Tanzania: Our First Weekend!

It's been a while since my last update, which is largely due to two action-packed weekends. We have had very little down time--there's so much to see here, that we are on the go all the time! Our first weekend in Iringa was just a day trip to take in the sights of the surrounding area. The day started with a visit to Kalenga, home of the Mkwawa Memorial Museum. Chief Mkwawa was a famous leader of the Hehe tribe (one of the major tribes in Tanzania, heavily concentrated in the Iringa region). During the German occupation of Tanzania following the Berlin Convention, Chief Mkwawa led an uprising of the Hehe against German colonial rule. He successfully defeated the Germans, who were forced to regroup and return 3 years later. When the Germans finally surrounded him, he shot himself. In a rather cruel act, the Germans cut off his head and sent it to Germany. Following World War II, the British finally returned the skull from Germany to the Hehe people. Today, you can see the skull in the museum.

The Skull of Chief Mkwawa

We had one of the most interesting tour guides who showed us around. His English was very hard to understand, but he spoke with great enthusiasm for the topic. Although we were not able to understand much, we were able to get the gist of what was being said. Below are some photos from the museum--it's certainly very different from an American museum!

The inside of the Museum

A 400 year-old tree that would have been the center of the fort during Chief Mkwawa's reign

Following our visit to the Mkwawa Museum, we hopped back on our bus and headed to Isimila, our second stop of the day. The Isimila Stone Age site is known for it's unique archeological value--it is one of the biggest sites of Stone Age artifacts ever found. There are literally hundreds of Stone Age-era tools just sitting in an area that was once a river.

I don't think they'd let me pick this up in the States.

The area is also known for it's unique stone formations.An area that was once a lake slowly eroded the limestone base of the lake--but not consistently. As a result, there are now these giant pillars of stone which just seem to erupt from the earth. They were very majestic--they certainly made for a very impressive sight! See below for pictures.

The View from Above.

Down in the valley.

Our final stop of the day was to play volleyball with the local ex-pat community. In Iringa, the ex-pat community is very small and close-knit. Informal gatherings to play sports is very common and an opportunity to bring the community together. It was fun to enjoy the atmosphere and soak up the late afternoon rays.

Following volleyball and a quick dinner, it was time to head home. Sleep came quickly after a busy day. Sunday was a quiet day--an opportunity to do laundry and get ready for our first week of classes! I will post an update soon about that week and our weekend excursion to Udzungwa and Kilombero.