Tansania
Mbeya Region

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    • Tag 40

      The Tazara Railway!

      21. Januar 2023 in Tansania ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

      So after Tanzania I headed to Zambia, and do I get there by plane like a normal person? No of course not, far better to take a 55 hour train journey 1860 km to the middle of nowhere in Zambia! I purchased a 1st class ticket for $40 which bought me a bed in a 4 person cabin, but this was far from luxury! I wouldn't have changed it for the world though, the train took us through some incredible scenery, including the largest National Park in Tanzania. There was a dining car where we could get simple meals for about £2, and a bar where the beers were around £1. The many stops and unexpected delays also gave us opportunity to buy freshly cooked food and drinks through the windows or from the platform which helped to break up the monotony of the dining car food!
      The best part of the train was the social part, it was a great way to meet both local people on the move and other travelers. I spent most of my time in the bar watching the view and chatting to people or playing cards. One day I spent ages talking to a woman who ran a scheme to educate young mothers and prevent teen pregnancies, as well as teaching young unemployed people agribusiness. I met travellers from all over including Germany, Croatia, Belgium, Holland, Korea, Japan, and Sweden, some of who I continued to travel with and hope to remain friends with long after this. As much as I could have stayed on the train for a bit longer I was very pleased for a shower and a motionless toilet by the end!
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    • Tag 86

      SIMsalabim

      12. März 2020 in Tansania ⋅ 🌧 21 °C

      Today I spent/lost the whole morning in Mbeya running between the immigration office and different mobile network provider offices. The providers all have "new computer systems" which require me to get identified with the government's immigration authority by scanning my fingerprint. You remember the tiny little border post where I crossed? They had a pack of paper and a toilet but no fancy devices to register any fingerprints which means that "I am not in the system" at all ... and thus cannot be identified by any of these "new computer systems". Even the immigration office in Mbeya could not register my fingerprints! They certified my passport copy in order to convince one of the providers to assist me but were not in the position to understand, that the provider simply cannot override the fingerprint identification processes of his "new computer system" which just quits with the notice that "Michi, der, is illegal". They should stop introducing premature laws. (And they should stop trying to bake bread!)

      Totally frustrated that I could not listen to Rockantenne Bayern while rocking the super-annoying main traffic route towards Daressalam I continued.

      As always, after pain comes joy. Some
      might call that "destiny" but I prefer "the miracle of life". So, luckily later today I get stopped by the police for speeding with 76 kph instead of the allowed 50 in the middle of nowhere! After telling them that they suck, that they are corrupt - but friendly - and that their taken picture of my car is a lie, I get approached by Heiner, a Swiss guy travelling around with his Tanzanian wife Rozina. They got befriended by the police guy three months ago and shared a drink with him. We meet again in Makambako further down the road for lunch and afterwards Rozina gets me a SIM card on her private account. Rock! :-D
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    • Tag 34–35

      Lunji Coffee

      9. Dezember 2023 in Tansania ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

      At Lunji coffee farm I meet an overlanding couple from Switzerland. Aye, how refreshing to talk to them! I realise that they are my first tourist encounter after a whole month of travelling 😃! During the past 15 months they drove down from Europe via Western Africa and arrived here from Mozambique and Malawi.

      Lunji I visited in January 2022 already but have not stayed here. This is one of my favourite places in Tanzania and I could come back every time! Now, the weather is great and the coffee even greater! Luckily I am able to talk to Paul who is running the coffee and roasting business. He studied in Germany and lives with his wife and kid here. Through his mother-in-law they also distribute their coffee in Germany (though being roasted here). Paul just send 800 kg over to her to be able to cope with all the Christmas orders 😁.

      The farm tells a vibrant history throughout the past century. The oldest coffee bushes are 70-80 years old! Unfortunately, they are affected by a fungus disease which has been introduced in the 20th century, leading to huge losses in crop yield. Paul's plan is to replace them in future with new promising varieties, step by step. Anyway, they have different lots with different varieties already, which I very much sympathise with because this kind of diversity offers a great chance for customers to taste different coffee types. Also, they process their coffee either "natural" or "honey" which both result in intense fruity aromas which I very much appreciate 🤤. There is also a 5-days anaerobicly fermented coffee with promising taste. Had to buy a full kilogram of that, too 😅.

