In Dar – 29th April 2011

Breakfast at the Tanzanite Hotel is an unvarying fare. And so is the smiling service.  The hotel does not have a regular restaurant. But they manage to rustle up breakfast every morning, which consists of cornflakes, cold milk, doughnuts, bread, apples, fruit juice, coffee and eggs in any form that you would want them as long as your order is omlette!! Normally I have four slices of white bread toast, butter and marmalade with a double egg omlette. This morning was no different.

Omar was in attendance immediately after breakfast.  Having worked in the Port sector for five years I wished to visit the DAR port.  Irfan and Omar managed to get appointments with the Container Terminal Manager and the Port Operations Manager.  The Ports of Dar, Tanga and Mtwara, along with the river ports, come under the Tanzania Ports Authority.  Tanga is a lighterage port and Mtwara is a seasonal port, which assumes a lot of importance during the cashew season.  Cashew is grown near the Mozambique border area of Tanzania andis better served by Mtwara port, from where cashew containers used to be received in Cochin during the season.  With the possible exploitation of minerals and ore in the southern part of Tanzania, bordering Malawi and Congo, I feel that the Mtwara port will assume a lot of importance in the years to come.  There is no rail connectivity to Mtwara; the road connectivity also leaves a lot to be desired.

The Dar port is in the ‘centre of the city’, so to speak.  The presence of Omar ensured that we go in to the Port without any entrance pass. The Dar port dates back to 1867 and presently has 11 berths and an oil jetty over 2600 metres of quay length.  Berths 8 to 11 are operated by Hutchinson on a 25 year concession agreement with the TPA.  330,000 TEUs are handled by Hutchinson.  The CA was amended in 2008 to exclude the non-compete clause as Hutchinson was unable to handle additional volumes due to lack of additional ground slots.  The non-availability of CFSs in and around the Port has increased dwell time of imports in the Port.  The overall dwell time is in excess of 15 days.  Presently, the TPA uses two of its seven general cargo berths for handling container vessels with an annual throughput of 80,000 TEUs. The general cargo berths handle foodgrains, fertilizer and ro-ro vessels.  Additional investments are underway to augment the container handling capacity of the Port.  The Port administration is very receptive to ideas for business and process changes.  The new wagons imported by TAZARA for transportation of containers were at the Port.  The Port handles traffic of TAZARA and TRC on two different gauges.

While I was in the Port it rained heavily and humidity increased.  From the Port I walked with Omar to the St Joseph’s cathedral.  I was drenched in sweat and the shirt clung to an out of shape ‘single pack’.  On the way are the terminals that operate ferries and speedboats to Zanzibar.  I wished I could go.  But there is no time now; perhaps on the next visit.  The St Joseph’s Cathedral was built between 1897 and 1902.  It is one of the oldest in DAR.  The adoration chapel was full of devotees.  The next halt was at the Kilmanjaro Kempinski Hotel to get a first hand update of the Tanzanite stone.  The stone is only mined from an exclusive area called Mererani near the foothills of the Kilimanjaro.  The color of the stone ranges from deep blue (AAA grading) to light blue (B grading).  The exclusivity and the limited area keep the price of the stone high – a one carat stone is sold for as high as $850.  The high rate and the non-availability of smaller stones kept me away from closing a deal for a ‘take away’.

Lunch was at the Chef’s Corner, not very far from the Tanzanite Hotel.  The restaurant had turned on the sound of the TV to ‘announce’ the Royal Wedding.  I thought I ordered a chicken dish, but what landed up was a fish fry!!  However, I enjoyed the meal with a couple of chappatis and chips.  A visit in the evening to the Kariakoo market was an experience.  This is reputedly the cheapest market in Tanzania.  Goods from China are available at bargain prices.  Bags, clothes, belts, shoes, hankies, jeans, undergarments, and such like are vended on the streets.  You name it and it is there. The place can be overwhelming for the number of people that throng the streets.  Lack of proper lighting is a challenge and the condition of the roads is bad.  It is best to be careful about your belongings as the surging crowds could relieve you of many of your valuables. It is also a market for Mitumbe – second hand goods (literally, ‘dead man’s clothing’).  I bought a few DVDs of African music as souvenir. 

