First Christmas in Tanzania. Pt2

Christmas eve and Mags much improved. As is becoming the norm, we get visitors who hold us up from doing as we intended. Qiute early Nai turned up with Veronica and Mary but we didn't have time to entertain their childish pranks.

We went into town to phone home. The Telephone Office was not as busy as I had expected and we quickly spoke to Milly who knew to ring us back (at their cost) so she did and after our talk, Milly rang Marion and she rang the next and so on - call out of Tanzania were expensive as were incoming calls but our rellies were prepared for that.

Back home Mags had baked peanut biscuits, banana cake - choc-iced, made salted peanuts and roasted the leg of mutton and prpared the veges for Christmas day.

Epilogue: Mags had bathed and while I was waiting for the water to heat form mine, we decided to drinkthe last of the brandy Mo had given us. I had taken just one sip when - 'Hodi, hodi!' came from the door. It was Baraka with his friend Daniel!

'Why are you asleep the night Jesus was born?' they asked us.

They had a cassete tape with them that they wanted us to play for them - it was Christmas songs, mostly in Swahili. Heri arrived next and Baraka ducked out to return with a plate of mandazi (fried rice cake). Mama B arrived and with Nai and Olotu, so our house was once more full!

The ukelele came out and Mama B's Hymn Book and the night passed with singing and laughter. Baraka & Daniel left, saying they would return - but they didn't, they had gone 'roaming.'

I made some chai and Mags put out some of her baking and we sat quietly chatting until midnight when we were left to finish our brandy.

Christmas Day: We had arranged for all the family to come at around 8:00am for tea and cake, and Big E arrived to appologise that he could not come - The town had run out of Safari Lager which he required for his Bar (Naabi Hills). He was going around other holels trying to acquire some. This took him the whole day and he returned from time to time to appologise. Apparently the brewery had given the workers the Friday off before Christmas causing a shortage and the cost per crate had been inflated by Tsh3000/-

Big E had a cup of coffee with us at about 11:30am and a late lunch - that was after we had nearly completed our. Josiah arrived with Mama N'gida all dressed in their finery and they partook in some food, but had to dash off elsewhere!

Back to our tea: In they came - Mama B, Baraka, Heri, Olotu, Nai and Helena, they brought with them some mandazi, half cake and a Thermos of tea.

We gave them some small gifts that Verna had wrapped and they were opened with delight and maybe some embarrassment because they had no gift for us. We told them it was out tradition and that their company was the greatest gift for us.

The tea and most of the cake was consumed save for some of the banana cake Mama B wanted to eat later. We sat and listened to the local radio. The reporter was visiting the hospital and interviewing patients who sent their messages out. Mama B & co laughed because often they were asked how they ended up in hospital - the reporter would politely reply, 'Pole sana.'

We enjoyed this time but finally they headed off to prepare lunch.

Mags cut up the pre-cooked leg of mutton while I cooked the spuds and carrots. She also prepared a 'fruit platter' with pineapple, water mellon, papaya and mango.

I tried to snatch a 'quiet time' but some kids called and we had to sing with them, sit and look serious.

We took the food to Mama B's table and she asked us to sit by where she was cooking. I think she was embarrassed that the 1:00pm meal was going to be more like 3:00! We expected that though and is something that must be accepted. They could not prepare things while they were with us and it is difficult to prepare previously without a fridge or ways to keep insects away. And she was cooking with a jiko (charcoal) so it was not easy for her.

Our first Christmas meal was ready and we sat together to eat pilau, roast chicken, chips, the green banana and meat stew (yum), and the food we had brought. We opened out bottle of wine and brought out a crate of soda for the kids. A very pleasant meal indeed!

Josiah and Mama N'gida called again - they had been to church - Mama B found enough food that had been left to offer them a big meal.

Later we sat under the big Casurina tree and talked, making a fuss of wee N'gida who had been born the day we arrived in Tanzania.

