Tanzania: Conclusion's video

Hi everybody,

Sorry the video is just ready but you know, finding a good internet connection here (enough to upload a video in low quality) is very difficult :-)

Anyway, enjoy it and let your comments :-)

VIDEO HERE

Ilha de Moçambique : everything & nothing and a lot of creativity

After a one hour flight from Dar we arrived in Pemba (North of Mozambique). The country has the same time than France but it is much more in East than France…That’s why it’s the country with the earliest sunset in the world (4.40 pm in winter)!!!

Pemba town doesn’t look like the cities we visited in Kenya and Tanzania: Pemba is much more “traditional”: Houses are made with wood and stones and the roof is usually made with palm tree leaves. Mozambique was a Portuguese colony, so the official language is Portuguese! (Of course there are a lot of several dialects in the country. In the North it’s Makuwa language and in this dialect a white person is called “Akugna”)

Pemba is a coastal town where the most important activity is fishing. Everywhere in Town we also find a lot of Palm trees, it is very nice for walking.

Mozambique is one of the first destination for South Africans who do business there or just have holidays. But unfortunately once again, it is almost always “white” people who run lucrative businesses… History really impacts this continent!!

After 2 days in Pemba we took a bus to Ilha de Moçambique, a 3 km long and 0,5km wide island linked with the mainland by a 3,5km bridge. The island has completely a different style from what we saw until now. It is extremely influenced by the Portuguese occupation and the northern town (Stone Town) looks like a Mediterranean City: Small streets, colourful houses and an architecture with a mix of Portuguese, Arabic and Indian styles. The island was used as a hub for the slave market and it was also the capital of Mozambique until it changed to Maputo.

The island is protected by 3 fortresses : One in the North, the biggest one, one in the South, which is not directly on the island but on a rock few meters from the coast and one in the East which is now a church. The island was attacked several times, and also by the Dutch but they had to give up because they didn’t have fresh water at all. Nowadays water is still coming from the mainland and there is also a reserve in the northern fortress. Constructions have started to bring water through pipelines under the bridge.

The southern town was built after the colonisation and is called “Makuti” which means “Roof with palm tree leaves” because the houses are traditional.

A story showing the credulity of people happened in 2008. A man came into the island and said to everybody that the coming month he will fly. After one month, on the D-Day more than 400 people came to see the flying man. Of course he didn’t fly… People were so upset that they put the man in prison!!! We could believe this happened in the Middle-Age but it was in 2008!!!

We were shocked by the attitude of the kids on the island: as they are used to see tourists they try each time to get some money. And the easiest way they find is to ask to be taken in pictures. They loudly say “Photo!! Photo!!” and take some model positions!!! Of course we never took any pictures of them and please, if somewhere someone ask you to take a picture in exchange of money don’t accept… it’s almost prostitution!!!!!

Of course, some of them are still “just” kids and we had a great time with them at the pre-school of the island. This “Kinder garden” welcomes more than hundred kids between 2 and 5 years old. This project is supported by a Portuguese association and started 3 years ago. We were very impressed by their materials to play and learn: as the association doesn’t have a lot of money they recycle everything to built games. It’s so fantastic!!! They use empty plastic bottles, caps, paper…   For example they have a bowling game made with empty plastic bottles fulfilled with sand and a ball made with old fabric!!!! To learn the shapes they use 3 empty bottles as box and 3 types of caps : the plastic caps for water bottles, the metal caps for glass bottles and the coffee caps. They have to put the caps in the good box! They also have small tables made with plastic bottles and a lot of creative ideas!!! Sooooo nice !

When we came into the room, they first were shy because we don’t speak the same language but after few minutes they played with us. At this age they don’t have lessons, they only play and learn shapes, colours and the life in society… They also really like singing and dancing!!!

But the education system in Mozambique is very poor: we discussed with Vanessa in the guesthouse who was a mathematics teacher previously and she told us that a large majority of the children goes to school (which is good) but at 7-8 years old they still don’t know how to write or read their name!!! There are several reasons for this weak school system: first the teachers don’t get paid a lot so they are not motivated at all to do a great job and second it is also because of the colonialism, or better said because of the end of the colonialism: when the Mozambican army pushed the Portuguese and fight for her independency, all Portuguese people have to leave the country. But they were all in key positions such as teachers. From one day to another all teachers were gone and that’s why the best students had to become teachers without any specific studies… It will take a long time until things change in a positive way!!!! 

