No, today I met Dutchman Peter Bos, who has been living in Africa for 14 years. The last two years he spent in Tanzania and he lives in Arusha right now. He works for SNV and is currently heavily involved in biogas. I am glad I went to the conference as I met some helpful people and also had some interesting experiences.
For example, a timetable of an African conference. The start was supposed to be at 9:30. I got to the bus stop in Moshi around 7:15am, to give myself ample time for the 90-minute journey. Well, wouldn't you know it. Our bus didn't get full until 7:50am. And buses don't leave before they are full. Actually, every seat was taken, but the driver waited a bit until also a few standing only spots were occupied. So make that a 7:55 departure.
The next trouble happened at a bus stop where police was busy writing tickets. I guess we got one for having too much baggage on board. This ordeal took forever. Hardly back on the road we got stopped again and weighed. Phew, this time we passed, but still it took a while.
So we finally arrive in Arusha and I was told that I can get off a little before the final stop for the hotel where the conference was scheduled. So I get up when the dude announced a stop that I thought was close enough, but double checked, "Ninapenda kuteremka Golden Rose Hotel," I said in my still rudimentary Swahili. "No, waiting," was the answer. OK, maybe the next stop, then. I saw the hotel and figured the bus would stop soon. Nope. The bus terminal was reached. I was mad because I was late and the walk from there was farther.
On the bright side I must be looking more African now. The first time I arrived in Arusha I was hassled to death right from getting off the bus. Half a dozen or more taxi drivers were waving their keys. The second time there was almost no "safari?" questions and today I did not notice a single person caring that I was walking up the street.
So I get to the conference at 10, where about half of the 25 invited people were present, but the conf hadn't started yet. It's almost as they waited for me... After a round of introduction the organizer kicked the meeting off with an intro. The short version went like this: "Welcome to the biogas stakeholder meeting. The first point on the agenda is an overview. I hear that the tea is ready [Note: the tea-break was scheduled at 10:30...]. Should we have the break first?" He looked over to Peter, and fortunately the Dutch guy had the sense to get at least the overview out of the way.
The tea-break was good though, as some sweets were served and I actually needed them....The rest of the meeting was neat to see, too. For example, some egos clashing with each other. One guy had a question and another answered: "Well, you come two hours late. We already have discussed this. I suggest you read the handout from Mr. Sounandso."
As a nice surprise, lunch was paid for, which was different than the email said. And it was good, too! The travel back had some excitement, too. At some point I realized I must have lost my pocket-knife. That would spell an end to all airline testing! At least I still had my room-key. But as we approached the final stop in Moshi, the key had disappeared, too. It was pretty dark and it was hard to look under the seat. The guy who collects the money asked what the problem was (everyone else was already off the bus). I explained about the key first. They opened the back of the bus (I was in the last row) and they found the key. Then I asked for the pocket knife. They found that, too. Phew!
It had just gotten dark and I decided to walk and not opt for the taxi. Still plenty of foot traffic. I was just avoiding groups of more than two.
Btw, in the photo you see Mfinanga vanish into the biogas plant. We crawled inside one on Friday - but don't worry, it was not "live" yet.
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