Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

            Tuesday, 20 Feb 2018 – This morning seven local people were drumming and dancing on the pier beside the Insignia.  The two female dancers wore crown-like hats, and costumes that appeared to be made from leopard skins; they danced barefoot on a carpet.

By 9:00 AM our minibus left the pier in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania for an 8-hour excursion, with our guide, Elari, and the driver, Willie.   Again, vehicles drive on the left side of the road, as in all of Africa so far.

Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is in eastern Africa.  It borders Kenya and Uganda to the north; Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo to the west; Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south; and the Indian Ocean to the east.  Dar es Salaam is the country’s biggest city, principal port, and leading commercial center.  Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest mountain, is in northeastern Tanzania.  Although more than 100 different languages are spoken in Tanzania (many tribes settled here), most Tanzanians speak Swahili as a second language, if not as their first.

Since we had heard “Tanzania” pronounced “Tan-zane-ee-ah” (with the accent on the second syllable) and also as “Tan-zay-nee-ah” (with the accent on the third syllable), we asked Elari how they pronounce it.  His response was “Tan-zahn-ya” (with the accent on the second syllable)!

Soon, the bus circled St. Joseph (Roman Catholic) Cathedral.  However, Elari stated that, although near the coast many of the residents are Muslim, in the interior, more are Christian.  (Traders from the Middle East came very early to this area.)

Sculptures in the National Museum

The bus stopped at the National Museum, which has very interesting displays depicting the development of human beings from their early origins in Africa.  The museum displays important fossils of some of the earliest human ancestors unearthed at Leakey digs at Olduvai Gorge.  Footprints of hominins made 3.6 million years ago were found in Tanzania by paleoanthropologist Mary Leakey, and are here at the National Museum.

We stopped at a carvers’ market where craftsmen were working on ebony carvings, and where artists were painting wall art (called Tinga Tinga) in bright, contrasting colors.

Somewhat surprising were the primitive restroom facilities that we found in Tanzania (though not at hotels and resorts).  They were of the type available in China and India, which Sally calls “floor toilets.”

Next, our tour took us to the White Sands Beach Resort, where we were served a very nice buffet lunch.  The eating and lounge area was spread out not far from the beach under a roof but with no side walls or air conditioning.  Besides putting too much food on our plates, our drinks were large bottles of beer (500 ml); Jesse drank his and half of Sally’s.  The temperature was 92 degrees, with high humidity.  Suddenly, soon after lunch, Jesse nearly passed out.  As quickly as possible, we found a small sofa, where he was able to spread out more; he tossed back and forth, sweating profusely, while Sally tried to fan his face with his hat.  When it was time to board our bus, Jesse leaned very heavily on Sally and, thankfully, we managed to fall into our bus seats without asking for help.  Although even at the time, we realized this must be a case of mild heat stroke, Sally was very frightened.  From his usual “in charge” state, he had become totally helpless!  Remarkably, within 20 minutes in air conditioning inside the bus, Jesse felt recovered enough to be taking photos again!

Although we stopped later at a village (called a “village museum”) Jesse stayed on the bus.  Sally followed the others for 15 minutes, looking into some dark, empty huts until the heat drove her back to the air conditioned bus (where other passengers were accumulating also).

Back to the ship by 5:00 PM, we literally dropped in our cabin.  After showering, we ate a very small dinner, mostly consisting of soup.  No swimming or dancing tonight!