Hello and welcome back. In my last post, I told you what "happened" to me when I traveled to Zanzibar, Tanzania, for the first time - why I fell so much in love with this country and its people.
Even before we flew back home, I decided to come back soon. I had no choice, my heart demanded it 🥰. So after 3 months I went back to Zanzibar. This time I had planned a longer stay of around 3 months to find out whether I could really live there or not. I also had plans for my career prospects.
On the one hand, I completely converted my already existing company to online. As a virtual assistant, it was very easy for me to handle projects for my customers in Zanzibar. But it was also important for me to set up something locally. Together with Beth, who I met the first time, I came up with the idea of opening a small street food business. I had already prepared a few things at home, thought about it and drew up an initial business plan. On site, it then became clear over time that it wasn't as easy as I had initially thought. I also realized that Beth and I don't harmonize that well as business partners and that I don't really see myself in the restaurant business. So once again, things turned out very differently than planned. Something that would happen to me more often in Tanzania 😅.
This first stay generally showed me that not everything is good and beautiful in Zanzibar | Tanzania. Just like when you fall in love with someone, I initially put on my "rose-colored glasses" and only wanted to see the positive things. Of course, life doesn't work like that. After 3 weeks, I suddenly developed large abscesses under my armpits, which severely restricted me for 4 weeks. I couldn't go to parties, was at home most of the time and was in a lot of pain. Nevertheless, this experience also showed me how helpful and caring the people there are. Someone came to visit me every day to see how I was doing. My room was right on the beach, so the Maasai who worked there were always stopping by for a quick chat. My friends Mango, Jacob, Amour and even his brother kept coming by to check on me and bring me food. Jacob even held my hand when Dr. Hamza opened my 2 abscesses. That was very painful, but as I said, this experience also showed me that I would be well looked after if something happened.
As you can see, the first two months of my stay were quite turbulent. Nevertheless, I wanted to stick to my original plan of traveling to Jacob's home with him and getting to know his family. I was very excited: my first trip to the mainland, my first trip to a Maasai boma in general. What would await me there? Would Jacob even want that? For us, a visit to the family is something that we organize in advance, especially if we are staying overnight. I had no idea how this is handled with the Maasai 😅 (Spoiler: It's all less complicated with the Maasai than with us, you just turn up. Everything is sorted out somehow and everyone is just happy that you are there as a guest). I was also unsure about what to pack. What do I need there? I was thinking far too much in advance. And I was very emotionally upset by everything that had happened beforehand. Nevertheless, Jacob and I decided that we would travel to the mainland together and visit his family in Elerai.
As the journey by public transport takes quite a long time, we drove from Paje to Stonetown the evening before so that we could catch the first ferry in the morning and then take the 10 a.m. bus to Handeni. On the Daladala (bus) from Paje to Stonetown, a car door "rode" with us on the bus. At the time, I was still wondering what was being transported on a daladala. Today, nothing can surprise me so easily (chickens, fish, potatoes, grain etc., building materials etc.). Later, we visited the food market at the old harbor and discovered a giant banana. Stonetown has so much to offer. The energy there is very special, not like in other cities.
Our plan worked out well and we took the ferry to Dar es Salaam the next morning. I only slept on the ferry and didn't take any photos (I'm not a morning person). When we arrived in Dar es Salaam, it was very chaotic. So many people waiting there and offering you to ride with them in a cab, bodaboda (moped) or bajaji (tuktuk). I was very glad that Jacob was there and sorted everything out. Although I have to say that the cab ride to the bus station was very adventurous - the traffic there is more comparable to that in Naples than ours. But we got to the bus in good time and it took us to Handeni. From there we went on to Kibirashi and from there by Bodaboda to Jacobs Boma.
