Dhow Safari Mikadi to Mtwara
“Vagabundo” by Fundi Mponda
The “Vagbundo” left at 4.30am on Wednesday 6th May 2009 from Mikadi after a drunken farewell party and very heavy heavy heads! Waking at that time to set off was not easy. To kit out The Vagabundo took about just under 3 weeks and involved loads of fetching and carrying from Dar es Salaam. Joe & Beau had to build the galley, fit the fresh water tanks fit the electrics, navigation system, sound system, lights, sand box for our charcoal cookers and of course our main power source the wind generator, mounted on the top sun deck! The best thing about the refit was the toilet……here is a pic of the best loo in the world! It had a canvas that zipped up behind you so providing you were not overlooking land or people you were private…..it also became a wet deck…ideal for gutting fish!
The loo with the best view!
The intention was to get to Mafia Island in time to connect with Jessica who was joining us from London via Dar es Salaam having had a few nights at Mikadi. As cellphone connections are excellent in Tanzania – a good signal was even possible in the most remotest places so made “hooking up” relatively easy for the rest of our crew and us.
Our shipmates came from all over the world. Firstly, was our Chef Jesse from The Netherlands, Sandro from Switzerland, Michelle from Ireland, James from the UK, Kelly, living in Scotland but originally from South Africa, Mbrook, our Tanzanian Captain, Andri from South Africa, myself Zimbabwean, Joe from South Africa living in Namibia and Beau from USA. This was the original crew from Mikadi, others arrived and left along the way. Mbrook was there to teach us all to sail and would depart along route once we were confident!
Our first day was spent sailing and using the motor for about 10 hours – most of us just slept the whole time! This was a usual procedure to early departures, also the body had not got used to the dhow movements – your body counter balances the whole time – which is a brilliant work out. That first night we moored off a place on the Tanzanian Coast called Kimbidji. The amazing Chef Jesse got to work and produced one of his many to come master pieces! Before we talk about food the sea sick tables were: first to succumb was Kelly followed by Michelle. Now the food, most of the dry stuff came with Joe & Beau from Namibia and we then had to supplement this as best we could along the way. It worked well, only a couple of times on the trip did hunger pangs enter the equation! Tonights master piece was a veggie dinner with potatoes & cabbage – sounds basic but not in the hands of Jesse – tasted wonderful. Michelle being veggie was well happy even if she was feeling lousy from sea sickness.
Jess & James catching up on beauty sleep!
Next morning was another early start (3am) these were mainly due to the weather being better at this time and also to compensate for the winds being against us, which we struggled with quite a lot, as we had not picked the best time to sail “South”.
I have decided that rather than give you a day by day account – more like a diary – which is boring, I will highlight parts of the trip that I really enjoyed and hopefully can post a few photos to give you more of a feel of the trip. You had to be able to entertain yourself during the day and most of us read, listened to our ipods, chatted to each other OR SLEPT. I can say that for the first two weeks most people slept plenty. I think this is to do with the physical aspect of sailing a dhow plus a combination of sea air and just basically unwinding from a Western lifestyle that is full of stress and hectic…slow down to the rhythm of the sea….Jesse our Chef suffered terribly from a combination of sea sickness and a reaction to his anti malarial tablets – which Joe eventually told him to stop. Some days when he was cooking he looked and we all knew felt terrible.
Here we have Andri on the tiller, then Michelle, Beau’s back, Sandro and James
Approximately 20kms from Mafia Island we found an uninhabited Island that we managed to stay on and camp. It was awesome and a real feel of Robinson Crusoe about it. We had two nights on here and the fishermen amongst us spent every waking moment catching fish off the reef of the island. Sleeping on an island was a strange feeling after being on a dhow but a nice break for everyone – and I think I can say that this island was a highlight for all those that came. Mbrook was the only one who slept on the dhow – old sea legs! I was galley bitch the first night on the island. Now if you were galley bitch (everyone in rotation) became galley bitch, you had to assist the Chef make dinner and make coffee/tea and porrige in the following morning! I made a huge fire setting a nice piece of driftwood on fire also! We put jacket potatoes, sweet potatoes and onions in foil on the fire and ate the fish the guys (and Kelly) had caught during the day. Beer was something I have not mentioned YET! Well what can I say? It was important to a few of us (me included) so we made sure we had 30+ cases of Tanzania’s finest Kilimanjiro beer…in cans for the eco warriors. A can in the sea breaks down faster than on land where it takes 10 years. (check it out). Our Captain had also considerately brought along a few boxes of red wine – Namibian? (South Africa’s) finest! All I know is that one cup of this red wine sent me straight to sleep and if anybody struggles to sleep I recommend this as a cure! Needless to say plenty of both were drunk in this idyllic setting!
Eco Warrior Sandro sorting out a “few” beer cans!
