Letter from my fatherland: Moshi Sweet Moshi

Greetings! As a recap, I left my hometown of Moshi when I was sixteen. When I returned to Tanzania in January for my internship, it was after another sixteen years! I was flooded with emotions when we first drove to Moshi and stopped at one of the major roundabouts in town. That moment was quite surreal! I couldn’t believe that I was actually back home. Moshi town is special to me because that is where I grew up, where I first learned the alphabet, where I made my first friends, and where I first fell in love. It is a town full of beautiful memories….

Although during my first internship in the Spring I didn’t stay in Moshi, I visited often. All the family friends and friends I had known during my time in Moshi welcomed me warmly. I’m proud to say that I managed to visit all of them. Living in America for so many years, I had forgotten what it means to extend such hospitality -- opening up your home and heart! People in Moshi and Tanzania in general, go out of their way to make sure their guests are treated well.

This second time around, I have been living in Moshi at the home of one of my childhood friends! I live in the centre of town which is loud and busy. Moshi is a town of over 150,000 people, but not as crowded as Dar es Salaam. My first thoughts about it are that it’s clean and the weather is perfect, not too hot nor too cold. People are polite, not aggressive, which adds to the safety I feel in this town. Their politeness is quickly noted in use of words like tafadhali (please) and asante (thank-you). People refer to each other as sister and brother. Each time someone calls me Dada Rupal, I melt away at the gentleness of their tone. And to add to all this, Moshi sits at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro making it even more appealing.

So, has Moshi changed since I left sixteen years? Yes it has, but there are many things that are still the same. Of course some changes are good and some not! For example, Kajembe’s muhogo, famous street vendor who fries muhogo (cassava) has expanded his business. He moved to a larger part of his former corner. He also has a shop where he sells his own beverages. That change is great, not just for Mr Kajembe but also for us muhogo-lovers! On the other hand, in that same area where Mr Kajembe conducts his business, there are several guest houses, some with high-rise buildings. These structures add to the economy of the town but on the other hand, change its environment. Since laws aren’t well enforced here, the guest houses are loud at night. Some continue to entertain past 10pm, which, in my opinion, is past bedtime for the average Tanzanian! Also, instead of the ‘local’ feel the centre of the town had when I was a child, it has a more tourist-centric feel, which changes the climate to one that is less personal and cosy.

In ending, I have been asked by many, whether I still like Moshi? I love it! I like everything about it that I liked as a child and of course, I don’t like the things that make my Moshi town less personable. No matter what, Moshi will always hold a special place in my heart. I look forward to the day when I can bring my own children here to show them where I first learned the alphabet, where I made my first friends, and where I first fell in love…!

From the foothills of Kilimanjaro,

The writer is a Tanzanian-Indian-American who is pursuing a Master’s degree in Public Health at Boston University in Massachusetts, US. She is currently an intern with Pamoja Tunaweza Research Centre and Kibong’oto Infectious Diseases Hospital -- both based in Moshi.