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This morning was a relatively early start as we went to Bagamoyo. We picked up Brian and Suzi on our way. It took just under two hours to get there, we arrived around midday.
We went to a museum which told us all about Bagamoyo and Zanzibar. Both Bagamoyo and Zanzibar are known for sending and receiving slaves. Reading all of the information was very interesting, and upsetting at times. They had a lot of memorabilia. There were original chains hung on the wall which were used to tie the slaves together. Seeing this sent shivers through my body. The museum wasn't massive, but it held enough information to tell you the important aspects of the slave trade and the abolishment of it. It told us all about the missionaries and escape houses that were set up in Bagamoyo by the catholics. Schools and Orphanages were also set up by the Catholics. I learnt a lot about Dr Livingstone and what he did for the slaves. He dedicated so much of his life trying to abolish the slave trade. When he died they laid his body to rest in the tower of the first catholic church built in Bagamoyo, this is now called The Livingstone Tower. After his body lay there for one day they sent his body back to England via Zanzibar. His body was buried in Westminster.
After the museum, we walked to a nearby tree where a donkey used to be tied. Originally the tree had a circumference of around 5m, it has now grown to over 12m. The chain in which the donkey was attached to the tree still remains, only one of the original links can be seen due to the growth of the tree, and so new links have been added for the purpose of keeping the story and history going. We walked to the grave yard where the missionaries laid to rest. Many of them were younger than 30 when they died. The last one to die was in 2011 at a grand age of 81! The youngest to die was someone aged 21, they sadly died of malaria.
The Livingstone Tower still remains and we were able to see this. It said that the church had been knocked down, but there was a church built on to the tower. Rich and I were a bit confused. Rich suggested that maybe the original one was knocked down and they built a knew one for historical purposes, which seems like a logical way of thinking. The Livingstone Tower is part of the first ever Catholic church in Bagamoyo. Also within these grounds is the second Catholic church in Bagamoyo, where ceremonies are still held to this day. We viewed this church last as when we arrived there was mass going on. The church was very large and colourful. The arches were painted a bright green.
The second church drew an end to our tour. It was very interesting and an eye opener to the world in which people lived. Slave trade was abolished in 1922, which is under 100 years ago, it's hard to believe how different things were such a short period of time ago.
For lunch we went to a french cuisine. It was right on the beach, perfect location and again, perfect views of the sea! I had Beef Mishkaki which is a bit like a Beef Kebab, it was very nice. Shortly after lunch we headed back to Dar. Rich and I met up with Arnold's Auntie Bahati as we had planned to go shopping with her for Arnold's birthday. He turns 21 tomorrow! Arnold follows his star sign quite thoroughly, he is a Leo and really has a passion for lions! It's funny to hear him talk about an animal so passionately and that he feels he can relate to, although it'
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