When we first arrived in Tanzania, almost a year and a half ago, Soma and I made a promise to ourselves that we would not make the same mistake that we’d made in Egypt. In the three years we spent in Cairo, we really did very little in the way of exploring the country. In part this was due to the fact that I’d already been to Egypt as a student. In part it was due to the arrival of Rohan and the upheavals of his first years of life. However, a large factor was undeniably our own inertia. By the time we found out we were leaving, it was too late- I was too busy selling off the business to go on holidays much so we were restricted to a few visits to Ain Sukhna and that memorable visit to the desert.
Not this time! We decided from the beginning to assume that our stay here could end without warning and to make sure that if that were to be the case, that we’d visited as much of Tanzania as we could. I guess we could still do better but so far we’ve not done too badly. Last year we managed Mikumi, Zanzibar, Ngorongoro (twice) and the Serengeti- a fine start. The famous stuff now behind us, we’ve decided to use 2009 to explore the lesser known, but equally beautiful areas of Tanzania- to stray a little further from the beaten track.
View of the Usambara Mountains- taken from the waterfalls at Soni
The town of Lushoto is the largest settlement in the Usambara Mountains, a range of mountains which, along with the Udzungwas and the Ulugurus form the Eastern Arc Mountain Range. To get there takes a long but relatively simple drive. Heading west out of Dar, you drive about 100km to a small village called Chalinze. From there you drive north for another few hours to a small town called Segera. At that point, hopefully by then full of the excellent goat meat soup they do there, you head west along the main road connecting Tanga to the cities of Moshi and Arusha. A right turn at the small village of Mombo takes you up into the mountains and another hour or so of steep winding roads finally gets you to Lushoto. All in all, it’s a long but pleasant drive.
The Usambara region and its people have an interesting history, and in many ways served as inspiration for the Disney movie “The Lion King”.
The local Sambaa people have traditionally been farmers, not herders like their more famous Maasai counterparts. The Sambaa were for some time a fairly disparate group, until they were unified in the 18th century by a chief known as Mbega. Mgega holds a special place in the hearts of the local people- an improved version of Robin Hood who managed to give to the poor without stealing from the rich. Cheated of his rightful place as chief, he became a famous and respected hunter. At some point, the Sambaa experienced problems with an infestation of wild pigs and asked Mbega to help. Mbega came back and hunted down the pigs. This meant that farmers could farm once more but also resulted in huge amounts of pork being distributed by Mbega to the hungry local people.
Mbega was respected both as a huntsman and as a diplomat and soon took a leadership position. During his reign, Mbega managed to unify the various Sambaa clans into a large and powerful tribe. By this achievement, Mbega became known as Simbawene- the Lion King. Sadly, the fortunes of the Sambaa did not last. By the mid 19th century they had been supplanted by other tribes. The title Simbawene remains to this day however, and is given to the direct descendents of Mbega. The current Simbawene has no formal power but is respected by the Sambaa- a people’s prince in effect.
By the early 20th century, the area had been pacified the occupying power of the time- Germany. Its cool, refreshing climate meant that it rapidly became a favoured place of recuperation for the occupying powers and was even mooted as possible location for a new capital. Soma has pointed out that in many ways, Lushoto was to the Germans what her home town of Pune was to the British- a place in the mountains to escape the heat of the rest of the country. A lot of the buildings there have a strong German influence- although all of Tanganyika was in fact ruled by Germany, you don’t really get the same feel in places such as Dar.
We spent a morning driving up from Dar and, shortly after midday arrived at our hotel, the beautiful but utterly out of place Muller Lodge. I say out of place because the lodge truly belongs in the Alps or the Black Forest- seeing it in the middle of Tanzania was simply odd!
The Usambara region and its people have an interesting history, and in many ways served as inspiration for the Disney movie “The Lion King”.
The local Sambaa people have traditionally been farmers, not herders like their more famous Maasai counterparts. The Sambaa were for some time a fairly disparate group, until they were unified in the 18th century by a chief known as Mbega. Mgega holds a special place in the hearts of the local people- an improved version of Robin Hood who managed to give to the poor without stealing from the rich. Cheated of his rightful place as chief, he became a famous and respected hunter. At some point, the Sambaa experienced problems with an infestation of wild pigs and asked Mbega to help. Mbega came back and hunted down the pigs. This meant that farmers could farm once more but also resulted in huge amounts of pork being distributed by Mbega to the hungry local people.
