Anne Stolmar visits Butiama

Anne Stolmar from Germany describes her occupation as a photographer and an artist and explains she has traveled to Tanzania to interview individuals about their most important life goals.

She recently visited Butiama and shared some of her impressions about Butiama. In her own words:

"I am interested in what Mwalimu Julius Nyerere said in his vision...what he thinks about life and what is important. When I first read in a book about his vision that Tanzanians should be able to give help not only to their tribe, to their family, to the country, to the continent, but also to the whole world I liked very much his vision because I am an idealistic person.

I have my ideas and I think it is important to stand up for them in life, to do something about them. So I was impressed with the ideas and whether these ideas could or could not be realized in society.

Because I think now in our times we are sometimes running out of a vision. We had some ideas in the past but they could not be reached so now they are just like left behind. So I came because of the words of your father to Butiama because then I was preparing my project to come to Tanzania and I met Maurice and Benjamin and knew about their movie , I got in touch with them and asked whether I could interview some of the people they interviewed for their [film] project and I thought it would be interesting to interview the son of Julius Nyerere.

And then I got in touch with you and you suggested I come to Butiama and I thought it was a good idea because for my project I decide to travel to different parts of the country, although sometimes it is a bit hard for me because I don't know the environment and it is new.

It's the second time I have been to Tanzania. I think Butiama is a nice and peaceful place just to walk around and enjoy the landscape because its also feels safe for a foreigner to come here because people have appreciation for Mwalimu Julius Nyerere. So if I come here as a foreigner they don't take me so much as a stranger because they know I am coming here for Julius Nyerere, for the memory. They know that Julius Nyerere had a lot of contact with foreigners so I feel safe to come here, and be closer to the people.

When I look here around the landscape I really would enjoy to stay longer, to walk around, to discover."