Zanzibar for The Curious Wanderers: a Friday-to-Monday weekend

The stout palace on the seafront; walk around the outside and stand under the huge verandas before the light fades.

Wander the fort's courtyard and craft stalls, where batik, carvings and spice sacks are sold by makers.

The nightly food stalls in the gardens, where a few shillings buy octopus, cassava chips and a sweet Zanzibar mix.

A cathedral that stands on a slave market; the underground chambers are small and unflinching, and the guide is worth the price.

The Persian baths with their domed rooms, now an echoing museum; ask the caretaker about the plumbing.

A rooftop dinner above the old quarter with Swahili seafood and spice-tea afterwards; the staff will talk you through the menu.

A guided walk through clove, nutmeg and vanilla plantations, with fruit tasting and a lunch at a village table.

The shell of Sultan Barghash's burned harem palace, hidden among mango trees; quiet, strange and rarely visited.

Dinner at the local favourite on Mkunazini, with chapati, biryani and fish curry in a plain room full of regulars.

A small museum in the house where the singer was born; a lovely, odd little pilgrimage for fans and curious people alike.

The market the British built, with its tin roof and strange smells; buy a bag of dried spices for the plane.

A final coffee at the old stand, where local men talk politics over a thimble of black coffee.