As evening fell, we moved to the concrete slab that was Mama B's porch and Mama Lightness, a friend and neighbor of Mama B joined us bringing with her a few bottles of beer. I noticed Bibi, Glory's sister sitting in a quiet corner eating some leftovers - she had been to hospital to visit a friend - she joined us later as we chatted.

When darkness was total, we said our thanks and wished all 'usiku mwema' - good night, and went home. The quiet night was punctuated by music from a Sanawari bar that had music turned up to 500 million decibels! But somehow it was in keeping.

As I lay on my bed, I realised how lucky we were missing nothing from New Zealand - except for the after lunch cricket match. Salaam.

First Christmas in Tanzania! Pt1

On day 129, 23 December, I wrote: 'Tis the Saturday before Christmas - 7:31pm and there is the sound of kids laughing and playing - more than usual - could it be the Chritmas Spirit?

It doesn't pay to plan too much here in Tanzania - the day became eventful!

Mags had been ill with a stomach bug but she ate some of the boiled potatoes and steamed veges that I had prepared for her. It gave her the strength to do some Christmas baking!

Tanzanian people are genuinely concerned when someone is sick and there had been a constant stream of well-wishers. Big E brought in a Catholic Priest who had been visiting in the area.

Mama Baraka's kids had been asking me all week if I would take them up to Glory's place to get a Christmas tree. Glory helped us in the nursery and was Big E's cousin.

It is long up the Sanawari road, actually climbing the slpoe of Mt Meru, and sometimes steep - a slow trip in the wee Maruti. We stopped just inside the gate and Glory's younger sister held my had and welcomed me in English. All of Glory's family were warm and friendly - the last to greet me was her father.

The house was dark and cool, and the man was sitting at the table supping tea. Baraka made sure I had a good seat - a respectful reflection of my status as mzee! The old man spoke to me in English and we chatted for a time.

Bibi, Glory's older sister (who I knew) came to greet me -oh yes, Bibi is Swahili for Grandmother - and while we chatted, Glory arrived with a bucket of water on her head, which was to be our tea. While the tea was being prepared, Bibi placed a shell necklace around my neck - zawadi - a gift from Glory. Glory then produced the family photo album and I browsed through the faces that looked back at me.

While we took tea, Glory fed her infant son, Loveluck - a chubby wee boy who later bounced on my knee as we talked.

It was time to choose the tree! The species choice was Cupressus lusitanica but the was much discussion about which particular one - Baraka, Heri, Nai, Glory, Bibi and Neema. Baraka climbed the tree and cut 4 likelt Chritmas trees - I had thought one, but the rest were for friends! With no rear door on the Maruti, the load was challenging and of course we had passengers on our decent.

After we had unloaded the trees the never lazy and ever reliable Olotu cleaned out the car. While this was going on, I checked on Mags to be sure she was ok, then I went into town to collect the mail and buy our Christmas meat. The leg of mutton weighed 4.5 kg and cost Tsh5000/-. Baraka had appeared by lunch time and he waited until I invited him to join me in a sandwich. Once he had gone, I washed all the clothes that had been storing up since Mags took crook. Washed them by hand in the baby's bath!

Mags went into the bedroom to lie down, and I made a brew and thought to rest and read a book - I had read 10 lines when Nai came in. Then along came Baraka. Then along came Heri. He cruched in between Baraka and I, then to my surprise, he put his finger in my ear to clean out some bogey he had spotted there!

Mags woke to the noise and when Mama B arrived with her Hymn Book, the ukelele was brought out and we had a carol singing session; at the end of which it was decided to decorate the Christmas Tree! Mama B gave money to Baraka to buy some shiney paper from the duka down the road - I suspect he might has used some to buy a sachet or two of Konyagi - meanwhile Heri sat the tree in a bucket by the family's back door.

We had some coloured paper, and Heri stuck some Christmas cards on with tape. Mags added a few lumps of cotton wool to look like snow! Baraka arrived back with not much to add but a happier disposition., so Heri found a roll of purple toiled paper and he strung that around the tree. I showed him how to make a butterfy from it and the tree became covered with those!

