21st Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest People
Traditional Massai Warrior in Arusha

As tourists flock to Arusha and Moshi to go on safari and hike Kilimanjaro, the Maasai, a formerly nomadic warrior tribe, have also shifted toward the cities. As their cattle have become depleted by disease and reduced grazing areas, and they were displaced from the Serengeti National Park, they have gravitated toward the urban opportunities near the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and begun cultivating maize for their sustenance. This man, with his heavy ear jewelry and bright red shúkà has maintained the traditional Maasai ways and he was teaching his grandson the herding of cattle, though the beasts were skeletal, as they trekked along the road between the two cities.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 10.2023
Date Uploaded: 11.2023
Photo Location: Arusha, Tanzania
Camera: iPhone 15 Pro
Copyright: © Constance Spencer