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Published: February 11th 2010
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Hello everyone…
Apologies for not keeping you updated for a while. Here are some pictures from all the way back to Okovango delta because I thought you'd like some more!
I’m now in Moshi, and have been here for about two and a half weeks. I am settling in very well - but more on that later…
Now, where did I get to?
I think the last time I wrote I was in Zanzibar; we had a super time there. The first night we spent in Stone Town - a small waterfront town with an frantic personality. There is a strong Arabic influence with the narrow streets, beautiful doorways and chaotic urban lifestyle. Really enjoyed getting lost in the maze of streets that evening and was particularly amused by the sign outside one so-called travel agent: “Free Transport to Dar es Salaam”! The next day we went on a Spice tour and learned about vanilla and pepper trees tried cloves, ginger etc straight from the bush, sipped masala tea and watched “butterfly”climb a huge palm tree to pick coconuts which we then ate. Then we drove North to a beach and spent the next two nights there, taking a dhow
to go snorkeling on the coral reef and eating grilled fishes. After this it was back to stone town for a final night when we ate food from the street market. There is no power in Zanzibar and so everything is run from portable generators. Some of the less wise chose to sample some prawns from this market. Needless to say they did not enjoy the ferry ride the next morning. After this journey it was the long drive to Moshi (the Tanzanians do like their speedbumps!) where we spent the night. Got in after the headlights on the truck stopped working and we had to switch to dala dala as our alternative means of transport. Unfortunately did not have a chance to see any of Moshi then.
Drove to Arusha the next morning where we stocked up on supplies for our safari and spent the night at a campsite where there is also a snake park. This site was a mud pit and I pitched my tent in the only patch of dry ground still available. What I didn’t realize that this was beside a four foot high wall and on the other side of this wall was the
adult crocodile enclosure with 5 massive crocs! Still slept very well though!
Started our safari the next day and we drove into the Ngorogoro conservation area and up to the rim of the crater. Then down into the Serengeti where we spotted elephant giraffe and a leopard in a tree, not to mention thousands of wildebeasts and buffalo. Camped with hyenas laughing all around us and then game drive early the next morning. This time we saw a herd of elephants right on the road so they were extremely close, buffalo and three lionesses and … another leopard in a tree! After this we went to a maasai village for a “cultural experience”. This was not an experience I intend to repeat as I felt extremely socially awkward as everyone snapped away at houses and earlobes and other things. I’m glad that I now have the opportunity to visit this type of village not as a tourist. Camped on the rim of the crater where there was a herd of buffalo walking though our camp! Luckily we had Joseph - an anti-poacher with a large gun to protect us. Drove down into the Ngorogoro crater the next morning which was
spectacular. Animals everywhere and it was so lush and green. We saw more thousands of wildebeest, hundreds of zebra, ancient old elephants (one with tusks so long they swept the ground) and several rhino - including a mother with her calf. Camped again in the snake park camp.
The next morning I was left in Arusha by the truck - a bit of an odd feeling watching it drive off as I have spent so long on it! And I was on my own again for the first time in a while… But I successfully negotiated the hectic Arusha bus station, with a British couple I had met (as I was advised to avoid entering this organized chaos alone). Even still it was pretty hectic as we paid for and received our tickets from the door of the, already moving, coach.
So…
Now I’m in Moshi and am thoroughly enjoying settling in here. This town is actually pretty free of rubbish - unlike some towns we passed through in the truck - and the locals are extremely friendly, especially if you greet them with the correct one of the following: Jambo, Mambo, Vipi?, Habari za leo, habari sane, habari pretty
much anything you like, Shikamoo, etc. The markets are exhilarating, but not as much as the dala dala minibuses which are the cheapest (although not necessarily the easiest) form of transport. 15 mins on one of these will cost you approx 10p but you will share this time with around 30 others. The attendant jingles change in your face when he wants you to pay whilst hanging out of the open doorway. Dr Matthew Burton and his family are extremely welcoming and friendly (it’s because of this that I’m now able to send off this blog!). My apartment is a long way from the tents I was so used to and I’m getting used to cooking for myself.
The work is also very exciting. Each day I accompany the field team and we travel out to the local villages. The people living there are either of the chagga tribe or maasai. As the team moves around the village taking swabs and filling in questionnaires, myself and Alex (one of the team) go to each house and plot it with a GPS machine. I’m an expert in greeting people in Swahili as we approach each house, although I’ve just been told
that the villages we are now visiting speak only maasai. If I get disorientated (as many of the houses look very similar) there’s always Mt Meru or Kili for orientation as the villages we are studying are in between the two. The people are extremely friendly and are always offering water etc - even though it’s a precious commodity for them as they often have to walk long distances to fetch it. Next week we are starting the follow up data collection from one of the villages (in which the population has been mass-treated with azithromyocin) which involves examining every individual. I’m hoping I’ll be able to help with the swab tubes as well.
I hope you’re all well at home and do please continue to send messages (Hamishhouston@hotmail.co.uk) as I love reading them, and, now that I can look on the internet more frequently, you might have more luck in getting a response!
Lots of Love to all,
Hamish. Xxx
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