Dinner was at Mamboz – an eatery down the place from where I stay.  Akhtar, the owner, is a third generation Gujarati businessman in DAR.  He told me of the generous tips to the Police and Civil authorities that are required to keep his business going using the pavements.  The sheek kebabs, misihikaki (BBQ) and the tandoori chicken were yummy and filling.  I was tempted to sample a fish fillet served to the adjacent table.  Akhtar told me that the fish is found only in the waters of Lake Victoria.

In Dar – 28th April 2011

When the car stopped I woke up and enquired of the ‘battered’ Steve where we were.  It was around 5 am and the commuting public could be seen even at that hour.  Most schools and offices start business at 7.30 am, I understand.  We were about 20 kms short of the Tanzanite Hotel.  Then we hit the most incredible traffic jam I have encountered in my life.  It took us over 3 hours to travel the 20 kms and get to the hotel. I did not have anything much lined up for the day and hence asked Irfan if I could meet with the Managing Director of Tazara Railways.  I was keen to know how Railways are organized in Tanzania and get a larger picture of the African Rail system, if possible.  The resourceful young man got me an appointment for the afternoon, till when I relaxed in the Hotel.

I had a most interesting meeting with Mr. Lewnika, the MD of Tazara in his office.  And I learnt the following from him.

Tanzania has two railway systems – the Tanzanian Railway Corporation (TRC) and the Tanzania Zambia Railway Authority (Tazara). The Tazara railway line was built to give landlocked Zambia a link to the port of Dar, as an alternative to its export rail routes via erstwhile Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, South Africa and Mozambique.  The rail link was a project financed and executed by China costing about $500 million, making it the largest foreign-aid project undertaken by China at the time.  The railway was originally envisioned in the 1930s and till the 60s the project was considered economically unviable and floundered for funding.  Strategically, with the West shutting off all funding avenues to the project, the leaders of the newly independent States of Tanzania and Zambia turned to China and secured their financial and physical commitment to the terrain challenged project.

Tazara railway spans 1,860 km from Dar es Salaam in Tanzania to Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia.  The railway is often regarded as one of the greatest engineering feats of its kind. The railway took only five years to build and was finished ahead of schedule in 1975. It is said that before the construction actually began 12 Chinese surveyors travelled for nine months on foot from Dar es Salaam to Mbeya to fix the alignment of the railway line. Thereafter, about 50,000 Tanzanians and 25,000 Chinese were engaged to construct the historical railway.  The Chinese labor was rumored to have been convict labor.  Braving the challenging environment and natural elements the workers successfully laid the track through some of Africa's most rugged landscape. The work involved moving 330,000 tonnes of steel rail and the construction of 300 bridges, 23 tunnels and 147 stations. The bridge across the Mpanga River towers 160 feet and the Irangi tunnel is more than two kms long. Construction of the Mlimba (the Kingdom of Elephants) to Makambako (the Place of Bulls) section was considered to be the most difficult along the route, crossing mountains and steep valleys.  The railway passes between the Mikumi NP and the Selous Game Reserve.  Hence, travelers on this railway get the opportunity to see the rich wildlife of Selous, which with time have got used to the rumbling noise of the train. From Mbeya town, the railway heads northwestwards and crosses into Zambia at Tunduma.

The gauge of the railway was kept at 1067 mm to match that in the Zambian Railways that are connected to Zimbabwe and South Africa.  Thus, Tazara is a point of access to the railway systems of Central and Southern Africa. Tazara has never been profitable and more recently it has suffered from competition from road transport and the re-orientation of Zambia's economic links towards South Africa after the end of apartheid. A Tanzanian newspaper described the railway's condition in late 2008 as being "on the verge of collapse due to financial crisis".  It is understood that the Chinese government stepped in with some much needed assistance to the financially crippled Tanzania-Zambia Railways Authority to revive its operations.

