Dar es Salaam, the largest city and commercial capital of
Tanzania is an important stop-over for most visitors to
Tanzania. Once called Mzizima, meaning  healthy town,
Dar es Salaam has a history dating back mid 19th century
when the town emerged as a small fishing town. Mzizima
was later named Dar es salaam, meaning ‘a haven for peace’
in Arabic by Sultan Seyyid Majid of Zanzibar – a name
that has stuck to date. The city is popularly referred
to as Dar in Tanzania .

Located on a massive harbour on the eastern coast of
Indian Ocean, Dar es salaam boasts an atmosphere of
tranquility with enchanting beaches and lively
neighbourhoods. The city’s bustling harbour is the main
port in Tanzania, and is home to the main international
airport in Tanzania; Julius Nyerere International Airport
- located about 13km from the city centre.

Although the city is no longer the administrative capital
of Tanzania, government offices still have their main
base in Dar es Salaam. Diplomatic missions and
non-governmental organisations in the country also have
a presence in the bustling coastal city.

As one of the most cosmopolitan cities of Africa,
Dar es Salaam hosts many peoples, including the 100 or so
tribal groups of Tanzania. None of these groups comprise
more than 10% of the population and this perhaps
contributes to the tranquility the country has experienced
for years. The most numerous groups are the Sukuma of Lake
Victoria, Chaaga of Mount Kilimanjaro, Nyamwenzi of Tabora,
Hehe of Iringa and the Gogo of Dodoma. Arab and Persian
influence is strong in Zanzibar, and to a lesser in Dar es Salaam.

The interaction of Arabs and Bantu Africans resulted in
the Swahili language now widely spoken in Eastern and
Central Africa. Swahili is now the Lingua Franca of Tanzania
although English is widely understood in urban centers.

During German occupation in the early 20th century, Dar es
Salaam was the centre of colonial administration and the
main contact point between the agricultural mainland and the
world of trade and commerce in the Indian Ocean and the
Swahili Coast. Remnants of colonial presence, both German
and British, can still be seen in the landmarks and
architecture around the city.

Upon arriving in Dar es salaam, visitors are greeted by
numerous historical landmarks, including St. Joseph’s
Cathedral, the White Father’s Mission House, the Botanical
Gardens, the old State House and the National Museum that
proclaim their permanent residence in the city centre.
Lutheran Church -probably the oldest building standing on
the city, on the other hand, seems to recount the rich
Christian heritage of Tanzania that dates back 18th century
when the first missionaries set their feet on the country.

Strolling down the Shaaban Robert Street and Samora Street
junction, you will be allured by the incredibly beautiful
peacocks that inhabit this corner of town. And before you
know it you will be at the gate  of the imposing National Museum.

The National Museum is a priceless treasure that exhibits
material of cultural, ecological and historical
significance; including a cast of 3.6 million-year-old
hominid footprint. The museum exhibits important
archaeological pieces including fossils of Zinjathropus,
the early fossils of mankind that were discovered at
Olduvai Gorge by Dr. Mary Leaky. The building itself is
remarkable; containing unique sculptures, picturesque tiles
and carvings. The historical structure is surrounded by a
peaceful garden that occasionally hosts concerts and plays.

A stone throw away from the National Museum is the amazing
Botanical Gardens, situated adjacent to the Holiday Inn. The
garden boasts lush tropical flora and is a most ideal place
to relax in the peaceful atmosphere and tropical beauty that
is Dar es Salaam.

After lazing in the garden for an hour or so, head to the
north where you’ll come to Ocean Road. The beaches here
tend to be busy on weekends and holidays; host to weddings,
picnics and romantic strolls though not much of swimming.

If you don’t have time to explore the rest of Tanzania,
don’t miss a visit to the open-air Village Museum
(also referred to Makumbusho, the Swahili word for museum)
located on New Bagamoyo Road.

These well-kept grounds feature 18 furnished traditional
houses from different ethnic groups throughout Tanzania.
In addition, you can watch traditional dance performances
on most afternoons, view a variety of agricultural
techniques, observe artisans at work and refresh yourself in the cafe.

As you move further towards the ocean, you will find
numerous traditional dhows, fishing boats and high-speed
ferries  to the neighbouring Zanzibar Island. Equally
fascinating are swaying palm trees on the white sands of
the nearby Kigamboni – a beautiful southern beach that is
only a short ride from Dar es Salaam by ferry. There are a
good number of good Dar es Salaam beach hotels ranging
from budget to luxury which offer many options for swimming and relaxing.

http://www.africapoint.com/hotels/dar_zanzibar.htm?ezsite=56

Next to the ferry terminal on the City Centre side is the
the recently renovated Kivukoni fish market. Boats deliver
their catches directly to the market every morning and here
you can experience the art of bargaining as both sellers and
buyers seek a better price. The fish market is the best spot
to catch a glimpse of life and commerce in Tanzania. Make sure
to experience the traditional food at the coast and Zanzibar.
This is quite good and is based on seafood and rice dishes.

After exploring the suburbs of Dar es Salaam, you may want to
proceed to the nearby attractions that include Bagamoyo,
Bongoyo and Mbudya islands. Located only about an hour north
of Dar es Salaam, Bagamoyo attracts visitors for its pristine
white sand beaches as well as its historical significance.

Bagamoyo, Kiswahili for “lay down the burden of your heart”
or “be quiet my heart” was recently designated as Tanzania’s
seventh World Heritage Site and is the oldest town in Tanzania.
The town was towards the end of the 18th century the capital
for German East Africa. Bagamoyo has one of the most
wonderful white sand beaches of Tanzania.

In the past, the town of Bagamoyo was one of the most
important trading ports on the entire East African coast.
Its port was the penultimate stop of slave and ivory caravans
that traveled on foot all the way from Lake Tanganyika. Once
the caravans reached Bagamoyo, the slaves and ivory were
shipped by dhow to Zanzibar, where they were then dispatched
all over the world.

Today, Bagamoyo is a centre of dhow building in the region
and along the Tanzanian coast. Northwest of Bagamoyo are
several small streets lined with carved doors similar to
those found on Zanzibar and elsewhere along the Swahili coast.

The Kaole Ruins  located about five kilometers south of
Bagamoyo are also worth a visit. The ruins consisting of
the remains of the first settlement of the Arabs are the
major attraction that Bagamoyo has to offer. Kaole Ruins
date to the thirteenth century and comprise remnants of two
mosques and several tombs, showing the importance of Islam
in early Bagamoyo.

Miles away from Bagamoyo, about 7 km north of Dar es Salaam,
is Bongoyo Island Marine Reserve. The reserve offers good
snorkeling and diving sites for those who want to explore
the water. Bongoyo reserve boasts beautiful beaches,
secluded islands, and many varieties of marine species. In
contrast to other beaches, Bongoyo is not tide dependent and
so swimming can be done at any time of the day. About 4 km
from the island is Mbudya; an island that have almost the
same characteristics as Bongoyo.  The island lies close to
the beach resort and fishing community of Kunduchi and is
accessible by motorboats crossing from the mainland.

A majority of visitors to Dar es Salaam find it worthwhile
to take a southern Tanzania safari tour to Mikumi,

http://www.africapoint.com/tours1/vacation.asp?vacationid=304&ezsite=56

Udzungwa, Ruaha and Selous game reserves. These destinations
comprise the southern safari circuit of Tanzania. Mikumi National
Park is just 4 hours away by car, and Zanzibar is a quick
2-hour ferry ride (or an even quicker flight) away. For
relaxing day trips to nearby islands, transportation can
be arranged at most hotels and travel agents.

Occupying 3,230 sq km, Mikumi carries a variety of
wildlife including elephants, lion,giraffe, impala,
warthog, zebra, buffalo, wildebeest, hartebeest and eland.
Wild dogs- considered an endangered carnivore species -are
found here in good numbers. Other resident animals are
crocodiles, hippos, and monitor lizards.

Birds are most plentiful in the wet season when up to 300
species gather here. Many of these are Eurasian migrants,
exercising to the full, the freedom that comes with wings.
The Mikumi flood plain is the dominant feature of the park,
which is bordered on one side by the Uluguru Mountains and
on another by the Lumango range. Mikumi forms the northern
border of the Selous Game Reserve and is part of a vast
wilderness ecosystem covering 75,000 sq km. Open grasslands
stretch on the plains, while miombo woodlands cover higher ground.

The park is accessible year round- unlike some of the
sanctuaries in the southern circuit. To get to Mikuni from
Dar, you spend 4 hours on road or 1 hour by air. Budget
travelers take a bus ride to park gate, from where game
drives are organised. There is limited accommodation at a
few luxury lodges and tented camps and at 3 campsites. If
you find yourself in Dar on a weekend, this is where you
head to see wildlife.

