DAR ES
NO LONGER THE UGLY DUCKLING TO TANZANIAS HOT TOURIST SPOTS, DAR ES SALAAMS PULLING ITS
For use by louiseg@nationalpositions.com only. Distribution prohibited.
SALAAM
WEIGHT. ITS ALL GROWN UP AND HAS ITS OWN TANTALISING SECRETS. BY LINDA MARKOVINA (@MOVING_SUSHI)
Dar es Salaam, formerly
Mzizima, is Tanzanias
largest and richest city,
the largest city in eastern
Africa by population, and
a regionally important
economic centre.
dar es salaam
ype the words quintessential Tanzania into any Google
wildebeest in their hundreds, golden savannahs and white
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wits about you when you navigate these noisy, congested streets, but
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Opening night of the Swahili Fashion Week. Left: A seashell trader
at Kariakoo Market. Below: Grilled mishkaki.
56 Sawubona May 2015
For use by louiseg@nationalpositions.com only. Distribution prohibited.
dar es salaam
flights, take sailing lessons, arrange boat and diving trips or take in a
sunset or five while sipping something refreshingly cold, admiring the
sun as it dips into the natural harbour.
Dominating the skyline above the street vendors and markets are
the glittering lights of the popular hotels, resting places where the well
connected and beautiful like to
spend their evenings lounging
around the lush gardens, dining
on bountiful seafood platters or
sipping whiskies while listening
to live jazz in the bars.
Winding through the highrise city lights and over the final
congestion hurdle of Solander
Bridge lies the Msasani Peninsula,
which harbours all the affluent
hotels and homes in the suburb
of Oyster Bay. Wilbert pulls up to my home away from home, a little
guesthouse tucked behind shady trees off the main road, with the
speed of a Nascar driver, but sadly not the braking or agility. I
think all the time hes spent sitting stuck in traffic has released his
inner speed demon. A fresh plume of street dust lurches towards the
defenceless gate guard and he offers a shaky smile as he calls out:
Karibu tena! (Welcome back!). This kind of taxi-driving is similar
to the countrys staple, dough-like ugali something you adjust to
in time.
After dumping my bags, I have
a quick shower, followed by
slathering on layers of mosquitorepellent for theyre plentiful
and merciless in the highhumidity months and prime
myself for a night on the town.
Im hoping that this evening
therell be a poetry slam, a quiz
night or perhaps a musician
or two on the stage, warming up the locals and
expats in the garden restaurant and bar, with the delectable smell of
spicy, grilled mishkaki (beef, chicken or fish kebabs) and fried chips
filling every available space.
Going out after dark in Dar es Salaam isnt an occasion for khaki
pullovers and hiking sneakers. Its at night that the city really
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of hip-swinging and
Palm trees on the coast
of Oyster Bay.
58 Sawubona May 2015
For use by louiseg@nationalpositions.com only. Distribution prohibited.
Where Africas Leaders Meet
THE GRAND PALM, GABORONE, BOTSWANA
UMODZI PARK, LILONGWE, MALAWI
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dar es salaam
Local and international artists
often perform at city venues.
SOUTHERN SUN, DAR ES SALAAM
USEFUL CONTACTS
DINING
AL DAR: Holiday Inn, 11th Floor,
Azikiwe St. +255 2221 39250; www.
holidayinn.co.tz/dining/restaurant-38
ADDIS IN DAR: Ursino St. +255 (0)713
266 299; www.addisindar.com
KARAMBEZI CAF: Seacliff Hotel, Toure
Drive. +255 2226 00380/7; www.
karambezicafe.com
JAHAZI: Serena Hotel, Kivukoni.
+254 732 123 333;
www.serenahotels.com
SAMAKI SAMAKI: Bagamoyo Rd.
+255 7588 12224;
http://samakisamaki.co.tz
THE WATERFRONT: The Slipway.
