How a US 'Sista' found her voice in Tanzania

US-born Kat Kishimbo vlogs about her new life in Tanzania, where she has lived since 2016, on her YouTube channel Traveling Sista. She tells Mark Edwards why the move gave her the freedom to “blossom as a black woman”.

Kathryn ‘Kat’ Kishimbo has lived in Tanzania for just over four years now, but she felt at home from the very moment she arrived. When she flew in to Arusha on 16 December, 2016, the American – then named Kathryn Wilson and describing herself as an “average black millennial woman” – had just turned 30, sold all her possessions and left behind a job at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography in San Diego, on the US West Coast, for a new life travelling in East Africa.

She knew no-one in Tanzania and had no idea how she would support herself beyond her US$ 10,000 in savings. However, this sense of the unknown did not feel like fear, it felt like freedom.

“I knew that I made the right decision immediately,” she says. “When I stepped off the plane I felt a sense of familiarity. I was so comfortable and at peace. Coming here had been led by a search for freedom and a more adventure filled and natural life. The vibration of nature and greenery was exactly what I needed. I don’t know if it’s because I had travelled to many different countries in my life or if it was because everyone was black, but I felt right at home.”

Such a sense of belonging had been absent in the US. While the country’s racial divisions and disparities were magnified in 2020 by the death of George Floyd and the presidential election, Kat has felt the inequality all her life there.

“The US has always been divided,” she says. “It’s just more visible because of social media and smart phones. Our plight as blacks in America is news to the rest of the world, old news to us. I knew that I wanted to escape the oppressive, racist nature of America. I wanted to be with my people – black, African people. I needed a safe space for me to blossom in as a black woman.”

And Kat has thrived here. She has embraced projects that she would never have considered in the “everyday, mundane, empty cycle of life” she left behind in the US. Among them is her own YouTube channel, Traveling Sista, which she set up to share her experiences in Tanzania and has become an invaluable resource for a now almost 20,000-strong worldwide “family”, as Kat calls it, of members not just of the African diaspora considering making a new start in life.

Kat with pupils at a school in Arusha

Vlog host

In her weekly vlogs, Kat dispenses advice on the expat life in Tanzania with topics including finding accommodation, starting a business, getting a visa, what to and what not to wear, the cultural differences to expect and even the do’s and don’ts of dating in Tanzania.

Kat is a natural vlog host with a warm and engaging manner. She attended film school in the US, but there she was working behind the camera. It was only in Tanzania she felt a purpose that inspired her to take on new challenges.

“Honestly, I had never dreamed about vlogging or having a YouTube channel,” she tells me. “But I felt like I had a lot say and share with people. Ultimately my purpose was bigger than the boundaries of my comfort level. I’m pretty used to vlogging now. It’s gotten a lot easier. In the beginning I was so nervous that I would have to record a video three or four times.

“I absolutely love my YouTube family! I feel honoured that people have been riding along with me on this journey, and more importantly value the content I create. It feels amazing to be able to inspire people on that level.”

Tanzanians have also taken to Kat. When she arrived at her new home in a village on the outskirts of Arusha, she admits her many tattoos and piercings did evoke some curiosity among residents – although her body art stretched earlobes were a way in with the Maasai, who also favour the practise – but she was universally welcomed.

“Since I’ve been traveling for a good portion of my life [Kat was in the navy for six years and visited countries such as Singapore, Hong Kong and the Philippines during her service] I feel like I pick up on cultural nuances pretty quickly. I just tried to observe and blend in as much as possible all while still maintaining my own identity.”

Inspiring others

The vlogs are also a fantastic advertisement for Tanzania with aspirational footage of the verdant foothills of Mt Kilimanjaro and Mt Meru, Arusha’s fresh food markets and interviews with local artists and musicians as well as fellow expats who have made a home here. It’s no surprise that so many viewers have been inspired to make their own moves to Tanzania. Kat has lost count of the number of people “it’s well into the hundreds”, she has helped relocate here, finding them suitable accommodation.

