First lodgings in Africa and other Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Hotel/Accommodation Reviews

It was 10 PM local time when we finally landed in Dar es Salaam - after a direct charter-flight from Toronto, Canada. We were all very jet-lagged (see my Transportation tips) and it was dark, so I have no idea where we actually spent our two nights in the city. However, this photo shows some of the tropical huts where our group of volunteers spent our first nights in Africa. The thatched roof buildings and surrounding palm trees still look good to me!

Unique Qualities: I remember being struck by the sweet and beautiful smell of African vegetation after disembarking from our flight - it was so strong that it hit like a wave! It was only later that I was able to determine that it was due to Frangipani blossoms, after coming across them in later African travels. The second photo shows my (later) wife Sue beside a Frangipani tree just outside Kruger National Park in South Africa during our 1995 trip there. Although now thriving in all tropical areas of the world, they have all been transplanted from their original home in the area of Mexico, Central America and Venezuela. In my jet & culture-lagged condition, the only other thing I remember about these accommodations is that we slept beneath mosquito nets - something I had never done before and only very rarely since in my 6-years of tropical living in Africa and Papua New Guinea.

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With our group of 110 volunteers having spread out and joined those from previous years who had also been posted to Tanzania, Kenya, Malawi and Zambia, it was common practise when roaming around to stay with your 'contacts'. It not only made for a very handy accommodations network, but also allowed you to benefit from catching up on the news of friends as well as having an expert local guide at no cost. Of course, you were expected to return the favour in your home town. When I returned to Dar es Salaam in October/November, 1973 on my long trip to Tanzania and Kenya, I linked up with one of the guys from my group, along with an Austrian chap, Josef, who I had met on the bus trip into the country from the Zambian border.

Unique Qualities: These houses were solidly built of materials that termites could not eat, had high ceilings for heat dissipation and usually 'burglar bars' on all the windows. They also usually were located in nicely treed grounds such as the one shown here as Josef steps outside for a look around. Inside was the usual furniture and basic items such as stove, refrigerator, washing machine, shower, nice bedrooms and so on. The thing that I remember as being noticeably different from my flat in Luanshya, Zambia was that the occupants of this house had to have water-filled cans around the legs of all bureaus that held food items - to keep the ants at bay!

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