The 1,990 sq km Udzungwa Mountains National Park is 348 km
west of Dar and 65 km southwest of Mikumi. The mountains
are part of the Eastern Arc Mountains that fall southeast
of Kilimanjaro. The park is unique in Tanzania, having
been created primarily to conserve plant life. The pristine
mountain forest habitat hosts numerous rare plants. There
are six primate species, out of which two species are
endemic – the Iringa red colobus monkey and the Sanje Crested Mangabey.

At the plateau area, you find elephants, lions, hunting
dogs and buffalos, though not in as large numbers as in
some of the other Tanzania parks. Birds also do well here,
and indeed the park ranks as one of Africa’s most important
bird conservation areas. Scientists have in recent times
come across at least four previously unknown bird species.
The best time to visit is over the dry season between June
and October. The hiking trails over the wet season are
slippery, which can be quite a nuisance.

The Ruaha National Park is rightly named after its
lifeblood- the Great Ruaha River. Occupying 12,950 sq km,
it is Tanzania’s second largest national park and its
biggest elephant sanctuary. Home to numerous crocodiles
and hippo, the Great Ruaha draws many thirsty waterbuck,
leopard, buffalo, reedbuck, wild dogs, lion and hyena to
its banks.

Plain animals such as zebra, greater and lesser kudu, sable
and roan antelope, impala and giraffe are found on the
plains stretching from the rivers edge. The topography is
agreeable to hiking and walking safaris are allowed. In
the wet season months of March to April and October to
November the bird population peaks and the park has over
370 bird species, including some Eurasian migrants.

The flora is very diverse and over 1650 plant species
flourish here. The Ruaha has the unique distinction of
having plant and animal life found in both eastern and
southern Africa. The climate here is hot and dry and
temperatures can reach 40°C in October. The Ruaha is
located 128 km west of the central Tanzania town of Iringa.
It was previously inaccessible, but there is now year
round road access.

From Dar, road travel is a backbreaking 10 hours while a
charter flight takes 1 ½ hours. The best time for a safari
is over the dry season- May to December. Then, the Ruaha
River is magnetic to the animals and right at the banks,
the drama of their daily life is on display- feeding,
fighting, courting and mating. The accommodation is
currently limited, but there is a luxury lodge, and a
few self-catering chalets and campsites.

Selous Game Reserve is the star of the southern safari
circuit. The reserve is named after the intrepid Fredrick
Courtney Selous, a celebrated Victoria era explorer and
naturalist. He met his end here in a sideshow of the First
World War. The Great War had spilled over from Europe as
the Germans then ruled parts of today’s Tanzania. Located
500 km to the southwest of Dar, the reserve occupies a
staggering 55,000 sq km – larger than Switzerland- and
is the largest of its kind in Africa.

The Selous was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO
in 1982 due to the significance of both its flora and
fauna. This immense wilderness has a diversity of habitats
including savanna woodlands, swamps, open grasslands and forests.

Over 2,100 species of tress and plants have been recorded.
The mighty Rufiji River is the lifeblood of the reserve
and its numerous tributaries and oxbow lakes are ideal for
boat safaris. The wildlife to see here includes buffalo,
hippo, black rhino, lion and wild dog. Elephants in
particular are numerous and are estimated to number over 60,000.

Other inhabitants of Selous are bush back, waterbuck,
reedbuck, impala, eland, giraffe, baboon, zebra, and greater
kudu. Birders will also find a trip to Selous worthwhile –
over 420 species are on record. In the very large game
sanctuaries of the south – Ruaha and Selous in particular,
game is scattered and a slow pace is advised, with at least
3-4 days in each. Photographic safaris can be very rewarding
here. Most visitors take the time to visit to Stiegler’s
Gorge, which also happens to be a spot favoured by leopards.

From Dar, you arrive after a 1-½ hour charter flight or by
traveling for 7 hours by road. Travel by road is not advised,
except for the most adventurous souls. Selous is near the
coast and is just a few hundred feet above sea level. The
climate is hot and humid, particularly between October and
March. Part of the reserve is closed in the wet season
between March and May. The best time to visit is over the
dry season period of June to October. Then on safari you
can walk, boat and ride a 4WD vehicle. Accommodation is
limited to just a few luxury tented and no-frills camps.

Sadani game reserve, located in the north coast about
50km from Bagamoyo, is also worth visiting. Sadani  gives
one an experience of the bush at the beach, and the wild
life seen at the reserve including elephants, leopard,
giraffes, lions, buffaloes and zebra. The reserve is,
however, accessible only with special transport arrangements.

Getting to Dar es Salaam, and Tanzania in general, requires
visitors from yellow fever infected areas to obtain yellow
fever international certificate of vaccination. Exemptions
are made for visitors arriving from non-endemic areas such
as Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand. The
northwestern forest region of Tanzania is considered a
high-risk area for yellow fever.

Visitors are strongly advised to take anti malaria medication
commencing two weeks before travel as  malaria is common in
Tanzania. Vaccinations against hepatitis A, polio and
typhoid are also recommended.  In addition, all visitors
are required to have a visa except citizens of some African
and commonwealth countries. It is advisable to obtain visa’s
in advance from Tanzania Embassies and High Commissions as
some airlines may require it before allowing you to board.
For citizens of a few selected countries, visas can also be
issued on arrival at Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar and Kilimanjaro
international airports and at the Namanga Gate on the
Kenya /Tanzania border.

Dar es Salaam can be reached through regional hubs at
Nairobi and Johannesburg and to a lesser extent Addis
Ababa. The airport is also accessed from other Tanzania
airports that serve domestic as well as international
flights. These include Kilimanjaro International Airport
and Dodoma airport  among many others. There is a ferry
service between Mombasa in Kenya and Dar es Salaam.

Visitors to Dar es Salaam are advised that taxis moving
passengers around the city have no meters and charge a
standard fee per journey inside the city centre. As for
ferries to Zanzibar, there is a choice of 4 boats- a
hydrofoil, a catamaran and 2 ordinary ferry boats. Yellow
fever vaccination certification is a must before boarding
for Zanzibar. A port charge of US$ 5 is added to the boat fare.

And like the rest of Tanzania, Dar es salaam never really
gets cold and light clothing is recommended. Average daily
temperatures hover in the 30°C range with October to March
being the hottest period. Warmer clothing such as sweaters
is however necessary to get you through the evenings and
early mornings if you are heading for the highlands. Short
sleeve shirts, shorts and trouser for men are sufficient
and so are short sleeve blouses, slacks and skirts for the
ladies. Nudity is totally unacceptable in the whole country.

================================
Destination Facts: Tanzania
================================
Fact Sheet with info on: land area, population, capital city
and other major towns, peoples, language, religion,
government, time zones, currency, electricity and weights & measures.

http://www.africapoint.com/destinations/tanzania.asp?ezsite=56

==============================
Travel Basics: Tanzania
==============================

Useful country travel info and tips on: health, visas,
peoples & culture, communications, accommodation, money,
climate, international & local travel, travel insurance,
and what to wear.

http://www.africapoint.com/travel/tanzania.asp?ezsite=56

===========================
Travel Guides: Tanzania
===========================

Tanzania Tourist Board- Official site of the Tanzania
Tourist Board providing the most comprehensive online
source of information on travel to and around South Africa.

Http://www.tanzaniatourismboard.com

Dar es Salaam Travel Guide– Objective information on
Dar es Salaam travel, including restaurants, accommodation and tours.

Http://www.world66.com/africa/tanzania/daressalaam

The radio, wired up to a car battery, crackles into life in the near darkness outside the first house of Kizimbani village, where a small crowd has gathered to listen for the moon.

Above us the sky is pitch black, with not even a star visible. The new moon, if it puts in an appearance tonight, will mean the end of a long hard month of fasting for Zanzibar’s predominantly Muslim population. During daylight hours in the lunar month of Ramadan the faithful may not eat, drink, smoke – or have sex. Only the sick, young children and travellers are exempt. In temperatures that rise to over 90 degrees Fahrenheit in the wavy heat of the afternoons, giving up food and water is no token gesture. From tonight, though, an exhausting twenty-eight days of abstinence is up and the party can begin. Or can it?

If the new moon we’re all waiting for chooses to show her face in the blue-black darkness above us, the celebrations for which planning is already well under way will commence first thing in the morning. Electricity poles are being strung up around fields, girls and women have been pounding red henna leaves and black picco to paint their hands and feet for days now, and every store in town has been full to bursting with last-minute shoppers stocking up on bottles of orange Fanta, cuts of meat, bags of Ugali and starched nylon frocks. The children are worked up to the point of hysteria and the atmosphere of suppressed excitement and anticipation crackles in the hot air.

