The Datoga People

Among the many tribes of Tanzania who have rejected westernization most completely are the Datogas. They still live a nomadic lifestyle (while even the Masai have become pastoralists rather than nomads) with temporary “villages” set up as they find good pastures for their cattle (Zebus), sheep and goats We visited one of these villages while we were in Tarangire National Park. These folks (about 30 counting children) had set up a “boma” (temporary village site) near the border of the park and welcomed our visit (they were paid for their hospitality by OAT, but their friendliness and warmth was above a purchase price).

Upon the open grasslands, their boma was circular with the boundary created by heaping up piles of dead thorny acacia branches. The entry to the village was stopped at night by pulling more of the branches into that opening. Inside the circle were huts, even that term seems too sophisticated for these dwellings, and inside the ring of huts lived the animals during the night when they must be protected from the wild predators always eager for an easy bite. This arrangement means that the ground upon which the people walk in their village is a mixture of cow, sheep and goat dung with the clayey soil. They live in their own & their animals’ excrement Because of this, the most salient feature of their lives is the presence of flies flies everywhere, on heads and in hair, around the eyes and nose, clustering on the lips, clinging to the napes of necks, alighting on clothing! While we felt our flesh creep just looking at the people, they are so used to the presence of these insects that they never raise their hands to swat at them or wave them away with air currents. They just live with them always on their bodies!

The huts, made of sticks and mud, are more like dormitories. The men live in one long structure and the women in another. Wives of the chief are granted their own small hut for themselves and their young children. When the children reach about 6, they move into the appropriate dormitory for their sex If the wife has no young children at that time, she moves into the women’s dorm until she is pregnant again. The huts are dark and smoky inside, with no windows, just holes to let in light. In the heat of the day, these homes are stiflingly hot. No wonder everyone is outside during the day, even in the sunshine There are very few trees on the plains and the bomas would not be built near them anyway because it is safer for the village to be completely out in the open. That way the warriors can see predators coming a long way off.

The Datoga have not embraced education as a way out for their children and they have resisted attempts to bring them into the modern age. Their traditions are important to them and they do not want to lose their cultural identity. Because family groups tend to live together but separate from other families most of the time, it has been difficult for modernizers to approach them and make any kind of headway in demonstrating the advantages of modern farming methods or technology of any kind. Their health care is non-existent and they live in a deplorably unsanitary condition, yet they endure. The Masai have been their hated enemies in the past and though peace reigns between them now, they are not persuaded by the advances the Masai have allowed for themselves. The Masai were fierce warriors who persecuted the Datoga and drove them from their traditional pasturages over and over. No wonder they don’t particularly like or trust them today.

The Tanzanian Masai

We first encountered the Masai through a visit to one of their villages not far from the Datoga encampment we explored. What an enormous difference between the two cultures There is a superficial resemblance in the appearance of the two peoples in that the men wear red blankets tied at the shoulders and carry spears or sticks always. But there the likeness seems to end. The Masai Village was clean, the yards between the huts were swept clean of debris, the cattle were housed in kraals away from the human living areas. The women wore bright clothing and much beadwork of their own creation. The men did wear the red cloths and also adorned themselves with lots of beadwork jewelry. Any Masai male over age 3 always carries a spear, or stick in the case of the little ones.

They look the part of a proud people accustomed to being treated with respect.

The site we visited was the home compound of a single man and his 4 wives Each wife had her own home where her children live with her until they are about 7 years old. This is another similarity between the Datoga and the Masai. The women’s houses are round and built of wood and dirt. The outside is “stuccoed” with mud and cow dung and designs are painted with subjects including birds and flowers and animals. The inside is rather like a nautilus shell with walls within the circle. Though there are no windows in these homes either, they seemed much lighter inside because of many penetrations in the walls. The inside walls are also painted with designs by the lady of the house. The houses include sleeping quarters, a cooking area, and a separate room for young animals who need special protection in the night. There are benches and stools around the walls of the home. The top of the mushroom shaped building is made of thatching. The women do all the building, the stuccoing and the thatching themselves (with help from the other women in the family) and also do the maintenance on the building.

The men of the village provide the physical protection for their families and care for the family’s wealth the animals. Some villages include dogs and cats, who are working members of the community. The dogs bark and provide advance warning about approaching predators. The cats keep down the vermin like rats and mice. These animals are not “pets” however. (I felt a little sorry for them because they often looked poorly fed and a bit mangy.)

While the men of our group sat around and drank homemade hooch with the father, father-in-law, and sons of the village, we women were asked inside the first wife’s home for a little conversation and a very provocative Q & A about married life. Ronald was our interpreter. At first the conversation centered on family life, marriage customs and children. The Masai women were genuinely surprised and a little sympathetic with American women who have only one husband

The first wife even said that she liked the fact that her husband had three other wives because that meant he didn’t hang around her house that often. She asked the Americans how they put up with having the husband always with them?

