Loulou Afrika

09/15/2026

What does Arusha taste like?

Ugali beside rich stew. Chapati pulled apart by hand. Pilau carrying layers of spice. Kachumbari cutting through the heaviness. Mandazi with chai. Corn roasting by the roadside.

None of these foods belongs only to Arusha. You’ll find them across Tanzania and East Africa, shaped differently by region, household and occasion. But these are some of the everyday flavours I associate with life in and around Arusha.

Food tells stories of land, trade, migration, family and memory. Sometimes the deepest culture lives in the meals people eat without ceremony.

The Arusha Edition. What would be on your plate?

09/14/2026

Reggae has always been more than music. It is a lifeline, a map, and an unbroken cultural chain stretching across the Atlantic.
When systemic oppression tried to strip our ancestors of their language and instruments, they coded the rhythm directly into their bodies. Centuries later, those same West African percussive traditions became the heavy basslines and “one-drop” beats that reconnected the diaspora to its roots.
From the streets of Kingston to the liberation movements in Zimbabwe and South Africa, reggae became the soundtrack for our survival. It didn’t just move our feet—it carried our grief, fueled our resistance, and brought us back home to Zion.
We honor the artists and ancestors who engineered this sound to help us survive and remember who we are. 🎧✊🏾
🎵 What reggae song connects you deepest to your roots or carries you through a hard season?

Drop it in the comments below. Let’s build a global diaspora playlist together.
👇✨

09/11/2026

Today is Enkutatash—Ethiopian New Year—and Ethiopia welcomes 2019. 🇪🇹

The Gregorian calendar is so dominant that most of us rarely think of it as one system among many. Its global reach grew through European expansion, administration, commerce and, eventually, international standardization.

But standardized does not mean universal.

The Ethiopian calendar follows its own ancient calculation of time: 13 months, a September New Year, and a rhythm connected to its history, faith and seasons.

Calendars don’t simply count days. They carry the worldview of the people who created them.

Melkam Addis Amet.

09/09/2026

09/07/2026

I’ve been thinking about this one for a while.

Because consumption isn’t always obvious.

It doesn’t stop being consumption because our intentions are good. Or because we feel connected. Or because we call somewhere “home.”

We can genuinely love a place and still expect it to provide us with an experience — beauty, belonging, culture, spirituality, healing, even identity.

And I don’t think the answer is to feel guilty about travelling, enjoying ourselves or being transformed by a place.

Maybe it’s simply to ask more of ourselves once we get there.

Are we curious beyond what’s being presented to us? Do the relationships continue when there’s nothing being offered? Do we participate? Do we contribute? Can we accept the place when it disappoints the version we imagined?

I’m still thinking about these questions myself.

What do you think?

08/28/2026

There’s something mind-bending about stepping into the world of M.C. Escher.

Artistry mixed with mathematics, physics, perception and something almost spiritual — work that makes you question what you’re actually seeing.

The more you look, the more there is to see. And somehow, the more impossible it becomes.

Absolutely fascinating.

08/22/2026

Since the beginning of time, music and dance have brought people together—to communicate, celebrate, work, remember and tell stories.

Across Africa, music is woven into everyday life. It marks births, marriages, rites of passage and important ceremonies. There are songs for harvesting and working, songs of praise and criticism, and songs that carry history from one generation to the next.

Music, dance and movement are inseparable. Hands clap, feet stamp, bodies become percussion, and traditional instruments create rhythms unique to each region and community.

08/18/2026

Missing my goofy fur baby, Niki. 🤎🐾

The sweetest heart and the friendliest little soul — always making new friends wherever she goes. 😂

Just look at that face. ❤️

08/16/2026

I’ve wanted to play piano for as long as I can remember. As a little girl, I used to practice on my tiny organ, but somehow I never got around to actually learning.

So… I bought myself a piano. 🎹

A little reminder that it’s never too late to start something you’ve always wanted to do.

No more “one day.” I’m starting now. ❤️