Miss Lindi 2009

The Miss Lindi 2009 Beauty Pageant was held last night at the Oceanic Hotel. Hundreds of people turned out to see 10 girls compete for the right to become 'Miss Lindi 2009'. The pageant consisted of a short dance intro by all of the girls, followed by rounds of swim wear, an evening gown display, talent show, and final round question to be answered by the finalists. After all of the rounds were finished contestant number 4 (above) won. She seemed to be the favorite from the start and had the most number of fans cheering for her in the crowd.

The event was surprisingly well organized and was held at the nicest venue in Lindi, The Hotel Oceanic. Sponsored by Vodacom, one of the largest telecom companies in Tanzania, there were a few short speaches made by managers of the company as well as members of Lindi District preceding the comencement of the event.

Once the opening speaches and introductions were over, the 10 girls came out and danced for a little while and then went back stage to prepare for round number 1 - swimwear (my personal favorite:).

The next round, evening wear was also enjoyable. The third round, talent, was a much shorter round than the rest because only four or five girls decided to put on a show of talent which consisted of either singing or dancing.

The contestants were narrowed down to the top five and each of the finalists was asked the same question by the judges, "What would you do to help development in the district of Lindi if you are selected to become Miss Lindi 2009?" The winner had a well organized answer consisting of addressing different sectors - education, health and as well, hoping for support from the Tanzanian government. Her answer was given in Kiswahili so my translation may be slightly off!

It was a good night. I sat in the front row of the "will call" general seating directly behind the VIP area so I had a clear shot at the stage. Entrance fee was $5 for general admission, $20 for VIP, which included a dinner buffet. On my salary here, $5 is alot! So I opted for general seating!

That's all I have for you for now. Until next time......