Custard apples without apples and custard

Does that sound strange? Well it actually isn't that strange! Here in Zanzibar they have a fruit named "Apple custard" and it doesn't taste like apples but a little bit like vanilla (hence the name, we guess). The consistency is a little bit like soft avocados, but the flavor is one of a kind and quite difficult to describe. But we can say that it is one of the best fruit we have ever tasted!

We got an opportunity to try this fruit and a lot of other fruits when we went for a spice tour last Sunday. There are many spice farms at Zanzibar due to the history of Arabic and Indian influences, and many of these spice farms are situated close to Stonetown. So we went for a visit during the drive from Stonetown to Paje. It might sound a little strange to go and see how spices grow and how the plants of the spices look like but it sure was interesting!

We saw how cinnamon, cardamom, pepper and many other spices grow. We also got a chance to see a lot of fruits; big ones like jackfruits, strange ones like red bananas and the most surprising one the pineapple plant! Look at all these amazing plants:

The benamed custard apples. 

Arabic coffee beans.

Two unripe vanilla pods and one ripe. 

Jack fruit, they look like Dorian but they don't smell bad (at all)!

A lemongrass plantage.

The beautiful nutmeg.

Clove

A djungel of pepper plants climbing every tree possible.

The cinnamon is taken from the bark of this tree.

The pineapple plant, not as one would have expected.. or?