Roald Dahl's Tree

Dar Microadventure

A couple of weeks ago, I heard about an 'adventurer', Alastair Humphreys, who recommends 'microadventures':

A microadventure is an adventure that is short, simple, local, cheap – yet still fun, exciting, challenging, refreshing and rewarding.

So today I decided to have one! Here's what happened...

9am

Dropped off my son at his friend's home for the day. Scheduled pick-up was 2pm. So no guilt about me having some fun of my own!

Stop 1 - Vipaji Art Gallery

Conveniently right next door to where I'd just dropped my son. I remembered a colleague mentioning this place to me so I decided to take a look. Walked around the back and found their nice outdoor coffee shop area, called Makuti.

I asked about the Art Gallery opening times - they said it was open so I went back to the front. It wasn't! Headed back to Makuti and ordered a latte. I came prepared - I had brought a book with me to read (The Last Maasai). I sat and read for about half an hour, then headed back to the front when the waitress told me the gallery was open.

Lovely little gallery, full of paintings and sculptures by local artists. I started talking to the man in charge, Yusuph. He explained to me that some of the artists originate from the south of Tanzania, a place called Mtwara. He talked about some of the artists, namely Chilonga, Kambi, Evarist Chikawe, and Ludovick. There were also some works by the apparently 'upcoming' artist Mika. There were definitely a few works I could have purchased and lived with!

One, in particular, I could have just stared at for a very long time... thankfully they didn't accept credit cards! But I will be going back.

What I loved was just having TIME to appreciate art. I could have stayed there for hours. Maybe next time I will! I did buy an interesting book they had there:

Stop 2 - Side of the road

We've lived in Dar for over 8 months now. The weather is starting to cool. I love sitting and eating outdoors... so I decided it was time to buy some furniture for our balcony. All I really wanted was a couple of chairs and a table. A colleague recommended a roadside place (there are many roadside 'stores' here!), so I headed in that direction. Pulled over, hopped out and within 5 minutes I'd made a deal with the owner! I managed to haggle a little bit, with a smile of course, and realised he wouldn't go down by much. We agreed on a price and he asked me to return in an hour as the table I wanted wasn't actually there. I paid a tiny deposit and off I went.

Stop 3 - Slipway

Touted as a 'shopping centre'... it's a small quaint array of shops, mainly for expats and tourists... an English-language bookshop, a LOVELY shop called The Green Room, a 'souk' (marketplace/bazaar) and more. A couple of reasons why I added this to my microadventure itinerary...

• need to start thinking about gifts to take back to UK in June
• I like the Waterfront restaurant there.

I wandered around, grateful to just have time to look at all the lovely things available. I was mainly window shopping, but couldn't resist buying a new book to read (as I'm nearly done with The Last Maasai!).

Saw some great ideas for gifts - I'll look in other places and come back another day if I need to...

Then I headed to the Waterfront. I ordered a soda water and a 'Lonely Planet for One'. YUM.

Lovely, slow lunch. No rushing required. As I was finishing the sky grew darker and I knew it was time to leave. The heavens opened as I approached my car... and thankfully I didn't get too wet!

Stop 4 - back to the side of the road

Picked up the two chairs and table. Paid the guy. In the POURING rain. Now I was drenched.

Decision - it was now about 1pm. I could go home, drop off the furniture, then head back in the same direction to collect my son... NAH - let the adventure continue - even if it meant more rain!

Stop 5 - Oyster Bay

Was hoping for a coffee at my all-time favourite restaurant in Dar, Salt. Unfortunately, they were closed for the public holiday. So instead I went next door to the Black Tomato... and continued to read.

As I sat there the rain continued. And got harder.

And harder.

In the end, I gave up and decided to collect my son from nearby a few minutes earlier than planned!

Stop 6 - driving home

Just plain everyday driving in Dar es Salaam can be an adventure in itself. Today was no different. Roads had started to flood due to the crazy rainfall.

The most we have seen since arriving last July. When we were almost home we hit DEEP water.

Stop 7 - the end of the adventure

Once back at home, my son and friends had a ball playing on the flooded field! Soooo much fun!

After the boys had finished, I noticed dozens of dragonflies skimming on the water. Then crows flocked in! Amazing to see so much nature so close by. Such a different world to the one we were in before, Hong Kong. Great to sit in my new chair, feel the breeze, and watch the world happen.

All in all, a great microadventure - it definitely ticked most of the boxes!

