Blogs from Africa - page 2776

Yesterday we started our volunteer placements. Another girl from Vancouver is also placed at my school. The school is very small, it is one building with 2 rooms, it's made out of cement with a tin roof. the kids sit on benches around the perimeter of the clasroom and there is a chalkboard and a desk at the front for the teacher. it's very basic, but the kids are very sweet and eager. yesterday we worked on writing and today we did math and good behaviour. there are about 25 kids, between the ages of 4-6, they are really cute. they all fight to hold our hands and be next to us. today we also went into the market, which was insane! it's very crazy, tonnes of people, selling everything, lots of vegetable stands, clothes, shoes, ... read more

Today's entry is short but sweet , as there is a limited amount that we can say. And it is this.... Fudge. Dolce & Banana. Camps Bay. Champan's Peak. Sunset. Phroar. For more information read on.... Fudge: A delicious delicacy from Sublime...a factory shop...mmmmmmmmm...if ever in town...please visit! Dolce & Banana: A groovy shop with lots of one-off pieces of jewellry and a fantastic name! Camps Bay: Fantastic surf shop and the best cafe we've found called No 16. Great service and brilliant views! Chapman's Peak: Always superb views..but even better at... Sunset: Don't be so lazy...look for yourself!!! (Or just check the photos!) Phroar: An exhausting afternoon and three room-mates asleep by 9pm! ***erm.....you know the drill.....photos will follow!***... read more

Hello everyone, One of the main events of the past week was the first Teacher's Workshop for the ladies of the congregation in Moshi. This was the first time they experienced a program of this kind. Judy Hall, who has been visiting from the States, gave a lesson concerning the accountability that teachers have for what they teach. I gave a lesson on the purpose of Bible class. After our lessons, Julie Richardson divided the ladies into four groups. Each group was given a segment of Scripture, and the ladies were given the assignment to made a visual aid to illustrate the Scripture. This was a completely new concept to these ladies. They were a little apprehensive at first, but after a little help, they started getting the idea. One of the assignments was related ... read more

Feeling refreshed after ten hours of Z’s, we headed out to explore. Inside The Salvation Army’s compound is a school for physically handicapped children. We toured the school in the morning, speaking with a number of staff members about its operation and students. If you are physically handicapped in Tanzania it’s more than likely you will be shunned. Many miss out on schooling and those who are educated are still not likely to be employed. The Salvation Army is trying to change this mind-set. At the School for the Physically Handicapped the children are treated with love and respect. There are about 180 students, half of whom live at the facility because their family lives outside of Dar es Salaam. The children don’t just get an education, but three meals a day, individual physiotherapy sessions ... read more

Africa is, truly, very very different from Canada. The people! The views! And (as mentioned before) the Kamikaze drivers! This past Sunday I traveled to several small villages in the east of Rwanda (roughly a 2 hour walk from the Tanzanian border) with some friends, and visited the people there. It was amazing! All of the people that I met were very kind and friendly, despite the fact that they didn't speak English or French, so all conversations were through a translator. The views, magnificent! In the last village that we went to there were kids EVERYWHERE! When we arrived about 60 kids started chasing our car, and kept up since we were going slowly (terrible roads). And then when I got out they swarmed me and I ended up shaking all 120 hands proffered, ... read more