A couple between Africa and Europe | DW Documentary

A couple between Africa and Europe | DW Documentary

the joy of a wedding in Tanzania there was this beautiful woman and everyday life in [Applause] Germany Christian kisel is a doctor at a German University Clinic his wife Irene comes from Tanzania the couple live together in MarBorg and have two daughters Christian dreams of moving the whole family to Tanzania where he wants to work as a Doctor Irene though is less than enthusiastic been I like being in Tanzania but I don’t necessarily want to be there longer term I would never leave my children here and your wife let me think about it take the kids and leave you here no I’m being silly it’s slowly clear there could be an opportunity for me to go there for a few years as long as it works for the family [Music] byebye Irene and Christian met in 2010 when he was in kilamanjaro for a medical research project Irene’s home was right on the mountain one early morning I passed by a building site in Irene’s Hometown there among all the male construction workers was a young woman carrying a heavy Steel Beam on her head I thought wow that’s impressive I Som found it endearing I was exhausted I thought why is he staring at me I didn’t know what he wanted with me then when I came down and saw him up close it was like love at sight then afterwards came a struggle everyone wanted to break us up they said to my mother your daughter is going to leave with this man and be sold you know how it goes when girls go to Europe they’re no longer women they’re just sold like a prostitute after that whenever I met with Christian I got a couple of slaps from my mother you must never meet this man it was so heartbreaking but despite resistance from the traditional village community Irene chose Christian she moved with him to Germany where they got married in a German registry office now Irene is certain her children should attend school in Germany Christian dreams of living and working in East Africa at the end of 2023 they were once again on their way to Tanzania for a family visit this time Christian has a traditional ritual to contend with although in Germany they’re already officially married he now has to present himself as a husband publicly before the entire village now we’re going to kibosho Irene’s Hometown where she was born and raised it’s about 1,400 M up [Music] it’s very rural with a significantly lower income and education level when I go to kibosho it’s me going to the mother-in-law’s place kibo is definitely not a homecoming I would say but Tanzania feels like a second home these days right on the slopes of kilamanjaro the highest mountain in Africa at almost 6,000 M lies Irene’s former Hometown this time the kryal family is in Tanzania for 6 weeks most of that time they stay in Irene’s mother’s house Christian is passionate about the project he’s working on a partnership between the university Clinics of MarBorg and Moshi a town at the foot of kilamanjaro for some time now they’ve been organizing a student exchange on which work is set to intensify Irene’s mother prosp is not wealthy but she manages well and is largely self-sufficient she harvests her own [Music] plantains I was born in this house in [Music] 1994 this here is a new building as a child there was a mud house here we had two rooms that the whole family slept in one room for my mother my brother my sister and me all in one bed the four of us my grandmother was in the other room if I hadn’t spent the time in Europe I think it would be normal for me now that I’ve experienced German culture though when I come back I can’t imagine living here Christian thinks living in Tanzania could be a great adventure for his children this here is the vanilla here with these leaves he wants to offer them experiences they could never have in Europe and this one goes right up to the top can you see it with the help of a photovoltaic panel on the roof and an old car battery they have electricity for a single LED lamp in the evenings chy doesn’t see this as the future home for the family though he’d continue to receive his German doctor’s salary affording them a comfortable life in the city he wants to convince Irene of the plan I noticed that she has difficulty enjoying the benefits or even understanding what it would be like to have an upper middle class lifestyle in Tania Tania Irene doesn’t want to be viewed as the rich lady from Europe in her old home where the situation for others is so difficult poverty among the messai for instance the couple visits a traditional Village or Bulma The Village Elder asks the German doctor for help chrisan examines a severe injury that still hasn’t healed months after a motorcycle accident Irene translates her husband’s advice the leg needs to be examined with a CT scan here in the step the doctor is unable to help further the only CT scanner available is at the University clinic in Moshi chion’s diagnosis is well [Applause] received she wants the second husband but then you got it some 50 km from kilamanjaro in in the messai step there have been years of catastrophic droughts three consecutive rainy Seasons didn’t arrive the effects of climate change are undeniable high up on Irene’s mother’s Mountain Village Farm they still benefit from kilamanjaro snow they have water here but the glacier is melting and will soon be gone they’ve been cooking for 3 Days several women from the village are helping a white man an umut presenting himself as the husband of a local woman in the celebration is quite an event it’s never happened here before when she came with ano I was shocked at first but then I was pleased was it not a problem for you no only when she went to Germany I was very afraid she would never come back to Tanzania now at least Irene is back for a few weeks there aren’t many people here who know I’m married they think I only have a boyfriend and of course the children for me this is an exciting moment to make it clear that he’s not just my boyfriend but my husband Irene’s mother has sent her off on a break she doesn’t have to help with the cooking and can go to the hairdresser for us in Tanzania looking good is very important it’s part of our culture for example when you’re getting married the person getting married is expected to look beautiful the celebration is like a second wedding around noon dozens of pots are carried from the mother’s yard to the only nearby Lodge where the party will be held in the evening Irene’s mother is pleased that her son-in-law now speaks a bit of SW [Music] for the big event Christian has asked a friend for help he’s known him for years at the local Clinic he understands German and can translate my name is Christian my name is Christian I come from marug Germany Marg exactly 10 years ago I came to kibosho for the first time and a training center for the Sisters was being built and there was this beautiful [Applause] woman and I especially want to thank m well because she eventually came to trust me fortunately it seems everyone else has too Christian is accepted into the family and the village community he even gets a new name Mr s which means strong Branch while the women celebrate Irene’s official wifehood chrisan is able to thank all the guests personally [Applause] the official wedding in Germany was a few years ago but today they’re receiving a traditional African wedding gift two huge beautifully handembroidered blankets specifically bed spreads the message now they can truly share a marital bed one question remains open though where the mood at the party is great there’s a grand Feast between Irene and Christian though things are still unresolved will the future family home be in Germany or Tanzania the next day they’re set to leave kilamanjaro again Irene views it as returning home to MarBorg while Christian hasn’t given up hope that they might move to Tanzania in [Music] 2025 I trust us as a couple and as a family that will be on a journey of Discovery and that in the end we’ll find a compromise that everyone can live with in happiness and contentment [Music]

Irene and Christian love each other and have been married for many years. To receive the blessing of Irene’s family, they travel to Tanzania.

When Irene Thadei Leony announced that she had fallen in love with a German, her Tanzanian family was shocked. Her friends were also convinced that the German had ulterior motives. Despite their resistance, Christian Kreisel – an emergency doctor from Marburg – asked Irene for her hand. Married in a civil ceremony in Germany, they also went through a traditional ritual in Irene’s home country to receive the family’s blessing. Today, the couple live with their two daughters in Marburg, Germany. Christian dreams of moving to Tanzania where he wants to work there as a doctor – but Irene’s unenthusiastic. What’s life between the two worlds like for the family? A report by Udo Kilimann and Jule Sommer.

00:00 Introduction
01:19 Looking back: The first meeting
03:02 Off to Tanzania!
04:00 Old home, Kibosho
06:34 Visiting the Maasai
07:59 The party begins
11:12 The gift

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