Some pics :)

Now you see me...

Now you don't.

Having a good laugh...

Following Shetima through the bushes!

My favorite flowers. Just love the color!

At Kawawa helping the Momma's prepare food.

Yes, I'm sticking my tongue out at you (puff adder and very dangerous!).

A Brief

Dodoma was very busy! I was only gone from Iringa for 4 weeks and the time flew by. I am already back in Iringa for my last 5 weeks of Kiswahili. For those of you who do not know we have a blog for the sand dam project here in Tanzania and I have been given the responsiblity of posting. So for an update of what I did while back in Dodoma you will have to go to that blog. Here is the link Sand Dam Project
I will try and post a few personal pics that I love later this week :)

Its been busy here!

I have been so busy these last couple weeks that I have not even had time to think about blogging. I have not even written in my journal much the last two weeks either. So here is a quick snapshot for you.
I went to Arusha Easter Monday (13 hour bus ride) for the week. I had meetings regarding conservation agriculture and sand dams with partner organizations. Then we had our quarterly MCC meeting on Friday and headed back to Dodoma on Saturday with Albert and the girls in the truck. Tiffanee went on the bus because we had a Learning Tour group coming to spend the week with us here in Dodoma and thought it would be best if someone went on the bus with them.
There were six people, five from USA and one from Winkler, MB. They spent most of the week with us visiting the sand dam sites, helping out when possible and spent a lot of time asking questions, visiting with the people and laughing. On Thursday and Friday they spent some time with Tiffanee learning about the health program, Grace and Healing Ministries, which is operated through the church here and also does a lot of good work in the community.
It was a good busy couple of weeks and this week coming I will be working on the sand dam blog and do some planning and research for when I return from Iringa in June. (I am heading back to language school this coming Saturday for another 5 weeks).
So stay tuned as when I have posted on the sand dam blog I will link it here :)
Cheers

A Few Random Pictures. Finally :)

I think Eric was better at scraping coconuts than me!

Enjoying chocolate fondue!

Dancing Elephant

Posing beside waterfalls near Iringa

My first major downpour. The pathway has turned into a river!

Storm coming in.

Back in Dodoma

The latest from my journal :) Enjoy!

April 17

The last week at Riverside was a good week and I am now back in Dodoma. I am going to miss the girls though. So here I am sitting on the Veranda at Albert and Tiffanies’ enjoying having a house to myself and listening to the music from the church over yonder. I arrived yesterday around 6pm and Musa and Pendo picked me up and we went to Pendo's house for dinner. Don was there as well and it was good to see him. Dinner was wonderful and I so enjoyed the company and the food.  After a few hours Musa drove me to the house. It was weird coming here because Hilda is not here as was planned. Then to top off the night there was no water! So I said to heck with it all and went to bed in the main bedroom. Before going to sleep I said a prayer, asking for water so I could clean and do laundry today.

I am so glad that God listens to me sometimes as the water came on around 7am. So like a good little girl I got up and started cleaning and doing laundry. (Although I get to cheat a bit because they have a washing machine). By 8:30am I had finished 2 loads of laundry and it out to dry, washed dishes and swept the floor. The house feels better now that I have done some cleaning and I feel better too.

I must say I like having my own place and space. Then I can also have a garden and do some seed increases for work.

On Friday, my last day with the SIL group at Riverside was a very good day with lots of laughter. We had a cultural excursion into town to meet with a couple Masai who talked about their culture and way  of life. It was very interesting and is defiantly a culture I do not agree with. To begin with, they still do female and male circumcision. The girls at 15 and the boys at 20. They are also a very proud and warlike tribe and will not hesitate to fight. Their way of life regarding cattle grazing is also very unsustainable and environmentally destructive. For a Masai man to be considered wealthy he needs at least 1000 cattle! That is a huge amount of cattle to be grazing! Their's seems to consist mainly of meat, milk and blood. Not a very well rounded diet in my opinion.