We remembered we had some balloons, which were inflated and added to the colour! All this time people were popping in to greet us all.

After a full day, we slept soundly.

Insects and Slugs

My interest in insects goes back to my childhood and for a Cub badge I did an assignment on pond life and drew many pond insects copying a book I had. Actually, I still have that book (albeit thumb-marked) and I have my assignment tucked away somewhere. Oh yes and I still like tadpoles & frogs!
As expected, I became interested in the insects I encountered in Tanzania and took note of them. Chameleons too! There is more to tell about insects, chameleons and frogs once we moved to Makumira; but first : Sanawari.

In New Zealand, cockroaches are around 1cm long and we never saw them at our home, so I was indeed surprised when one skittered across the floor in out house at Sanawari! The thing was as large as a mouse! At least 3cm long. I reached for my trusty fly-swat and was again surprised when it 'outran' me and it flew! I realised early on that big insects can fly in tropical areas because they do not burn up energy keeping warm. Of course the other thing about cockroaches is they they are dirty buggers! So when you see them, you kill them! Sometimes it is not that easy but there was a aerosol product called appropriately 'Doom' - made in Australia, which proved good to combat such pests; but the name made me cautious and I used it sparingly.

One day Baraka decided to burn the accumulated rubbish at the cow enclosure behind our house. It was mainly uneaten maize stalks/banana tree material and a good amount of cow droppings/urine. Well the stink! It lasted for days and the smoke wafted through the house!

We had been collecting beer cans to be used as irrigation containers/mini-reservoirs for our planting projects (somewhere we have a delightful photo of beer cans on a school desk with students listening to my explanation of their use - the pic could have a variety of captions!) Most of them came from a German missionary :-) They were stored in cartons and kept in a back room.

Baraka's fire dislodged the families of cockroaches and many of them sought asylum in out house and more particularly in those beer cans. Of course the could crawl in but they were unable to crawl out! They made their entrance in the night and we were woken by the incessant scratching of a million legs on aluminium! My only course of action was to toss the cartons of beer cans outside into the night!

I had bought some timber and manufactured a set of shelves - much like a bookcase - to stand such things as our tooth brushes, hand soap, shampoo on in our bathroom. One night I happened to go in there with a torch (because there was a power cut) and I spotted a cockroach nibbling on my toothbrush! Next morning I thought it appropriate to have a look at the space between the wall and the shelves, and not surprisingly, there was mama & baba cockroach together with a dozen or so kids! We realised they must have liked their diet of toothpaste and soap and any morsels of food stuck to the bristles of the toothbrushes! I had the 'Doom' can ready and it was Armageddon for that particular family! After that we kept our toothbrushes covered!

The Swahili name for snail is 'konokono' and it is the same word for slug.

Slugs were not welcome in the tree nursery. The did eat some of the foliage, but worse, they damaged some of the seed. Particularly Acacia seed, we would nip the end off the very hard seed coat to allow moisture into the embryo and encourage germination. These slugs would latch onto the damaged part of the seed and suck all the goodness out. These slugs were 10cm long and fat! I you get the slime on your clothes, it is almost impossible to wash it off.

Each morning I would go out to the nursery and kill the slugs! It was not only the big ones, the smaller ones were more numerous! And I had my allies! Siafu! Safari Ants!

Watching Safari Ants is an interesting pastime, reminding me of 'Star Wars'! They are organised and well structured in their behaviour! Again I will write more about them later.

I would kill maybe 40 small slugs each morning and 4, 5 0r 6 large ones. My method was to cut them in half with a sharp pocket knife! Then I would feed them to the Safari Ants! They were not always travelling through in their column, but always there were one or two 'scouting'. Place a piece of slug by one of the scouts, and she (yes a worker) would check it out and go to bring her mates back to cut up and carry their prey back to camp. It truly is fascinating at watch them break up even the large slugs and carry them away. This may involve a team effort to lift the larger pieces.