Tazara is connected to the TRC, which has a gauge of 1000 mm, at the transshipment station of Kidatu and inside the Dar Port.  The Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) is state owned and operates a railway network that was once part of the East African Railways Corporation (EARC) operating in Kenya, Uganda and the erstwhile Tanganyika.  TRC spans about 2,600 km.

In 2007 RITES of India won a contract to operate passenger and freight services on a concession basis for 25 years. The concession agreement did not take off for various reasons and the government terminated the contract and resumed control in 2010.

It was fascinating to get the story of the Railways from Mr Lewnika.  Later we met over dinner at the swanky ‘Sea Cliff’ Hotel with the Indian Ocean on one side for company.  Mr Lewnika had held various positions in the private and public sectors in Zambia, even being a Cabinet Minister, prior to being given charge of the Tazara.  He mentioned that his father, who was a founder member of the Northern Rhodesia Freedom Movement, had travelled to India in 1950 and visited Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai.  He had met with Pandit Nehru and Indira Gandhi during his trip.  Mr Lewnika expressed a deep desire to trace the journey of his father to and in India.

Mbeya to Dar – 27th April 2011

Irfan and Omar were to make a few business calls after breakfast.  I tagged along to further appreciate the countryside.  The landscape is pristine and the air absolutely cool and clean.  I was so taken in by the surroundings that I absent mindedly took off the seat belt, lowered the window and started clicking away as if there would be no tomorrow.  This went on for a while till we were once again waved down by traffic cops.  As soon as we stopped a cop came near me and told the driver, Steve, that I was not wearing the seatbelt.  I tried to explain that as a tourist I was clicking away and had inadvertently taken off the belt.  The cop would have none of it.  Negotiations began almost immediately.  Finally, the fine was reduced to Tshs 2000.  The cops send us on our way with a smile and the greeting ‘Safari njema’ (Safe journey).

While Irfan and Omar made their business calls I chatted up the taciturn Steve.  I wanted to appreciate the ‘Bantu’ tribes people in their original environment.  Very reluctantly he pointed out a few people, who were on their way to work, and asked me to observe their short stature, darker complexion, thick lips and short curly hair.  This southern part of Tanzania is rich in natural deposits of coal, copper, iron and manganese ores and gold.  On the way back to Mbeya I requested to be taken to a railway station to appreciate the facilities.  Irfan and Omar took me to two.  We went first to the Mbeya railway station, which is a major transit point on the Tazara Railway line which links Tanzania and Zambia.  The gauge is slightly over a metre – 1067mm to be precise.  The fact that little investment is being done on the railway system is amply evident from the condition of the railway wagons and locomotives.  Uyole railway station is just a few kms away from Mbeya.  The station is not functional now.  The loop lines have been spiked and the signaling and communication systems are defunct.  When we were at the stations we saw many children returning home from school.  When I asked some of them for a photograph many of them ran away.  It took Omar’s vernacular skills to get them to come together for a photograph.

Instead of staying another night at Mbeya we decided to drive back to Dar.  This meant that we would have to drive through night, Steve willing.  He agreed to it and Irfan said that he would take over at the wheel if Steve felt tired.  We had ahead of us 14 hours of travel to get back to Dar.  Before checking out from the Mbeya Hotel Omar took me on a walk through the city centre and pointed out Bantus, Pygmies, Somalis, Masais and mixed tribespeople.  Irrespective of the tribes the Tanzanian geniality could be seen everywhere.

It was pitch dark when we entered the road through Mikumi NP.  I kept my eyes peeled for wildlife.  I was not disappointed.  A ‘tall’ giraffe darted across the road at speed and we almost ran into an angry elephant. Memorable moments.  All along the way eateries were open to serve the fairly heavy cargo vehicle movement.  We stopped at one such place and had a quick bite, which helped Steve to relax and stretch his legs a bit.  We could make out that he was tiring.  I offered to drive but Steve wouldn’t hear of it.  We resumed the journey and I promptly dozed off.

