The past couple days have been relatively uneventful. Yesterday, we went on a village visit where we dropped all of the books and school supplies off at their school. We were able to see the inside of the school, which was essentially some benches inside of a large brick skeleton of a building with most of the walls open for "windows". While without prior knowledge it would not have seemed like much, we now realize how nice it is after seeing some of the other villages' schools. They are hoping to get the construction of a second classroom underway soon.
The church service was the same as the past ones have been, so we are starting to recognize and memorize some of the hymns in Swahili which is kind of cool. Our favorite game is to try and catch Luka falling asleep at the altar and take a picture of him before he wakes up and gives us the evil eye. Usually, we win.
After the church service, several large watermelons were auctioned off. Quite a few of us bought them. We kept a few to eat ourselves and gave the rest away to people in the village. While Pastor Hafermann and Robert were checking out the future site of the well, which will hopefully break ground soon, we sat in the cars and read with the doors open. Children soon swarmed our cars and were climbing all over us. We soon felt like the animals we saw on safari. It was an invasion wa watoto (of children). Mara honked the horn and sent most of the kids flying.
Today, we climbed the mountain. We went in three different groups. One group left at 7:30 and just returned at about 7:30. They climbed all the way to the summit of Mt. Uluguru (approximately 15,000 ft). The other two groups climbed to different heights along the way to Morningside, a peak which isn't quite as high. The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing and packing. Tomorrow we have another village visit, and it is predicted to be another long day... we are quite used to these. One difference is that Luka's wife and daughter get to come tomorrow, which will be nice. So tomorrow is our last village visit and Monday morning, we leave for Zanzibar!
There is a possibility I will not get online tomorrow at all if we return from the village late. If we don't have internet in Zanzibar, this will be my last post. Asante na kwaheri!
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Service Work
We learned many new skills today. First and foremost, we now all know how to mix and lay cement. In a Tanzanian neighborhood, you can't bring the Redi-Mix truck in. We really got our hands dirty mixing everything up and laying it down. Our group returned to the spot we were the first day - the home of the couple who has HIV. The hole we had previously dug for the latrine was filled up and a new hole had been dug beside it. We figured it was about 10 feet deep. We laid the foundation of the septic tank, as well as the foundation of the outhouse. The second group was back at Luka's house, laying the foundation for the cattle barn. Monica and Shannon worked in the kitchen with Luka's wife, and we expect that they will now be fully able to cook for us a traditional African meal.
After lunch, we returned to the seminary, where we started to assemble the soccer nets for the students. Half of the battle was untangling the rope, but soon everyone was lined up along the net tying knots. Thankfully Christina's crafting skills came in handy and she was able to teach us how. We came inside for a small dinner, and afterwards Pastor Hafermann talked to us about those with AIDS in the church. He shared with us his personal accounts of close friends and evangelists he has known that have died due to complications of the virus. He then asked us how many of our friends, family members, and acquaintances have HIV/AIDS. No one said anything. While we are barely scraping the surface of this crisis in our three weeks here, it is certainly helping me realize how much I have that I have taken for granted up until now. Our visit here has gone quickly, but it has been rich with culture, hospitality, and eye-opening encounters that we're so lucky to have the opportunity to experience. Tomorrow we will be visiting another village and hopefully the orphanage one last time before we leave for Zanzibar in 3 days.
After lunch, we returned to the seminary, where we started to assemble the soccer nets for the students. Half of the battle was untangling the rope, but soon everyone was lined up along the net tying knots. Thankfully Christina's crafting skills came in handy and she was able to teach us how. We came inside for a small dinner, and afterwards Pastor Hafermann talked to us about those with AIDS in the church. He shared with us his personal accounts of close friends and evangelists he has known that have died due to complications of the virus. He then asked us how many of our friends, family members, and acquaintances have HIV/AIDS. No one said anything. While we are barely scraping the surface of this crisis in our three weeks here, it is certainly helping me realize how much I have that I have taken for granted up until now. Our visit here has gone quickly, but it has been rich with culture, hospitality, and eye-opening encounters that we're so lucky to have the opportunity to experience. Tomorrow we will be visiting another village and hopefully the orphanage one last time before we leave for Zanzibar in 3 days.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Maasailand, off-roading, and Faraja
It's been a while since I have last written... I'd love to get into detail but internet time here is limited since we haven't had it for so long and everyone wants to get on, so I'll give you the abridged version.
Saturday, May 10th - Manyara - After a crazy 3-4 hour car ride through at least 2 feet of water, mud, and swamp, we made it! We stopped at Twa Twa Twa on the way there and another village, both of who discouraged us from going on further to Manyara due to the conditions of the roads... or lack thereof. As soon as we got there, people poured out of the kindergarten (made of branches and a thatched roof) and danced and sang all around us. They were so amazed we actually came. The situation at Manyara was very sad. The local government had raided the villages and taken their cattle, so the men were gone retrieving their hidden cattle after the central government banned these from happening further. Even though all of this had happened and they had lost so much, they still insisted we had chai and bread. They even provided seconds for those who wanted it. The church service was held outside with 24 baptisms - 17 chldren and 7 adults. After the service, the textbooks that were purchased and the coloring books were presented. The teacher had the children give us each one of their Maasai beaded necklaces in return. On our way out of town, we saw the Maasai men returning with their cattle. We were, literally and figuratively, in church until the cows came home. Ba dun!
5/11 -> Faraja - Today we went to Faraja and learned about the many services they provide, including home-based care, economic empowerment, legal aid, counselling, and traditional medicine. We learned quite a bit, and then went to lunch. We got back in time for the orphanage and when we returned, Brianne Ziegler, a Wartburg grad in the Peace Corps, was there to meet with us. She focuses on international development and sustainability and is currently in the Master's International program at Michigan State. She had some really valuable information and interesting perspectives she was able to share with the group.
5/12 --> Pigs, Faraja, and Basketball - Most of the group went back to Faraja to observe home-based care, while a few girls shadowed a Dr. in town, a few girls went to classrooms, and I was able to shadow the veterinarian. It was a really great experience and he was interesting to talk to. He is coming back Saturday and I will be able to shadow him then too. The girls that went to Faraja had a really great experience... over all, it seemed that everyone had a good day. Then we played the girls at the seminary in basketball. We ended up winning40-36 and had a great time.
5/13 --> Sanga Sanga - Today was an all-day excursion to Sanga Sanga. We went through the rainforest (BUMPY) and almost 4 hours later we were there. We had chai, bread, and goat meat in a little alcove under the trees. In someone's words, it was very hundred-acre-woods-esque. The church service was amazing. It was a choir festival so including our little group, there were 6 choirs there. There were fewer baptisms today but the service took a while because of all the singing. The auction was very successful too. Our group in all ended up buying 2 goats, several drinking gourds, and a lot of Maasai jewelry. I think I accidentally got engaged while we were there. We ate dinner and then took off for the long ride home.
The past few days have been very eye-opening and exciting. Today, we are going to Luka's house to lay the foundation for a cattle barn and later playing the teachers from the seminary in volleyball. Kwaheri!