Siafu are very defensive and will bite! Once one managed to climb my leg and in the confines of my underpants began to defend itself! I was in the middle of an environmental seminar, so had to excuse myself and find some privacy before I could relieve the pain!

Sema Kweli

I will digress from the trip to Mwanza for now.

I have found our Sanawari house on Google Earth and it reminded me that being a suburb of Arusha, it was a noisy place; especially when you compare it to home in rural North Otago, New Zealand.


This is a picture of our house (or the section we lived in) the blue wall center left is the doorway. The widow by the vehicle is our bedroom window, and though it is hard to see there is a little veranda with a cane sofa, just to the left of the vehicle.

One night at about 11:00 pm we were woken by the loud ranting of a drunk man. It sounded awfully close, and he kept repeating the phrase 'Sema kweli' which means ' Is that true?' or 'Are you saying the truth?' or 'Really?'.
This means he would be having a conversation with himself! And actually he was very close, he was sitting on the cane sofa, on the veranda!
Well my first reaction was to chase him away, but Mags counselled me that it may not be safe and that the guy might be a friend of Big E's!

This, I could tell was not a beer-drunk fellow, he had be on something somewhat stronger! Probably the illegal brew piwa - made from bananas and with the ability to rot your boots and remove your eyebrows!
How Mama B did not hear him, I do not know, for her head was just below the window hidden by those bushes to the left of our door!

There was no way we could sleep with this noise going on - I guess out bloodstream was filled with Adrenalin! So I spent my time spying on him through the louvred windows.
Even though I was angry with this man there was mirth too. I feared that he would fall into the hole by the washbasin outlet, but he didn't.
He would walk - stumble around in the semi-dark (we did have a night light at the door) - all the time calling out 'Sema kweli!' in a tone that sounded like he was disgusted with something or other.
He fell off the sofa - more than once; he fell over that rail in front of the veranda, onto the flower bed flat on his back with his feet in the air! He cased the wandering dogs away - more than once. He walked into the Maruti (vehicle) more than once, each time waving his finger at if as if to admonish it - I could not her what he said.
Through the night, I threatened to remove him, but was always vetoed by Mags!

At first light - around 6:00 am I had had quite enough of the 'Sema kweli', and the guy had begun to time as he sat on the sofa. I opened the door and he gave me the respectful greeting, 'Shikamoo mzee.'
'Marahaba.' I replied as I reached for his shirt collar assisting him to his feet. He came along like a dog on a leash.
Out on the road, I asked him which direction was his home and he indicated. I pushed in the general direction with the sole of my foot, and he was gone! But the legend lived on, for I had not noticed the audience, and I suspect they approved of what I had done.

Mama B had not heard anything! Even when I sent the guy on his way! But more of the story emerged later.
This guy had wandered into the yard at about 9:00pm, very drunk so Baraka and Heri caught him and pushed him under the bougainvillea hedge, think he would sleep off his condition and for sure he would be stuck there until morning. Then they forgot about him!

We found his hat, and recognised it as belonging to the man who slaughters the cattle on the concrete slab on the Sanawari Road. Later he would always give me a wry smile, but he never bothered us again.

Trip to Mwanza (Part 1)

Mwanza lies on the Soutwest coast of Lake Victoria. The best way to get there from Arusha is probably to fly! But that's not entirely correct; the best way for some people is to fly. But albeit a long, dusty, tiring journey, it is a Safari across some of the most famous country in the world! Through the Ngorogoro Conversation Area ans the Serengei Plain! Awesome and awe inspiring!

Mo had duties elsewhere and Jo had to go to Mwanza as a volunteer there had completed her assignment which required the debriefing and return of certain equipment. Mo was quite capable of going there by herself, but there was wisdom in my riding shotgun to help with the driving and general support. There were some environment related things I could do there as well. Mags was able to accompany us, but of course the agency did not cover her costs.

Preparations were complete and Jo drove the for the three hours to Karatu. I now know this Safari very well which begs a description.

