Ding ding, round three!

The last two months in the UK, now that I’m sat back here in Nairobi, seem almost like a blur, like it never happened, like I have just lost two months of my life altogether, but that couldn’t be further from the truth! I have achieved a lot in these last 8 weeks, much more than I anticipated, and despite not really getting out there and seeing everyone that I had hoped for, lots of positives can be drawn from it all.

First off, a surprise collection at Heathrow, when Jess was there to greet my blurry-eyed self as I crossed customs and entered the UK proper. Our friendship has taken a beating since I left, and it was just awesome to see her and sort this all out in a friendly way. I owe her a lot for her support over the years, and have done very little to show her that, so I also made the effort to get to London to her new place in Stoke Newington last month, and even managed to catch up with a few more old faces from uni at the same time. A couple of pints later and on the bus towards Cornwall, it was so nice to be picked up by my mum, and taken back to Grandma’s house. I went to the hospital the next day, and every day that week to talk to her, tell her about my life, and help mum organise her release and final move to the retirement home down in Andover. This is not an easy task for her, and I think she really appreciated me being there to help her. It felt hard enough seeing my Grandma so poorly lying there, I can only imagine what it must be like for my mum, seeing her own mum there. It’s not all over yet, as I know mum is still down in Cornwall sorting out the last bits and pieces before she heads back to Scotland, and she has done an amazing job holding it all together, leaving her own home and losing her job after spending nearly four months away from home. Her new boyfriend David has been more than spectacular in supporting our family through this, so it was really good to finally meet him in Bristol when they popped up for the day. There is more about my Grandma that I feel, and would like to share, but this isn’t the place for that. Those of you who know me, know what’s happening, and that’s enough.

Once I had made my way to Bristol a week later, it was business as usual, with me arriving at Solsoft on a Monday morning, and within 20 minutes I was back in the fray fixing problems and getting stuck into it. This, in itself, was cool to be able to come back and start work straight away, but it is the effects of my own change in myself, my own new perspective on life, which has made my trip back all the more successful. I have an ability to see problems ahead of me, to guide myself through those problems, and to try to avoid those problems repeating themselves, and this ability comes alive when it is to do with computer systems and technology in general. What has happened, without really doing anything other than my normal job, is that I now effectively have corporate sponsorship, with Solsoft set to double my wages for a bit of my time each month. £150 doesn’t sound like much, but with this extra money, my own enterprises and aspirations for my future in East Africa can come alive, as I can now afford to start renting a flat in Moshi or Arusha, and will almost certainly have a decent broadband connection within the next few weeks. A big thank you goes to my colleagues there for spotting some potential in what I do, and their willingness to support me and my endeavours. It would have been very easy to treat the position as a stop-gap, as just another job, paying me money so I can get back out here, but with a little effort, and a little rallying of troops, what I have now, along with my experience in Tanzania, is the potential for this to turn into management, with an opportunity put on the table that will see me taking a step back on the problems of our customers, and trying to identify trends and wider issues that the day to day support team don’t really have time to look for. This is more than just a bit exciting, because it is proof, to everyone around me and most importantly to myself, that I can do this, I am in the right game, and that in doing it my own way, I have found the path for me, that works, and that makes me happy. There is such a thing as having the best of both worlds, having your cake and eating it… however you want to put it, I’m all set for this to be the rest of my life. To quote the Chemical Brothers (as you all know I love quoting artists lyrics)…. It began in Africa.

So I’m back here at Milimani backpackers, where my journey back to the UK began in February. I am sitting here in the same seat, sat next to Snoopy (the hostel’s pet dog) and feel a sense of warmth and achievement that I have never felt before… and this is all just to do with family and work in the UK… when I get back to Moshi tomorrow, the real fun begins.

Enough of this, I need some sleep… the flight was awful, with only 84 people on the airbus A340 (340 stands for 340 passenger capacity) there was space to spread out, but as soon as I stood up to find a seat, I found all the groups of seats had been taken, and the only spaces where I could stretch my legs were the seats they wanted an extra £30 to sit on… but it was fine for people to take the four seat section in the middle… needless to say, I slept very badly, and my neck hurts, so I have a little single bed all to myself, and as soon as I finish my tea and have a shower, I’m getting some shut-eye to ensure I’m ready for the 10 hour bus journey back to Moshi tomorrow…

One final thing to note..I have a new charger for my camera… so my posts are set to be a lot more colourful this time around… watch this space!

