Tanzania - Part 1 (Dar Es Salaam)

Lisa met me in Dar Es Salaam, TZ on Sunday Feb. 10th - I left Orlando on the 8th. After two days of travel, I was ready for a nap. Lisa still had three more days of work to do in Dar. So while Lisa was going to the office, I was meandering my way throughout the busy streets of the "commercial" capital of Tanzania. Dar Es Salaam is located on along the Indian Ocean, and our hotel was about a quarter mile from the beach. Unfortunately, it was not a swimming beach.

The Lonely Planet book on Tanzania mentioned a walking tour one can take around Dar. I thought that it would be a good thing to do while Lisa was working during the day. The first stop on the tour was the National Museum. Oddly enough is was about a block away from the hotel.

In 1957, about 75 miles east of Dar, archaeologists discovered the first known bicycle. Their best estimate is that it dates back around 300 years. It happened to be made of wood. (Just kidding - it's just a wood bike.)

This plaque and statue commemorates the bombing of the US Embassy in Dar in 1998.

So after the museum, I went back to the hotel for lunch and a quick 30 minute nap. 2 hours later, Lisa got back to the hotel and woke me up. Dang jet lag.
The next day I revisited the idea of continuing the walking tour. Along the tour I saw St. Joseph's Cathedral, it was built when Dar Es Salaam was the center of German East Africa.

A hospital near our hotel.
The view of the bay near the hotel.

The next day my main objective was the Village Museum. Thanks to my rent-a-friend Amissi, who, by the way is a big fan of Liverpool FC, I was able to get a ride to the "museum." The museum provides examples of the typical tribal dwellings of Tanzania. Joseph, it is similar to that museum we went to in Hanoi. Except it was not as good, and there was not a bridal photo shoot going on among the huts. There was about 10 different styles of huts and in the afternoons there is some dancing.

In 1932, about 32 miles east of Dar, archaeologists discovered . . . (another wooden bicycle).
A banana tree.

While waiting for Amissi to come pick me up, I decided to wonder around and came across a military cemetery from WWI.

The cemetery includes a section for German soldiers. It was the German defeat in WWI that turned German East Africa into the British Colony Tanganyika - which later became Tanzania.
The view from Lisa's office. Five days after this picture was taken, President Bush stayed at the hotel at the base of the two towers in the back of the photo. There will be more on his visit later.
Most people have heard of Mancala - the African bead game. In Tanzania play it a bit differently, it's called Bao. This board was in the lobby of our hotel.
My Birthday dessert - deep fried banana "spring roll" with vanilla ice cream.
The night before we left Dar for our safari, Lisa and I went to the Thai restaurant Sawasdee, located on the top floor of the New Africa Hotel. The view was awesome. This is the old Lutheran church that was built by the Germans. Basically you could see the entire harbor from the restaturant.
Lisa enjoying a selction from the Thai buffet. The Avacado salad was the best part. I am not sure how "Thai" it was, but it was tasty. Dessert was pretty good, but almost every item contained coconut. One of us in the family (not named Boo) is not a big fan of coconut.