Dar to Mbeya – 26th April 2011

Since Irfan and Omar were going on a business trip to Mbeya I decided to tag along to see a countryside that is normally not on a tourist’s radar.  We left Dar es Salaam (Dar) at around 8 am.  Irfan told me that hiring a car in Tanzania is a costly affair.  For the two day trip that we were embarking on we could be spending up to $35000!!  The driver of the car that Irfan hired for the trip, Steve, is a boxer. His biceps could make Salman and Co feel like ill fed kids.  Immediately as the journey began, Steve stopped to buy a fire extinguisher and the attention triangle.  I was told that the Police are quite tough on the non-availability of safety items on the vehicles.  Nice to know that such traffic requirements are ‘in vogue’!  Talking about the Police, it did not take long to be waved down by a batch of traffic policemen.  On the hand held radar the speed of the car was registered as 64 kmph against the permissible 50 kmph on the highway!! The normal fine for traffic infringement is Tshs 20,000.  A suitable compromise was struck after a combination of tough talking, groveling and invoking the names of the people in high places.  We got away with a fine of Tshs 5000.  The police officer wrote out three copies of the booking record as he did not have carbons.  More than the money spent it is the time that was a matter of concern for we had ahead of us more than 800 kms to go.  Adding to the delays en route was the strict application of traffic rules by Steve behind the wheel.  He refused to overtake unless the visibility was clear and even when the driver in front permitted him to.  It was exasperating at times.  We had to pay one more compromised fine of Tshs 3000 for not having a safety sticker on the windshield.  As it is, the front windshield was full of statutory stickers.  An additional windshield may be in order to comply with all the regulations.  With the stoppages and the exasperating driving techniques of Steve we were well short of the intended destination for lunch.  However, I gave me a wonderful opportunity to take in the landscape and understand Tanzanian way of life a bit better.

In Dar city ladies can be seen moving about their chores wearing brightly colored head dress, called Kilemba in Swahili.  But exposure to the western life styles has introduced modern hair braiding which is meant to be flaunted rather than be concealed beneath a Kilemba.  One of the common sights in Dar is the amount of commerce that happens at road blocks and traffic intersections.  Vendors with Chinese made cheap items, food and fruits do brisk business.  From one of the vendors Omar asked for ‘gazetee’, a newspaper.  He got me an English newspaper, ‘The Guardian’.  The newspapers are full of the 47^th Union Anniversary, a Union that is not without its problems.  The perceived neglect of certain regions of the Union of Tanzania and regional aspirations contribute to the fissiparous tendency.

The road from Dar to Mbeya was mostly a two lane road, but certain portions had three lanes and almost all through there were service niches that could be used for overtaking or temporary parking.  Advertisements along the way suggested that the mobile data cards are cheaper in Tanzania than it is in India.  On arrival in Dar Irfan had got me an Airtel prepaid connection.  While SMS costs slightly over Rs.3 per message the international calls are cheaper – I was told that Tshs 10,000 (equivalent of Rs. 300) could get you a half hour call to India.  In the suburbs of Dar one could see a few Bajaj autos.  However, here again the Chinese have gone a step further.  They have marketed auto-like dump trucks that operate hydraulically.  They are a big hit for marketing farm products.  The prices of diesel and petrol are the same with minor regional variations – a litre costs between Tshs 1950 to 2150 (between Rs. 60 and 65).  All fuel is imported into the country by private companies, who operate fuel stations too.  Most of the fuel is transported over land routes in humongous trucks specially manufactured for the purpose. The majority of cargo vehicles on the road are from Scania and heavy duty too.  There is substantial movement of containers on the Tanzania-Zambia highway moving to the port of Dar.  One fact must be highlighted here.  The drivers are extremely conscious of traffic regulations and safety.  They are ‘well behaved’ in the sense that rash and negligent driving is not something that you see on the highway, which makes driving less stressful (cannot say the same in Dar, though).

