Usambaras Wanderings

“Habari za asobohi?”

“Nzuri, salaama?”

“Kwame”

“Kwame”

“Mambo”

“Poa”

“Kwaheri”

Taran says he thinks I’ve got my Swahili mixed up.  But would he know? “Yes”- he interrupts over my shoulder.

I am trying to see how far I can get without the other realizing that I can’t speak more than a word of Swahili. It is amazing how far a casual bearing and delivery, some fist bumps and multiple handshakes will carry you. People are tactile and very open and always saying “hello” to everybody in so many ways that if you just join in the swing you can become part of the flow.  It is very gratifying. But if I want to know which turn to take on the road I am already lost.

“Hakuna Matata”

 The high ways and byways that we have wandered in the Usambara Mountains today.  By foot we made our way climbing on small paths through small holdings and villages and by bicycle we descended.  “Jambo” we call and are answered from friendly faces passed.  We had woken up on Valentine’s day in Rangwi Convent where the nuns live out their lives in, one supposes, a kind of blissful rebuttal of much of what we hold essential.

It is hard work to sustain themselves in this idyllic pastoral setting. We saw them cheerfully separating beans from their husks but the spectacular piles of both they had accumulated spoke loudly of the length and ardor of the day.  And prayers at 6am and 12 and 6pm again.  The sister superior looked like she could be fierce if pushed. I think she did not approve of the impromptu game of netball Taran instigated with the nuns but she was too hospitable to show it.  The call to prayer brought that to an end though.

Not to say the common folk have it any easier – surrounded by and including endless uniformed children wending their ways to and from school and the fields - the work goes on everywhere – washing, planting, reaping, sewing, building, threshing, sawing, baking and all in stunning bucolic settings – it’s a bit like a Constable exhibition transplanted to the African Hills.  And there is poverty – sometimes shocking.

We all just sat down with a Dutch guy – (Gjis De Witt? allkidsshouldplay.nl) long long grey hair and a baseball cap.  He lives in the rather gorgeously basic holiday accommodation we find ourselves in tonight. Views over the escarpment and on to the Tsavo plains of Kenya to absolutely die for darling.  

He was friendly and generous and credible in conversation; expounding helpfully on Swahili grammar – “easier than you think” he says. We asked about his living and he has a company in Holland that organizes European band tours – lots of them – he has other people running most of it for him now and lives here where he can further his self-appointed and funded mission to help street kids back into lives of hope.  Mostly through sport, art and creativity. Fundamentals he explains that are completely ignored in conventional education here. He runs a local circus for example. He said you have to keep your mind on the positives in his work because there were many bumps in the road but when he saw one of his 16 year old girls back in school, commanding a group of young children, speaking with hope enthusiasm and creativity then he knew he was being useful.  

Funny as we had just been saying it would be easy to live here (climate, natural beauty, welcoming community) if you had something to do and there he was!

Jo and I went into a classroom with 50 village children and persuaded them to sing us a song. I rode up a long hill on my bike and impressed the guides and felt good about the exercise.  Taran stayed in the room and wrote about all the animals we have seen and learned about.  Jo has taken up mountain biking!

Our guides – from The Friends of Usambara:

Bonniface: 28 years old; Earnest, conventional and capable with pretty good English.  He knows the area so well and has studied tourist guiding and has an answer to many of our questions.  He is a whizz at spotting Chameleons in the bushes and is happy to explain marriage dowry, house building, re-afforestation, school hours, tribal customs, local wildlife…..  Not a cynical bone in his body; a strong advocate for the establishment and for The Friends of Usambara and their re-afforestation program.   He is married and is building his own house over the last 3 years with 2 more years to go.  He made his own bricks (10,000 of them) and broke the stones himself for the concrete aggregate – by hand!  There is not a lot of spare cash around these parts.

Shande:  Maybe 20? Some English, short and looks like a body builder.  He is a singer and bicyclist and helps with the tree planting etc of The Friends of Usambara.  Helpful and good tempered has some silky football skills much appreciated by Taran.

Zachary:  Maybe 50?  No English. He drives us around and makes himself useful.  Loves local music.

All seem to have a beguiling appetite for the day ahead and the moment we are in.  God knows what they think of us (“a day’s work” Jo supposed).  Which is probably about right. But a good day I hope.