Public transport
Dugout canoes and motorised boats on Lake Nyassa
Until you’re at the lake – and the same will be the case for
crossings to Mafia Island – you won’t find any information on public
transport, other than the main options. (At Mafia this is an expensive
flight). Lake Nyasa has a regular ferry service, called the MV Songea
(below), which departs Itungi for Mbamba bay, ostensibly on a Monday and
a Thursday.
Now we’d arrived at Matema beach on the Wednesday, and did an amazing
hike along the lakeside the next day. A kid – maybe 12 – in a very
small dug-out watched me by-passing a hectic area about neck-deep in the
water, while Seven chose the near vertical cliff-face instead. Once we
reached a beach, he came and offered us a ride back in his canoe. We
agreed, after some hesitation, and had an extremely trippy glide back,
having our first impressions of the very clear water, the extraordinary
variety of fish, and the mellowness of a dug-out. We took many dugouts
after that, but can confess: the smaller, the more amazing. (The kid
charged us a trifle; a twenty-something dope-head tried to clear out
bank account the next day, after – we thought – agreement on the fare.)
It was from this vantage point, really enjoying the view and wishing
for some Castle Milk Stout and a joint (throwback desire to our reckless
youth, no doubt), that we saw the MV Songea go past us, very late in
the day. We later learnt that it only does the journey once every two weeks.
That may or may not be accurate, and you’ll only really know if you go
to Itungi yourself and check it out at the harbour. If you don’t have
the time for that, but do have the time to take it easy on the lake, you
shouldn’t worry too much. There will be many, many other motorised
ferries departing at least every second or third day; not to Mbamba Bay,
but at least to Lupingo. And they depart from the first village past
Matema (and only a twenty minutes walk away). You don’t have to get on
the first over-crowded one either; there’s usually another 3 or 4. But
you’ll have to find out in advance – some ferries may well depart at
3am. Note that if you do take the ferry from Itungi – which will be by
far the cheapest option (everything smaller costs proportionately more) –
you’ll have to overnight at Kyela, as there’s no accommodation at
Itungi. Kyela has an endless number of Guest Houses (but no visa card
facilities when we visited, albeit a quick hop to the border crossing at
Songea will give you that). The Guide Books tend to list one or three.
Ignore that and shop around in town for a good place to stay, while you
have endless beers in the heat. Ignore the touts too, unless you want
to pay for (a) their beers and (b) their services.
The lake has the potential to be a keynote experience of your trip, but you need time: that is of the essence. If
at all possible, leave yourself a minimum two weeks for Matema Beach
and be prepared to take every possible form of transport from dugouts
(most expensive but heavenly) to walking (not possible along the entire
length, although I’ll muse more about this in a separate blog about
planning your Lake Nyasa excursions). If you get stuck at Lupingo,
you’ll be able to proceed via 4WD (there’s a road here, but the fare is
relatively high), and then get back to the lake. Make sure you have enough money on you.
Ferries to Zanzibar
We tried to dodge the ridiculous discrimination against foreigners,
forced to pay US$ at a rate many, many times more than locals. We really
tried. We travelled all the way to Pangani, close to Kenya, boarded the
most dodgy ferry we could find which dumped us at Mkokotoni, very far
away from Stone Town (and more disastrously, banking facilities). We
even ran out of money, so that we had to negotiate our fare. All to no
avail. We had to pay the same dollar price while ‘seated’ standing
up-front, where endless waves rolled over us. That was good. It stopped
us from joining the two-thirds of passengers who vomited their guts out
in the very rough seas. It also made us fantasise about wearing our
very warm hooded Uzi jackets, while the tropical sun burnt down in vain.
We do recommend the non-luxury ferries, if only because they’re
far more entertaining, and soulful. Besides, when we caught a sort-of
luxury ferry back from Stone Town to Dar Es Salaam, it was exactly one
day prior to a similar ferry going down and drowning 200 people. Which,
by the way, is not that uncommon, there seems to be at least one massive
disaster every year; and a great many dhows go down.
How do you get yourself out of such a mess?
First, examine your emergency escapes very, very carefully;
particularly if you board a ferry that seats you under cover and behind
doors. Second – and this is courtesy to the professional diver that runs
Wakwenda Retreat – take a deep breath, dive down and swim away as far
as possible from the panicking crowd, who mostly have forgotten that
they can swim. Get up for fresh air if you have to, and swim away again.
