Yoghurt Project up and Running!

I am so pleased to announce that the yoghurt project is up and running! The Mamas received their startup capital in the form of a loan and purchased everything required for business. I spent this week visiting and getting to know them a little better. There are currently three “yoghurt mamas” – Mama Anna, Mama Stella, and Mama Paulina. Mama Anna is the only Mama who knows a little bit of English, but also asked me if I would teach her more, which I was happy to do!

Teaching Mama Anna English

The Mamas have voiced their desire to maintain maximum operational freedom and make their own decisions. They feel the project failed previously due to prescriptive top down management leading to a lack of personal involvement. As a result, I will take somewhat of a distant role in terms of decision making, but will provide guidance and support as needed.  I would also like to provide them with education regarding the health benefits of probiotics and/or reviewing appropriate quality control procedures in the kitchen

logo painted on the wall of the kitchen - created by the wonderful 2010 summer interns!

St. Elizabeth Hospital Visit

This week I visited the St. Elizabeth Hospital which is where the probiotics will be cultured for use in the yoghurt. I met the two doctors (Patrick and Charles) who will be preparing them and they informed me that they have all the materials required. The only obstacle at this time is that the area of the hospital where the autoclave is to be situated is under construction. Therefore we have to wait for this to be completed, which I was told should take a week or so. However, this is Africa so I’m not really sure what that means?

Note: an autoclave is an essential instrument required for sterilization. It is needed in order to safely carry out the process of preparing the probiotics.

Olevolos Project

A couple weeks ago three girls from Boston University came to the New Sahara Café while I was working. I asked them a little bit about what they were doing here and they told me they were on their spring break volunteering with the Olevolos Project. I told them I am looking for additional volunteer opportunities and they said my help is definitely needed. I got in touch with the Director (James) and last  Friday I visited the Olevolos Project and learned more about it!

What is the Olevolos Project?

This project is based on the belief that all kids have a right to meet their full potential; but in our world today, too many kids never get a chance. The Olevolos project is a not-for-profit organization formed to benefit orphans and disadvantaged children in the Olevolos village of Tanzania. Their aim is to develop young leaders in the Olevolos village through formal schooling, tutoring programs, and extra curricular activities.

In January 2010, the opened their doors to the first class of nursery school students; this year they welcomed the second class. They have also started three community initiatives (an adolescent counseling group, youth recreational program, and women’s microsavings group) in addition to their ongoing education sponsorship program.

Mission:

To develop young leaders in the Olevolos Village through formal schooling, tutoring programs, and extra-curricular activities.

Vision:

A village where young people become educated leaders and serve as role models for future generations.

Values:

1.       Excellence in teaching

2.       Local community involvement, ownership, and investment

3.       Equitable access to education, particularly for vulnerable children

4.       Supportive and nurturing environment for children to learn and grow

5.       Life-skills and leadership development 

History:

Education sector reforms began in Tanzania in 1995.  The main purpose of the reforms was to ensure equitable access to education.  However, the reforms were not comprehensive and only focused on primary school.  Additionally, students were still expected to pay for their own uniforms, books, and school supplies.  Because of this, it was not an economic reality for everyone.  Many children do not have the financial support to pay for the necessary materials or for the fees associated with pre-primary and secondary schooling.

The Olevolos Project was founded in 2007 to create educational opportunities for disadvantaged children from the Olevolos Village in Tanzania, Africa.  Our mission is to develop young leaders through formal schooling, tutoring programs, and extra-curricular activities.  Because we aim to improve access and equality to education, we pay for all the expenses for students who are unable.  Given that many of these kids lack proper nutritional meals, we have developed a school-feeding program.

Lastly, engagement with the local community is a defining part of our project.  Understanding the importance of this engagement, we work closely with the District Commissioner, Village Council, and village people to leverage goals and maximize impact in the community. Because of this, they are incorporated into every aspect of our programming.  Villagers volunteer at the site, join us in parent meetings, and sit on our advisory board.  We believe the ultimate success of the project lies in the hands of the Olevolos people.