The countryside is dotted by mango trees, paddy fields and unorganized farming of tomatoes, potatoes, sunflower, sweet potatoes, cabbage, passion fruit and other fresh fruits and vegetables grown organically.  The road side sale is brisk.  A bucket full of tomatoes weighing about 20 kilos is sold for less than Rs. 50.  The abundant fertile lands call for organized farming with upstream and downstream industries to produce good seeds for the farmers and process the produce after harvest.  The 40 million Tanzanians can be induced into entrepreneurship, farming and marketing.  Despite the presence of large lakes and water bodies and more than abundant rainfall irrigation is largely absent.  There is a crying need to ‘stitch together’ a network of canals and bunds so as to bring the fertile lands to life.  Power supply is another problem area for Tanzania.  The country produces less than 1400 MW of which nearly 600 MW is produced using gensets.  The availability of large deposits of coal has not been exploited till date.  There is scope to enhance hydel generation, which also is lagging behind its potential.  The government needs to act expeditiously on these issues so as to leverage the benefits of natural wealth for its citizens.  As one drives through the rural landscape one cannot but appreciate the clean villages.  You will not find garbage and muck thrown about.  Even in the rural areas there seemed to be good civic sensibility amongst the citizens and an efficient collection and disposal system.

Omar turned out to an eager teacher.  I picked up a few words of Swahili, which has more than a smattering of Hindi in it.  One can appreciate it from words like Duka (shop), Dawa (medicine), Safari (travel), etc.  The blue skies against the Uluguru Mountain gave me a lot of photo ops.  The route from Dar to Mbeya passes through the Mikumi National Park for 50 kms.  ‘Hatari’ has remained one of my favorite movies.  This day I realized the meaning of the word after nearly 40 years of seeing the movie – at the entrance to the NP was the word ‘Hatari’ painted in bold letters, meaning ‘Danger’.  The NP, established in 1964, covers an area over 3200 square kms and is the fourth largest NP in Tanzania. The landscape of Mikumi is often compared to that of the Serengeti. The road that crosses the park divides it into two areas with partially distinct environments - alluvial plains and imposing rock formations of the Rubeho and Uluguru mountains.  The fauna in the NP includes many species characteristic of the African savannah. The park contains a subspecies of giraffe that biologists consider the link between the Masai giraffe and the Somali giraffe. The 50 km drive gave me an opportunity to appreciate elephants, giraffes, zebras, gnu, black antelope, baboons, wildebeests and buffaloes.  The small Museum at the entrance to the NP has skeletal exhibits of elephant, hippo, buffalo and antelope.  The road traffic that passes through the NP is fairly high.  Hence, it is not uncommon for wild life to be run over and killed by passing vehicles.  Photographs of such ‘accidental’ deaths are on display in the Museum.  The Mikumi NP is not normally on the map of international tourists to Tanzania and therefore, is better protected from the environmental point of view.  We had lunch at the NP, with Omar obtaining special permission to enter the NP.  I utilised the chance to observe and commit to camera baboons, birds and elephants.  Accommodation at the NP is frightfully expensive - $165 per night.

A hand raised in greeting, a warm ‘Karibu’ on their lips and an ever smiling face is what describes Tanzania for me.  The Tanzanians mean their ‘Karibu’ (Welcome).  Wherever you go in Tanzania you feel welcome and never threatened.  It makes Tanzania all the more attractive for foreign tourists.  After more than an hour over lunch in the Mikumi NP we resumed our journey to Mbeya.  We reached there after 9 pm, after more stoppages to buy tomatoes and passion fruit.  I was told that Mbeya would be cold.  I did not have proper winter clothing.  But the air was just a wee bit nippy and I weathered it.  We were booked into the Mbeya Hotel, in the city centre.  It is a railway property that has now passed into private management.  It is a no frills accommodation.  The rooms are adequate but the water in the tap was not the color of normal water!  Omar ordered ‘Ugali’ and chicken tikka masala for me.  Ugali is a steamed powdered maize preparation.  It is very heavy but easy on the digestion.  I fell in love with it.  The combination with the chicken curry, which had a strong taste of tomato, was fantastic.