On my way home

Small coffee shop in Arusha, kahawa na maziwa, Tanzanian style, and a somosa with chili ketchup. Life is good eh? I have woken this morning with a painful hangover the likes of which I have not seen in a long time. It’s 11am, the sun is already high in the sky and I am prepared and ready for the slog of a journey ahead of me. My bag is in the Impala hotel ready to be packed onto the bus, and I have two hours to kill before it leaves for Nairobi and the real test of my travelling skills begins. My flight is tomorrow, just after mid-day, which is a shame, because it means I have to stay a night in Kenya’s capital, and lay out money I don’t want to spend, but this is all for the right reasons, and despite the anticipation of the 4200 mile journey back to London, I cannot wait to see everyone, and give my mum a big hug when she picks me up in Exeter on Tuesday morning.

These are trying times for our family, as we pull ourselves together and remember what makes a family a family. Grandma is going through what can only be imagined, and I think understandably, I am very worried about what I am about to witness in the coming days. She is a strong woman, from a strong family; we have had our differences over the years, but what we lack in continual communication and contact, we make up for by all being independent and focussed. Each of us have our lives to contend with, and each of us has a direction in which to travel. It pains me to say that this will be the first time I have seen mum in over a year, the last time being when I was down in Cornwall with Grandma before I left for Africa the first time around. Oh how things have changed in the last year and a half.

My work here in Tanzania continues to enthral and excite me; I am happy with my direction, and I love my life here; but I have been humbled and brought back to reality somewhat by having my brother come to stay with me for three months, and this current news only serves to bolster this new found family connection that I hope does not wither as we part ways again. I am back in the UK for two months only, having cut the initial three month jaunt down due to a discussion with Katy, and my own belief that two months is more than enough to get done what is needed. It’s a real shame that things cannot have been according to the original plan, with my trip now bringing me back to the UK just a month before Lucas represents Tanzania in the Olympics, and I will not be able to accompany him there as I intended. I do however, believe that this is a sign of things to come, and whatever “plans” I have are all going to change as time passes by.

There is some good to have come about through all of this however: my new colleague and trainee techie up on Kilimanjaro has arrived, and despite his job description mentioning nothing of Linux administration or teaching facebook, he has been dumped at the deep end, and will be filling in for me while I am back in the UK. Dave is an ex-volunteer of Katy’s from 2001, and has wanted to return to Tanzania ever since his gap year experience here all those years ago, and now is his chance. He is roughly the same age as me, and exhibits all the traits of a mzungu that I did when I arrived (and continue to do to this day) and is well motivated and charged ready for the onslaught of being alone in the village. He’s a good guy, and I have enjoyed his company so far, and believe he is the perfect addition to our little crew of helpers up the mountain, and I fully expect him to have settled in nicely by the time I return in April. To that end, he has already begun with unravelling some of the mysteries of why we are so quiet and why the villagers are so reluctant to support our work here, and I hope that this marks the end of the politics, as two fresh faces now grace the land and our work continues to grow and evolve.

The charity we all work for, and which brought us both out to Mshiri in the first place, deals exclusively with education, and growing the base of educated people in the Kilimanjaro region of Tanzania. Having been built in 2006 it was first fully kitted out and working, and then left to “rot” as nobody kept it alive or worked on its development. Since I arrived in January last year, things have changed considerably, and with the addition of Dave, I firmly believe we are on the right track to turn this around. Some very positive new connections have been made recently, and a positive meeting with Erwin Groenweld of ViAfrica in Moshi has perked up Katy’s enthusiasm for the centre, and also thrown up a few new, and excellent, ideas that could rescue every dwindling aspect of the work we do. The VTC that Peter is principal of, is moving down to Njia Panda, and with it the use of all the buildings up in Msia-Mshiri that are in use or unfinished. Katy’s many lost nights of sleep have brought her to the conclusion that finishing the accommodation block is an unfeasible waste of donor’s money, but some new insight into it’s use, combined with my own ideas for the computer centre, have perhaps saved it from this doomed future, as we plan a partnership with Erwin to complete construction, and offer the accommodation as part of a “centre of excellence” for IT learning and training, offering intensive residential courses to teachers and groups on a range of information technology subjects. Our aim is to work closely with Viafrica in the short term, to establish a core set of needs between our two organisations, and then share our resources in this way to ensure that we don’t have an empty building up in the village, and help solve some common problems we both face. Seminars, meetings, conferences and pretty much anything could be held there, and not only does it save our face in terms of unfinished business, but will help to keep our charity alive, and even perhaps help it grow into some new markets, and form the second generation of VEPK, with the likes of me and Dave leading the charge to turn this around much more quickly than any of us could have imagined.

So, the container has arrived in Mombasa, and is currently being readied to be brought across Kenya and into Holili where we will collect it. Sadly I am going home and that pile of computers that I have been waiting for, will now have to wait a little longer before I boot them all up, but when I do, it will be for some real purpose. I cannot wait to get the classroom finished, to begin work on the new face of the building as a youth centre for all to enjoy, and then eventually start administering what will be the most high-tech computer lab and training centre that East Africa has ever seen, and all of this right up at 2000m above sea level in one of the most beautiful rural areas of the country.

