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Published: August 30th 2009
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A view of one of the housesThings are starting to fall into place here at JBFC. On Monday we went into Mwanza, which is a small town of about 1.5 million people. The bustling streets reminded me of my experience in Ghana last year, though spiced with Indian undertones and Middle Eastern flavor. Although Tanzania is a bit more conservative in general than most West African countries, the people always greet me with smiles and the cultures is rich.
After picking up some groceries and other odds and ends, we all (me, Chris, and two other volunteers) went to a hotel on the shores of Lake Victoria. The hotel had a cute restaurant equipped with a bar and may ex-pats. We were greeted by English speaking Tanzanian staff members and a raggedy looking white guy. This guy was relatively young, maybe late 30’s to early 40’s. He had yellowed teeth, leathered skin and wore dirty shorts, a holy tank top and no shoes. I assumed he was just a random staff member or a regular customer of some sort. However, when he came up to us and said, “What can we get for you guys today,” in a very thick South African accent, I realized that
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our tomato plants he wasn’t a bum, but the owner. He greeted Chris like an old friend and eyed us (the female volunteers) up with an oily glance. He check us in and showed us to our rooms, which came complete with mosquito nets, plumbing, electricity and hot water! A nice break from life at the farm. And we could drink alcohol there!!
Drinking is extremely taboo in Tanzania and you can almost never find a woman smoking But at this particular ex-pat hang out you can most certainly find both. That night we watched the sun set on the lake, which I am now dubbing, “The Lake of Shining Waters” for all of you Anne of Green Gable’s fans out there. It was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen, that is until the Masai warriors who guarded the hotel began to pace around the property.
These men were so tall and elegant, walking with their brightly colored wrap cloths and spears in hand. We tried our best to communicate with them but thy were extremely stoic in a fierce, majestic way. Apparently they work 3-4 months out of the year in town to make money for their
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one our farm hands who had just dug out a huge rock from our driveway villages. Then they return to live in the bush for the remainder of the year. An anthropologist’s dream!!! The only unfortunate thing about that night was that while I we were relaxing on the beach I became a very tasty meal for about 1,000 mosquitos and now have red, itchy welts all over my legs that are taking quite a long time to heal. Such is Africa I suppose.
On Friday we went back into town again to run some errands. This time it was my mission to get some fabric to make into skirts and also to make some curtains for my room. I chose one of the many textile shops on a busy street. This particular one was run by a couple from India who inquired about who I was and what I was doing in Tanzania. When I told them I was an English teacher they became very excited and told me they wanted me to come teach them English. With the tile of “English Teacher” comes many perks in a developing country. This particular shop only sold whole-sale cloth, but for me they gave me any fabric I wanted at an individual rate. I was
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the Mama's sorting beans for dinner extremely thankful and told them I would visit them again soon. Next I went to find some baskets to organize my room with. This was where my excellent bargaining skills came into play. I bought a total of 6 large woven baskets for about $10 USD, although they wanted about $25. I gave myself a pat on the back for that one. Perhaps I could have knocked off another $5 if I had told them I was an English teacher.
Life at the farm has been very laid back. I won’t begin my teaching until a week from tomorrow, but I am very much looking forward to it. I am working very hard on my Swahili with Mama Nema, who is my language partner. She laughs at almost everything and puts me at ease when I completely butcher pronunciation or spelling. I am in the process of learning useful phrases for my classroom like, “raise your hand please,” and “it’s time to listen now,” to make the first weeks of class run smoothly. My favorite word though is “sijui” which means “I don’t know.” Something that gets me out of any awkward situation.
The girls are starting to
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my feet in Lake Victoria warm up to me. We played a 2 hour game of Red Rover Red Rover yesterday, which helped me to learn most of their names. The youngest ones are the most receptive to attention, which we give them a lot of. Zai is the newest member of the JBFC family and was picked up the day that I arrived in Tanzania. Usually a girl is very shy when they first come to JBFC, but Zai is possibly one of the bubbliest and bossy girls I’ve met. She loves back rides and playing the, “you can’t catch me” game. I think she will be a Chatty Cathy in class, but I’m sure I’ll find a way to get her to focus. Sometimes in the evenings the girls put on singing performances for us (the volunteers) which make us both laugh and cry. It has been extremely moving for me to see these girls so happy and joyful when they have such terrifying and devastating pasts.
This morning I attended my first church service here in Kitongo, which was a fun experience. We (the volunteers and girls) carried benches to an area in the bush between JBFC and the Kitongo town
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the beautiful sunset over the lake center where a blue tarp had been put up as a make-shift roof. There were about 60 people total gathered under the shady haven, about half of them being children or babies. As kids scrambled onto the “white ladies’” laps, the service began. It included performances by the JBFC choir and the Kitongo choir. Both were energetic and joyful as they sang praises of thanks. This was followed by an hour long sermon given by a very smiley man. As he preached on, a little girl named Mary, who was sitting on my lap, took this time to examine my skin, arm hair, nails and accessories. When it was finally time to get up and leave she clung to me as if I was a prize she had won and didn’t want to lose. After her mother scrapped her off of me she smiled and waved as she was carried back to the village. All of the other volunteers were swarmed by children vying for camera attention, but we eventually made it back to JBFC in one piece.
It has been quite a first week here in Tanzania. I still can’t get over the wonderful weather and the amazing
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three little munchkins view. I am truly humbled when I wake up every morning and stare out at the sun sparkling off of the lake and hear the fisherman humming their morning hymns. I can’t wait to see what this next week brings. Stay tuned…
Fact of the Day: At large meals/gatherings, men and women don’t eat together in Tanzania. The men eat at a table and the women eat wherever else there is space. Something I will have to get used to.
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Laurie
non-member comment
WOW!
Kelsey, it is such a joy to read your entries...thanks for taking the time to write so much for we who wish we had had similar journeys when we were young! I know you will have a terrific experience and will be a great teacher! Be well...L