Currently the children will be off school for one month. On Friday a lottery was held to determine which children will have the opportunity to attend the school next month. There are 100 children registered but only 24 spots! The 24 children have now been selected and next week will be spent visiting their homes to make sure they qualify for the sponsorship. To qualify they must be either a two parent or single parent orphan. The children who are not orphans can still attend but they are required to pay the school fees.

Chris is back!

Chris returned last Thursday from his 6 day adventure climbing Mount Kilimanjaro! He called me on his way back and asked me to bring him home three doughnuts from the Café, so I knew he was still his old self! Haha J

 I was so happy to see him alive and walking! He was absolutely exhausted, and I admit, he looked pretty warn out, actually extremely warn out! He told me he got more than enough food (which says a lot), but I still think he shed a few pounds! He said the climb is definitely one of the hardest mental and physical things he has ever done. I’m very glad he’s back and really admire his mental and physical toughness in conquering this grueling task! Chris, you should be so proud of yourself. The memories you acquired will be with you for a lifetime!

I encourage you to check out his blog to learn more about his adventure at: http://christopherstuartheadseast.blogspot.com/

Highlight of the Week

Coincidently I met up with a friend from Mwanza on Saturday who was in Arusha with her Mom for a short holiday. They told me they were going on a waterfall hike the next day, and invited me to come along! Since this was on the top of my list as one of the things I’ve wanted to do, I decided not to pass up the opportunity!

It turned out to be a great decision! The hike was extremely challenging and tiring, taking 5 hours to reach the waterfall, but it was all worth it!

Waterfall!

Path on the way to the waterfall

First full week in Arusha

This week I spent some of my time experimenting and talking to people about various volunteer opportunities as I wait for the yoghurt mamas to receive their startup capital. I spent some time at Home of Hope to help teach English to nursery school children but I think they appreciated me playing with them a lot more! Every time I go, they run up to me and compete aggressively for a chance to hold my hand or touch me. All the children come from very poor families; they are so sweet and innocent! There is also a program at Home of Hope for older children (at a separate time) who only have their primary school education and are trying to complete their secondary school education. This program just started in February and currently only 15 students are enrolled. It is really great because it gives these kids a chance to further their education, who maybe thought they were destined to a life of poverty. I spoke with one of the teachers at this program and learned that the students are learning English, Math, Biology, Chemistry, Geography, History, Kiswahili, and Civics. I am hoping to help the students with English next week.

              

  I also spent some of my time volunteering at the New Sahara Café. It’s been a really great experience, but as a whole it’s really not a lot different than working at a small restaurant in Canada apart from the Kiswahili, food served, sanitary conditions, and a few other minor things. Only one of the other waitresses speaks English so I am forced to use/learn Swahili. I realize that in order to really learn a language you have to be in an environment where everyone is speaking it. Yes reading books helps, but it’s just not the same as physically surrounding yourself by those who constantly speak it. I think I’ve learned more Swahili in one week than I did in one month!

On Wednesday Chris and I had planned to visit the Arusha International Conference Centre (AICC), which is where the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda is located. We had already found out earlier that all that was required was a passport and you were free to come in and watch the court proceedings. However, for some reason there were no trials taking place this week so we’ll have to reschedule our trip!

 Since that was our plan for the day, we were a little uncertain about what to do for the remainder of our time. So, we just started walking and soon came across “The Arusha Hotel”. We decided to go inside and check it out. I was so impressed! It is absolutely gorgeous; I don’t think I’ve ever stayed in a hotel that nice before. I felt like I was in a different world. The first thing on my mind was to use the bathroom, which was beautiful. It was so clean; it smelled great, there was soap and hot water, and toilet paper! (I’ve learned that I have to carry extra toilet paper in my purse everywhere I go because it’s rare to come across bathrooms let alone toilet paper!). I think it is definitely worth the daladala trip into town just to use the bathroom…which says a lot! We also checked out the restaurant that had a delicious salad bar set up which definitely made my mouth water. This may sound odd, but one thing I really miss about Canada is my daily salad!  I asked how much it costs to stay there for one night, the answer: $250 USD! I admit it was pretty hard for me to get up out of the comfy, clean leather chair to leave. When we left Chris and I were discussing how unreal it is how close the rich and the poor are. One minute we are in this rich high class hotel, and then we walk out the door into a poor run down town with people begging for money, children in tattered clothes, and people trying to make their dollar go as far as possible just to get by. It is quite an eye opening experience.

