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From: Rich & Lisa Hensey Subject: Spring Break 2003 Date: Wed, 7 May 2003 20:42:41 +0300 Organization: Tumaini University at Iringa Spring Break 2003
The six of us, including ELCA volunteers Paul & Vickie Horst, traveled first class - which of course is worse than anything we would ever tolerate in America! The first class compartments were about 7 feet from the door to the window and about 5 feet across with bunk beds. There was a cargo net style support to keep you from being thrown out of the top bunk when the train starts and stops - which happens suddenly and frequently. Each compartment had a little sink that actually worked! The toilet was at the end of the car and it was a stainless steel basin in the floor that drained directly onto the railroad tracks. When you are finished you are supposed to fill a water bottle at the faucet and pour it down the hole. In first class, you should be able to order meals and drinks, but usually it took us over 2 hours to get a drink or meal, when available. And occasionally, meals were skipped (like when the restaurant car left the train with some passenger cars for another destination... the train splits in Tabora and the other half goes to Mwanza on Lake Victoria to the north). One morning there was no breakfast, and lunch was delayed until 4:00 p.m. Fortunately, we were prepared with peanut butter & jelly, fruit, gallons of water, and a variety of junk food that we have been saving from care packages. When we checked in, we were surprised to learn that since the children paid ˝ fare, they were allocated ˝ a bed. This meant that the kids stayed with me and Rich stayed with an old, slightly odd, Muslim priest who liked to chant and burn incense. He was very nice and treated us to a variety of strange foods. He even entertained the children with some magic tricks.
We had been warned that there was a lot of theft on the train and to be careful. We didn't have any problems, but the porter constantly reminded us to watch our things. The biggest potential for trouble was when the train stopped at night. Apparently, it is not uncommon for small agile thieves to climb in the open windows. Consequently, we were advised to keep the door locked after dark (approximately 7:00 p.m. - 7:00 a.m.) and the windows closed. Unfortunately, in such a small space it only takes about 5 minutes for the compartment to become unbearably hot and for the mosquitoes to start buzzing your ears. I used the stick they provided (to lodge the window closed) to lodge the window open about 3 inches. I also rested (you can't really call it sleep) with a Maasai war club in my lap in case anyone decided to try the window. The long nights were without incident. In the daytime we enjoyed the station stops a little more although it was very hot on the first half of the trip west. We were frustrated by the SLOW progress the train seemed to be making and the LONG stops we made. In order to control the flow of train traffic on the single track, the westward bound trains always pull off to wait for the eastbound trains. Wherever we stopped, it seemed the entire village came out to greet us! Sometimes we could see 100 or so villagers run down a single path to the train station. Children begged for empty water bottles, and women sold whatever they could. Often they were all selling the same ONE thing: bags of salt, baobab tree seeds, cassava, oranges, bananas, etc. This is a very poor area of the country and not much grows in the areas of alternating swamp and brush. About halfway across Tanzania (5 degrees south and 35 degrees east), there is a village that all train passengers look forward to stopping at. At Saranda, there are people roasting beef kabobs and chickens, and cooking french fries and rice, along the entire length of the train. You have to bring your own plate, but the prices can't be beat and you know the food is safe to eat because it is cooked right in front of you. After eating Teddy grahams for breakfast; boiled eggs, oranges, and Slim Jims for lunch; this was a highlight of the train ride! We were thrilled to arrive in Kigoma a mere 45 hours after our scheduled departure time. Tom & Barb Leach met us at the train station and drove us the short distance to their home. Their children gave us a warm welcome and all six kids took off to play (4 Leaches + 2 Henseys). Dr. Leach and his family are from Alabama and are volunteering for the IMB (International Mission Board) for 2 years. We met them last fall when they were in Iringa for language school. Their kids became friends with ours at the International School. The Leaches moved to Kigoma in January and live in the Baptist Mission compound that overlooks Lake Tanganyika: the world's longest lake (over 1,100 miles) and second deepest (more than 4,000 ft. deep in places). There are three homes in the compound, but two of them are not currently occupied. So the Henseys and the Horsts shared a home with 3 bedrooms and two bathrooms. The Leaches were wonderful hosts and we enjoyed getting to know them better. Kigoma is much smaller than Iringa. Because the local beggars were more aggressive (and annoying), we didn't really enjoy walking around the town. However, we loved swimming in the lake; it is crystal clear and comfortably cool. Through the haze we could see the mountains of the Congo about 25 miles away. Celia's birthday was on Palm Sunday, and to celebrate, we went to a 3-hour Baptist church service in Kiswahili. Actually, the kids barely tolerated the service, but afterwards, we treated everyone to lunch and a swim at the Hilltop Hotel. It is a beautiful location on a bluff overlooking Lake Tanganyika. We had an elegant lunch on the deck by the pool with a view of the lake. Magnificent!