The journey took the whole day and was very adventurous overall. I was also very emotionally upset by everything and was honestly glad when we finally arrived at Jacob's boma in Elerai. (I can now enjoy it all and think it's just great.) The family welcomed us joyfully, everyone was excited. The children were already asleep and I "only" got to know the adults. Jacob's cousin was also there and ate with us and translated a few things. His English was even better than Jacob's and was therefore very helpful. After a long day, it was finally time to say "sleep well" - "lala salama" - and I slept Maasai-style, on hard ground and cowhide.
The next morning was the first time I was able to really take in everything. We also greeted the children and I gave them the presents I had brought with me (pens, toys and sweets). The interest in me - the Muzungu - was of course huge. My hair, my skin color, my clothes, my glasses, the color of my eyes and, of course, my smartphone all excited the kids. The younger children were also a bit insecure at first and were afraid of me. But that quickly subsided and then we just had a lot of fun together. A calf was also born on my first day there, which was somehow special for me. Especially considering how important cows are for the Maasai, I thought it was a good sign and it is of course magical to see life coming into this world. I have to be honest, it was such a warm welcome and I felt more at ease than I have ever felt in my life. There was an instant connection, a mutual interest and so much respect and love. It was simply beautiful.
In the afternoon, we first went to Kibirashi on the bodaboda (motorcycle) to do some shopping and then to the village of Elerai. Whenever we drove past somewhere on the boda boda, the children immediately shouted "Jamboooo Muzungu" and were very happy. In the village in Elerai, the children also came up to me, wanted to touch me and take photos with me. Everyone was fascinated by my white skin, hair and eyes. As we were at the beginning of the rainy season, it naturally started to rain in the evening and wouldn't stop. So we looked for a room and spent the night in the village in Elerai. In the evening, we went to a bar and had a drink there. I also made some new friends. Among other things, I met "my" Isaya there, who has since become my best friend alongside Jacob. Isaya is a bit crazy (in a positive way) and he invited us to come along to a wedding the next evening (not his 😝). I was excited because you can't just go to a wedding here. Plus, I don't have anything to wear. All these thoughts went through my head. Completely unnecessary, of course. Because Maasai are not as complicated as we are. Everything is much more relaxed.
The next day it was still raining. After a good breakfast (my beloved Maasai chai and chapati, a kind of thin bread) we went back to the boma to pick up a few things and I wanted to change. Again, we received such a warm welcome. Jacob's family is so lovely and I feel like I'm part of it now, he's just my little brother. Afterwards we drove to Songe because I had to go to the ATM. The "20 minute" journey by boda boda to Songe (according to Jacob) turned into an hour. African time is simply different to European time 😝. My back hurt and then a "nice" immigration officer stopped us. He was "worried" about my safety. And because I didn't have my passport with me, I was able to ease his "worries" with 20,000 Tanzanian shillings. I was really glad that he "helped" me 😝 (that's the equivalent of 7 euros, although it has to be said that a meal without meat costs around 3,000 TSh).
After another hour's drive home, we prepared for the wedding. We did this with Konyagi, a special Tanzanian alcohol, similar to our gin. And then it was time to go to the celebration. On the way there, I heard the typical Maasai songs. It may sound strange to many at first, but I just love it. Up until that point, I had only heard the men singing and dancing. The women were there too and that was so magical for me. I was generally emotionally stirred up and maybe that's why I was even more receptive to all the energy I felt there. I still get goosebumps today when I think back and watch the videos. I simply feel very connected to the Maasai. At no time did I feel like I was intruding. On the contrary. I always had the feeling that I was welcome. One girl came up to me, held my hand and didn't let go for about an hour. In general, lots of boys and girls came up to me and just wanted to "look at me" and speak a few words of English with me because they were learning it at school. All in all, it was such a wonderful experience and I felt very comfortable. I am infinitely grateful for that.
The next day we drove back to Jacob's boma, where the next highlight was waiting for me. The women in his boma decided to make me a white Maasai and dress me in their best traditional clothes. They were all so proud and happy to see me in this traditional dress. We immediately did a photo shoot, with the young girls in particular acting as photographers. Within a few minutes, I had several hundred photos on my smartphone. The women also tried to teach me to dance with my shoulders in Maasai style. What can I say, I didn't really succeed. But it was fun.
