10 years in Tanzania!

This month marks the 10 year anniversary of our arrival to Tanzania! I vividly remember being in my brother's house in Denver when I got an email with my initial job offer. I had gone through several interviews with many organizations all over the world and in my mind Tanzania was just another of the dozens of countries that I was sending job applications off to. But after reading the confirmation email I checked the Wikipedia page for Tanzania and noted that Mt. Kilimanjaro was there  as well as Serengeti National park, otherwise I was very unfamiliar with the country. I did note that the official languages were English and Swahili though it would be clear upon arrival that Swahili was the lingua franca of the country. At the time we were on an open ended trip and thus had to pack up immediately, pass through my hometown as well as pass through Ana's home town (in a different country) before we were onward to Moshi. I think I was offered the job on the 11th of October and made it to Moshi by the 11th of November. 

I've spent nearly my entire 30s in Tanzania and have grown immensely professionally having first arrived as a coordinator before a series of internal promotions and new jobs led me to a director level role. I got married in a Tanzanian courthouse, bought my first (and second) vehicle here, and lived in two separate regions (Kilimanjaro and then Iringa). I've learned Swahili to a level that allows me to be proficient in work and general; fluent is a strong word but I am proud of my level of language abilities here. 

Having a partner from another country means that we spend our annual monthly holiday split between our home countries but we have been incredibly lucky to have spent a fair amount of time traveling within Tanzania (proof is, this blog). There are still plenty of areas that we've not yet visited would like to; an overland trip to Mahale National Park in western Tanzania, exploring the shores of Lake Tanganyika, hiking through the Ngorongoro Highlands en route to Lake Natron, Pemba Island remains unexplored, as well as southern Tanzania around the Ruvuma river. And that's not even considering all the places that we've already been before and are old time favorites! I am hopeful that when the time comes to leave Tanzania for good, we'll be able to go on an extended road trip to explore all the places we haven't had time for and bid farewell to our favorite places.

This is a bit of a niche statistics but we are keen birdwatchers and have seen 773 species since coming to Tanzania. One of the more interesting statistics that we've managed to see a new species every year, something which is becoming increasingly difficult though we have not had to make an intentional trip to tick this box.

Some of my favorite anecdotes...

-The one time someone in Singida had the same phone number as me. We were living in Moshi at the time and for several weeks Tigo had issued my number to an individual in Singida, apparently involved in some type of agriculture. I received phone calls and texts for weeks looking for this person and he likely experienced the same inconvenience of having people calling him looking for me. 

-The arrival of speed radar guns, causing chaos on the road with traffic police. Previous to the radar guns arrival there was no hard evidence of traffic violations and thus, for better or for worse, less enforcement of the painstaking 50km zones on the main highway. 

-The digitization of the government payments. The traffic police used to get paid on the spot at a traffic stop only issuing an official "gold paper" receipt. Seeing them gives me PTSD to a time of inefficiencies and opaqueness. I also remember paying national park entry fees with cash something which is now forbidden.

-Our first big break down, failure of the injector pump, after a perilous and long drive to Lake Natron and back. I was relieved that we were at least near to a larger town on the highway where there were plenty of opportunities for help. We had just driven through some very sparsely populated landscapes and thus I expressed our good fortune, much to the chagrin and alternate perspective of Ana. The "garage" was open air and when rain poured the entire afternoon the reality that we would not make it back to work the next day settled in. We were about to board a bus but the mechanic finished at the last minute. 

-The fact that I am 10 years in, claimed I am close to fluent in Swahili, and just realized this week that Swahili has no Q, X or Z in their alphabet. I mean, I obviously have not used them but having never formally learned Swahili (though I do have reference books) I clearly missed this interesting feature of Swahili.

Ruaha National Park November trip

 

Not a very moist landscape

I've written about Ruaha National Park at the end of dry season before (One, two) but this trip took place at the very end of dry season. There is a saying that the night is darkest before dawn and the same can be said that the area is driest before rainy season (though it doesn't really roll off the tongue the same...). The state of the Ruaha River was grim, with no flowing water and only sparse disconnected pools. Some were packed with hippos that were constantly grumbling and jockeying for space. 

The visibility was excellent with many of the grasses trampled or eaten and the vegetation was very thin. Views along the Ruaha and Mwagusi River were expansive and it was easy to spot game from far. We saw plenty of impala, a larger than usual number of warthogs and zebra, and very few elephants. The highlight of the trip was an early morning encounter with a pair of African Wild Dogs. 

For tourism operators this time of year is the "shoulder" season and there were very few guests. Each day we saw only one vehicle and we spent plenty of time in the most popular tourist areas.

Meeting culture: Photographs

 

What a beautiful calendar

My organization is frequently invited to attend formal workshops, meetings and other types of official events. One amusing aspects of meeting culture here is the presence of freelance photographers. Their main purpose is to take the official photo of attendees, which typically is one of the first agenda items, and then they are free to roam around and take photos of attendees. Whether this is capturing people sitting and listening to presentations, having informal chats at tea break, or any other activity, the photographers are there to capture the moments. 

They're very entrepreneurial and if they've taken photos in the morning, they'll have printed them and display them for sale outside of the meeting hall. Many attendees are dressed quite smart and the glossy photos look very official and professional. There is also the appeal of having captured photos of people speaking with big wigs such as ministers which can appeal to ones ego. 

I recently attended a workshop and I was surprised at the ingenuity of the photographers. When I exited the meeting hall I noticed they not only had a photo of me speaking on the phone, but they had designed a calendar with said image. I do not normally purchase photos of myself but this one was too unique to pass up.

