I was mugged in Dar es Salaam!
While I was secretly celebrating the 20th anniversary of my first solo trip , and starting a long awaited trip to the Swahili coast, MOTHER AFRICA slapped me vigorously. May be this was her response to my procrastination or to my insistence on ignoring the whole continent and focusing only on a minute coast line along the Indian Ocean.
Keen on soaking up the local culture, I got what I asked for. I got violence, crime and misery! Frankly there is no need to deny that these are the main ingredients of Africa’s local culture. Please forget the glossy advertisements of the fancy resorts and the luxurious safari lodges.
It took me several days to understand the lesson(s) and may be I will need more time. On a personal level I realized that my journey towards “acceptance” and “surrender” didn’t even start! The idea of MY attachment to things seems embarrassing, or is it just normal that I’m not okay when someone takes MY money, MY credit card, MY phone, MY power bank, MY selfie stick, MY charger, MY tiny nail clipper and even MY mint candies. Is this attachment to things or inability to accept fate? Am I whining? Yes I’m and I think that I’ll keep whining till I pay all my debts and even after paying them for a long while.
The gang kept repeating that they are poooooooor and that this is cooperation, being poor means that you stop having children, that you go find work, that you kill yourself out of despair, the options are endless and mugging people should not be one of them.
As a Scorpio I’ll spend long nights contemplating on the idea that each one of them will have a long life full of poverty, misery and humiliation, i wish that they witness the death of all their beloved ones infront of their eyes, while their bodies turn into a swamp of disgusting incurable diseases, then at the very end they would be shot as stray dogs. In case there is reincarnation ( I really hope there is) I pray that they be kept trapped in such painful cycle. I honestly hope that they don’t get the slightest pinch of mercy nor salvation.
For those who preach about abundance, could you please clarify? And by the way come to this misfortunate continent and show us your magic. While those who preach about “ forgive your enemies” I’ll be happy to inbox you my bank account details.
It came to my mind, more than once, that this is my kind of traveling “baptism”!!! Now I experienced something genuine, and understood that traveling doesn’t only mean amazing photos and enjoyable moments but also real life experiences and lessons. I have to admit that I’m painfully embarrassed from my inability to be totally grateful to Allah’s very merciful ways of sorting our problems, a major lesson that I need to learn. Elhamdolella
As for Tanzania could you please consider changing “Dar es Salaam” name as it is slightly ironic. But it is not funny at all!