If you don’t, you’ll have people clinging to you and drowning you. Once
you’re far away, wait for the screaming to die down and then go back,
see if you can save anyone (it’s probably too late), and find some
flotsam to cling to. Unfortunately you can’t save anyone if you can’t
save yourself. What happens if someone clings to you? Punch them. That’s
what Nick told us – after all, (to repeat) if you can’t save yourself,
then you can’t save anyone else.
Bear in mind that the overwhelming number of ferries and dhows
operate uneventfully. Our experiences told us that dhows are much
preferred, and way more colourful; but foreigners are prohibited from
crossing to larger, distant islands with them. It usually doesn’t
matter other than to Zanzibar.
Dhow to Kilwa
Its a short crossing, and you really should not even consider the
boring motorised options. Be aware that a dhow crossing will be fifteen
minutes in wind, perhaps an hour or more if its windless.
Harbour ferry (Dar Es Salaam)
The two harbour ferries between Kigamboni and the city centre is a
treat, and we never really tired of it, despite countless crossings. It
operates 24/7, although you may wait an hour at 3am in the morning.
Generally crossings are continuous and dirt cheap (Tsh200; $0.12;
R1.10).
Inner (and intra)-city transport
Dala-dalas, tuk-tuks, piki-pikis – from extremely overcrowded but
unbelievably cheap and very regular mini-buses (Tsh300-500; $0.19-0.31),
to three-wheel covered scooters (comfortable and convenient) to
motorbikes that will seat one or two (!) passengers, usually with no
helmets, transport in Dar Es Salaam is highly functional and cheap. You
need to get street-wise around pricing for the bikes (the mini-buses
will generally charge you correctly), and you can negotiate,
particularly around the motorbikes. We were scared of the latter at
first, but enjoyed them a lot when we realised that most if not all
riders ride defensively. The same transport options tend to be available
all over Tanzania, with large buses making up the inter-city options.
We never took a so-called luxury bus (which gets good write-ups in the
guide books).
The run of the mill buses are relatively slow, and the rip-off factor
– in terms of pricing – is intense. Not only for you the clueless
visitor, but also for clueless out-of-town locals!
We took long distance busses to Tanga and Kilwa. The Tanga journey
was uneventful; we were with a local guy, and paid the correct fare.
Despite the newspapers being full of stories about the Transport
Minister’s unexpected all-morning inspection at the main Ubungo station
the day before, starting at 4am in the morning, and forcing bus
operators to pay back overcharged fares, some fellow (local) passengers
had been ripped-off. Two weeks later we got badly ripped-off traveling
to Kilwa. The tout looked like a genuine official operating from a
genuine office. We still got taken in. The fraudsters in this instance:
Buti La Zungu Express (from Lindi); and the tout, who kindly left us
his cell number so that we can be ripped-off again, Steve (+255 71 515
7088 based at Ubungo; if you call him laugh at him and say you read all
about his disgusting thievery, plastered all over the Internet, and
suggest that he never travels beyond his country, as he’ll be arrested
for heinous crimes against humanity).
Dala-dalas and pick-ups in the Mbeya area
If you’re getting out of the train, and you have some time to spare,
try not to take the first dala-dalas on offer. They’ll charge you five
times the going price, and collect the fare in advance (but not from the
locals, who just handle the bullying of the foreigners in stoic
silence).
Tazara train
Here’s the best link, generally useful for train journeys everywhere: Seat61
And here’s the official TAZARA link: the timetable we took, from Kapiri to Dar. The other three are on the right.
Don’t bother too much trying to book your ticket at Lusaka, unless
you’re OK with second class. Practical experience as well as online
research taught us first class tickets are generally not available. You
may try and get a ticket ahead of time if you’re staying in Lusaka for a
while before taking the train.
Getting first class tickets in Dar Es Salaam was painless. The train
may or it may not depart on time. Don’t take chances if you can help
it. If you’re coming from Lusaka you’d prefer to travel the morning of
the train departure (Kapiri Mposhi doesn’t have much to offer to keep
you entertained), but get your bus ticket the day before, and make sure you know exactly which bus at which time.
The bus ride takes about four hours, despite the relatively short
distance. The touts are terrible, so brace yourself for that, saunter
into the bus station without luggage and with all the confidence in the
galaxy, and persevere until you’ve got that ticket and you’re one
hundred and ninety-nine percent certain its the right option at the
right time.
