Last week I shared some pictures of giant clam fossils on Chumbe Island, Zanzibar. This week, I’d sharing some pictures of fossil corals that I observed on Chumbe Island. Can anyone identify the corals?
Back in June my husband and I went on a week-long vacation to Zanzibar, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean just off the coast of Tanzania. When I told my American friends that I was going on vacation to Zanzibar, they mostly responded, “Wow! That sounds so exotic! Where is that, exactly?” However, when I told my South African friends that I was going on vacation in Zanzibar, many of them responded something along the lines of, “Oh, that’s great! I was there last year.” That’s because Zanzibar– along with the Seychelles and Mauritius— is a popular vacation spot for South Africans. These Indian Ocean islands are to South Africans what, perhaps, the Caribbean islands are to Americans; they are tourist hotspots, and many travel companies offer package deals that include flights, hotel, food, tours, and so on. Today, much of Zanzibar’s economy is based on tourism. For our vacation, my husband and I booked a package deal and stayed at the beautiful Azanzi Beach Hotel on the northern side of Ugunja, the largest and most populous island of Zanzibar. We had a fantastic vacation! Our vacation was a great mixture of relaxing on the beach, outdoor activities, and exploring Zanzibar’s rich history and culture.
Over the next few weeks, I’d like to share some of my Zanzibar pictures for my “Monday Geology Picture” posts. I have many great pictures to share– mostly tropical pictures of coral and beaches and such. I’ll start by sharing some pictures from Chumbe Island, a small island located a 45 minute boat ride from Stone Town, which is the main city on Ugunja. Chumbe Island is a privately-owned nature reserve that funds itself largely through eco-tourism. You can stay on the island in one of the eco-friendly huts or you can take a day trip out to the island. My husband and I took a day trip to the island. Our trip included the beautiful boat ride, snorkelling amongst some of the most impressive coral reef I have ever seen, a delicious gourmet lunch, a walk through a forest, and a climb to the top of a lighthouse. We went to Chumbe Island largely because we were hoping to catch sight of the impressive coconut crab, a large, land-based crab that climbs trees and is known to eat coconuts! However, coconut crabs are nocturnal, so we didn’t catch sight of one during our visit. However, we did see plenty of other interesting things on Chumbe Island.
In this post I am sharing some pictures of some giant clam fossils which we saw on Chumbe Island. These fossils are quite impressive! I tried to find a scientific paper that would tell me more about them, but I wasn’t able to find anything with a quick search. If anyone knows of any papers on these fossils or can tell me more about them, please leave a comment below. The Chumbe Island website states that the fossil clams are 15,000 years old.
If you’re ever in Zanzibar, I highly recommend a visit to beautiful Chumbe Island. Staying overnight at the island is a little expensive, but remember that the money goes towards conservation. The day trip also provides a more affordable option. However, next time my husband and I travel to Zanzibar, we plan to spend at least a night on Chumbe Island. Hopefully then we’ll finally see a coconut crab!
Continuing with my recent South Africa theme for the “Monday Geology Picture” posts, here are a few views from the Cape Fold Belt. These pictures were all taken in late June 2013. Enjoy!
Here’s something you don’t see every day: snow in South Africa! In late June my husband and I drove from Cape Town to Robertson, South Africa to visit my husband’s grandmother. It had been fairly cold and rainy in Cape Town for much of June. As we were driving through the mountains of the Cape Fold Belt, we noticed that there was snow on the tops of some of the mountains. We snapped a couple of pictures, including the one above, as we drove past the snow-capped South African peaks.
A few weeks ago my husband and I were driving to work one morning in Cape Town, South Africa. As always, we had a stunning view of Table Mountain. However, that morning the mountain looked particularly stunning since it was illuminated by a thick strip of sunlight, which was streaming through some clouds on the overcast day.
This week’s Monday Geology Picture is courtesy of my friends Jimmy and Vera, who recently visited Japan. In addition to seeing some real volcanoes, they also saw a fake volcano and some fake geology at DisneySea, a marine themed Disney park in Tokyo. The scenery includes some spectacular– if fake– columnar jointing.
I’m continuing this week with sharing pictures from my January 2012 trip to visit my friend Karima in the United Arab Emirates. I mostly stayed with Karima and her family in Abu Dhabi, but one day we took a drive over to Dubai. While there, we visited the impressive Burj Khalifa, which is the tallest building in the world. Here on Georneys I often like to post Plane Views or images of the Earth as viewed from an airplane. Well, some of the photographs that I took from the observation deck near the top of the Burj Khalifa certainly resemble plane views! I took some shots of the city of Dubai far below. I certainly found the views very impressive! I wish that I could have a Burj Khalifa– or an airplane, I suppose– that I could take with me anywhere in the world for such fantastic aerial views of the Earth’s landscape.
This week I’m continuing with sharing some pictures from my January 2012 trip to visit my friend Karima in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. One day we drove over to Dubai for some sightseeing. We drove around, did some shopping, and visited the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building. When we were at the Burj Khalifa, I noticed a strange vending machine: one that sells gold! Specifically, the vending machine sells small souvenir gold bars with a picture of the Burj Khalifa on them. Those are some expensive souvenirs! I’m afraid I couldn’t afford one… although I did try out the golden dessert at the Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi.
This week I’m continuing with sharing some pictures from my January 2012 trip to visit my friend Karima in Abu Dhabi. During our fancy lunch at the Emirates Palace Hotel, we went to the women’s bathroom, which I immediately referred to as “a geologist’s dream bathroom” because of all of the beautiful decorative stones.
Geologists, what types of stones would you put in your dream bathroom?
Over the next few weeks, I thought I would share some pictures from my trip to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates back in January 2012. I spend a few days in Abu Dhabi after attending a geology conference in the Sultanate of Oman. I went to Abu Dhabi to visit Karima, a good friend of mine from college, and her family. I had a wonderful trip. It was great catching up with Karima and her family. They were wonderful hosts, and I saw many wonderful things in Abu Dhabi and also Dubai. I really enjoyed sightseeing with them, and I saw many great rocks– mostly in the form of decorative stones on various fancy buildings.
During my first day in Abu Dhabi, I went kayaking with Karima, her husband, and son. We went kayaking with a group amongst some mangroves. What a great way to see part of the city and start my trip! I highly recommend a kayaking trip if you’re in Abu Dhabi.
Georneys 