
This is the final Chapter of my Memories of Zanzibar
The Best Tropical Fruit Salad was at Habib’s Ice cream Shack at Forodhani, his secret was to add cucumber bits for that crunchy feel, the next best eating place for me was at Capitol Tea Room that was located behind Beit al-Ajaib and Jani’s near the Old Fort. His street food specialty was the Zanzibar Mix.
The Hawkers at Forodhani, besides the Mohogo Makai (Roasted Corn on the Cob), and Vyazi (Sweet Potatoes) sold fruit like Zambrous, Foo that was tasteless and made your teeth go black, Zanzibar Grapes, Matufa, Mabungo, Peppeta, Joogomas Chuii and Joya (Coconut Tree) and Coconut water with the Flesh, you even got a scoop made from the coconut shell not forgetting Duriani that stunk up the area. Then there was the Sugarcane Juice Man who added a piece of Ginger root when manually turning the rollers, with an occasional bee drowning in the juice, he’d pick it up with his bare fingers and flick it away and carry on making the juice. Unhygienic but none of us ever got sick. There was a Hawker with his cart who made the Zanzibar Mix, he’d peel the boiled potatoes and broke it with his bare fingers, gloves were unheard of then. The bowls and spoons were rinsed in the same bucket of water for the entire evening, with the rice crispies (Kurmoolies) floating to the top.
Next best street
food was the Bajia Man we called “Andanda”, as that was his call sign
when he hit the streets, he had a Green wooden Box with a Glass in the front I
cannot recall how he served it to us but the coconut chutney that went along
with the Bajias was to die for. and the Candy man we called Ahmed Pinoo I have
no idea where he got that name from, he carried a well-greased pole and
would peel off toffee, tambi like gooey fruit Rollup and home made suckers
attached to this pole. He started from Malindi, down Forodani up main road and
before he got to the High Court his candy would be sold out.
Our “Disneyland” was the Sikuku at Mnazi Moja celebrated every Eid, They had Tumbling Boxes, Candy Floss, Pop Corn and even a Punch and Judy show called Karagosi, there were Magic shows, you could buy Toys, Food, Makai (Roasted Corn) the walls of the stalls were made from poles called borotis and guniya (Sacks) 50 Cents admitted you in for the Karagosi show.
The English Ex Pats had it made in Zanzibar:…. there was a Sailing Club by ETC, to this day I have no idea what that stood for, they’d have their sail boats moored outside the club, the club boy would shuttle them to their sail boats by a dinghy, The Club was equipped with patio furniture, it had a bar, kitchen and even a dance floor. and every 6 months they rotated the location of their sail boats to Bandstand as waters got choppy at ETC and vice versa. The English Club was located at the Bandstand and every Wednesday Evening the Ex Pats would dress in Tux’s and Evening Gowns and have dinner on the terrace whilst listening to the Police Band play below. You’d get the whiff of the food they were dining to. Roast Beef with Yorkshire Pudding I guess.
We in turn would listen to the Police band on the Grounds below, or would play “Catching-Catching” like the game of “Tag” in North America, while the older ones would sit on the grass and hold hands with their girlfriends, I moved from the playing of games to the Holding Hands very quickly.
The third Club was the Golf Club called Coopers Canteen, it was just passed Mnazi Moja on the way to the Airport, The Aga Khan had his mansion at one end of the Golf course there was even talk that Ali Khan had Rita Hayworth there with him once. Besides the golf course there was a cricket pitch and Hockey ground too.
We too had our share of fun, we played rounders by the beach at Cable & Wireless when the tide was low. Instead of bats we would use our fist to punch that tennis ball, that’s if we got a good pitch to punch. You were out by getting chillad running between the bases. Then came the invention of a small wooden bat that was less painful than the fist. We also played Nagee or seven tiles, Icho or Kipande and Gomee, there were some crazy mean games like Goomee Nyuma, and Fimbo, no idea who invented these games but they hurt like hell.
