Could I handle today’s Dar es Salaam?

Karimjee Jivanjee Office Building: Photo courtesy: Planning Unit University College London — Wikimedia Commons

There’s a difference between the Dar I remember, and the one I find on line. Many of the old buildings are demolished, and I stare at a photo trying to place where the picture fits into the map of Dar I hold in my head.

A year before I came to the coastal town, I spent a week in Bali. Kuta Beach had a dirt track leading to the ocean. There were no hotels so I rented a room in a local family’s house. Only traditional Balinese food was available.

Last stop – Sanur Beach

I was glad I chose to stay in Bali’s Sanur Beach because it hadn’t reached the tourist fever pitch of Kuta.

Back to Bali

From Probolinggo, we took a scenic bus ride east, ferried across to Bali and down the coast to Depasar before we arrived at Sanur Beach after dark, our last stop.

Bali before the tourist invasion

Below I spied no buildings, only coconut palms. I asked myself from the aeroplane window, what had I done? This was my first trip out of Australia, so like the vista below, I was green.

An ache for India

Sailing towards Kenya on the calm Arabian Sea, I knew I’d return to India one day. The country left its mark on me.