TAZARA train

 Meals could also be ordered and brought to the cabin, and they were quite affordable at about $2 for a full-course dinner.

Dinner of beef stew with nshima on TAZARA train

Dinner of beef stew with nshima and watermelon on the first night aboard the Tazara train. Ben Mack / Insider

For dinner, the choices were chicken, a beef stew, or fish, which cost about $0.40 extra. Breakfast consisted of eggs, four slices of bread with a small scraping of butter, coffee or tea, and also cold spaghetti. It also cost just $2.

Ben Mack (to be continued) 

TAZARA train

The lounge's turquoise couches felt plastic-y and weren't as soft as my bed. But they were softer than many third-class seats — which was probably why most people I met there said they came from third class.

The restaurant was also often busy.

While some people were ordering food, a lot of people in the restaurant were just sitting and talking. Even though there were fans on the ceilings, I never saw them working.

TAZARA train

The bar and snack stand on the Tazara train. Besides bottled water, there were also bananas for $0.40 each — considered expensive for the region. But a bag of popcorn was just $0.65. It was all cash-only. 

 Passengers relaxing in the lounge on the Tazara train next to the restaurant and bar/snack stand. 

Ben Mack (to be continued) 

TAZARA train - A Hole In The Floor

 The electricity also often stopped working, sometimes for hours at a time. I had to be conservative when I turned my phone on to take pictures, and I was glad I brought several books for entertainment.

The toilets, however, were not metal.

The first-class toilet was a squat toilet, which is essentially a hole in the floor. Using it while the train moved was interesting.

The train also had a bar/snack stand, where you could buy things like bottled water for about $0.40.

Ben Mack (to be continued)