Mwanza - Part 2

 It was raining heavily when we woke up this morning so we actually dug out our coats to wear to breakfast. As we ate we could see a group of ibis gathered on the grass in front of us….busy searching for their breakfast too. Ours here is buffet style and offers a good selection.

We spent the morning around the hotel and then had some lunch as Robert was picking us up at 3.30 for the Mwanza ACTT Staff outing. We had a bigger lunch than we would normally as the standard and quantity of food on these outings is always a bit unpredictable. 

After lunch I notice a local fisherman right outside our room. As I take some photos he smiles and waves.

We do ACTT staff outings every year in both Mwanza and Moshi. They get to chose where we go but today Peter did suggest it should be somewhere with a roof as it had continued to rain on and off all morning.

Shabani and Justina have gone ahead but we collect everyone else from the ACTT office and then drive out to a bar on the shores of Lake Victoria. Parts of the road are quite rough but you get some nice views.

 It is actually a pretty nice setting and it’s fairly quiet apart from a few people swimming…..and it even stopped raining and the sun came out.

We order drinks and then Robert gives the staff a short assignment to do in 2 groups and then report back to everyone. Basically they have just been asked to think of ways that can improve the business and revenue over the next year.

Emmanual and Amos are the 2 spokesmen and both groups have come up with some interesting ideas which I am sure Robert will think about over the next few weeks. We also add our thoughts to the discussion. 

Once this is finished, the food arrives, chicken, bananas and chips. It’s not great quality but there is plenty of it.

When the food is finished, Robert gives a bit of a presentation and then hands them all a small bonus. We also hand over a small gift to each of them and in turn they have some gifts for us.

As things draw to a close we get a lovely sunset over the lake.

Once it gets dark it’s time to leave. We drive back to town dropping people off on the way. Robert then drops us off at the hotel. It has been a good event and everyone enjoyed it.

The next day is Sunday and a rest day for us and Robert. We have a leisurely breakfast and then take our coffee down to the lakeside. It’s very peaceful as we watch a sailing boat drift by.

We have actually seen a fair number of boats over the last few days. The ferry to SaaNane island goes back and forth pretty  regularly especially over the weekend. It’s short 10-15 minutes trip to this small National Park, which has animals including zebras and monkeys. We visited a few years ago with the ACTT staff. It’s a nice day trip.

We have also seen the ferry that goes to Ukerewe Island which again we caught a few years ago. This is a much larger boat and the trip takes about 3 hours.

From the hotel we can see a very large boat that is docked, apparently in for repairs.

Yesterday we also saw a train which really is quite a rare sight in Tanzania. We think this one was heading south to Dar es Salaam.

So as you can tell we have enjoyed relaxing and just soaking up what is going on around us.

Today we had planned to spend some time by the pool. However we had only just got down there when the heavens opened again. So instead we used the time to catch up with our daughter and son in law which was great.

By midday the rain had passed over and we were soon able to enjoy the pool.

Having done some exercise I then suggested to Pete that we have a cup of tea and a bit of cake. Luckily we had agreed to share 1 piece of carrot cake as when it arrived it was enormous!! It was lovely and needless to say we polished it off with no trouble at all.

This evening was spent packing up ready for moving on tomorrow followed by a good meal. 

We have had a good few days in Mwanza and have really enjoyed the opportunity of a bit of rest and relaxation.