A tribute to Mr. K.

Some of our friends here in Tanzania recently invested in a fish tank to be populated with some flashy colored little friends. Once upon a time, I too took this past time quite seriously.

Here's to you Mr. Konstantinopololis.

Currently Dreaming About.

Thai Fish Cakes.

Mwanza is a Tanzanian city that I have visited several times through my work with CARE. It is a charming city. Aside from its large rocks, the main thing Mwanza is known for is its fish. Situated on the edge of Lake Victoria, Mwanza is famous for its tilapia.

All Tanzanians carry an explicit expectation that if you travel to Mwanza from Dar es Salaam you MUST carry back a fish bucket. This is an expectation I have adopted in kind. One time we even convincingly informed our dear friend Carolyn that she too must carry on this tradition. She dutifully returned to Dar es Salaam with a fish bucket she had checked as baggage on her flight back to Dar. Upon opening, the fish buckets literally explode with fish - they manage to somehow pack dozens into a modestly sized bucket. When Carolyn brought a fish bucket to our house, six of us feasted on the fish cooked up in a variety of ways, the simplest preparation proved the winning one - lemon, salt, fresh ground pepper and a pad of butter all baked on top of the whole fish.

On the receiving end of this fish bounty, our house boy has ever since endearingly referred to Carolyn as the "dada wa samaki" - the fish sister. On move in day to our new house, he pointed out which guest room the dada wa samaki would sleep in when she returns again with a fish bucket. Hint, hint, Carolyn:)

On my most recent trip to Mwanza, I carried home a fish bucket according to tradition, however, in this instance, my intention was to gift the fish bucket to our house boy as thanks for helping with our recent move in Andrei's absence. He gladly accepted the gift, however I suppose guilt got the best of him and he left 4 fish in our fridge for us, after cleaning them. We grilled them, we baked them, we fried them, and yet again we found ourselves overwhelmed with the amount of fish we had on our hands to consume. Pondering the possibilities for leftovers, I looked up the above recipe for Thai style fish cakes. Oh man, need I say more?! They were light and flavorful and well, clearly I am still talking and writing about them, so, I rest my case, get to it!

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Photo courtesy of.

Alpenglow in the Rock City.

Immediately following our recent move into our new house, I departed for Mwanza aka Tanzania's Rock City. Some aspects of this trip proved a welcome distraction from the hustle of our recent move, including awesome sunsets and alpenglow over Lake Victoria and the rock city.

 

A Hundred Year Event.

It was a big one alright, some say it only happens every 100 years. Perhaps that is just an expression, or perhaps those folks are just alarmist by nature. But either way, there is no denying the severity and magnitude of the recent storm that passed through Dar.

I spent the better part of this week seeking refuge anywhere with electricity, as ours had been out for days on end without any indication of when we could expect it back. While mooching power for my computer and phone at our new favorite hangout, the atmosphere suddenly grew ominous. The sky darkened, the wind picked up, and huge rain drops began to fall with a deafening clatter on the rooftop. And eventually the power went out. Now even my go to electricity refuge had failed me. With approximately 2.5 hours of power left on my lap top, I decided to wait out the storm, in fact, it was kind of nice in an oddly romantic sort of way. Neighboring chatter about "adopting" babies out of rural Tanzanian villages (read: kidnapping them without proper paperwork) eventually prompted me to make a break for it. As I drove home the leading thought on my mind was where and how I would continue work without a reliable power source.

I returned home and it appeared as though our house had been looted by a band of pirates. Branches were down everywhere. Huge trees had fallen. Our gate lighting was knocked down and there was broken glass everywhere. Our guard/gardener greeted me at the door, obviously very energized by this rare storm, I, in turn, joked saying, "this will be a big job for you to clean up." He grinned and hopped to it, despite my rather flippant statement of the obvious.

Frankly, I did not give the storm a second thought, until I joined some friends for dinner last night and our conversation turned to the storm. Apparently, one of the largest boats at the yacht club became unmoored during the storm and crashed into three other boats, causing damage of untold proportions, the repair costs alone would surely surpass our combined income last year.

