At Butiama we play bao, the board game

Not just the residents, even the visitors play bao. Bao is a popular board game that is widely played in countries of East and Central Africa, including Tanzania.

Susan, left, plays bao against Alisha, partly seen on the right, as Caroline watches. The game has a variation of rules. During their recent stay in Butiama, the Canadian visitors, learnt to play bao under the Zanaki rules of the Zanaki ethnic group.

For more information on bao under Swahili rules, visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bao_%28mancala_game%29