Ronit had a necklace chosen for her by the Masai man. To put it in her words, “He gently place the chosen necklace around my ivory neck”. She is so dramatic, but entertaining. Life would be quiet and most likely a little dull without her around camp.

Then that evening we had a chocolate fondue for dessert! ‘Daisy’ brought lots of chocolate with her from home. I couldn’t think of a better way to end the day! We had a lot of fun and lots of laughs.

Later in the Day

Sitting on the veranda in the afternoon listening to the music from next door :) and hoping I can get my internet to work. I have been having a good but busy day. But despite that I can’t believe its only 3:50pm! It feels like it should be so much later than that. And I forgot how much warmer it is here. I have been warm all day. I have done 4 loads of laundry, ironed some of it so I don’t have to worry about the mango fly maggot, and went to make coconut milk but the coconuts were rotten. Walked around and found a vender just done the road to get some tomatoes and oranges (they had slim pickings and I was not going to be fussy).

 April 18^th

I had a great day again today. Spent a quite morning on the veranda reading, reviewing a little Kiswahili checking email and so on. Musa stopped by around 11am to get the truck as he was taking one of the Mama’s to visit her sister at the hospital.

When Musa came back we went to the market so I could get food for the week. I so enjoy Musa’s company. It was good to shop for the first time with a local because now I have an idea of how much things cost. The fruit is much more expensive here compared to Iringa. That is because most of it is not grown here and is brought in from other areas of the country. We also stopped by Two Sisters so I could pick up a few expat items J Then the icing on the cake...

Half way home Musa pulled over and said “Time for you to drive” or something along those lines. And amazingly I did not stall the truck once (nor was I close to stalling it)! It felt so good to drive again and have control. We both had a good laugh though when I went to signal and turned the wipers on instead. Lol Need to remember that the signal switch is on the opposite side, just like almost everything else. Thank goodness the gas, brakes and clutch are all in the same spot. Could you imagine how confusing that would be if they were switched like everything else? Gongshow!!

I need to back up to Saturday as I have not talked about my bus trip back to Dodoma. It was much better than my trip down to Iringa and did not hurt quite so much. I also have another boyfriend! I have got to figure out to talk to men without them thinking that I will be their girlfriend. I now there is a cultural issue as it is not normal for a guy and girl to be friends here. Only relationships are accepted. So very different from back home. At first I thought things were going to be okay with Philimon, but then I got a text from him at 1am last night asking if I would be his girlfriend and he misses and loves me very much. I think this is normal for here, but man does it ever creep me out! But at least I most likely will never run into him as it is a big town. But if he does happen to see me he will remember me even if I don’t remember him. But I am not worried about that J

April 20^th

So far work has been good. Spent the last 2 days either at the church or in the field. There has been a lot of work completed so far but there is still a ways to go. The terracing and tree planting at the 3 new sites is completed and they are getting close to being finished with digging in preparation for the dam. It was wonderful to see the group at Kawawa as they are very hardworking, happy, energetic and they are the ones who named me Mavua (rain woman). I love going there as I feel so comfortable with that group and actually try to speak Kiswahili with them.

Today was the first time I ate ugali in the village with everyone else. I must be honest here. I do not mind the ugali but the mboga (vegetables) that go with it make me want to gag L It has this gooey consistency and is so hard to swallow. There is nothing wrong with flavour though and I will have to force myself to eat it as it would break their hearts if I said no.

Yesterday I drove home from the villages. Again it felt good J I must admit I was quite nervous, almost scared as we were coming up to the city. There is a lot more traffic in the city and I also had a vehicle full of co-workers.  But I managed just fine and everyone said I did a good job and that I am allowed to drive again! Lol It also helps that Musa is a good Mwalimu and gives good directions and advice.

I forgot to mention earlier that I have been cooking for the last few days and it is nice to be able to cook what I want. It is hard to believe that I have not cooked since January!