+255 2226 00893; www.
hotelslipway.com/restaurantsandbars.
asp
ZUANE: Mzingaway Rd, Oyster
Bay. +255 0222 600118;
www.zuanetrattoriapizzeria.com
GEORGE & DRAGON: Haile Selassie
Rd. +255 7178 00002
THAI KANI: 86 Tha Compound, off
Kahama Rd. +255 7571 65514
DANCING AND MUSIC
RUNWAY LOUNGE: Below
Shoppers Plaza, Mwai Kibaki Rd.
+255 7548 12567.
BREAK POINT: Kijitonyama, opposite
Millennium Towers.
HUGOS BAR: Kinondoni Rd.
+255 657 493 257
HOTEL TRAVERTINE: Mpiji St (on
Sundays). +255 767 259 711
SELANDER BRIDGE CLUB: An outdoor
beach space off Ali Hassan Mwinyi
Rd. (On Saturdays arrive late)
SAUTI ZA BUSARA:
www.busaramusic.org
SHOPPING
KARIAKOO MARKET: In the heart of the
Ilala District
60 Sawubona May 2015
THE SLIPWAY: www.slipway.net
MAMMA MASAI: Hand-made crafts
and beaded jewellery. 22 Kaunda
Drive. http://mamamasai.com
HANDMADE TANZANIA & CAN
WEAR DESIGNS: 195 Uganda Rd,
Oyster Bay. www.
handmadefromtanzania.com
MWENGE CRAFT MARKET: An open-air
market, opposite the Village Museum
off New Bagamoyo Rd.
SWAHILI FASHION WEEK:
www.swahilifashionweek.com
ACCOMMODATION
HIGH-END
THE OYSTER BAY HOTEL: +44 193 226
0618; www.theoysterbayhotel.com
SEA CLIFF HOTEL: +255 22552 9900;
www.hotelseacliff.com
SERENA HOTEL:+255 22211
2416; www.serenahotels.com/
serenadaressalaam/default-en.html
MID-RANGE
PROTEA HOTEL COURTYARD:
+255 2221 30130; www.
proteahotels.com/hotels/pages/
protea-hotel-courtyard-dar-es-salaam.
aspx
HYATT REGENCY: +255 7647
01234; http://daressalaam.
kilimanjaro.hyatt.com
SOUTHERN SUN: +255 2221 37575;
www.tsogosunhotels.com/hotels/dares-salaam
BUDGET
THE SOUK: +255 2226 00893;
www.hotelslipway.com
BEST WESTERN PLUS PENINSULA
HOTEL: +255 2226 64591; http://
book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/
TZ/dar-es-salaam-hotels
TRINITI GUEST HOUSE:
+255 7559 63686; http://triniti.co.tz
GALLO IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCKPHOTO
comes alive and dressing to impress isnt optional. If you favour a
more subdued environment than a nightclub, there are bountiful
dining options that will see you late into the night. Choose from
fresh seafood, bustling street vendors, Thai, Italian, traditional,
divine Indian, good old-fashioned burgers, pizza or even snacks and a
sheesha on a rooftop, taking in the cityscape as day fades to dusk.
Dancing and music are two of the most popular activities in town
once the sun begins to set and you can enjoy both in varying degrees
of hip-swinging and decibels, if you know where to look. There are
open-air venues where you can take in East African music greats, plush
clubs with talented DJs spinning the decks until dawn with lounge,
house, electronic, hip-hop and dive street parties where young men
titter Wowowo! as bevies of beautiful ladies sashay past. Fancy a
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where a short boat ride takes you to a small island for dancing through
the night. During the week of Sauti za Busara every February, keep
your eyes open for famous local and international jazz, traditional,
fusion and hip-hop artists, who often give performances at venues
across the city centre.
X
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Serengeti beer and a short bajaji ride to Samaki Samaki, named twice
because the food there is so good. A day wouldnt be complete without
collapsing into a shweshwe-decorated couch in an open-air lounge
until the heat or fatigue forces you back into the safety of an airconditioned room. Dine or dance with friends, take it easy or hit the
town but dont spend your time hiding inside your hotel waiting for
&
Tanzania may still be developing, but its no longer a window into
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Tanzanian proverb: Little by little, a little becomes a lot. And little
by little, Dar es Salaam will grow on you.
