The day after we went snorkeling we had to board the ferry at 3:30. We tried to find things to do to take up time until then. Stone Town is not exactly the paradise you would picture when you think about Zanzibar. They have a lot of cool old buildings, but nobody keeps them up. The place is actually really dirty. Also, the whole time we were there we were disturbed by the locals wanting to sell us things.
There were numerous people that would walk up to us and try to sell us an African CD. They would even sing the most popular song on the disc. Jambo Jambowana Habari gani Nzuri Sana…….. I would say that in our 3 night stay we heard it about a million times. They would even follow us around town singing it. If I ever hear that song again I will snap!
To fill our day Linds and I decided to sight see the only problem was that there was nothing to see that Linds and I were interested in. We walked around a little and went shopping. We didn’t buy anything though because they sell the same kinds of things in Iringa for more than half the price.
We tired and decided to stop and have a pop in this café on the beach. The power had gone out and they could not serve any food. Then we went looking for a place that was still serving. We went to a place that we’d had dinner before. I was so excited because they had fish and chips on the menu. I’m not usually a huge fish and chips fan, but I was craving it. We ordered and waited. Any time you order food over here you usually get it any where from an hour to two hours later. I was really starting to get hungry and was really excited to have fish and chips.
The look of disappointment on my face must have been very comical when she had finally brought us our food. I was expecting some sort of fish sticks and chips……… What I got was a whole fish, not cleaned, head and all. What a rip. There was really nothing I could do. It was technically fish and chips. I ate it and sulked a little.
After this very deceiving dinner we ran out of things to do. We decided to go to our hotel and it around. Linds would write in her journal and I would read my book. I picked up the book set of Eregon and Eldest in Amsterdam and read those both in about 2 weeks. When we were in Dar a book store in the Slipway had the third book Brizinger and I had to get it. They are really good book and the Eregon movie does not do the book justice! So, back at our hotel is where we sat and waited for time to pass so that we could head back to Dar.
When it was time we walked over to the ferry station and boarded the ferry. This time we had decided to take a faster ferry. We could even sit outside. It was really nice. The only problem was that the salt from the mist gathered on our clothes. I was wearing black capris and by the time we got to Dar my pants were white. Lol
We did get to meet some cool people on the Ferry though. Before the ferry took off it was almost full except for the seat next to Linds and I. So, this white guy sat next to us and we started to talk to him. He sounded French but I wasn’t sure if he was French or French Canadian, so I asked. He was like…..Really you can’t tell by my accent. Lol Ya, he was French. His name was Jamie and he was in Tanzania to visit his brother who works in the French Embassy. We talked with them a little and I gave him some advice about going to Ruaha National park. He said that if things worked out he would meet us at Ruaha and we could go on safari together. He was really nice and funny!
We got to Dar and then met up with Fernandes at the ferry station. Pastor Muro could not pick us up at the station. It worked out well though because Ferdandes helped us bargain for a good taxi price. We were off back to Partor Muro’s house.
We didn’t do much that night but hang out with the family and relax. The next day we would make our eight hour journey back to Iringa. I was really excited to be going back. Like I have said before Iringa has a much more comfortable climate than Dar. I was also really excited to see my cat and Annika, Inga, Chrissy, Sunna, and Ross. The whole time I was in Dar I would get a text almost every day from one of then telling me that they missed me, could not wait for me to come home and to meet Linds.
I think that I mentioned that Lindsey had met a girl from Canada on the plain ride from Amsterdam to Dar. Her name is Frances. We hung out with her a little while we were in Dar. She is really nice and cool! She is just traveling through east Africa for two months. I told her that if she was interested she was more than welcome to come to Iringa and have Christmas with all of us. I also told her how nice of a place Iringa is. That was really all that was said. She said that she would think about it and call me and let me know what she decided.
So… On the 22nd of December Linds and I boarded the Scandinavian bus and mad our way to Iringa. The eight hours didn’t seem like much to me because I had my book to read. Linds enjoyed listing to her Ipod. They make a couple stops to go to the bathroom and to grab some food. The ride was not that bad. We didn’t have the best seats but there was really nothing we could do about that.
We had left Dar at 9:00am and din’t arrive in Iringa until 7:00pm. It had started to rain and there were a lot of accidents so, the driver had to go really slow. I had texted my driver and told him what time we would be arriving in Iringa. He said that he would be there. But when the bus came to the station there was no Ben. We weren’t too worried. We grabbed Lindsey’s suit cases and waited.
We were just standing there waiting when this Tanzanian guy started to talk to us. He asked us where we were from, what our name were and what we were doing in Iringa. He told us that he needed a job and asked me if I had any work for him to do. It was just innocent nice conversation until he dropped the bomb. He leans over to Linds and said “Oh Lindsey I want to kiss you”. The looks on Lind’s face was priceless! It was just such a random comment. Linds kindly declined, but that seemed to fuel his fire. Then he moved closer to me and asked me if I was married. I said “No, but my boyfriend is a really big guy” (I should have told him that I was married, but it kind of just popped out…. And no, I really don’t have a boyfriend. J) Well he found this totally hilarious and to make the situation even more awkward this guy had the most maddening laugh. It was really high pitched and eerie. Well, he asked Linds again if he could have a kiss. I just couldn’t handle it any more. I said “Are you kidding me? Does that really work with anyone? No, she is not going to kiss you!) He said that it did work. Then he asked me for my phone number. I said no, but he kept asking. I finally said, “You can quit asking because I’m not going to give it to you. Then Once again he asked Linds for a kiss, but then he turned to me and asked me for 1,000 tsh. Linds and I just burst out laughting. She told him that if he needed money he should open a kissing booth. Lol lol lol. Then, just in time Ben my driver came and saved us from the Wildman.
Ben took us to the NSSF apartments where I picked up the SUV that Tumanini University had borrowed me. Then we finally were at my home at Dira. I got to see my cat and all my neighbors. As always the neighbors had food ready for me and Linds when we got home. It was leftovers from the night before, but no complaints here! It was good and it was hot when we arrived at home.
That night we didn’t do much besides settle in to my apartment and then my phone rang. It was Frances. She had just arrived in Iringa and wanted to know if her and a girl that she met could sleep at my place. I Told them they could, but the best I could offer was mattresses on the floor and that I didn’t have any mosquito nets. They said that they had some. Linds and I hopped in the SUV and made our way back to the bus station. Luckly for us “Lindsey’s Boyfriend” (aka. The kissing booth guy) was there. We grabbed Frances her friend Sarri and their stuff as fast as we could and got the heck out of there. We got to Dira and then helped Sarri and Frances settle in and we all went to bed knowing that the next day would be filled with shopping for Christmas supplies……………. To Be Continued……
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