      There are great hiking opportunities to Mount Mbeya and it is interesting to learn about the environmental challenges the farm faces nowadays. Next year they will also be producing avocado oil!
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    • Tag 28–29

      Geothermal Firlefanz

      3. Dezember 2023 in Tansania ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

      I wanted to hike up the crater rim of Mount Ngozi to get a view on the inner lake already in 2021, but by then the weather didn't allow. This time I don't care. My whole previous week was nearly dry and thus, if now there is rain, fuck the rain.

      Arriving in the rainy evening 😅, I plan to quickly drive up to the informal campsite, which is to be situated in a forest clearing from where the trail starts. Surprise! This campsite apparently won the lottery and has been upgraded to a "Geothermal Project" site, meaning, it is becoming a 70 MW power plant soon (by February 2024). What the ... how is this possible? This is a damn natural forest reserve! Officially protected by documents, signatures and stamps! And I am supposed to pay 10 $ for it being "conserved"! My romantic dream of an authentic bush night, surrounded by pristine, juicy, dripping forest, vanishes in an instant. All these colourful machines of steel do not radiate any of the expected sexiness to me. But probably to the government. There is a guard who just shrugs at my comment and I simply drive back a kilometre along the access road to pitch my awning directly next to the road, at least being surrounded by this very forest of desire. This road is a dead end. Nobody will use it at night. Privacy guaranteed.

      Not. I prepare dinner, it gets dark, the rain stops, I sip on my red wine from Dodoma region and listen to the forest sounds when suddenly something huge drops from the heavens onto the road just next to my car. Woah 😳! I switch on my headlamp. A fat owl, grabbing something from the road! And up she flies on a branch opposite of me, starring at me. I politely switch off the light. Now is her turn of the night. I already had my fun. This is her forest. I better behave.

      Next, a motorbike appears, with three guys and three backpacks. The site supervisor, arriving Sunday evening to start his working shift of the coming week. He and his fellows sleep at the site in a wooden hut. He invites me for a chat in the morning. Next, an unlit random guy comes walking by, carrying a tremendously big bag on his head. Smiling and continuing. Strong guy! Finish. No more interruptions follow.

      The morning hike develops as expected. Wonderful forest with Sykes's monkeys, many flowers and many spiders for breakfast, which like to span their webs across the narrow path. No rain! Shortly after 9 I arrive on top of the crater rim. Splendid view down on the lake, aye!! A few minutes after me this yesterday evening's strong guys appears. He comes up jogging, completely wet from sweat, greets me and jumps over the crater rim, down into the steep thicket. Wäh? Is there a path down to the lake 🤔? "Yes" he shouts from already far away. Okay, challenge accepted! I go after him and find myself rather climbing down 200 m, holding on roots of trees and crawling under branches, finally getting nicely dirty 🤓! Shortly before reaching the bottom he passes me jumping upwards again. Down there is less spectacular than expected. A lake, surrounded by a green wall. Time to climb back!

      In the worker's camp I talk to the guys, now 4 of them, and share my coffee. During me returning, this sporty machine guy went into the forest for felling some firewood trees which he now comes carrying on his shoulders (our European wood is nothing compared to this dense, heavy tropical timber!). I learn that he performs our crater hike every morning, sometimes twice a day if work allows 💪. He cannot sit still. While we talk, he begins chopping the wood ...
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    • Tag 33

      30. Tanzania - Arrival

      9. Juni 2023 in Tansania ⋅ ⛅ 50 °F

      Another 4:30 AM departure brought us to the Malawi / Tanzania border by 7, where we lost 2 hours due to a "systems down" situation that had the immigration officials processing visas on paper. (Craig, ever the prepared boy scout, made sure we had obtained our visas in advance, but we had to wait for others).

