The Masai are a group of people that live on the northern border o Tanzania and Southern border of Kenya. This group of people is pastoralist and they their lives entirely depend on cattle until of recent. The dressing of the Masai is the very unique. They use a lot of beads that make their attire very colorful. The Masai leave on the North southern side of the foothills of the Kilimanjaro.
The cultural experience is really interesting. The roles in the community are distributed with consideration of age. Men are usually in charge of grazing the cattle as they play a vital role in the lives of the community. Usually wealth in the Masai is measured in the amount of cattle. The more the man is wealthy, the more wives he can have. The plains below the Kilimanjaro are very fertile and facilitate growth of grass fields that the Masai graze their cattle in. Some of the things to expect while on the visit are:
Adumu traditional dance
The Adumu is the Masai traditional dance. The coming-of-age of young males is celebrated with this dance. Jumping will be a big part of the dance. According to this interpretation, the Masai word “Adumu,” which means “jump,” refers to both jumping and landing. The warriors will form a circle, and a few individuals will jump within it for a short while before leaving to let another group join them. It is necessary that you leap up and down while keeping your rigid stance.
One of the details is that you will not let your heals touch the ground. The members that are in the circles will make sounds and raise the pitch of the sound depending on the height at with the people in the middle raise. The women especially the wives and girlfriends of the worries will position and dress in intricate wear to also get involves in the celebrations.
It’s the mother to the warriors that will do the singing and pay tribute to their sons for their courageous acts. The Masai are a boarder community and they live both in Northern Tanzania and southern Kenya.
The Masai have a unique way they adapt to living in the dessert area yet they are cattle keepers. They also do some farming. They are very hospitable people and thy well come very many people into the community. One of the unique things to look out for is this dance. They have many other aspects of their lives that are really interesting like their attire and the way they eat cattle blood and the process of harvesting it without necessarily killing the cows. The Dance is part of the bigger Eunoto festival that lasts about 10 days.
This is a 10 day festival of young men who perform all the rites to becoming men and Masai warrior. Eunoto is just one of many Masai ceremonies, performed for different occasions, especially to denote someone’s passage from one life stage to another.
The Bomas
The Bomas are the traditional homes of the Masai people. The women are the ones who are building these houses. Sticks, dirt, and grass are used to roof the homes. A homestead can accommodate multiple bomas for a family, each with a designated purpose. For instance, they may have a kitchen and a separate food store, one for the kids, and another for the parents. In addition, the women are in charge of cooking, gathering firewood, and getting water. Children are fed a combination of cow’s milk, blood, and urine to help them grow strong.
The production of exquisite jewelry by Masai women has become a business in recent years. The Masai win beaded jewelry for various occasions, and different age groups have unique styles and hues of jewelry. The hairstyles of Masai men are extremely distinctive and vary according to their life stage.
You can go to the Masai Villages in Ngorongoro and learn about their way of life. You can schedule a two-day stay here, during which time you will learn about the daily activities of the masai, assist with milking and caring for cattle, prepare meals, and spend the night in a Masai boma. The Masai people are strong believers in spiritual healing, and they have many different kinds of healing. You may watch some of their herbal preparation techniques in action and even attempt some of them.
Where is possible to visit a Masai village in Ngorongoro Conservation Area
There are about four areas that you can have the Masai experience in the Ngorongoro conservation area:
- Kiloki Senyati Cultural Boma. It’s found about 7 kilometers as you head to the Serengeti national park. This is when you take the south east side of the Olduvai Gorge Information Centre.
- Loonguku Cultural Boma. Turn off 10 kilometers from the trail that heads to the Olduvai Gorge on the main road that heads to Serengeti National park.
- Irkeepusi Cultural Boma. This is about 2 kilometers north east of the Lemale gate on the trail that lead to the Empakai Crater.
- Seneto Cultural Boma. This located on the western side of the Seneto gate in the Depression of Malanja.
Visit Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania with these recommended Tanzania tour operators or contact us below to book your safari directly through this website.