Its not without a wry smile and knowing gaze that I look out across Arusha this morning, and see my future more clearly than ever before; and that is also building in some unexpected turns along the way. Yes folks, I’m in this for the long term, and can’t wait to be back again.

Heri Ya Mwaka Mpya

So a new year begins. It’s been a while since I have written anything, largely down to Adrian being here, being extremely busy, and having much less time to sit down and think about what has happened to me recently. It won’t surprise anyone who knows me here to find out that I’m sat in the coffee shop in Moshi, with my laptop, as per a usual Saturday afternoon, contemplating what is happening and beginning my future plans for the rest of my life.

Seems crazy that just a year ago I was fresh off the plane and scared out of my mind as to what was going to happen to me here. On a daily basis I was confronted with things that were very difficult to deal with both socially and mentally, given the crazy departure from Bristol in December, and the onslaught of Christmas in Amsterdam that followed. Now suntanned, fairly proficient in Swahili, and in the know as to how things work here and what is expected of me, I am feeling a lot more comfortable and definitely at home in my surroundings. Being the only mzungu (ok not quite the only mzungu but certainly the only person in my particular demographic) is beginning to play less of a part in my daily life, as I become part of the village and cement my intention to commit to Mshiri, commit to Kilimanjaro, and commit to Tanzania.

My girlfriend Nengai, who is a Maasai woman from Nemanga near the border with Kenya, is the most beautiful and well-rounded woman I have met anywhere in the world for a long time, and gives me huge amounts of support and positivity for the future. Not only is she a firm and stable part of my life right now, but unlike nearly every other Tanzanian girl I have met, she has her own goals and ambitions that line up with my own, and not wanting to jinx our relationship, I believe we have a future together. How long that lasts, and what it all entails depends mostly on the decisions I make in the next few months with regard to my living conditions, my working relationships and my achievements going forward.

Now fully working again and pretty busy compared with this time last year, the computer centre has undergone a few changes, for the good, and I hope that this will continue and I will be able to firmly consider my efforts worthwhile and a success. This is in stark contrast to my feelings towards my work at the end of my recent stint in Bristol. I felt very proud to have accomplished something in such a short period of time, but nevertheless felt my work was a little wishy-washy and shallow given the scope of my abilities. Coming back here, and seeing Jasen’s medical centre in full swing made me feel even more so, but it is not purely what you do, but how you do it that is so important in places like this, and on that level I feel I have done something that on the face of it would seem quite difficult, but in reality has been the only way I could have done this: I have made Tanzania my home. Sure if my computer centre was in the centre of a city like Bristol then we would have had income from the word go; I would never have had to deal with half of the challenges I’ve faced whilst being here; but then that is exactly why I chose this place, and this line of work in the first place. I need life to be difficult. I need to be faced with adversity in everything I do, and despite my moaning and whining about various aspects of life here and back in the UK, I think I am right in thinking that without these challenges I would have gone back by now, and certainly wouldn’t be planning what lies ahead.

For my work to be a full success, and in that I mean worthwhile and profitable, it needs to work without me here. On that front, Adrian and I have developed a plan that I feel will give the computer centre a longer life and more sustainability without a huge outlay from the charity, or any real input from anyone else other than me. The three-storey building that houses my office, classroom and public computer room is known by all and sundry in the Marangu area, yet we still only have four or five visitors each day. Should this continue unabated then it will have to close at some point, rendering a lovely big building completely useless, and another failed attempt by wazungu visitors to achieve the impossible. I am determined to turn this around. First off is a rethink of the internal layout and daily function of the building, timed with the arrival of new computers and hardware that I believe can move us forward and begin profitability. It works on several fronts: each day we have visitors who are mostly interested in viewing their emails, getting in contact with external ex-clients of theirs who have promised some sponsorship money or help after coming here as a tourist and climbing the mountain; then there are the few interested teenagers who have very little to do other than tend to their families plots and look after the animals and try not to get into trouble; and finally the out of work women who really don’t realise that there is a future for them outside of default marriage and motherhood. To break these down even further, requires looking at the various things these people do when they are not coming to visit the centre, and try to provide something that fits in with their lifestyle, opens opportunities for them, but at the same time is not just some outsider’s view of what they need. Sustainability is paramount, and without a real plan of how we are going to keep all of these people interested in what we do and get them involved, there is little chance of much more success than that which we have already accomplished. Will it continue as-is or find some new use that has yet to be found? A meeting with Erwin Groenveld of Viafrica (link) provided me with some excellent ideas as to how we can co-operate in our work, and I hope that by offering a more state of the art facility, coupled with the accommodation on the top floor, there is plenty of scope for the centre to live on as something wholly different to what it is now.