Then someone mentioned the fishermen. The very fishermen I recently blogged about. It is beyond doubt that many of them died in this storm, between huge swells overturning their tiny boats (if you can even call them that) and winds and rip tides pushing them far beyond paddling reach of Dar's shorelines. The storm came out of the blue, its not like any forward thinking fisherman could have known this or even planned their work day around it. So here again, a reality check that these guys literally risk life and limb braving the Indian Ocean waters to fetch about $3/day. And here I was worried about a power connection for my MacBook lap top.

Did you know?

In Tanzania, the catches of an estimated 55,000 small-scale fishers are not reflected in the government’s official statistics, representing approximately 40 percent of the total catch off of Tanzania's shoreline.

Every time we are out on the open water, we see these small-scale fishers hard at work. Sometimes on surf boards. Very far from the coast. Braving open water. They are dependent on these waters for economic livelihoods in much the same way we are dependent on these waters for weekend outings. Sure helps put things in perspective.

So why does this matter? The lack of accurate catch data puts management authorities at risk of over-licensing commercial foreign fleets to fish in their waters, while at the same time, stressing coastal communities that depend on these fishery resources for their survival.

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Source: WWF, Coastal East Africa Brochure

United Fish Flag.

Please spread the word.

As promised, I am writing a follow up post about the sale of sea shells not so close to the Indian Ocean sea shore in downtown Ukraine. 

I will begin with a loosely related passage from an exceptional book that I just finished reading Emergency Sex:

In Mombasa, Heidi meets James, a Masai “tribesman”. Following a romantic walk down the beach, she happens to notice that she is one of several solitary white women, all fairly young and attractive, with their own Masai tribesman. She casually remarks to herself, “Great, now I have turned into one of those rich white chicks who pick up poor, attractive men in third world countries for sex.”

In what appears to be a typical romantic ploy, James leads her onto a dhow, and following a short ride, they land directly onto a reef that she describes as filled with puddles that hold the most magnificent sea creatures – anemones, urchins, and starfish – with splashes of bright, living color everywhere – purple, red, blue, yellow – just lying about in shallow pools of water, waiting for the tide to come in and rescue them.

Tropical paradise at its finest, so it seems. Except that, the "curio trade" threatens to render this image obsolete. Borrowing from the "authority" in this area, I will explain.

The sale of shells and other organisms, mostly to tourists or shell collectors, is known as the curio trade. Shell collecting is a hobby with a long history. By the 17th century, seamen on trading ships were bringing home shells as curio. In the last 50 years, with increasing possibilities to travel, the purchase of shells has become a common practice for visitors returning home with samples of the bizarre and attractive sea life from remote corners of the world.

Throughout the Western Indian Ocean (and apparently Ukraine), road-side shell stands and shops are common, retailing mostly large, attractive and colorful gastropod shells, chunks of hard coral, turtle products or jewelry made from these. The business may not appear to be very large but the sheer volume of shells and other marine curios (that is to say, interesting and bizarre dead sea creatures) sold is staggering. The collection and export of shells and other marine curios is mostly unregulated, but indications are that hundreds of tones of cleaned shells have been exported over the last thirty years.

This practice holds damaging environmental consequences. The damage to shallow coastal habitats caused by turning over boulders or prizing coral off the seabed may have considerable local impact on the productivity of the area. The trade in dead coral and turtle products is banned in many countries outside of the Western Indian Ocean and tourists carrying these items back home run the risk of being fined and having the articles confiscated. The removal of these animals not only reduces the productivity of shallow coastal habitats but also the attractiveness of the habitats to tourists.

However, the book further warns, even collecting empty shells can be damaging for two reasons. Firstly, hermit crabs need gastropod shells. Without empty shells, hermit crabs may totally disappear from an area. The second reason is that empty shells serve as a hard substrate and are a vital component of the overall growth of the coral reef. Many organisms (corals and sponges) settle onto such hard surfaces. Collecting is therefore NOT RECOMMENDED, unless this activity is pursued to establish a properly identified and cataloged collection of shells, which will be available to specialists, and thus add to the knowledge of mollusks in an area.

