Friday, June 17, 2011

A little of this a little of that...

I feel that I am getting a good feel for the lifestyle and Tanzanian culture here.  Since most of the kids are gone we have been doing a lot of activities that the locals do.  For example, we hiked to a beautiful waterfall.  It was probably the sketchiest hike I have ever done.  I was walking along the narrow ledges, looking down to the steep ravines freaking out a little bit, but the kids we were with were running down like it was nothing.  One of the local boys started following us and was running down with a machete so calmly!  Anyway the waterfall was incredible.   The water was a  bit chilly but I still waded in it a bit.

With the kids gone it is a great time to fix up the school.  All of the volunteers have scraped and repainted the blackboards in each of the classrooms.  They look amazing now!  We are also painting one of the walls outside that has the Peace Matunda song and prayer on it.  I prob wont be here for the completion of that but it will definitely be an improvement from the green algae all over the wall.

Bella, Kaaya's cousin who does cultural tours, celebrated his birthday.  He dressed up as a Rasta Rooster.  It was hilarious.  All the girls from Peace MAtunda came down and we celebrated with a fruit and veggie cake that he wanted made.  It was a fantastic celebration!  We also celebrated Jenni's last weekend here.  She is going home after 9 months of being here.  So in light of that she requested that we all dress up like Safari Animals and go out on the town.  We had the big 5 and some other random safari animals.  I was a Zebra!  The tailor had come up a week earlier and we gave her a bunch of fabric to make dresses, one a zebra print.  So I had my dress and I painted my face with black stripes!  It was so awesome.  Everyone looked great and boy did we get stared at.  Kaaya came as our Safari guide, trying to keep us inline.  Good Times!

Bella, being the do it all guy in Tanzania, got the "good@ coffee beans from a friend.  10 KG of coffee beans, worth 60,000 shillings.  Which isnt that much money but it was supposed to be just for Jeni and I...  There is soooo much coffee!!!!  We started making it a few days a go and still havent finished.  Normally you have to de-shell the beans but that would have added an insane amount of hours onto the task.  So we roast them first, until they are almost black and then it is pounding time!  I am very excited to drink coffee that I actually made with my bare hands!  wooohoo

Another cultural experience I had was buying, slaughtering, and eating a goat, Fred.  We all went to a market and Jeni picked out a beautiful brown goat.  The next day we all watched as Bella slit Fred's throat, collected the blood, to make soup of course, and continue on butchering it.  I have great video of the whole process.  It is amazing how the took off his skin in one piece.  They also ate the kidney's right out of him!  Listening to his ribs crack and watching them break his legs apart was crazy.  I held hone of his hooves!  And surprisingly he tastes delicious.  I didn't eat too much but it was yummy!  Great experiences I am having here.  Oh, and I got Bella to cut off his chin hair so I can attempt to make a bracelet ! hahahah

Again, sorry this is so random.  I haven't written in a while and thought I would update all of you eager readers on my time here.  I am headed off on a Safari on Sunday for 4 days!  I am so pumped to see so many animals form the Lion King!!   Then I am headed to Zanzibar for some island relaxation and hopefully home after!!

Miss you all and I hope everyone is great!  Happy Fathers Day to all the Dad's and Grandfathers out there!! Love you all

Monday, June 6, 2011

Where have all the children gone....

So it is Holiday time for the little munchkins.  we didn't think many of them were going home but it turned out most of them were.  I walked one of the older girls home today. It was very interesting to see where they live.  This girl had a one room house made of wood that she share's with her 2 brothers 2 sisters and her mother.  She has an out house, a cow, and a few chickens.  I asked the coordinator if they kids get excited to go home and her response was interesting.  she said that of course they want to see their families but they have so much more opportunities for things at Peace Matunda in the orphanage.  she said some of the kids will eat maybe once a day.  They will be crammed in their house with many family members.  At Peace Matunda they get fed 3 meals a day, they have their own bed and can play with the other children.  It is interesting to think about.  I should clarify that their are only 2 actual "orphans" according to the U.S. (kids with no parents).  The rest of the orphans at the school have family but they are to poor to care for them so the stay with us!  The kids who stay at the orphanage (Amanai House) are amazing.  The older girls and boys cook and clean a lot.  They could be in the middle of a movie or playing and as soon as they are called to do chores they hop right up, without whining or complaining, and do what they are supposed to.  It's awesome.

It is such a bummer that their are only a few kids left to be with but the children in Standard 4 class (10-12 yr olds) have school in the morning.  I am going to go help and see what goes on in their class.  We might take them on a field trip to the museum in Arusha.  Otherwise we will be having a lot of intimate field trips with them.  Its all good.

Interesting Fact:  tanzanians start their day at 6.  So 7 am is 1am- 8am is 2- 9am is 3am  and so on.  totally confused me a few times.

I had wine here!!! Jeni, the volunteer coordinator, was bumming all the kids left and we got to talking about wine so....we had a wine night.  It is not very common here but we managed to get some decent wine and it was delicious.  I miss vino.