We took the Dodoma Road, which is a melee of lorries, buses, daladalas, hand carts and people. This stretch of road passes through an area small enterprises have set up business, perhaps semi-industrial, there are taxi stands, shops and it is generally vibrant. Speed bumps have been set up in an effort to control the traffic. Although the road is tarmac, it can be dusty and hot. All this finishes in the compariavely quiet area at the large African Heritage complex (souverniers, meals etc) and almost opposite the new TANAPA complex, which is very impressive indeed. A lot later I will report on a visit there. Then there are the coffee plantations, Arusha Airport - the prison behind, then the village of Mateves. Along this stretch of road is a line of Mjohoro Cassia spectabilis, then on to Kisongo where there is a Wednesday market, otherwise it is quiet.

Just on from Kisongo is the turnoff to Engarora (school has changed its name to Kisongo) and the marram pit. The area here is eroded and fairly barren in drier times. Large rocks here have been piled up and Maasai women make money by knapping (breaking with a hammer) them to make stone chips - these are used in building mainly and sometimes on paths. Very hard work and I did not take photos of them.

Past Meserani where there is a snake park - some time ago there it appears was a road toll because there is a building set to collect tolls - maybe it was a police post?

On again past the Monduli turnoff and the Army Barracks, past the Army houses and climb the plateau to Mti Moja Primary school. Further there are two villages where the biggest business seems to be charcoal manufacture. In the distance it is possible to Lake Manyara (as long as it is not too hazy.

Makuyuni is the turnoff to Mto wa Mbuu. Onwards is Tarangire National park, Babati and Dodoma. We were going to Mto wa Mbuu. Makuyuni bustles sometimes, just a handful of buildings. A fuel stop and the old Maasai women try to sell you cheap trinkets. It is a dusty place but a place to rest before the slog on to Mto wa Mbuu. The River of Mosquitos.

Later I came to know this village more and became unafraid to eat at the local eatery.

Makuyuni was probably an important stop because it is one of the last places to pick up fuel before either heading on to Babati or to Karatu. These days though vehicles don't use as much fuel, but it is still important. We did some work there, but not much. I am pleased to see there is an Mpingo project - to revegetate areas with African Blackwood.

The trip through to Mtu wa Mbu is interesting and is now tar sealed, but then the road was rough, dusty and arduous. Safari vehicle used to go so fast and I quizzed the mechanic of Bobby Safaris and he said the drivers did a lot of damage to their vehicles - just by going so fast. Drivers said this was part of the 'experience' but some of their client told me they were scared 'shitless'. I suppose an adrenalin rush is part of having a good time. There seems to be not much habitation through the area. But there is a school and and entrances to roads going somewhere. There a Baobabs and changing vegetation. The road becomes too dusty so another track becomes the road but this contributes to erosion and thank goodness it is now sealed. From time to time Maasai boys herd cattle or goats and the beg for water in dry times. There seems to be none and once I did see a woman collecting water from a puddle on the side of the road. Mto wa Mbu (River of Mosquitos) is a busy little town, servicing tourists and also as a market town. The Maasai women look striking in their blue shuka - most usually they prefer red, but here it is blue. It is the first stop after the difficult road from Makuyuni - now it is sealed maybe fewer people stop there. I am told it can be a den of inequity because after the safari drivers drop off the tourist for the night, they seek nocturnal company.

Just past the village is the turn off to Lake Manyara, famous for its salt lake and tree climbing lions - we did not go in there.

The road climbs what is called 'The Escarpment' or 'Rift' which was formed by plate movement - I'm not sure but guess that this happened at the same time the Ngorogoro Crater was formed when the mountain - volcano - collapsed inwards. Anyway, whoever laid this road did a good job and even though at this time it was rough going, today the sealed road is very well designed. Once up at the top of the ecsarpment, there is a place to look out over the lake and the land. It is always worth a stop.

The soil becomes red and when the road is wet, it is slippery and there is a need to take care. Good rainfall and fertile soil are reasons the area is well populated, and here I have to lay a complaint about tourists.