No moon, however, means that everyone must wait another 24 hours before breaking their fast. Such an important event cannot be left to chance – so not only is everyone on Zanzibar scanning the skies for their own moon, but we’re all gathered eagerly around the nearest radio, waiting for the government to announce a new moon sighting above any part of Tanzania or coastal Kenya. This is the ancient kingdom of the Swahilis, whose modern-day inhabitants still retain the faith brought here by the Arabic races whose fast-sailing dhows once controlled the East African coast and its lucrative slave trade.

As the night wears on it becomes apparent that no moon is to be forthcoming, in Zanzibar or anywhere else. Anticlimax prevails, and another hot, thirsty day goes by before the longed-for sickle appears on cue above the lights of Blues restaurant in the harbour and a cheer goes up from the ragged groups of watchers along the water’s edge. For the next five days and nights, it’s time for a party that promises to put the tourists’ Millennium celebrations of a week ago firmly in the shade. ‘Dancing tonight’ says my friend Hisdori mysteriously to me at lunchtime. ‘Beer tonight’ says his mother, usually the picture of demure matronhood in her kanga and headscarf, but today with a gleam in her eye and freshly painted henna on the palms of her hands.

For most of the year Dole is nothing more than a rather greasy looking patch of ground next to the road which runs to the spice plantation at Kizimbani. Tonight, however, it is lit up with an eerie whitish glow from the dozens of hurricane lamps hanging off the stalls selling tiny packets of cassava chips, plastic hair decorations and big thermos buckets full of dark purple tamarind juice. Kids run in circles playing obscure games, or dance with their siblings to the muted beat of the disco.

As twilight becomes night, a procession of tiny inert bodies – draped over the handlebars of their mothers’ bicycles, or sitting asleep bolt upright at the front of their fathers’ motorbikes – begin to leave the party. Even preparing to go to Dole is an exhausting process – it takes all day and involves plaiting hair, painting henna and climbing gingerly into stiff nylon party dresses that crackle with static electricity. Little boys don’t escape, stepping cautiously around in a variety of outfits and styles, from shiny three piece suits à la Bugsy Malone to full English football strips, complete with socks.

Some boys go the whole hog, dressing up as little girls in a sort of African ‘trick or treat’. Adorned in kangas, with rags stuffed under their skirts for maximum wiggle and scarlet cochineal smeared on pouting lips, they proceed from house to house to drum and dance in return for cake and sweet lemongrass tea.

Now, however, the children glow in the dark like fireflies as they plod up the road behind their parents, drooping with fatigue. Most have had their finery captured for posterity in the tents set up around the periphery of the party by professional photographers, who bustle around arranging family groups like football teams.

Tonight is the last night of the celebrations, and as the children leave the party turns from school fete to rave. Teenagers and twentysomethings are now bounding wildly around to tunes that become increasingly bombastic. Pushing aside the curtain onto the dance floor proper, the noise hits me like a wave as a perspiring DJ plays gangsta rap at top volume and a mass of sweating, pop-eyed lads bound around in Kangol hats and Nike t-shirts.

I spot Hisdori and the gang at the far side of the field, trying to outdo each other in extravagant imitations of Tupac and Puff Daddy. There’s Ali, normally tall, skinny and lugubrious, but tonight waving his spindly arms above his head and grinning insanely. He’s accompanied by Small Brother Of Ali, just as skinny but at 14 not quite as lugubrious or as tall. Iddi, forever Mr Cool, all chin beard and mirror shades, has is own shadow in Small Brother Of Iddi, exuding adolescent attitude also but not quite old enough for the beard.

Seeing me they grab my arms and try to make me dance, but it quickly becomes apparent as I try and fail to match their rhythm that I am the quintessential white person on the dance floor, so I settle for a seat on the sidelines and reflect on the fact that the angry lyrics they’re dancing to could have been written by descendants of the very slaves who once huddled in the caves below the harbour in Zanzibar town, waiting to embark for the New World. No trace of this irony, though, shows on the happy features that are glowing in the light of the hurricane lamps and shouting greetings to passers by without breaking their rhythm.

Just as the music and the dancing reach a sweating fever pitch, the DJ announces a Tarab tune. Tarab is the music of Zanzibar – a wailing vocal over a beat that is curiously Arabic and African at the same time, and traditionally only danced by females. The lads on the dancefloor converge on the hapless man, shouting and waving their fists in outrage whilst still moving compulsively to the beat. The MC is unmoved, breaking into English to emphasise his point. “Ladies only pleeese… LADIES ONLY!” The ladies appear, shyly at first but then with increasing confidence as the beat picks up. A stately conga formation begins to wind its way around the dance floor, the girls’ eyes, covered in picco and rendered drooping and sloe-like by infusions of nutmeg juice, glinting under their demure headscarves. The ladies hold up thousand-shilling notes above their heads as they sway along together, a symbol of their families’ wealth and prestige.

The boys, however, are not to be dismissed that easily. They take to the floor, t-shirts draped over their heads to imitate the girls’ kangas, Rizla packets held aloft in place of money, wiggling their rears and rolling their eyes as their conga picks up a giggling victim and tries to hustle her off the dance floor. Helpless with laughter, I’m rolling around the floor when I feel a little hand tugging at mine and a 12 year old voice whispering “Dance, lady, dance!”. I look up at his face, and recognise Hisdori’s cousin, one of the mini drag queens from the village this morning. Who am I to refuse?

Gemma Pitcher

We are proud to announce Samba Mapangala has just confirmed he will be performing with the legendary Orchestre Virunga. He is one of East Africa’s best-loved musicians, with a series of hits over the past 25 years, including Virunga, Ahmed Sabit, Vunja Mifupa, Sungura, Vidonge, Dunia Tuna Pita, and Nyama Choma.

Carnival Parade A carnival and street parade kicks off festivities on Thursday 12th February, featuring a beni brass band, drummers, wanandege (umbrella women), dancers, stilt walkers and acrobats. The parade arrives at Forodhani around 5pm and continues into the Old Fort (our main venue).

African Performances under African Skies From Thursday through til Sunday, around ten groups perform each day. Big names rub shoulders with upcoming artists. Altogether we have thirty of the best groups of Zanzibar, Tanzania and around East Africa, traditional and modern, acoustic and electric. Plus, another ten groups, from Comoros, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mali, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria and UK. All the music is performed live. Starting in the late afternoon, as the sunshine softens and shadows start to stretch out, and continuing virtually non-stop into the evening, with the final band taking to the stage around midnight.

Visitor Info For information about organised tours, flights, accommodation and other useful advice for visitors – please check Visitor Info page – on our website.

Finalé Party On Tuesday 17 February, we leave town behind and head for Kendwa Rocks, a beautiful beach location on Zanzibar’s north coast. Starting from 4pm, there’ll be DJs, acrobats, and live performances evolving into a fantastic Festival Finalé Party – and dancing till dawn.

Hey, it’s not just us. With so many people in town all sorts of fringe events, activities and performances are organised by hotels, restaurants and businesses. We call it “Busara Xtra” and we’ll do our best to let you know what’s happening.

See 2008 web coverage at these places:

• IssaMichuzi
• MWENYEMACHO DOT COM incl pix on flickr by Bob Sankofa
• Louder than Swahili by Pernille
• Jesp In Tanzania incl pix on flickr by Jesper
• Zanzibar: The Sound of World Music by Arno Kopecky
• Road to Zanzibar by Caitlin
• Bi Kidude, 103-year-old rock star by Tim Querengesser
• Baobab Connections: Music Watch by Buddha Blaze

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING AND ENVIRONMENT

Situated in East Africa just south of the equator, Tanzania is made up of a mainland area and the islands of Zanzibar, Pembe, and Mafia. Mainland Tanzania lies between the area of the great lakes—Victoria, Tanganyika, and Malawi (Niassa)—and the Indian Ocean. It contains a total area of 945,090 square kilometers (364,901 square miles), slightly larger than twice the size of the state of California. A plateau makes up the greater part of the country. The Pare mountain range is in the northeast, and the Kipengere mountain range is in the southwest. Mt. Kilimanjaro (5,895 meters/19,340 feet) is the highest mountain in Africa. On the borders are three large lakes: Victoria, Tanganyika, and Lake Malawi.

Two-thirds of Zanzibar Island consists of low-lying coral country covered by bush and grass plains. The western side of the island is fertile, and Pemba, apart from a narrow belt of coral country in the east, is fertile and densely populated.

