First things first; we seem to be getting close to agreeing a move date for me. Actually the first draft of the posting included a very definitive and confident paragraph stating that we’d be leaving October 18th- that, typically, has now changed. We’re looking to move somewhere around the first week of November now- good for us as some of Soma’s family is in Egypt at the end of October and can now pay us a visit!
The move process is getting well underway now. Quotes have been received from removal firms, we’re doing a major triage of stuff (the pool table went to a loving new owner last week!), vaccination are being pumped into us as fast as the doctors can administer them and we’re even learning a few words of Swahili!
The biggest step to date came over the weekend. With Mum now arrived in Cairo on major babysitting duties, Soma and myself boarded the Kenya Airways flight on Thursday night to Dar es Salaam- a short “look see” visit was in order.
I’m not going to get too sidetracked but the flight was not a lot of fun. The plane was good, food great, flight crew very professional. However their sense of timekeeping makes Egypt look like Switzerland. Through the six stages (Cairo- Khartoum- Nairobi- Dar and back again) five were late. The Dubai route definitely looks like being the one for us next time!
Anyway, what about Dar? We’re both really positive about this place. We were picked up by one of the Songas drivers, Abubakar, who was very friendly. The drive across Dar, to the Msasani Peninsula gave us our first experience of Tanzania driving……and it wasn’t bad at all. The bonus is that they drive on the left although, as with Cairo, that is always a fairly flexible rule- potholes are a bigger factor in where on the road you drive than any Highway Code. The traffic itself was okay and drivers a bit better than Cairo. Abubakar spent a fair bit of time pointing out the shocking driving of various Daladala (microbus equivalent) drivers who swerved from lane to lane. As with their Egyptian counterparts, these guys were a bit kamikaze but, as Soma pointed out, at least they indicate in Dar!
After an hour or so, we arrived at our hotel on the Peninsula and got a feel for the area we’re hoping to live in. The first thing that leaped out at us was just how clean it all is. Sure there was a bit of rubbish and debris from place to place but the lack of pollution was…. Erm… a breath of fresh air! I guess that should not be too much a surprise; there is less heavy industry in Tanzania than in Cairo so actual pollution is lower to start with. Added to this, we’re on the coast so have a fair bit of wind to take any pollution out to sea- doubly so on a peninsula. The peninsula itself is pretty lightly populated- it seems to be the rough equivalent of Maadi in that most expats live here. However, this is not a place where you’ll be strolling from neighbour to neighbour- a car of some sort is going to be needed for any sort of social life here.
A shot of the Tanzanian coastline, taken from the Msasani Peninsula
Friday evening found the need for food just about trumping the need for sleep so we headed down to the restaurant for a bite. Sitting at a table by the sea, an African band playing away, we both realized that this destination was perhaps not going to be as tough as we and many of our friends had feared. We also had our first experience of the food. That first meal sealed the deal for Soma- keeping weight off here is going to be hard as the food is just amazing! The basic ingredients here are remarkably similar to those of Goa- lots of fresh fish and seafood, rice, fresh fruit, coconut and spices. There seems to be an Indian Ocean cuisine in the same way you have Mediterranean food- not surprising, I guess, given the centuries of trade between East Africa, Arabia, India and China.
Anyway, apart from simply taking in the general lifestyle of the place, we did need to carry out some more focused researches. After seeing about ten places, we realized that none was quite in keeping with what we were looking for in a home- too small, wrong location, bad décor etc. Most of the homes we saw would do at a pinch but we came away feeling that a bit of time would allow us to find “the one”. That being the case we opted for a serviced apartment to stay in for the first month or two- to be used as a base for Soma’s more hard nosed assault on the local property market later.
We did sort one thing out however. After a careful selection (Eton, Repton, Harrow….) we decided that the boys will be going to “Little Scholars” playgroup. Out of all those we saw, this one just blew us away- the icing on the cake was that Kieran’s teacher- to- be is originally from Pune!
The playground at the boys' new nursery- "Little Scholars"
So, back in Cairo, what have we returned with,apart from the obligatory Kenya Airways model for Kieran and two bottles of top notch non Egyptian wine? We certainly have much more information with which to work out how to get ourselves settled. A nursery for the boys is now set up; we've chosen a good serviced apartment for the first few months; we have a good idea of what sort of housing we can get for our money; I know where the local pub is.
We've had just a glimpse of our new life and have come away counting the days till we can make the move. We’re going to be very happy living in Dar. It's a cleaner place with great food, nice people and decent wine! We'll miss Cairo for sure and will be leaving some special friends behind, but what we saw in Tanzania is more than just a silver lining!
We got back last night- very tired after the obligatory plane delays but also full of enthusiasm. In Tanzania we have lot of fun ahead of us- safaris to take, people to meet and, for me, a lot of interesting work to do. We’re off to Greece for a wedding at the weekend. From there on in there’s an awful lot of work to do to get us from Cairo to Tanzania!
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