Tuk Tuk Adventures by Austin Willhoft

For the last day in Arusha, Professor Buske orchestrated for students to take the local form of taxis to town. Taxis, known locally as Tuk Tuks, are an affordable and convenient form of transportation in metropolitan areas in Tanzania. Professor Buske decided to make this excursion interesting by putting us on a scavenger hunt. With a list of 12 objectives, we set out. We met with our driver, Bhullah, outside our hotel who took us to the ATM to prepare for our adventure. Once we were settled with our withdrawals, a group of Tanzanian hustlers tried selling us goods. We noticed that one objective on the scavenger hunt list included purchasing Tanzanian-flag colored bracelets. At that point, the haggling started. After being in Tanzania for about two weeks, our group has learned that the hustlers will lower the price once we start departing the location. Within seconds, we achieved our first objective by negotiating three bracelets with the color of the Tanzanian-flag for $5 USD.

From there, we spent the next three hours at the Maasai Mama’s market. Instead of tackling objectives on the scavenger hunt, our group decided to shop until we drop. We purchased a number of different gifts for friends and family back home. What makes the market such an interesting experience are the comments hustlers and shop owners make to customers.

“Excuse me, brother, you look like someone I have seen in a movie. Please come over here and see my store.”

“Let me tell you, brother, come in my shop and we’ll discuss because my price is a business secret.”

After three hours of haggling, I was mentally exhausted. Haggling for a fair price is not an easy process as most hustlers have the preconceived notion that because we are foreigners, we must be loaded with money. Most hustlers balked at my first offer, while some continued working with me until we arrived at a fair and reasonable price. As a group, we then decided to work on the scavenger hunt. One of our objectives involved taking a picture in front of “the Arusha monument.” Without any clarification from our professors, we had to determine what monument were they referring to. Luckily, when we told Bhullah to take us to “the Arusha monument,” he took us to the right spot. After taking the picture, we knocked out the remaining objectives: purchasing a pineapple, raw egg, and roasted corn from a roadside vendor. Our last two objectives required us to ask a Tanzanian to teach us how to count to ten in Swahili and a local dance. Before heading back to our hotel, some young Tanzanians taught us how to count to ten in Swahili. Our video posted along with this blog post displays their enthusiasm teaching us. Knowing the solid relationship I have built with the hotel staff, we decided that having them teach us a dance would be wise. Turns out that it was an awesome experience seeing the joy of one of the hotel staff, Narovil, teach us some dance moves. The connection a traveler forms with locals is one of pure bliss.

While we did not achieve all the objectives, the entire experience made us feel like we were on the “Amazing Race.” We traveled throughout Arusha in a go-cart-like vehicle communicating with locals who spoke and understood little English. It was an unforgettable adventure. An experience that each of us will remember and share with others for our days to come.