Cooking the Tanzanian Way

April 9

It has been a good week for the most part with each day better then the last. Thursday and Friday were a lot of fun. We spent the 2^nd half of the class day all together as a group to learn about the kitchen in preparation for a day of cooking on Friday. We learned how to kill and butcher chickens, cook mendazi, chapattis, pilau ( a special Tanzanian rice dish), coconut rice and beans with coconut milk.

What was the most interesting (or shocking depending on how you look at it) was the fact that 'Daisy', who is a vegetarian, wanted to kill one of the chickens! She then proceeded to tell us that the only real reason she is a vegetarian is because she does not like animals! We all thought that was just fantastic as none of us have ever met a vegetarian that has no issues with killing animals, even at her own hand. So off she went to slice the throat of a chicken and she thoroughly enjoyed it! Eric left during the killing of the chickens, Netta turned a bit white and I wished there was an extra chicken so I could kill one. Oh well, maybe next time?!?

So after the killing of the chickens we split up and most of us hung out outside the kitchen learning how to make mendazi and Masala Chai while Ronit and the kitchen staff plucked and cut up the chicken. I missed all the action, bummer!! Mendazi is the local morning tea snack which is basically like small donuts (tim bit size) but with no sugar on the outside. The Masala Chai is something I hope I can make myself as it was so good I had three cups. It is milk, water, tea, cinnamon, cardamon and sugar boiled , and then strained. I than spent the rest of the day in the kitchen at the stove learning how to make pilau, coconut rice, beans with coconut milk and other vegetables  and only burnt my finger once. We had a wonderful feast for lunch that I’m sure it tasted even better because we all helped to make it.

Then to end the day off Kevin and Anne arrived and are staying the weekend. It is Anne’s birthday on Monday so they brought a cake with them. Homemade chocolate with real icing! We all died over it and it was so yummy!! It was the perfect way to end a week that got better with everyday and to end a great day. :)
I will post pictures next week after I have returned to Dodoma.

Mchumba

March 30

Still have a cold and I am slowly losing my voice! I am in the dining banda right now and it is raining quite a bit. I am sure there is a river running down my path by now. I love the sound of the rain beating down on the thatch roofs.

I think I may have my first Tanzanian boyfriend. The Airtel guy was here today and I needed to buy a flash modem (dongle)  as that is what I might going to use when I am in Dodoma. He asked for my number and I was tempted to give him the wrong one, but what if I need to call him because I am having trouble with my modem or need something else? And then he asked if he can come a visit me sometime on the weekend before I go back to Dodoma. How the hell am I supposed to say NO!?!? I realized after the fact that I should have mentioned something about a fiancé back home. I most likely will have the chance to drop some hints as he has already texted me and phoned me twice. I only meet him 6 hours ago! Lol (but almost a little creepy).

April 1

I so hate the internet here!! I tried accessing the internet with the dongle and now I can’t get online with the dongle or with my phone!!! But I know I have internet because it is working on my phone. And then to top it all off there was no hot water and it is cool and wet today and a HOT shower would feel sooo good right now, so I guess I will have to just be satisfied with ranting and maybe a beer or two! Lol Life can be so horrible lol.

April 2

I went into town today to pick up a few things and try and figure out what is going on with my computer and internet. Needless to say I had no luck on the internet part but was able to find a new backpack for my laptop for only 20,000 shillings ($15). I was sitting on the balcony at Neema Crafts having coffee and guess who comes along. My new boyfriend, the Airtel Guy! Way to funny yet almost creepy. I am starting to think he has tagged me with a GPS system ;) 

So we were chatting and I was amazed he actually stayed as long as he did as I was most definitely not in a good mood or in the mood to chat (you all know what that’s like)! Anyways he starts asking about my about my family back home and so I told him that I my parents are back home along with an older brother and his family. I then casually mentioned that I have a boyfriend back home. I said that he has a really good job that he can’t leave but he is coming here in a couple months  to see me. The whole time I am telling this fib I am saying to myself ‘pole’. He then says ‘I am looking for an mchumba’. I nearly burst out laughing as an mchumba is a fiancé! I said we all are and that when my boyfriend comes to see me he better put a ring on my finger. I have a feeling I may not hear from my Airtell Boyfriend again :)

My latest graditude

Sometimes Gods creation astounds me and all I can do at that moment is say ’Thank you for sharing this with me’.  These moments often occur when I am walking around the hills/mountains here at Riverside. I will be walking along a trail and come upon a vista that it stunning. I almost never take photos at these moments as I want to just appreciate the moment and a picture will never do it justice.