Dubai to Dar-es-Salaam - 25th April 2011

Indian time refused to part ways with the body clock.  After readying material for the blog I ‘played’ around with the coffee maker for some time, even summoning additional sachets of coffee mix.  I impatiently waited till it was respectable time for breakfast in the Hotel Coffee Shop.  I was offered Dosa and Sambar, but opted for a masala omlette and accoutrements.  A huge helping of fresh fruits briefly embellished my plate.  Strong coffee with milk got me into the right frame of mind for the flight to Dar es Salaam.

The Airline gave me a drop to the T3 terminal and I wandered aimlessly for a while in the Duty Free, at times comparing the liquor prices with that in Bangalore International Airport.  The prices in Bangalore are definitely lower.  In the Emirates airport lounge I downed an excellently made Bloody Mary and filled out a feedback form (on the experience yesterday) while awaiting announcement for the flight.  The service on EK 725 to DAR was definitely better – the food and drinks I got what I wanted and not what was left over.  Moreover, the pretty Thai girl was friendly and full of life.

The flight from Dubai to Dar-es-Salaam lasted all of 5 hours.  When the flight was landing I got a glimpse of the various islands that dot the Indian Ocean close to the erstwhile Tanganyika coast, including Zanzibar.  No high rise buildings, just rusty, tin roofed single floor houses.  The port is a pretty sight from above and so are the water bodies.  I had planned to obtain a visa on arrival at the Julius Nyerere International Airport and accordingly filled out forms.  The way it was processed showed how entrenched the old British systems are.  They were neither fast not efficient.  But what saves the day are the friendly Tanzanians who man the counters and other services.  They have a smile for everyone and for everything.  After examining the documentation I had for yellow fever vaccination I was asked to pay $50 for the visa.  The officer examined the currency note studiously and informed me that they accept only notes that are 2001 vintage and later.  Apparently, this precaution is to avoid counterfeits that almost subsumed the ‘exchange bureaus’ a few years back. Later I learnt that the dollar notes of 1996 etc are not of much use here.  They could be exchanged, but at a huge rebate to the normal exchange rate of 1500 Tshs to a $.  100 Tshs is roughly Rs.3.  The Customs department did not bother about the two bottles of whiskey I brought in.  The climate was humid. I had worn a jacket as I was told that it is winter time in Tanzania.  I ‘burnt’ in the airport arrival hall and the jacket was quickly abandoned.

When I came out of the Airport I was received by Irfan Khan and Omar Noor.  I was booked into the Tanzanite Hotel, a new facility in the midst of a large Indian community in Dar.  The Hotel has large rooms and decent facilities. What immediately caught my eye were a few Masai tribesmen sitting in front of the Hotel constantly chatting amongst themselves.  Tanzanite is a stone discovered by the Masai in the 1960s.  A stone of immense color and beauty, it is much sought after.  What adds value is its limited availability.  Irfan has been doing business in Tanzania for a few years now and his local contact is Omar, a Somali by descent. After a wash we decided to go to ‘The Slipway’ for dinner.

The first impression I got of Dar from the drive from the airport and to ‘The Slipway’ is that people still do not have access to Malls and organized shopping places.  Dar is just an overgrown village with a desire to be urban.  Traffic blocks are legendary even though the vehicle density is not so high.  The population of the large country is just about 42 million – it is said that even if 10 hectares is distributed free to every Tanzanian the State will still be left with enough land for a few generations more.  This mineral rich country is still in a very nascent stage of development and prospecting.  The mineral wealth includes gold deposits in 19 of the 21 provinces of the country, coal, iron ore, limestone, copper, etc.  The country is blessed by huge lakes such as the Victoria, Nyasa, Tanganyika, Manyara, Nutron and Eyasi.  However, the presence of these natural sources of water and the abundant rainfall have not translated into organized irrigation and farming.  The potential for this is massive.  I made out from the tourist leaflets at the airport that the country is a tourists’ delight.  It offers a wide range of places to visit for the tourist from the revered Kilimanjaro to the amazing craterland of Ngorongoro to the rich wildlife of Serengiti National Park to the spice trading centre of Zanzibar to the Lakes of Victoria and Tanganyika to the picture postcard centres in the South like Mbeya.  It has so much to offer and I have very little time.  What happens in such a circumstance is a kind of desperation to visit this and see that and go there and be here.  I decided to spend time with Irfan and Omar and try to understand the place and people a bit more interspersed with a few visits to places of interest.

