 |
| The Goats Racing.... Or Being Pushed |
I only have a couple
more weeks before I will return home and I am doing my best to enjoy the time I
have remaining in Dar es Salaam. This month kicked off with Tanzania’s premiere
event – the annual Goat Races! While it may not sound like the sort of event
that a lot of you would be eager to attend, trust me when I tell you it is not
to be missed!
The Goat Races are basically very similar to
Toronto’s Beer Fest except with the addition of (as the name would suggest)
goats racing. It was good fun. Here’s the thing about goats though: they aren’t
really cut out for racing. Goats are far more interested in grazing. So in
essence, what happens is that the gates open and the goats do a whole lot of
nothing. So a few employees carry a long padded bar that spans the length of
the track and kind of push the goats along to the finish line. The goat who
gets irritated with the bar the most will then meander along the quickest and
cross the finish line a moment before the others. It’s not really a
nail-biting, sitting on the edge of your seat kind of race.
The Goat Races are a charitable event with
proceeds going to a number of organizations who do very good work here in
Tanzania and as such I thought that I would support the cause by placing bets
on some of the goats that I had a feeling were strong competitors. In the first
race my pick came in first place, but that was expected based on his name:
BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAZOOKA. My second goat pick, Goat Nads, didn’t do as well
unfortunately, but I don’t regret betting on him cause he really did put in an
honest effort and I think that counts for a lot.
 |
| Winning at the Sea Cliff Casino |
I took a bit of down
time following the races but the last week has been wonderful and busy. It
started out on Friday with a quiet dinner with a few friends at Sea Cliff restaurant.
This is one of my favourite spots in Dar es Salaam, but it’s a bit on the fancy
side so it doesn’t really fit well with the volunteer budget. After a couple
bottles of wine were finished it was time to head out as I had an early morning
flight to catch to Arusha. On the way out, however, we walked by the entrance
to the casino and as none of us had ever been there before, we decided to pop
in – just for one or 2 hands, of course.
Well.... those of
you who know me well can probably guess that I did not just stick around for
one hand. While a friend of mine was winning big at the slots (in contradiction
to my theory that slots are for suckers) I had a seat at the blackjack table.
As should be the case in all casinos, drinks were free for those who were
gambling and that, in addition to the fact that I was doing quite well, made me
stick around a bit longer than I had anticipated I would. When I was just about
ready to cash out I got 21 on three 7s which meant a complementary bottle of
bubbly for the table! I obviously had to stay a bit longer to enjoy my victory :)
 |
| A Stiggbucks Coffee Reall Hit the Spot After my Rough Morning! |
Unfortunately I
slept through my alarm – something that I think has only happened to me once
before and I woke up about 5 minutes before my taxi was to arrive to take me to
the airport. I was quite proud of myself that I was able to pack in such a
short amount of time..... until I realized that I had forgotten to pack underwear!
Of all the things I could forget to pack! Luckily my first stop once arriving
in Arusha was Stiggbuck’s coffee shop (not quite Starbuck’s, but good enough)
which was situated close to a Woolworth’s where I was able to pick up some
undergarments. In the absence of a Victoria’s Secret, Woolworth’s would have to
suffice.
 |
| This is Henry - He Lives at the Hotel we Stayed at in Arusha |
I had a relaxing
time in Arusha while some of my fellow VSO volunteers participated in the
Safari half marathon. On Monday, two friends and I were collected for a safari
to Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro Crater. Lake Manyara was quite beautiful. It is
very lush there all year round with beautiful scenery and lots of animals.
Following our game drive in Manyara we headed off to our lodge just outside of
Ngorongoro Crater. The first thing I noticed about the area was how COLD it
was. I was FREEZING there! The second thing I noticed was how beautifully
stunning the entire area is. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is a UNESCO
Heritage Site in large part because of the crater itself which is the world’s
largest caldera and hosts dense wildlife including several globally threatened
species. In addition to this, archeological research in the area shows a long
sequence of human evolution.
 |
| Arriving in the Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area |
Our game drive in
the Crater was to be my last game drive before coming home and so I was really
hoping to see several animals that I had not yet seen – specifically lion,
cheetah and leopard. I sadly did not get to see a leopard, but other than that
we were very lucky! We spotted a cheetah in the distance and we saw loads of
lions and even almost witnessed a kill! Our guide got wind of a possible kill
near the hippo pool so we rushed over to find several lions lounging by the
water. Lions are pretty lazy and just like house cats are not big fans of
getting wet. They were hunting a buffalo who made his way into the water where
the lions would not follow, but they knew that he couldn’t swim so they just
waited – and so did we. For 2 hours. The buffalo was resilient and in the end
he got away but I feel lucky to have seen the battle! We also saw some lions
feasting on a zebra which was pretty cool, but were not there for the kill.
 |
| Momma Lion |
I was surprised to
find that there were public washrooms within the Crater, but was a bit hesitant
to use them after hearing a story the previous night from one of the gentlemen
who runs the lodge that we stayed at: One night a lion was wandering around and
pooped into the ladies washroom to explore. Somehow he managed to shut the door
behind him and he was stuck there overnight. Now I don’t know this for a fact,
but I would imagine that a lion would not be very pleased to be stuck in such a
small space for such a long time. So in the morning, the first guest who needed
to answer the call of nature opened the door to the washroom and was face to
face with the agitated lion! Luckily she reacted quickly and shut the door
immediately so she was not harmed..... although I bet the rest of her game
drive was quite unpleasant because I’m sure she must have gone right there and
then when she saw that lion! Although I was able to get quite close to some of
the animals, I luckily did not get quite that close!
 |
| Cute Cubs |
I don’t have a lot
of adventures planned over the next few weeks but I’m sure there will be some
excitement for my final post – this city lends itself well to spontaneity.
Miss you all,
V