Saturday, May 10th - Manyara - After a crazy 3-4 hour car ride through at least 2 feet of water, mud, and swamp, we made it! We stopped at Twa Twa Twa on the way there and another village, both of who discouraged us from going on further to Manyara due to the conditions of the roads... or lack thereof. As soon as we got there, people poured out of the kindergarten (made of branches and a thatched roof) and danced and sang all around us. They were so amazed we actually came. The situation at Manyara was very sad. The local government had raided the villages and taken their cattle, so the men were gone retrieving their hidden cattle after the central government banned these from happening further. Even though all of this had happened and they had lost so much, they still insisted we had chai and bread. They even provided seconds for those who wanted it. The church service was held outside with 24 baptisms - 17 chldren and 7 adults. After the service, the textbooks that were purchased and the coloring books were presented. The teacher had the children give us each one of their Maasai beaded necklaces in return. On our way out of town, we saw the Maasai men returning with their cattle. We were, literally and figuratively, in church until the cows came home. Ba dun!
5/11 -> Faraja - Today we went to Faraja and learned about the many services they provide, including home-based care, economic empowerment, legal aid, counselling, and traditional medicine. We learned quite a bit, and then went to lunch. We got back in time for the orphanage and when we returned, Brianne Ziegler, a Wartburg grad in the Peace Corps, was there to meet with us. She focuses on international development and sustainability and is currently in the Master's International program at Michigan State. She had some really valuable information and interesting perspectives she was able to share with the group.
5/12 --> Pigs, Faraja, and Basketball - Most of the group went back to Faraja to observe home-based care, while a few girls shadowed a Dr. in town, a few girls went to classrooms, and I was able to shadow the veterinarian. It was a really great experience and he was interesting to talk to. He is coming back Saturday and I will be able to shadow him then too. The girls that went to Faraja had a really great experience... over all, it seemed that everyone had a good day. Then we played the girls at the seminary in basketball. We ended up winning40-36 and had a great time.
5/13 --> Sanga Sanga - Today was an all-day excursion to Sanga Sanga. We went through the rainforest (BUMPY) and almost 4 hours later we were there. We had chai, bread, and goat meat in a little alcove under the trees. In someone's words, it was very hundred-acre-woods-esque. The church service was amazing. It was a choir festival so including our little group, there were 6 choirs there. There were fewer baptisms today but the service took a while because of all the singing. The auction was very successful too. Our group in all ended up buying 2 goats, several drinking gourds, and a lot of Maasai jewelry. I think I accidentally got engaged while we were there. We ate dinner and then took off for the long ride home.
The past few days have been very eye-opening and exciting. Today, we are going to Luka's house to lay the foundation for a cattle barn and later playing the teachers from the seminary in volleyball. Kwaheri!
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Watoto wa Obama
It's been awhile since Emily or I have posted, but we are all still alive and well. Unfortunately, our laptops aren't picking up the internet signal so I'm using the school's computer, which means I can't upload any of my pictures. The internet stopped working after I loaded the picture of the snail... so I haven't been able to add anything else. I PROMISE we have seen cooler things than the snail.
Our trip to Mikumi National Park was awesome. We had our last morning of language school before we left, where we mainly talked about culture and were able to ask questions. Our Mzungu (foreigner) award of the day was granted to Shannon, who asked Chuma if there was a Swahili word for space alien. This launched us into a 20 minute discussion about witchcraft and voodoo. Our wazungu award was implemented the first couple days and generally the person who does the most ridiculous, touristy, or just plain stupid thing wins it. We left after lunch and made it to Mikumi, checked in, and went out for a few hours. We saw a lion within 5 feet of our bus, as well as elephants, giraffes, and several other animals. That night, we had a nice dinner and a drink at the lodge. We also found a snake and millipede on Katie's bed that evening. Scoundrels.
The next morning, we left at 6:30 for a few more hours of scouting, and saw some more good stuff. We all got really good pictures, and after a large brunch at the lodge, we did another hour. On our way out, we saw several baboons on the bridge, including a mother holding a baby. My favorites were the baboons. As we rolled into Mikumi the day before, I just finished a book written by a physiologist from Stanford who studies the behavior of baboons and he wrote a memoir about his years of field research in Kenya. It seemed entirely too appropriate. Laura forgot her camera back at the lodge so we had to turn around once we got out of the park... Mzungu award for Thursday.
Friday, we went to a Swahili village. It was much different than the Masaai village we had previously visited. It was such a bumpy ride that in the past, a priest tried to make it out there and got stuck, vowing to never return. Although it was completely offroad, Luka did a great job driving. Mara got out to take a picture of us driving down into a trench and lost her tenge (skirt/wrap) in the process. Everyone got a good laugh out of it. Mzungu award.
The village was great. Although there were a few Masaai there, it was primarily a Swahili village. The name of the village is Mazizi, which translates into "roots" in Kiswahili. We had tea and talked for at least an hour inside a small house, and then we moved into the church. Several of the women of the church were up front singing and dancing and leading the songs, while the children's choir sang for the first part of the service. There were 11 baptisms yesterday, 9 children and 2 adults. Pastor Hafermann gave the same sermon he gave at Lulenge and our group sang throughout. It's amazing how thrilled the congregation seems with our singing, although it's really just us all singing with an acoustic guitar with VERY little practice. They still seem to enjoy it, clapping and calling out during our songs.
After the service, there was a big auction. Almost everything was bought by people in our group, who outbid eachother to get the price up. All the money goes back to the church and the things that are donated are taken up front during offering. For instance, yesterday, chickens whose legs were tied together were weighed down at the alter by giant bunches of bananas, surrounded by tenges, soap, and other various food items, etc. During the auction, a young Masaai girl held my hand, playing with my fingers and pushing on my fingernails watching them turn from white to pink. She was adorable.
After the auction, we made our way back inside the house and we had a delicious lunch of rice, beans, and chicken. Luka and Robert got us home safely from the village last night.
Today, we visited the youth prison and Masaai cattle market, as well as bought books for the schools at the villages. I think the youth prison surprised a lot of us. It was pretty nice and it seems like the guards and staff have good relationships with the prisoners. There was a really nice church there that the prisoners built a few years ago. This trip in 2007 built pillars to extend the church, but they haven't been added to because when the President of Tanzania changed, many of the prisoners were pardoned and there was no need to make the church any larger. We took lots of soap and a soccer ball to the prison today. They were very happy... in the dorms, we saw the mosquito nets that the group had brought to the prison in the past hanging above the beds and being put to good use.
After the youth prison, we headed to the cattle market. Walking in between the tall Masaai and many small herds of cows, we made our way to somewhat of a stopping point. Pastor Herb is very popular round these parts and we never made it very far without him getting stopped. We stopped and met a man on a bicycle who we got coconuts from. We drank the milk and by the time we got to eating the flesh from the inside of the banana, we looked around and realized that we were completely surrounded by tall Masaai men. We quickly ditched the remnants of our coconuts and Luka led us to safety before we were engulfed. No, really, it wasn't that bad but we did feel slightly claustrophobic. We found tenge heaven and we all bought tenges to make into wraps, which everyone has been finding quite easy while we've been here. All the fabric is beautiful, unique, and reasonably priced.
