A Blurb from Arusha

Happy Canada Day!!

Arrived in Arusha on Monday after 7 1/2 hours on the road. I know that may sound like a long road trip, but its not! Normally when travelling from Dodoma to Arusha we go the long way around through Morogoro and Moshi on the tarmac. This time we took the 'back road' which means driving essentially straight north to Arusha through Kondoa and Babati. 

It was amazing to see some very different countryside and to take a route that is not travelled much or developed. I felt like I was in ‘real’ Africa. We had to go through a mountain pass and it was stunning to see some of the vistas and to see the change in the environment as we went along. Within 30-45 mins of leaving Dodoma there were trees everywhere. I couldn’t get over all the trees. We also hit a section in the mountains that was almost like a rain forest. It was actually misting/foggy the whole way so could not see as many vistas as I would have liked. And the road was a little slippery due to the mist so it goes to show how horrible and dangerous the road would be in the rainy season. The only downfall to the back road is that it is hard for me to hear so was not able to talk much with Al and could hardly hear the girls in the backseat. But it still beat the 12-13 hour drive the other way (~500km instead of over 900km!).

On Wednesday I had hoped to go visit an organization and tree nursery called Trees for the Future. But as we were leaving town I called to check on how far it was from Arusha and he said an hour and half. Whoops, didn’t have time for that! I thought it was only half an hour from town. So it will have to wait for another day. Al and I spent some time trying to find a couple shops that sell piki piki’s (motorbike) but of course only found the one.  And they did not have the bike we were looking for :( for the water/ag project.

While we were sitting at one of the two traffic lights in town a boy came and cleaned the window. Of course he asked for money when he was done but you can’t give him any. If you do it just perpetuates the problem and for all you know he is using it to buy drugs, not food. It was the first time since arriving here that my heart broke! Weird that it took 5 months for me to come across something that really got to me. I have seen plenty street kids and people affected by polio begging but it does not seem to affect me. I feel for them definalty, but there was something about this boy that almost broke me. I for the first time actually wanted to give him a few shillings or get out and give him a hug! 

And then about two minutes later I saw my first accident! Amazing that too, being here for 5 months and have not seen an accident yet as they happen a lot here. I have seen the aftermath of numerous accidents, but not one in motion. My first reaction was hoping everyone is okay and my second reaction was I need to get away from here. If I was back home I would have gotten out of the vehicle to see if anyone needed help. But here that would be very dangerous for me to do as I am white and mob justice is very common and it can get very heated and dangerous very quickly. I thought it was interesting my reactions to the accident and concern for my own well-being.

Today we had our MCC team meeting where we all shared what we have been doing and what our upcoming plans are, challenges and accomplishments. I haven't really started working on anything yet so I shared my '1 year plan' which is in quotes because realistically it is a 3-5 year plan that I have developed. The feedback and response from the team was encouraging! But I must say I am emotionally and mentally exhausted so I am going to sleep! (It's 9pm which would be my normal time to go to bed lol).