The married women were asked about their children and grandchildren and the more children they mentioned, the louder the Masai ladies cheered them! They were so happy for the American women with many children and grandchildren. It was a different reaction altogether when my humans, Lois, Sharon, and Betsy said they were not married. That elicited questions concerning widowhood. When told that was not the case, the ladies still asked about children. They were quite shocked and saddened when the three ladies admitted they had no children either. They asked who would take care of us when we could no longer care for ourselves. The first wife asked Sharon why she was not married and Sharon lightly answered perhaps she was too ugly. The first wife would have none of that she told Sharon she was too pretty not to be married and said she would find her a husband easily! It was clear that for Masai women marriage and children is the purpose of their lives and they felt real sympathy for those among us who were not married. Kay had quickly realized that our answers had made the atmosphere in the home somewhat dejected so she answered that she was married and had three children. This cheered the ladies up considerably. One of our group tried to explain that in the US women have many choices that can result in meaningful lives, but that was completely beyond the ken of these sweet and sympathetic ladies.

The question of female circumcision was raised with us and that was surprising indeed. The first wife said that though the practice is actually illegal in Tanzania, many young girls want to be “cut” because after the procedure they are considered more desirable marriage candidates Many young girls request their parents to provide the means for the procedure. Ronald, our interpreter, told us there are now shelters where girls not desiring circumcision can go to avoid it if their parents and relatives are insistent about it. He even told us the story of one young Masai girl who broke with tradition and ran away to the shelter, risking the condemnation of her family. The shelter sponsors insured that she received an education and later she returned to her village to teach and eventually to provide leadership in the village. She became a very respected personage; however, she never married.

One of the ladies sitting next to Lois leaned over to her and quietly asked if she had been “cut.” When Lois answered in the negative, the lady was even more sympathetic about her unmarried state because now she believed that she understood why Lois had never married.

Though the topics could have been considered intrusive or inappropriate, none of the ladies in our group resented their being raised or felt affronted by the responses of the Masai women. Instead, we all felt that the conversation had helped us understand Masai culture a little better though we are not at all sure that the Masai ladies understood ours any more than they had before.

Our Masai Waiter

When we stayed at the Farmhouse Lodge in the Ngorongoro Highlands, we met our next Masai. Joseph was a waiter at the Lodge and he met us for our first meal there in his full regalia. He looked totally regal and not at all like he should be waiting on our table. He was tall and slender and completely covered with the beautiful beadwork necklaces, bracelets, and earrings we had seen in the village visit He even demonstrated the amazing jumping ability of the Masai men one evening after supper. He was an excellent waiter and took pride in his work. He worked very well with the aforementioned chef, Veronica, in presenting the food and serving it. But we were all surprised when we first saw him.

The Schoolchildren

One of the delights of OAT travel is the opportunity to visit schools that OAT supports with money from trip fees. Our visit to the Bashay School was no exception. The Grand Circle Foundation (owner of OAT) has been helping this school for at least 7 years. The Foundation helps with classroom construction, school supplies, even teachers’ salaries. The money is sent to GCF managers in Arusha. The managers survey the needs of the school and talk with the principal and teachers. Then building materials will be purchased, or supplies bought no money is given directly to the school so GCF can insure that the donations are used for the agreed upon projects.

The Bashay School taught students from first grade to seventh grade. When students complete 7th grade, they must pass a national exam in order to continue their formal education. We were all impressed with the apparent quality of the teaching and greatly enjoyed meeting Mr. Basho, the principal, and the two teachers handling the class of first and second graders and the class of 7th graders. They are obviously dedicated people and are proud of their student’s accomplishments. The principal makes about $500.00 a month and teachers’ salaries range from $100.00 for a new teacher up to $300.00 for an experienced one!

We were greeted with broad smiles and songs when we entered the young children’s classroom and it was impossible not to grin back at these glowing faces. Even I had to twitch a whisker and pull my lips back into a feline version of smiling. The children were mostly dressed in uniforms, neat and clean. Those who cannot afford uniforms are still welcome in class and they too are dressed neatly. The walls of the classroom were filled with children’s pictures, posters, reminders about behavior. We had such fun taking the children’s photos as they sang in English and worked math problems under their teacher’s instruction. Lois was particularly pleased because her Polaroid camera worked and she snapped around the room wanting to get each child into at least one of the pictures that she left with the teacher. As we left the classroom, the children were clustering around their instructor to see themselves in the pictures.

Then we went into the classroom of the students who are studying hard to pass the post-7th grade exams. They were shyer yet still welcoming. They too sang for us, the National Anthem of Tanzania in particular, and they too were eager to see the Polaroid pictures that Lois left for them. We asked them what they wanted to be when they finished their educations and we got some surprising answers. One small bright young fellow responded that he wanted to be a pilot, a shy young lady wants to be a teacher, another boy said he wanted to be an engineer, a surprising young man wants to be a nurse, and an even more unexpected young lady shyly looking down at her desk reported that she wants to be “prime minister” of Tanzania! We all congratulated them on their dreams and ambition and hope they all succeed.

