7th March 2009 - Trip to Mgeta

Yesterday we decided to explore some part of the mountains and by 7.30 a.m. we were in the car and beginning to head out of town. After about 20 km. on the main road (heading toward Iringa) we made a left and started toward the highlands. The paved road ended quite soon, and we were on a washboard road that wasn't actually too bad. Soon we began to climb, and did that for an hour until we reached the village of Mgeta. What did we see along the way? Well, lots of fields, small ones, most of them with folks working in them, either weeding or planting or some still plowing. The maize is almost knee high in that area so they must have been getting rain for some time already. We saw lots of banana trees but not too many other fruit trees at the beginning of the climb. The road is winding, blind curves constantly. There were a couple small buses that we met and a few small trucks but otherwise the mode of transport is walking and bicycle. And a lot of the bicycles were being walked on the steep road. As we drove higher we met more people on the road carrying their hoes - they had obviously been working in their fields since sun-up and were now going home for some breakfast and/or rest. We could see on the side and usually quite far below the road, a river with not a lot of water in it. There were also some parts of the road that had paving stones and culverts so that probably helps the road to be passable when the rain is heavy. There's a nice bridge and a lovely scenic view just before reaching the village of Mgeta. At Mgeta there's a church, a primary school and a secondary school, also a few shops. I wouldn't be surprised if there isn't a Health Centre also, although we didn't see it. Apparently the big market day is on Thursday so we missed that.

We decided to keep climbing and did so for another 45 minutes or so. The higher we got the cooler the air was, of course, and there were signs that they had had more rain. At the place where we decided to turn around the view was spectacular: looking across valleys to other parts of the mountains we saw almost every inch of land being farmed, and a lot of terraced fields. Everything was so green and lush. We came upon a large open area with some buildings that looked like warehouses, and it is here that the trucks come to pick up produce to take down to the lowlands and cities. At one point along the road we were surprised to meet a group of about 10 young white folks, accompanied by two Tanzanians. We stopped to talk, and found out that the young people were students from Norway, studying at the Agriculture University, and were on a field trip to talk to some of the farmers in the area.

I guess what surprised me most was the way these farmers can farm the side of the mountains as they do. Coming from probably one of the flattest places on earth, it is amazing how people can farm on such steep slopes. And these mountains must be quite densely populated. It's hard to see many homes from the road since the road is just carved into the side of the mountain, but I'm sure if we had left the main road we would have come across many homes.

We found a place along that river where we could pull the car off the road and it was there that we stopped to eat our lunch. We sat on some stones, watched the river, and had a nice lunch and rest. Once in awhile we could hear the voices of people walking above us on the road, but otherwise it was as though we were alone in the world. It really was a wonderful trip, a nice contrast to the town and lovely cool air.

In the evening we went "out" - it was Friday night after all. We went to a restaurant called "Dragonaires" - decorated with red Chinese lanterns but featuring pizza on Friday nights! The pizza was very good, and apparently they use the cheese which is made by the Seminary we visited the other evening. Altogether a very nice day.

I have my ticket for the bus to Dodoma on Monday but I'll see if I can write again before that. Have a good weekend.