The Santorini Ferry or as it is lovingly called Mama Tanzania, is one of those amazing things that can only be found in Tanzania. This boat is an experience in itself. The Santorini ferry is a 1960’s Greek cruiser and is run by a Greek Crew. It is in good nick for its age and is certainly the most upper-class thing ever to hit Mtwara.
The boat takes roughly 18 hours crossing time. You leave Mtwara lunchtime on Friday and are in Dar-es-Salaam by the morning. On return you leave Tuesday lunchtime and arrive Mtwara Wednesday morning. There are five classes, A-F ranging from class A at 40,500 Tsh to class F at 11,500 Tsh. Class A, B and C all have cabins although only class A has an en-suite bathroom! If you are in the top three classes you have use of the two restaurants one which serves Swahili food which will set you back about 2000 Tsh and is self-service canteen style and another which serves European food and is waiter service. This cost me about 8,000 Tsh but I did have three courses and a salad, what can I say Mikindani makes you hungry! And a good bowl of mushroom soup followed by spaghetti bolognaise followed by fruit salad was a well-deserved treat, I thought! Volunteers must be warned, local eating habits do not apply here and attacking food hyena style is not advised, believe me, I know! When a man wearing a T-shirt saying “ABIBAS”(ADIDAS) looks at you in disbelief you are really put in your place.
Despite this you are made to feel quite comfortable in the top three classes on this mystery boat. The bar is well equipped with two satellite TV’s and and a DJ, as I suppose you could call him – the man who bangs out tunes for the entire journey. This is needed, as the majority of passengers use this room just to keep their bags in, this is a style adopted by our very own Emmanuel who managed to make it the whole 18 hours propped up at the bar so I was told by the stewardess ladies on board who all remember Mr Casanova very well! This is a lively place, not for the faint hearted. If you suffer seasickness or hate rap avoid this bar like the plague. I seemed to know a lot of people and like anywhere in Tanzania everyone is related somehow!
Class D and E are made up of rows of armchair seats inside with a small counter to by snacks and drinks. All classes A- E are air-conditioned. Class F is a plastic seat outside that runs down the hallways of both sides of the boat. On the top deck there are benches covered by a canopy. In rough weather these seats can be a bit difficult and on the top deck is very windy and the coldest I’ve ever been outside in Tanzania. If you want to cool down, clear your head and get a wonderful view of the stars then this is the place to be. All in all I would recommend using the Santorini as a reliable way to travel from Dar-es-Salaam to Mtwara. Especially for future volunteers, it is a cheaper alternative to flying and the 1960s décor is bound to keep you amused!
Update: our friends at Trade Aid tell us that the Santorini has been pulled from this route. We do not yet know if this is permanent or not.
For more information about Trade Aid, volunteers and their work, please visit their website www.mikindani.com