      Heading into the highlands after that, we noticed an immediate improvement in the standard of living. Honestly, Malawi was a bit of a bust for us. Here in Tanzania, homes were larger, looked maintained, and we could see power lines connected to some of them. Some had glass windows. The area was lush with vegetation and agriculture, including bananas, tea, coffee, & pineapple.

      Along the way, we encountered a grouping of baobab trees. The baobab is one of the most iconic and majestic trees in Africa, growing to up to 30 meters tall with a trunk diameter of over 10 meters. It can live literally for thousands of years. We stopped to take a few pix.

      As we continued heading across Tanzania towards Dar es Salaam & the eastern coastline, traffic became increasingly congested. Dar houses a major cargo port which is accompanied by an influx of trucks. So many trucks!
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    • Tag 32

      29. Malawi: Chitimba Beach

      8. Juni 2023 in Tansania ⋅ ☁️ 66 °F

      We travelled north towards Tanzania, stopping at another Malawi beach-based campsite in Chitimba. Our room had no power or water, and the campsite had no wifi. There was nothing happening at the beach other than locals trying to sell their wares (which the guides recommended we avoid), so we kept busy with a 3.5 hour hike up the local mountain to see the falls, followed by a motorcycle ride up to the David Livingstone Museum at the top of the mountain, then back down to our campsite.

      The hike, which was more for the exercise than anything else, felt good, but the motorcycle ride was pure torture. The road back to town was really no road at all. We spent the better part of an hour poised uncomfortably behind our drivers, clutching a bar behind us for balance, and holding on for dear life as our drivers navigated the path of rocks, sand, pothole-laden dirt. The bone-jarring roads we had previously experienced in the truck were nothing compared to the beating our bodies took on this ride. When we finally got back, I couldn't uncurl my hand from the death-grip I'd been keeping on the bike. I stumbled to the room, and grabbed 3 advil and an hour's nap to try to recover.

      Welcome to Africa Karen!
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    • Tag 30–33

      Rivers of cocoa

      5. Dezember 2023 in Tansania ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

      At Matema beach I relax from this intense vacation. While driving here I notice dense forests of cocoa trees. Interesting! Yet another thing I have to investigate further 😏. Next to the road I ask a random mister "Hey, sir! You're involved with this cocoa?"

      I must have some kind of intuition for meeting just the right people. Baraka turns out to be a voluntary teacher, teaching young (orphaned) kids basics before they get into primary school: independence from "the system" and self-defense 😃! Prior to that, he has been village executive officer. He teaches me the fundamentals of coca processing and fetches fresh cocoa for me which I can try to ferment and dry myself. The white flesh around the beans is very tasty! Reminds me of "guanabana" fruits of Venezuela. Together we also find a mama who sells already fermented and dried beans to cooperatives, of which I acquire 2-3 kg. Fermentation of the beans takes around 7 days whereas drying requires 3-4 additional days in the current sun. Afterwards, the beans are ready for roasting and post-processing either into chocolate or powder with separated cocoa butter. The whole process is indeed extensively complex, involves a lot of time, heavy labour and many resources. If you tend to buy a bar of chocolate in Germany for less than a Euro, please ask yourself if this is a reasonable price? It can never be!

      Baraka invites me to stay for lunch with his family and we go hiking up the valley to Matema waterfall which is prettier than expected. It looks like a river of milk flowing down the rocks 🤤. Later, I visit the barber and get a new shirt tailored from Tanzanian kitenge by a nice old lady.

      The good thing about the rainy season is that you can spend a whole day just watching the game of weather. And this is what I do the following day (and night).
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    • Tag 9

