Back in Mtwara

Until 1948 Mtwara was little more than a village.  The Brits figured the deep natural harbour would make a perfect port, and developed the area hoping to export ground nuts.  Due to lack of rain, the plantations eventually failed, and Mtwara returned to it's backwater status, a little worse for wear.  You can still see remnants of that ill fated project up and down the coast.

Then in 1982 gas was discovered in Mnazi Bay, with wells operating by 2006.  Recently the entire East Coast of Africa has become a hotbed of activity.  According to the World Bank, economic growth in sub-Sahara Africa should significantly outpace the global average.  Having toured here for over a year now, the rapid growth is very apparent, especially returning after being away for six weeks at a time.  New hotels and complexes cropping up all along the coast, huge ditches throughout town destined to become modern drainage systems, and torn up dirt trails becoming wide roads.  New night clubs and restaurants, cracked and dilapidated poured concrete sidewalks painstakingly replaced with modern interlocking cobblestones, and a general feeling of prosperity on the near horizon.  Tanzania already enjoyed a reputation as being a friendly place, but it seems more so each tour.  It's all smiles and waves and friendly greetings and I'm glad to be back.

Still it's not for everyone, and turn over at the base has been steady and unrelenting.  I was greeted by a few new faces when I returned, some I've even met in previous lives flying in the Canadian bush some two decades ago, and the dynamic of the base shifts yet again.  Having returned to a training role once I finally got enough time flying this new type, it's already scored me some extra flying indoctrinating some new pilots to the type, and I've got more training scheduled early next week.  The rig is moving and our flying should increase ten fold.  I'm finally scheduled to move into a Search and Rescue role, one that some guys have flatly refused, which I don't understand for the life of me, but I'm all over it.  I've always wanted to fly SAR.  Things are rosy indeed!

And I've only been here for four days.  Been mountain biking, to a birthday party, to a stag party, snorkelling in the Indian Ocean, bouncing to a band from the Congo at a huge outdoor night club, and even checked out one of the new night clubs that was built since last tour, and spent today at a pool with hundreds of locals, pushing kids around on inflated tubes and sharing my swim goggles, and playing shark to huge grins and laughing parents.  I finally caught a tuk tuk back to the hotel after dark, and instead of taking the roads, this enterprising fellow (my friend Caesar actually....I ride in his tuk tuk quite frequently) elected to take the trails.  It was surreal experience, with his very weak headlight putting things smack dab in front of you before you saw them, bouncing over trails so rough I hoped to find them again with my mountain bike, shocked laughing people jumping out of the way, jungle bushes snapping at the open doors, and as the bush opened up, my eyes were drawn upwards to that incredible African evening sky, stars so bright you felt like you could reach out and touch them. 

Tomorrow it's the Old Boma and relaxing under frolicking monkeys while enjoying a good book....