Kids on the roadsides will beg for pens and/or money. Tourists do find some pleasure in giving and that is fine if they stop and allow the kids to use their manners. But I have seen too many throw money out the window and watch the kids scramble after it. When you live and interact with kids, it is not helpful that there is an expectation that they will be given something. Kids are expected to be helpful to adults, so even to a guy like me, they should be helpful without the expection of high reward.

At Nkoaranga Primary School, I had been giving a seminar on the environment, and a young fellow followed me into the toilet - well not as you know it, and maybe it was a urinal. He manoevered around to face me as I peed, and he asked me for a pen! He seemed not to see any simarality in the two things and was serious in his request. As we walked back to the class, I told his honestly that I did not have a pen. Later, I borrowed Loti's and 'secretly' slipped it to the lad:-)

The red soil is good for making bricks and they are made by hand in a wooden frame, then left to sun dry. Later they are stacked into the kiln-shape and fired to make a really durable burnt brick.

Karatu is a busy little junction-town; straight ahead is the Ngorogoro crater and the other main road goes to Mbulu. The town is red with dust and water splashes on buildings from heavy rain making the bottom half metre a distinctive red colour. Then the unpainted roofing iron either rusty or with a coating of red dust. It is a place to fuel up and buy stores for the next part of a journey.

Just outside the town is the Lutheran hostel. It was just built then, with finishing touches yet to be done; none the less, it was very habitable. The bulidings - 12 or so twin rooms in one long building - were made of a polished brick which I guess were imported from somewhere. Obviously there was German influence and funding her as a German woman, perhaps even a nun, was supervising activities and especially the dining room. This was not the new dining room, it was yet to be built, but the old one was still a very good place to dine. The evening meal was, I guess, German fare; soup, stew and a banana for pudding. The service and food were unquestionably good!

Electricity had not yet arrived at Karatu and the generator was used sparingly but adequately. There was cold running water in the shower, but nights were cold at this elevated level, so a bucket of hot water was delivered to shower with.

Jo wanted and early start next morning (without breakfast - which was later), so I set my watch alarm for 5:15. I did not like the idea of travelling without a brew, so I went to negotiate with the staff for a Thermos of tea - which was willingly given me.

In the moon light I wandered around the plantings within the compound and 'stole' some seed for future use.

Just one other thing while I remember. There is often a night guard - mostly these guys have it fairly tough. Though there are these new 'security - type' guards now - a part of a company. Anyway at places like this, they will clean your car - partly for something to do during the night, and partly to make a few shillings. Despite the fact they were not asked to do the job, and perhaps it didn't turn out to be that clean - all the same it does no harm to help them out with a few shillings.

Useful Trees

Wood in all forms is being used (cut) seven times faster than it is growing. Foresters calculate this by working out the annual increment or how much each tree is adding to its volume per year. This is done through sampling and is an accurate measurement. Removal of forest can be calculated in a similar way and this would include illegal logging.

Deforestation is a problem worldwide and it contributes to world climate change - certainly there is less rainfall in Tanzania than there used to be. Tanzania used to a food secure country, and its loss of this status is in part, because of deforestation.

I don't know the exact figure but I suspect 90% of the population rely on trees for fuel to keep warm and cook food. In areas like Makumira, kids are sent out to scour the countryside for fallen branches, twigs or pieces of trees. They do not cut live trees because they can't be burnt immediately. The branches are usually knocked down by winds and monkeys.

In villages like Mkonoo, Nadasoito and Muriet, there are problems because deforestation was an outcome of Nyrere's villageization programme. His plan was to settle the population into villages with a school and a clinic, but the people had few resources and built their houses from what the country had to offer - using the local trees. Of course they had to cook and that used more of the vegetation. But now most of the trees have gone and fuel is cow manure (which really is a fertilizer and needs to be used in the crops) and maize cobs after the kernels have been removed. Those who can afford it use charcoal.