Our Boy Scouts were the 11th. Roman Catholic Troop were the Elite of the Elite,….. Benito was the most decorated Boy Scout with his Proficiency Badges, covering most of his uniform,… His brother Jerome may beg to differ. We had John De’Silva and Colin Boccarro as our Leaders. They showed me how to tie the knots like Fisherman’s Knot Sheep Shank Clove hitch and the reef knot that I still remember to this day. Life as a Boy Scout was very competitive. There were Patrols “Bush Baby” “Panther” “Gazelle” “Wild Boar” and we used the room at Kunkgu side of the church where the priest would park their car. Each patrol had a locker, can’t recall what was in them. Every First Sunday of the month we’d gather by the High Court and March to the Church for the morning Mass, The Patrol Leaders would carry their respective flags, the song I recall was “We stand for God and for his Glory” please correct me if I’m wrong that’s why we have this forum. We also had a Campaign Bob-a-Job, from washing Cars to odd little jobs.
There were week long camping trips to places like Fumba, Paage, Mangapwani, and even to Tanga, I heard at the Tanga Camping trip someone stole Kenneth Pereira’s Birthday Cake, no idea if the culprits were ever found. The only camping trip I recall was the one to Mangapawni let by Luis Pereira, I remember pitching our Tents with two staves and guy lines to hold it down, we had to build trenches around the tent to stop the rain water from getting into the tents……did not work in the tent I slept in, the canvas had a distinct smell.
Joe (Kaplay)
Fernandes mentioned that when the Union Castle Ships (Rhodesia & Kenya
Castle) pink in colour, would stop in Zanzibar, the Boys scouts were used as
guides for the tourist, I guess all we know was the Sultans Palace, The house
of Wonders “Beit-El-Ajaibe and if we had known then what we know now, we could
have shown them Farookh Bulsara’s home.
Cheers, take care and stay safe as I said earlier please correct me if I’m wrong that’s why we have this forum.
Alwyn
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Hi Alwyn,
I greatly enjoyed reading your well documented 'Memories of Zanzibar' which certainly brought back lovely memories.
As a little token I have put your posting onto one blog page titled Alwyn-Mendes for easy reading, all your pages in one.
Keep up with all your activities especilly Music as I will soon invite all ex-SJCS musicians to produce music together via streaming.
For sweet memories attached are some great photos of your family via a blog spot I set up for you some time ago.
CLICK ON THE 2 LINKS BELOW TO READ
(1) Alwyn Mendes
https://alwynmendes.blogspot.com/
(2) MEMORIES OF ZANZIBAR
https://alwyn-mendes.blogspot.com/
Best regards,
Benny & Betty
CREDITS TO FOLLOW:
Alwyn this was fun to read - brought back many memories - it’s now 2 and haly years since our small group’s last visit.
Rooky
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Alwyn:
Outstanding work on capturing memoirs; so rich in details so vivid!!!
Thanks for the memories!!!
Wash your Hands, Maintain Social Distance, Stay Healthy, Stay Safe. Wear a MASK!!!
Best Regards:
Les. Gonsalves
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Thanks Alwyn for that detailed write up
Thanks for the memories and friendship
Gregory Fernandes
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Well done Alwyn thanks for the great memories laughing as I was reading your blog love it
Tony Fernandes
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Alwyn:
An absolute delight to read your memories!!!
A treasure for us grown-ups as well as our progeny, who, if not now, will someday cherish the stories.
You asked about ETC.
It stands for the Electric Telegraph Company. A British company, it was founded in 1846 and later acquired by Cable and Wireless. You may recall many of our young men were employed by Cable and Wireless. I remember going there to send and receive telegrams. Since my upstairs neighbors Mr. Francis, Tony and Raphael D’Souza worked there, I heard that name frequently.
Most fun memory of ETC for me, however, was the oval green space surrounded by street pavement so smooth, it was a cyclist’s dream. I used to practice riding my bike free hand around the oval bends, lean in to turn, up one side and down the other incline – over and over again
Thank you, Alwyn, for bringing back happy childhood memories!
Beryl
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Great work guys this is incredible. Alwyn you the man
John Desilva
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Benito, I am sure Alwyn will be proud of your great work.
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Thanks Jo…..much appreciated,…. I’m not sure if I have any images of what I’ve written, but will try and do some digging.
Hope all’s well with You, Bob and the rest of the Family.
Take care and stay safe,
Alwyn
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