      Krankenhauschaos und Bajajs

      15. November 2022 in Tansania ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

      Heute mit Susanna gefrühstückt wie jeden Morgen. Danach schnell zur Andacht, denn ich bin schon spät dran. Der Kreißsaal ist einigermaßen ruhig. Ich sehe viele Patienten, aber noch ist noch keiner so richtig dabei was Geburten angeht. Aber eine möchte dann doch noch ihr 4tes Kind bekommen. Kommt mit MM vollständig und praller Fruchtblase. Als ich diese eröffne, ist sie voller Mekonium. Also hatte das Kind schon Stress, die Herztöne sind das erste Mal gut und beim zweiten Mal nur bei 90spm, allerdings wird kurz gewartet und als die Herztöne steigen sind alle zufrieden. Eine Sectio würde erst in ca 1 Stunde möglich sein, also muss das Kind da jetzt so raus. Die Patientin presst und müht sich ab, aber es passiert nichts. Zu meiner Überraschung lassen sich die anderen darauf ein das ich die Patientin in Seitenlänge lagere und sogar in die Hocke. Es hilft aber alles nichts. Mama Kayombo zieht am Ende eine VE. Schön ist die Geburt nicht. Nsch der VE kommt der Kopf nur bis zur Nase und icj mekre schnell das die Schulter stecken geblieben ist. Ich mcöhte gerne Manöver durchführen, aber Mama Kayombo versucht die Schultern zu lösen und zueht das Kind dann einfach heraus.
      Ich bin gar nicht glpcklich mit der Geburt.
      Das Kind ist sehr schlapp. Herzfrequenz unter 50 und keine Spontanatmung. Also reanimieren wir, ich mache Herzdruckmassage, Sauerstoff ist mal wieder nirgendwo zu finden und der Ambubeutel funktioniert nicht richtig. Irgendwann halte ich es nicht aus und greife ein. Lege das Kind in die richtige Position und übernehme die Beatmung. Ein Glück erholt sich das Kind relativ schnell. Es bleibt an der Beatmung, allerdings wird es einfach auf der Einheit liegen gelassen. Ich lege das Kind mit Sauerstoff zur Mutter und überraschedamit alle. Jetzt muss jeder über das Kabel steigen und die Steckdose fällt halb aus der Wand, aber immerhin können Mutter und Kind bonden.
      Die Holländerinnen sind begeistert.
      Ein Gynäkologe aus einem benachbarten größerem Krankenhaus ist hier um eine Woche die Teams zu begleiten und sein Wissen weiter zu geben. Mit ihm kann ich eine Stunde über Standards in der Geburtshilfe und was man so verbessern könnte diskutieren. Das ist super interessant.
      Er facetimed auch mit seinen Freunden aus Berlin und nimmt mich gleich mit ins Gespräch dazu.
      Eine frühe 30 Woche mit fraglich Wehen kommt in den Kreißsaal. Sie ist bei Aufnahme MM 5cm. Dann wird sie eine Stunde nicht angeguckt. Als der Gynäkologe sie beurteilen soll, ist sie schon MM vollständig und der Kopf auf Beckenmitte. Da sie Zustand nach Sectio ist müsste sie eigentlich sofort eine bekommen, aber das Kind ist schneller und kommt so.
      Alle wollen eine Epi, aber ich merke das der Kopf so kommt. Die Geburt ist total schön, der Damm intakt, dem Kind geht es super. Da sie ein Frühchen ist, wird sie auf die Kinderstation verlegt. Die Mama ist so glücklich damit, daß sie das Kind Marietta nennen will.
      Ich gehe heute schon früher, weil es bei Susanna um 12:30 Mittagessen gibt. Rachel hat Erbsen, Reis und Impala gekocht. Es ist super lecker.
      Wir machen eine Mittagspause und schlafen tief und fest ein.
      Gegen 15 Uhr geht es mit dem Bajaj nach Mbalizi um Geld abzuheben. Völlig verrückt in dieses winzige Gefährt, mit der gebrochenen Scheibe quetschen sich 7 Leute. Was ein Irrsinn.
      In Mbalizi hole ich Geld für die nächsten Tage.
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    • Tag 12

