Fishers of wimmen

Onto the dalla-dalla (much like any African form of public transport), and on to Nungwe. This is tourist country; the white sands of the beaches liberally sprinkled with tourists from every corner of the world, and the beach shores lined with hundreds of bars, restaurants, hotels, dive centres, tour operators and so on. The tourists all rub huge amounts of sunblock and oils into their pale, pasty and tender skins, as if they were hoping to crisp up under the sun like so much puff pastry. Clustered according to nationality, in large, beer swilling groups or close huddling beautiful, lovey-dovey couples, they make lying about under the boiling sun look like a hard day's work. Onto the beach early, oil up, grab some HEAT magazines and gently simmer away until late afternoon, when they all disappear into their hotel rooms to prepare for another night of binge drinking, expensive restaurants, cocaine, sex and pop music. Powder your nose, straighten your hair, shower three times, avocado facial scrub, pop on this season's beach evening wear and flip-flops, and update the Facebook status on the iPhone.

The massive number of scantily clad, gorgeous women drifting about all day on the beach sands hasn't escaped the attention of the locals, of course. Around here they call it "fishing". And fishing, for some of these chaps, appears to be a full time job. A rich mzungu girlfriend from Ireland or Germany is an excellent asset for a young and ambitious Zanzibari chap. The prospect of a tall, dark and muscular African lover seems an equally tempting prospect for many young ladies new to these shores, and it's not unusual to see a white woman strolling down the beach with a Masai man, hand in hand. Or having dinner, or dancing together. This sure ain't South Africa! Some call this phenomenon "Bongo Fever", with only a small amount of envy. But these 'beach boys', as the opportunistic career fishermen are sometimes called, often do well out of it. Many speak European languages fluently (though the first time I saw a Masai talking to a girl in Spanish I did almost choke on my Kilimanjaro beer), and many have even traveled to Europe, sponsored by their gracious young lady-friends. I even heard stories of young men bragging to passing girls that they have a passport . "Take me with you, you sultry Spanish princess!" Fair enough, I suppose. Seems a long shot, but if you get it right...