While measures have been taken to restrict the collection of shells, for example by enforcing regulations banning collection inside marine protected areas (as a side note: Kenya's effective use of regulations stands in contrast to Tanzania; it is said that weak enforcement inside marine protected areas combined with loose enforcement of bans against dynamite fishing in Tanzania, make the reef a startling and defacto aqua "border" between the two countries), the general recommendation is to limit the sale and import of shells. Until there is a system of management which ensures the collection of species sold is not depleting the wild stocks or interfering with the balance of life in the shallow marine habitats of the region, these activities should not be encouraged.

DO NOT BUY CORALS OR OTHER CURIOS. Please spread the word.

The Far Reaches of the Indian Ocean.

In celebration of our "paper" anniversary, I gifted Andrei The Field Guide to the Sea Shores of East Africa. A major hit, this book has become a much referenced guide in our household. Described as ideal for beachcombers, snorkellers, and divers with an interest in natural history, this book usually accompanies us on all of our weekend adventures in Dar es Salaam. Little did we know how useful this reference guide could have proven on our trip to Kiev, Ukraine.

We were out exploring and stumble across this table of ocean treasures in the middle of downtown Kiev:

Most of these are species that we see on a daily basis in Dar. However, it is not usually the case that I am beachcombing in a full length fur coat.

Despite the smile on my face, this moment was quite disappointing. I will reserve my thoughts on how damaging the international shell trade is for a later post. In the mean time, however, I will take the opportunity to point out for Dar-based folks that all proceeds from the sale of this field guide go to a charitable trust that will help develop marine science (and conservation) in this geographic area. That alone makes the book worth buying.

Wish You Were Here.

We are gushing with joy over the arrival of our guests for a 9 day Safari/Zanzibar adventure! Karibu sana - Joannie, Katie, Tracy, Jim, Steve, Mason and Marie!

For those of you that are not able to join us on our Safari/Zanzibar Adventure - you will be missed.  Can't wait to share pictures and stories on our return. Until soon.

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Photo Credit:

Andrei Sinioukov

Frameworthy Saturday Afternoon.

The Impromtu Kitchen.

Among the group of six on our recent sailing/camping trip to Sinda Marine Reserve Island, the priorities and concerns we each held were quite distinct.

The Italian was worried about perfecting his tan lines, fearing he would not be permitted onto the beaches of his motherland on his upcoming trip should he happen to have a dreaded T-shirt or sock line on his otherwise perfectly tanned body. The French girl cast aside her typical worries about where to acquire the freshest baguette or most delicious crepe, and instead worried about where she would shower on the uninhabited island over the course of our one night stay and how she would wash her hands. The Ukrainian American was worried about toys and entertainment lest we find ourselves bored in tropical paradise, accordingly he brought a sound system and fully loaded 80gig ipod to serve as a backdrop to our stay on the island, in addition to a kite, several solar powered lamps, and a frisbee. The American boy was worried that we did not bring enough stuff, and sorely regretted leaving at home his camp table and chairs and not purchasing a Safari Cookbook nor a shovel (to dig what we were unsure). The American girl, new to Dar es Salaam, was perhaps just plain worried. And I, the former "fat kid" worried about my next snack turned wannabe "hostess extraordinaire" was chiefly worried about the meals we would consume.

Inspired by one of my favorite cooking blog authors, Heidi Swanson of 101 Cookbooks, who regularly uses her blog as a forum to highlight the creativity she employs to produce truly inspired and healthy meals via campfire, I thought it would be interesting to share some of the "recipes" we relied on to feed ourselves over our two day's long adventure on a deserted island. A little bit of luck, some advance preparation, and the "everything always comes together in the end" potluck spirit made our weekend quite a culinary success.