Second to overcome are the technical challenges of what I am about to propose. Luckily, I am good at these things, renowned for getting something out of nothing, and committed to finishing what I have started (even if this is possibly the first time I can say that of my life and work). Using what we have and what is on its way to best effect is what consumes my idle thinking.

So enough of this arbitrary banter, and on to the nitty-gritty!!

As you walk through the doors at the main entrance, currently there is only one way to go, and that is left, directly into the room that most of the time has Doreen sitting there fairly blankly waiting for something to happen. This is going to be my teaching room. The benches that are now all around the edge of the room are to be improved with the addition of new benches from the classroom that will then hold eight desktop PC’s all facing towards the whiteboard which will double up as projector screen. The network switch, server and other network hardware, including the as-yet un-built ESXi server with my AD domain and TS server cluster virtualised within will also be in the room, and be accessible for workshops and advanced network analysis and training sessions. Something I think that Erwin will be helping me achieve. This room has to serve several functions, so at its core will be a range of diversity in what can be offered technically. Each machine will be based on Ubuntu 11.10, having recently rediscovered the distribution and found it incredibly simple and effective, especially on the older hardware we have available. This can be supplanted by each one being Windows XP dual boot, taking up very little disk space, and finally the piece de resistance is that each one will have a legal and bound Terminal Services license meaning I can manage and rollout a full domain-controlled Windows Server 2008 R2 environment with Windows 7 desktops on each computer. This range of different environments means we can teach, train and work with nearly all the various technologies used by corporations and institutions worldwide, and I really hope it helps us to bring the computer centre into full profitability in the very near future. Moving round the corridor and into what is now my classroom will be a store room and workshop. Here we can keep the unused hardware, peripherals and spare parts, as well as having an area for builds and rebuilds that currently have to happen in full view of the customers. In line with what I’ll lay out below, this room will also house a small fridge and food/drink making facilities and storage for sundries and consumables.

Upstairs is where the exciting stuff really begins. Right now it is merely a small office tucked away in the corner for Katy, Dilly and George, and a bright and airy empty space that is used just once a week by the local Vicoba (village community banking) group for just a few hours. It is huge, with a floor area over twice the size of the now-computer room and soon-to-be classroom, and is a perfect space to introduce something new to the village. We plan to bring in a pool table, a book shelf, fix some laptops to the desks and also put some sofas around the outside, to effectively create a youth centre that offers a real alternative for young people to come and spend time and do something positive. The concert we put on last year proved that there are a huge number of young and able people in the village who crave something exciting to do, and giving them somewhere to go, offering basic amenities like coffee, tea and light bites, and all for very little cost, should encourage some of these bright youngsters to sit and play computer games, watch movies, read books and stay away from the bars and mbege holes that are sapping their enthusiasm for anything other than getting drunk in their free time. It’s a big project to undertake, and not without its technical challenges like the other parts of the proposal: this needs to work whether power is supplied by Tanesco or not. It needs to be cheap, if not wholly free, for most people to come and spend time, and above all, it needs to appear and be run like it was always here and is meant for all people of Mshiri to come and utilise.

So am I busy? The hours I spend at nights watching movies and enjoying walking Zawadi around the village would invite anyone to assume that this is a jolly and a big expenses paid holiday, but the truth could not be farther from it. I am developing an IT strategy and curriculum that takes the needs of the average Tanzanian to heart and also actively thinking about my impact on the community and my place within it. This is far from over, and far from being exactly how I want it, and for that reason, I am here to stay. My girlfriend Nengai agrees with me, that Tanzania needs things like this to happen, but my aim is not to give give give, but to implement, provide support and then step back. This centre, when finished and operational, will be the centre of the village, the centre of the surrounding villages, and an iconic vision of what is possible if you put your mind to it. Give me more time, and you will see for yourselves what is possible with a little less selfishness, a little less haste, and a strong sense of direction.

Watch this space in the coming months, and as soon as my camera battery charger arrives, I will share with you the development of this project, and hope to welcome some of you as visitors in the future. Karibu sana!

Back in the game

Adrian has arrived. In my mind that is the single most pertinent point I can think of writing about, as what a difference it has made and what a wicked time the two of us are having together. It’s not without a huge sense of pride that I sit here, in the garden of the Coffee Shop in Moshi, with a hangover, supping my cappuccino and waiting for breakfast to arrive. We are here, in my favourite part of my favourite town in northern Tanzania, drinking the best coffee the world has to offer, and contemplating the night behind us and how mad it has been over the last few days.