Tanzania: The conclusion

First we wanted to continue to Mozambique by bus but there is no « correct » border between Tanzania and Mozambique: The first one is only a river that you have to cross with a small canoe; a lot of canoes sink and in the river there are plenty of hippos and crocodiles… So that’s not the best option!! The second border can only be crossed if you hav your own car, there is no bus service over there... We could try to make hitch hiking but if nobody’s coming, then we will be stuck in Tanzania!! The last border is close to Malawi Lake but it is veryyyy fare to drive there, so we decided to fly between Dar and Pemba!

We really liked Tanzania, much more than Kenya: First we found the landscapes more beautiful (on our point of view of course), and streets are not so dirty. National roads are in a better condition than the ones in Kenya. People speak also Swahili but only few of them speak fluent English. About food, unfortunately it is almost the same as in Kenya: Chicken and Chips and a lot of fat things…

PS: a short movie is coming soon....

A small nod to Katinka, Axel and Finja ;-)

First of all; sorry for the late post,but you know Africa is not a really good "connected" continent !!! (but living without internet has a lot of benefits...like enjoying the outdoor...)

And about "Outdoor" we have a small "gift" for you!!! It's not so impressive than Australia but it's nice...
And for sure it is a least a V8 ;-) ;-) ;-)
Okay...sorry I'm kidding !!! But just for fun, let's see our performances!!

From Mwanza to Zanzibar: a lot of new friends

Tanzania offered us a lot of surprises: moment with artist street kids, a lot of animal viewing in Serengeti, swim in Indian Ocean in Zanzibar… And a lot of new friends!!! With this short post we would like to thank them for the nice time we spend together!

In Mwanza we spent a nice day with Adam, Jordan and Larry: 3 Canadians coming here for one month to teach at Mwanza University. Thank to them we met Gilbert and the Pamoja Centre! 3 guys looking like basketball players, long T shirt and askew cap!!! 

Unfortunately we couldn’t go on safari with them because of schedule issues but we met other new friends during our trip in the wildlife: 2 Dutch couples: Gejs & Nelly and Thomas & Lisanne. All of them are very friendly but we exchanged more with Thomas and Lisanne (a bit younger than us). Thomas came here 2 months ago for a placement in the poultry industry and Lisanne his girlfriend came after for holidays. On the campsite we met two Spanish people living in Reunion Island: David and Haizea. After their safari they go to Zanzibar… Good opportunity to meet again! 

Sam, (notre chauffeur), Gejs, Nelly, Romain, Flo, Thomas, Swedi (notre cuisto), Lisanne

Romain, Flo, Thomas, Lisanne, Gejs, Nelly

Before swimming at the beach, Thomas Lisanne and we went in the same hotel in Arusha. It’s very nice to spend moments together and to share cultures, anecdotes and memories!!! After that it was a chain of coincidences: At the hotel we met Zsolt, an Hungarian guy in holidays and on the way to a restaurant he recognised Leonardo in his previous hotel. Leo is an Argentinian living in Paris and in Africa for his research. All together we spent a nice evening: smiles, discussions, and games!!!

Zsolt and Romain on the ferry to Zanzibar

The next day, Thomas and Lisanne went back to Mwanza, we went to Dar, Zsolt to Serengeti and Leo stayed in Arusha… But not for long… In Dar, Leo, Zsolt and we, were in the same hotel and we met again in Zanzibar (we actually shared the same dorm with Zsolt). Walking in the street, Zsolt met one of his Couch Surfing friend: Wendy a Belgian girl!! One contact more for us: her sister lives in Australia!!! And because it’s a small world, Zsolt had another friend in the staying in the same hotel: Chrystelle: a US girl coming here for a placement at the hospital!!! What a chain a great things!!!

Leo with Indianah Jones style

 Last but not least, we also met David and Haizea again!!! They proposed us to come to Madagascar with them…but that will not be possible, it’s very expensive…. (but never say never)

David, Haizea, Flo and Romain

Sunset on Zanzibar with David and Haizea

So, Tanzania was a full of coincidences, and lots of new friends!!! We thank all of you for the great time we spent together...and we hope to keep in touch and to see you again!!!!