There are four main climatic zones: the coastal area and immediate interior, where conditions are tropical; the central plateau, which is hot and dry; the highland areas; and the high, moist lake regions.

HISTORY AND FOOD

The earliest known inhabitants in Tanzania’s long and colorful past were primarily hunter-gatherers. In addition, Tanzania has had many of years of influence from other parts of the world. In the first five hundred years A.D., vegetables, millet, and sorghum, and fruits and fish were mostly eaten. By A.D. 800, however, Muslim Arabs established trade routes to and from the country. They introduced citrus fruits, cotton plants,

and pilau and biriani (spicy rice and meat dishes), having the greatest effect on the cuisines of coastal regions and the island of Zanzibar. The inhabitants introduced coconut oil and various tools and textiles to the Arabs in return.Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama arrived in East Africa in 1498 and aggressively took control of the coastal regions and trade routes. Da Gama (called afriti, a devil, by locals), who was on his way to the Middle East and India, stopped at present-day Tanzania to rest his men, who were suffering from scurvy (a lack of vitamin C). Chungwa (oranges, rich in vitamin C), relatively unknown to Europeans at the time, were introduced to the ailing crewmen. The Portuguese dominated the region until the Arabs regained control in 1698. Despite nearly two hundred years of rule, the Portuguese left little behind. The introduction of cassava, a root crop that has become an important staple in the Tanzanian diet, and groundnuts (peanuts) were probably their most significant contributions.

The number of East African slaves who were bought to work Tanzania’s plantations increased as the result of the discovery of clove, a key spice in the country’s cuisine. After slavery was abolished in 1873, the British and Germans battled for control over Tanzania (then known as Tanganyika). At first, the British (who introduced tea and boiled vegetables) prevailed, encouraging the cultivation of crops that could be exported for profit. By 1891, the Germans took control. They established coffee and cotton plantations. The success of the plantations, however, diminished during World War I (1914–1918), when nearly 100,000 troops and civilians died as a result of fighting, influenza (flu), and famine. Tanzania became an independent nation on December 9, 1961.

FOODS OF THE TANZANIANS

Most food that makes up Tanzanian cuisine is typical throughout all of East Africa. Meat is not widely consumed in comparison with other areas of the continent. Cattle are normally slaughtered only for very special occasions, such as a wedding or the birth of a baby. Cattle, sheep, and goats are raised primarily for their milk and the value they contribute to social status. When meat is consumed, however, nyama choma (grilled meat) and ndayu (roasted, young goat) are most popular.

The Tanzanian diet is largely based on starches such as millet, sorghum, beans, pilaf, and cornmeal. A meal that could be considered the country’s national dish is ugali, a stiff dough made of cassava flour, cornmeal (maize), millet, or sorghum, and usually served with a sauce containing either meat, fish, beans, or cooked vegetables. It is typically eaten out of a large bowl that is shared by everyone at the table. Wali (rice) and various samaki (fish) cooked in coconut are the preferred staples for those living in coastal communities.

The introduction of various spices by the Arabs is highly evident in a popular coastal dish, pilau. It consists of rice spiced with curry, cinnamon, cumin, hot peppers, and cloves. Matunda (fruits) and mboga (vegetables) such as plantains, similar to the banana, ndizi (bananas), pawpaw (papaya),

Bananas and plantains are among the staples of the daily diet in Tanzania. Here a vendor loads his bicycle with chane za ndizi (bunches of bananas) to take to the market to sell.

Cory Langley

biringani (eggplant), nyana (tomatoes), beans, muhogo (cassava), spinach and other greens, and maize (similar to corn) are frequently eaten, many of which are grown in backyard gardens. Ndizi Kaanga (fried bananas or plantains) is a local dish that is very popular with Tanzanians and tourists alike. In the cities, Indian food is abundant.Chai (tea), the most widely consumed beverage, is typically consumed throughout the day, often while socializing and visiting with friends and family. Sweet fried breads called vitumbua (small rice cakes) are commonly eaten with chai in the mornings, or between meals as a snack. Chapatti (fried flat bread), also served with tea, is a popular snack among children. Street vendors commonly sell freshly ground black coffee in small porcelain cups, soft drinks, and fresh juices made of pineapple, oranges, or sugar cane. Adults enjoy a special banana beer called mbege made in the Kilimanjaro region (northeast Tanzania). Aside from the common serving of fresh fruits or pudding, desserts such as mandazi (deep-fried doughnut-like cakes) are sold by vendors.

Chapatti is a soft, flat bread that is best enjoyed warm. It is sometimes flavored with chopped onion or other savory additions.

EPD Photos

Chapatti (Fried Flat Bread)

Ingredients

• 1 cup dates, chopped
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ¾ cup sugar
• 5 Tablespoons butter
• 1 egg
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups flour
• ½ cup nuts, coarsely chopped
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Tamarind nectar (juice), made from the acidic tamarind and sold by street vendors in Tanzania, may sometimes be found, sold in cans, in large supermarkets elsewhere in the world.

EPD Photos

Procedure

1. Combine the 2 packages (or 2 cups fresh) spinach and can of chopped tomatoes in a saucepan and heat until bubbly. Add salt to taste.
2. Stir in peanut butter and continue cooking over low heat until heated through. Serve.

Serves 8.

6 POLITICS, ECONOMICS, AND NUTRITION

About 40 percent of the population of Tanzania is classified as undernourished by the World Bank. This means they do not receive

Mchicha combines spinach with the sweetness of coconut and the crunchy texture of chopped peanuts. When chopping peanuts by hand (left), always keep your fingers on the top edge of the knife.

EPD Photos

adequate nutrition in their diet. Of children under the age of five, about 31 percent are underweight, and nearly 43 percent are stunted (short for their age).Tanzania is one of the world’s poorest countries and undernourishment is prevalent, especially in children. The young life expectancy age of 42.3 years is mostly due to malnutrition, tropical diseases such as malaria, and very unsanitary conditions. Open sewers, uncovered garbage piles, and contaminated streams and lakes are sources of disease. Although living conditions in larger towns and cities are typically better than in rural areas, unsanitary conditions and malnourishment are widespread throughout both. Childhood deficiencies in Vitamin A (which can cause blindness) and iodine are the country’s most serious malnourishments.

Clicking on the lodge name will bring our page devoted to the lodge including video and pictures which is what we think about the lodge. The link to lodge link brings up the lodge’s own internet site

