Tanzania: The Finale

Aug 31- Sept 2

Chris and I left Stefan's place before dawn and made our way to the bus station. It was only a few minutes before Erik arrived to join us. The bus ride was long, dusty and required us to wear the seat-belts provided in order to avoid hitting our heads on the roof of the bus. The soreness that resulted from this bus ride was actually far worse than that which we felt after climbing kilimanjaro!

Yeah, that bumpy.


Chris had contacted a couchsurfer in Mwanza and she was going to meet us at the bus station when we arrived. We had finally arrived to our destination after dark and followed the directions of a random guy yelling mzungu at the top of his lungs to the white girl he had seen earlier (our hostess). Her name was Trine and she only lived a short distance from the bus station. Trine had just recently started a contract with a company that operates a blood-bank in Mwanza and is affiliated with another company in Norway. Her contract was for a year and she was given the privilege of spending this year in the future home of a government official.


This home was originally supposed to be shared by Trine and another worker who had prematurely abandoned the idea and Trine was therefore left in this palace-of-a-house all by herself. Each room came equipped with its own bathroom and king-size bed. The birdman got his own room and Chris and I shared another. Aside from the couchsurfing picnic we had in Namibia, this was going to be our first couchsurfing experience in Africa. The bar had been raised exponentially high!

Trine worked during the day so the three of us were left to our own devices. Erik had a friend in Mwanza who he had met at an International Law competition (Erik is studying law at Columbia University in New York City) and this friend was going to show us around his city.


We were going to meet him in the town center and for some reason we opted to walk rather than paying the 20 cents it would have cost to take a daladala. After walking over 6km and asking many people for directions, we finally arrived at our meeting place: Food Square restaurant.

Erik's friend's name was Lucky and I had actually met him in Arusha the morning we left on our safari, but hadn't really had a chance to get to know him. Lucky was also studying law and had represented Tanzania at the International competition in Washington D.C. where he had met Erik, who was representing the US.


That day, Lucky served as our guide and showed us around Mwanza and his university: Saint Augustin's Catholic University. Lucky was a blatant over-achiever (in the most endearing way possible) and he beamed with pride as he showed us around and introduced us to his faculty, fellow students and the projects he was working on. St Augustin's holds the distinction of having the largest library in East Africa and Erik was impressed by the Law section, while Chris and I just pretended we knew the books he was showing us.

After we finished our tour of the school, Lucky showed us his flat and introduced us to his girlfriend and her family. If he ever decides that International Law is not his cup of chai, he would definitely make an impeccable ambassador for his country.

After our leisurely day at Saint Augustin's campus, we picked up several items to contribute to the feast that Trine was preparing with the help of her security guard. She had managed to acquire and kill a live chicken. What's interesting about this is that Trine is a vegetarian in Norway on the grounds of the inhumane treatment of animals by most, if not all of the farming industry in the western world. Conversely, even domestic animals are allowed to roam free in Africa. So this meal was kind of a big deal.

We had told her about Lucky and she invited him as well. Fortunately for everyone, Lucky knew how to de-feather and prepare a freshly-killed chicken and he also volunteered to do all the cooking. An international lawyer and a great cook; we were all smitten. Our evening was spent sipping on wine, enjoying our meal while talking and laughing. We all had an amazing time.

The following day we met Lucky in the afternoon and he escorted us to the reason why Mwanza even exists: Lake Victoria. Not only is Lake Victoria the second-largest fresh-water lake in the world, but it is also responsible for the term Mzungu, which we had been called since northern Mozambique.


Mzungu means to go around in circles and this describes the first Europeans ("Dr Livingstone I presume") who had come to Africa in search of the source of the Nile; literally circling Lake Victoria in search of the exact origin of the world's longest river. Over 100 years later and we still get to keep the title!

We spent our afternoon sitting on the banks of Lake Victoria, sipping our final Kilimanjaro's and admiring the scenery and the bizarre Bismarck Rock.


Later that day we met Trine near her blood-bank and got her attention by yelling mzungu at her in child-like voices. We then made our way to a lake beach-club, sat together and cherished our final day in Tanzania.


Although the lake is absolutely gigantic and looks undeniably inviting, most of it remains un-swimmable due to the presence of Bilharzia bacteria due to its shallow depth and relatively calm waters. While local kids do swim in it, the prospect of peeing blood (a consequence of the bacteria) did not really appeal to us.



As we sat above the water on a small dock extending out from the shore and watched the setting sun brush the water with golden accents, I realized just how much I was going to miss this country: its people, wildlife, landscapes, beaches and culture were unparalleled. If I ever return to Africa, Tanzania is one the places that I would definitely return to without hesitation.


The following morning we were starting the next leg of our journey and follow in the footsteps of our European forefathers: we would be circling Lake Victoria in search of the source of the Nile. We had been called Mzungu for over a month by this point, it was now time for us to earn it!