Mbrook our awesome Tanzanian Captain…what can I say….he just fitted in as if he had known us all his life. We never felt awkward around him and he instinctively knew what we needed even though few of us spoke any Swahili (his main language). He ate food he had probably never seen in his life and went back for more! What were these mad Muzungu’s (white people) doing sailing a dhow as slow as they possibly could when they had an engine! Eventually I think he realised that we were not in it for the fastest Dhow race! His “kidogo kidogo” (slowly slowly) are etched on more than one of US! His patience was what I think was amazing………….never even in high seas did he seem fazed – Nothing fazed this man. Thank God.
Mbrook our awesome Tanzanian Captain
Arriving in Mafia was quite a feat as we had currents that just did not want to co operate and winds that were competing with the currents! Here we were due to collect Jessica. Andri, Beau & Joe went ashore to meet her from her flight from Dar es Salaam at the small air strip. A few others went ashore to get supplies and have a look around. I stayed on board as I had managed to get some nasty tropical leg ulcers which seemed to not enjoy sea water! These things became the bain of my life until I chose to ignore them and get on with my life! Treating them every day with a mixture of acid and things Joe gave me….all of which stung like mad! It was entertainment for everybody when I had my surgery sessions with the Captain!
Jesse (Chef), Mbrook & Beau arriving Mafia Island
None of us were happy about sleeping in the harbour at Mafia Island, which turned out to be extremely busy and also, in our eyes a security risk so we decided to push off with our new crew member Jess for another island - hopefully uninhabited.
The busy Mafia Island harbour!
Regrettably our next island was inhabited by fisherman so we moored a good distance away! It did enable us to buy a huge octopus as cheap as chips from local fishermen. The next day we visited the pristine coral reefs nearby this island (some of the few remaining) called Mafia Marine Park and some went snorkeling, although the water was so clear from the dhow you could see everything. This night we found a very clean Muslim Island. The Ferryman who takes people from this island to Mafia offered to take a few of us nearer shore so that we could look for fresh supplies. Those that went ashore reported how friendly the island was and how well received they were. Next day we were all woken to the mosque calling people on the island to prayer…these start anything from 4am onwards! This was the day (14th May – how time flies) we needed to get Andri to Mafia Island to catch his flight back to Dar, Mikadi and then onwards to Johannesburg. Andri was THE fisherman so will be greatly missed…..he was also eager to get involved with everything and built the Chef a table that any engineer (yes he is an engineer) woud have been proud of (plank with two bits of string!). Beau & he spent a good day doing this job much to the amusement of everyone else! Coming back to Mafia seemed odd and Joe was the only one that went ashore with Andri. We could not drop him in the harbour again so dropped him at a place called Utende where he still had to get a lift to Kilondoni and the air strip. Joe managed to report that he had managed to get a local taxi and we later heard from him that he had made his flight ok. Due to time constraints we decided to go back to our orderly Muslim Island where we felt safe enough to sleep without any night shift! If we did not like where we ended up to sleep we took it in turns to do one hour shifts throughout the night waking the person who followed you in the shift.
Next day we visited Juani Island one of the largest and most characteristic islands in the Mafia archipelago, and where the ruins of the ancient city of Kua are, whose decline, as yet unexplained by archaeological and historical, is the object of many legends. I found these ruins fascinating and also quite a mission to visit. The remains of Kua include several houses, one of these has a bathroom under the building with a vaulted ceiling; two mosques, dating to the 14th C, and tombs with pillars also stand nearby. The graveyard was spooky and reminded me of The Great Zimbabwe Ruins – same vibe. Getting back to the dhow was an expedition in itself. The tide had gone out miles and left behind a nasty mud and clay like substance that sucked you under! Guess who entered the clay? Yep me. The others followed our local guide through a channel the fishermen had made clear of the mud/clay! This little incident caused the leg ulcers to complain bitterly and kept me awake that night. In hindsight I should not have gone but I am so glad I did as this was an awesome thing to see and experience. Its well off the tourist track.
Juani Island – Kua Ruins
Our next crew member to join was Martin from Cape Town. Martin has been in film/documentary production for many years and we all looked forward to having on board a new crew member. We had hoped to pick Martin up at Mkindani but plans changed as they do on a dhow and we ended up picking him up from Kilwa Kivinje. Kilwa Kivinje, after our Muslim Island was like Sodom & Gommorah so we moored well outside the harbour and waited for Martin to board. Martin had met some locals who commandeered a small water taxi and delivered him to us! Martin was a fresh breath of air and his arrival and his stories of getting from Cape Town to The Kilwas kept us all entertained late into the night. Joe gave him a welcome cocktail which he drank from a coconut shell that was full of rum, sugar and lime juice (yum) which I am sure helped in the storeytelling! That night sleep competed with the Kilwa Kivinje disco and fisherman arriving back from 3am onwards having been fishing all night for, we think, sardines. Gathering from the racket the whole night lots of women were involved with fish buying or they could have been looking for their husbands after coming from the disco! Either way they made their presence heard.
Martin with his King Fish! Caught the following day he joined us!
