Catching up

Hi everyone!

It's been a few days and wanted to catch you up. I've been busy meeting the cast of the show and scouting lots of beautiful areas of Zanzibar. In the pics you'll see MONKEYS (!!!!!) from the Jozani Preserve which was amazing. There's a shot of one of our explorers "exploring" in the preserve as well. Also, we visited some amazing ruins at Mbweni. This country is really beautiful and although I am working like crazy and extremely tired, it's pretty great to soak this all up while reminding myself that I am actually getting paid to be in Africa.

Shooting intensifies tomorrow as our trek begins. We'll be traveling back to Bagamoyo (mainland) on Saturday and starting our trip across the country (970 miles). Internet will be patchy but I will try to give updates every now and then. Sorry this is a bit of a bland blog, but the schedule is insane and I have been working from pre-sunrise to post-sunset every day, making me a little foggy. This weekend the night shifts begin and they will be another adventure. I'm hoping to swing into a routine once the trek is underway. 

I hope you guys are all great. HAPPY BIRTHDAY (late) CAEL!!! I miss you all so much!! 

Love you lots,

Ali

Zanzibar!

Yesterday a few of us met with the Bagamoyo town elder, a 90-year old man whose grandfather was a chief during Stanley and Linvingstone's voyages. He showed us the Bagamoyo slave quarters, which were literally the last place Africans saw of their homeland before being transported out as slaves. Such an interesting man to listen to and just plain stare at. Absolutely dynamic in every way.

Last night Brian, Dave (the other producers) and I went next door to another hotel for dinner. Halfway through the meal, there was a blackout all across town for about 5 minutes. That was the first of many dark dark nights to come. The difference with the upcoming ones will be that I won't be feasting on a baked chicken and potatoes with my buddies. My feast will be a Clif bar and my buddies will be Masai warriors and hyenas. And the sun will rise in 10 hours.

This morning, I took a little puddle jumper plane to the island of Zanzibar with 4 other crew members, and have spent the afternoon exploring the town and planning the shoot. The streets are so narrow and packed full of art vendors. So much that I'd like to bring home with me.

I'm currently sitting at the Livingstone Restaurant which is right on the beach and just down the street from my hotel. 

Welp, it's time to move on for now. More scouting to do and meetings to attend. 

Love you guys!

ali

PIC #1: Plane we took to Zanzibar.

PIC #2: View from plane.

PIC #3: View from the roof of the old British Consulate, which is where all explorers back in the day would depart on their voyages. Also where Livingstone Restaurant is located, and where I'm writing this in PIC #4.

I'm here!

Hey everyone! So after a loooooong trip, I finally made it to Bagamoyo, Tanzania last night. The 3-layover marathon of flights claimed one of my 2 checked bags as a victim. Fortunately, it had the lesser of important stuff in it... but hey, underwear isn't NOT important. 

I found it hard to sleep on the 13-hour flight from NYC to Dubai. Not because I wasn't exhausted, but because they provide 64 movies to watch at your convenience!!! So I took the opportunity to watch 6 or 7 of those that I can count on Alex never wanting to see (ie 27 Dresses, Made of Honor). 

 It was a 2-hour bumpy ride to Bagamoya from the Dar es Salaam airport. I showed up, checked into my hotel room, flicked a termite off my toilet and enjoyed a cold shower. Then met up with the other producers for dinner and got a little more insight into this shoot. It's gonna be a ride, that's for sure.  Can't go into details (especially online) about the shoot, but we had a 5-hour meeting today figuring out logistics and such and this is definitely a BIG project for not a huge crew. Kinda scary, but mostly exciting.

We fly out to the island of Zanzibar early tomorrow morning for the week. The cast of the show will arrive on Wednesday and we will start camping on Saturday. 

Sorry I can't write more... I gotta run because they are closing up the office. I'll catch up in a day or 2! Wanted to let you all know that I'm safe! 

Love you guys tons!

Ali

PIC #1: Bagamoyo Beach

PIC #2: The slave quarters

PIC #3: What a room.