TAN: Bagamoyo Bound

Had the best snorkeling yet after breakfast. I was out early enough to find the water clear before the tide started to come back in. The highlight of my poking around was seeing a cuttlefish. When I first spotted it, it was a mottled color with a electric blue band down it’s length. It darted away to grab something and then caught sight of me. Immediately it changed color to blend in with the surroundings. As it moved over different areas, it’s coloration subtly changed to match. I spent a good ten minutes watching before it finally moved away. I also caught sigh of two eels, one was particularly good sized.

Late for the races.

After lunch we were off to the mainland to visit the town of Bagamoyo. Seven of us crammed into a little four-door Toyota. Josa, our driver, was blasting a Sean Paul tape as we bounced over the dirt back road into town. After it finished, we switched over to some Tanzanian grown “Bongo Flava” in the for of the soundtrack to a movie called Girlfriend. Despite the cramped quarters and heat, we all enjoyed the ride immensely. Our first stop was at the Bagamoyo Scuplture School. We poked around for a bit enjoying the jam sessions from the associated music school. I ended up with a nice carving that the others joked looked like a portrait. Stopped for some refreshment at a local cafe while we waited for our driver to return with an additional car. The other car never materialized, so we crammed back into the Toyota.

A hand operated bow-drill. Sandrine playing checkers with some of the locals.

Palm juice is collected to make into wine. This seaweed is collected and rendered down for colorants and fiber for cloth.

These three music students provided an interesting counter-point to the electrified ensemble that was jamming in the building behind them.

We headed over to the Slavery Museum that was established by Christian Missionaries. The museum was closed but the attendant recognized Vlad and opened it up again, even going so far as to give us a detailed explanation of a freed slave named Siwema who had gone on to nurse back to health the Arab slave trader that had killed her mother. Josa rolled up as we were waiting outside and a group of kids that had gathered joined Chantal in an impromptu disco, dancing to the Bongo Flava.

The story of Siwema, the slave girl.

Feeling the Bongo Flava. Saying goodbye to the young who had gathered around us.

It was getting pretty late in the afternoon, so we headed into town proper to look for some kangas (a yardage of fabric that is used to fashion an almost infinite variety of coverings from.) The first shop we went to was just closing up. Unfortunately, it was the last night of Ramadan, so things were still closing early. The second shop was still open and had a more interesting variety. Sandrine was the only one that found something she couldn’t live without. She had misunderstood the pricing and was trying to bargain the price higher than the asking price. We poked around the town a bit more before it became dark. We headed back to Lazy Lagoon on the main road, which was a little better on all of us.

Remember not to go too fast.

Had a late dinner that we happily interrupted a couple of times to watch a bush baby that was in the dining area. Headed to bed around 11 p.m.

The bush babies make a blood-curdling shrieking noise throughout the night.