Monday, 7am, I leave my house, send Zawadi up to the Lula’s and begin my journey south, one that will take me the best part of the day to complete and one that will start with a brisk walk to Nakara, a taxi down the mountain to Marangu, then a short Dala dala ride down to Himo then Njia Panda and my awaiting chariot: The Dar Express, which on paper boasts hospitality, comfort and speed on my transfer to the capital. On arrival at the bus stand I ordered the mandatory chai na maziwa (milky tea) and chipsy mayai (you all know this by now!) and when the bus arrived, I boarded and then stocked up with crisps, water and a couple of sodas from the bibis selling their wares to the passengers through the windows. Now, I’m fully aware of how far Dar is from Marangu and the mountain, but travelling for that period of time in Tanzania is not as straight forward as it sounds. First off, you are in a coach that has seen better days. There are several other bus companies, but the Dar Express is one of the better known and more reputable firms and after Katy had assisted me with getting the ticket in the first place, I was happy to be on my way for the going rate, on a bus where the driver accepted my crumpled paper receipt as proof of purchase and let me on, for me to find that the bus had plenty of empty seats, and I had room to spread out, a decent window opening to counter the oppressive sun and mid-morning heat, and to my surprise, a fully stocked chill box with water and a free soda for everyone on the way. We stopped at a little highway restaurant, where I was able to smoke and pee, before the rest of the journey unfolded. Heading south along the western fringe of the Usambara mountains, the bus snaked its way down through the lower eastern rift valley with poise and precision, often missing oncoming vehicles by as little as a few centimetres. Having been here long enough now to trust the drivers and their unfailing skill at being deft with the laws of road traffic, I let Bob Marley take me down the road, I fell asleep to Legend again, and smiled as I remembered this very emotion crossing my mind while he calmly told me to stir it up, and I drifted away.

Several hours later, and now fairly sketched out at the whole idea of being on my own way farther away from my normal living conditions than I care to admit, I woke as we entered the sprawling reaches of outer Dar Es Salaam, and just like my first visit to Arusha earlier in the year, was amazed to see how developed the city is and revel in the contrast to my home up on the mountain. As with all the more modern places, the touts are up to speed, and their English on a level with that in Nairobi or Mombasa, and it wasn’t long before I was in a taxi on my way into town, having the familiar conversation arguing over how far it was, how much I should pay, and trying to convince the driver that I was not a tourist, but actually working here for very little money, but as is often the case, it fell on deaf ears, and I was indeed ripped off by around Tsh 15,000 (about £6) before arriving at the hotel I had chosen from the lonely planet guide the day before. The Jambo Inn Hotel, as described by the guide, is Dar Es Salaam’s premier and best-known backpacker hostel, and I was greeted by the owner, Rashid, who then upgraded me for free to an air conditioned room once he heard about the fiasco with the taxi. Later in the room, after re-reading the guide again, I found the warning about those drivers taking people from inside the bus station, and realised that I already possessed the skills necessary to fend these people off, and I just wish I had been a bit more awake and alive and I would have saved the money, and face, before settling down for the night.

Adrian’s flight was delayed, so around 4am, we left the hotel in a pre-paid airport transfer Rashid had organised for me, and whilst in the arrivals hall, I got chatting with some others who were waiting for friends on the same flight. Alex, a bright and lively chap who lives on Zanzibar, came up to me immediately and began a conversation, and within minutes we were happily nattering away discussing the state of the nation, and I realised that he not only came from the area in which I now live, but went to school with Bob, and had been taught by Katy in the past. It is indeed a small world, and here in Tanzania, it takes very little to feel part of the furniture. I took Alex’s number, and when Adrian arrived, the sun was rising over Dar, and the morning heat haze hung low over the city shrouding it in a mosquito net of rising dew as the blue sky broke through. East Africa’s main port of entry for all cargo bound from China and India is a melting pot of different cultures and people from all over the world. The architecture is a mix of Arabian and colonial. Long boulevards llined with trees separate the dusty side streets from the neighbours, and as the people start about their day, the quiet, almost eerily silent roads of the city centre become alive with the people of Tanzania setting up their stalls and carts for another busy day in the capital. After leaving the comfort of the air conditioning, it was quite shocking how hot and humid it is there; we walked along the northern peninsula, past the government owned houses of dignatories and foreign visitors and rounded the journey right back in the heart of the city, and entered a small little restaurant, as I wanted Adrian to experience some of the local charm and hospitality before we found the Mzungu bars and clubs that he knew we’d end up in that night. We checked all the streets for a bar, a beer, anywhere to just sit in the shade and take in the surroundings, but unlike everywhere else I have been in Tanzania, it’s almost impossible to find these places, as most of them are second floor, and none of them are advertised with the fairly common signs promoting Kilimanjaro or Serengeti beers like Moshi or Arusha. We had booked our return journey to Marangu, and even found a bus company that would pick us up from the square down the road from the hotel, luckily saving us from having to deal with another local tout taxi driver, so returned to the hotel to recharge and shower. Alex was on the phone, inviting us out to his local area just outside the city, so we grabbed a taxi, and before long were sitting in a bar in the north eastern corner chatting and drinking nice cold beer. Having just arrived, Adrian was putting on a good show of form, and we were having a classic night out until we returned to the hotel to find I had left my phone in the taxi. Just one moment’s mistake had basically left me without communication, and I was massively upset with myself, as my little android had made its way to Africa and back with me and had been my companion for over a year, and was now gone. I’m leaving it at that, because my true feelings about this are not really suitable table conversation, and certainly won’t pass the bad language filters. I’ve looked in the shops and am searching ebay and everywhere else for a suitable replacement, but anyone reading this with a semi-decent froyo/gingerbread android phone that needs a new home, hit me up… I’ll gladly take it off your hands J

