With various people asking me about my recent month in Tanzania (which I posted about with limited photos and blurbs on social media), I thought I would share a bit more of the story for those interested! It was a wonderful, rather eventful, typically margin-less, full month so I will post in parts on some of the highlights from each place over the next little while! Starting here today with my arrival in Dar es Salaam on Thursday, May 29th!
I arrived on the shores of the Indian Ocean, in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania’s largest city, in time for the Artisan Market at Oyster Bay. This large event attracts many artisan groups from across Tanzania and neighbouring countries and was a great opportunity for Mama Hive, the social enterprise in Mwanza supporting women with albinism, to sell and promote their honey and beeswax products. I had brought in my suitcase lots of new labels for products (all the wonderful work of our wonderful Isle of Wight graphic designer, Alisha Hutchinson), so as soon as Aikande arrived in town on Friday with the boxes of products from the mamas, we got busy! We were very disappointed not to have any honey with us to sell; all the honey from the last season had sold out, and with the harvest late this year, our beekeepers were still waiting to get their first honey of the year! But even without the honey, we had a great day at the Artisan Market on Saturday, with great sales on beeswax products and lots of conversations!
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| Aikande at the Mama Hive stall at the Artisan Market |
The following day it was wonderful to join Victory Christian Church, a large city church pastored by our good friend, Huruma Nkone. When we met Pastor Huruma 20 years ago, the church was meeting in a small room above a gas station … then they moved into a huge tent and now they are preparing to move into their 5000-seater church building! I enjoyed a guided tour right to the top ... best not to look down! But what an incredible view! Looking over the city and out across the Indian Ocean, it was a special moment to pause and pray for this church and their ministry to the city and beyond! Truly this city and nation needs our prayers right now as tensions rise with the October election approaching and widespread fear and concern about things happening.
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| Climbing up the the top of the new building and seeing the huge meeting tent looking tiny below! |
On Monday morning, Aikande and I arrived at the bus stand to board the bus that would take us on the long road to Mwanza, on the shores of Lake Victoria. With music videos and Tanzanian soap operas blaring on the screen at the front, constant blaring of the horns and rapid overtaking, it was a noisy, bumpy ride that seemed to get crazier at night! We stopped for kuku na chipsi (chicken and chips) at 4pm and then had a quick pit stop in Shinyanga at sunrise and then were extremely relieved to get off in Mwanza 23 hours later at 11:30am on Tuesday morning!
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| Me with a lot of very heavy bags waiting for the bus! |
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| Whizzing into the sunrise on Tuesday morning! |