Tanzania

A small group of us hitchhiked, rode in the back of vegetable trucks, took buses, and whatever we needed to do to get to Tanzania. We encountered people who COULD speak English. NONE OF US could speak their languages, but we managed nicely no matter. We noticed the SIMILARITIES among people more than the differences. People are curious about us; we are curious about them. People were open to sharing about themselves, and so were we. We noticed similarities and differences in the roles of male and females in various tribes and cultures. However, something that we noticed no matter which culture – all parents wanted their children to do better than they did. That is true of MY parents; it’s probably true of yours. Honesty and integrity were valued in all of the cultures we visited. I do not know exactly where, but….we were invited to spend the night with a family in a small Masai community along the way. The hut was made of mud with a dirt floor. A grass thatched roof completed it. It was not even dusty inside, the dirt being swept clean several times a day. They prepared a meal for us with the best that they had. I THINK I ATE BUGS OF SOME SORT! I put my mind somewhere else because I didn’t want to look arrogant or ungrateful for the generous offer they had made. It was a family with 3 kids and both parents. We used sign language as best we could to communicate. We laughed and they laughed. That night we slept on the floor with a blanket. In the morning, we took off on the next part of the adventure with happy faces on both sides. I hope I always remember the generosity and trust of a family for a bunch of weird looking strangers! THERE IS A UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE FOR ASKING FOR A HUG. KIDS IN EVERY CULTURE RECOGNIZE IT!!! After they determine you are ”safe”, they respond quickly to getting a hug. 😊 We next headed to Mt. Kilimanjaro. It’s on the northern part of Tanzania. We climbed up and rented a cabin for the group. We took a bus along the way. Monkeys rode with us on top of the bus, and sometimes, inside.

Mount Kilimanjaro in the distance.

The cabin that we shared had a metal crib.  One of the kids, Bill, tried it out.  Sometimes, there were not beds for everyone, we have learned.  We improvise with humor.  

Flat tires happen, even on road trips.  Everybody off until he can fix the tire.

A herd of impalas!  We also saw rhinoceros, fiddle face, wildebeest,  wild ostriches, and giraffes up close.  My pictures are not the best because I was so excited to see these animals.  I had my second prepaid trip in Tanzania – a safari in the Serengeti!!

The Serengeti ecosystem is a geographical region in Africa, spanning the Mara and Arusha Regions of Tanzania. The protected area within the region includes approximately 30,000 km² of land, including the Serengeti National Park and several game reserves.

This is not something that can be done today, but when we went in 1970, you could!

Hippo pool.  We didn’t get too close to them!  They charge!!!

This is in another pool with a hippo and this is as close as you want to get. 

We slept in tents at night and food was prepared in another tent.  The guides who supervised us built a huge fire in the middle of the camp.  They kept that fire going big and hot all night.  We sat around the fire and sang songs at night with hyenas surrounding the firelight.  All we could see were their shining eyes and listen to their cries.  It was exciting and scary.  You hoped the guys really did their job of keeping the fire going so they wouldn’t come into our tents at night.  It was eerie and I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.  

This was the mess tent that fed us in the Serengeti!  The food was really good!  

A group of impalas.  They are so graceful!

The zebras run with other animals, not just in a herd by themselves.  

He’s happy!

We are watching the days…and checking the map

We are in the Serengeti and we need to meet up with the ship in Dar-es Salam.  Time to move!!!  We couldn’t see everything, but I have to say, the safari in the Serengeti was the most powerful experience of the trip.  I might never get back to East Africa again to do another safari, but I did one!!

I picked up a couple of wood carvings before heading out:  a pair of giraffes, a Masai warrior, and a Makonde devil.  I was raised thinking of the devil as having horns, a tail, and a pitchfork.  I’d never thought that other cultures represented the devil differently.  It’s a good reminder that my set of glasses isn’t the only one with which to view the world. 

We departed Dar es Salaam on April 15, 1970 at 1200 hours.