2018-10-26 – KILIMANDJARO – TRAIN – zambia-tanzania – 1840 Km

The last TRAIN part of this journey is Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia to Dar Es Salaam in Tanzania. It is the longest part with 1 840 km in 104h00 ! As the train do not start directly from Lusaka or you must change train and wait for 2 days in Kapiri Mposhi, unsafe town in the middle of nowhere. There is no direct TRAIN connection, timetable have not been calculated for matching. This TRAIN is a TAZARA (Tanzania Zambia Railways) service, others TRAIN are Zambia Railways. Then, the journey is starting by an early bus from Lusaka to Kapiri Mposhi, everyone says it is 3 hours, it took 4 hours, the road was full of slow trucks to pass.

Usually TRAIN in that part of the world have delay on arrival, this time it is on departure = 5 hours and on arrival = 55 hours ! for a total of 103 hours travelling slowly…. and less.

That was the longest trip by TRAIN, with and in the same one, I’ve done in my life. Even I’ve a lot of TRAINS experiences everywhere from France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, UK, Poland, Germany, Denmark, Hungary, Russia, India Thailand, Vietnam, China, Mongolia, South Korea, Japan, Australia, Chile, Bolivia, Brazil, USA, Egypt, Madagascar, South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia to Tanzania. Slowest World record is for the TAZARA TRAIN (Zambia Tanzania Railways). How local says on here, “this is Africa”.

What happens ?

1. Engine issue with the locomotive, well with 2 different ones and each have been replaced

2. Truck accident on the track

3. Not sure that somebody knew what’s going on all the time. To get 10% of good information you have to talk with at least 5 different person from the company, is that communication, no ?

Prices :

1 first class sleeper ticket = 393 ZMW

Breakfast in the train = 20 ZMW in zambia

Breakfast in the train = 3 500 THZ in tanzania

Lunch/Dinner in the train = 4 500 THZ in tanzania