Softy Den

The day started with a headache but I had to attend an online Swahili lesson with Yusuf. As my ridiculous travel schedule has prevented us from having any lessons for a long time, we have decided to try doing it by Zoom. The headache was cleared by the lesson; who knew? I’ve not been one to get overly affected by heat yet plunging back into Dar es Salaam after a fresher climate must take a toll on the body.

Dar es Salaam has never charmed me like Maputo, as it’s bigger, usually hotter, more hustle-y and with less obvious aesthetic appeal. So today I went on a targeted exploration of the city centre to see whether the oldest parts of Dar could reveal the sought-after charm. The mission was successful. The old Indian area of Dar es Salaam is simply delightful with a badminton institute, Indian-Tanzanian cultural centre with a very appetising reading room, and various eateries such as this little ice cream parlour, Softy Den. They fired up the ice cream machine for some delicious soft scoop, to which I added chopped nuts. I shall be back to Softy Den.