“Underwear is the worst invention ever” Adrian said to me on the return to Marangu as we stood outside the bus at the highway restaurant smoking a cigarette and contemplating our hangovers. On return to the bus, the sweaty and now rather moist seats we had occupied for the last four hours did not appeal to our longing for bed and relaxation, but delivered us back to Njia Panda in good shape, and now back on familiar territory, I took up the mantle of guide, and tried to cram in as much information to Adrian’s experience as I could.

A couple of days of standard life in Mshiri and once again we’re back on the road and down to Moshi. Its Friday evening getting dark, but we had to wait for the rain to stop before we could head out otherwise we’d just be soaked before we even left Marangu. On the dala dala Adrian had a prime experience of what it can be like, with an over-eager local keen to be our friend on the way down to Himo, and a few minutes later, a goat was shoved into the back of the van and bleated its way all down the highway to Moshi. Chris and Liz were waiting for us at Deli Chez, my favourite little restaurant just up next to the Coffee Shop on Kilima Road, and we all had what is described in the guide book, and certainly confirmed by our contented smiles afterwards, as the best indian cuisine outside of the UK or India itself. Well-presented and tasty Jalrezi chicken, kheema beef and nyaniaini lamb khofta all served in a traditional candle-lit bowl, came in, with drinks, at under Tsh 10,000/= each. That’s a little more than 4 euros.

Sitting back and chatting away about our experiences here in Africa, the phone rings, and it’s Jasen, sounding a little worried. Lucas, Junior and Hassan are in jail, and despite only hearing my end of the conversation, all at the table started frowning at hearing me say that word, and eager to find out what had happened. I needed to go down to the police station and get them out. Lucas had driven to Moshi from Arusha, had picked up the others, and essentially was tasked with getting Jasen’s sofa and other last few bits and pieces from the old house in Moshi and taking them down to the medical centre. Unfortunately, Lucas had forgotten to take the keys with him, and when he and the others tried to climb the fence and find a way inside the house, the neighbours had called the police and they were being held for breaking and entering in a very sweaty room being interrogated by a pretty scary looking Tanzanian man, twice my size. I explained my connection to these guys, explained why I was there to help them, my friends, and although I didn’t really do anything, I felt my presence there had definitely sped things up somewhat and within 20 minutes we were out on the street and ready to party. It was Friday night, we were in Moshi and that can only mean one thing, Glacier bar and a whole load of beer. Safaris all round, then out came the Konyagi, which Adrian had to try at some point, and no time like the present, within a couple of hours we were all laughing and joking together round the table. I was pleased to see Liz and Chris having a good night, and I sat back with a wry smile as I realised once again, that I am having the time of my life here and I’m in no rush to go back to how things were before this all started.

So we’re together, and it’s awesome to have my little brother here with me in my little paradise up on the mountain.

Nimerudi Nyumbani

(I’ve returned home)

I’m not one for ever having a feeling of belonging or identity, having lived in so many different places across the UK, and now Tanzania, but I do have a massive sense of nostalgia coming back here, not just in country, but finally now back home in my little place up in the village. Having spent some time down in Arusha, and if I’m honest all I did was party for three days, it feels really good to be back in rural Africa. The difference in culture, just between Arusha, Moshi and here in Marangu and Mshiri is huge, and hits you in the face in such an amazing way, that describing it can be difficult if not nigh on impossible. The daladala back to Marangu last night gave me my first taste of things to come, as I sat in the rearmost seat, arm hanging out the window, and as we rose up above 1200m the rain began to fall and I got soaked. Once at the bus stand the normal riffraff of touts and locals came to find out what I was doing, and probably for the first time I was really glad to see some of their faces. These are the guys who hassle, sell and generally annoy every mzungu who goes through their pitch, but last night I needed their help and after giving out a couple of cigarettes and the normal exchange of words I was in a taxi for a good price up to Mshiri. Then comes the road situation. However bad most people who visit the general beaten track here think of the roads, nothing compares to the rocky and often incredibly steep tracks that you need to negotiate in order to get up to the village. From Marangu itself, we climb another 400m up the mountain almost to the Marangu gate entrance to Kili national park, and then you veer off into the dark, unlit tracks of Mshiri and Mbahe to finally come to rest outside Katy’s house at the top of the hill. I’ve done that journey many times, but it never ceases to be a journey I will always revere in and enjoy. Your ears pop three times on the climb from the main road at Himo to Mshiri, and once there, the air is fresher than anyone in Europe can imagine. Apart from the taxi I arrived in, suitably bashed, dented and cracked, covered in premiership football teams logos and stickers, and a tacky sign on the front window saying “mungu ni uhai” – god is life – as per the norm here, and a few vehicles belonging to others that work for our project, there really isn’t any traffic, so pollution is something that locals here just don’t really get. I walked with my bags down to my own house at the back of Dilly’s family estate, and here I was again, back to my little house on the hill, my little kitchen and shower/toilet room, the smell of fresh coffee brewing in the pot, and my bed, made for me by Anna, who was waiting in the house for me with some food ready. This is the life eh? Well for some, this may seem meagre and modest, but to me, it is home, and it’s amazing to be back amongst the people of Mshiri, those who make me feel so welcome, and those whose hospitality is on a par with any hotel I have stayed in.

