1/3-1/4/2019. Final Day in East Africa; easy departure from Dar; rocky arrival in Brussels

Nzuri .. Hadi wakati ujao .. katika Afrika… Goodbye… Until next time.. in Africa

Our final day in East Africa – Dar es Salaam, Tanzania to be specific.

Packed up our stuff and headed to Slipway – a somewhat upscale area on the coast about 15 miles north of the center of Dar. Along the way, you pass very large houses, mansion-like buildings; many under construction. The taxi driver said “this is where rich people live because they think these houses and this area is very safe.” When prodded a bit more he said that the people who live in these very very large new houses are the CEOs of big companies that have headquarters in Dar. He added that all of these people are White. Despite the fact that we were driving slowly and that we had been on this road before, we never saw any people outside these houses. Perhaps they stay inside to take advantage of their air conditioning. It is really hot in Tanzania. If we return, I think we’d go to Arusha which has a much more temperate climate and is at a higher altitude as it is the gateway to Serenghetti.

We had a barbecue lunch and did a bit of shopping. Given the heat, even Mike was open to some shopping since many, but not all, of the stores are air conditioned, or at least have fans. Back to the hotel to do the final packing and head for dinner, and then straight to the airport … our flight is around midnight – Dar to Zurich; Zurich to Brussels where we will stay for two nights and then Brussels to D.C. and D.C. to SFO. Still a ways to go.

No fail, whenever we get this close to the end of a trip I’m really just antsy to get back and my head is now totally spinning with everything I need to do once I return – both personal and work.. But mostly my head is circling around work tasks.

Wanted to go once again to Addis in Dar (still haven’t been there), but they decided to close for one extra day (!!) so we tried a few other restaurants and many were closed as well – long holiday. We went to a place called Ten 0 Six which sounded good, but when we got there  (although the Internet said it opened at 6, the sign said it opens at 10 pm). So we just went to a nearby place that was a combo Thai, Japanese, Korean – pretty bad. Then we headed to the Dar Airport (Nayere Airport, officially). Aside from having go through the now-usual four security checks, photos, and Mike got fingerprinted – all 10 fingers – it was pretty smooth. We checked each of our rollies (the ones we usually carry on), and kept each of our computer bags and a shoulder bag that had a lot of odds and ends. I packed with amazing precision (I’m really a pro, even if I have to say so myself). I had separated nearly all of the stuff we purchased into one of the checked bags (Mike’s) and the clothes were all in my bag. That way, once we got to Brussels we didn’t really have to even open Mike’s bag.

We were traveling business class, so we went to the VIP lounge – places to sit and a bar. And then we boarded the Swiss Air flight from Dar to Zurich and transferred to Brussels. All was good. When we landed in both Zurich and Brussels it was the usual shock of arriving in a first world country after being in a developing country for several weeks. The shock of commercialism, glitzy stores, and the gleaming glass and metal structures with vast spaces was just so different from our departure airport. Lots and lots of stores and restaurants. Brussels Airport is large and goes on for quite a while. We made it up and down several escalators (a contraption we hadn’t seen in weeks) and went to get the two checked bags.

OK.. You probably already guessed it. My bag arrived and Mike’s didn’t – the one with all the gifts and memorabilia, along with some small gear and other stuff. We waited and waited and finally realized the bag really hadn’t come. We had been joking about this as we waited – since checking bags is not our usual mode. But when they announced that all bags from the Zurich to Brussels flight had been unloaded, we realized the joke was on us. Found the Lost Baggage counter (where there was actually a line of about 15 people, but not sure which flights they had been on). Made it to the person with whom you have to describe the bag, etc. She found it in the computer system as having been checked in Dar, but her computer didn’t give any more information than that. It never got scanned in Zurich or in Brussels, according to the system. So, now we wait for a phone call or email telling us the disposition of the bag. She said that if we didn’t get any news by the time we left Brussels (Sunday morning) we need to come to the desk with a list of the contents of the bag. Not sure whether to hold out much hope.

My guess is that either it never left Dar (and is sitting there somewhere) or it got onto another plane in Dar (there was one headed to Amsterdam around the same time), or it got lost in Zurich (the most hopeful of the possibilities). I was forced to check a bag in Rome one year en route to London and the bag didn’t show up. It was delivered to my hotel in London about 36 hours later. And one time I had to check my bag on a very small plane headed to SFO and it was not there when I arrived – but it showed up about 45 minutes later. So much for all these rules that the bags and the passengers cannot be separated on a plane.

Keep your fingers crossed.

Anyway, we are in Brussels.. It’s 11 am… We’ve been traveling since 10 pm last night (and a two hour time change). Mike hit the bed in record time. I’m headed out to walk the streets of Brussels – haven’t been here in ages… and so much has changed, from what I saw from the taxi. And there is a Christmas market that is still running.. so I’m off to check it out.

All the best – Fern