Afterwards, we decided to go to Balanga to the Maasai market. I wore Maasai clothing, of course. When we arrived in Balanga, I think I was one of the main attractions. The only Muzungu there and then in Maasai clothing. People came up to me, touched my hair and hands and were generally incredibly happy to see me. It was a bit much for me at times, especially because I don't understand the language. I was overwhelmed, I have to say. As in Elerai itself, I also met many people in Balanaga that I knew from Zanzibar. They also invited me to visit their boma. But it was all too much for me at that point and we went back home. There were just so many emotions involved, so many things I was thinking about (What will I do in the future? Will I come back? What will I do professionally? etc.).
When we arrived home at Jacob's boma, we were greeted warmly again. Jacob then came to me and said he wanted to go to Kibirashi now and get his hair done. He told me to spend time with the women. His cousin was coming soon anyway and he would help me with the communication. No problem at all. And he was gone. At first I was a little unsure, how should I communicate with the women and children? But before I could even finish my thoughts, the children took me by the hand and showed me what we were doing. We were also able to use the smartphone a little to speak in Swahili. But it quickly became clear that the main language we all speak is that of the heart. We drove the cows and goats in together and locked them in the "barn" for the night. We took photos, laughed a lot and enjoyed the moment together. And of course... the cousin never showed up 😝.
I was then given a special honor when they provided me with special festive jewelry. Suddenly I had a belt and lots of chains around my neck. When it got dark, we went into the house and looked at the hundreds of photos, laughed and drank delicious chai. That evening was the absolute highlight of my stay. I felt so connected to the women and children. I can hardly put my feelings into words, it was so beautiful. It felt like coming home. I was accepted for who I am and didn't have to pretend at all.
But the day, my last day, was far from over. After Jacob came back with a new hairstyle, he casually said that there would be another party. At that point, I had already decided to go back to Zanzibar the next morning. It was already 10 pm and I told him that we had to leave in the morning and that I didn't think we could have another party today. No one was there either, everything was quiet. So I decided to take a shower. The women had prepared warm water for me and I stood in a tub in the house to pour the warm water over my body with a bowl. When I had almost finished washing my hair, I suddenly heard the typical chants of the men.
I hurried and put on my robe to go outside the house. A few of Jacob's neighbors and the girls from the boma were dancing there. Suddenly, another Jacob (a friend I knew from Zanzibar) started singing for me. I only understood the words "Muzungu", "Zanzibar", "Parties", "Nungwi", "Paje", "Cocobello" and "Summerdream". He was probably singing about experiences from there. I was so moved. It was the perfect end to a stay that couldn't have been more emotional and beautiful. And I am so grateful that I was able to experience it all.
The next morning was the day. After drinking the best chai tea from Jacobs Mama, it was time to say goodbye. I was able to watch as his cousin branded a few cows with the family's branding. That was another exciting thing. Seeing the women catching the cows and the men doing the branding. And of course we also took a few photos before we left.
It is important for me to say THANK YOU here once again. For all the wonderful moments with every single person I was able to meet during my visit to Elerai. I fell in love with this little village and I am already looking forward to going there again soon. The people there, especially Jacob's wonderful family, have touched me deeply and changed my life. Nothing is the same as before, but better. I now simply know what really matters in life and am happier than ever before. Of course, not everything is perfect there, just like everywhere else in life. I see the poverty that prevails there, especially when it comes to medical care. Nevertheless, these people give so much love and are so full of life. That's why it's very important to me, especially with Simon's organization, to help protect the Maasai culture. Helping people to help themselves is the motto.
Sooo 😊 I hope you enjoyed my report. If you have any questions or would like to get in touch with me, I look forward to hearing from you. Message or a comment from you (especially with comments I ask for a respectful tone).
Best regards,
your Silvia
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