Zanzibar - The Spice Island
ZANZIBAR
THE SPICE ISLAND
PH.: Teddy Marks & Anna Ioannova
T.: Teddy Marks
The sun was setting. Very gently. It bathed the sea and sky in flaming tones from orange to violet. Far on the horizon dark clouds rode on the tropical winds between the continent and Zanzibar. What a natural spectacle.
Zanzibar - many travelogues about the Spice Island in the Indian Ocean begin in a similarly poetic way.
Yes, I am also inclined to write a little exuberantly about Zanzibar, because every moment of the ten days of this completely spontaneous journey was a pleasure.
I must confess that when I flew to Zanzibar for the photo production, I was not quite prepared for the country, not because I was not particularly interested in it, but simply because I lacked the time to do so. The trip was ultraspontaneous. In the evening a direct flight from Düsseldorf and bang, the next morning you're already there.
Not so long ago Zanzibar was an absolutely elite luxury holiday destination, and here in Germany most people only knew Zanzibar in connection with a noble cult restaurant on Sylt.
THE ISLAND IS LIKE A CONCENTRATE OF AFRICA, ALL CULTURES AND RELIGIONS BOILED DOWN AND EXTRACTED TO A FEW SQUARE KILOMETERS.
Africa, East Coast, Island, Instagram-Paradise and Shabby-Chic Tourism were the keywords I was thinking about, but that was it. The island is like a concentrate of Africa, all cultures and religions boiled down and extracted to a few square kilometers.
The average annual income is 250 US dollars. Over half of the population lives below the poverty line. It is estimated that about 12% of the children suffer from acute malnutrition. Everyone who comes to Zanzibar and is blinded by luxury hotels and paradise beaches should internalize this and never forget how privileged they are.
The people are wonderful, even if it is their job here and there to be wonderful to the rich tourists from the far corners of the world, a world that remains unrivalled for most of the islanders.
I was supposed to meet with Anna Ioannova the day after, model and artist from Russia, who wanted to relax for a few days on the nearby island after her Kilimanjaro trip. After several studio shoots and the famous Mickey Mouse project, the opportunity was there to get really creative in front of a tropical backdrop. We felt like shooting twice a day in front of and in gorgeous sceneries and had to struggle with rough terrain, cows on streets, a leaky half-empty pool, and unbelievable aromas and smells, actually making us want to eat all day long.
Anna after arriving on the beach
One of the magical sunrises at Upendo
THE BEACHES OF ZANZIBAR ARE INCOMPARABLY MAGNIFICENT.
Stand by and relax
The next morning began, like every other morning after, with a picture book sunrise. The palm trees rushed gently in the wind and there I stood on the beach with my first real Zanzibar coffee, as a nearly non-coffee-drinker an experience for all taste buds. Then I took a taxi on my way to the airport again. The model Anna will arrive today and from tomorrow on the first photos will be taken, the results of which will of course be shown only in MARLEY Magazine and some of them of course here on my website.
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