I’m home, and it’s damn good to be back J

Back In Africa

It is not without a huge sigh of relief and a broad smile on my face that I find myself sitting here with my laptop in Arusha writing the first blog post of my second stint in Tanzania. Who would have thought it, just twelve months ago I was getting myself ready to plunge into the unknown and leave everything behind. Months later I am actually living in a village with local people learning a new language and only imagining how my life was back in the UK before I left. I had dreams of Big Macs and clean pavements; of flat, well-surfaced roads and highways; and of my friends… and when I finally saw them again it brought a overwhelming sense of warmth and love for my life and literally everything in it.

Moving forward, and now I am back. I spent two weeks in Amsterdam with Adrian and Lisette and partied my ass off for the entire time. She is going through a rough time at the moment, and has now gone back to Portugal to start mending those wounds. Was so good to see her, to spend some much needed time hanging out and catching up, and again was quite painful saying goodbye; but we did at least part on very good terms this time, with no part of our relationship under any kind of doubt. We know where we stand, and just like every other time I have said goodbye to her, it won’t be the last kiss – she really is amazing, and I just wish I could be there for her the way I want to. Perhaps she’ll come out to Tanzania and stay with me, perhaps she will find her perfect man and get married, who knows, but one thing is for sure, it is better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all.

Adrian on the other hand is moving on with his life and as my little brother, a friend and a great guy to boot, I’m so proud of him. He has taken his problems – which are many, and none of them are his fault – on the chin and taken methodical and encouraging steps to improve his situation in all aspects of his life. I’m so happy to say that I’ll be meeting him at the airport in Dar Es Salaam next week as he has signed up to join me up on the mountain for some much needed time away from Amsterdam. I hope he enjoys it, and more than that I hope that he sees what I see about this amazing country and finds the time to make Africa part of his life. It’s addictive to say the least, and knowing he is the same as me, I’m sure he’s going to love it here.

Next up was a brief, but fun trip to Denmark, landing in Copenhagen late on Friday night to see my lovely ladies Lisa and Tine. It was a long drive back up north to Arhus where they live, but once we were there, they treated me to a weekend of typical Danish frolics: we got very drunk – the details of this are not that wholesome for family viewing, and probably best left to memory, but I had a really good night, met loads of their friends, and even met a new recruit to the Tanzania party, Maj will be joining me up on Kilimanjaro in February as she begins work for an NGO in the next village over, in the Marangu area. Lisa said to me on Sunday morning, that it was great to have me back, and she loved having a hangover with me more than anyone else. Aww… I love both of them with all my heart, and really hope that they get the chance to come back out here when they get back from Australia.

At present I’m still in Arusha, straightening my affairs and catching up with friends, new and old, and slowly pulling myself back into the way of things here. I have collected my bike, swapped the gear shifters, changed the brake disks, realigned the derailleurs, had my wheels rebalanced professionally, and put on my new tyres: Maxxis high rollers, which are just awesome, and apart from looking absolutely fabulous on the rockhopper, they are sure to give me those precious few kph extra on my downhill runs on Kili, I can’t wait to get her back up there! It’s good to be reunited with my steed, look out for photos of my runs around northern Tanzania in the coming weeks, I plan to break my record of 88 minutes from home to Moshi.

