Volunteering in Tanzania – Part 2

Engagement party accompanied by a tropical storm

“Yaaay!” I was getting more excited about the engagement celebration by the day. The Tanzanians always have plenty of reasons to have fun. When someone gets married, celebrating the engagement is a must. That’s when they talk about dowry, and the newly-weds-to-be exchange the rings symbolically (it was a Catholic wedding). There also needs to be a feast for all who attend. Since the organisation and food represent a significant cost to the family, guests who intend on attending the party have to bring money (the gift) a few days before the feast, so the family can use it to buy enough food.

Attending such an event was truly something special, since I’m an ethnologist. I’m sure I’d never experience anything like it as a tourist.

I had fun at the engagement party together with a few hundred guests and I was wearing my new African dress my hostess and I bought at the local market. But I also thought of all the Slovenes who had to go through the strictest lockdown back then. Whoopsie!

I indulged in all kinds of treats (bananas in sauce, spiced rice, meat, fresh fruit...), until the tropical storm caught us. I had never experienced such a downpour. The water was gushing in streams and we were soaking wet in about a minute. The party took place on the bride-to-be’s estate and there wasn’t enough room for so many guests in the house. Everyone was on their own and it seemed to me that no one was really worried about it.

My hostess and I, soaked to the bone, packed away all the food that was left on the plates and slowly left the party. It was another experience on my journey.

Mother’s Day and a Dolce & Gabbana tracksuit bottom

25 March. I was still living with the same Tanzanian family. My hostess and I forged a special friendly bond. We talked a lot and brought up new and new subjects. I told her we were celebrating Mother’s Day in Slovenia that day and that I just wished my mom a Happy Mother’s Day. And her face lit up because she wanted to gift her mom, too.

We took the local dala dala bus from the village of Sangarai to the centre of Arusha to go shopping. Along the way, we tried to figure out what the best gift would be. “In Slovenia, we usually buy some chocolate and flowers for birthdays and special occasions.” My hostess laughed her head off and said chocolate wasn’t really an option in this case. It would’ve melted on our way back. The usual gift items in this area of Tanzania include food that’s fit for consumption: oil, sugar, rice, corn flour...

“I want to buy her something useful and something she doesn’t have yet.”

My hostess’s mom was a simple African woman. A housewife who takes care of her family and her adopted child. Her wardrobe consists of African kangas (colourful fabrics) and colourful dresses, mostly tailor-made. She keeps her hair braided in various styles. I always admired her style when I came to visit her. She’s an extremely graceful and proud woman.

My hostess and I searched high and low at the market, which looked more like a flea market. Finally, we stopped at a shed with fake tracksuit bottoms. There were various brands in all kinds of colours available. Adidas, Dolce & Gabbana, Nike, Under Armour and so on. Like most of us, people in Africa also find popular clothes brands important. They usually can’t afford original brands, which is why the Chinese market with exceptionally good fakes is booming.

I just couldn’t imagine the African lady in vivid blue Dolce & Gabbana tracksuit bottoms. But my hostess decided it would be a perfect gift for her mom. Now we just needed to find a gift bag for the tracksuit bottoms. And it wasn’t easy at all! We searched every corner of the local market and ended up spending more time looking for the gift bag than we did for the tracksuit bottoms.

First, we searched in all the stationery’s in the city. Gift bags were too expensive and cost about 3,000 shillings (around one euro). Then we noticed a colourful cardboard box at a printing shop which wasn’t even for sale. But they were still willing to sell it to us!

“They think we’re fools!” my hostess said nervously. “They’re trying to sell us the box for 10,000 shillings (around four euros)!”

In the end, we decided to go back and pick up a gift bag. Since my hostess bought the tracksuit bottoms, I did my share as well and bought the gift bag. I picked one that was vivid green and the glitteriest.

The gift was ready. We rushed to the bus stations and visited my hostess’s mom.

The thing I found the most unusual was when my hostess was too uncomfortable holding the colourful gift bag in her lap. “Everyone is staring at me because of this gift! Ida, can you hold it? They already stare at you, because you are white.”

I didn’t care at all for the constant looks I got from other people anymore and I wasn’t bothered by all the attention.

I’ll never forget my hostess’s mom opening the unusual gift. How thoughtful and for Mother’s Day at that!

I still wonder if the Dolce & Gabbana tracksuit bottoms have been used at all. :)