Kariakoo is always an experience. I have never been anywhere that appears as chaotic as here. It is the main market section of Dar es Salaam. It includes a huge building that contains an fairly astonishingly wide selection of items from fertilizer to baskets, a wacky underground produce market, the street-level covered produce market surrounded by huge numbers of people selling fruits and vegetables on the streets, blocks and blocks of shops fronted by rows of vendors hawking any number of items, enormous crowds, people yelling out what they have available, and cars and trucks attempting to navigate through all of this. It is sensory overload and you have to keep on your toes watching people, being aware of your possessions, and going through the haggling process for everything (knowing that what I pay as a mzungu will nevertheless be about half more or double no matter how hard I try). Plus, I stand out everywhere.
In the midst of this I was trying to keep aware of my wallet in my front velcro-closed pocket. At one point I nearly stepped on a man's foot in my flip-flops, barely missing, while trying to get around a street vendor. Right afterward he came up to me, stepped squarely on one of my feet, shook me and yelled at me, creating quite the scene that made people around stop what they were doing. I was quite effectively distracted and my wallet was snatched from my pocket. I started walking away, but quickly thereafter had a huge group of people were yelling after me in Swahili and English that my wallet had been stolen, pointing around the corner. I ran around the corner following a group of men. The next thing I knew my wallet came sailing over the top of a wall into a mud puddle. I snatched it up and profusely thanked everyone there... ASANTE SANA! ASANTE SANA! I don't know what happened to the person who took my wallet, but I suspect he was beaten.
I was a bit shaken, literally, but even more impressed by the response of the crowd on the street. It was incredible community policing and reflected the disdain people have for thieves. It was also a reminder that I don't need to carry a wallet. I go out with an amount of cash I might need. Credit cards are useless here, so one doesn't need to carry them anyway. Some ID, my driver's license, is probably a good idea. These items can fit into my little zippered pocket near my beltline, which is often covered by my shirt.
In all, it reminded me that the vast majority people here are friendly and helpful. At the same time it is also always wise to take precautions.
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