During a brief meeting in the principal’s office, we learned that GCF also supports a secondary school for those students who do not pass the all-important exams. This gives those youngsters a second chance at further education. That seemed imminently sensible to all of us since children mature at different times. Sad to think their educations must end if they fail to be mature enough or focused enough at the time of the exam. Good work by the Grand Circle Foundation.

Our Leader, James

We were all surprised (maybe even a little alarmed I admit I was; despite my best efforts, my back arched and my fur stood on end) when we were met at the Masai Mara airport that served Nyumbu Camp after flying in from Nairobi. We alit from the plane and two men in typical guide/driver clothing walked up and introduced themselves as Christopher and Morrison. Then from behind them stepped James, our tour leader in Kenya. James was tall and slim, handsome, and outgoing. And he was dressed in complete Masai warrior style. A vivid red blanket stretched across his back and torso and tied on the left shoulder, an assegai (spear) rested naturally in his hand and brightly colored beadwork draped his neck and adorned his arms He wore a sarong type wrap around his waist and walking shorts under that. His shoes were homemade sandals. His dignity was unmistakable and he was barbarically splendid! Were we astonished? Oh yes! But James proved to be an excellent ambassador for his modernizing tribe and for Kenya as well as a concerned protector of Kenya’s wild places and animals. His command of English was excellent and he had a sense of merriment and pleasure in life that was infectious and enjoyable.

We learned much from James, a Presbyterian convert, with quite modern ideas. At 31, he has one wife and two children, a boy 4 and a girl 3 months old. He told us that he will be quite content with one wife only and that he plans to raise his daughter to believe that she has as many choices in life as he will expect for his son. He does not want her to grow up thinking that her only possibility in life is marriage and children. If she chooses that role, he will be content but he wants her to know she has many other choices. He also wants his son to know that he does not have to become a cattle herder living a nomadic/pastoralist life. James believes that modern Kenya will offer his children many more choices in their lives that he himself has had. However, James has had opportunities that most Masai do not experience he has been to school and college, he has been exposed to Christianity and embraced it, and he has a good job in an industry which is nurtured and appreciated in Kenya.

We loved James’ tactful admonition to us when we discussed with him on our drive into camp what we were hoping to see in Kenya. We said lions, servals, leopards, crocodiles, rhino, and hippos. James said he, Chris and Morrison, would do their best to find these animals for us, using their experience with tracking the animals and their knowledge of animal habits. However, he said there are never any guarantees for what we will or will not see. Instead, he said, “ Whatever we do see, we will thank Mother Nature!” That was his mantra throughout our four-day stay in Kenya. But the fellows did deliver we saw so much animal life that we were all constantly awed and grateful! My own feline dreams of seeing my relatives were more than fulfilled, they were overmatched!

The Kenyan Village

James introduced us to a village of Masai people whose quality of life was somewhere between the poor Datoga people and the rather wealthy Masai family compound we had visited while in Tanzania The village boundary was also made of acacia thorn branches and the huts were more primitive than those of the Tanzanian family, but not quite as poorly constructed as the Datoga ones. These homes were circular as were those of the Masai, but instead of thatching, these were roofed with earth mixed with dung and then planted with grasses Moses, our guide for the village visit, invited us inside the 2nd wife’s home here and it was dark and there was no decoration on its unfinished walls. There were no windows, only holes which had to be closed at night to keep out mosquitoes. There was the same chambered nautilus construction with the anteroom for young animals The wife had a sleeping shelf and across from it was the sleeping area for her children. A horseshoe shaped cooking area occupied the center part of the structure. Moses told us that only vegetables and grains are cooked inside the home. Meats are cooked outside the house.

These Masai also put their cattle within the circle of huts so that the ground was a mixture of clay and dung, just like the interior of the Datoga village. However, the odd thing was that these people were not covered in flies as were the Datoga. They appeared to be much cleaner in their persons and their clothing as well. Despite the fact that their village was not nearly so clean and neat as the one in Tanzania, the people appeared to be fairly well-to-do, perhaps because of their ownership of large numbers of cattle and because of their more regular interaction with tourism.

The men of the village greeted us with a song and dancing, involving much shoulder shrugging and foot stomping. The shoulders hunch forward and then are drawn back in a sinuous, continuous motion After the song and dance, they then gave us a demonstration of their amazing jumping ability. The men can jump straight up from a flatfooted start from 2 to 4 feet.

The most athletic (and youngest) men jumped high enough that the bottoms of their feet were at the height of the other men’s waists! It was truly astonishing to see They were almost as talented at jumping as I am!

After this demonstration, the men did NOT ask us to try to jump with them so we were all much relieved. After the house tours (we were divided up so that only two people went to each house at a time) and then we were asked to go behind the village where the ladies of the village greeted us with songs and different dances, much less muscular and syncopated. Next, they led us to their many tables with their handmade crafts displayed colorfully and enticingly. Everyone bought something as we felt that we needed to be supportive of their efforts. It was not difficult to pick out attractive and interesting belts, necklaces, bracelets, key chains, bowls, carved animals, bookmarks, and red plaid Masai blankets. These ladies displayed their wares and the men did the bargaining with us. They drove hard bargains actually and we are pretty sure we did not take home any deals.