The Sweet Smells of Stone Town
Asha walked with her Babu. They walked into the big market in Stone Town. The market was busy and loud.
The air was warm. It smelled like sweet wood and fresh fruit. Asha saw big bags of colors everywhere.
"Look here," Babu said. He pointed to a basket of tiny brown buds. "These are cloves," Babu said.
They look like small, dry nails. Asha held one in her hand. It smelled very strong and warm.
"We use cloves in our tea," Babu said. Asha smiled and smelled her hand again. She liked the warm smell.
Next, they saw a round brown nut. It was inside a soft yellow shell. "This is nutmeg," Babu said.
He scraped the nut with a small metal tool. A sweet powder fell down like dust. It smelled like cozy cakes.
"Can we put this in our morning porridge?" Asha asked. "Yes, we can," Babu said with a big laugh. He tapped Asha on the nose.
Asha loved the spice market of Stone Town. It was full of bright colors and happy people. Every corner had a new sweet smell to find.
They bought a small bag of cloves. They bought one round nutmeg too. They walked home to make sweet tea together.
- Babu:
- A Swahili word meaning grandfather.
- Cloves:
- Small, dried flower buds used as a sweet and warm spice.
- Nutmeg:
- A round, brown seed from a tropical tree that is grated into a sweet spice.
- Porridge:
- A soft, warm cereal food eaten for breakfast.
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- 1Who did Asha walk with into the market?
- 2Where is the big market located?
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About this short story passage for Lower Elementary
âThe Sweet Smells of Stone Townâ is a short story reading passage about Zanzibar Spice Markets, written for Lower Elementary. It takes about 1 minute to read (207 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.