Mutana! (Hello! In Hadzabe). We have spent the last few days (13th-16th) camping with the Hadzabe. The Hadzabe are traditionally hunter-gatherers and we gained firsthand experience of this lifestyle. We went out hunting with the men early in the morning looking for several different types of game species including dik-dik, zebra, and rock hyrax. We also watched the Hadza men obtain a staple of their diet, honey with larvae and pollen to bring back to the bush camp. Honey is not only food, the Hadzabe can use it as currency. They use smoke to sedate the bees while they stick their bare hands into the hive. The following day we took a hike up to a Hadzabe bush camp and got the chance to get our hands dirty, helping the women dig for tubers and roast them on the fire. We spent our afternoons learning how to make Hadzabe jewelry with the women and arrows with the men. The Hadzabe people use all parts of the animals they hunt. They use the tendons of animals to make their detailed jewelry, tie feathers to their hunting arrows, and to make the string on their bows. Our campsites included amazing rock formations that we climbed for daily discussions. We practiced reflection photos in the puddles atop these rocks. We spent our nights learning and engaging ourselves in traditional Hadzabe song and dance, as well as teaching them how to do the cotton-eye-joe and the electric slide.
Natalie Fioretti (left), Hadza male (middle), and Miranda Reinson (right) observe the land from a rock during a hunt to spot game from afar in the Yaeda Valley. Photo by: Bailey Flanagan.
UD students watch as the Hadza make a fire in preparation to collect honey from a beehive. Photo by: Emelia Ruyle.
The Hadza retrieved honey with larve and pollen from a stingless beehive in a Comifera tree. UD students then tasted the treat. Photo by: Bailey Flanagan.
Hadza women dig tubers for food in the Yaeda Valley and then cook them over a fire for UD students to taste. Photo by: Emelia Ruyle.
Hadza male hunter helps UD student Rebecca Guzzo shoot at a target from a handmade Hadzabe hunting bow and arrow. Photo by: Emelia Ruyle.