The videos leave no doubt that Kat is in love with Tanzania, whether she is cooing over the wealth of fruit trees growing in her garden, soaking up the sunshine or just easing into the simple beauty of village life.

Finding love

Beyond loving the country, she has also found romantic love here. A few months into her stay she began a relationship with Tanzanian Freddy Kishimbo and they are now married – the traditional wedding was held in the village of Mbokumu in Old Moshi where Freddy grew up – and have a two-year-old baby daughter, Zora.

“They are my everything,” Kat says, “but I had no intention whatsoever of coming here and finding love. I was honestly focused on travelling the continent and other neighbouring regions of the world. I wasn’t looking for romance at all. I knew it could be possible simply because I was a single woman and I was moving to a continent with a high population of beautiful black men. So, ultimately, I just went with the flow.”

Kat’s love for Tanzania and Freddy meant the pan-Africa exploring was put on hold, but the relationship has brought its own adventures. The couple set up their own travel company, Sauka Tours, to reveal the natural and wildlife wonders of the country to others. However, last year’s pandemic necessitated diversifying and a move for the family to Dar es Salaam.

“Corona basically shut down our operation because there were no tourists. We had to find a way to sustain ourselves. We recently opened Sauka Woodworks where we provide wholesale and retail lumber to people who need it. We also export. My husband’s family had been in the timber business for almost 30 years so he knows all the ins and outs and is very good at what he does. I’m super proud of him. Dar is where we need to be for the timber business. We’re dealing with hardwood so it is a more lucrative location for us. The business requires a lot of attention and we have to juggle that with being good parents to our beautiful baby girl.”

The bustling commercial capital may not offer the same verdant escape that first drew Kat to the country, but it has other advantages. It has a growing number of professional quality recording studios and Freddy, who is also a musician, has been encouraging his wife to pursue her life-long love of singing.

“I’ve really been singing all of my life,” Kat says. “Definitely not publicly. Up until this past year, I’ve been quite shy about letting the world in on my talent. I can thank my husband for breaking me out of my shell. He would take me to the studio with him and would tell me to hop on a track or two. So I did, and bam! End of story. I was hooked.”

She has released the results under the moniker Kill ‘Em Kat with her first EP now available to hear on all streaming platforms. The summery vibe of lead single ‘Elevate’ seems suffused with the romantic and spiritual contentment Kat has found here in Tanzania. Her smooth voice certainly deserves an audience beyond her own bathroom, putting the listener at ease whether she’s sweetly duetting with Freddy on the chorus or laying down her own laidback rap.

With husband Freddy Kishimbo and their daughter Zora

Resident

Kat is now a Tanzanian resident. Being married to a citizen made the usually protracted process far more straightforward, although, she admits, having a husband who speaks fluent Kiswahili has allowed her to get away with not learning the language as well as she’d like. “Right now, I’m only about 35% to 40% efficient in Kiswahili. I should know way more. But since my husband is Tanzanian, I’ve been a bit lazy because he just translates for me. There will be plenty of time to improve, though, as the quality of life and opportunities in Tanzania mean Kat is here to stay. A return to the US, whoever’s in charge now, is not going to happen.

I had no intention whatsoever of coming here and finding love. I was honestly focused on travelling the continent and other neighbouring regions of the world

“I love the cost of living and the fact that the life I had always dreamed of is financially obtainable here,” she says. “I also love the nature, the people and the food. “I will never move back to America. I don’t see a reason to. Thecost of living is way too expensive.Everyone is sick because the foodis horrible and processed. And it’shonestly not a safe place for blackpeople. Tanzania is home now.”

More information

Find all of Kat’s vlogs on her Traveling Sista YouTube channel and keep up with her latest moves on Instagram @traveling.sista. Kill ‘Em Kat tracks are available to stream on YouTube and Soundcloud. For more information on her travel business, visit saukatours.com