To properly set the stage, it is important to give you a better understanding of the context we were operating in. Any time you are on the open waters off the coast of Dar es Salaam, it guaranteed that you will eventually cross paths with local fishermen in a wood carved traditional dhow. Opportune timing combined with good bargaining techniques may guarantee that the fresh catch of the day will become the central feature of your campfire dinner, however it is far from a guarantee.

On this trip it seemed both timing and the powers of persuasion were on our side, we managed to score a whole Changu, a barracuda, and an octopus off of local fishermen, needless to say all for the "best" price. When fish is this fresh, there is no need for a marinade or heavy spices to enhance the flavor - a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon as it finishes is enough to grill up a truly delicious meal.

Recognizing that it pays to be prepared in this environment, here are some of the dually inspired food items we packed in advance for our adventure.

The Italian very generously prepared pasta for the group, however it was consumed before we even lifted the anchor of Jammie Dodger and braved the swells of the Indian Ocean. It was delicious and full of flavor. Yet it was a very simple dish, consisting of only a few key ingredients - onions and garlic sauteed in a generous splash of olive oil, canned diced tomatoes, and browned bacon to finish off the tomato sauce and truly pack a flavorful punch. I forgot how easy it is throw together a quick pasta based meal when you are short on time but big on appetite. My hesitation is that it is nearly impossible to find whole wheat pasta options here in Tanzania.

Next up, I threw together a rice and bean salad. Creativity and improvization are encouraged in the following "recipe."

Begin with a large bowl.
Throw in some cooked rice (brown is my preference)
Choose two cups of your favorite bean(s) - I used a combination of garbanzo beans and kidney beans
Note: to save time, you can feel free to rely on canned beans - however, canned beans usually come pre-salted so you will need to adjust the dressing accordingly
Throw in a generous handful of diced scallions (green onions)
Peel and grate a large carrot into the bowl
Throw in several diced fresh tomatoes

To dress the salad: the more experienced cook can throw the following ingredients directly into the bowl and adjust according to taste, but the more novice may want to mix and adjust according to taste in a separate bowl before mixing with the other salad ingredients.
Add two glugs of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (approximately 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp)
Juice from 1/2 lemon + 1/2 lime
A generous pinch of salt
A generous pinch of cumin
A couple of winds from a fresh ground pepper mill
A dash of paprika
Optional: A dash of hot spice of your choosing (tabasco sauce, crushed red pepper flakes, a dash of cayenne pepper, etc)

And voila - a healthy, filling meal a matter of minutes! Yes, "cooking" can be that easy!

We also brought a package of sausages and pita bread to cook and toast over the campfire. The only thing missing in this winning combination were some whole grain mustards to add extra zip to the sandwich. Interestingly, if you can tell from the picture below - our makeshift campfire was created by gathering rocks, digging a hole and filling it with burning coals, and then placing the grill guard from a standard charcoal grill on the circle of rocks over the embering coals to create our cooking surface (in a pinch, we have even used a metal shelf from a refrigerator to achieve the same effect). In the absence of a proper grill utensils, Andrei used a stick to flip the grill contents.

A plum cake, a sliced mango, a fruit and nut chocolate bar, some local beef jerky, and a flask of whiskey were on the offering to complete the evening meal.

For the morning, I brought a dozen pre-boiled eggs, along with juices and fresh fruit. Someone in the group thought to bring along a pound of potatoes and foil. We were able to individually wrap the potatoes and throw them under the fire while we waited for our coffee and tea water to boil. The potatoes finished with a slightly crunchy outside and a warm, intensely flavorful inside. A dash of salt made this a perfect complement to the hard boiled eggs.

It was only in the morning that the rationale behind the secret desire to have a shovel accompany us on this journey was revealed. Apparently, the Safari Cookbook available in the local book shop highlighted a recipe for fried eggs via shovel for true campfire fun. Perhaps that is a trick we will remember for next time.