Back to the work side of things, and I’m going to be so busy in the coming months, that its hard to know where to start. The container of motor vehicle maintenance equipment and computer parts, now over six months delayed, is finally being put together and will be joining us out here in the new year. Inside I have a whole raft of goodies on the way. 24 computers, with another 5 added by John Douglas and his colleagues, 5 laptops, 2 very decent, solid and dependable servers from two different customers at Solsoft, and a box full of bits and pieces. I also have a full 5 seat server 2008 R2 enterprise license, 30 device and TS cals for the workstations, and a full Office 2010 site license. I’m going to have to spend a good while designing the spec, determining the layout and configuration, but essentially this is a geek like me’s wet dream! I have so much kit to play with, and literally endless possibilities for what I can do. We have enough computers to kit out the internet café, to turn the second teaching room into an actual teaching room, and to finally get the whole site up and running on proper UPS power supplies meaning the on/off nature of the power grid in Tanzania will have less impact on my working life, and should enable everything to power down safely with no corruption. Watch this space for a full breakdown of my design and planning phase for this project, my aim is to design and implement a cost effective solution that can be “bought” and installed by other institutions and projects and for this to be my raison d’etre once the system is live and running. All aspects of the problem are to be considered, and my system should be able to handle whatever the needs of the end user are, not least of which is a solid base for teaching, learning, and business continuity. My time at Solsoft has been invaluable in this regard, and I owe a big shout out and thank you to Clive, Matt, Matt, Matt (yes there are three of them) Ray, Phil, Craig, Scott, Louisa, Bryan, Dan, Dan (and two of those too), James, Khalid, Pat, Dawn, Louise, Sam, Mike, and last but not least, my bestest geek friend Luke who put me forward for the job and whose trust got me there in the first place. Look forward to working with all of you again next year!

Alongside my own work in Mshiri and Marangu, having arrived in Arusha and given Jasen a call, he picked me up and took me to his clinic, and it astounds me how far things have come and I am eager to help with my particular field of expertise in whatever way I can. He is a busy man, and an inspiration to anyone who has ever thought of being selfless and doing some development work. What was initially an idea, drunk round the table in Majengo, Moshi back in February, has become a reality, and he now lives at and works in a small building on the plot next to Ally’s orphanage, seeing over 100 patients a day, day in, day out. The support he has is literally mind-blowing, with corporate sponsors in the form of an American drinks company and sports equipment manufacturer, the former deal being worth over $62,000 this year alone, and which also includes a commission on all units sold with the projects branding logo printed on the side. For now at least, funding is not an issue, the only problem Jasen has is staffing. Patients are travelling from all over the country to come and see this amazing American-trained doctor who is performing general doctor duties and surgery, free of charge, to anyone who comes along. Sometimes he has people waiting for 7 or 8 hours at a time, and working with him is an amazing team of volunteers who have come from all over the world to help out. Organisers of NGO’s and other development work in East Africa take note… this is how it should be done. For more information on Jasen’s work, to make a donation, or even to sign up and join us out here in Tanzania to volunteer, head over to their website or facebook page: http://Justusfriends.us

So now, I’m off to pick up my bike from the fundi, dash into town to grab some bits from the supermarket, then back to Jasen’s clinic out south for one last night of Arusha before I head back to Marangu tomorrow. Onwards and forward!!

Bristol and the Brave New World

It’s October, it’s actually quite cold, and it’s nearly time to leave England and get my lily white ass back to Tanzania for the next stint up on Kili. Being back has been a blessing, a curse and a damn good time all at once, with quite possibly the most packed out summer I’ve ever endured. Lots of new friends, plenty of discarded memories via hangovers, and four trips to A & E for various calamatical activities have meant that I’m actually looking forward to a bit of R & R when I get home, a few days to chill out and rid my bike again, re-acclimitise to the altitude and get back into the swing of things.

This time will be different. Not only do I already know what’s going on, where I’m going and what to expect, but I’m far better prepared for it this time. Having spent a small fortune on “things” from the UK, my initial trip out with just a backpack, has been superseded by a return journey with an additional suitcase full of things normally unavailable to your average east african. I shall not be left wanting this time.

It has also been hugely beneficial for me to have spent the last four months working again for Solsoft. At this point I’d like to thank them all for giving me the opportunity to get back into infrastructure support and give me a massive head start on my plans to introduce a fully up to date system for the computer centre that is both robust and adaptable to the needs of a modern learning centre. In addition, a total of 22 desktop computers, 2 decent modern servers and a whole load of other hardware and peripherals have all been donated by solsoft and it’s clients, and will be put to good use – photos and full installation log to follow!

So its time to say goodbye to Bristol and head into the brave new world once again. First stop, Amsterdam, then Copenhagen, my flight to Nairobi is on the 7th of November, then my epic journey will end back in Mshiri just a few days later. Can’t wait to drive across the massai mara, then come back into Tanzania, meet my friends in Arusha, be reunited with my bike and finally arrive, under my own steam, back at home. It won’t be for long however, as on the 15th I shall be down in Dar Es Salaam to meet my brother off the plane, as he has decided to join me for the next three months, and together we aim to climb Kili towards the end of January.

Onwards and forward!