Pugu

I went with my friend Stephen on a succession of buses to the fringes of Dar es Salaam where the city bleeds into the Pugu-Kazimzumbwi Nature Forest Reserve. The journey was an ‘auditory assault’, said Stephen, and he was not wrong.

It was very pleasant to be surrounded by trees and to be clambering on steep forest paths. The trails were convoluted and provided a good workout, there were caves with lots of millipedes, a dam and lake on which people were canoeing, and some lookout points with expansive views of Dar es Salaam. It’s not the most scintillating view I’ve ever seen as the city is almost completely flat. Yet it was a welcome day out from the thrum of the place.