      Abenteuer Ruaha

      18. November 2022 in Tansania ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

      Morgens frühstücke ich im Hotel und dann gehe ich zu Helen ins Büro. Mein Guide David ist leider krank geworden, dafür fährt mich Vincent. Der muss das Auto noch checken lassen, deswegen gehe ich auf den Markt und besorge ein paar Souvenirs. Danach fahre ich um 9:30 mit Vincent los. Es ist total spannend. Wir brauchen 2 Stunden um in den Ruaha zu kommen. Die Landschaft verändert sich sofort. Erst bin ich ein bisschen besorgt, dass alles einfach nur trocken und verbrannt ist, aber es geht. Um 11:30 kommen wir am Gate an. Ab dem Einchecken haben wir genau 24h im Park. Also auf geht's. Wir machen eine erste kleine Rundfahrt und ich sehe direkt Hippos, Krokodile, Giraffen, Impalas und vieles mehr.
      Zum Mitragessen stoppen wir an einem "Restaurant" und es gibt Reis, Bohnen und Fleisch. Das leider wieder voller Knochensplitrer ist. Danach geht es weiter. Wir checken einmal im Camp ein. Ich habe eine Hütte für mich. Die ist soweit ganz okay. Auf dem nächsten Game Drive sehen wir sogar Löwen, da sehen wir das erste mal andere Leute. Ansonsten fahren wir komplett alleine herum und unterhalten uns gut. Bei den Löwen fahren alle etwas offroad und wir kommen ganz nah ran. Ein wahnsinns Erlebnis. Um 19 Uhr müssen wir wieder im Camp sein. Ich sage zu Vincent, dass es schade ist, dass das einzige was wir nicht gesehen haben Elefanten sind. Und wie bestellt steht kurz vor dem Camp einer am Straßenrand! Im Camp werden wir von einem bewaffneten Ranger eskortiert, weil aus dem Hippo Pool direkt vor den Camp manchmal welche vorbeikommen oder auch Elefanten. Es gibt Spagetti zum Abendessen und dann geht es auch schon ins Bett. Es stellt sich raus das in meiner Hütte leider Kakerlaken sind, was bei mir kurz totalen Horror auslöst, aber ich bin so müde, dass ich trotzdem schlafe.
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    • Tag 13

      Safari

      19. November 2022 in Tansania ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

      Heute geht's zur Runde 2 der Safari. Um 5:30 aufstehen, mit Kakerlaken und Ameisen duschen und um 6:10 nimmt Vincent mich mit. Wir sehen eine große Hippoherde die ihren Pool verlässt, finden im Flussbett eine Löwin die auf Beute wartet. Danach bleibt es erstmal ruhig und wir sehen nicht so viel. Füchse, Zebras, Giraffen. Ich wünsche mir so sehr Elefanten zu sehen. Aber wir müssen zum Frühstück zurück fahren. Dann endlich sehen wir 3 Elefanten im Tal. Wir versuchen näher ran zu fahren und fahren wirklich durch den Busch. Leider können wir die Elefanten nicht von nahem sehen. Aber wir haben total die Zeit vergessen. Wir hätten um 10:00 beim Frühstück sein müssen, jetzt ist es 10:40. Wir fahren zum Frühstück. Gegenüber vom Camp auf der anderen Flussseite ist eine ganze Herde Elefanten mit Baby zu sehen. Ich bin sehr glücklich. Wir essen sehr schnell, checken aus und fahren im 11:10 Richtung Gate. Um 11:45 müssen wir den Park verlassen haben. Sonst muss ich nochmal 24h zahlen.
      Wir fahren super schnell und müssen einmal stoppen da eine Giraffe mitten auf dem Weg steht, als würde sie mich verabschieden.
      Um 11:42 checken wir am Gate aus. Das war knapp. Vincent fährt mit der nächsten Gruppe wieder in den Park und David bringt mich zurück nach Iringa. Mit Vincent hab ich auf der Hinfahrt 2,5h in den Ruaha gebraucht. Mit David bin icj in anderthalb Stunden wieder zurück. Mit richtig Tempo und lauter Raggae Musik. Diese Safari war ein wirklich unglaublicher Ausflug.
      Das einzige was ich nicht gesehen habe sind Elefanten von nahmen. Als ich David das erzähle sieht er außerhalb des Parks am Straßenrand 2 Elefantenbullen und wir halten nochmal an. Jetzt hab ich alles sehen können was ich wollte.
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    Möglicherweise kennst du auch folgende Namen für diesen Ort:

    Mbeya Region, Mbeya, Mkoa wa Mbeya

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