The Dhow Building Logbook
 
Introduction

At the end of 2004, in Jinja, Uganda, North side of Lake Victoria, I had decided to study the feasibility of using a big traditional dhow as my house boat to roam the lake. In search for suitable ship yards around the lake I ended up in Mwanza, Tanzania, at the South side of the lake. Talking to traditional African ship builders, it became clear that even total disaster would be affordable, so I plunged in a contract with one of them. My idea was just to let them start with my requirement of 18 m length and 2 meter interior main cabin height - to save my back. They started. Of course, no drawings, no tape measures. Just buying an fitting wood. They thought it was going to take them three months or so. I had a complete design in my computer, but my plan was to use it as a "shadow plan", and only intensify my interference when I would see the need. And the needs came. Not mainly, as I expected, customization needs. It was far worse: they were heading for a completely unseaworthy matchbox, while the work done - if any, usually none - could by far not explain the speed of disappearance of my money advances.
After more than a year, in which I had to learn the skills of an army commander, slave-driver, imbecile supervisor, detective and ship building expert, and with a lot of luck too, the dhow was launched to be finished floating in Bwiru Bay, Mwanza. But then, seeing a handsome, probably expensive, dhow, probably ready in a few weeks, the Mwanza Immigration Office, which had left us undisturbed for much more than a year, started to take urgent interest. They invented the claim that a foreign customer of a Tanzanian ship yard could not attend the building of his dhow with a visitor's visa, and came up with different visa obstacles, to be removed for money. I decided not to give in to corruption. Mwanza Immigration was not amused. They had me arrested. At midnight, February 21, 2006, an armed six personnel Mwanza Police squad lifted me from my bed and put me in jail. After seeing I clearly remained unwilling to pay, Police allowed Immigration officers to seize my passport and stamp in it a ban from Tanzania. No doubt, they had some hope for the dhow with all my personal effects that I would have to leave behind. But, again with great luck, I succeeded to get the dhow through the thoroughly corrupt Tanzanian customs clearing system. In the meantime it was wildly looted by several parties, all formerly involved in the building, most notably the main contractor himself, later spotted with much of my property... I managed to have the dhow, with all my personal effects sail out, with uncaulked deck - so it was leaking like a sieve - under a Tanzanian captain, to the West shore Ugandan border town Kassensero, where I would board to sail the dhow to Jinja. Just before the border, the dhow was kidnapped for a ransom of TSh 1 000 000/=  by Tanzanian Police. After two days of - purely psychological - warfare they got wet feet and released unconditionally. In March 29, 2006, the dhow, with its cargo soaking wet, arrived in Jinja. In the two months that followed, it was finished to become the house boat it was intended to be (for the present state click Our Dhow Now).
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