If you are interested in more camping culinary tricks, Heidi features a soup recipe that doubled as a block of ice when packed frozen in a plastic container and cooler for the first day of their adventure.
She also proves that with a little advance planning, a noodle-based gourmet meal is possible even in the most remote of settings.

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Photo Credit:

Campfire: Rob Pettit

Absolut Paradise.

After a 3+ hour's long sail, beating against the wind and getting thrown about in 3 meter ocean swells, we arrived to Sinda Marine Reserve Island. Once my sea sickness and nausea subsided, I deemed this place absolut paradise.

While we were only 6 persons in total, we brought enough stuff to support a group 3 times our size for a period of time well beyond the one night we camped on Sinda. It took approximately 13 round trips to ensure our precious cargo was delivered from on board Jammie Dodger to the island.

Following the arrival of our not so dry goods, we set up our homes for the night in the "perfect" spot.

And then we moved them. Apparently, even in paradise indecision is a terrible force to reckon with.

After lowering the sails on Jammie Dodger for the evening, we hoisted a new "sail" to claim the island as our own (for the night anyway).

We prepared the staging grounds for our evening campfire and meal.

After we collected firewood and ignited the coals, we were left with just enough time to explore the island before sunset.

As dark fell, we were greeted by the island welcoming committee.

The island was literally swarming with enormous rats. Seeing them scurry about before dark was testament to this fact. We were outnumbered by far, and they made it clear we were in their territory. They were uncomfortably bold, nibbling on our freshy caught fish and our toes alike. In the morning our tent looked like an island in a sea of rat footprints.


But we survived to tell the tale, and enjoyed a wonderfully relaxing and calm sail back home. Maybe this is indeed absolut paradise, despite the island full of man eating rats.

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Photo Credit:

Man Eating Rat: http://little-people.blogspot.com/

Tinga Tinga, everywhere!

Tanzania is home to Tinga Tinga art.  Inspired by nature, this art form is fun, colorful, and playful.

 Artist: A. Hasani

 Artist: Ally

Artist: Amadi

Artist: Ibra

Artist: L. Nangida

Artist: M. Chiwaya

Artist: Mbwana Sudi

Artist: Shabani

Artist: Sufiani

Personally, I think that some of these paintings would look adorable in a child's bedroom.

This school of art was started by a single man in 1968, named Edward Saidi Tingatinga (1936 - 1972). Unfortunately, he met a rather young and untimely death as a result of being hit by a police bullet. Amidst growing popularity with ex-pats living here and tourists on safari, the family of Tingatinga decided to start the Tinga Tinga Arts Co-operative Society in 1990. Today, the Co-operative boasts over 100 active artists and can proudly proclaim itself as one of the largest illustration, design, and arts studios in the world. But the actual number of Tinga Tinga painters is estimated to be on the order of up to 1000, located mostly in Tanzania, but also found throughout other parts of the world. 

Tinga Tinga's roots and origins are likely linked to the African tradition of decorating hut walls. Below is a hut wall painting from 1906:

Today, the paintings usually depict a wide variety of stylized African animals in bold color palettes. The painting techniques consist of mostly enamel colors on canvas or ceiling board, although the signature Tinga Tinga style is sold on a wide variety of products, including T-shirts, pencils, plates, cups, and beyond.

Our favorite bar in Mikadi Beach is decked out in Tinga Tinga paintings.

Tire covers on SUVs are a great way to demonstrate your passion for this art form. Below are some pictures of our most recent acquisition:

But my favorite example to date is the Tinga Tinga motorcycle. It took approximately 10-15 painters five days to paint the motorcycle, starting on 12th December 2008.

 And here are the results:

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References:

http://www.tingatingastudio.com/menu_about.html

Photo Credits (Process of Painting Motorcycle):

http://www.afrum.com/index.php?hash=8b48b73408076bafc4e0311a51208b95&categ=art_cur&action=vypis&select=366

Painting Images:

http://www.afrum.com/index.php?hash=c0ec351bcdb6b2889d17ac6a453ee605&categ=gal&action=none&select=17