We took the older girls and boys and went to the Tangeru market on Saturday.  We bought them some sodas and wandered around the market.  I bought more fabric  OBVI!!  It is all so beautiful and sooo cheap I can't resist.  Plus, the tailor was coming and I needed some fabric for a few dresses she is going to make and for so cheap.

All is well here.  I absolutely love it and wish I was staying longer but I will be out of money :(

Miss you all.  Hope everyone is super duper! :)

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

First week of Holiday!

We are trying to get the kids in a routine while they are on holiday.  So every morning we are doing mini lessons with them and guess who gets to plan them!!  MEEE!  I am excited to finally be doing some teaching.  I found that a lot of the learning done here is rote memorization.  When I was asking the kids to give me the sound  a letter makes they couldnt, they just gave me a word.  Anyway it is interesting trying to use some of the stuff I have learned on them.  They are very eager to learn and love have class with Teacher Danielle so I love it!
We will be doing school work with them for a few hours every morning.  I am also working with one of the older girls who has trouble reading and writing.  Good stuff all around!

There is a lot of down time during holiday so we are taking small groups of kids up the street to get soda and treats.  They love one on one time.   As we were walking up the hill we saw Kilimanjaro!  It was a very clear day and I have been looking for it everyday and we finally saw it!! So exciting.

Last night we were introduced to Banana Beer.  I had 3 and definitely was feeling it.  They have a lot more alcohol in them than normal beers at home.  They were yummy though.

Heading out but will write more soon!  Just a little update!

Sunday, May 29, 2011

A Nice Little Saturday

Today Kate, another volunteer, and I decided to go to the local Market in the next town, Tangere.  We walked down, it took about an hour.  We had to cross some sketchy bridge and up and down all these insane hills.  I still find it fascinating that these Tanzanian women can carry things on their heads going up and down a hill, impressive.  We got to the market and the first thing I see is a bunch of chickens for sale, some were dead, some were being hung by their feet..I didnt like it.  The market was very busy.  There was so much for sale, anything form clothes to food, to suitcases....you name it.  I went right for the fabric.  They have the most beautiful fabric and it is soooo cheap.  I got lots of different colors and did a pretty good job bartering.  I spent between 6,000 and 7,000 shilling on 2-3 yards of fabric, which is about $5-7!  Good stuff.  I am going to dress myself up in African wear and try to fit in.  I will attempt to carry something on my head before  I leave and I'm sure it will be a disaster.  There is a whole food section in the market.  Rows and rows of women selling their vegetables, rice, maize, and bananas.  They all want you to come and buy from them.  "Brother, sista Karibu (you are welcome to my store), you can look for free."  Did you know you can look at good for free, I love that line haha soo funny.    Everyone wants to say hi and hi-five you or shake you hand.  I had one man who would not let go for a bit and I was about to get feisty but I controlled myself...  Anyway, it was quite an experience in the market.  Clearly I bought too much fabric and I'm sure I will go back next week and buy more!
We walked back home, got good exercise and sunburned! Good morning.

Jeni, the volunteer coordinator really wanted to take us into  Arusha for a night out so a few of us went. Bella (Kayaa's bro)  Kenali (the driver)  Teacher Anthony, Kate, Jeni and I went out on the town.  We started at Empire Bar where East Side Movement, a reggae band was playing.  They were awesome!  I love groovin to reggae.  The Barcelona vs Man U match was on the tv as well and people were going nuts!  I just love how soccer is universal.   We headed over to Maasai Camp, a bar/club after.  There was a DJ and he played a lot of American music.  I felt like I was back home dancing to all the same music we listen to.  They love Rhianna over here, its so funny.  They played a lot of African music for a while and everyone did this line dance over and over again for like 20 min.  I couldnt get it so I danced in the middle of the room doing my own thing ha.  No one really bounces here so I had to alter my dancing a little bit to not stand out to much.  It was so much fun, I was taught how to African dance, which is grinding, but of course I did it from a distance.  It was so much fun though.  I tried lots of local beers and we danced till 3:30 in the morn.  Good times!  My legs were so soar by the end of the night but it was worth it!

Saturday, May 28, 2011

First Week at Peace Matunda

All the kids are having their final exams this week so I have been helping the teachers correct and do report cards.  It  takes forever because everything is hand written and copied with carbon paper.  Interesting huh.  The kids are great though.  As soon as you walk into the classroom they all stand. I address them, "Good Morning" and they said "Good Morning Teacher"  I say, " How are you doing?"   They all reply " We are fine teacher!"  It is great.  Then you have to tell them to sit down or they won't.  The teachers here are really nice.  There is a baby classroom, a kindergarten, Standard 1 (1st grade), Standard 2 (second grade)  Standard 3, and Standard 4.  They are building new classrooms for up to Standard 7.

I rode the mini bus to pick up the kids the other morning.  The van is supposed to only fit 7 people and we crammed 48 kids in it.  I had 5 in the front seat with me.  It was insane.  Every time i thought we had hit maximum capacity a few more kids showed up on the road and somehow they fit in.  It must have looked like a clown car when they all came out.   Another volunteer went the next day and they fit 52 kids in and she had 6 kids in the front.  I also should mention that the roads are terrible here and at some points the car is on a huge slant or going up an insanely steep hill. It is really amazing that the van makes it back up the hill to Peace Matunda.

