Thursday, July 5, 2007

Dar Es Salaam - the Harbor of Pizza

Every 8 weeks, Ann gets a R&R for a week. I still had to work, but the high speed internet wasn't working at Ann's office, yet, so I figured any populated place would offer me a better working situation. We decided to go to Dar Es Salaam, the capital of Tanzania and its biggest city, on the Indian Ocean, and from there to Zanzibar to scope out the beaches. Our stuff was being moved from the Guesthouse to Kumwayi while we were away and our return promised to be as refreshing as the break. Also, the rooster was being moved. Ann had sent one of the maids to buy us some chicken one day, and she returned with a live Rooster.




It was a test of Ann's compassion for annoying creatures the two weeks before we left on R&R. The friggin rooster cooped up one door away from us and started crowing at 5:45 am every morning. Then it would roost in the sink and drop rooster turds all over the fibreplex surface. I stopped shaving and brushed my teeth in the shower. On the plus side, it ate a lot of our garbage and many insects, including this barely alive roach which I put on a dollar bill for perspective:






After bagging up our stuff and leaving it in Kumwayi, we were off.


Dar Es Salaam, the harbor of peace, on the coast of the Indian Ocean. Ann gets her one week leave after working in the "bush" for 8 weeks and I look forward to faster internet connections. The food options in Kibondo were limited and there has been this yearning for real Pizza, and Dar shines as a beacon of hope in this quest for queso and tomato sauce. So I call it the harbor of Pizza. After spending a night at the Millenium Tower, pretty much a typical western Hotel except for the view of the cemetery, we found our heart's desire at the Slipway.





That was some good pizza. I'm not a big pizza fan, but Ann's desire was infectious. The menu said they had sausage pizza, but the kitchen had a different story. Hard to complain.

We spent the rest of the night irresponsibly, taking pictures of the moon by the pool of our hotel and paying for 2000 shilling ($1.50) half liter Tuskers (outrageous prices, they are only 1000 in kibondo). The other item on our quest, draft beer, was yet to be found. YOu ask for draft beer and they bring you Miller Genuine Draft.





Dar was very refreshing, as any peice of civilization would be after being Kibondo. I didn't really expect to get so excited about food or TV, but its something that gives you a rush of energy. But, as I wandered around the area near the Millenium Towers, I saw this rather emblematic roadkill:




A Raven with three legs. Thats omenous.


The next night we went to the Sea View. Known as the Dar Irish Bar, we got there on Canada day. They had these guinness signs all over the place, and even had Guinness listed as an appetiser, but no Guinness. We settled for Tusker and Began to wonder what Canada Day was as the sun set on the indian ocean.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

How is it possible no-one has commented on the roach on the dollar bill or the squashed crow? Reedo, your crazy artistic bent is hilarious and makes the seriousness of what you guys are living bearable.