Kisolanza Farmhouse in the dry season

 

October vibes

I've waxed poetic about Kisolanza Farmhouse (Post I, Post II, Post III) and enjoyed a dry season visit this past weekend. It's not as cold as the peak months (June and July) but still a much cooler temperature than lower elevation areas this time of year. 

They've full repaired their dining area and it's a mix of traditional construction and modern roofing. I personally feel that it really works and matches the aesthetic of the rest of the rooms and the property. Everything is done so tastefully with a farmhouse feel. It's challenging for cottages in Africa to not go overboard with Maasai sheets and other kitsch stereotypical designs and I think Kisolanza Farmhouse has one of my favorite "feels" of any lodge in Tanzania. Everything is locally made, tasteful yet not ostentatious, and the place feels downright homey. The fireplaces lend themselves to an evening of reading by the fire, a perfect activity! Even during the day there is adequate seating inside and outside for us to simply relax or the property is large enough for a variety of different walks.

The food is amazing with no fixed menu. We always enjoy the surprise of what the food will be and one of the challenges of an extended stay at Kiso is eating in moderation. The breakfast is particularly delectable and one of my favorite elements is the homemade yogurt with honey, farm-fresh butter, and homemade strawberry jam. All of the dairy based food items are extremely fresh and rich. The strawberries and cream dessert caused an awakening of my palette that I never imagined possible!

Yes, please.

In memory of the Greek Club

Greek lasagna in the background, one of my favorites

Oh, how I miss the menu!

 

It is unfortunate that I never chronicled the Greek Club when it was active as it was one of the more unique enterprises in Iringa town. Iringa region has a relatively large population of Greeks and although the Greek Club was literally a membership driven club (I'm unsure if you needed to be Greek), it was more well known for its Friday night movie nights and delicious restaurant. The food was a rotating menu based on whatever the proprietor had prepared. The owners were both Greek and the matriarch was an amazing cook. The restaurant had a serious home cooked meal feel and although it was very expensive relative to other restaurants in the area, it was also a unique style of food prepared with high quality ingredients. Some of my favorites were the bacon calzone and the greek lasagna. 

The Greek Club was located a little outside of town in an unmarked but convenient location. It had a large outdoor area, small veranda with dining, and then a large area inside with overflow seating. The owners were always around and very friendly people clearly highly involved with a wide social network. If Neema Crafts is the unofficial coffee shop and meeting point for traveler and local alike, then the Greek Club would be more like a permanent residents meet up point. It was less noisy and hectic than Neema Crafts while still being centrally located. 

Unfortunately the Greek Club closed rather suddenly a few years ago. Rumors abound regarding the reasons why but I am not close to the source so I will not speculate. The only thing I know for sure is that it is sorely missed!

Inside where movie nights were held on Friday evenings

Unassuming building. Events were inside and dining was done on the veranda (far right)

 

 

 

October dry season

 

Sunset

The heat is ON. October is deep into the dry season and is the hottest and driest time of the year. Temperatures regularly hit 38 C (100 F) and even some of the nights are toasty. It's not unusual for the temperatures to reach uncomfortable heights by 9am and if there was one time in the year that we use a fan at night, it's October. To be fair it's not dramatically different than August but at this extreme even the most incremental increase in dryness and heat is noticeable. 

The end of October will have a few showers, at least some respite and moisture entering into the environment. Some of the miombo species in the area have put out their leaves, a harbinger of the rains to come. We'll also hear the first European Bee-eaters coming back from Europe, usually in the beginning of the month. There is another family of plants, the Caper Family (Family Capparaceae) that tends to flower this time of year as well. After a few months of relative stagnation in the ecosystem, it's an exciting time to notice all the small signs of the rains to come. 

The edge of camp

The main entrance at sunset

The Iringa airport

 

Departures on the left, arrivals on the right.

The runway, you simple walk out the doors and climb into the plane.

 

The airport at Iringa is small and servicable and dare I say a bit charming? It is located about a half hour drive outside of Iringa town, north towards Dodoma in a rural area with the typical Iringa granite studded hills providing a beautiful backdrop. 

The airport recently received some renovations and there is now a separate departure and arrival section. There is only one "terminal" so to speak, a large room with one entrance. As the flights are maximum 12 people and there are never more than two flights within an hour proximity of each other, you do not need to show up very far in advance. At the entrance there is a x-ray machine and walk through metal detector and then a small desk that serves as the ticket counter. The airport is small enough that you can view everything openly; there is no conveyor belt sucking your bag into an abyss unknown, no mystery regarding the whereabouts of your bag between the moment it leaves your hand and when it enters the underside of the airplane. You simply hand your bag to the clerk, he weighs it on a scale (non-digital, might I add) and puts it on a cart. The cart is wheeled out through the doors and onto the plane in front of everyone to see. 

There are clean bathrooms with western style toilets as well as a few concessions. When the renovations were completed a few years ago the concessions stand was manned with a few local classic like samosas and chapati along with beverages. For the past year or so it has not been opened and thus there are no services available and no public water availability. 

The airport is still under construction with a larger runway being built. It will allow for easier hosting of the larger Air Tanzania planes. Air Tanzania began servicing Iringa a few years ago and then abruptly stopped with concerns about the size of the runway. It was a shame as the Air Tanzania flights were a fraction of the cost but hopefully it will be back up and running shortly. 

The airport has come a long way. When we first moved to Iringa it was basically a one room building with minimal security infrastructure and very informal. I like the new renovations because they are not ostentatious or gaudy but completely appropriate for the size of the airport and hopefully we'll be able to fly more often when the new runway is complete.

Terminal 1