weeks 3-6

Weeks 3-6
November 6th 2007

Well..what a lot has happened since I last blogged.. so much that clearly I haven’t had time to blog! SO, in short we finished our Swahili training and left lovely Morogoro to head back to noisy Dar for motorbike ‘piki-piki’training and finally I arrived on Zanzibar on Saturday.

It’s difficult to remember all that’s happened ..but here are some highlights..

My first football match..ever..in Morogoro with it’s stunning backdrop of mountains. The two big teams from Dar es Salaam; Simba and Yanga. Music, chanting, plastic bottle throwing, police with tear gas and truncheons, small boys braving a bashing and sneaking in, a great goal, amazing acrobatics from the goal scorer, witch doctors, opposing sides taunting each other, lovely ice cream, surviving the exit!

Visiting Godfrey (our dear Morogoro friend) at his home: meeting his family, eating fruit together; Sue and I being given 2 lovely ebony goblets, “size according to our age”- I’m pleased to say I got the little one!

Stunning thunderstorm: massive sheet lightning above the mountains; rescuing a little frog and Corrie, the Dutch Gynecologist, from each other.

Sights and sounds from the bus on the way back to Dar in the rain: beautiful bunches of carrots held up to the window like hands; towers of artfully arranged oranges, tomatoes, woven bags..

Arriving at the piki-piki training to realize it’s more a further introduction to living in Tz than actually learning to drive in local conditions ..and therefore infinitely more valuable. Eating in the canteen and seeing beautiful women cooking amazing food for hundreds in a couple of pots.

Successfully bribing our way into a very nice hotel for a decadent afternoon of swimming and sharing a beer. ..and feeling a bit smug that at least the cash goes to the attendants rather than the Swiss owner..

Luxuriating in a hot and powerful shower for longer than was strictly necessary

Last minute change of plan to head to Zanzibar on Saturday rather than Sunday ..having to sacrifice day on the beach for getting up obscenely early, heaving heavy luggage around, sweating… etc

Being amazed: by the porter who lifted my 25Kg bag effortlessly onto his head and carried it, weaving thorough crowds, to the ferry; by the fact that I actually found all my bags the other end; that Hassan, the driver for my project, found me at the ferry side and whisked me off to meet my boss, Mr Vuai who was waiting on land. Seamless! And despite the apparent chaos ..it all felt calm ..but that’s some of the magic of Zanzibar! Or as my friend Chris calls it, “The Zanzibari Vortex”.

Hassan’s smile which reaches all the way up to his beautiful eyes.

Seeing my house: Down town Stone Town, just far enough up from the fish market and opposite the Dala-Dala (bus) depot. It was built in1907 and has a beautiful Zanzibari door, full balcony, spilt level, lobby living area and 2 bedrooms (I’ll be sharing with occasional visitors from the Aga Khan Foundation). It’s on a narrow lane just off the main market area; I’ll be waking up early for sure! With a bit of love and some basic necessities it will be a wonderful home and quite a party palace!

Walking through the market outside my front door; everything under the sun there on stalls or on the floor or on a wagon: noisy, busy, smelly ..fantastic!

Meeting my colleagues at work; friendly, smiling and kind. Feeling like I can just feel my way for a while.. watching, listening and asking questions..

Dinner at the beach; watching the sun go down..

Spotting donkeys having fun being washed in the sea after a long day at work in the dust

Realising the amazing shimmering effect on the sand as I walk is hundreds of tiny crabs disappearing into tiny holes about 5 feet ahead

Ending up nearly knee deep in mud as I got lost in the sunset rather than looking where I was going.. typical!

Finally a day on the beach.. white sands, blue sea.. I think I should stop there!

So tomorrow I should move into my house ..and there the beginning of a new chapter begins.

Karibu Zanzibar!