Overseas Challenge

U.S Dollars

$US

US dollars can be used almost anywhere, but the exchange rate will often be bad in shops and they will give change in Tsh.  Changing money at the banks is a better idea. 

Tanzanian Shilling

Tanzanian shilling  (Tsh)

The unit of currency is the Shilling.  There are coins at: 1, 5 10, 20, 50 and 100 TZS and notes at: 100, 200, 500, 1000, 5000, 10,000 Tsh.

In smaller shops or at market stalls the bigger denomination notes are not going to be very useful. 

As at 3 November 2006 the exchange rate is approximately £1:Tsh 2552.08, but this fluctuates wildly.

Fauna

Fauna

Tanzania has more than four million wild animal species.  The big obvious ones are things like elephant, lion, zebra, leopard and wildebeest, but then there are of course lots of insects and snakes.  On safari you will see many of these things, and more.  Your first safari is something you will remember for the rest of your life.  To see an elephant in a zoo is quite nice, to see one in its real habitat, with its herd, is incomparably better.

Flora

Flora

As you would expect, with the variety of landcapes within Tanzania’s borders there is a great variety of plants. 

A common sight across the country is the baobab tree, which has an enormously thick trunk with branches which jut out of the top of it chaotically.  The tree is sometimes called the “upside down tree” because it looks like it has been uprooted and thrust back into the ground upside down.  When you see one you’ll know what we mean.  Baobabs may be the oldest life forms on the African continent, and many of the specimens still standing today have certainly been around since the birth of Christ; others for far longer. Carbon-dating experiments in the Zambezi Valley have calculated that trees with a trunk diameter of five metres were over 1000 years of age, and similar experiments elsewhere have dated trees at over 3000 years.

In the high country around Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru the ground supports quite intensive agriculture, so coffee plantations are common.  You may notice in Sainsbury’s that some coffee has Tanzania or Kilimanjaro  written on it, as this is one of the world’s great quality coffee growing areas.

Of the rest of the country, much of it is covered by miomba woodl

Appropriate Conduct

Conduct

Tanzanians, of whatever caste, are famous for their friendliness.  They are a

warm and open people who are proud of their country and who want to make visitors welcome.  In the street most people will greet you cheerily with “Jambo”.  You will often hear the word “Karibu”, which means welcome. 

The country is now largely Christian and great store is put in a smart appearance.  Being polite to people and dressing modestly are therefore important – bare shoulders and short skirts etc are to be avoided. 

Greetings can take a while.  Sometimes a few minutes can be spent in greetings before the rest of the conversation gets under way.  Occasionally you will find that someone does not release your hand after shaking hands, and holds on to it for a few minutes or the duration of a short conversation.

If you remember to be polite and friendly at all times, and remember that they have different customs to ours – which should interest you anyway – you will be fine. 

It is very important when in any developing country to be sensitive to the difference between your wealth and the poverty of those around you.  Walkmans and cameras can cost the equivalent of many, many months of pay to the people with whom you are interacting.  The cash in your wallet may be enough to feed a family for weeks on end.  Both for security and as a matter of decency to your hosts, you should be aware of this and not inadvertently rub their noses in your relative wealth.

The People

The People

There are about 120 tribal groups which make up the Tanzanian population.  Around the foothills of Kilimanjaro, where the expedition will be taking place, the Chagga tribe are the most common.  Kilimanjaro has sacred significance for the Chagga, although Christian missionaries have had great success in converting the Chagga among other tribes.

Tanzania is one of the least urbanized of the sub-Saharan countries, with only 11% of the population living in the major cities.  The centre of the country is sparsely populated, with the peripheries more densely populated.  Moshi and Kilimanjaro are near the northern border and this area of the country is one of the most densely populated.  The ability of the ground to feed people is a key determinant of population density worldwide.  The rainfall around Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru means that the soil is fertile and able to support agricultural endeavour.  In Tanzania the tetse fly, which causes sleeping sickness in both people and cattle, is also significant – where the tetse fly is prevalent there are not many people.

There is an ongoing drive to educate the population.  Primary school education is obligatory in law, but some families cannot afford to keep their children in education throughout the seven years of this schooling.  The system is based on the English education system, which is just one of many signs of Tanzania’s colonial heritage.

Useful Phrases

Greetings are very important in Swahili.

Hello                                          Jambo  (This is used to say hello to tourists who are

                                                presumed not to speak Swahili.)  Just respond                                                                                                 Jambo, or sijambo. -                               

Good morning                             Habari za asubuhi?                        

Good day                                   Habari za leo?                  

Good evening (including                       Habari za jioni?

night)               

Goodbye                                                Kwa heri

Later on                                     Baadaye

May I take a picture?             Naomba kupiga picha

Where are you from?                Unatoka wapi?  Kwenu ni wapi?

I’m from                                     Natokea   

                                                Kwetu ni

My name is                                 Jina langu ni

                                                Naitwa

Language

Language

With such a diverse population there are of course many different languages, but the main language of the country, and government, is Kiswahili.   English is also used as an official language.   Kiswahili is a Bantu language which has evolved through the presence of Arabic, Persian, Hindi, Portuguese and English.  The Arab influence of the eastern coast of Africa had a profound impact on what is now Tanzania through Zanzibar, which was for a while an Arab colony.

When visiting anywhere in the world it is good to have at least some understanding of the language.  The quickest way to break down barriers is to be able to communicate with people, even if that is saying hello and not much more.

Climate

Climate

Just like the topography, there are marked differences in climate in different regions. 

The climate on the coastal plains is tropical – humid and hot.  Temperatures can reach the 30’s

The vast expanses of savannah and semi-desert receive very little rain, only 500mm a year, but the highland areas can have as much as 2000mm. 

Temperatures range from 20 - 27°C in the inland areas and the top of Kilimanjaro can reach -20ºC. 

Two rainy seasons affect most of the country.  From mid-March to May there are the “long rains” and from November to January there are the “short rains”.The coastal regions, including the large offshore islands of Pemba and Zanzibar, have heavier and more reliable rainfall than most of the inland areas. Average annual rainfall is almost everywhere above 1,000 mm/40 in on the coast and up to 1,500 mm/60 in in the wetter places. This compares with an annual fall of between 500-1,000 mm /20-40in over most of the interior. Only the higher mountain areas receive more rain than the coastal region.

For more info visit the BBC site

History 2

Nyerere retired from the Presidency in 1985 and was replaced by Ali Hassan Mwinyi, former Vice-President and President of Zanzibar. Mwinyi favoured introducing market forces into the economy and plurality into the political system. Economic reform proceeded slowly in the face of a large and fairly corrupt state bureaucracy. On the political front, amendments to the constitution allowing for the introduction of a multi-party system were endorsed by the National Assembly early in 1992. However, although several opposition political organisations have been legalised, they continue to face restrictions on their activities. These were not fully removed until the presidential election of October 1995 at which three candidates took on the CCM candidate, Benjamin Mkapa. The most prominent of these was Augustine Mrema, standing for the National Convention for Construction and Reform on an anti-corruption ticket. Although Mrema polled a respectable 28%, Mkapa won with 62%. Despite strong evidence of fraud, the result was accepted by international observers after the poll was re-run in the capital and extended by a day elsewhere.