Changing Hotels & Cultural walk of Kioga

After a small incident on Wednesday night and listening to our gut feelings, Heather and I expressed our concerns over the hotel we were staying at.  Don't get me wrong if you were looking for a place to stay for two days while in between safaris or at the beginning or end of your trip it is a great hotel located right in the middle of the city.  It is literally a 10 minute walk to the Maasai Market and close to several restaurants.  However we felt it wasn't a suitable place to be staying for an extend period of three to four weeks as we were doing.

Sonia and Manu were great about it and in fact they have been great about everything. Their support has been top notch.   They heard our concerns and moved us to a more suitable location.  Apparently this was the first time they have used the hotel in the city and used Heather and I as sort of Guinean pigs which I don't mind. You don't know if something works until you try it.  It may work for someone else but I did not feel comfortable at that hotel after a group of men followed us back into the hotel on Wednesday during the late afternoon. The place that WUSC generally uses in Arusha is a little B&B that is located in Njiro, just outside of Arusha called Aida's Place.  She has a lovely place with four rooms and two cottages.   Breakfast is included and for a small fee and a bit of notice we can have supper there too.   Aida is lovely and so are her staff and her three German Shepards.  The rooms are beautiful, little more spacious and a little more suitable for working.  Heather and I both feel comfortable being here and even went for a walk in the village today.

Aida's Place:

On Friday we had a lovely breakfast that included a bowl full of fruit and tea and water.  She offered to make eggs and chicken sausage but we were short for time.  I can tell you that over the weekend I tried the chicken sausage and they were yummy.  Since Aida is Muslim she does not have any pork in her kitchen which is fine with me.  I am definitely going to miss the fresh fruit that is available here. 

On Friday the TTB had organized for me a cultural walking tour of a modern Massai Village called Kioga.  The tour took about four hours and it was in one word amazing.  If you ever get a chance to come to Tanzania please make sure you have time to do a cultural tour.  I know everyone comes to Africa to do safaris and to climb Mount Kilimanjaro but these tours are an easy way of learning about the local culture which are the heart of the continent.  

Arriving at Kioga: 

Yes those are cows in the yard. 

The water source for the village: 

Fields of crops:

Waiting for tea in a hut made with Banana leave roof: 

View of Mount Meru:

Me with a few village children: 

They were adorable and funny at the same time. When one saw me coming along the path, they would yell "Mzungu" which means white person.  The children would run over and since they have been taught a little bit of English I would hear them say, "Hello, teacher" or "Hello, how are you?" or "Hello, thank you" and "Bye".  In these villages you have to ask for permission to take photos.  The mother of these children gave us permission to take photos of the children and the hut.  

Traditional Maasai home:

I was invited to sit inside one by the woman who lives there and the guide explains how her, her children and the cow all sleep and live inside this home.  The hut is the size of a double bed with just a small path to walk around it.  Yes, the cow has it's own room where they bring it in at night. 

A traditional Maasai home being built: 

Here is a traditional house that is in the process of being made.  It takes in total about 5-7 days to build a home.  Homes are build when the son reaches the age of maturity which is around 15. The average number of huts for an immediate family start at 4 and can go up - one for each wife ( with their children, one for the husband, and one for each son that has reach maturity).  For a Maasai man to take on a second or third wife he must be able to financial, emotional, and personally support her and any children that are born. 

One of the many bridges:

Sweet bananas:

After the tour was completed we head back to the hut we started at so I could make traditional coffee and have a traditional meal.  I saw quite a number of hens walking around and asked the question of how do the villagers know which hen is theirs?  Apparently the hens are trained to know which home they live at and once the hen has been trained then they are allowed to roam free of the village.  Apparently these two belong to the house behind the hut we were sitting in.  I had no idea you could train a hen.  

Village cat:  

And no... it's not that type of cat.  I was surprised by the number of domestic cats there are around Arusha.  Even Aida have a small black cat with her three German Sheppards.  

Me helping to make traditional coffee: 

I guess I was too slow so Eugen, the Marketing Officer for TTB took over for me when it came to the roasting of the coffee beans: 

The day ended with an amazing lunch that consisted of traditional local food made up of a beef and carrot type stew that is served over rice.  Will post the photo once I can get it off my phone.  Anyway it is late and I have an early start tomorrow.

Stay tuned to my next post that will detail the second tour of a Cultural Tourism Enterprise (CTE) and how things are going for my second week in Tanzania.  HOLY MOLY!! I've been here a week already.