Noticing the Little Things

I've surpassed the half-month mark living in Dar and continue to enjoy living here. A few things I've noticed recently include:

- I eat a lot of peanut butter here. A lot.

- A group of us met up for dinner at the Sweet Eazy, a sorta-Thai restaurant, as Thursday night has a live jazz band. From 8-10pm the band catered to the muzungu crowd with an incredible mix of American favorites – I requested my favorite song of all time, Toto’s “Africa” – they didn’t know it. I wasn’t being trite – you would think it’d be the cornerstone of their muzungu repertoire. Perhaps my other favorite song of all time, Tupac’s “Changes” would have been a better bet. I was sorta surprised since they rocked out on Haddaway’s “What is Love?”. However, the band then later switched over to new and old Tanzanian favorites, and it was awesome.

- Going to the lady’s bathroom at popular restaurants and bars is always an interesting observation to the “working lady” world of primping, lip lining (no lipstick to fill, just a strong liner), and trash-talking commentary (in Swahili), etc. Talk about competitive markets.

- I love mango juice.

- I now squish bugs with my fingers or hands without problem when they are crawling on the table or at work or in the car, etc. Not a big deal.

- Jackie’s is a local Tanzanian place (for 4,000 Tanzanian shillings, or just over $3) where you get the legit food and fare. Your meal is served on an aluminum tray that is best described as a TV-dinner tray – with compartments. Assigned to each of those compartments is a ball of rice, a bit of sauce, some beans, boiled cabbage, and 2 sticks w/ meat on it like a kebab. This stuff made my stomach hurt a lot, so I am staying away more often than I dine-in, but the price can’t be beat.

Jackie’s is also the hub of getting pirated movies from the guys who approach your table selling dishtowels, DVDs, plastic things, etc. You can get most movies you can think of (or many you have never heard of) for about $3. The DVD is not guaranteed to be in English, might not have the entire movie or series, and might also not have fully digitized action scenes - a pre-pre-director's cut, if you will. That said, I’ve seen Vicky Christina Barcelona, The Wrestler, Wolverine, Gomorroa, etc. Chris, one of my roommates, just got Slumdog Millionaire. As there is not much to do after dark beyond going to a restaurant or bar, this has been a good thing.

- The smells of Tanzania are many – swinging the pendulum from fragrant to potent. A common smell is the musty, smokey aroma of burning garbage. It’s seemingly everywhere and I guess it depends on what you are burning to determine the sweet or sour behind the smell. It’s sorta like “speed compost”. The askari (gate keeper) of our compound filled in a few holes along the dirt road the other day w/ a mixture of dried grass and burned garbage. Good man.

- My basic Swahili is getting good enough that I open with typical meeting introductions before switching back home to English. People from the Ministry of Agriculture to the Tanzanian Investment Center have laughed at me, in a conciliatory, yet praising acknowledgment that I have limited vocab, but have made a strong effort. People here laugh a lot, actually, which is good.

- I am a huge fan of Tangawizi, a Coca-Cola product, that is ginger beer. It’s way out there on the sweet side, but nice to have. In fact, it is pretty delicious. Ginger beer + rum = dark & stormy, which is also good.

- One of my favorite ads that I pass when driving into City Center is “A little bit of Texas in Dar.” It features a guy w/ a cowboy hat. It is undoubtedly out of place. And it advertises a casino that isn’t really located in Dar. But, way to represent, Texas.