Tanzania, we are coming!!

As we take a bus from Mombasa, Kenya to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, a group of college students are on their cell phones posting on their social media feeds. They’re recording with so much joy and enthusiasm, saying, “Tanzania, we are coming!” They record it, watch it, laugh, watch it again, rerecord it, watch it yet again, laugh. The cycle continues a few more times, and that’s all it takes for Mekael and I to say the phrase many times throughout our trip.

It’s difficult for me to separate Kenya and Tanzania; they both have significant similarities:

• They both use shillings as currency.
• Kenyan and Tanzanian men have contributed to World War I and II (they were called askari soldiers).
• Both use the same language of Swahili. Jambo means hello, asante sana means thank you very much, pole pole means slowly slowly, hakuna matata means no worries, karibu means welcome, sawa means okay.

• The countries have been influenced by Germany, Oman, Britain, Portugal, and India. Along the coast, Kenya and Tanzania have significant Arab influence along the coast. The front door of most shops and homes are status symbols and intricate pieces of art. They have beautiful engraving and Arabic inscriptions, usually from the Quran.

• Both have a unique tribe called the Maasai, who are pastoralists (shepherds) known for their bright pink or red plaid clothing. They primarily live in the south of Kenya and the north of Tanzania.
• They both have delicious breads called chapati and mandazi. Chapati is a thin, tortilla-looking savory bread, and mandazi is a slightly sweet deep-fried triangle of bread like a pillow. It’s delicious.
• Both have small, three-wheeled Indian cars called tuk-tuks that fit two or three people.

• The climate along their coasts is similar: surprising heat, intense sunshine, and complete humidity. When I got off the train from Nairobi to Mombasa in Kenya, the increase in temperature was quite unexpected.

In Tanzania, our first stop was Dar es Salaam (which means house of peace) along the coast. We noticed people were more relaxed and drove a bit slower than Kenya. We explored its monuments, attended an Anglican church service, visited a beach, went to Kariakoo food market, looked at artwork at Tinga Tinga. There were people cutting fresh coconuts from their bikes at many street corners. One of my favorite moments was sitting on a rooftop overlooking the coast talking to a local named Gracious. Another was meeting a BBC editor from Cameroon during our homestay; it was interesting to hear his perspective and opinions.

After Dar, we took a ferry to the island of Zanzibar. The ocean is bright, vivid teal around the island. There are large cargo ships with dozens of containers and also small wooden boats used by the locals for tours and fishing. We stayed in a hostel with a beautiful view of the coast. It was the place where we ate our breakfast every morning and the only place for wifi in the building. If there’s wifi, that’s where people will congregate, and because of this, we were able to meet several fascinating travelers. There were two girls on holiday from Germany and a French family who was homeschooling on the rooftop. We also talked at length with a Swiss-New Yorker that now lives in Nice, France.

We walked most of Zanzibar City, visited the beach, and relaxed on the hostel rooftop. For dinner, we went repeatedly to the Passing Show restaurant, where we met the family who owned it. The food was delicious! There were balls of mashed potatoes with spicy beef inside, vegetables, beans, chicken, and perfectly baked bread. Lukman and his uncle Nassoor explained what the menu items were and gave us extra items to try.

After taking a ferry back to Dar, we hopped on a plane to Harare, Zimbabwe. “Zimbabwe, we are coming!!”