Lunchtime! Chips Mayai was delicious. We all drank soda and Kadeghe started cutting the goat into small pieces. We all passed around plates of goat meat and waited for our main dish. The goat was delish. Chips Mayai is basically potato wedges fried with egg, and covered in vegetables... essentially a breakfast skillet and fun finger food! The food was wonderful and SO filling and after lunch, we made our way around a bit more. We were stopped by a few men who called us "Watoto wa Obama", which means children of Obama. People here are extremely fond of our new president, and when we tell them where we are from, their response often has to do with Obama.
The girls also made purchases like sandals made of recycled tire and clubs that the Masaai use to control their cattle. Mara used hers for people. For instance, once she hit me with it and then turned away so I thought Luka did. I was getting ready to turn around and thank Luka for helping me talk to one of the vendors about pricing, and when I did he was standing there smiling: "Hello! How are you?" Then I realized Mara was laughing and holding her club in the air. It was funny... I guess you had to be there. I don't know why anyone let her buy it.
It started to rain, so we made our way in small groups back to the vehicles. Then, we went back to the seminary and a few of us went back into Morogoro to buy books with the money that Chelsea's congregation gave us. We were able to purchase 43 books and 2 large maps. Luka bought some sugar cane at a vendor's and we all shared that before heading back for supper. Tonight, we sorted all of the books out, in addition to the books that Mom donated from Usborne. We have three sets: one for a high school, and two for primary schools at 2 of the villages we'll be attending.
Tomorrow, we'll go to another village where apparently they baptized 73 people last time. Then Monday, we'll go to Faraja (their link is found to the left) and Tuesday the rest of the group will do the same, but I will have the chance to shadow and work with the city's veterinarian all day. I'm SUPER excited. Wednesday, another village visit.. Thursday and Friday, we will work, build, etc. Saturday, we climb the mountain near the seminary. Sunday, another village visit... and Monday and Tuesday are Zanzibar. We laid it all out tonight and realized how quickly the rest of the trip is going to go. Overall, everyone's feeling pretty good and we're all having a great time.
Until later...
Our trip to Mikumi National Park was awesome. We had our last morning of language school before we left, where we mainly talked about culture and were able to ask questions. Our Mzungu (foreigner) award of the day was granted to Shannon, who asked Chuma if there was a Swahili word for space alien. This launched us into a 20 minute discussion about witchcraft and voodoo. Our wazungu award was implemented the first couple days and generally the person who does the most ridiculous, touristy, or just plain stupid thing wins it. We left after lunch and made it to Mikumi, checked in, and went out for a few hours. We saw a lion within 5 feet of our bus, as well as elephants, giraffes, and several other animals. That night, we had a nice dinner and a drink at the lodge. We also found a snake and millipede on Katie's bed that evening. Scoundrels.
The next morning, we left at 6:30 for a few more hours of scouting, and saw some more good stuff. We all got really good pictures, and after a large brunch at the lodge, we did another hour. On our way out, we saw several baboons on the bridge, including a mother holding a baby. My favorites were the baboons. As we rolled into Mikumi the day before, I just finished a book written by a physiologist from Stanford who studies the behavior of baboons and he wrote a memoir about his years of field research in Kenya. It seemed entirely too appropriate. Laura forgot her camera back at the lodge so we had to turn around once we got out of the park... Mzungu award for Thursday.
Friday, we went to a Swahili village. It was much different than the Masaai village we had previously visited. It was such a bumpy ride that in the past, a priest tried to make it out there and got stuck, vowing to never return. Although it was completely offroad, Luka did a great job driving. Mara got out to take a picture of us driving down into a trench and lost her tenge (skirt/wrap) in the process. Everyone got a good laugh out of it. Mzungu award.
The village was great. Although there were a few Masaai there, it was primarily a Swahili village. The name of the village is Mazizi, which translates into "roots" in Kiswahili. We had tea and talked for at least an hour inside a small house, and then we moved into the church. Several of the women of the church were up front singing and dancing and leading the songs, while the children's choir sang for the first part of the service. There were 11 baptisms yesterday, 9 children and 2 adults. Pastor Hafermann gave the same sermon he gave at Lulenge and our group sang throughout. It's amazing how thrilled the congregation seems with our singing, although it's really just us all singing with an acoustic guitar with VERY little practice. They still seem to enjoy it, clapping and calling out during our songs.
After the service, there was a big auction. Almost everything was bought by people in our group, who outbid eachother to get the price up. All the money goes back to the church and the things that are donated are taken up front during offering. For instance, yesterday, chickens whose legs were tied together were weighed down at the alter by giant bunches of bananas, surrounded by tenges, soap, and other various food items, etc. During the auction, a young Masaai girl held my hand, playing with my fingers and pushing on my fingernails watching them turn from white to pink. She was adorable.
After the auction, we made our way back inside the house and we had a delicious lunch of rice, beans, and chicken. Luka and Robert got us home safely from the village last night.
Today, we visited the youth prison and Masaai cattle market, as well as bought books for the schools at the villages. I think the youth prison surprised a lot of us. It was pretty nice and it seems like the guards and staff have good relationships with the prisoners. There was a really nice church there that the prisoners built a few years ago. This trip in 2007 built pillars to extend the church, but they haven't been added to because when the President of Tanzania changed, many of the prisoners were pardoned and there was no need to make the church any larger. We took lots of soap and a soccer ball to the prison today. They were very happy... in the dorms, we saw the mosquito nets that the group had brought to the prison in the past hanging above the beds and being put to good use.
After the youth prison, we headed to the cattle market. Walking in between the tall Masaai and many small herds of cows, we made our way to somewhat of a stopping point. Pastor Herb is very popular round these parts and we never made it very far without him getting stopped. We stopped and met a man on a bicycle who we got coconuts from. We drank the milk and by the time we got to eating the flesh from the inside of the banana, we looked around and realized that we were completely surrounded by tall Masaai men. We quickly ditched the remnants of our coconuts and Luka led us to safety before we were engulfed. No, really, it wasn't that bad but we did feel slightly claustrophobic. We found tenge heaven and we all bought tenges to make into wraps, which everyone has been finding quite easy while we've been here. All the fabric is beautiful, unique, and reasonably priced.
Lunchtime! Chips Mayai was delicious. We all drank soda and Kadeghe started cutting the goat into small pieces. We all passed around plates of goat meat and waited for our main dish. The goat was delish. Chips Mayai is basically potato wedges fried with egg, and covered in vegetables... essentially a breakfast skillet and fun finger food! The food was wonderful and SO filling and after lunch, we made our way around a bit more. We were stopped by a few men who called us "Watoto wa Obama", which means children of Obama. People here are extremely fond of our new president, and when we tell them where we are from, their response often has to do with Obama.
The girls also made purchases like sandals made of recycled tire and clubs that the Masaai use to control their cattle. Mara used hers for people. For instance, once she hit me with it and then turned away so I thought Luka did. I was getting ready to turn around and thank Luka for helping me talk to one of the vendors about pricing, and when I did he was standing there smiling: "Hello! How are you?" Then I realized Mara was laughing and holding her club in the air. It was funny... I guess you had to be there. I don't know why anyone let her buy it.
It started to rain, so we made our way in small groups back to the vehicles. Then, we went back to the seminary and a few of us went back into Morogoro to buy books with the money that Chelsea's congregation gave us. We were able to purchase 43 books and 2 large maps. Luka bought some sugar cane at a vendor's and we all shared that before heading back for supper. Tonight, we sorted all of the books out, in addition to the books that Mom donated from Usborne. We have three sets: one for a high school, and two for primary schools at 2 of the villages we'll be attending.