At The Slipway we took a table close to the waterfront and ordered a round of the local beer, ‘Kilimanjaro’.  Even the ‘favorite’ bottled water is called that.  Omar and Irfan decided to have a soda – all aerated beverages are called soda.  They settled for Stoney, a ginger drink from the House of Coke.  Over the drinks I got a flavor of Tanzania from my two friends.  The people are so friendly that one seldom sees them breaking out into a fight.  Everything is amicably settled with a smile and a handshake.  Even total strangers are greeted by the locals in traditional style. 65% of the population is Muslim and over 30% Christian.  There are many tribes in Tanzania, prime among them being the Bantus (mainly in the south) and the Masais (in the north and the north-west). However, a common language, Swahili, knits them together.  Swahili is an interesting blend of Hindi, English and local languages using a Roman script.  Casinos are many and so are the nightclubs.  Cabs are very expensive in Tanzania.  The cars are mostly used ones imported from Japan.  Hardly any major automotive manufacturer has a showroom in Dar.  Interestingly, both diesel and petrol are priced the same. In Dar a litre of fuel costs about 2000 to 2100 Tshs; roughly about Rs.60. Dinner consisted of Beef Misaki (barbecued beef), Beef Samosas, Kalamari, Red Snapper and chips. The preparations were delicious and Omar promised to get me ‘Ugali’, the local maize staple, tomorrow.

Bangalore to Dubai - April 24th 2011

I am presently located in Toranagallu village, Bellary District in Karnataka.  The once sleepy village has been transformed by the ‘House of Jindal’.  JSW Steel is the largest steel producer in the country today. From a humble 1.6 million tonnes Hot Metal production in 2005, it has grown into a 10 million tonne Plant in 2011.  Plans are already on the anvil to scale up the capacity to 16 million tonnes in 2 phases by 2014. The size and scale of the Plant can be appreciated by a fact that there are 145 kms of railway track within the Plant premises. The company has deployed 22 shunting engines of its own and will shortly be doubling their number. It is not untrue to state that many railways do not have as many shutting locomotives as JSW Steel has in Toranagallu! To be part of this historical expansion is exciting.  One can also take pride in the yeoman service of the Company to society by way of its Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives in the spheres of community health, education, women’s empowerment and such like. The JSW Steel is served by 3 self sufficient townships, prime among them being the Vidyanagar Township. The employees number nearly 17000, both direct and indirect; the township is open to all.  The Vidyanagar township of JSW Steel is arguably the best in the country. It is understood that Shri Sajjan Jindal and Smt Sangeeta Jindal take personal care to ensure the upkeep and growth of the townships. The green environment is reputed to be the initiative of the First Lady.

Ajay, my son, had joined me in the township on the 22^nd after his examinations. We left early this morning for Bangalore via Hiriyur and NH4.  Breakfast was at the Kamat Upachar in Sira.  The Kesari Bath was delicious. The Easter lunch in Tom’s house was a majestic meal preceded by Baccardi Breezer.  The ‘Kuttanadan Duck’ preparation was difficult to tear away from.  The quick disappearance of the Appams from the serving plate, I blamed, on the excellent gravy!  Time went by very fast in the company of Maria and Lizy, the perfect hosts.