We have been playing a lot of soccer after school.  We had a Michael Jackson dance party.  The kids love to sing and dance.  I have never seen girl dance like this before.  All the little ones are moving their hips and making me feel like I suck at dancing.

I'm making hte kids do planks and pushup with me because I am going to get fat eating all this heavy food here.  They don't eat a lot of meat but their diet is interesting.  We have rice and pasta twice a week with vegetable and a red sauce.  Once this week I had flour and water with veggies...it was nasty and is still sitting in my stomach.    I had banana stew, which sounds gross but it doesnt actually taste like bananas, more like potatoes.  Delicious. My favorite is this dish called Chipsimi.  It is an omelette with french fries.   Soooo good but sooo bad for you.  Another dish is Chipati.  They are like thick burritos.  We put lentils or beans and fresh made guacamole on them.  There is an avocado tree here so it is quite convenient.  Oh yes, there is also beans and maize mixed together to make a delightful filling dinner as well.  Talk about food comas.

Random thoughts because the internet will probably die on me....

I thought they all really liked the Lion King Here becasuse they say Hakuna Matata all the time but is actually means No Worries in Swahili.  Go figure!  I am doing my best to learn.  The watchmen test me every time I walk by them, I avoid them on purpose sometimes haa.

I have my first taste of Tanzania liquor on Friday night....very interesting.  Konacke tasted like gin, not too bad.  Bokri was pretty good it is kind of like grain alcohol.  It leaves you feeling very warm inside.    Bella and Kayaa joined us and we had a nice fire while we chatted the night away.

I know these are a lot of random thoughts but I want to get as much written as I can before the internet dies or we loose power.  TIA...This is Africa!

Monday, May 23, 2011

The first few days (Sat-Monday)

So after 24 hours of flying and three days of traveling I finally made it to Tanzania.  I feel like the whole trip was a lot of going through the motions and when I finally arrived I was overflowing with emotions.  I got picked up my the volunteer coordinator and Peace Matunda's driver Kilane.  We drove back in an open jeep/truck.  It was dark out so I couldnt really get an idea of where I was and my surroundings but I have never seen so many stars in my life.  The sky was so beautiful.  I got to the school and met the other volunteers.  There are three other girls here now.  Kaylee from Canada, Allison from Iowa, and Kate from New Zealand.  Kimundo is the town Peace Matunda is located.  The compound is nice.   There is the school area with a few different classroom buildings, the orphanage house, the volunteers house, and then Kayaa's (the director) house. The compound  It was a Sat night so the kids in the orphanage were hanging out watching a movie on a little TV.  There are 23 orphans at Peace Matunda and about 130 kids that go to The school.  The kids instantly love you and want to know how long you are staying and when your birthday is.  It is going to be a challenge to remember all of their names.  This upcoming week is their last week before holiday so they have exams.  I'm kind of bummed I wont be able to teach as much as I thought... After this week the kids are on holiday for a few weeks so we will be organizing and hanging out with the orphans.   All in all my first night was great.  We sat around a bonfire and chatted for a while.  Still a bit of a shock that I am actually here but I am settling in.

Sunday-

It poured so hard last night!  It is the rainy season and of course I heard it because I couldn't sleep... I was so excited, anxious, jet lagged blah blah.  But waking up to the sunshine totally lifted my spirits.  In the morning we played soccer and jump rope with the kids.   I gave them a soccer ball that I had brought and they loved it!!!  They are quite good at soccer but clearly I am better :)  I am trying so hard to remember their names and I have a few down but some are so difficult to say.   These children are so beautiful and love any attention they can get.  So many of them just come up and hug me and sit on my lap.  I love it!   Hanging out with them and getting to know them reminds me of why I came here.  Their English is very good as well.  The orphans speak better English than the students who come to the school, but I can hold a conversation with them.  I am trying to learn Swahili.  I know a few phrases but I'm sure I am butchering it.  All in all the kids are great and so much fun to be around.  One of the girls was teaching me how to dance,  it should have been illegal the way she was moving her hips.  I'm going to teach her how to bounce around and Zumba to Pitbull haha. Oh, and I saw a monkey in a tree!! Woohoo first African Monkey!

Monday-
This morning I got to see all the children in their uniforms. They all line up in lines according to their class and sing the school song.  Then the older kids check all of the students fingernails and knees to make sure they are clean.  I think this is a great idea and we should implement this into schools in CT.  They all had exams this morning so I didnt get to hang out with them too long.

All of the volunteers went to Arusha today.  That is the closest town and it has the best internet.  The power at Peace Matunda has been on and off the past few weeks and is very inconsistent so Arusha is the place to be when writing to everyone and blogging it up!  We are going to go to a local market later and I am probably going to go nuts buying fabric.  The fabric the ladies wear here is so beautiful, I want it all.

Well hopefully I will be able to blog again soon.  This is my first blogging experience and since I write like I talk  please don't judge.  Love you all and Miss you ALL!!! I will be in touch soon!!  :)

Kwaheri (BYE)