Chumbe – Hakuna matata | Message from Moscow

Our last morning at Fumba I woke before dawn, and went and sat on the beach to watch the sun come up. The sea was completely clear and still, and it was lovely to swim in the warm water as the sun rose, and the light was so clear I could even see Chumbe Island with its lighthouse on the horizon, which was our next destination. We took a taxi after breakfast, and many farewells, up the coast to the boat pickup point where we met with the others who were going out to the island. Chumbe Coral Island (www.chumbeisland.com) is an eco-conservation park, with only seven bandas allowing a maximum of 14 guests at a time. The ride out was about 45 minutes and then we waded through the shallows to dry land, stopping almost immediately to admire an incredible cushion starfish. Our banda faced the sea, a little, very simple bamboo structure with two floors and a bathroom, open on the front, unless you pull up a triangular woven palm wall to its erect position! Everything is solar powered. The still functioning lighthouse was built in 1906 and the remains of the lighthouse-keeper’s house has been enclosed in a beautiful huge overarching bamboo structure, that harvests rain from its roof into special containers, and provides seating, eating, and classroom areas, all under one roof. They bring groups of schoolchildren out to teach them about the environment, take them snorkeling on the protected reef, and also adult groups from the local communities.

After arriving we were taken on a forest walk. The island is made up of fossilized coral and yet a lot of vegetation is growing on it. After our first delicious lunch there was a snorkeling trip but I was too tired and opted to stay behind and rest. As the tide came in I went down to the beach, and while walking out into the water saw what looked like a small shark just beneath the surface, I tried to follow it to get a better look as we had been told there was nothing dangerous on that coast. Later sitting above the beach with someone else we saw a small black fin and similar shape to what I had seen earlier, when I asked I discovered that it was a reef shark, harmless, and each day we would see them at high tide as the sun was going down.

Interestingly, with only eight guests the first night, we met an American who had worked on the Obama campaign in Portland and had lived just round the corner from our house! He is now going to work at the White House with the energy advisor to the president. Another Englishman, who lives in Switzerland, and is a regulator of equestrian events came to Moscow last summer and had a meeting with the Kremlin Riding School, who we work with! Amazing to find those connections out of such a small group of people. During our trip we certainly discovered that telling people we lived in Moscow, and about the work we do there was a great conversation opener.

One night after dinner we were lead on a hunt for the great coconut crab, which can get to 45cms across and can actually eat coconuts! We all had our solar, or windup, flashlights and eventually found one in a rocky hole of a cave. We could only catch a small glimpse and most of us left, but then heard a shout to say he was climbing out, so we all rushed back and got to see this huge, red crab climbing the vertical rock wall, until he was scared by us and went back down again. He was hard to get a good photo of, but later we saw a smaller one outside one of the kitchens. In the evenings the sandy pathways were covered in hermit crabs all moving around, all different sizes, you really needed a flashlight to make sure you didn’t stand on one! On the second night we were all seated outside for dinner and one of the women had to constantly check with her flashlight to make sure there were no hermit crabs under the table about to nibble her toes!

The reef was amazing, such a variety of healthy and beautiful coral and fish. I had bought a waterproof case for my camera so we could take photos, but unfortunately there was not very good visibility, as there was some rough and cloudy weather. It also takes a bit of getting used to taking photos when you are bobbing around and trying to hold the camera still. We did see some turtles and followed them for a while, a real treat, and also got some lovely photos.

One morning we went out early but after a couple of hours it started to get windy. Just as we all climbed back in the boat, the sky darkened and the wind got up and it was chilly! The wind blew hard for a while and then settled down again. We went for a wonderful tidal walk around the island, seeing different kinds of starfish, anenomes, clams, sea urchins, crabs etc. Fascinating. We were not allowed to take anything from the beach, which, after a lifetime of collecting shells was a hard habit to break, but completely logical, especially seeing how the hermit crabs need to keep upgrading their residences as they grow and need those empty shells more than we do!

We had three nights there and on the last night there was just us, and three other guests. The staff, who were all so lovely, sweet and friendly, and whose motto seemed to be “hakuna matata” (‘no problem’), surprised us by settting up a table on the beach for us, and using seeds spelled out Happy 35^th anniversary Alicia and Solihin for ever in the sand! They had built a little sandbank around the table and placed candles in it and picked greenery to decorate the table, it was so lovely and unexpected. They gave us a chilled bottle of white wine, and brought the food to us there, so touching and sweet. The other people said they had watched them all prepare it in the afternoon. It is certainly something we will never forget, and a 35^th anniversary is coral, so very appropriate that we should celebrate (albeit a little early) on a coral island! They kept saying, “one person can’t do everything, but everyone can do something.” On the island there was a tiny mosque, built at the same time as the lighthouse, and all the Muslim members of the Chumbe team did their prayers there. Solihin, who embraced Islam before we were married, joined the men each day for the sunset prayers and heartfelt sharing and discussions that followed, and made a very deep connection with one of them, which he really valued. They were all so open, kind and welcoming, and we both felt sad to leave them as we waded out to the waiting boat to go back to Stone Town for our last day in Zanzibar.