It takes two bags of wood to make one bag of charcoal. Charcoal making is one of the few activities local youth have to make money, and it is plain to see the areas where charcoal is made. There will be a village and the surrounding area is devoid of trees! The charcoal is needed in the larger towns and cities because there is no alternative fuel - well there is electricity and kerosene which are used, but not by the majority.

Firing bricks is also a big user of trees, and while cement bricks utilize the labour force, the materials are more expensive and making mud bricks to fire in a make-shift kiln is another money earner for youth.

Places like Arusha are booming and there is a great need for timber. The Department of Forestry planted Cupressus lusitanica which is an ideal building timber, but it is no longer widely planted because of disease problems. But this resourse has been over cut and I was told more logging trucks left the forest at night than during the day. The indigenous resource is also being overcut and some of that is illegal too. As long as there is a demand for it, people will supply it. Trouble is that there is no really good alternative; Eucalyptus is being trialled as is Pinus patula, but this species needs chemical treatment, which is a disadvantage. Grevillea robusta is also suitable, but the wood is termite heaven!

Mpingo for example is African Blackwood - the one all those carvings are made from. This species is very slow growing and now rare. But I have seen guys use Jacaranda, a fast growing Aussie import, This is better because it is sustainable - actually though, the wood is softer and easier to carve; but it is white which is fixed with a liberal coating of black shoe polish. Purists may not like this too much but it is all good for me!

Now my assignment(s) were development projects and this distinction is important. I believe the best development projects are where the target populations have or see ownership in the project. It is very easy to impose personal (and even inappropriate)slants - even with the best intentions. Sometimes this can be a fine line.

Having said that we were in Tanzania to teach, inform and assist in the uptake of knowledge and skills that were outside the rural population's usual experience, so sometime we had to 'drive' the projects. The other factor was that our time was a constraint in that it was limited, so again, the projects had to be 'driven'. Tact and diplomacy were the skills needed to do the driving.

I point this out because I believed (still do) it important to have a wide species range for the rural village people to plant - this is the conservator in me - but the villagers had preferences; usually species that could generate income. I too saw the advantage in this, but I also saw the benefit of diversity and the use of indigenous species.

There may be people out there who can use this information, so I so I will from time to time post species we used and comment about them. I will try to download some pictures as well to make it more interesting to read. (I have found adding pictures sometime comromises the way I have drafted things, so I won't add to this I will do a separate blog).

I have started a separate blog Treetop-ics; actually I wanted to copy this info for it but couldn't quite do it , so I will continue with that for various tree information.

Dovyalis caffra - Kei Apple - Mchongoma.

A thorny tree/shrub tolerating dry conditions once established. Fruits are small, yellow apples.

Used as a secure boundary hedge.

Take seeds from ripe fruit, wash and dry. Sow fresh seed because seed does not store. 1kg of seed has about 30 000 viable seeds. Germination takes place in 18 - 22 days.

After planting out tending to keep weeds away and water at least once a week. Trimming is the best way to make a nice hedge.

There is a high demand for Mchongoma for hedging - in towns and rural areas. Goats do not browse it.

Mchongoma is suitable for village nurseries to grow because it is readily sold to provide income.

I become a Detective

We carried some VISA travellers cheques with us and we hid them in our suitcase. We lived out of our suitcases because we had no bedroom furniture as such. One day Mags, like all 'Scrooges', decided to count them, only to find they had gone missing! The amount was USD 1000.00! Immediately we contacted our NZ Bank and found that of the 11 cheques stolen, 5 had not yet been cashed - so payment on those had been stopped. Of course this meant going to the Police Station for a report, without which, we could make no insurance claim.

The Arusha Police Station is a busy place, and perhaps difficult to negotiate, but when it was my turn, I had no problem with the officer who filled in his big log book. The actual report was a problem because there needed to be a carbon copy and the carbon paper was nearly worn out and he was unable to find a pin to hold the sheets together. After a runaround between offices I got my report after paying the nominal fee.

