dolla dolla

So, when people hear or see the term dolla dolla, you may reference a particular hip hop song or you may think of money. In Tanzania, it is the main source of public transportation. The dolla dolla is also referred to as the matatou or the boda boda depending on which East African country you are in. It is a cheap way to get from place to place.

But you must make some concessions: first there is no personal space in a dolla dolla, you are looking at squeezing 24 people into a 12 passenger van. Not to mention that you may, if you are blessed with a seat, be asked to hold a crying a baby, someone's groceries or some live chickens.

Now the dolla dolla itself is usually painted with a certain color strip which signifies to riders where the dolla is going. For example green is usually USA River to town and black is town to Njiro. But beware and make sure you ask the dolla dolla conductor before getting on because the routes may change without prior notice. My favorite part of the dolla dolla are the slogans that are painted on the minibuses. Some phrases include: God is in this car, Yeah Rasta, Inshallah, Black Idea, G-Unit, Don King, Lion of Judah, etc...

All in all you get what you pay for. A typical dolla dolla ride costs on average between 20 to 50 cents and they are usually efficient in getting around Arusha. So you gotta take the good and the bad.