A Week in the Life of a NGO Family

Imagine waking up to a beautiful sunrise, walking on your deck with your steaming cup of coffee, looking out on the breathtaking view of the Indian Ocean. The only thing that breaks your attention away from the view is the sound of your children waking up. You make your way inside to help them get ready and drop them off at school. From here, you make your way to the grocery store, the gym, maybe out for coffee with a friend, to a parent meeting at the school and then home to set up your office. It’s what you would find during a typical week in the unique country of Tanzania. 

We understand that when you and your family arrive in Dar es Salaam, it is probably unfathomable to picture the paragraph outlined above. That’s why we wanted to take you through what your routine might entail, through the eyes of an expat family currently thriving in the city.  

Stina Haldorsen and her family are no strangers to the expat lifestyle moving all over the world - from Nepal to Bangkok, to Norway, to Pakistan and finally to Tanzania. She firmly believes quickly getting your family into a routine is the best way to make your new home feel like one. 

Sunday

We spend our morning at Epi d'or, a local breakfast place, or we have brunch at home with friends, or we go to their home. My husband gets up early, usually, around 6 a.m., to play tennis at one of the oldest clubs here called Gymkhana. 

During the afternoon, we spend time at the Dar es Salaam Yacht Club where we swim, paddle or take the kayak around the bay. On Sundays, the club has a fish BBQ, and we usually make sure to join in. 

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday  

We usually wake up at 5:15 a.m. to get the youngest member of the family ready for school. His campus is off the peninsula - where we live - and traffic is terrible so to make it on time for 7 a.m., we have to leave at 6:30 a.m. The older kids go with their dad at 7:15 for a 7:40 start as the secondary campus is on the peninsula and therefore, there is no traffic at all. 

My husband goes into the office and I have about six hours to myself. I work on the Board at the school and this means most weekdays I have meetings. Sometimes during my day, I go for a run, sort out the house, get dinner ready and then pick the kids up. 

If there are no after-school activities or playdates, my youngest gets out at 1:45 and my older child is usually out at 2:30, but he often isn’t home until just before 5 p.m. We eat dinner at around 5:30 and then my youngest is in bed by 7:30. 

Thursday 

Thursdays are generally the same as the other days except it’s pizza night at the Yacht Club so lots of people from the International School of Tanganyika (IST) usually go to that! We go around 4 p.m. to have a swim, eat an early pizza and then go home around 7 p.m. 

 Friday 

Again, Fridays are pretty much the same as the other days, but we usually have Happy Hour. We belong to a group of about 30 families and the idea is that a different family will host weekly drinks and food for the whole group. It usually starts around 5 p.m. and ends around 9 p.m. It’s a fun time for everyone, the absolute perfect way to end the week. 

Saturday 

The day starts with an early run for me. Then I drop the kids off at their various activities, like soccer and playdates. From there, I usually go grocery shopping and then go and pick up the kids. We usually spend our evenings with friends or a party of some kind and our children have sleepovers. 

As Stina outlined for us, by connecting with other families and establishing a routine, Dar es Salaam can quickly feel like home. However, when you’re first moving somewhere it can be a little tricky to establish a routine without knowing where the necessities are. We have created a guide to take you through everything you need to know to live day-to-day life. Download it here!