Word: fundu
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Opening a hotel is never easy. But you have to admire the way the Fundu Lagoon resort on the lush island of Pemba has overcome obstacles. Just off the coast of Tanzania and north of Zanzibar, this small isle boasts few roads. Many parts are only accessible by boat. Then there are the dark arts. "Witch doctors will come to probe the deepest mysteries of voodoo," British author Evelyn Waugh wrote of Pemba in 1931. "Everything," he said, "is kept hidden from the Europeans...
...place is far more welcoming to foreigners now, but making a go of Fundu Lagoon when it launched in 2001 still meant catering to local spirits as well as to overseas guests. At the behest of islanders convinced the location was haunted, the resort called on a witch doctor, two unlucky sacrificial bulls and several mediums to cleanse Fundu of its unwanted visitors...
...that's too bad for them. Nestled alongside a remote beach stretching for kilometers on the island's southwest coast, Fundu Lagoon's dozen tented rooms offer simple, rustic comforts underneath thick Makuti thatch. Its handful of suites - a more recent addition to the resort costing another witch doctor and a couple of goats - boast plunge pools and space for private dining. Just make sure you're hungry: dishes like crab ravioli in white wine and saffron sauce or grilled squillfish, all served up by local staff, make the best of what the island's waters offer...
...irregularities have prompted many parties to claim victory for their candidates even before preliminary results are known. The claims and counterclaims are adding to the chaos. "Biased leaflets proclaiming one candidate or another as winner are being distributed or even sold," Theophile Mbemba Fundu, the interior minister, said last weekend. The aim of parties was to "engender a psychosis of fear in order to trick the population into contesting the results...