We took two train journeys, from Kapiri (2nd class), and from Dar (1st class). Despite the more cramped conditions (6 bunks, rather than 4), we enjoyed 2nd class
far more. Despite a 22-hour delay, we enjoyed the three day Kapiri to
Dar journey far more than the on-time Dar to Mbeya. Perhaps it was the
novelty of the first journey; perhaps the fact that we saw far more game
in the Selous Game Reserve – early morning, and just after the long
rains came to an end. Perhaps it was the luck of traveling with an
exuberant group of students whose enthusiasm exploded on seeing Dar Es
Salaam. At that time Dar was brand new to us, and we loved first
impressions from a (then, at last) speeding train. Be aware that seeing
the game reserve is luck of the draw – it depends heavily on breakdowns,
delays, and so on; you may pass through the reserve at night. We found
that standards in the lounge and bar carriages, and in service, differed
quite a bit. The toilets suck, you have to take your own water for drinking (but you can usually buy cheaply at stops or at a bit of a premium on the train).
The food is pretty good (and simple and repetitive), but it
varied between the trains. Make sure you have local currency when you
board, or you’ll be in trouble; and if you do travel through both
Tanzania and Zambia, change currency at the border crossing, or you’ll be in trouble. The bar may change currency for you; the rate will be poor, and its not guaranteed.
The border crossing is hassle-free, but get your visa in advance. If
you don’t, be humble and patient, and you should be OK. We found the
Tanzanian officials very courteous and professional. You’ll also be able
to get sim cards at the border. Note that both Tanzanians and Zambians
border the train to offer you sim cards and currency. Again, use common
sense, and if things go wrong – the sim card may not be registered –
don’t assume that those boarding are responsible for each other.
Your most likely problem on the train will be view-hogging by a
fellow passenger. The doors and the lounge carts are great for viewing –
if the door areas are not packed with overflowing third class
passengers (to be expected in advance), and you’re not chased out of the
very full lounge carriages for not eating. There’s usually abundant
beer available, but the range is limited to popular Tanzanian brands.
Above all else, move around, take in the experience, and engage in
conversation – you’ll probably never do it again, and it is one of the
iconic train rides on Planet Earth. Don’t expect creature comforts. The
train is old, maintenance costs are at a premium, and the primary
clientele is poor rural people cut-off from the main road networks – not
you.
Lake Malawi – Nkatha Bay to Chizumulu and Likoma Island
These operate everywhere, and you won’t know about them or find any
information until you’re in the local areas. The Ilala ferry is a fabled
option, complete with alcohol and seething masses of people to
step-over in your wild 2am disembarking, and even sticking to an ever so
relative an itinerary. Regretfully we never experienced it, as it had
been commissioned for a many-months long maintenance service right at
the height of the tourist season.
Alternative ferries there are, up to a point. Nkatha Bay to Monkey
Bay / Maclear – the usual visitor thing – was not an option via ferry at
the time. But near daily ferries ran to Likoma and Chizumulu.
Ferries to Chizumulu: the Malungo (or Malingi?); and the Lamani both
ran regular trips. If there’s been break-downs boarding can get pretty
hectic as people jostle for position. There are also irregular smaller
boats mostly carrying fish. Even the locals found them pretty dodgy, but
you should be OK.
The fare during August 2012: MK1,000 Likoma to Chizumulu; MK1,800
Nkatha Bay to Chiz; MK2,000 Nkatha Bay to Likoma. You can also get dhows
between Chizumulu and Likoma. Again, time and a relaxed attitude is of
the essence. You may have to wait up to three days in a bad case
scenario.
Malawi - Road transport
Not nearly as organised as in Tanzania, or as cheap; and no
motorbikes or tuk-tuks. Malawi’s economy is beholden to South Africa,
and that means far more restricted access to cheap vehicles. Tanzania
has an endless supply of cheap – very cheap – motorbikes from China,
just for starters. Bicycle taxis – quite an experience, but negotiate your price in advance, and get final agreement -
are in abundance, with padded seats in the cities. Our first experience
with minibus taxis was being physically pulled between rival operators
after the border crossing into Malawi – very disturbing; we were merely
goods to be mishandled at will. We then got a special price (our fellow
passengers from Tanzania were not as lucky). The driver sped with wild
abandon. Here’s another similarity with South Arica: every minibus
driver is a reckless speeding thug. The relatively safe bliss of
Tanzania was but a memory. The long-distance buses are OK – but get
on-board early; we saw passengers stand for 8 hours.
