Dar es Salaam and Surroundings Dar es Salaam is situated in the narrow coastal area which is hot and humid. It has a mean annual temperature of 26°C (79°F). The way of life reflects Islamic and Swahili influences, as well as the influence of ongoing contact with foreign traders. This bustling African port has a population of around 1.5 million people. Dar es Salaam, the capital of Tanzania since 1891, means 'haven of peace'. It began as a fishing village in the mid-19th century until the Sultan of Zanzibar decided to develop it into a port and trading area. Attractions include the Botanical Gardens and the National Museum, which has significant archaeological collections and a Zanzibar slave trade exhibition. The Village Museum, 10km (6 miles) from the city centre, features a village of dwellings built in a number of distinct Tanzanian architectural styles. Mwenge, also on the outskirts of the city, is home to an ebony carving (makonde) community. Oyster Bay, 6km (4 miles) away from the city centre, has a beautiful palm-fringed beach. The international airport is 13km (8 miles) from the city centre and is served by a shuttle bus and taxis. There is a number of embassies and airline offices. Finding accommodation in the city can be difficult, and it is always advisable to book in advance.

Town, Indians, and Dala Dala, 16 November 1996, 6

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Date: Sat, 16 Nov 1996 11:14:33 +0300 (GMT+0300)
From: John Hobgood
To: Friends/Family
Subject: Town/Indians/Dala dala (fwd)

Going into town is quite a task and something that I avoid unless I have a package awaiting me at the post office. You get on the dala dala on campus and go to Mwenge station. A dala dala is a minibus which [is] designed for 12 people but holds up to 25 sometimes. Of course, not everyone has a seat. Every dala dala ride is 100 shillings, no matter if it is 400 meters or 4 kilometers. Anyway, at Mwenge station you get on the bus that is going to posta ([the] post office which is smack in the middle of downtown), so that ride is the same as the first one, but usually the buses going into town are larger and sit legally 30 people, but truly 50 or so. The worst is being in the backseat when you are getting off at a stop where not a lot of people are dropping at because you have to rub/push your way through people and it can be painful to them as well as you (wearing sandles is dangerous!). Once in town every 20 steps you take you hear "hello my friend...taxi?"

My destinations in town are usually [the] United States Information Service where I pick up my mail and [the] post office where I mail it. Sometimes I watch the previous night's CBS evening news at noon, which in itself is an experience. They allow anyone to watch the news which means a lot of Tanzanians come at lunch hour to see the news. Tanzanians, when they see something sad or funny, [make] a little clicking noise with their mouths. A series of three or so clicks when something is sad, and maybe a few clicks and laughs when something is funny. Examples that I have seen are when a girl was murdered, it was a room full of sad clicks, but when they showed Bob Dole campaigning it was the laughing clicks (they love Clinton here). Anyway, I find myself doing the clicking thing too, from anything like when someone trips you click and say, "Pole sana," or when someone is acting crazy you click and shake your head and laugh...anyway enough on the click.

Oh yeah...downtown. Diesel fumes! That's really it! People are selling everything from second hand clothes to oranges to kuku na chipsi to postcards to toys...everything. Some even have crudely constructed structures which are stores. A month ago the police came out one night and demolished all the structures because it was an environmental hazard. The next day people were busy rebuilding them. I went downtown the other day and it was business as usual.

There is a Wahindi (Indian) section of town where as you walk there are Hindi temples every other block. Indians own a lot of the shops (85% of businesses in Dar are Indian owned) and from what I hear from Black Tanzanians is that they view the Indians in the same way that maybe the African Americans in America view the white population (as told to me by a fellow African American student here). The temples were interesting to me the first time I saw them because (I don't know much about Indian history/culture) Hitler stole the symbol which is known as the swastika from Indian culture because Caucasians [allegedly] originated in India or something like that (i.e. the Caucus Mts.) Anyway, the point being is that the Indians of course use this symbol as they should, but it was just odd to me to see it used as a decorative symbol all over these temples or welded into a gate etc., etc.