Finally we hope that we will always meet nice people like you because travelling is also having new friends, sharing moments and culture… and having new home stay (or couch) everywhere in the world ;-)

Zanzibar: Sea, Sun and Beach

The hot and humid climate of Dar Es Salaam (Even of peace in Swahili) is hard to live with… The only solution is to go at the beach and walk in the water… That’s why we decided to go to Zanzibar by ferry. 1:30 hours to do 80 kms, that’s very fast!!!

 Stone Town, the city of Zanzibar is a mix of several styles: Arabic, Indian, Tanzanian, Oriental… The majority of the inhabitants is Muslims and traditions are strictly followed (Women with niqab…) so be careful with your clothes: don’t show your shoulders and don’t wear a too short skirt or pant!  

The fruit and spice market is very nice… We discovered new fruits : a small mango with the taste of a kiwi and new passion fruits !!! We also tried two Tanzanian pastries: The visheti is like a doughnut in shape of a 8 and the vitumba is a doughnut made from rice flour and cooked in oil. It’s good but very fat!!!

Zanzibar is surrounded by a coral reef. Perfect for some snorkelling! We sa a lot of fishes, seaweeds, urchins, star fishes and coral! So impressive!! And very nice in a clear blue water with perfect temperature!!

Romain snorkelling

Doesn't need any comment ;-)

The island is also well known for its spices, we decided to visit a spice farm! We discovered (and sometimes tried) Cayenne pepper, Ginger, Cinnamon, Lemongrass, Vanilla… And we also discovered that avocados grow in trees ! We didn’t know before! We also tried the Dorian: that’s a very stinky fruit (prohibited in public transport) but when you eat it it’s very good! And we also get a lot of accessories made with banana leaves!

Lemongrass

Cacao

Vanila

Muscade nut

Coffee beans

After few days in city center, it’s time to relax on the beach ! We took the dalla – dalla (Tanzanian matatu, better than the Kenyan version of it) to go to Nungwi in the north of the island. Our schedule: farniente, swim, games, friends and fun! So great!!!

But on some points we were a bit surprised: first the island was really empty! Only few tourists and no hotel full! Okay it is still the low season but it is strange.. Nungwi is one of the most popular beaches of the island! And there is no ATM there.. We forgot to take money in Stone town and even if in the hotels and restaurants they have a card reader, it never works!!! We had to change money at a forex point…with 17% taxes…that’s a shame!!! At last, the village is very dirty, without any attractions, so if you are a tourist, please stay at your hotel or take a boat but don’t visit the village… that’s a pity!

Anyway, we enjoyed these few days in Zanzibar and we also saw a nice sunset… And now we are tanned!!

Serengeti and Ngorongoro : The Lion King or the Life Story.

Monday morning we went with a 4x4 jeep for a 3 day safari. In the car we met 2 other Dutch couples : Gejs & Nelly, and Thomas & Lisanne… But we also lived an incredible story… We were almost in the Lion King Movie. You want to know why ??

First let me present you the first roles:

     SIMBA (this actor is the most paid for doing nothing)

        

     NALA (Her salary is just enough for what she does)

The second roles :

         PUMBA : The curious warthog

      

     

ED’ : The lost hyena

        

     

SOPHIE : The huge giraffe

        

     DUMBO : The solitary elephant       

     

     SARAH : The hungry cheetah

          

BERNARD : The lazy leopard

                                   RAFIKI : The baboon with blue ass

         

GILOU : The unlucky wildebeest

         THEO : The shy hippo

          ISABELLE : The fast running gazelle

         NICOLAS : The nice impala

                                  FRIEDRICH : The funny ostrich

         CYRIL : The dangerous crocodile

          JOE : The tired buffalo

         LEO : The slow rhino

     RAJAPOUR : the robbing vulture

       

       ROUKI : The small fox

 

 BERTRAND : The great varan

         ALEX : The social zebra

   

     PROUST : The banded mongoose

  POLO : The pink flamingo

                                     DIEGO : the charming bird

          ZAZOU : The singing bird

The story starts like all stories: the sun rises over the savannah and SIMBA, the Lion King, lies on his back while other animals walk around. ISABELLE the gazelle goes out of her group for few seconds…But that is enough for SARAH to attack her and eat her… Yes, actually that is also the “Life Story”. And this tragedy made several animals happy: after the cheetah, it was the turn for RAJAPOUR and his friends to finish the dish… Fortunately, while someone dies, others are born… 

DUMBO is very proud of his family, and SOPHIE hugs her daughter because she knows, that she will growth very fast.

