This is what lunch looks like around here (~ 240 rubles). The meat portions are ridiculously small. And it's like this everywhere I've been (maybe I just don't know how to choose properly). But there's way too much rice or potatoes.

Spent an hour and a half buying a local SIM card. Not an Indian-style ordeal (though even in India these days you can avoid such hassle), but it took forever.

There was a SIM card shop right across from where I was staying. It seemed logical to buy there. The seller honestly tried to follow all the rules and submit my data to the regulatory authority (that's the law). Except the internet on the regulator's end wasn't cooperating.

After the fifth attempt to submit the application (each taking about 15 minutes), I gave up and went looking for another shop. Just around the corner, in 10 minutes they sold me a SIM registered to a local person (technically not allowed, but apparently if you really want it, you can make it happen). Why didn't I just go there in the first place?

PS. The connection is mediocre: sometimes the signal just disappears. A couple years ago the local regulator even fined all the major operators for terrible service quality. They say it's gotten better :)

Tanzania's National Museum.

I somehow managed to get inside. You can't buy a ticket with cash—only card or local mobile transfers. Of course, card payment doesn't work (no connection to the bank) :) I had to buy a ticket using a mobile transfer with help from locals.

The museum is amusing: a few exhibits on historical topics, a hall with paintings and photos of local presidents, and that's it. Except the main halls are all mixed in with some kind of technical rooms. You walk around and can't tell if you're done or if there's more.

Dar es Salaam is a very colorful city. There's not much to do here (I covered all the interesting spots in half a day), but the atmosphere is really cool. It reminded me of the Indian countryside, except the Indians are replaced by Black people and there's less litter.

One of the coolest spots in the city is the fish market. Fresh-caught seafood and all kinds of fish are brought in throughout the day. The fishing boat captain sells the catch at auction, it goes to regular vendors, and then finally to the end consumer.

Sometimes the fish you buy doesn't go home with you—instead, you cross the street where specially trained folks will cook it for you, and you can eat it right away.

Taking photos at the market is tricky though. The local security guards see a camera and immediately swoop in: "Hey, what are you photographing? No way, stop right now!" And then they offer to sell you permission for a "photo session." They'll even print you a receipt :)

I tried to get away without permission, but ended up having to spend some cash. The "permission" comes with a guide included—one of those same security guards. He wasn't much help, except for one time when he shooed away a beggar. To be fair, that was literally the only beggar I saw all day.

The atmosphere is incredible. The real action happens early in the morning, but it's interesting even during the day.

A separate story about my taxi experience.

At the airport exit, they offer to get you to the city center for $35. Supposedly official taxi. Seems like they have a special rate for white people.

Taking Uber costs just $5. That's a 7 times difference! Though, Uber isn't allowed to stop right at the terminal exit. There's a special parking lot a hundred meters away (:

But the drive was really weird: high beams were on (!), the parking brake wasn't released (!!), and the empty tank warning light was flashing like crazy (!!!). I was honestly already preparing to push the car to the nearest gas station, but it worked out.

Made it to Dar es Salaam! 🎉 You can get your visa on arrival (they let in visitors from almost everywhere). But first you've gotta fill out a form. Nothing complicated about it, except you need to use a pen to fill it out.

The local border guards apparently decided that by 2020, nobody travels without their own pen anymore, so they just put the blank forms on the tables with nothing else.

Meanwhile, airport staff refuse to share pens with arriving passengers. So people are basically borrowing pens from each other left and right. Big shoutout to some Spanish travelers who came to my rescue. Otherwise I'd have been hanging around the airport until my return flight! :)