Dar es Salaam boasts one of the finest natural harbours in the world, and although it has become a bustling port and economic center, it remains a place of fascination, with many reminders of its colorful past. Dhows still ply its waters. The city displays the many influences of its history. There’s an Asian character to India Street, with its spaciality shops, bazaars, and hardware stores, while the German colonization has left behind a Bavarian-style railway stations, the Roman Catholic St. Joseph’s Cathedral, and the Lutheran Azania Front Church. The flower-filled parks and the trees lining the streets are evidence of the British occupation.

 

 The  name Dar es Salaam is from the Arabic for “Heaven of Peace”. The city’s harbour and its central location on the coast made it natural choice for a trading centre. Sultan Majid bin Said of Zanzibar made plans to develop the harbour in 1866. German colonists revived the sultan’s plan in 1887, The town flourished with building of the Central Railway, which linked the coast with Lake Tanganyika in 1914. The British based their commercial and Administrative center here after the First World War. The waterfront bustles with hawkers selling snacks. At the end of Kivukoni Front you will find the kivuko (ferry) shutting people, produce, and vehicles to Kigamboni, a large fertile peninsula with beautiful beaches. Here too is the Kivukoni Fish Market, an unforgettable multimedia show of colorful sights, sounds, and smells. The city’s Botanical Gardens are near the city center, an oasis of cool green and peace and quiet. Across the streets is the National Museum, with excellent cultural and archeological displays that include the partial skull of the Nutcracker Man, Louis and Mary Leakey’s historic discover in Olduvai Gorge.

Along and off Morogoro Road, shop for gold work and textiles, Indian tea, and snacks. Visit one of the many Hindu temples in Kisutu Street. The Gymkhana Club is the city’s main sport and recreation center and is open to temporary members. It has a challenging 18-hole golf-course, and facilities for tennis, rugby, cricket, football, hockey, basketball, squash, and table tennis.
There are dozens of art and crafts shops in the city. Don’t miss the Tingatinga artists at work at Morogoro Stores in Oyster Bay. At famous Mwenge Handcraft Center on Sam Nujoma Road, you can see Makonde carvers carrying out their centuries old tradition of craft .The village Museum, 10 kilometers north along Bagamoyo Road, represents, in traditional houses, the homes of different tribes. Villages demonstrate their ancient carving and weaving skills and the finished products are for sale. Dances take place on holidays.

North of the city, along  Morogoro Road, beautiful white beaches, slotted with waving palms, draw visitors and residents alike for a respite from the heat. (Oyster Bay beach is inside the city proper, very near the city center).

The fishing village of Kunduchi lies farther along Bagamoyo Road. The Kunduchi Ruins area a short walk away. One of the ruined buildings is a 16th century mosque, and a 19th Century graveyard set in a grove of  baobab trees with graves marked by inscribed stone obelisks. Most of the beaches hotels offer boat trips by Gelada to nearby reefs, corals atolls, and Islands such as Mbudya for excellent snorkeling