Short? Yes.
Simple? Yes.
Local? Yes.
Cheap? Kinda (if I hadn't bought the chairs and table... but could have been worse - art!)
Fun? YES.
Exciting? Not overly.
Challenging? Not really, apart from driving through the flood!
Refreshing? Absolutely. I adore rain. Must be the Brit in me.
Rewarding? You betcha!

Can't wait until the next one...

Full photo album from the day here.

Meeting the Maasai

Today, some Maasai visited our Grade 2 classroom. Connecting cultures as we learn about identity. An incredible learning experience for the students who were sooooooo engaged (as was I!).

The tallest one, Ibrahim, explained to the students many aspects of the Maasai culture. Some the students had heard before, some they had not! Completely fascinating and I had to pinch myself a couple of times as half of what he was saying just did not sound REAL! But it was...

Here's what I have learned about the Maasai so far:

• Maasai are traditionally nomadic and move to places that are good for their cattle. Cattle are their main source of income and livelihood - they sell cows, they milk cows, they eat cows.
• Maasai make their temporary homes from clay and cow dung.
• They have only 3 'weapons' - a shield, a spear, and a knife (a big one, think machete). He had his knife with him in a pouch hanging from his waist, but declined one student's request to take it out.
• They brush their teeth with parts of a tree.
• Their bottom two front teeth are removed. This is in case they suffer from lock-jaw - they can still be fed medicine and water.
• The Maasai do not hunt or eat wild animals. They will only kill wild animals to protect themselves or their cattle. Ibrahim explained (in detail, very matter of factly) how he killed a lion - he hit it on the head with his shield to stun it and then threw his spear.
• I read somewhere that part of the initiation ceremony for a boy to become a man (warrior) is for the boy to be sent out into the wild to survive by himself (against the predators etc).
• If they need to slaughter cattle (for food) they will sometimes call a local Muslim to do it (I think that's what he said).
• The Maasai drink cow blood when they are sick as they believe it will make them well faster.

The Maasai and Me

A Random Saturday Morning in Northern Dar

Itching to write, so here goes!

We had been warned that fumigation (for mosquitoes) would begin at 10am this morning. Best not to be around all those chemicals, so I planned a morning out. I called Felix, a taxi driver who had been recommended to me by a colleague, and we set off in search of my tailor (recommended by another colleague!). Prisca already visited me on Monday to measure me and collect the shirt that I wanted her to copy. She called yesterday to ask if I could visit her shop in Mikocheni to try on the first shirt she made. I also needed to do some grocery shopping. So rather than rely on Uber and flagging down taxis (which can be quite stressful and not always the safest option), I decided to hire Felix for the morning. 

We left home at 9:30am (Charambe Street at the bottom of the map) and headed for Rose Garden Road. Prisca's shop isn't actually on Rose Garden Road, so when we got close I called her and handed my phone to Felix. We drove around the back streets with her directing him until we got there! Tried on the shirt, they took measurements for alterations, and she said she will deliver all three shirts I'm having made tomorrow!!! Here are the fabrics I've chosen. Lovely and bright! Hope they turn out OK.

From there we headed to the bank and stopped off for some cash, then to Shopper's Plaza (top right of map). This is turning into my local supermarket. I can get most things here, SOME good veggies but it is hit and miss. I go here for general household stuff, like foil, shampoo etc etc. Best to go with a car, so made use of having Felix today and stocked up on a few things.

Had a good chat to Felix along the way... he is from southern Tanzania and moved to Dar two years ago. He has 8 kids (that's quite normal here!) most of them grown up and with kids of their own (he has 8 grandchildren so far). He and his wife live with two of their grandchildren as his daughter (their mother) passed away. I didn't like to ask how... only just met him! He knows Dar VERY well as he is driving the roads every day. He lives about 25km from the town and drives in at 5:30am every morning to avoid the traffic. He heads home at about 9pm, sometimes later if he gets called by a customer. I really love talking to locals and getting their spin on things, so asked him to recommend some good places to find Tanzanian arts and crafts. He talked of a place I have heard of and intend to visit - Uhuru Street - but will save that for another adventure on another day! 

As if by magic about 5 minutes later he drove down a road that looked like an art market! WOW. Then I realised it was the place to buy 'Tinga Tinga' paintings (and other styles). At first I thought it was just a tourist place, as there were some other white faces there, but Felix told me that most of the Tinga Tinga art is made here at this workshop and they have one more place outside of Dar. Some of you Brits might have seen Tinga Tinga Tales... based on the Tinga Tinga artworks (video at bottom of this post).

