jambo, karibu

As we rode along on the Dar Express and each hour passed, we wondered whether the bus would ever take a real rest stop. After the first two hours, we had stopped for two minutes exactly for the passengers to run out to the roadside toilet facilities. (These facilities at times consisted of concrete structures with urinal-like holes in the ground, and at other times, consisted of bushy landscapes where men were simply instructed to go to the left, and women to the right.) And when the conductor said two minutes, she meant it. If the bus stopped at 10:15 and you weren't on the bus by 10:17, good luck finding another ride. I, of course, was the first to experience this tight scheduling as I stood squatting over the urinal and heard the bus roar. Panic. Shake dry. Pull up your pants and get out there! Phew. Big red bus with doors closed and engine on, but Dad's standing next to the conductor. I'm good. Alright, next time, no time for dawdling.

To our pleasant surprise, the tight schedule included a 20 minute lunch stop midway through the journey at a specially designated roadside food area. There were fruit and nut stands, a bar, and various hot food stations to choose from. I browsed the samosas and hamburgers, passed the crazy meat chopping guy, and decided that if I had to get something stodgy... eggs and fries were my safest bet. The guys, on the other hand, went straight for the meat. "Check this out! Steak and fries for less than three bucks!" My dad was stoked. "Four orders, please," he said, holding up four fingers to complement his request.

As the guys waited for their hearty lunch, crowded around the hot grill and resident butcher, they couldn't quite figure out exactly what type of steak this butcher was butchering. "What's this meat?" my dad asked. "Caribou," the man responded with a smile. Local caribou, we thought, how cool! Sorry In-N-Out, but this is what you call real animal style fries!

The following day we began our safari with our two local guides, Matthew and Imanuel. As we chatted with them and began to learn some Swahili, we realized that "karibu" was a very commonly used word. In addition to using the word to say "you are welcome" in response to thanks, Tanzanians also use it say "welcome" to this place or "feel free." Upon this realization, Matt and I looked at each other knowingly: those weren't caribou fries at the lunch stop. The man probably didn't even speak English and was just being polite. This is funny. But wait, what kind of meat was that, then? It didn't really taste like beef. Maybe goat, we decided. Oh well, didn't stop us from getting our mystery "karibu fries" on the ride back. After all... the locals welcomed us to eat them :)

Karibu (welcome to) Tanzania: animal style fries and a Kilimanjaro beer!

Yum!