Tikwa Moreto and the Maasai Cattle Market

Although today was our first free day, we woke early to meet up with Kishumu, our Maasai translator, for a trip to the Maasai cattle market. Tanzania has a large Maasai population and every Saturday they gather to sell their cows, sheep and goats. The men will drive to market the animals they want to sell, some coming from as far as 20 kilometers away. There are stalls for vendors of various goods and many twig shelters where one can sit in shade and visit with friends over a soda or a meal. This is a day of much community and fellowship for Maasai.

Our white faces made us stand out today and, thanks to Kishumu’s translation, we were able to chat and make friends with many young Maasai men. We all asked questions of each other and our answers were met with much laughter by our Maasai friends. One group in particular became very interested in Doug, especially when he produced his IPhone. One handsome young man, Elia, quickly took possession of the phone and was taking pictures of himself and his friends. When we reversed the camera to forward facing and then showed him how to zoom, he was tickled and immediately began testing all of the new functions. He asked Doug for a price for the IPhone and when we said “2 cows!” he laughed but then countered with “1 cow!” That is about $400-$500, not a bad price for an old phone.

Meanwhile, we were surrounded by small groups of Brahman cattle being herded with encouragement from the long slender sticks wielded by the Maasai. Occasionally a cow or bull would break free and several agile young men would chase him down and bring it back under control. A bit of excitement, for sure!

Bishop Mameo, who is also Maasai, met us at the cattle market and welcomed us into one of the twig shelters. He then introduced us to his uncle, an elderly man in tribal robes named Tikwa Moreto, and explained that Moreto is the chief of all Maasai in Tanzania. As we were sitting with the Chief and the Bishop, learning about Maasai leadership, one Maasai man after another strolled through our circle to greet the Chief and the Bishop, then after “salama” and shaking hands with us all, proceeded on their way without another word.

Maasai highly prize roasted meat and Bishop arranged for a haunch of freshly roasted beef to be brought to our small group, which by now included half a dozen Maasai men. The newly butchered animal is cut into manageable parts and stretched open with horizontal wooden sticks. A vertical stick is then threaded through the meat and it is roasted over a hot charcoal fire. This whole skewer was brought to us and laid on top of a bed of freshly cut leaves. One of the Maasai men used his 18” razor sharp machete to easily slice bite sized chunks off and we passed them from hand to hand, popping the fragrant meat into our mouths.

After our meal, we browsed through the vendors and Kishumu helped us get good prices for our purchases. Everywhere we went we were welcomed, greeted and made to feel at home.

It was mid-afternoon before we began the hour ride back to the hospital, where we stopped for Doug to make rounds. Our surgery patients from yesterday are doing well and Ben is resting comfortably.