Blogs from Moshi, North, Tanzania, Africa - page 34

I've now been in the country for nearly 2 months and I've just about stopped making comparisons between here and my experiences in India. Well almost. Unfair and trite as it may be, it's been impossible not to. Once again, I've found myself having to adapt to and soak up a different culture. But this time I feel like I’m wearing my own clothes. I don’t feel quite so ‘other’ here. Things seem somehow more familiar, more Western. I’m surrounded Western music, Western cothes (mostly football shirts for the men and shimmering polyester dresses for the women), TV programmes. And thouh I am ‘muzungu’. I’m not stared at quite so much… Or at least not in the same way. In fact, in Dar (as in Moshi) I had my own cultural shock as to how many ... read more

It's been an eventful week, full of the unexpected - bumping into people, going to weddings, meeting up with AIDS consultants and gathering material for the library/reception at Kinshai. As ever, nothing ever quite goes according to expectations. So, having gotten to a conference in Swahili, one of the things I did was take advantage of the location and go for a hike in the Uluguru hills. These are about 3 hours south west of Dar. I was taken up by a guide - 26 year old James, who wanted to know why I thought some people are poor and some are rich. He asked me about education in the UK, social services, poverty and he also wanted to know what I thought about (the common practice here) of polygamy. He escorted me on the 16 ... read more

Well my previously miserable, depression filled and boring days of Arusha have finally been put behind me. Monday morning I made the ardruous walk across town from room 205 of the Arusha at Night Annex Hotel to the more modest, downtown, appartment style dwelling that is the Lutheran Center. After four days there, I’m not entirely certain what it is the “Lutheran Center” does, but they managed to be good hosts, and quiet. Although I had planned an entire day for this epic transition, the whole thing was over and done with in a matter of minutes. Thus is the reality of a prison-style sentence in a no-good town. My first order of business was to get DHL and the receptionist at my guest house prepared for the iminent arrival of my lovely green ATM card. ... read more

Hello Friends and Family! After traveling for around 21 hours, we have arrived! We have settled into the Springlands Hotel, had a fabulous breakfast, and are ready to explore Moshi. Today is a day to relax because tomorrow we will begin our trip up Mt. Kilimanjaro! :-) Our hike will last 7 days, so don't be alarmed if you don't hear from us for a while. :-) Everyone is super-friendly and I can tell we are going to have a great time here! Hugs to everyone, and I'll keep you posted on our adventures!!! Love from: Jen, Paul, Vaughn, and Laura... read more

In addition to all of the other amazing things I've had the chance to do on this trip, yesterday I was lucky enough to go on Safari!!! We went to the Ngorongoro Crater, which is right next to the Serenghetti and about a 5 hour drive from where we're staying in Moshi. 9 people from our group went, and we woke up at 5 to get on the road early. Once in the park, we were struck by the diversity of the land - sometimes seeming like a rainforest, and other times a grassland. The crater itself is the caldera of an old volcano and is about 20 km across. The sides of the crater are incredibly steep, and our 4-wheel drive van bounced around like crazy while we went through the switchbacks. Inside the giant ... read more