Leaving Malawi Through Tanzania

Leaving Malawi after three and a half years was emotional and full of many watery-eyed goodbyes, but also exciting as we now have two and a half months of travel ahead before we return back to the States for Christmas.  

Earlier this week, Paul and I began our Close-of-Service trip as we crossed the Songwe border from Malawi and into the beautiful tree-covered lands of Tanzania.

Now, three days later, we are currently sitting at the Tazara Train Station, in the city of Mbeya. Some small child is coughing on me while he watches me write this blog post (which I must say somehow feels normal and expected). The train was supposed to depart at 4:00pm, but it’s already 5:37pm and it hasn’t even arrived (again this feels expected). We have a long train ride ahead - 18 hours is what the sign reads - but we’ve heard from other travelers that it can take almost 30. I’m trying to have no expectations, as I believe that is one of the best ways to be a happy traveler. I’m lucky to have Paul as a travel buddy, because he’s good at reminding me of this. Plus, waiting doesn’t have to be waiting if you use the time for something else - like writing a blog post...so here it goes! 

Paul and I have only been in Tanzania a few days - and only really in the city of Mbeya - but already the differences from Malawi seem stark. Many think that the continent of Africa is just one big similar place (some even think it’s one country...if that’s you, do some research buddy!), and maybe for someone who has only spent a short amount of time here the differences between countries wouldn’t seem so noticeable. But after being completely submerged into Malawi for the time we were, Tanzania has so many distinct differences that it feels like we are much farther from Malawi than a five hour dala dala (a minibus in Malawi - see something different already) ride.

Let’s start with what feels like the biggest difference. The language. In Tanzania the main language spoken is Kswahili, and besides learning how to say Hakuna Matata when I was five years old from the movie Lion King, I know nothing. This has made me feel really disconnected with Tanzania thus far. Not being able to understand any of the short conversations on the bus, greet new friends, or ask for the price of a bottle of coke seems so strange and different from Malawi, where Chichewa became very familiar. To try and change this feeling of disconnection, over the course of the last three days, I’ve been trying to learn the major greetings. I’m happy to say I can now ask for the cost of something I want to buy, and little by little I’ve felt more comfortable. I obviously won’t be learning a ton of Kswahili, as we are only here for two and a half weeks, but it is amazing to me how important it felt to at least make an effort to learn a bit. The other differences may seem minute for some, but for us they are worth sharing. Like the fact that in Tanzania there are trees everywhere!! This stuck out to us minutes after we crossed the border. Tanzania is so green, and beautiful. Unlike Malawi, where the northern region has the fastest deforestation rate in this region of the world, Tanzania has trees on trees on trees. The public transport is so colorful. Pinks, blues, greens, and yellows. I don’t think I saw more than a handful of white buses. Each bus in Mbeya was a different color and looks like it’s straight out of Japan with the little cartoon creatures painted on the sides. Even the tuktuks were decked out...oh and I saw a women driver! The newspaper stalls have like 10-20 different newspapers...and there’s an actual stall, not just someone selling them on the street. Every time we pass a stall, I have to stop and wait for Paul as he stares mesmerized at each individual paper. In Malawi, we had The Nation and The Daily...basi.

Even the way women present their vegetables for sale at the market isn’t the same. In Malawi, tomatoes and onions are stacked in little bundles, and you buy the bundle for a small cost. But here, it’s just a pile and they are sold per kilogram. A difference so small, but yet when we walked through the food market, I whispered to Paul, “where are the tomato stacks?”

Water is for sale everywhere. And not tap water being sold in reused bottles. Brand new, sealed water bottles. And Tanzanians are buying them...frequently. I don’t think I ever saw sealed water bottles sold on the street in Malawi (they are in small groceries yes, but it’s not the same). The list continues with bus drivers asking for money by jingling coins next to your ear, WiFi available for free at lodges, and the fact that there’s a passenger train that is carrying more than cargo. I know it’s only been three days, but it’s hard not to feel like Dorthy in the Wizard of Oz....“We’re not in Malawi anymore, Toto.”

#costrip