Tomorrow, we'll go to another village where apparently they baptized 73 people last time. Then Monday, we'll go to Faraja (their link is found to the left) and Tuesday the rest of the group will do the same, but I will have the chance to shadow and work with the city's veterinarian all day. I'm SUPER excited. Wednesday, another village visit.. Thursday and Friday, we will work, build, etc. Saturday, we climb the mountain near the seminary. Sunday, another village visit... and Monday and Tuesday are Zanzibar. We laid it all out tonight and realized how quickly the rest of the trip is going to go. Overall, everyone's feeling pretty good and we're all having a great time.
Until later...
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
The rains down in Africa
It was also our last day of language classes. Chuma, our main teacher, was back today as he was gone yesterday visiting his family at his home village. We were discussing body parts today and someone asked how to say smile. This launched into a conversation about tourist photography, and how we always automatically expect that Africans will smile for a picture, when in all actuality they are very serious in pictures. He explained the confusion that he feels when people say, "Cheese!" and expect a smile. "There is nothing about Tanzanian food to smile about."
It rained on and off all day, so we decided against going to the orphanage... also because no one was available to walk us there and we weren't 100% sure how to get there. Getting lost would have been quite the ordeal . Since we didn't go to the orphanage, we played bubbles outside with the children of a family who is staying here, climbed trees, played guitar, and read outside instead.
Tonight at dinner, meat kabobs were served on bicycle spokes. Pastor Hafermann and Dr. Strickert returned from their village visit and were both sunburnt. I asked them if they wore sunburn and neither of them had. Pastor Hafermann said that he never had before, and when asked why, he replied, "We all need an exit strategy out of here."
Tomorrow, we leave for the game park at 1:00 after lunch. Language classes in the morning. I will write again in a couple days when we are back from Mikumi game park. We're all looking forward to the safari!
Anna
It rained on and off all day, so we decided against going to the orphanage... also because no one was available to walk us there and we weren't 100% sure how to get there. Getting lost would have been quite the ordeal . Since we didn't go to the orphanage, we played bubbles outside with the children of a family who is staying here, climbed trees, played guitar, and read outside instead.
Tonight at dinner, meat kabobs were served on bicycle spokes. Pastor Hafermann and Dr. Strickert returned from their village visit and were both sunburnt. I asked them if they wore sunburn and neither of them had. Pastor Hafermann said that he never had before, and when asked why, he replied, "We all need an exit strategy out of here."
Tomorrow, we leave for the game park at 1:00 after lunch. Language classes in the morning. I will write again in a couple days when we are back from Mikumi game park. We're all looking forward to the safari!
Anna
Monday, May 4, 2009
Harry the snail and birthday cake
This is Harry, the snail I found while walking to the bathroom...
Another day of language class all day... we are starting to get the hang of it, and now we're all sitting around doing our homework together. We're all complaining about the 3-page long handout where we have to conjugate verbs, etc... we act like we've never done homework before and 8 out of 12 of us are science majors.
It was a relatively uneventful day. After class, we went to the orphanage and played with the children. We were only there for about 20 minutes because the children had to eat. It's amazing how patient the children are with our Swahili... Conversation primarily consisted of, "Habari gani? Jina langu ni Anna. Jina lako nani?" And these exchanges went on for the entire time we were there... greeting eachother and asking for names. Don't forget the bubbles and stickers which were absolutely torn into. Today, Kim told us about how nearly impossible it is to go through the adoption process at the orphanage... it's so sad because some of the children have been there for quite some time.
Tomorrow is our last full day of language school. Wednesday we have it in the morning and then we leave for Mikumi National Game Park... safari! So excited. My computer finally works so I'm uploading pictures now!
So I just took a small break from blogging so the four of us (Katie, Shannon, Laura, and I) could go to Hans' birthday party. Hans, our language teacher, turned 23 today so we made him a ridiculous card. We just walked a ways to the place where all of the teachers stay where they had a small get together for his birthday. As soon as we arrived, all of the boys quickly got up and got us chairs before we began the introductions. We and several of the language teachers drank soda and ate cake while they all took pictures. We were surprised how formal the introductions and "agenda" of the party was.
We suggested they put a candle in the cake so Hans could blow one out so one of the boys got a giant candle and dripped wax on the table and stuck the candle on to the table. We had to count around the circle to 23 to see who would feed Hans the cake first. Everyone took turns feeding eachother birthday cake and then Hans blew the candle out. We laughed the entire time... in fact, we are still laughing.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Lulenge
Today, we visited a village for the first time: Lulenge. We all piled into the trucks and an hour and a half later, there we were. We arrived to a large church next to a big shady cashew tree, under which we sat for tea. We sat on benches and some of the members of the village brought us bread and chai tea, which tasted strongly of ginger and was delicious. Then, we all walked down to the well that the village uses at the bottom of the hill. It seemed like quite a hike to us, and then we realized that in order to obtain water, they have to carry heavy buckets of water up the hill to the village. We learned that the man who put the well in cheated the village a bit, as the handle fell off shortly after the well was installed, and they aren't actually sure how deep it is. It cost approximately $15,000 to install a well like this.
Two things that I am learning the importance of thus far that I have taken for granted or not given much attention to before coming: water and patience. After looking at the well, we hiked up to the top of the hill and waited some more before church began. As we entered the church, we could hear the drum and the singing and stomping feet of the children's choir - it was a feeling unlike any I had ever experienced. The service itself was about 3 hours long, and considering the fact that we could not understand anything being said, it went amazingly fast. Our group sang twice - all 4 songs we had practiced. We felt like we looked pretty silly next to the children's choir though, who had choreographed all of their songs with clapping and stomping and dancing. They also all wore the large necklaces with silver chains hanging off of them that shook violently when they moved. One song was choreographed to re-enact the story of Good Samaritan.
Along with all of the song, dance, Pastor Hafermann's sermon, and Luka's speaking, one of the Masaai warriors got up and spoke. Later on, Pastor Hafermann told us that he was sort of requesting acceptance into the church. The Masaai warriors are a sort of prodigal son, and they have all returned now to fulfill a life of Christianity in the church. After all of this, it was time for communion and offering. Communion was extremely similar, if not exactly the same, as we do at my church at home. Offering, however, was quite different. Everyone brought up their money and put it in a small bucket in front, and then two women came up with chickens, one with a rug, and various other things. Then the children sang and danced around the offering in a circle before Pastor Hafermann and Luka placed the offering at the alter to be blessed.
When the service was over, everyone exited the church in a line and each person stopped so that the line kept extending on and everyone was able to shake everyone else's hands. Once everyone was outside, the choir came outside and finished singing and the auction began. Luka auctioned off all of the things that had been donated at the offering, and Lindsey ended up buying a chicken which rode home with us in the back of the truck. We got out all of the bubbles and stickers we had brought, and played with the children and others from the village for a while before lunch. The children LOVED to see their own faces on the camera.
Lunch was a large ordeal. We went through a line where we were able to get rice, spiced rice, veggies, and goat. I recently started eating meat, and weeks before coming here I have been mentally preparing myself to eat goat. I thought I was doing really good until one of the men from the village put goat stomach on my plate. I tried hard, but ended up giving it to Luka who thankfully took it so I wouldn't offend them. Weak moment.
