Roots, Sticks, and Hat-Tricks

Despite its initial appearance as a barren savanna devoid of life, Northern Tanzania is a diverse place inside and out. Beneath the ground lies a network of tunnels and caves made and operated by beetles, ants, termites, and worms. This network occasionally erupts into enormous termite mounds on the surface, some taller than an adult man. The nuts and seeds carried and defectated by these millions of tiny creatures often sprout into plants and trees of varying size and use. In Osiligalai, most of the plants were low-lying bushes and grasses, protected from the ever-present wind. But in the rolling hills of Kiserian, the abundance of water and lack of wind allowed for enormous forests of acacia and other large trees to take root. And as in Osiligalai, the Maasai living in this area developed their own medicines and cures seperate from many of those in Osiligalai.

Emangulai fruits, sweet berries endemic to this area

As in Osiligalai, the best Medicinal plants can be found in riverbeds and dry streams, where the occasional flow of water allows for more needy plants to take root. On my first day in Kitenden, I recorded nearly fifteen different plant species which I had not yet seen, my most productive day yet. Unlike in Osiligalai, Kitenden is a much more remote area of Tanzania, and I felt a sense of adventure moving into these uncharted waters. The locals were excited as well -- many of them had probably never seen a light-skinned person before. Naturally, we attracted a small crowd of curious young warriors brave enough to approach this strange boy and his two Maasai companions. This group ended up to be a blessing in disguise, as they knew better than anyone the medicines present in these areas they were born and raised in. On two separate days, near-strangers took us far into the bush to identify numerous plants I doubted we would have seen otherwise.

A young warrior leads us up a wooded hillside

The encounters also gave me new voices for my ever-growing recording archive. As the numbers stacked up, I finally began the tedious process of editing and storing the voicovers for each one of the plants discussed. First, I would use a sim card to transfer the recordings to my phone, after which I would edit them to eliminate background noise, adjust volume, etc. Finally I would move them to my computer to be stored safely as backups. This whole process was made more difficult tenfold by the lack of reliable internet service, meaning that the editing would normally have to be done in separate batches.

My rustic ‘studio’, easy access to plugs being the priority

A typical day would begin with breakfast, some time to catch up with friends at home, and then a long walk into the bush while it was not too hot. After a few hours we would return, have lunch, and then relax in the comfort of our abode for the rest of the day. This schedule gave me enough time to edit, re-record, and clean up, as well as some much needed time for fun. In the afternoon if I was done with work, I could play soccer either with the little kids to whom I had gifted a ball, or an intense and competitive game with the older Maasai warriors. The Maasai could juggle with extreme accuracy and finesse, but when it came to the beautiful game itself I found I could hold my own on the field. In the first game, I double-hat-tricked my team to victory on the dry and thorny pitch, and we promised to return tomorrow for a rematch. In any case, the exercise was relieving.

One can always find connection through the humble soccer ball.