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Stone Town or Mji Mkongwe in Swahili is an old and historic place in Zanzibar. Stone Town is located on the West Coast of Unguja or the main island of Zanzibar. It was the center of spices and slave trade in the 18th and 19th centuries before the country was merged into the Republic of Tanzania in 1964 and maintained its status as a semi-autonomous territory which has Stone Town as the capital.
The word “stone town” comes from the red coral reef, which is an important building material. Stone Town is rich in cultural diversity and architecture which consists of Arab, Persia, India, and Europe intermingling and the most outstanding is the Craft carving in the doors. Also, Stone Town became a UNESCO World Heritage City in 2000.
House of Wonders or Bayt el Ajaib in Arabic is the first place to use elevators in East Africa, which is where the name House Of Wonders comes from. This is located between the Old Fort and the Palace Museum.
The highlight of the House Of Wonders is a combination of coral, stone, concrete floorboards, concrete slabs, steel beams and mangrove shots.
After slavery was abolished in 1873 by the African anti-trafficking initiative, Dr. David Livingstone, this was the last slave market in East Africa. In 1879, an English missionary built the Anglican Church, The Anglican Cathedral of Christ Church, replacing the slave market on the island.
A monument was built with several male and female slaves standing in a hole with chains around their necks. The sculpture is located at the point where it used to be the center of slave auctions to commemorate the atrocities of slavery in those days. This church has become a major historical tourist attraction in Stone Town.
Anyone who is a fan of legendary bands like Queen and likes Freddie Mercury, the 80s rock king, is recommended to visit this museum. The Freddie Museum is located at Freddie’s childhood home on Gizenga Street in Stone Town.
Inside the museum, there are displays full of photographs, handwritten lyrics, and Freddie’s story during his stay in Zanzibar. We learn more about Freddie’s childhood by visiting this museum.
If you’re staying or stopping by in Stone Town, you have to come to a colorful local market like Darajani Market. This is a plaza built by Zanzibar’s 8th Sultan Ali bin Hamud. It’s not surprising that the appearance of a building has a sense of Arab architecture.
The market is a shopping complex with a wide variety of products to choose from, including vegetables, fruits, meat, spices, pots, pans, sewing machines, and even all the tools. Tourists can come here to shop and pick gifts and souvenirs and bring them back to their friends or family.
The Old Fort or Arab Fort also known as ‘Ngome Kongwe’, is one of the oldest and historic sites in Stone Town which is located next to the House of Wonders.
This fort was built after Portugal took over Zanzibar in the 17th century and rebuilt after Oman outcast Portugal and ruled Zanzibar in the 18th century and during the 19th century. This place became a fort and a prison, then turned into a train station.
Today, this old fort has become a cultural center for festivals and is also the venue for Zanzibar’s international film festival. Inside is an outdoor lawn filled with small shops selling clothes and artwork, making it a tourist attraction.