Lodge	Price	Link to lodge site	Video(s)	Picture
Serengeti
CCA Serengeti Under Canvas	$905 pppn all inclusive	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Grumeti	$1000 pppn all inclusive	Link to Lodge website	Download Video
Grumeti Reserves – Faru Faru	$950 per person per night all inclusive	Link to Lodge Website	Download video
Grumeti Reserves – Sabora	$950 per person per night all inclusive	Link to Lodge Website	Download video
Grumeti Reserves – Sasakwa	$1500 per person per night all inclusive	Link to Lodge Website	Download video
Kirawira	$850 pppn all inclusive	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Kleins	$1,000 pppn all inclusive	Link to Lodge website	Download Video
Kusini	$765 per person per night including all game viewing activities	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Lemala Serengeti	$600pppn full board basis	Link to Lodge website	No video
Mbalageti Lodge	$700 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge website	Download video
Mbuzi Mawe	$700 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge Website	Download video
Migration Camp	$895 pppn all inclusive including park fees	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Ndutu Lodge	$650 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Nomad Nduara	$840 pppn on an all inclusive basis	Link to Lodge website	Download video
Nomad Serengeti Safari Camp	$840 pppn on an all inclusive basis	Link to Lodge website	Download video
Olakira	$700 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Sayari	$695 pppn on an all inclusive basis	Link to lodge web site	No video
Serengeti Serena	$650 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Serengeti Sopa	$650 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Suyan	$800 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Ngorongoro Crater
Gibbs Farm	$700 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge website	Download video
Lemala Ngorongoro	$800pppn full board including game viewing activities	Link to Lodge website	No video
Ngorongoro Crater Lodge	$1,550 pppn all inclusive	Link to Lodge website	Download Video
Ngorongoro Crater Serena	$650 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Ngorongoro Crater Sopa	$650 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Plantation Lodge	$700 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge website	Download video
Tarangire
Kikoti	$650 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Olivers Camp	$692 pppn full board including all game viewing activites	Link to Lodge website	No video
Swala	$765 per person per night all inclusive including all game viewing activities	Link to Lodge website	No video
Tarangire Sopa	$650 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Tarangire Treetops	$895 per person per night fully inclusive	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Lake Manyara
Kirurumu	$650 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Lake Manyara Serena	$700 pppn for a private safari including park fees, full board	Link to lodge web site	Download Video
Lake Manyara Tree Lodge	$985 pppn on an all inclusive basis	Link to Lodge website	No video
Selous
Beho Beho	$1,090 pppn an all inclusive basis	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Kiba Point	$7405 a night (private use only) all inclusive basis	Link to Lodge website	Download video
Lake Manze	$410 pppn full board incl all game viewing	Link to Lodge website	Download Video
Rufiji River Camp	$389 pppn full board including all game viewing	www.rufijirivercamp.com	Download video
Sand Rivers Selous	$965 pppn on a fully inclusive basis	Link to Lodge Website	Download video
Selous Impala Camp	$575 pppn including all game viewing activites, full board	Link to Lodge website	Download Video
Selous Safari Camp	$795 pppn full board including all game viewing activites	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Ruaha
Jongomero	$692 pppn full board including all game viewing activites	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Kwihala EMC	$660 pppn on an all inclusive basis	Link to lodge web site	download video
Mdonya Old River	$370 pppn on a full board basis	Link to Lodge website	Download Video
Mwagusi	$592 per person per night full board including all game viewing activites	Link to Lodge website	Download video
Ruaha River Lodge	$365 pppn full board including all game viewing activites	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Indian Ocean Mainland
Amani Beach Club	$240 pppn full board basis	Link to Lodge website	Download video
Lazy Lagoon	$150 per person per night, full board	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Ras Kutani	$305 – $350 per person per night, full board	Link to lodge web site	Download Video
Tides	$150 pppn half board basis	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Zanzibar Stone Town
Beyt al Chai	$150 pppn based on 2 people sharing on a b&b baia	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Dhow Palace	$110 per person per night, bed and breakfast	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Emerson and Green	$120 per person per night, bed and breakfast	Link to Lodge website	Download Video
Tembo Hotel	$110 per person per night, bed and breakfast	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
The Serena Inn	$230 per person per night, bed and breakfast	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Zanzibar Palace Hotel	$150 pppn on a B&B basis	Link to Lodge Website	Download video
Zanzibar Beaches
Baraza	$450pppn half board basis	Link to lodge web site	No video
Blue Bay	$180 pp pn half board	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Breezes Beach Club	$192 to $287 per person per night, half board	Link to Lodge website	Download Video
Echo beach	$190pppn half board basis	Link to lodge web site	No video
Fumba Beach Lodge	$250 to $290 per person per night , half board	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Gemma Del Este	$231 to $267 per person per night depending on room type, half board	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Kilindi	No data	No link	No video	No image
Matemwe Bungalows	$310 per person per night on a full board basis	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Matemwe Bungalows Retreat	$525 per person per night on an all inclusive board basis, no activities included	Link to Lodge Website	Download video
Pongwe Beach Hotel	$120pppn on a b&b basis	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Ras Nungwi	$195-$290 pppn half board	Link to lodge web site	Download Video
Ras Nungwi – The Ocean Suite	$495 pppn half board	Link to lodge web site	Download Video
Shooting Star	$150 to per person per night on a half board basis	Link to Lodge Website	Download video
The Palms	$795 pppn on an all inclusive basis	Link to lodge web site	Download Video
Unguja Resort	$230 pppn, half board basis	Link to Lodge Website	Download video
Z Hotel	$235 pppn on a half board basis	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Zamani Kempinski	$320 to $380 per person per night, half board	Link to Lodge website	Download video
Zanzibar Ocean Paradise	$180 per person per night, half board	Link to Lodge website	No video
Other Indian Ocean Islands
Chapwani Island	$180 per person per night, full board	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Chole Mjini	$250 per person per night, full board	No link	Download Video
Chumbe	$220 per person per night, full board	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Fundu Lagoon	$405 – $610 per person per night	Link to Lodge website	No video
Kinasi Lodge	$320 per person per night, full board	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Mnemba	$1,250 per person per night all inclusive	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
North Island Seychelles	1,780 Euros pp pn	Link to Lodge website	No video
Pole Pole	$250 per person per night	Link to Lodge website	Download video
Northern Mozambique
Quilalea	$595 pppn on an all inclusive basis	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Vamizi Island	$850 pppn on an all inclusive basis	Link to Lodge website	Download Video
Katavi
Chada	$660 pppn all inclusive including park fees	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Foxes Katavi Wildlife camp	$460 per person per night	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Mahale
Greystoke	$1045 per person per night	Link to Lodge website	Download Video
Dar Hotels
Oyster Bay	No data	No link	No video
Royal Palm	$200 per person per night, bed and breakfast	Link to Lodge Website	No video
Arusha Hotels
Arusha Coffee Lodge	$220 per person per night on a b&b basis	Link to Lodge website	Download Video
Moivaro Coffee Plantation	$195 per person per night, bed and breakfast	Link to Lodge Website	Download Video
Mountain Village Lodge	$170 per night per person, bed and breakfast	Link to Lodge website	Download Video

Music Crossroads International (MCI) is a unique youth music empowerment through music program initiated in 1995 by Jeunesses Musicale International (JMI) and presently encompassing five Southern African countries: Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Since the program began 12 years ago as Music Crossroads Southern Africa, MCI has reached almost 30.000 musicians and 600.000 audiences. MCI is comprised of workshops, festivals and competitions to promote the African traditional and contemporary urban music of young African musicians. The project aims at creating sustainable musical structures in the target countries, improving self-awareness and social inclusion of young African individuals. MCI promotes the participation of young women in the program and addresses HIV/AIDS prevention through the Relationship workshops.

Thanks to the generous support from SIDA (Sweden), the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign affairs and UNESCO, MCI has developed into the largest cultural program in Sub-Saharan Africa and the most important youth empowerment program on the African continent.

The Music Crossroads program is divided into 3 fundamental areas:

Musical:
An integral part of the MCI program is the “musical mining”, where national and InterRegional juries identify the stars of tomorrow. As MCI is sifting the best young talents of the five Southern African target countries, we can also assist selected artists and bands to build sustainable musical careers, at home and abroad, by offering musical and performance training, songwriting and arrangement, providing band management and music rights. The MCI Centers also provides rehearsal space, equipment, training and support for local member musicians.


Promotion, studio recordings and concert engagements of contracted MCI-winners are pursued on local and national levels, while the InterRegional MCI winners are offered professional training and CD-productions followed by international concert performances and tours on major stages in Europe, North America and Asia.

African borders are often difficult to cross due to visa and other regulations. It is also difficult to find opportunities for artists and bands to perform in neighboring countries. Therefore, we are increasingly developing the cross-border exchange of promising MCI acts between the target countries.

Social:
Since 2000, MCI has developed its own dedicated HIV/AIDS prevention program, the “Relationship Workshops” – today mandatory in all festivals, a discussion forum on relations, sex and gender issues, challenging attitudes and offering useful information on how to protect oneself against HIV/AIDS.
But MCI has taken it a step further: as the young MCI musicians are role models for many, the “Songs for Life” program transform since 2004 the learning from the Relationship Workshops into lyrics and music through dedicated songwriter’s workshops, where the best songs are selected and recorded in studio by respective band and then compiled on CD’s and distributed to radio and TV and disseminated to Millions of young people, to ponder the content of these songs with a message.
MCI offers opportunities and hope to young people who otherwise would have little of both. Through numerous workshops, the program gives the individual participants insights, self-awareness and -respect, music, business and social skills, leading to social inclusion and a path to a professional future.

Structural:
MCI recognizes that talent alone is not enough to enable youth to build careers in music – local infrastructure, facilities and human resources must exist to support and nurture growth.
The Music Crossroads International program has over the past 10 years identified and established contacts with key individuals and organizations in the five target countries. As part of the Strategy Program 2006-10, MCI aims at establishing professional, sustainable national structures that should be apt to take on the national management and funding of the MCI program and related activities as from 2011.

The MCI Program promotes organizational setups – staffing, offices and training centers – as well as regional coordination and training of staff and volunteers on relevant issues such as fund-raising, lobbying, PR/Promotion and communication.

The national Music Crossroads entities will engage and train young music organizers and act as an infrastructural resource to develop the national music industries.

Tanzania

Tanzania has 37 million people, in which there are very few Institutions dedicated to the arts. Music Crossroads Tanzania (MCTZ) aims to provide quality training and performances whilst strengthen existing local networks by working with partner organizations in the fields of Music Training, Music Management, HIV /AIDS and Self empowerment.
Music Crossroads was introduced into Tanzania in 1999. Since then it has grown from having four local festivals to nine festivals across the entire country with the goal of establishing two more festivals by end of 2008. Music Crossroads Tanzania is now a recognized non-profit organization, is one of the founding partners of the Youth Leadership Network and stands out as the only countrywide program that offers free music education, training and promotion to the youths of Tanzania.

