My second professional home is without a doubt Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. I've been coming here for 7 years! My first trip was in 2004 and I've been here nearly 2x a year since then. I think this is my 13th trip here! So needless to say, I know my way 'round here a bit. I mean- I'm by NO means an expert and my Swahili is basic at best.
But it's always a treat for me to come here because of how at home I feel. I love our staff, and I feel loved coming here. There's always a plethora of smiles and hugs to greet me when I arrive at the office. "Jambo Sikujua!" Sikujua is my Swahili name that our original staff in 2004 gave to me- it means "I didn't know"- because I literally didn't know what they were saying half the time!
And this trip has been no different- a very warm reception at the office and every day- genuine "good mornings" and "how are you's" are exchanged. Usually I'm here by myself with just the local office team, but this trip was a party! In the two+ weeks that I've been here I think we have had nine staff from the home office and then an additional six or seven consultants working at the Medical Stores Department in warehousing and software development. I was never without company for dinner! And goodness did we eat from seafood galore at Fish Monger, to a feast at our favorite Ethiopian place in Dar- Addis in Dar, to Italian at Zuane, shwarmas at Epi d'Or, and Indian at Nawabi Khana. Yum! I probably gained some weight while being here! Here's a collage of some of our feasts! And no outdoor dinner is complete without some Deep Woods Off and compulsory first drink of the oh-so-gingery Stoney Tangawizi (Tanzania's answer to ginger beer- and so gingery your sinuses open up!).
This trip I stayed at a different hotel than I usually do. Our hotel this go 'round was the lovely Sea Cliff. Right on the water, fabulous views, nice staff, good food. Close to other restaurants, an ATM, a grocery store...you can't ask for much more. I'll likely be back in the fall so you'll get to hear more about adventures in Dar. For now, I'll leave you with the view from the office here- pretty rough! More pics here!
1 comment:
I wanna go w/ u in the fall :)
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