Almost midday, some animals use that time to have a rest but some others such as ROUKI and ED prefer looking for food. PUMBA likes playing and NICOLAS does jogging with his friends. 

The strong sun of this day will be responsible for a new tragedy: GILOU, the little wildebeest was thirsty and wanted to drink at the river… Bad idea. CYRIL the crocodile attacks him with a strong bite… GILOU tried to escape several times… But CYRIL was stronger!

RAFIKI didn’t care about the noise and continued doing what he likes: playing with his wife. BERNARD also didn’t move from his rock. Good location to enjoy shadow and to have a look on his future meal… For DIEGO it was different: he was well dressed to attract a female but she was more interested by POLO the flamingo….  

FRIEDRICH was the luckiest ostrich ever seen: he has 2 females. THEO was into the water but he didn’t feel comfortable. He would like more place, unfortunately it was too early to get out of the water….

In the afternoon, the temperature started to decrease a little bit: LEO the rhino used this time to have a walk and to visit JOE. The buffalo wasn’t really happy about this visit because he was sleeping…

PROUST was in a very good mood; it was more than one week that she didn’t meet BERTRAND the dangerous varan… 

But unfortunately, ALEX the zebra is not so lucky: ALEX was following his family but he didn’t see that NALA was looking at him. Other zebras saw the lioness and tried to prevent the others but it was too late: In the general panic, every zebras ran in all directions and ALEX was directly on front of NALA… She didn’t say anything and just jumped to bite ALEX in his neck… After few seconds he died and all lions will have a great diner tonight.

That’s how ends « The Life Story, the eternal Cycle”! Another day will start tomorrow in the savannah and someone will be killed and someone else will be born!

This short story seems incredible, or just coming out of a documentary but that is what we saw in front of us… But now it’s time for you to learn few things about the national park and its animals…

The Serengeti National Park is the largest park in Tanzania and the second largest in Africa. Its name comes from the Masaï word « Siringet » which means « Ashes ». In fact it’s a volcanic region and the ground of Serengeti is composed by ashes. That’s why there is no tall trees in Serengeti but only small one. Even during the rainy season, this area is often missing water and it burns… But some of these fires are not natural, they are provoked by poachers: If there is a fire somewhere, all park rangers will go there and don’t care of the poachers…

The Ngorongoro crater is located in a conservation area. It’s a conservation for wildlife, vegetation and human being. 65000 Masaï live there. The name Ngorongoro comes from the sound made by bells that Masaï attach on cows. Masaï living there, live almost in traditional conditions. Their houses are made from branches recovered with a mix of water and ashes (it is waterproof). Houses are built by women: When a woman get married, all other women of the village help her to build her house. Huts are very simple: 2 beds (for parents and children) made with cow skin and a fire in the idle for cooking. There is always something burning just to create smoke and keep mosquitoes and insects away from the house. Men may have several wives… They are usually farmers (having cows and goats) but they don’t do agriculture. They eat meat and a mix of milk and blood every day. The village has a huge fence out of it to protect against wildlife.

The Ngorongoro Crater is in reality a caldera: it means it’s a crater where life is possible. It’s the biggest of the world. It was created 2 million years ago after two volcanic explosions. Before exploding, the volcano was higher than the Kilimanjaro (5800m). The surface inside the crater is 200km2 and it is 610m deep. The lake inside is never totally dry.

In Ngorongoro crater there are 21 black rhinos. That are the only ones living in Tanzania. Compare to the white rhinos, the black rhinos live solitary. In that case it’s much easier for a poacher to kill a black rhino. They are killed for their horns. (In Asia you can sell lit for a very high price). The only other country to have black rhinos is South Africa. It is an endangered species. And even protected it’s really difficult to have babies: The female is fertile only each 5 years…

From sixty years old, an elephant becomes solitary. And most of the time he loses his teeth. To survive, he can only eat fresh grass.

Lions can live until 12 years old. Usually only the lioness hunts but for bigger animals such as buffaloes or giraffes, males come to help. As the digestion process of meat is long, lion eat only every 3 days in average!

The leopard prefers smaller animals such as gazelles. Then he can bring them in his tree. Because leopards live in trees. The male put his two back legs on the same side while the female has one leg on each side of the branch.

So, we really enjoyed this safari and we are happy to have seen the big five (Lions, Rhinos, Elephants, Leopards and Buffaloes) and a lot of other animals. If you’re coming nearby, just do it, it’s worth the price !!!

More pictures here !!