The flight to Johburg was as per usual uneventful. It’s been a while since I’ve travelled so I hadn’t seen too many recent movies (managed to cram in three). One of the claims to fame (about the only ones) the South Africans have is ther wine. The pinotages are generally excellent. All the good ones seem to come from the Cape (Town) Region. Arrived in Johburg tired but amazed. I watched the guy in front of me at Johburg airport trying to give/stuff the customs agent cash to let them through (they were of middle eastern decent!). In the end they let him pass through! Johburg is the only place you can be garanteed of losing your bag at some stage or other. On one occation flying into Johburg they dropped a full bus load of peolple that flew international into the domestic arrivals. Peolple just walked through, no customs or bag. It wasn’t until they realised that everyone (that they could find) had to go back.
The next day was Tanzania. When I arrived in Tanzania I was stuck at the airport for 3 hours waiting for peolple to get out of the bagage and visa cues. This is typical. It helps if you have $US cash handy for such occasions (visa probs that is). Hard to describe first impressions of Dar Es Salaam (Dar). The first thing that hits you is the humidity. Hot sweaty, dirty…a run down Bali is close. I managed a quick swim at the pool when I got to the hotel (50 min trip from airport).
I was invited (with half the hotel) to drinks and snacks at the bar for an hour. I met Ralf the German who was selling vet drugs to company/peolple in Tanzania and surrounding countries. He was a liitle older that me but spent a year in Brisbane as a student. He was a good laugh. We then proceeded to the main bar where we me a Tanzanian diplomat his wife and sisters from Oman. It was a weired sort of night. The Omanians were spice traders that came down the coast of Africa looking for trade 1000’s of years ago. Alot of them forgot to go home settling in places like Zanzibar, Mombasso(Kenya) etc. Anyway I met new friend in Ralf and my quiet night turned out OK but waking up for the 5am flight was tough.
On arrival at site (Bulyanhulu) the guys were going to Golden Ridge (1.5Moz of BIF hosted refractory gold) exploration camp and wanted me there so they took me along with the new data and recent interp of magnetics. I hadn’t even unpacked. They also said we were coming back that night but we didn’t. I bought a toothbrush from a village (mud hut) in the middle of now where. I also bought a Kanga (sarong type of thing) from the village (now hanging on the wall in my room)…might make an OK gift. Oh I forgot beer, 12 bottles of warm Kilimanjaro beer.
The other night we had a few bottles a red and a selection of Africa’s game meat (croc, gazelle, ostrich, onyx, quail and there were a few others). I never thought I’d be eating game in a mining camp but hey I’m not complaining. I haven’t even seen any game in all the time I’ve been here. They are well and truely restricted to game parks otherwise they are on the table. They wise up pretty quick.
Off to Kabanga on Thursday. (7 hour drive). It sits up on top a hill/mountain and you look over a huge valley. Anything on the other side of the valley is Burundi. Around that area there are huge UN run refugee camps (10 000 peolpe). It’s just like a World vision documentary. The peolple come into Tanzania when there is “civil unrest” ie peolple attack the military run government. It doesn’t happen very often. The Kabanga camp is very safe. The have a number of Gerkas there. They are the eqiuvalent of our SAS but from Nepal. They are really fit chinese looking guys. They are really nice. Apparently one of the new ones is a fitness insrtuctor..maybe someone to run with?
I have been trying to get back into some sort of training and avoid the bar. Been running every second night. I went for a quick G&T after a run and a meal the other night with some of the guys. It went straight to my head and ended up light headed very quickly, I was even a bit cloudy the next day. Won’t be doing that again….soon anyway. Just a note on the medicinal effect of G&T. Sorry to disapoint everyone but it is the quinnine in the tonic that is the medicine (good for fighting off Malaria). I guess the gin is for taste?
Running outside the fence is good fun. It is about 10km around the outside. There are security guys at every bend in the fence (triple razor wire). I usually give them a wave at each point. You get various comments from the local while running around. All of them positive. Habari-hello, Mzungu-white person (usually kids), Sati-good or cool (slang) just to name a few I can comprehend. I look at the fence and wonder sometimes weather it’s designed to keep people in or out! I must try and get a photo of it.
Last night I tried something different. It took my computer to the gym (it was empty), borrowed DVD (Shanghi Noon-Jackie Chan) and rode the bike for 2 hours. Not quite to fun of riding around the river with a fresh coffee and muffins at the end but did the job. Probably the last time I will be able to do that for a while.
Anyway a week in Africa…if I get motivated I might write some more. I know it’s a week because I have just been through my first card of malaria tablets.
Baz