After we arrived we went for a 45-minute walk to Kakonbe waterfall, which is 20 meters high. Along the way we saw four types moneys: red colobus monkey, blue monkey, vervet monkey, and redtail monkey. On our way back, we encountered a troop of olive baboons on the path but passed through them without incident. We were wary because they interpret direct eye contact as a challenge and can be quite aggressive. We were invited to stay in Jane Goodall's house with the head baboon researcher. The house was Spartan and the books are all molding, but it was still quite a thrill. There were kerosene lamps for lights, a pit toilet, and Lake Tanganyika was the bathtub. (Quote from Rich, "I have never bathed with co-workers before.") We brought along the food and water we expected to need for the 24-hour stay, but the help at Jane Goodall's house made us a feast of rice, potatoes, pineapple, beans, and greens. The girls we shared the boat with joined us and we enjoyed a wonderful evening. The next morning, we set out with our guide to find the chimpanzees. As we walked through the compound containing the workers quarters, the sight of people behind chain link fences intrigued us. In order to keep the primates and other animals from taking their things (and possibly children), the workers have enclosed "porches" that look like cages at the zoo. Here, the people are caged in and the animals are loose! After about a one-hour hike along the lakeshore and then up a steep hill, we came across a group of about a dozen chimps. A couple of researchers were sitting in the damp undergrowth taking notes, and the three girls and their guide joined us. The group of chimpanzees we observed was mostly females with some of their young ones. However, there was one young male (Faustino) who wanted very much to mate with one of the young females. She was obviously upset by this because whenever he came near she would scream and try to get away from him. Faustino was quite frustrated and he screamed too and shook branches as he ripped them from the tree. At one point, he jumped out of his tree and ran to another. It so happens that I was in his way and as I tried to crawl out of his way, he brushed by my leg as he ran by. We had read that when a male is "displaying" he is likely to grab whatever he can and shake it violently. If it happens to be you that he grabs, you are advised to hold on tightly to a tree until he gives up and reaches for something else. Anyway, it took me minute to calm down and realize he only brushed by me and didn't actually grab me. It was as exciting as it was frightening!! We spent about 2 hours observing the chimpanzees: the mating game, grooming, Mamas reaching up to pull the small ones close when the climbed too high above them, a youngster making his own nest to rest in, the calls back and forth to a friend who came to join the group…. It was an amazing morning and something we will remember the rest of our lives. After lunch, we swam in the lake to cool off, and before we knew it, we had to head back to Kigoma. The whole adventure had lasted just over 24 hours! Our last full day in Kigoma, the six of us took a dala-dala (public mini-bus) to the village of Ujiji, where Stanley uttered his famous words, "Dr. Livingstone, I presume." We visited a nice monument and a pathetic "museum". But the delightful old caretaker was proud of it, and we enjoyed his narrative. After that, we walked down to the lake to observe the local boat builders. All totaled, we spent a week in Kigoma - much of the time just taking it easy. After the hectic weeks of work preceding the trip, we very much enjoyed the quiet time. The children spent a lot of their time playing with the Leach kids, so we even had time to read (and Rich finally graded his final exams)! The train trip back to Dar es Salaam was faster than the trip to Kigoma because the eastbound trains have right-of–way. With the exception of the 6-hour wait in Tabora, our stops were much briefer than on the earlier train trip. The temperatures were also cooler AND we had fans THAT WORKED in our compartments. We didn't even mind having the door and the window closed at the same time! The most surprising thing about the return trip was the purchase of chickens by some of the 1st-class passengers. The roosters were stored in a closet and in the bathroom - that was interesting!! We were glad that no one bought any of the goats that were for sale. It was a wonderful trip (that we wouldn't necessarily want to do again). We had a lot of fun on the train playing UNO with the kids, reading books, eating junk, and hanging around. Overall, the kids were great, although there were times when they were fed up with the whole thing: "I hate this!" "I‘m hot!" "When will the train start moving?" "Are we there yet?" "I want real food!" etc.
Saturday 19 April The next update we will tell you about our struggles to get our digital camera back from customs after it was sent to America for repair. The attached photos are courtesy of the Horsts! God's blessings to you and your families, Lisa, Rich, Celia, & Bennett Hensey
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Tuesday 8 April
We pulled out of the Dar es Salaam station just before 6:00 p.m. nearly 1 hour late. After about 50 minutes the train stopped for no apparent reason. When we asked the porter why (in our halting Kiswahili) we are told "engini bovu" = engine broken. After about 1.5 hours of waiting on a suffocating hot train, a new engine arrived and we were off!
The highlight of the trip for Rich and I was the excursion to Gombe Stream National Park where Jane Goodall's chimpanzee research has been going on for over 40 years. The kids stayed with the Leaches and we and the Horsts (along with a group of 3 young women) rented a boat for the 2-hour ride to Gombe, which is about 16 kilometers north of Kigoma. The altitude of the 20 square mile park ranges from 2500 - 4900 ft. above sea level.