It did not take long for people to prepare for an early start to escape the chaos of Kilwa Kivinje and we set off to Kilwa Kisiwani and the famous ruins. This would also be a good place to go ashore and restock with fresh vegetables and more beer as consumption had been underestimated! As we passed around Kilwa Masoko two fish were caught – one by Martin & one by Joe, we then entered a beautiful deep water bay. This bay has a few lodges: The Kilwa Ruins Lodge and Kimbilio Lodge which is where Martin had stayed the night before joining us and where we chose to moor. This was a chance for a fresh water shower, so quite a few of us booked one of the little rondavel cottages including myself. Sleeping in a nice large double bed was also a treat! Martin had left quite an impression on the young Italian (Vallerio) running Kimbilio so we were welcomed warmly. We soon reorganised the dining arrangements and got the braai (barbeque) set up and one of the fish caught in the bay was sacrificed that night! Needless to say we drank the bar dry of both rum and beer!
Next day Vallerio joined us on our excursion to the famous Kilwa Kisiwani Ruins, we sailed the dhow across to the Island having paid our entrance fees and picked up an English speaking guide. Here is something about them from good old Wikipedia:
History
In the 4th century it was sold to a trader Ali bin Al-Hasan, and over the following centuries it grew to be a major city and trading centre along that coast, and inland as far as Zimbabwe. Trade was mainly in gold and iron from Zimbabwe, ivory and slaves from Tanzania, and textiles, jewelry, porcelain, and spices from Asia.
By the 12th century, under the rule of the Mahdali, Kilwa had become the most powerful city on the East African coast, and its influence stretched as far south as Mozambique. Abu Abdullah Ibn Battuta recorded his visit to the city around 1330, and commented favorably on the humility and religion of its ruler, Sultan al-Hasan ibn Sulaiman. From this period date the construction of the Palace of Husuni Kubwa and a significant extension to the Great Mosque of Kilwa.
In the early 16th century, Vasco da Gama extorted tribute from the wealthy Islamic state, but not soon after, another Portuguese force took control of the island (1505), and it remained in Portuguese hands until 1512, when an Arab mercenary captured Kilwa. The city regained some of its earlier prosperity, but in 1784 it came under the rule of the Omani rulers of Zanzibar. After the Omani conquest, the French built and manned a fort at the northern tip of the island, but the city itself was abandoned in the 1840s. It was later part of the colony of German East Africa from 1886 to 1918.
Serious archeological investigation began in the 1950s. In 1981 it was declared a World Heritage Site, and noted visitor sites are the Great Mosque, the Mkutini Palace and some remarkable ruins.
Inscription on the List of World Heritage in Danger: 2004. There is a serious rapid deterioration of the archaeological and monumental heritage of these two islands due to various agents like erosion and vegetation. The eastern section of the Palace of Husuni Kubwa is progressively disappearing. The damage to the soil caused by rainwater wash is accentuating the risks of collapse of the remaining structures on the edge of the cliff. The vegetation that proliferates on the cliff has limited the progression of the rain-wash effect, but causes the break-up of the masonry structures. The World Monuments Fund included Kilwa on its 2008 Watch List of 100 Most Endangered Sites because of the threat of climate change to the site.
Kilwa Kisiwani Ruins, Grand Mosque
Kilwa Kisiwani Ruins, Arches Grand Mosque
On our way to Mtwara we moored off the island Songo Songo where the Gas is piped ashore and stored in huge silos. The island has a small fishing village on it and nothing else. We did not go ashore as it looked like the complex was guarded and visitors unwelcome!
Arriving in Mtwara was a bit of a non event as Joe had remembered a place, when he did his kayaking trip, that we could not find to moor. We were also worried that if we went into the harbour they would charge us an exhorbitant harbour fee! We all needed to get our passports stamped out of Tanzania and therefore needed to find the immigration office. We eventually found a place to moor tying up next to a tug boat with their Captains blessing. We also needed more fuel for the engine and fresh supplies. As Kelly and Mbrook did not have visas to enter Mozambique they would be leaving us here. We tried to persuade Mbrook that he needed to come to Mozambique but his wife won that argument so he left us! He and Kelly caught a local bus the next day and Mbrook made sure she was delivered to Mikadi safe and sound.
The trip to the Customs & Immigration was not near the harbour (why would it be?) it was in town and a good 2 mile walk! After this walk we had all our passports stamped and I caught a Tuk Tuk back to the dhow after helping Kelly find somewhere to stay that night! Kelly ended up at some Christian place run by Seventh Day Adventists in Mtwara but near the bus stop. No alcohol but clean and cheap.
I was given fuel duty – this entailed getting the plastic cans filled with petrol and ferried to the dhow! We did this using a friendly Tuk Tuk driver. If you know the Tuk Tuk’s in Thailiand similar. We made two trips and the main fuel tank was topped up so that we had on board approximately 250 litres of petrol.
The following day we would sail to Mozambique – everybody was very excited.
Come back for the next instalment!