After lunch, the Masaai warriors did their jumping for us. I don't know how after eating so much, but doing so on a full stomach didn't seem to affect them. With the chanting and the children singing in the background, they took turns dancing a bit and jumping. It's amazing how high they can jump. The children with the big necklaces on also took turns dancing facing eachother so as to make the necklaces hit eachother. At the end, one of the mamas from the village took a necklace off a child and put it on Kim, who took her turn at dancing. I think she did quite well!
Afterwards, we came home and had a second smaller dinner. Pastor Hafermann explained to us various things about the day that we had questions about, as well as told us more about their culture and sociology in general... specifically religion. Tomorrow we have a full day of language school and then the orphanage so everyone is going to bed early to try and rest up.
Peace,
Anna
Two things that I am learning the importance of thus far that I have taken for granted or not given much attention to before coming: water and patience. After looking at the well, we hiked up to the top of the hill and waited some more before church began. As we entered the church, we could hear the drum and the singing and stomping feet of the children's choir - it was a feeling unlike any I had ever experienced. The service itself was about 3 hours long, and considering the fact that we could not understand anything being said, it went amazingly fast. Our group sang twice - all 4 songs we had practiced. We felt like we looked pretty silly next to the children's choir though, who had choreographed all of their songs with clapping and stomping and dancing. They also all wore the large necklaces with silver chains hanging off of them that shook violently when they moved. One song was choreographed to re-enact the story of Good Samaritan.
Along with all of the song, dance, Pastor Hafermann's sermon, and Luka's speaking, one of the Masaai warriors got up and spoke. Later on, Pastor Hafermann told us that he was sort of requesting acceptance into the church. The Masaai warriors are a sort of prodigal son, and they have all returned now to fulfill a life of Christianity in the church. After all of this, it was time for communion and offering. Communion was extremely similar, if not exactly the same, as we do at my church at home. Offering, however, was quite different. Everyone brought up their money and put it in a small bucket in front, and then two women came up with chickens, one with a rug, and various other things. Then the children sang and danced around the offering in a circle before Pastor Hafermann and Luka placed the offering at the alter to be blessed.
When the service was over, everyone exited the church in a line and each person stopped so that the line kept extending on and everyone was able to shake everyone else's hands. Once everyone was outside, the choir came outside and finished singing and the auction began. Luka auctioned off all of the things that had been donated at the offering, and Lindsey ended up buying a chicken which rode home with us in the back of the truck. We got out all of the bubbles and stickers we had brought, and played with the children and others from the village for a while before lunch. The children LOVED to see their own faces on the camera.
Lunch was a large ordeal. We went through a line where we were able to get rice, spiced rice, veggies, and goat. I recently started eating meat, and weeks before coming here I have been mentally preparing myself to eat goat. I thought I was doing really good until one of the men from the village put goat stomach on my plate. I tried hard, but ended up giving it to Luka who thankfully took it so I wouldn't offend them. Weak moment.
After lunch, the Masaai warriors did their jumping for us. I don't know how after eating so much, but doing so on a full stomach didn't seem to affect them. With the chanting and the children singing in the background, they took turns dancing a bit and jumping. It's amazing how high they can jump. The children with the big necklaces on also took turns dancing facing eachother so as to make the necklaces hit eachother. At the end, one of the mamas from the village took a necklace off a child and put it on Kim, who took her turn at dancing. I think she did quite well!
Afterwards, we came home and had a second smaller dinner. Pastor Hafermann explained to us various things about the day that we had questions about, as well as told us more about their culture and sociology in general... specifically religion. Tomorrow we have a full day of language school and then the orphanage so everyone is going to bed early to try and rest up.
Peace,
Anna
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Holes
The second day of Swahili class has come and gone. It's amazing how fast we are flying through everything, but we only have 5 days and today was shortened due to our afternoon project. Overall, the learning is going well... we only wish we did the outdoor small groups more since our classroom is filled with tropical plants and the background view is a giant mountain. Perfect.
Hilari (sp?), a local who makes beautiful woodwork, stopped by today around lunchtime and since we had our money exchanged, we were able to make some purchases. He used both the ebony wood and the light wood together to make beautiful sculptures of masks, candle holders, elephants, giraffes, nativity scenes, etc.
This afternoon after lunch, we took trucks (and luckily did not get stuck) to a family's home. This is the couple that was diagnosed HIV positive, yet their children are not. Pastor Hafermann and the others have given them a free house set slightly on the outskirts of town, and our job today was to get started on their outdoor latrine. The previous hole that had been dug was approximately 6 feet deep, yet it was directly outside of their window, so the smell entering the home would not have been a pleasant one. After filling that hole, we started on another one nearby and on the side closest to the house, we started digging trenches for the outhouse. We only got about 4 feet of the new hole dug, but it was still a satisfying feeling to see the difference.
We dug in shifts and the ones who were not digging were able to play with the neighbor children, who loved the bubbles and stickers and coloring books everyone brought. We were also able to watch them play a game very similar to Mancala, but more complex. They used nuts from the trees and had dug little holes in the ground to play the game in, and had a grand old time. I'd like to try and get my laptop working soon so I can upload pictures I have taken onto the blog.
After we returned, everyone showered because we were filthy from dirt flying around all afternoon. We ate dinner and discussed our plan for tomorrow. Tomorrow is the first day we will go to a village. We will leave in the morning after going to the morning church service here at the Seminary, and the village is a couple hours away. It will be an all-day event, which will involve hours of church. It sounds as if the village does not have a church, so the service will be taking place under a large tree. I learned the Swahili word for "tree" today... it's amazing how fast these things leave my memory.
At dinner, I was commenting on how wonderful and natural the food all is. Then, I found a worm in my tomato. Point proven....the little sneak.
Before bed, we practiced our songs we are going to sing at the village tomorrow...good old camp/church songs that Katie, a music education major, has organized and choreographed. We're going on tour when we get back to the states!
Peace,
Anna
Hilari (sp?), a local who makes beautiful woodwork, stopped by today around lunchtime and since we had our money exchanged, we were able to make some purchases. He used both the ebony wood and the light wood together to make beautiful sculptures of masks, candle holders, elephants, giraffes, nativity scenes, etc.
This afternoon after lunch, we took trucks (and luckily did not get stuck) to a family's home. This is the couple that was diagnosed HIV positive, yet their children are not. Pastor Hafermann and the others have given them a free house set slightly on the outskirts of town, and our job today was to get started on their outdoor latrine. The previous hole that had been dug was approximately 6 feet deep, yet it was directly outside of their window, so the smell entering the home would not have been a pleasant one. After filling that hole, we started on another one nearby and on the side closest to the house, we started digging trenches for the outhouse. We only got about 4 feet of the new hole dug, but it was still a satisfying feeling to see the difference.
We dug in shifts and the ones who were not digging were able to play with the neighbor children, who loved the bubbles and stickers and coloring books everyone brought. We were also able to watch them play a game very similar to Mancala, but more complex. They used nuts from the trees and had dug little holes in the ground to play the game in, and had a grand old time. I'd like to try and get my laptop working soon so I can upload pictures I have taken onto the blog.