ARTISTS

An integral part of the MCI Program is the “musical mining”, where National and InterRegional juries identify the stars of tomorrow.

As MCI is sifting the best young talents of the five Southern African target countries, we can also assist selected artists and bands to build sustainable musical careers, at home and abroad, by offering musical and performance training, songwriting and arrangement, providing band management and music rights.

The MCI Centers also provide rehearsal space and equipment for young aspiring artists. Promotion, studio recordings and concert engagements of contracted MCI-winners are pursued on local and national levels, while the InterRegional MCI winners are offered professional training and CD-productions followed by international concert performances and tours on major stages in Europe, North America and Asia. African borders are often difficult to cross due to visa and other regulations.

MCI acts as a bridge between the five African nations and through cross-boarder musical collaborations and exchanges we bring cultures together to celebrate their richness and diversity.

Doug suits up
to climb Kilimanjaro

The major difference between me and the thousands of other tourists who attempt to climb this 19,340-foot mountain each year (aside from knowing how to spell the word”vesicle”), is that I was foolish enough to attempt it in rented hiking boots.

Most people pay between $450 and $1,000 to climb Kilimanjaro, the price depending on the route, number of days on the mountain, and comfort level of the trip. The cheapest and most popular choice is the five-day Coca-Cola Route, thus named because the beverage can be purchased at conveniently placed rest-huts throughout the ascent. But trips lasting seven days and costing $1,500 are not unheard of. These involve something like eight porters per tourist, and include such luxuries as a separate dining tent, reclining chairs, and a portable western toilet.

I opted for the Machame, or “scenic route,” the second most popular ascent. This expedition takes six days, approaches the summit from the west, and follows the south face down.I made my arrangements through a tout named Swali, who works for the Arusha-based tour agency B.M. Travel. He promised to show up the day of departure with a complete line of climbing gear: North Face Gore-Tex jacket and sleeping bag, Patagonia fleece and hat, Lowe long underwear, and every other outdoor brand-name product Swali could think of. There would also be glacier sunglasses and four pairs of hiking boots to choose from.

What he actually arrived with (several hours late) was—to the untrained eye—about $10 worth of hand-me-downs from the Salvation Army. Swali had managed to put together the least mountain-worthy selection of clothing currently available in Tanzania: mostly cotton sweatshirts and T-shirts, plus a few ripped nylon pants and hats most winos would refuse on a freezing night. He brought only one pair of boots. And the sleeping bag, meant for summer use only, had no zipper.

Swali acknowledged the sleeping-bag zipper problem and located another insulation-free replacement, but the boots, he asserted, were fine. And they would have been . . . for someone with slightly smaller feet. The rest of the stuff I would have to live with if I wanted to start up the mountain that day. If I backed out, which was extremely tempting under the circumstances, the extra day required to make arrangements with another outfitter would mean I’d miss my flight. Jason, a 26-year-old Englishman who at least had his own boots, was in a similar position.

Hand-Me-Downs and Englishmen So, with more than our fair share of reservations, we set off to conquer Kilimanjaro with gear whose only purpose would be to provide hours of amusement for fellow climbers. The”glacier glasses” were made from the lightest shade of plastic currently in manufacture. My ensemble was augmented by a rust-orange snowmobile hat, pink reversible nylon jacket, and some first-generation aquamarine Lycra pants that could only have been purchased by a Frenchman; they clung tighter than most designer jeans and the fly was sharp enough to draw blood. We picked up John and Clair, a young English couple, en route. Apparently, they would be joining Jason and me on our “private tour.” At the drop-off point, our guide, Lucas, sent us all ahead with a porter named Tumaine (pronounced “Two-man”) while he sorted out the rest of the porters. He explained that we would require two porters each; one to carry our gear, the other to haul the tents and food. This seemed ostentatious, but after 30 minutes hauling my own gear and making little progress, I realized the futility of the decision and handed over my pack. Porters haul the gear for most hikers on Kilimanjaro The first five hours of trekking took us through rain forest along a mud trail more than a foot deep in most places. With each step, we made a comical sloppy suction noise.John was a loquacious 20-year-old. He had an entertaining, albeit totally irrelevant, quip about everything. Here are a few of my favorites:”I like bite-size Snickers so much better than regular size;” “We should have a catapult on this mountain, and shoot people into a net suspended in the clouds;” and “I’m going to see how many days I can go without changing my boxer shorts.” I don’t think he stopped talking for more than a few seconds during the first day, and that occurred while he was drinking. With our packs coming up behind us, along with lunch, we only had two canteens of water and a few chocolate bars among the four of us. We finished off the water, thinking Lucas and the porters would catch up, but they never did. Dehydrated, we pressed on, trying to reach the 10,000-foot camp before dark. No luck. After an hour of stumbling up the trail without flashlights, we reached Muchamie Camp. Six or seven other, better-organized tour groups had already set up their tents and had dinner hours before.After a quick meal, I climbed into my sleeping bag, which was perfect . . . for a seven-year-old. It came up to my stomach. And that’s only when it was half unzipped so I could squeeze my waist in. It never really got much higher than my knees because the porters—basically nice guys who clearly did not have the world’s most desirable jobs—set up our tent, a model that may have been cutting edge in the early 1960s, on a slope better suited for skateboarding. I slept in my hat, gloves, scarf, and jacket and still managed to freeze. Around 2 a.m., I cuddled up to Jason, praying he wouldn’t wake up and notice. The next morning began with our first view of the summit; it was stunning but farther away and steeper than I’d imagined. Lucas explained that the top usually clouds up during the day but clears by sunset. My eyes remained transfixed on the peak until it disappeared. We only had a few hours to walk to the next camp, Shira, at 11,500 feet, where we would stay for two nights to acclimatize; a fairly tame itinerary so far. The bigger problems (and bigger blisters), I had a feeling, were still ahead. The Summit Looms There I was, dangling on the face of Mount Kilimanjaro. Well, not exactly dangling; more like sitting in a poorly assembled tent. Freezing to death. Well, maybe not to death, but it was pretty cold. There I was, sucking the moisture out of frozen rocks and twigs. Well, at least I thought about it. Ill-equipped and ridiculous At any rate, I was attempting to reach the summit of Africa’s highest peak with three 20-something English travelers, a guide, a small battalion of porters, and some of the worst mountain-climbing equipment available in Tanzania.During a two-day acclimatization session at the 11,500-foot-high Machame Camp, we spent time with Kili-climbers from other tour groups. They hadn’t paid much more than our $585 fee, yet received two nights in a four-star hotel—at the beginning and end of their trip—airport transfers, and tents big enough to play racquetball in. Plus, their porters brought hot water right to the doorway (zipway?) of their tents every morning so they could wash their faces. After this exercise in luxury, the discarded water ran down the small hill and into our comfort-proof tents, which was generally how we woke up. In Kilimanjaro terms, we were roughing it. Daytime was generally cloudy, but the clear night sky afforded ample opportunity to stargaze. The view was magnificent, although I could never manage to see all those renowned constellations: bulls, crabs, hunters with designer belts, and so forth. I had enough trouble making out the pots, pans, and other kitchen appliances. We took a short”acclimatization walk” with our guide, Lucas, who had two rather unique qualities: He almost never answered the questions you asked him, which can get a bit frustrating when you need vital information, such as where the toilet is (his answer: “The sun will set in about two hours”); and he always carried a little transistor radio. Since Lucas was usually walking with us, we didn’t experience much of the park’s natural serenity. Instead, we were serenaded by everything from Ricky Martin to Bombay’s latest Hindi pop hits through a tin speaker. Of course, we hikers were not without our own quirks. We relentlessly badgered Lucas about the altitude. “How high are we now?” we’d ask every 10 minutes. Occasionally, Lucas would even answer us, sometimes with potentially correct information—meaning a figure that was higher than the one he’d given us 10 minutes before. The Most Poorly Equipped Team Ever Kilimanjaro’s summit at sunrise: a peak experience Jason and I were cold, uncomfortable, and aesthetically offensive in our rented outfits. John and Claire, it turned out, hadn’t brought any real climbing clothes, either. This was their first trip up a mountain and they were under the impression that a few cotton T-shirts and a fleece jacket would be fine. Neither of them brought flashlights. I’m not sure if records are kept on this sort of thing, but we may have been the most poorly equipped team ever to attempt Kilimanjaro.On the fourth day, we set up camp at 13,200 feet, napped from 6 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., took a quick swig of coffee, then started toward the summit in the dark. John and Claire stumbled along without flashlights on the rocky trail. Two hours later, the air became preposterously thin, nearly squelching John’s banter, but not quite. At this height, you could get oxygen depravation arching your eyebrows, yet this is when the trail became vertical. Lucas, who suddenly admitted he hadn’t taken this route for a while, looked a bit lost. We scrambled up loose rock to a steep, 15-yard-wide ice patch. Without an ice ax or crampons, it was a sketchy traverse. One slip and you end up 75 yards down the mountain with your head wrapped around a rock. I took off my gloves and tried to dig my nails into the ice for added stability. There were a few close calls, but no one took the express ride down. After two more such crossings, we reached the bouldering portion of the climb. Shimmying up the rocks wouldn’t have been a problem a few thousand feet down the mountain, but at 18,000 feet our heads were spinning. I could hardly stand, and the wind picked up, freezing the sweat in our clothes.”Only two hours more to the summit,” Lucas declared as we reached the rim of the volcano after four hours of hiking. My heart sank. “I thought you said it was four hours to the top,” I mumbled, shivering and befuddled. Lucas had clearly doctored the figures to make this route more attractive, but the only realistic way down was to first press on to the top. A few hours overdue, the summit came into sight. “Look, it’s just up there. You made it. We’re the first ones,” Lucas declared. With that, he gave me a hearty slap on the back, knocking me a few yards back down the mountain. Miraculously, we reached the summit about 10 seconds before the sun’s first rays crept over the horizon. Exhausted, overwhelmed by the cold, rugged surroundings, and mesmerized by the fiery red ball rising before us, Claire began to cry. John, Jason, and I stood in silence, completely stunned, then grabbed our cameras and began snapping away. After five minutes of euphoria, my headache and dizziness abated. The effort was suddenly all worth it. None of the words I had read about reaching the top prepared me for the experience, and I’m certain neither my laptop nor camera can do it justice. Fifteen minutes later, the peak began crowding with hikers. It was time to head down. The lower we got, the more people we saw making early, altitude-sickness-related retreats. Seeing them turn back evoked an odd mixture of sympathy and affirmation of our accomplishment. The punishment for our success, I didn’t realize, was still ahead: a five-hour descent to our camp at 10,000 feet. This was, in some ways, more difficult than reaching the summit. As my feet and torso defrosted, my legs turned to rubber and my toes jammed into the front of my boots. By the time we reached camp, my blisters looked more like bullet wounds. After a muddy, three-hour limp to the bottom the following day, we were met by park rangers at the gate selling”Just Did It” T-shirts. It occurred to me that these were the first rangers I’d seen since I paid the $375 park entry fee six days before. Usage of the fees didn’t seem to extend more than five inches into the park. There has been zero upkeep on the trail, no shelters for the porters, and no rescue stations (although part of this money is meant for rescue operations). But the porters had the last laugh. When it came time to hand out tips, there were two porters on hand that I had never seen before. “We needed these men to run ahead and prepare the camp,” Lucas explained in dramatic fashion. This was a common ploy. Lucas and the others would later split the tips for our fictional porters—a whopping $10.

