Tanzania - Arusha

Karibu Sana means you are very welcome in Swahili. My African adventure is about to start! I land in Arusha at 4 o’clock in the morning. As I had told my host I would arrive at one I didn’t expect him to still be there. But Kened is there with a friend and a sheet of paper with my name on it. What a relief and a pleasant surprise! His house is spacious and I even get my own room. His mum prepares nice spicy food and the next day Kened and I visit the city together. The central market, where they sell food, is the first stop. I buy some huge avocadoes for supper. In the center there is a clock tower with the map of Africa on it and different signs with cities and national parks of Tanzania written on them. We meet a Masai who guides me through the Masai market; masks, wooden sculptures and my favorite, the Tinga Tingas. These are oil paintings of animals drawn as cartoons. They make me smile. Kened and I go home, we didn’t sleep much last night.

I was supposed to leave for a Safari on my second day, but the group is only leaving the day after, which means another day in Arusha. Kened has to work, so Juma is my guide, and a good one too! I had seen in a brochure that there is a place called Shanga nearby Kened’s house. Shanga is a project started by a Dutch woman. It is a non-profit organization employing disabled people to create beautiful products out of recycled materials. Two professional glass blowers train two deaf people. They show me how to say hello in sign language. A man with paralyzed legs paint the most beautiful Tinga Tingas I have seen so far. Women make jewelry and lamps with glass beads from recycled bottles. The products are sold in the shop, where they also sell the gemstone Tanzanite. Tanzanite is to be found only in Tanzania. It is 1000 times rarer than diamonds and it is estimated that once the mines near Arusha are empty, there is almost no chance to find it again. After this very refreshing visit, Juma wants to show me the Polish cemetery. It is outside of town, so we go by micro, the local bus. The cemetery is near a beautiful lake and at the end of a forest. The guardian knows everything about the Polish refugee camp and tells us all he knows. There is a very special atmosphere in the cemetery that the pictures cannot completely render. Leon, my other host is back from Lake Victoria. We spend a nice evening together, Leon, Kened and I, cooking and talking before I set off on my first safari tomorrow!!

photos Arusha