Main sign

Tinga Tinga workshop

The artist said it would take him two days to finish this.

Artists in their workshop

Tinga Tinga style pencils

And, of course, I couldn't come away empty-handed! I didn't buy any Tinga Tinga artwork, but I did get these:

Oli chose the blue one for him, orange one for me... and white one will become my coffee mug at school! Loving the colours here. Also love when things just happen. This wasn't planned at all, just came upon it, and decided on the spur of the moment to stop and take a look. Perfect.

From there we headed to the Woodberry Cafe. I think this will become my 'chill out' breakfast spot. My little man likes it too... he had a mean chocolate pancake for lunch!!! 

Went to the Garden Market next door to get some nice veggies (if a little pricey).... then Felix drove us home. There was a faint odour of fumigation chemicals when we arrived, but thankfully not too strong.

Almost as soon as we got home, Oli headed onto the field to play football with his mates. Great to have other kids living on campus. They are pretty much free to roam. Parents take it in turns to watch them in the pool... it's a great little community. That's why I have time to write this now - Oli is at the pool!! I'm very aware of the fact that it would be EASY to stay on campus all the time and never leave (some teachers do that!)... so I'm making a concerted effort to get out and about at weekends. 

Weekday outings will be few and far between I think. I'm up at 5am and leave for school at about 6:10am, getting to my classroom about 3-4 minutes after that (LOVING the commute!). School's out for students at 1:45pm (for the first 3 weeks at least)... I'm usually home by about 4pm. Hoping that will gradually get earlier, but as a newbie and being the first weeks of the school year it is pretty full on. By 4-5pm the traffic in Dar is horrendous, so it's really not worth going out then as it would take hours to get anywhere and hours to get home (we are not real close to much here!). It gets dark by about 6:30-7pm, and it's best to be home by then. Oli goes to bed at 7pm anyway (on a school night), I usually have some work to do and try to be in bed before 9pm.

So weekends OUT it will be!!!!! Definitely planning to get a car. For safety. For independence.

I have my Tanzanian driving licence already, so hopefully soon...

The extent of my Kiswahili so far:

Hello.

Good Morning.

I'm fine.

Please may I have a coffee?

I live in Dar.

Thank you (very much).

One.

Two.

Yes.

No.

Goodbye.
See you tomorrow.

(the essentials! - haha!)

I'd better love you and leave you... I need to whip up something edible for a potluck brunch tomorrow - all living on school campus are invited! It should be a nice easy morning getting to know my neighbours. Loving the slower pace here. People make time for IMPORTANT stuff.

A Tinga Tinga Tales video for you:

Getting things done.

Today was quite a successful day. I managed to get two big jobs done which is quite an achievement.

In order for my shipment to be allowed through customs when it arrives, I need a  TIN number. In order to get a TIN number I have to supply a small mountain of paperwork and visit a couple of government offices. Most people here work on something I'm calling 'stretchy time'. Things are pretty laid back here, so  take much longer than we would expect... It took about three hours to get it. That included a short drive to a different office that we didn't need to do! Complicated.

Then I went to Airtel, the mobile phone provider. I'd paid for a plan last week, but suddenly I was unable to text or phone. Apparently they had a record of me paying the money, but had not activated the plan. Mmmmm. I was assured it would be sorted today. We will see!!!

Two big jobs done.

I'm still struggling with finding places to buy nice fresh vegetables... Today Oli and I went to Oyster Bay... One of the teachers very kindly gave us a lift there. Veggies still not great. It's hard for me, when. Veggies make up 80% of our diet. Used Uber to get home. Will definitely be using that from now on!!!!!

The Berry Man

I know I am a few posts behind... So much has happened in the 10 days we have been here in Dar es Salaam. I will try to write about those soon. While you wait here are a few words about today. Focusing on the positives and, although a small one, this is a definite positive today.

We discovered that we have a 'berry man'! This guy comes every Tuesday at 6pm with fresh berries. Strawberries, raspberries and blueberries. 

He comes to where we live on campus, opens the back of his van, and brings out the berries! We bring our containers and he fills them with succulent produce. Good quality, delicious tasting, REAL berries. Awesome!!! 

Today he only had strawberries. I paid 5,000 Tanzanian shillings (£1.70) for a container's worth. Far cheaper than Hong Kong! So far this is the BEST fresh fruit I have seen here. I will definitely be buying his fruit every week. Oli and I love berries!! Yum. Hope there are other fresh fruit vendors like this!!