Karibu Tanzania: Our Top Student

I can still remember when we visited Tanzania and in particular Dar-es-Salaam, for the first time. It was during August 1997. A local church had invited us to hold a seminar on the subject of “Cell Churches”. Paul Raper and I traveled via Blantyre in Malawi, before joining Alta and a friend, who had flown directly to Dar-es-Salaam.

However, things did not go according to plan. While in Malawi, the bag containing my passport, visa, yellow card and money went missing from a taxi. I still have very clear memories of the experience! We were staying at the home of George en Ester Messini during this visit. I continued my journey to Dar-es-Salaam with temporary travel documents and borrowed money! Steve Loyens, a local pastor, fetched me from the airport and took me to where Alta was staying. Unfortunately, I missed the seminar but I was in Dar-es-Salaam long enough – 1 day - to loose my heart to the country!