Mimi ninajifunza Kiswahili

I am learning Swahili, and after 2 weeks I can now get myself around but it will be quite some time till I can have a decent conversation :)

I have not had a chance to update you on my safari to Ruaha. It was a great trip, had a lot of fun and saw so many animals. Twiga, simba, kiboko, swala, dikidiki, impala, tumbili, nyani, ngiri. (I am going to let you all figure out which animals I'm talking about) ;) I have to admit that one of the things I was feeling as I was sitting in the land rover 3 feet away from a pack of lions was 'these animals really are real!' It is so different, almost surreal at first, seeing all these beautiful animals in their own habitat compared to the zoo. 
I hope to post pictures someday soon (but don't get yuor hopes up).

It has rained a fair amount over the last couple of weeks and everything is so green and the trees are starting to flower. So there is a rich tapestry of greens, yellows and oranges, with specks of other colors. Very pretty here in the mountains of Iringa. I pray that it has rained a bit in Dodoma.

So if I am going to be honest with you all, I do have to admit there have been a few days where I am wondering what the heck am I doing here in Africa! I think I have been bothered by the fact that I do not feel 'in love' with Africa as I did when I was in Central America. But than Aunty Louise sent me a note saying that it may never feel the same a Central America was my first. Sort of like how most of never forget our first love. Thinking this way makes me feel much better!

There is so much more I could write but for now my time is almost up here at the internet cafe. I will try to prewrite a blog for next weekend with more details for you and with any luck an couple of pictures :)

A Section from my Journal

March 1

I have arrived at Riverside Campsite and Swahili Language School just outside of Iringa. What an adventure that was, as always when I’m traveling! I don’t even know what was the craziest or funniest, so I will start at the beginning of the day. Left Dodoma at 6 am, fell asleep after watching my first African sunrise which was a brilliant pink and orange. I only wish it had lasted longer. I was rudely awakened from my peaceful sleep due to the bus hitting a speed-bump and not really slowing down for it. My head hit the ceiling above me and I still have a sore neck from being tossed around. I am so glad I was not in the last row (which was the row right behind me) as their seats were not secured to the floor of the bus and therefore with every speed bump the drivers  not slow down enough for their seats moved as they went flying. I eventually found my seat belt and put it on. I felt a little more secure after that as this happened numerous times throughout the 9 hour trip.

The  next thing, and this really annoyed me  as the day went on was that the Momma who purchased the seat next to me (I had the window seat and she had the middle seat and a man had the seat on the other side of her- 5 seats across, 2 and 3 with aisle). She had with her not one but two little girls under the age of four I would guess. So she plopped the older girl on the guys lap and held the younger one on her lap. She originally had started to push the girl towards me but I put my purse on my lap and looked out the window. It may have been rude in her cultural context, but there was no way I was spending the next 8 to 9 hours with someone elses' kid on my lap that I can’t even talk to. The trip was uncomfortable enough for me as it was! I know, such a typical, whiny Mzungu J

It was interesting though to watch the parenting/discipline. The kids are not allowed to cry and even though the younger girl was between 1 and 2 with a mouth full of teeth she was still feeding. Although I am not sure if she really was feeding or if the breasts are the African version of the sucky? And there is no hiding or shame of exposing the breasts for a child, which I think is wonderful.

I also now know that I really am in Africa. I saw my first giraffe, long horned impala (or something like that) and some type of monkey. At first I did not even think the giraffe was real as it did not appear to be moving and then I saw its tail switch. There were most likely a dozen impalas, if that is what they were as I am not positive. I saw the monkey or chimp or whatever it was as again, I am not sure, on the top of a tree, looking straight out the window.