I am seated in this hall with roughly, fifty people, watching a film. Beautiful, cosy, intimate, Arcola Theatre is based in the Turkish quarter of Stoke Newington, north London.

For several weeks the Africa Mine Music and Movement festival has been here.

This late Sunday afternoon we are looking at a film from Zanzibar and every now and then you can hear me chuckling in the silence of mostly non-Kiswahili speaking audience.

This is because although the movie is sub-titled, most times the translation misses certain moods that you cannot pick up while reading a foreign language.

In other words I am proud to be observing something from my own culture. This is rare and unique, as I am the only Tanzanian in this space.

The other person that would exchange Kiswahili words with me is Englishman, Andy Jones. It took him three years to make this documentary on Zanzibar`s Taarab singer legend, Bi Kidude.

As Old As My Tongue gives a lesson on East African history, culture, music and the role of Swahili women in society.

In their advert flyer, the Screen-Station producers say Bi Kidude (real name Fatma Baraka) is `probably the oldest singer on the world stage today.`

Old? That is the first point. Old has these days become 35 to 50 years in Africa. Poverty and diseases are killing our people prematurely.

But Bi Kidude tells us she was born poor, her father, a coconut climber (mkwezi) and began singing at the tender age of ten in the 1920�s.

She performed with the legendary musician Siti Binti Saad eulogised by writer Shaaban Robert, fifty years ago. Bi Kidude continues singing Siti Binti Saad`s songs.

Both Shaaban Robert and Siti Binti Saad are, sadly, gone but Kidude, which means a tiny thing, (she explains how the name came about) is still here.

While replying to questions, film director, Andy Jones is asked whether Bi Kidude, was affected by the tough politics that we relate to Zanzibar, including the bloody Revolution of January 1964.

`She sang while Arabs ruled. She sang while the British ruled. And she sang around the times of the Revolution and is still singing amidst today�s conflicts of CUF and CCM.`

This makes her as old as modern Zanzibar. That is why her age is so fascinating. Some cynical islanders claim she is cheating, that she is in her 90`s. Others say 105. Bi Kidude herself declared recently, she is 113.

Whatever the number, one truth lingers. Here is a cherished great grandmother still smoking her cigarettes (even the film`s poster uses this image) drinking beer (and Konyagi, some say), sweeping her house and cooking ugali with fish and spinach (as shown in the film). She is also doing the most significant thing.

Touring around the world including (as witnessed in the documentary) Paris and England�s World Music and Dance festival (WOMAD) in 2004 and 2005, respectively.

The portrayal is just as about her music as her life style.

One of the reasons that artists are said to be mirrors of society is the ability to reflect culture and customs.

Bi Kidude plays drums, sings and leads Ngoma ya Unyago ceremonies in Zanzibar.

We see the Women Only rites of passage dancing. It might appear erotic to the foreigner�s eye but it is something fast disappearing especially in East African cultures.

`During Unyago women are taught sex and how to be with husband. Theory and practise.`

Quips a woman in the film. And technically speaking, the best quality of as old as my tongue is that those in it, including Bi Kidude herself, act, freely tell their stories, playing the role of both narrator and participant.

In most documentaries you have the constant interference of the film-maker.

The good thing about Andy Jones is to let Bi Kidude be her own voice, from beginning to end.

Consequently, this work is almost a good lesson for aspiring cinema makers wanting to cast their egos aside and let life narrate it`s own tale.

Plus a subject that has always bothered me.

Reading many warm reviews my attention is especially drawn to London`s Guardian (Sultans of Swing) in January 2007:
`Zanzibar`s music traditions, are it seems, becoming more popular among foreign fans than the young local people who take their home grown music for granted.`

While over a century old, Bi Kidude is certainly a living legend, a treasure of African music, an example of women of great achievement (winner of the international 2005 WOMEX Award), she seems to be appreciated more by foreigners, as exemplified by the one who just made this movie.

We hear a local Zanzibar producer lamenting how her Taarab music is not played in local radio stations especially on Tanzania mainland.

Despite her icon status, the musician is still treated as a nobody, almost a freak.

Sounds very familiar. Another such legend was the late Hukwe Zawose who (unknown to many in his home) used to be the most recognised international figure from Tanzania second only to Mwalimu Nyerere.

Like Bi. Kidude , Zawose was hardly heard in our radio stations.

His Gogo Ilimba (or Mbira) stuff was described as Tanzania`s classical music by London producer Gabriel Prokofiev.

Gabriel, a remarkable musician, speaks Kiswahili and had stage managed Zawose many times; just like Andy Jones became part of the retinue of Wazungu helping value our own exceptional talents, treasures and stars.

The moral? Let us try and applaud, appreciate Bi Kidude and her music while she is still alive. Documentary will soon be out on DVD.

Source: Guardian

Zanzibar wraps its reality around you like a lingering fairytale. This tiny archipelago of Indian Ocean islands that once lured sailors, Sultans and slavers to its far-distant shores is so charismatic that it sweeps you into its shadowy romantic past and sunlit present all at once, and finally sets you down, all sun-bronzed and laden with spices and island art, and memories of an exceptionally sparkling and colourfully abundant sea.

The main island is small and easy to explore, with glorious white sand, palm-fringed beaches rewarding you for just a couple of hours’ drive to the North coast and the same to the East, along mainly hopeless but endlessly fascinating roads flanked by simple homesteads, roads worn more by foot or bicycle and frequented by chickens. There is a time warp here, this place where the past is so responsible for the present, where mobile phones, internet connections and television are all relatively recent, and where the history and culture is so imbued that you can simply stretch out beneath the dappled shade of the coconut palms and soak it up. Welcome to Zanzibar, and a world apart.