After we returned, everyone showered because we were filthy from dirt flying around all afternoon. We ate dinner and discussed our plan for tomorrow. Tomorrow is the first day we will go to a village. We will leave in the morning after going to the morning church service here at the Seminary, and the village is a couple hours away. It will be an all-day event, which will involve hours of church. It sounds as if the village does not have a church, so the service will be taking place under a large tree. I learned the Swahili word for "tree" today... it's amazing how fast these things leave my memory.
At dinner, I was commenting on how wonderful and natural the food all is. Then, I found a worm in my tomato. Point proven....the little sneak.
Before bed, we practiced our songs we are going to sing at the village tomorrow...good old camp/church songs that Katie, a music education major, has organized and choreographed. We're going on tour when we get back to the states!
Peace,
Anna
Friday, May 1, 2009
First day of Swahili & the orphanage
Habari gani, ndugu?
This is a common greeting in Swahili: What kind of news, friend? Today we had our first day of Swahili class. The language is fun to learn, but very difficult to grasp as it is unlike anything any of us have ever learned. Our main instructor is Chuma, and our individual group leaders are Hanslloyd, Saloma, and Jackie. We first learned about the origins of Swahili: Bantu spreading all across Sub-saharan Africa and the many variations throughout. We started learning the various verb classes (there are 15) and some vocabulary before we split into smaller groups. This was the pattern throughout the rest of the day, among lunch, breaks, tea, etc. While everyone seemed mildly frustrated at times, we were able to laugh through our mistakes. I haven't learned a new language since Spanish in high school, and I forgot how much I love it... aside from exceptions to the rules.
At 4:00, we were done with school for the day and we had tea/coffee before heading to the orphanage. It was an absolutely beautiful walk there, where the sky seemed to go on and on and there were plants I have never seen before. We also passed several people along the way, the children greeting us by screaming, "wazungu!", which means "European" or "white person". We arrived to the orphanage and were greeted by a young boy about 3 years old sticking his hand through the gate and screaming for us. They were so excited we were here. Everyone walked in and started approaching children to play with them and hold them. I saw six toddlers on a double-bench swing being pushed by Monica. I figured I might as well bust out the bubbles, which led to an eruption of screams and giggles. With such a language barrier there, it was amazing what a good time we were all able to have playing. My bubbles were eventually carried away by two young enthusiastic boys and were never seen or heard from again.
While being at the orphanage was a lot of fun, it was very eye-opening as to the conditions orphaned children may face in countries less fortunate than ours. Many of them had cuts on their arms and legs, which flies landed on yet the children didn't even notice. While we often batted flies away from our face, they didn't even notice when one landed on their eye. From the beginning, one young boy insisted that I hold him. I never figured out his name, but I hope to see him again the next time I go back. He, like many of the other children, had wet their pants. This will definitely be one of the most rewarding but at the same time heart-wrenching parts of our stay.
Tomorrow, we have Swahili class in the morning but we are all pulling for the afternoon off so we can travel to a nearby village. We will be digging a hole for an outdoor bathroom for an HIV positive couple who have moved outside the village to live.
The computers here are ornary and we're having a hard time with laptops, but I'd like to try and post often and possibly upload some pictures while I'm over here. Everyone is healthy and well so far! Until later...
This is a common greeting in Swahili: What kind of news, friend? Today we had our first day of Swahili class. The language is fun to learn, but very difficult to grasp as it is unlike anything any of us have ever learned. Our main instructor is Chuma, and our individual group leaders are Hanslloyd, Saloma, and Jackie. We first learned about the origins of Swahili: Bantu spreading all across Sub-saharan Africa and the many variations throughout. We started learning the various verb classes (there are 15) and some vocabulary before we split into smaller groups. This was the pattern throughout the rest of the day, among lunch, breaks, tea, etc. While everyone seemed mildly frustrated at times, we were able to laugh through our mistakes. I haven't learned a new language since Spanish in high school, and I forgot how much I love it... aside from exceptions to the rules.
At 4:00, we were done with school for the day and we had tea/coffee before heading to the orphanage. It was an absolutely beautiful walk there, where the sky seemed to go on and on and there were plants I have never seen before. We also passed several people along the way, the children greeting us by screaming, "wazungu!", which means "European" or "white person". We arrived to the orphanage and were greeted by a young boy about 3 years old sticking his hand through the gate and screaming for us. They were so excited we were here. Everyone walked in and started approaching children to play with them and hold them. I saw six toddlers on a double-bench swing being pushed by Monica. I figured I might as well bust out the bubbles, which led to an eruption of screams and giggles. With such a language barrier there, it was amazing what a good time we were all able to have playing. My bubbles were eventually carried away by two young enthusiastic boys and were never seen or heard from again.
While being at the orphanage was a lot of fun, it was very eye-opening as to the conditions orphaned children may face in countries less fortunate than ours. Many of them had cuts on their arms and legs, which flies landed on yet the children didn't even notice. While we often batted flies away from our face, they didn't even notice when one landed on their eye. From the beginning, one young boy insisted that I hold him. I never figured out his name, but I hope to see him again the next time I go back. He, like many of the other children, had wet their pants. This will definitely be one of the most rewarding but at the same time heart-wrenching parts of our stay.
Tomorrow, we have Swahili class in the morning but we are all pulling for the afternoon off so we can travel to a nearby village. We will be digging a hole for an outdoor bathroom for an HIV positive couple who have moved outside the village to live.
The computers here are ornary and we're having a hard time with laptops, but I'd like to try and post often and possibly upload some pictures while I'm over here. Everyone is healthy and well so far! Until later...
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Layovers, LJS, and Lots of Legs
Well, we made it to Morogoro safely. It was a long trip filled with awkward sleeping patterns and much anticipation. We left the Waterloo airport Tuesday morning and arrived in Minneapolis an hour later. We had a 3-hour layover there, where some of the Starbucks enthusiasts (myself included) enjoyed our last cup for about a month. We also watched CNN while waiting, getting updates about the swine flu's spread andlso watched a 30-40 minute long live police chase of a semi-trailer with the actual owner of the semi hanging on to the back. Everyone at our gate was watching in excitement, and luckily he was able to jump to safety before we boarded the plane.
The flight from Minneapolis to Amsterdam was about 8 hours, and we were all spread about the plane so everyone just watched movies, met a few new people, and tried to get some sleep. We arrived to the Amsterdam airport at about 6:00 Am their time had more than enough time to walk around and check out tacky souvenirs, such as tacky wooden tulips and clog keychains. Another thing we had noticed by this point was that we had only seen a few people (approximately 10) wearing protective masks, and they were just at the MSP airport coming off of a flight from Asia. When we boarded the plane at Amsterdam on our way to Kiliminjaro and Dar, everyone was pretty exhausted. Many of us were able to sleep for much of the 10-hour flight. We arrived to Kiliminjaro and had to wait for about an hour for passengers to exit and also for the plane to refuel. We then traveled about another hour and a half to Dar es Salaam, where we boarded a large van with all of our luggage and traveled to the Catholic guest house an stayed for the night. The rooms wre nice and spacious, and we were able to take showers before turning in for the night - it was also our first night under the mosquito nets in Africa...
