Ben Wilhelmi

Street photography, Uganda

 

 

These trendy hats are quite common in Uganda  Not at all in Tanzania. I love how fashion gets recycled.

 

 

The "I don't care lady" gliding through the downpour...

 

 

 

Usually my natural charm suffices to defuse a situation when I get spotted.

 

Or not...

 

These contraptions on the other end, unlike the retro hats, are common through the East African countries...I got rescued once in Kenya and once that Land Rover came to a halt next to my car the driver slammed the door and the front grid fell off! Just like in a movie. But those mechanics are good at fixing older cars on the spot. A bit more challenging with modern cars full of electronics...

 

 

 

Rare case of a mask worn, and properly. A few dozens deaths due to corona since the beginning. One cannot blame the average Ugandan especially with some notorious examples come from the West

camping around Mt Meru, Tanzania

 

Mt Meru, the 15.000 foot mountain next door to Arusha…it was an extinct volcano till a Belgian scientist declared last month that the whole area was at risk by an awakening of the volcano. Without notice. The last eruption was ten times bigger than Mt Saint Helens in 1980, 1500 times bigger than the Hiroshima bomb…ah well.

 

 

in the meantime let’s enjoy life and have a little camping weekend around this beautiful mountain. My good old Land Rover felt itchy, and me too so here we are on the northern side looking for  a lunch spot a little bit off road.

 

quite a vista while lunching, right?

 

this was the lovely dirt track to follow soon.

 

a bee eater on an aptly named candelabra tree was eyeing my left overs. If I were to be a bird, this one would rank high on my list: they are swift and extremely agile, performing aerobatics maneuvers while catching bees. I observe them regularly from my front porch.

 

here is such a tee in its typical glory. It’s a real poor choice for wood fire …

 

about the road sign the marketing is be revised for that otherwise decent camp site. I did stop for a quick survey just in case. I cut my visit short when I realised there was a group of 8 Belgian tourists. I don’t mind to meet my countrymen but I hate to repeat my story to people who feel we have a link because of the nationality. I even lie to my passengers claiming to be French to cut short the enthusiasm…

 

 

 

and this was my spot for the night. Roof tent opened like a book, quite away from any village and various nuisance.

photography in a village, Tanzania

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

seriously overloaded Land Rover. The engine wouldn’t start, people came to help and push but no one got out of the pick up to ease the effort!

 

loading a truck, from half empty to about full. Whenever I think a vehicle is full, it is only half full. Standards definitely vary from one continent to the next.

life in Loliondo village, Tanzania

 

 

Masai man leaving after the market.

 

this man was extremely serious while buying a cow bell. Each bell seemed to have its own tune and he was listening carefully to each bell before making his choice, like a musician choosing his instrument. The tunes must be important indeed if you are to herds on long distances, better have a sound you like. Also to retrieve lost animals…

 

it seems there were 2 painters, one sober and the second one drunk …

 

dreaming of better days and a new jeep…

why flying …partVI

 

when I get a puncture, it is always about a nail or an acacia thorn. Except for that example….pretty worn out right? Well I had asked to change our tyres because they were worn out. The maintenance company, Tanzanair, was short of spares so it gave us this one on a friendly loan. I still fail to understand why they gave us tyres that were in worse conditions than the ones to replace…. With ’friends’ like this, you don’t need enemies anymore.

 

Flying Medical Service, the secret for nice airstrips…

the day of the miracle: an airstrip being cleared up! Engoveroni THE airstrip. A touch of bad weather around.

 

up and below, a dusty airstrip, Kiba in the Selous game reserve.

bush fixing…rocks in tyres to be dragged to smoothen the surface

 

 

quite an oil leak but manageable. It became expensive to run at some point though: 3 lt of oil every hour. Not to mention the concerned passengers.

 

variation on the same theme: another leak but not as bad.

 

Ikuu, Katavi nat’l park, refuelling in the bush. Though we were careful with extra fuel filters, I experienced once an engine failure. Luckily there was an airstrip not too far so I could glide down there without damage. The 3 built-in fuel filters were clogged with dirt.

 

Ikuu, planes ready for the night. The branches are from acacia trees. The thorns should prevent bloody hyenas to come close and chew the tyre, which they love to do!

 

I knew something was wrong in the air: the vibrations were really shaking the airplane. A quick inspection revealed this cracked bit on the propeller section. The white spinner or cone had been rotating out of balance and even damaged the blue bit on the nose.

so I removed that spinner and flew like this for a while, not a big deal. The black arc is where the spinner has been rubbing the nose.

transport in Tanzania

 

safari car in Ndutu area during the wildebeest migration ( la migration des gnous).

 

home made anti theft on a truck rim.

 

incredible the variety and weight of goodies that can ferried on the back of a bicycle!

Arusha on a Sunday. Shops are closed and street traders have found good use of the gridlocked shops.

 

ferry in Dar es Salaam. as opposed to many other places in the world like Congo and Asia, naval accidents are pretty unheard of here.

 

an old Land Rover that deserve some rest by now.

 

my Land facing the volcano Lengai on a cold lava flow.

 

another Land, a bit overloaded. I say a bit because there is room for potential passengers on the outside of the frame.

 

the Clock Tower, Arusha city center.

 

youths hanging on a wreck that probably won’t ride again. There are still some parts to salvage though, Loliondo village.