Our flight is KLM 0567 and leaves Amsterdam at 10:15 a.m.
This means a five thirty wake-up, the shuttle is scheduled to arrive at 7 a.m.,
and the arrival at the airport is at around eight. By the time we have packed, dressed,
showered and breakfasted, we have five minutes to spare before the shuttle
arrives. We are getting good at this.
Our driver is Moroccan, which thrills Liebi and me to no end. I always love to speak a few words of Darija and find out where he is from, what he misses about the country, etc. Even more thrilling is the reaction of the driver when he recognizes that these people have been to his country and are familiar with customs and culture. I proudly boast to every Moroccan that I can still cook a darn fine tagine or the Fezi pisara, also known as pea soup. My mouth is watering as I write this.
One piece of advice not to go unheeded is that given to us by our sponsors: if you like cheese, load up with it, because cheese is more expensive than champagne and caviar combined in Tanzania. Good advice, and what better place to load up on cheese than Amsterdam? I would guess we probably bought at least four pounds of Gouda and assorted other sheep and goat cheeses before our weight restriction puts an end to any further ambitions.
Our driver is Moroccan, which thrills Liebi and me to no end. I always love to speak a few words of Darija and find out where he is from, what he misses about the country, etc. Even more thrilling is the reaction of the driver when he recognizes that these people have been to his country and are familiar with customs and culture. I proudly boast to every Moroccan that I can still cook a darn fine tagine or the Fezi pisara, also known as pea soup. My mouth is watering as I write this.
One piece of advice not to go unheeded is that given to us by our sponsors: if you like cheese, load up with it, because cheese is more expensive than champagne and caviar combined in Tanzania. Good advice, and what better place to load up on cheese than Amsterdam? I would guess we probably bought at least four pounds of Gouda and assorted other sheep and goat cheeses before our weight restriction puts an end to any further ambitions.
Liebi complains for the first time in Amsterdam when she
realizes that the security check-in is at
the gate where we board the plane. That doesn’t bug me one bit, and this is
not what costs us any unnecessary delays. The Dutch officials examining the cat
clearly does. Eventually, the cat makes it on the plane and is surprisingly
tame. It is impossible to slip her any drugs by now. We’ve noticed that, even
years later, she will know when her food has been spiked and will act
accordingly. She will have to fly sober, which she doesn’t seem to mind.
To our dismay, the flight is not non-stop but stops at,
fittingly, Mount Kilimanjaro. I get it, I suppose. About ninety percent of the
passengers get off at Kilimanjaro, most of them white tourists who probably don’t see
the point in flying to Dar Es Salaam. Some will travel to Serengeti, most of
them are there for the mountain.
Less than an hour later, we touch down in Dar.
It is ten thirty at night, but the air is hot. It doesn’t take a brain surgeon to
deduct that the weather here will be hot to muggy.
The first impressions: right hand drive on all vehicles,
okay. Been there, done that in Nepal. Traffic moves easily and we take in the
palm trees and the buildings in what will be our home for the next four years.
Within the first two miles, there are already two accidents. Yep. No real
surprise there, given our experience with the capricious nature of third world
country driving.
We pass Coco Beach, less than a five minute walk from
our house. Five minutes. I think I
love this place already. Charles, our sponsor, has already been here for one
and a half years and points out certain things as we ride along.
We go to sleep quickly. This was a long day, ten hours of
which were spent on the plane.
Time to regroup and finally check out the neighborhood of
Oyster Bay the next day. For now, we are here with the kids and the cat, and we
couldn’t be happier.
This promises to be quite an adventure.
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