The next morning, we woke up and went to breakfast at the guest house, sharing the dining rom with almost 2 dozen other travelers, some of whom we recognized from the last flight. We had toast, hard boiled eggs, and watermelon, and left for Morogoro. Sadly, this was my first hard boiled egg - I was hoping my first new experience in Tanzania would be something more exciting than a different way of having my eggs done.
We were finally on our way to Morogoro. The ride to the Lutheran Junior Seminary tok approximately 3 hours because it took an extremely long time to get out of the city of Dar es Salaam. The city was much different in the daylight, and we were able to see all of the markets along the way. On the way out of the city, vehicles drove literally within inches of each other. On the highway, we saw men riding bicycles carrying gargantuan bags of coal on the back of their bikes... uphill on their way to Dar es Salaam.
Once we got outside of the city, the rest of the drive was gorgeous. I never would have guessed that Tanzania was this green. I sat up front and was able to learn some more about the issues surrounding Tanzanian culture and news from Dr. Strickert and Pastor Hafermann. Finally, we arrived to the Seminary, where would be taking classes and call home for the next 3 weeks. One of the first things I noticed upon entrance were the giant baobab trees. There was a change of plans as far as the rooming situation goes, and now we all have our own individual rooms intermingled with the other people staying at the seminary. Luckily, Mara and I have a door in between our rooms so we can visit. The dormitories are set up into blocks, with the buildings labeled A-F. Mara and I are the only ones from our group in block B. Apparently our block is closest to the entrance where most of the wildlife enters, including monkeys and cobras. Hooray! We were also introduced to our first millipede (about 4-5 inches long, black with red legs). He was a cute little fella. Mental note: the millipedes are fine, but the centipedes are poisonous.
After a short amount of time to deposit our belongings into our rooms, it was time for lunch. We walked around the seminary and made our way to the dining room, where we were served rice, beans, meat, spinach, and papaya (good for settling the stomach and apparently the seeds are good for treating worms). Lunch was delicious and looking around the table after lunch, everyones glazed over eyes signaled we were ready for rest. While it seems the jet lag on this trip was not as bad as we had expected, I think everyone is a bit tired and adjusting to the new surroundings. Now we have some time to just check out the seminary, nap, journal, and hang out until tea & coffee at 4:00 and dinner at 6:00.
Peace,
Anna
The flight from Minneapolis to Amsterdam was about 8 hours, and we were all spread about the plane so everyone just watched movies, met a few new people, and tried to get some sleep. We arrived to the Amsterdam airport at about 6:00 Am their time had more than enough time to walk around and check out tacky souvenirs, such as tacky wooden tulips and clog keychains. Another thing we had noticed by this point was that we had only seen a few people (approximately 10) wearing protective masks, and they were just at the MSP airport coming off of a flight from Asia. When we boarded the plane at Amsterdam on our way to Kiliminjaro and Dar, everyone was pretty exhausted. Many of us were able to sleep for much of the 10-hour flight. We arrived to Kiliminjaro and had to wait for about an hour for passengers to exit and also for the plane to refuel. We then traveled about another hour and a half to Dar es Salaam, where we boarded a large van with all of our luggage and traveled to the Catholic guest house an stayed for the night. The rooms wre nice and spacious, and we were able to take showers before turning in for the night - it was also our first night under the mosquito nets in Africa...
The next morning, we woke up and went to breakfast at the guest house, sharing the dining rom with almost 2 dozen other travelers, some of whom we recognized from the last flight. We had toast, hard boiled eggs, and watermelon, and left for Morogoro. Sadly, this was my first hard boiled egg - I was hoping my first new experience in Tanzania would be something more exciting than a different way of having my eggs done.
We were finally on our way to Morogoro. The ride to the Lutheran Junior Seminary tok approximately 3 hours because it took an extremely long time to get out of the city of Dar es Salaam. The city was much different in the daylight, and we were able to see all of the markets along the way. On the way out of the city, vehicles drove literally within inches of each other. On the highway, we saw men riding bicycles carrying gargantuan bags of coal on the back of their bikes... uphill on their way to Dar es Salaam.
Once we got outside of the city, the rest of the drive was gorgeous. I never would have guessed that Tanzania was this green. I sat up front and was able to learn some more about the issues surrounding Tanzanian culture and news from Dr. Strickert and Pastor Hafermann. Finally, we arrived to the Seminary, where would be taking classes and call home for the next 3 weeks. One of the first things I noticed upon entrance were the giant baobab trees. There was a change of plans as far as the rooming situation goes, and now we all have our own individual rooms intermingled with the other people staying at the seminary. Luckily, Mara and I have a door in between our rooms so we can visit. The dormitories are set up into blocks, with the buildings labeled A-F. Mara and I are the only ones from our group in block B. Apparently our block is closest to the entrance where most of the wildlife enters, including monkeys and cobras. Hooray! We were also introduced to our first millipede (about 4-5 inches long, black with red legs). He was a cute little fella. Mental note: the millipedes are fine, but the centipedes are poisonous.
After a short amount of time to deposit our belongings into our rooms, it was time for lunch. We walked around the seminary and made our way to the dining room, where we were served rice, beans, meat, spinach, and papaya (good for settling the stomach and apparently the seeds are good for treating worms). Lunch was delicious and looking around the table after lunch, everyones glazed over eyes signaled we were ready for rest. While it seems the jet lag on this trip was not as bad as we had expected, I think everyone is a bit tired and adjusting to the new surroundings. Now we have some time to just check out the seminary, nap, journal, and hang out until tea & coffee at 4:00 and dinner at 6:00.
Peace,
Anna
Monday, April 27, 2009
Swine Flu
So much has happened in the last few days on the world news... we've been watching closely to be sure travel to Africa has not been affected or advised against and so far it looks like the coast is clear. Africa is one of the only remaining continents without reported cases of a virus resembling the new swine flu, a seeming combination of the avian flu, the swine flu, and the human flu.
We are bringing masks along for the airplane/airport for those who want to wear them, and especially for the way home depending on how the virus spreads throughout the next few weeks while we're abroad.
Be sure to keep the other May Term trips in your thoughts who are travelling to areas where the virus has been reported!
Less than 24 hours until we leave!
Until later,
Anna
We are bringing masks along for the airplane/airport for those who want to wear them, and especially for the way home depending on how the virus spreads throughout the next few weeks while we're abroad.
Be sure to keep the other May Term trips in your thoughts who are travelling to areas where the virus has been reported!
Less than 24 hours until we leave!
Until later,
Anna
Friday, April 24, 2009
Pre-Departure Checklist
Since I was a kid, I have always wanted to travel to Africa. My dad told me stories of his days in the Peace Corps in Swaziland and sometimes spoke to me in basic Swahili. We also watched old slideshows of pictures he took while he was working there. As soon as I came to Wartburg and learned about the ties the school has with the Maasai in Tanzania, I knew it was something I wanted to experience before I graduated.
It's hard to believe that in 5 days it will all be real. I feel like I have so much to do before I leave, but in all actuality there won't be a whole lot to pack. I'm looking forward to a month of living simply and leaving behind so many of the petty things that define our existence. A few skirts, some t-shirts, and sandals... most of which I will hopefully leave there to make room for things we will buy at the market.
