Visiting Tanga? Pack your imagination too
I love firsts and my maiden trip to Tanga, in north east Tanzania, is full of them.
It is my first time in the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) train too and I’m super excited to get in.
The world class buildings and the meticulous security checks were a sight to behold.But my excitement is short lived because it ends as soon as I see the uncomfortable seats in the economy class of the train.
The seats are designed to make the journey to Mombasa, where I will connect with a bus to Tanga, as uncomfortable as possible.
We arrive in Mombasa in eight hours to the warm reception of the team from Tanga Beach Resort & Spa.Their reassuring sing-song Tanzanian Swahili accent delights me. The resort has a shuttle service offered to their customers at a small fee, depending on the number of passengers.
The 10-year-old resort, located just a few metres for the beach, has majestic buildings with an occupancy of 118 rooms.
The resort is separated from the beach by a mangrove forest, which it conserves as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility programme.
The food is locally sourced, means you will find all the traditional vegetables and seasonal fruits. Ugali too, is available and the menu is as unpretentious as it gets.
There are lots to see in Tanga as the town centre, located a few minutes away from the hotel, has a rich history. According to our guide, Mwinyi Bwanga aka Mr Happiness, the town was on the frontline in the beginning of the first World War. Britain gained control of Tanga after World War One, taking over from the Germans.
There are a number of buildings in the town which symbolise both the German and British occupation.The Amboni Caves, located just a few minutes from the resort, are also a popular tourist attraction and a national heritage. The limestone caves are arguably the most extensive and perhaps oldest in East Africa, according to our guide.
“You have to bring your imagination with you,” warns Mr Happiness, promising that if we do, we’ll see a sleeping leopard, elephants, phallic symbols, yonic symbols, a deejay, a king’s seat and the map of Africa.
“Only your imagination can limit you,” he adds laughingly.
The caves, formed more than 150 million years ago, are 10 in total but only two are open to the public: The Natural cave and the Gender cave.
We see the reason we needed to pack our imagination as soon as we step into the Natural cave. It’s pitch dark-we have to carry torches-and the most distinct smell is that of bat guano as they are the major inhabitants .
The sleeping leopard is actually a trail of bat guano left behind on the roof of the caves which takes the shape of a leopard. Everything else that we see after this is either a pattern created by the bat guano or naturally shaped by the limestone.
Some are exaggerated, and the guide embellishes the myths with his own renditions, which makes the trip worthwhile. He even spoils us with a bongo rap when we reach the “disco” area. The disco is a round, flat space that has the sun rays seeping through the limestone which is reminiscent of disco lights.
The caves also have places with Christian and Islamic symbols. One section has a stone shaped like Mary, mother of Jesus while yet another section has some stones with naturally formed Islamic inscriptions.
“An interesting fact about the limestone is that it takes 100 years to grow just one centimetre,” adds Mr Happiness.
We end our cave tour at the Gender caves, named so because of the aforementioned phallic and yonic symbols which are naturally shaped.
The caves hold great spiritual and religious significance to the locals and we witness a section full of gifts or sacrifices to the gods.
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