Welcome to Tanzania

Hi everyone,

It’s time for me to tell you a little bit more about my new home. I now live in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania with Mama Bridget, her niece Monica, the boy Julius and her 6 dogs. I have my own room with a bathroom, a fridge, a fan and a water cooler. There are pictures of Jesus everywhere and a sign that reads «Jesus is coming» over the doorway so I feel somewhat protected. I also feel lucky because there are 2 television sets and they both have some English channels. I watched the Tanzanian version of American Idol last night. I also don’t have to cook or wash my clothes anymore because Julius takes care of that for me.

Dar Es Salaam is VERY different from Kigali. The city is much more developed and you can find anything your heart desires. This is because the city is on the Indian Ocean and lots of goods pass through the port. There are also skyscrapers, shopping centres, fancy restaurants and supermarkets. There is even a Pepsi vs. Coca-Cola marketing war going on unlike in Kigali where people don’t even know Pepsi exists.

Another cool thing about this place is its proximity to the Ocean. It kinda has a California feel to it, except with a lot more black people and Indians and less Hummers. Last weekend we went to the beach and I got to swim in the warm Ocean water.

Some of the less appealing aspects of the city is that it’s dirty compared to Kigali, mosquitos are everywhere and it’s damn hot. With an average of 30 degrees, I feel sticky 24 hours a day and sleeping without any air conditioning is driving me crazy. I am even starting to enjoy taking cold showers every day (yeah I have a shower now).

It’s also a more dangerous place. Whereas in Kigali I could walk in the streets at 3AM in the morning without any problems, here, Coco Beach is just a 10 minute walk away, but I am still too scared to go alone.


As for work, it is also very different. I work at Dunduliza, the company that oversees a network of 35 SACCOs (basically credit-unions). The network is structured a lot like Desjardins back home and each SACCO is an independent coop, rather than a branch agency of a private entity. Some SACCOs are located in very remote rural areas not even accessible by car and employ 1 or 2 people. The goal is to make this network financially viable by the end of 2009 (this is no easy task). Right now, a lot of funds come from the government who is trying to encourage development through microfinance loans.

As for friends, I have been hanging out with a Rwandan called Maurice. He is the nephew of my boss and has lost both his parents. His goal is to go to Canada to study nursing, like his sister. He is a courageous guy who has tasted both the tough life and the good life and knows what he wants. We plan on going to eat sushi sometime this week.

Alright, that’s it for now. Hope everyone is doing well back home in the cold. I would gladly send you some of this heat if I could.