The main purpose of our journey is to gain a greater understanding of the AIDS epidemic in Subsaharan Africa. We spent winter term reading books about Masaai culture and the history and spread of HIV/AIDS. I've been shocked to learn how many people die daily and how much assistance these countries are not getting that they should be. While funding to treat and prevent malaria has been given much attention in past years, HIV/AIDS has not. There is much controversy surrounding the reasoning for this, much of it seemingly stemming issues of morality and the various means of transmission of the disease.
An organization that we will be working with in Morogoro is Faraja, an AIDS relief agency whose motto is "Alleviate suffering through building self-help capacity of the affected persons". You may visit their website under my links on the left-hand side. I'm under the impression that this will be a very educational experience for us to learn more about the impact the disease has on the community and its sociological and medical implications. You can check Faraja's website out on the left-hand side under my links.
However, we will be doing other things to gain a greater sense of immersion in the Masaai culture. Most of our mornings will consist of Swahili classes, which I think will be exciting but also frustrating at times. We learned some basic Swahili phrases throughout Winter term in class, but definitely not enough to carry a conversation along. It seems that in the opinion of students who have traveled in the past, the more you attempt to communicate in Swahili, the more enjoyable and real your experience. We will spend Sundays at the village church, where hopefully we will be able to witness a baptism or another special ceremony but it sounds like certainly we will be involved in hours of singing.
The first Saturday we are there, we're scheduled to go to the Maasai Cattle Market and also the youth prison. The cattle market should be an eye-opening experience, since they are a pastoralist people and so much of their lives revolve around their cattle, goats, etc. I'm excited to learn more about some of the challenges they face with the health of their animals and zoonotic diseases (spread between human and animal) since I'm applying to veterinary school and have a strong interest in epidemiology. I am hoping to learn more about this situation while we're there, as well as the human-wildlife conflict.
Our late afternoons will be spent at the orphanages. It seems that this is one part of the trip that everyone is ridiculously excited for, and rightly so. I know I am. Everyone is bringing bubbles and stickers for the children to play with, and Dr. Strickert and people who have gone to Tanzania in the past recall how excited the kids get when they can see themselves on the "replay" setting of your camera. We will spend a few hours there hopefully most afternoons just playing with the kids. It won't hurt that the walk to the orphanage is a beautiful green hike. :)
One night, we get to sleep at the watering hole in the Mikumi game park where one year students were able to eat breakfast and watch a baby elephant nearby. I'm super excited for this part due to my love for animals, but also just being so close to nature in such a preserved area.
A project that will consume about 4 days of our trip is a building project in the village where we will be building either a church or school, although we're not sure of which yet. All the girls seem really pumped to get their hands dirty for a good cause. Our group is really neat - 12 girls, most of whom are biology majors - but all are extremely passionate about the issue we will be working for and learning about. The last thing on our itinerary is the ferry ride out to Zanzibar, where we will hopefully have the chance to snorkel and go on a spice tour.
On Tuesday the 28th, we fly out of Waterloo at 11:30 AM and up to Minneapolis. From there, we go over to Amsterdam and then fly down to Dar es Salaam at 9:50 PM where we will be staying at a Catholic Guest House. The next morning we will drive to Morogoro and head to the Lutheran Junior Seminary which we will call home for bout 3 weeks. In addition to packing, I hope to take the next few days to read up on current events in Tanz and read more about their culture since I didn't research as much as I had hoped due to the insanity of winter term. Hopefully I will post again before we leave, and if not, my next will be from Africa!
Peace,
Anna
It's hard to believe that in 5 days it will all be real. I feel like I have so much to do before I leave, but in all actuality there won't be a whole lot to pack. I'm looking forward to a month of living simply and leaving behind so many of the petty things that define our existence. A few skirts, some t-shirts, and sandals... most of which I will hopefully leave there to make room for things we will buy at the market.
The main purpose of our journey is to gain a greater understanding of the AIDS epidemic in Subsaharan Africa. We spent winter term reading books about Masaai culture and the history and spread of HIV/AIDS. I've been shocked to learn how many people die daily and how much assistance these countries are not getting that they should be. While funding to treat and prevent malaria has been given much attention in past years, HIV/AIDS has not. There is much controversy surrounding the reasoning for this, much of it seemingly stemming issues of morality and the various means of transmission of the disease.
An organization that we will be working with in Morogoro is Faraja, an AIDS relief agency whose motto is "Alleviate suffering through building self-help capacity of the affected persons". You may visit their website under my links on the left-hand side. I'm under the impression that this will be a very educational experience for us to learn more about the impact the disease has on the community and its sociological and medical implications. You can check Faraja's website out on the left-hand side under my links.
However, we will be doing other things to gain a greater sense of immersion in the Masaai culture. Most of our mornings will consist of Swahili classes, which I think will be exciting but also frustrating at times. We learned some basic Swahili phrases throughout Winter term in class, but definitely not enough to carry a conversation along. It seems that in the opinion of students who have traveled in the past, the more you attempt to communicate in Swahili, the more enjoyable and real your experience. We will spend Sundays at the village church, where hopefully we will be able to witness a baptism or another special ceremony but it sounds like certainly we will be involved in hours of singing.
The first Saturday we are there, we're scheduled to go to the Maasai Cattle Market and also the youth prison. The cattle market should be an eye-opening experience, since they are a pastoralist people and so much of their lives revolve around their cattle, goats, etc. I'm excited to learn more about some of the challenges they face with the health of their animals and zoonotic diseases (spread between human and animal) since I'm applying to veterinary school and have a strong interest in epidemiology. I am hoping to learn more about this situation while we're there, as well as the human-wildlife conflict.
Our late afternoons will be spent at the orphanages. It seems that this is one part of the trip that everyone is ridiculously excited for, and rightly so. I know I am. Everyone is bringing bubbles and stickers for the children to play with, and Dr. Strickert and people who have gone to Tanzania in the past recall how excited the kids get when they can see themselves on the "replay" setting of your camera. We will spend a few hours there hopefully most afternoons just playing with the kids. It won't hurt that the walk to the orphanage is a beautiful green hike. :)
One night, we get to sleep at the watering hole in the Mikumi game park where one year students were able to eat breakfast and watch a baby elephant nearby. I'm super excited for this part due to my love for animals, but also just being so close to nature in such a preserved area.
A project that will consume about 4 days of our trip is a building project in the village where we will be building either a church or school, although we're not sure of which yet. All the girls seem really pumped to get their hands dirty for a good cause. Our group is really neat - 12 girls, most of whom are biology majors - but all are extremely passionate about the issue we will be working for and learning about. The last thing on our itinerary is the ferry ride out to Zanzibar, where we will hopefully have the chance to snorkel and go on a spice tour.
On Tuesday the 28th, we fly out of Waterloo at 11:30 AM and up to Minneapolis. From there, we go over to Amsterdam and then fly down to Dar es Salaam at 9:50 PM where we will be staying at a Catholic Guest House. The next morning we will drive to Morogoro and head to the Lutheran Junior Seminary which we will call home for bout 3 weeks. In addition to packing, I hope to take the next few days to read up on current events in Tanz and read more about their culture since I didn't research as much as I had hoped due to the insanity of winter term. Hopefully I will post again before we leave, and if not, my next will be from Africa!
Peace,
Anna
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