Hadzabe hunter/gatherers

This is a Hadzabe man starting a fire using the "drill method." He produced a bit of hot char by spinning a stick and then put it in the dry grass.  Flames will erupt in another second or so.  They can start a fire in a minute or two.  The Hadzabe are hunter/gatherers and live just like they did a thousand years ago.  Well, with 2 exceptions. They use steel arrowheads that they get from a neighboring tribe that have learned blacksmithing and now they wear clothes.

We tried the drill method too.  A whole series of us were unable to start a fire in  1/2 hour. The Hadzabe were full of good advice, but it was all in the Hadzabe language so we were clueless. The Hadzabe say that they don't know famine like the tribes that are cattle herders or farmers when the rains don't come.  The Hadzabe will eat any animal from impala to locusts. (When I ate locusts, I found that they are actually good.)  They also know of a large variety of plants to eat - leaves, fruit, roots or tubers so they can always find food. Studies of hunter/gatherer lifestyle compared to "modern" lifestyles show that hunter/gatherers actually spend fewer hours per day on obtaining food. Limited needs and enormous resources. Notice the sandal on the right that is made of an old tire.  The Maasai make the same kind of sandals.

Don