Amani Butterfly Project

---

I could not stand the thought of returning to Dar es Salam and getting a bus, so I treated myself to a flight on a small local airline from Zanzibar to Tanga. The plane was a small 14 seater and there was a couple from NZ also on the flight, everyone else were locals, the flight went via another island called Pemba, then on to Tanga. As we landed there was crowds for people cheering, waving flags and there was also a brass band playing, we joked that they had heard we were coming, and waved as we stepped off the plane, then as one of the other African passengers stepped out behind us, the crowd went wild and he just laughter at us. It turned out that he is hoping to be the next president of Tanzania, elections are on the 31st October.
I spent 2 nights in Tanga then met up with Amini who is the project manager, he traveled with me on the dalla dalla to a town called Muheza were he put me on a bus to Amani, he then went back to Tanga to spend the weekend with his family. There is only one bus a day up to Amani and inevitably it was packed and left about one and half hours late. The road is terrible and its amazing that they are able to get a coach up it. I did wonder at my sanity for putting my life in the hands of an African driver as he threw the coach around hairpin bends and along the edge of hills and mountains, if we skidded over the side there was little chance of anyone surviving.
I eventually arrived at the the small hotel in the Amani Forest Reserve in late afternoon. There is not actually much at Amani is in the East Usambara Mountains and apart from the hotel (where I stayed), there is the forest reserve offices, a small local shop, and a milk collection place, a little way along the road there is also a malaria research compound.
The butterfly project is one of a few projects that was set up a few years ago to reduce poverty of the local communities that border the reserve, and by doing so, to help conserve the forest.
I had the weekend to my self and apart form walking there was nothing to do, I had finished all the bboks I had and although there was a TV it was in Swahili. There are very few tourist that go to the reserve and the only other people staying were researchers.
So over 2 weeks I lived a very healthy lifestyle whether I wanted to or not; I walked about 5 k a day, was in bed by 9pm every night and the food was very basic with no fat, no junk food, no sugary foods, no convenience food, and no alcohol, needless to say I lost a bit of weight, to think that people pay large amount of money to go to detox and exercise spas, they could just come here for a while.
The project was really interesting and it was great going around all the local villages on the back of a motor bike collecting the pupae and interviewing the farmers to collect data, it is certainly making a difference to their income, one farmer had managed to build a brick house, that has given the family a more comfortable and secure lifestyle, I prefer the quaint looking mud & straw but then I don't have to live in it. He had also purchased a small solar panel that charges a battery and gives the family about 4 hours of light in the evenings.
Some of the other projects include bee farming, fish farming, milk production, cash crops (cinnamon, cardamon, pepper), but The butterfly farming seems to be the most successful.
Its an amazing lush beautiful place and the local people are really freindly and no one hassels you, but after 2 weeks I was starting to suffer from cabin fever and was looking forward to getting to Mosi.

---

Photos

Tanzania - Amani
Coming in to land at Pemba

Tanzania - Amani
Road to Amani

Tanzania - Amani
The settlement of Amani

Tanzania - Amani
Butterfly only found in this area

Tanzania - Amani
Pupae Collection in one of the villages