I never realized how mountainous Tanzania is. I think I always imagined that the mountains here would be more similar to the foothills back home, but they are not. They really are quite tall (but not like the Rockies) and are very beautiful. So as we were climbing up another steep slope and I was deciding whether to close my eyes and not look so as not to be freaked out by the long drop down I took a quick glance. And wouldn’t you know it, there was a monkey eye level with me! It was kinda cool and took my mind off how uncomfortable I had gotten. 8 hours in the bus by then, no AC and every time we stopped I would get so hot my skin was very wet. I don’t think I have ever been that hot and uncomfortable before. Maybe if I would have a little more room. But with Momma and her 2 kids and a lady sitting on a crate in the aisle there were 6 adults and 2 kids straight across.

Than to top it all off I missed my stop. The bus was supposed to drop me at the entrance to Riverside, but they didn’t. Then when we got to Iringa I did not know that was where we were and so I did not get off. But I knew something wasn’t right so I called Steve and he talked to the lady behind me and we realized I did not get off at the bus station in Iringa. Thankfully we were still in Iringa so the bus let me off at a gas station. The attendant there found me a taxi and I made my way North again and this time arrived at my destination.

March 4

I am staying in Stone Banda 2 and it is lovely. I have 3 beds (even though I only need one lol), a little fridge,  a closet to hang some clothes, a couple small tables and my own bathroom. I have had a couple days of Swahili classes and it is going well. A little bit overwhelming and I feel like I have not had the time to process any of it yet. I would do that over the weekend but I am going on a safari to Ruaha National Park tomorrow morning, back Sunday sometime with the rest of the group that is also here at Riverside.

Weekly Gratitude

I have been slack on my idea of posting a weekly gratitude but I figure better late than never.
Since arriving in Tanzania I have grateful for the companionship and guidance of the MCC team that is already here and to the Iringa Rd Mennonite Church (IRMC) team. Without them I do not know how I would have survived my first 3 weeks.They have all gone out of their way to open their doors and hearts to me. They answer any and all of my questions, no matter how silly they may seem :)
At this time I do not have pictures, but hope to sometime in the future.

Akron Photos- Part Two

I just realized I never published this post, even though it was more or less ready.

Here are more photos of Akron and area. I love how quaint this place is. I never in my life thought I would actually see an Amish horse and buggy in real life!

Above is a typical picture of the countryside here, which you can easily see by just walking a few blocks in any give direction.
Below are some pictures of the town closest to Akron, Ephrata. I love the main street with the old buildings that are all fixed up.

 I couldn't decide if I liked the color or the black and white better so I thought I would let you all vote :)

And last but not least, the buggy!

 

 

A Glimpse of my Africa

I am at the office today and thought I would take advantage of it and upload some photos. Naturally I am not in any of them :) and I have not edited any of them.

  

Learning how to make tering ropes.

 

 

Everyone is signing together to encourage those who are 

pounding in stakes with rocks (aka Jodi's Hammer).

 

The women are digging planting stations. 

We set up a timed race between the men and women. 

 

The mens' turn showing how fast they can dig planting stations.

 

Two of my favorite little girls and Don.

 

Group photo from when we finished planting one of the 

nine demonstration gardens. 

 

One of the many mommas who have welcomed me.

Those in this village have already given me a Swahili name,

Mamma Mamvula. It more or less means Women of Rain.

Ma is almost the same as women and mvulu means rain.

They gave me this name because it had not rained for a month prior to my arriving even though it is the rainy season right now. Within 2 days of me coming to Dodoma it rained everyday for 6 days. 

I am honored to have already received a Swahili name from one of the 

communities that I will be working with.

2 little boys who followed us everywhere as we were discussing
with the village group the best place to build the next sand dam.

The picture below is the view up-river of where one of the

sand dams will be built this year.

And that is a quick glimpse of Africa for you.