DAR ES SALAAM TO MBEYA, TANZANIA
By: Grace O’Leary
We took the train from Dar Es Salaam to Mbeya and it was a train experience I will never forget.
We just had our usual beans, ugali and collard greens for lunch at the spot by the only “flyover” in the city. We stocked ourselves up with snacks from vendors lined up outside the train station. We got all the essentials we could carry, cookies, chips, dry muffins and peanuts. One week prior we booked our spots on the train. It didn’t take much after tracking someone down on the phone we simply left our names and phone number.
Once checked in, we got comfortable and watched the crowds roll in. Seeing so many different colours was making me feel dizzy. It was like being under dressed for an event I didn’t know about. There wasn’t a single African woman in there wearing black or brown. All the women were wearing bright dresses with a vibrant print. Each woman has a square piece of material that wraps around their waist, making them readily available to carry food, water or children. We were standing in single file, surprisingly not a crowd, waiting to load onto the train when I remembered again how far from home I was. Seeing woman carrying children meanwhile balancing suitcases on their heads.
Men in one cart, women and children in the other. Children do not occupy an entire bunk, so as African maths would have it a 6 Person bunk equals 10 person bunk. We had the option of sleeping overnight together in one bunk but we would have to purchase all 6 bunks to make a private bunk which wasn’t going to happen plus it is all about the experience!
Shortly after arriving in my bunk and counting the 9 whom had made it there before me it didn’t take long to head towards the train cart with liquor. Just a convenient few carts over we found like minded individuals looking to take the Tanzanian landscapes in with a drink in hand. Not too many drinks later this cart has completely transformed! The music is pumping, drinks are flowing and people are dancing! This is the type of train I always want to travel by!
Exploring a moving train was new to me. I have travelled by train in the past but only short distances and never with a stocked bar and music blaring. The toilets were interesting but that was not surprising after my experience at the station, so I was prepared and brought my own toilet paper. There was simply just a hole in the floor opening to the railway tracks and a hose for those coordinated enough to use while squatting on a moving train.
The landscapes were beautiful and vast. There were children running up to the train as it went by their small rural villages. There were children playing in the dried up river beds and some whom made tiny washing holes fenced with thorn bushes to keep predators away. From one valley to the next the landscapes were changing. The weather was so warm I’d always have my head hanging outside of the window feeling the warm breeze on face and then someone would throw a dirty diaper or juice bottle out the window and my image of ‘Wild Africa’ is damaged for a brief moment in time.
The food was average and sleeping quarters were tight but the experience was unforgettable! Not to mention the price! The cost for two adult tickets Dar Es Salaam to Mbeya was $54.00 which was well worth the cost considering it included the cost of one nights accommodation and covered 800 km.
Highly recommended!