I was particularly sad because this was the last day Missy would be with us but I had to ask if she was the one who stole the cheques. She denied it, but I had to ask the question because she had troubles that I have no right here to write about. Missy is still our dear friend and she continued to stay with us after this event.

Through faxes via BNZ Oamaru and the VISA office in England, we found that USD 600 had been cashed and they provided us the numbers of each check stolen/cashed. Of the ones that were stopped, UDS 400, we could pick up as Thomas Cook Travellers Cheques from the Uhuru Branch of the Commercial Bank Of Tanzania.

We faxed Oamaru again to request photocopies of the cashed travellers cheques, then went to the bank to pick up the new cheques - not there! But took the time to go around the Bureau de Change place to see if they could enlighten us about the cheques already cashed. A waste of time & energy.

A few days later I rang London VISA to fax me details of where and when the cheques were cashed, and the woman told me that the forged signatures were nothing like the originals! It took a few days for the fax to arrive and Mo, who in another life had been a police inspector accompanied me to the National Bank of Commerce. The people there were very co-operative and told us that one of the cheques was banked by Mt Meru Hotel (Novotel). We then went to the Sanbik Bank and the accountant there knew the man who had banked $200 and he told us to return about 3:00pm and the man might be there. We went off the Mt Meru Hotel where the accountant was co-operative and said he would mount an investigation because they had cashed the $400 that we had stopped! In the end, nothing came of this line of enquiry - I guess whoever cashed it was close to the accountant because his point of view was they could not find who had actually cashed the cheques. he would know the roster and he would have known what went on.

Back at Sanbik Bank and the guy had not come in. But the accountant knew him well and phoned him - this wee accountant was excited about his role in the investigation and giggled as he placed his hand over the mouthpiece of the phone. The guy owned Pelican Safaris and would see us next at 10:00.

This fellow was a big, friendly man and said he was sorry to learn that our cheques had been stolen! He offered to refund us but actually never did! His wife ran the Bureau de Change at the Impala Hotel and she had given him the cheques to bank into his account! So we went to the Impala Hotel and talked to his wife. She could not tell us who it was that brought the cheques in but told us of the taxi driver who brought him. He could be found at Hotel 77 Taxi Stand in Peugeot (I forget the plate number). I found the guy and he thought I was a passenger and used good English, but when I asked about the guy he took to Impala Hotel, he didn't remember his English - so I used Kiswahili. He said he would tell me once and even in court will never say again.'I don't know his name, but he is a young man, tall and black!' He described the eldest son of Big E! The black bit is not disparaging, because all Africans have brown eyes and black hair, among themselves, they tell each other apart in the first instance by the relative colour of their skin - simply some are darker than others.

I knew I could not accuse the fellow, but I had solved the mystery! Two days later though, I saw the man from Pelican Safaris drinking with Big E at his bar! The next morning I told him I had seen the man who had banked the stolen cheques. Of course Big E asked me where, and when I quietly told him - he turned just a tinge of white and squirmed!

It all fell into place. The thief and his friend stayed in our house while we were at the Agency Conference held at Ilboru Safari Lodge. They told us it was not secure to leave the house unattended! The young buggers had actually slept in our bed - they had not washed their feet and all was revealed on the bedsheets when we arrived home. They must have rummaged through our gear while they had the opportunity and (probably though not necessarily) took a copy of the key. Then when the opportunity arose, he entered and nicked the cheques!

Later I found this lad had made a girl pregnant - he was senior boy at a secondary school - and he needed money! The rear tyre of the Maruti was stolen too! By the same person for the same reason, the concrete block used to prop up the wheel had come from behind the house and I found the imprint of it. The worst thing about this was that the wheel nut were stolen too and they prover hard to replace - which is why they too were stolen!

Oh yes, VISA reconsidered and thought the signatures were in fact similar and refused to reimburse us, but of course we had copies and pointed out the error of their decision. In the end they paid out and added USD200 for the trouble we had been put to - so no complaint!