The chauffer driven pick up of Emirates Airlines arrived at the appointed hour to take me to the airport for the flight.  The airport lounge of the Bangalore International Airport was a disappointment in so far as the drinks and food were concerned.  EK 567 to Dubai took off ahead of schedule from the Bangalore International airport.  It is Shakespeare who said: “Sorrows come not single spies, but in battalions…”. The flight by EK 567 from Bangalore to Dubai proved that practical wisdom was the hallmark of the Bard of Avon.  When the opportunity came to travel to Tanzania and Dubai for tourism I had booked on Emirates Airline and got upgraded to Business Class, first to transit Dubai enroute to Dae-es-Salaam and then to return to Bangalore via Dubai.  The exceptionally poor quality of service on board EK 567 today made me feel like a stowaway.  The Airline lays a lot of stress on service and quality of food on board, it is advertised.  Whether the attitude of the staff that served me was intentional or just part of his natural ‘armor’ of customer service was difficult to tell.  But either ways, it is debilitating to the Airlines.  While taking food orders I was told that “we have only one Seafood Pie and two Chicken”!! It made me wonder if I was travelling Business Class or ‘Cattle Class’ (move over Shashi Tharoor) by Emirates Airline.  As if that was not enough, the steward took upon himself to decide how I should have my drink and brought me a drink he had mixed to the proportion of his choice.  Later when I asked for a refill of the Single Malt, Chivas Regal was produced! Such shocking attention and behavior from the Emirates Airline staff in Business Class is not what I had factored in for the journey of such immense personal importance.

At the time of booking I was told that the Airline would take care of the transit Visa and accommodation in Dubai on the 24^th.  Accordingly, arrangements were made for the Visa to visit Dubai on the return leg on the 30^th April.  At T3, on arrival in Dubai, I got the manual visa made from the Airline Help Desk proximate to the Immigration.  Then I was handed the rude shock by the Immigration that the manual Airline Visa would not be processed since the Visa for the return to Dubai on the 30^th was ‘already in the system’.  I had arranged to meet with Haism, who I knew from my days with DP World, upon arrival. The delays after arrival ensured that the entire pre-scheduled program is ‘consigned to the shredder’.  After many clarifications and unacceptable alternatives from Emirates Airline staff (such as ‘sleep in the lounge’) I was left with no option but to use the Visa that was ‘in the system’.  All through the ‘drama’ lasting over a half hour the staff at the Emirates Help Desk refused to intercede on my behalf with the Immigration citing non-existent customers to serve!  The embarrassment and the precious time lost were nobody’s concern.  I rued the decision taken to travel with Emirates Airline.

Mercifully, Avis provided a car pronto to transfer me to the Meridian Hotel (chauffeured by a guy from Kannur, Kerala).  The hotel room was comfortable to rest the weary legs and mull over the events of the day.

This time for Africa - 23rd April 2011

The railwayman is at it again. I am packing my bags for a short trip to Tanzania. I have never travelled to the African Continent before. This place, where human civilization is reputed to have begun, is still a ‘dark continent’ to many. I may be pardoned if I sound like David Livingstone, for I am all excited about the five day trip to the country of Julius Nyerere. Tanzania as we know today is an amalgam of the erstwhile States of Tanganyika and Zanzibar. While the former was a British colony the latter was under the control of the Germans till the First World War. Vasco Da Gama, during his exploration of the Orient, is said to have stumbled upon Zanzibar reputedly the center for spices, ivory and slave trades during that time. The reluctance of the Germans to let it go as a pocket of its influence after the World War is well documented.  In 1961, Tanganyika won independence from the British under the leadership of Julius Nyerere. Some history books give more credit to the financial sate of the British Empire at the time rather than to the people of Tanzania for their independence. Whatever, the role played by Julius Nyerere in lighting the sparks of independence from colonial rule in the African Continent cannot be understated. When Zanzibar won its independence in 1963 Tanganyika and Zanzibar came together to form the United Republic of Tanzania. Dodoma is the Capital, in name only.  Dar-es-Salaam is the erstwhile capital city and the major port, vital to trade in East Africa.

The objective of the railwayman’s journey this time is no different from what it was in October 2010. Adventure and education have ramped up the levels of excitement. Five days is too short to do justice to any country particularly an African country that is so rich in history, culture, art and wildlife. Nevertheless, I have five days to see and enjoy what I can. The railwayman is on the road once again. 

Today is 23^rd April, the 55th anniversary of my parent’s wedding. Achachan and Ammachi, a couple who lived almost exclusively for their children, are no longer in our midst. But the memories of their loving and caring ways, the selfless sacrifices they made and the solid foundation of values and morals they provided will keep them in our memories forever.  This journey to them.