Sailors and traders from the first century AD came to the lands of ‘Zinj el Barr’, the Black Coast, bringing beads, porcelain and silks to trade for gold, slaves and spices, ebony, ivory, indigo and tortoiseshell. They waited for annual monsoon winds to fill their dhow sails and bear them across the Indian Ocean; today’s visitors usually arrive in a small ‘plane or ferry from Dar es Salaam. But these still afford a measured approach, allowing a breathtaking vision of sparkling cerulean waters over sandbanks and reefs, and then into Stone Town, the ancient island capital, still more of a town than a city, a maze of winding pedestrian streets in a hotchpotch of rooftops, a mass of corrugated iron overwhelming the historic stonework beneath.

Helplessly entwined in its own history, the people of Zanzibar are the Swahili, evolving from the influx of mainly Arabian and Persian immigrants who settled on the East African coast and islands to trade and escape the political upheavals of the Gulf two thousand years ago. Their cultural history was founded in sailing dhows, similar to those that glide by its shores today, boats that brought people, language and cultures and long centuries of power wrangling.

The Arab immigrants were overthrown by the Portuguese in the 15th century, until the Sultan of Oman finally saw them off for good in 1698 and started building the Stone Town of today; the Old Fort on the harbour was built on the remains of a Portuguese church dating back to 1600. Visitors to Stone Town still encounter the grandiose vision and dominant architectural style of a confident young Sultan who transferred the seat of his sultanate from the contentious capital of Muscat to the breezier climes of Zanzibar in 1832, and then began palace building in earnest, and seeding the coconut palms and clove plantations which soon defined Zanzibar as the ‘Spice Island’.

Driving through the island centre now, it is worth stopping to explore the spice plantations, where a guided walk for passing tourists is likely to be more lucrative than vast crops to export, but it is a fine sensual pleasure to crumble cinnamon bark straight from the tree, to breathe the scent of cloves drying in the sun, to taste and guess the spice from a handful of pods and powders. These are well used by the chefs and kitchens in beach hotels, where fishermen daily bring the catch of the day to be grilled, baked, battered or blanched with assorted Zanzibar spice.

The coast is dotted with hotels, self-contained beach hideaways that relish their privacy and provide various levels of style and comfort. I have been to most and head north by choice, to the northernmost peninsula which is occupied by Ras Nungwi Beach Hotel. The name is a very literal Swahili translation, but it says nothing of how this beach is secluded and the coral sands are blanched very, very pale. It does not tell how the wonderfully translucent and clear the sea is here, where a coral reef surrounds the shore creating a shallow wide expanse to explore until the tide rises high and then turquoise waves crash onto the beach. It is a naturally beautiful place.

Turtles come ashore to lay their eggs when the moon is full, and the surrounding reefs are a thriving colourful world to snorkel and dive. Ras Nungwi Beach Hotel is essentially respectful of its place, each room constructed from local wood and coral rag to create a number of thatched round houses along the beach, with lodge rooms in gardens behind. Soft sand pathways link the central thatched and open-sided restaurant to the rooms, pool and dive centre, providing the comforts of a fine hotel with a rustic, beach hideaway style. This is a fine place to lie back and soak up Zanzibar, crack open a coconut, watch the dhows on the far horizon and look forward to spice-scented, star filled African night.

The pilot turned and shouted above the noise of the engine. “If those animals start to cross the runway, we’ll need to abort the landing.” My husband Ludo and I could only agree – “the animals” were bigger than our tiny plane. This was our introduction to Ruaha, a little-known national park in southern Tanzania. Those who know it rave, not just about the beauty of its landscapes but about the variety and sheer number of animals that live in and wander through this pristine, unfenced wilderness.

We landed on the mud air-strip, coasting past the herd of feeding elephants. Ruaha, normally bone dry, had received its annual rainfall in just a month, and was lush and verdant. The drive to camp turned into a game drive. Male kudu with corkscrew horns and masked faces peered out at us. A herd of buffalo snorted and stamped. A lone lioness, the remains of a young giraffe beside her, rolled and stretched blissfully in the grass.

Mdonya Old River Camp is just that. Camouflage green tents are set along the banks of what was once the Mdonya River, and a larger tent serves as a dining room. The whole lot could be dismantled in 24 hours, leaving few signs it ever existed. The manager, Nick, showed us to our tent and warned: “Don’t leave anything outside after dark; we’re having a bit of a problem with a hyena. She’ll eat anything. Last night she had a go at one of the kerosene lanterns.” And that really is the beauty of this camp. It doesn’t shut out the wildlife – quite the opposite. A month before, a pride of lions killed a buffalo outside one of the tents. “We didn’t have any guests in that tent at the time,” Nick said. “We just put people in the tents farthest away and left the lions to it. They stayed around for a few days. The guests loved it.”

The rain had brought new life to the bush – newborn impala, baby giraffe and tiny vervet monkeys clinging to their mothers. But it also meant that, with food and water everywhere, the game had dispersed. We were at the mercy of chance and every sighting was a treat. Travelling was challenging: vehicles became stuck in treacly mud, and airstrips became unusable. We flew out of Ruaha, dodging rainclouds, heading west. From the window we saw hills become mountains, the bush become forest and then the grey expanse of Lake Tanganyika, the size of England, separating Tanzania from the Congo.

Western Tanzania is largely inaccessible. Gombe is its best-known reserve. Jane Goodall lived there from the early 1960s, studying and making astonishing discoveries about our closest relatives, chimpanzees. Gombe doesn’t really have facilities for visitors, but 200km (125 miles) south is the larger Mahale National Park, home to several groups of chimps. Kyoto University has had researchers there for more than 40 years. Visitors to Mahale’s few tourist camps have a good, although not guaranteed, chance of seeing chimpanzees in their natural habitat, going about their daily business unconcerned by a human audience. I had only seen chimpanzees in captivity. They are big, powerful, extremely intelligent, human enough to make you think you might understand them, animal enough to make them inscrutable. I was drawn to them as much by fear as by curiosity. But before Ludo and I and John and Diana, two Americans also staying at Greystoke Camp, could venture into their territory, we had to pass a test.

Last summer catastrophe struck the chimps of Mahale.

They started dying in alarming numbers of a flu-like disease. Magdalena, a vet who worked at Gombe for years and now runs Greystoke Camp, was part of the team trying to establish where the disease had originated. There was suspicion that the “flu” had been caught from humans, and strict precautions had been established to prevent any recurrence. Researchers and tourists have to stay at least 10m (33ft) from the chimps, and wear masks. Any hint of a cold and you are not allowed in the forest.

Once the aircraft landed on the shores of the lake, we boarded a boat and sailed south. After about an hour we saw a beach, empty apart from an eccentric-looking thatched building, and a small knot of people – our welcoming party. The rest of the camp was hidden beyond the tree line. Behind the beach, the forest: dark, daunting and for the moment off limits.

We spent the afternoon on the lake with Greystoke’s guide, Safe. Ostensibly there to point out crocodiles, hippos and hundreds of bird species, he was also carefully monitoring us: any sign of a cold and we would not be seeing any chimps. Blissfully unaware of this, we were celebrating the sheer joy of being in such a place with a large gin and tonic, all talking at once, so we barely heard Safe’s shout. “Chimp!” he repeated, pointing towards the bank. Disbelievingly, we turned – and there was a black face peering, a little indignantly at us, from a tree. “It’s a wild one, not one from the habituated group,” Safe said. “You’re very lucky. Hardly anyone sees them.” Silent now, we looked from the chimp to each other and back again, hardly daring to believe what we were seeing. Tears brimmed in Diana’s eyes.

Imagine then how we felt the next morning, when, having been given a clean bill of health, we found ourselves 10m from Alofu, the alpha male, lying on his back, arms flung wide, snoozing with a couple of younger males. Pushing through the undergrowth, we came across another little group, a female catching a nap while her baby was entertained by another young chimp.

On our final morning we abandoned breakfast. The trackers had spotted the chimps obligingly close by. We hadn’t seen them the previous day, despite six exhausting, exhilarating hours tracking through the forest. Now we stood, staring upwards as the canopy shook. Leaping bodies crashing through the branches, hooting calls filled the air and made our hair stand on end. As we climbed reluctantly back on the boat to leave, we were joined by one of the camp’s staff wearing a T-shirt with the slogan “98 per cent chimpanzee”: DNA, we agreed, we could all be proud of.

Kate Humble presents Springwatch on BBC Two. Her website www.stuffyourrucksack.com offers information on what to take on holiday to help local communities.

Reproduced from the The Times June 16, 2007