The whole ride into town takes 40 minutes, as well as back to campus. The whole concept of giving up your seat to women or elders is not a popular thing. I have received stares for doing it, but have also received many smiles form those that I gave my seat to. Students (primary and secondary) pay 40 shillings instead of 100. Because of this the door keeper will not allow students on until he has filled up as much he can with 100 shilling paying customers. Then it is more or less fighting among the students to get on the bus, and many times people are hanging out the side door holding on to the roof. That's about it for town and dala dala rides.---John

A day on the Town

Date: Fri, 31 Jan 1997 15:29:34 +0300 (GMT+0300)
From: John Hobgood
To: Friends/Family
Subject: A Day on the Town

Well, yesterday was quite an adventurous day in the city of Dar es Salaam. Having no classes I decided to visit my friend Zenno who lives about a 30-minute walk from the university. Arriving at [9] in the morning... I joined him for a breakfast of chai (tea), mkate (bread) and an embe (mango) which we enjoyed in his kitchen/room. We decided that since there was nothing specific we had to do we'd just get into town and "walk about." We boarded the Dala Dala (which many have already heard about) and made the 30 minute or so trek into town. Once in town we decided to go to the "country club" where Zenno would ask his tennis coach to keep an eye out for a cheap tennis racquet. This was an interesting country club, no doubt left over from when Tanganyika was a German Colony/British Protectorate...red tiled roofs, open dinning area looking out toward the Indian Ocean. Anyway, we did that and then headed over to the USIS where I checked my mail (thanks y'all).

We then decided to swing by his brother's workplace to get the key to his apartment so we could eat lunch there. His brother works on computers in what I think (by the few Swahili words that I can pick up from the health field) [is] a regional health clinic. This place was an interesting place. ...It looked as though out of that colonial [era], and [this] probably was due to its location (port-front) and the building materials (red-tiled roofs and whitewashed sand-like walls).

Now it was time to walk across town to Ilala area. What a long walk! Past the numerous Indian stores selling radios, and other appliances. We passed through Kariakoo which is THE MARKET in Dar es Salaam, with people selling whatever, wherever. It was in Kariakoo that the action for the day occurs. Zenno's attention was caught by the nice tennis shoes that the guy had in his bag. He told Zenno they were only 4,000 /-. The next thing you know Zenno is handing over the money and the guy hands Zenno the bag. It was only when I asked for the bag to see the shoes that we realized that the bag Zenno bought for 4,000/- contained not shoes, but cardboard and rocks (which in the way they were folded and weighed, seemed like shoes). By that time we were far away and Zenno could do nothing but laugh and say, "It pains my heart John." We decided to continue on to eat lunch (Zenno says he remembers the face and will catch him one day when he is passing, but he wasn't going to waste his time now).

We had a nice lunch of rice and peas, then just "chilled" for a while. We went up to the summit of the apartment building (what we in the States would call [looking at it from the outside] "projects") and I had a wonderful view of the Kariakoo market and surrounding Ilala: women sitting in the shade of a house, children playing a game of soccer with a ball made from plastic bags and twine, and young men pulling carts full of what not in the hot sun. Towards the evening we made our way to the dala dala stop so we could get back to my room at the university for a nice dinner of potatoes and veggies.

I think the most impressive part of the day came at the end when I told Zenno how sorry I was about the shoes incident. He said, "At least I know God is smiling down at me, John [because] someone's eating a good meal tonight." He then went on to talk about how he could "understand" why someone would do that, with employment being the way it is (or isn't). I don't understand that guy sometimes. He's only 19, but some of the insights he has and the things he says would cause me to think he is so much older than his babyfaced self proclaims.--John

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If you're looking to dine at a decent place in Dar-Es-Salaam without burning a hole in your pocket, may I recommend "New Zahir Restaurant." Located on Mosque/Mshihiri street in the centre of town, I found this place quite good for breakfast/lunch/dinner. Service is decent, food is pretty good and the price is quite affordable. I especially liked their "chapati" with chicken curry. Watch out during lunch hours though, as it tends to gather quite a crowd, especially on Fridays! Staff is pretty friendly, but when it gets crowded, it is somewhat hard to get attention for service. Overall quite a welcome experience if you want to spend little cash on food while enjoying a decent meal.

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Do NOT stay at the Jambo Inn by: malangali Be warned: the Jambo Inn is a den of thieves! I've spent a lot of time in Dar, at all sorts of different places, and the Jambo Inn is the worst place I'd ever been. I stayed there because I had to get a very early bus, and it was convenient to where the station used to be (mnazi mmoja). I went to dinner, locking my door with the padlock. When I came back up, I was followed up the stairs by a woman looking for my business for the night. I told her no, so she left. Then I entered my room. But someone else -- someone with a key -- had entered my room, taken everything of value, and locked the door behind them. The hotel staff, of course, denied knowing anything about it. DO NOT EVER STAY AT THE JAMBO INN!!!!!