The water is out. I’m not sure what this means; whether there is no water, the delivery guy hasn’t made it, or something is broken. I only understand that there is no water whatsoever. It’s been like this for two days. Either way, at about 7AM there is a tapping at my door and a woman says Maji moto. When I struggle awake, and open the door I see a small red bucket with a Foama Gold sticker on the side – laundry detergent. Ahhhh- maji moto – hot water for washing up.
My stupid western mind can’t comprehend how to function with the bucket of hot water for my morning shit, shower, and shave. I fumble with the various buckets and cups trying not to mix up the ones for the toilet with the one for my face or body. I manage to get a shave and wash my face hoping for the best. I can’t imagine doing this every day. Balancing the water use with the body part, and the cleanliness factor; shaving, contact lens, washing my face, washing my arse. I suppose like anything I would get use to it. However I’m sure the exhibition would make any Tanzanian person laugh! For me it’s a new experience, but for most of the people of the world this is daily life. Gathering water, water use, and cleanliness are all factors that effect how people live and die. If you don’t have water nearby the struggle must be immense. I fear that this will only get worse as impacts on the environment and the struggle for resources continues due to increased population.
We sit at breakfast waiting for Robert to show up to take us to see a few more houses today. Robert is a guy that Joel met. He’s an electrical engineer who lives here in Kayanga Town with his wife and two children. A sweetheart of a guy, who speaks excellent English and has a four-wheel drive Land Cruiser. He’s spent time in Europe going to school, but loves his town and country. He’s been an excellent resource and has shown us several houses yesterday. The first one was almost finished, and had a beautiful view of the plains in the valley below. It was large and looked very nice. The second he showed us was close by and also seemed very nice. He has a few more to show us today, and we all look forward to seeing what is available. Getting a comfortable place to stay, where we can spread out and eat healthier food is a priority.
Otherwise the pace is slow and languorous. It's quite a life. Slow and steady. Nothing rushed, but a steady pace that eventually gets things down. Everyone has a cell phone and is either talking or texting. Sometimes I think it just for fun, or for the look.
Food is a challenge. I look forward to a house so that we can eat some of the fresh vegetables I see in the market but are ignored in the restaurants. Most of the food we have eaten is some type of grilled meat; either goat or beef. The cuts are “odd”, across bones, or across what others might consider a good cut of meat. When it’s served, it is chunks on a bone, complete with cartilage and tendon. The sauces are hit or miss. Sometimes they are delicious other times they have a very gamey flavor. There is curry that is often times mixed with a meat of some type. Ungali is also served with meals. It’s a dough like ball that you take with your fingers and dip into the sauce. It’s very thick and seemingly glutinous. They usually serve too much for my western tastes. There is also beans and rice which can be tasty. The variety is limited and often times we’ll eat meat of some type 2 times a day. The two restaurants we like are Mama Roider Annex, (I know, the irony of the name is not lost on us), and the Hotel at Home. It seems that a lot of places are named Annex. I think it’s because people think this indicated that their establishment is larger than it might be.
And of course there is beer. The best so far is Belimi, a thicker, more amber brew which has a higher alcohol content. It’s brewed locally in Karagwe. Second is Tusker, which is a little lighter. On the low end of the scale to my taste is Kilimanjaro. The ads, “It’s Kili time” are always fun to see but don’t deliver on the expectations.
Right now the challenges are finalizing the contracts, setting up the TZ entity, registering with the government’s TIC, and finding a local source for 12 volt batteries.
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