DAYS 87 – 93

IN ARUSHA FROM DAYS 87 – 93

I didn’t bother bringing my computer with me and knew I wasn’t going to write everyday anyway. But here are the major highlights of the trip.

Ascent to Arusha

We scored an invite to a UNAIDS training seminar, so I got to travel to Arusha and visit my fellow Canucks at the same time. Arusha is about a 10 hour drive, north from Dar es Salaam, and 2 hour flight. My travel and accommodations were paid for courtesy of CIDA (so thanks for paying your taxes).

We flew from Dar to Kilimanjaro on a tiny plane with dinky propellers engines that sat no more than 20 people. I’m not usually afraid of flying but this time was terrified and the 2 hours felt like an eternity. When we arrived at Kilimanjaro Airport in one piece and had to take a shuttle bus to Arusha’s city centre, which was another 45 minutes away. We had left Dar at 6pm and by the time we checked into our hotel rooms it was about 10pm.

The tight budget put us up in a modest but decent bed and breakfast, but what made it amazing was that there was hot water available!! I showered in steaming hot water for the first time in ages and it was marvellous. After my pores were revitalized from the steam, I slept like a baby.


City of Arusha, Africa’s Geneva

Bill Clinton exclaimed during his first visit, Arusha is truly the Geneva of Africa. I couldn’t agree more; it felt like I had stepped into Europe. It is a small but very busy city, and smaller in both size and population compared to Dar.

Its European feel is largely due to the multitude of foreigners you see every direction you turn, including tourists and UN workers. But even the architecture of the buildings gives it a slight Western atmosphere. Original buildings that were erected since colonialism still stand and you can see influences from both the British and Germans who were trying to out-do each other.

I’ve learned to tell the difference between the two. German structures are large, spread out, but simple and rustic, whereas British were tall, and included more elaborate detail and intricate designs. The other unmistakable European flair are the absence of traffic lights and instead, roundabouts.

Being right at the base of Mount Kilimanjaro, Arusha gets pretty cold. I didn’t believe anyone when they told me it would be cold, and thought bring it on, I’ve lived through Canadian arctic winters. Turns out they were right and I did feel pretty cold and ended up buying a jacket like a sucker. Perhaps I’m growing sensitive to cold. At night it dropped down to as low as 10 Celsius.

This month is peak season for vacations. Tourists flock from all over the world to experience Safari, visit national parks, and other natural sites Arusha has to offer including the Serengetti, Olduvai Jorge, Ngorongoro crater, Rift Valley even tackle the highest peak in Africa.

Walking the streets of Arusha, I blended right in with the diverse crowd of tourists and foreigners, and began to feel anonymous again.


United Nations Tribunal for Rwanda (ICC Buildling)

(We were not allowed to take pictures of the UN building. There was a huge sign with a camera crossed-out prohibiting photographs)

It is the only building of its kind in all of Africa. It stands on a hill behind large gates guarded by uniformed men
carrying rifles. It is a wide, shiny, glass building, modern in design with meticulously manicured grounds. Very official looking bureaucrats climb into SUV’s with flags of blue flapping in the wind, bearing the official seal. “UN” is printed in bold black letters on the doors and hood of the car.

Arusha was chosen as the location for the tribunal in 1993. It is the very place where the trials from the Rwandan genocide were held and you can’t help but wonder what testimonies were given inside and the fate of each war criminal that had been convicted inside. Now it is used for conferences and other delegate meetings. Just recently, the meetings to deploy troops in Darfur were held there.


Clock Tower

The famous clock tower of Arusha is apparently a big deal but you wouldn’t think it to look at it. It’s a dinky little thing that is about the size of a miniature lighthouse, certainly no Big Ben. Unless you read about it somewhere you wouldn’t know of its significance, and passing by it you wouldn’t even care to find out.

The clock tower marks the true centre point between Johannesburg and Cairo on the continent, and was used for colonial powers when they were mapping out trade routes. It served as their mid-point across Africa and gave them the range of travel from the most North to South. I thought that was pretty cool.

Now a days it’s just a roundabout but still well maintained. But of course leave it to Coca cola to plaster a hideous sign on it, denigrating it to a cheap commercial advertisement. I guess that’s globalization at its finest.


Canucks reunite again!

Hung out with the Arusha crew during the evenings, and spent a few extra nights at the girl’s house. The three of them are sharing a large house downtown that they got to furnish themselves. At my place the only furniture we have are the beds in our rooms. So it was nice to sit on a couch and relax for a change. They got a guard dog they named Simba, but doesn’t really do a good job of guarding cause he’ll go right up to you and lick you. But people here are very afraid of dogs and their bark alone is enough to scare some people off.

They took me out to the popular local hangouts in the city centre, but I have to say it doesn’t measure up to the nightlife in Dar. Arusha is a cute town I’d want to retreat to for short visits, but if I had to choose where to be stationed, it would still be Dar, despite the extreme heat.

Needless to say we partied hard, poured our hearts out about all the challenges we’ve encountered, shared heart-wrenching stories from the field, told funny tails about our placements to lighten the mood, then gushed over the cute diplomats we met over the past week. Turns out we all had our eye on a tall ruggedly handsome Swedish dude.

By the end of the week I had a good taste of most of the city of Arusha and was ready to go back home to Dar. We’ll be visiting each other throughout the year, and I plan to visit the national parks and do Safari in December so there is much more to see.