Mbega was respected both as a huntsman and as a diplomat and soon took a leadership position. During his reign, Mbega managed to unify the various Sambaa clans into a large and powerful tribe. By this achievement, Mbega became known as Simbawene- the Lion King. Sadly, the fortunes of the Sambaa did not last. By the mid 19th century they had been supplanted by other tribes. The title Simbawene remains to this day however, and is given to the direct descendents of Mbega. The current Simbawene has no formal power but is respected by the Sambaa- a people’s prince in effect.
By the early 20th century, the area had been pacified the occupying power of the time- Germany. Its cool, refreshing climate meant that it rapidly became a favoured place of recuperation for the occupying powers and was even mooted as possible location for a new capital. Soma has pointed out that in many ways, Lushoto was to the Germans what her home town of Pune was to the British- a place in the mountains to escape the heat of the rest of the country. A lot of the buildings there have a strong German influence- although all of Tanganyika was in fact ruled by Germany, you don’t really get the same feel in places such as Dar.
We spent a morning driving up from Dar and, shortly after midday arrived at our hotel, the beautiful but utterly out of place Muller Lodge. I say out of place because the lodge truly belongs in the Alps or the Black Forest- seeing it in the middle of Tanzania was simply odd!
The Muller Lodge at Lushoto
We spent the afternoon close by the lodge, walking through some of the neighbouring villages, enjoying the cool air and the rain.
The boys and I in the forests close to Lushoto
With it only being a long weekend away, we only had one full day, Sunday, in Lushoto. We were up and out bright and early to visit the famous market. Sadly the market was a shadow of its usual self. The lack of rains apparently have resulted in very poor crop yields this year so there is very little produce on sale- the farmers are using almost all their crops to feed themselves leaving very little else. As with everyone else in the country, the people of Lushoto are praying for rain- lets just hope the recent rainy days here in Dar are shared elsewhere in the country and can last a decent while. It seems odd for a Brit to be banging on for post after post hoping for rain (rather than moaning about it as would be traditional) but when the sunny days mean people go without food and power, a little rain is welcome.
The market at Lushoto
We moved on from Lushoto to a small settlement called Irente. Apart from a hotel and a few farms, there is not much in Irente. Not much apart from some beautiful countryside and the famous Viewpoint. The Viewpoint is a rocky outcrop marking the point at which the Usambara Mountains very abruptly give way to the spectacular flat plains of the Rift Valley. Walking close to the edge (which in very un- British style was not cordoned off by fences or railings) gave me both vertigo and a serious parental need to hold the boys very close indeed! The view was spectacular and was heightened by the knowledge that falling off the ledge would result in a straight drop of about a mile! Apparently the Viewpoint was the inspiration for Pride Rock as shown in the Lion King. Anyone (parents of small kids are a sure bet) who has seen the film can look at the photo below and make up their own minds!
The Viewpoint at Irente
We had lunch at a nearby farm- dark bread, cheese and local fruit jam (still getting that German feel!) before heading back in the early afternoon. I spent the afternoon teaching Kieran how to fish- he very proudly notched up six catches- before settling in for the evening.
The Maasai Valley- picture taken from up in the clouds at the Irente Viewpoint.
We all really enjoyed the short break- a real change from Dar for sure. The drive is a bit long but when you go through some spectacular scenery, it doesn’t seem quite so tough! I’m not sure where in Tanzania we’ll go next- one of the farms at Iringa or Mufindi perhaps- time will tell.
April is almost done with, then. Soma and Rohan have been to and come back from the UK. Kieran and I got to spend a happy week together discovering both each other and in Kieran’s case, the joys of Star Wars.
We more or less ended the month the other night with the annual St George’s Ball. Having been expat for several years now, we’re getting a bit blasé about these balls- a good four or so each year regardless of where we live! We had a great time as usual- though the head is still a little fragile as I write. I did manage to achieve one New Year’s resolution though- after hours of frustration and rage, I finally figured out how to tie my own bow tie. I have finally become a man of the world!
April is almost done with, then. Soma and Rohan have been to and come back from the UK. Kieran and I got to spend a happy week together discovering both each other and in Kieran’s case, the joys of Star Wars.
We more or less ended the month the other night with the annual St George’s Ball. Having been expat for several years now, we’re getting a bit blasé about these balls- a good four or so each year regardless of where we live! We had a great time as usual- though the head is still a little fragile as I write. I did manage to achieve one New Year’s resolution though- after hours of frustration and rage, I finally figured out how to tie my own bow tie. I have finally become a man of the world!