After this, we came across a tourists dream destination! It was like a small market selling everything you can imagine in one location! There were bracelets, necklaces, earrings, kangas, scarves, paintings, purses, bags, etc, etc, etc! And most of the people in the shops make everything! They are so talented!

I felt kind of like a celebrity walking through, all the mamas were competing for my attention, telling me they would give me a good price, and pulling me into their shops! I told them that day I was just looking but I would definitely be back!

                Early this week Chris made the bold decision that he wanted to climb Mount Kilimanjaro! He got in touch with a good company and before we knew it, he found out he had the chance to go on Saturday with two other people from Melbourne Australia! I decided I would just do the day trip which involves trekking the mountain for one day to the first point (campsite). On Saturday morning we were picked up by a big safari jeep by 7:30am and made the two hour trip to Moshi. The entire ride was in the pouring rain (Arusha is currently in the rainy season) which was a little unsettling, but luckily when we arrived at the gate for our route the rain had stopped, at least for a little while. I started ahead of the others with my day trip guide Godluck. He was such a nice guy, and he helped the time pass by providing me with a lot of interesting facts about the mountain and all the different times he’s climbed. One thing that I can’t get over is how strong the porters (people who carry all your bags, food, etc) are! They carry up to 20kg up the entire mountain, and they must stay ahead of the climbers so they arrive in time to set up at each campsite. Some of them will climb up to 3 or 4 times per month! And keep in mind that it takes about 6 days to get up and back down the mountain!

                Overall my hike was a pretty cool experience. The scenery was really beautiful and most of the time the paths had fairly even footing. There were many steep areas but also flatter parts for some down time. It took about 3 hours to get to the first point (my goal), and by the last hour it had started to pour rain again! I did have a rain jackets, pants, and an umbrella so it wasn’t that bad. But, when we reached the first point there was no shelter (like the trees provided when we were walking) so we had to walk down a ways to find a place to eat our picnic lunch which was provided. We found a spot and huddled under my umbrella where we quickly consumed half of a cheese and carrot sandwich, a hardboiled egg, a piece of chicken, some glucose biscuits, and a juice box!

                The way down was obviously much easier and took about half the time. We passed Chris and his crew and I wished him the best of luck and told him to stay positive! One thing the climbers are constantly told is to take it very pole pole (slowly slowly). They say many young fit people go too fast at the beginning and don’t have the strength left at the end to make it to the summit. On day 4 the climbers wake up at 12:00am and make the final trek to the summit for 6 hours! I was pretty tired after the climbing for over 4 hours, and admit the day trip was enough for me! I’m wishing Chris and all the climbers the best of luck this week as they make their way up Mount Kilimanjaro; it truly is a remarkable task that takes extreme mental and physical toughness! I can’t wait to hear all Chris’s stories when he returns next week!

The Jeep we took to Moshi

Climbing team!

Me and my guide!

The super strong porters!!!

Mount Kilimanjaro Facts

Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa and the fourth highest of the seven summits. It is the tallest freestanding mountain in the world, rising to an altitude of 5,898m (19,341 ft) above sea level. In addition, it is one of the biggest volcanoes on Earth, covering an area of approximately 388,500 hectares. It began forming a million years ago when lava spilled from the Rift Valley zone.

There are six official climbing routes by which to climb Mt Kilimanjaro, namely: Marangu, Rongai, Lemosho, Shira, Umbwe abd Machame.

Chris will be taking the Machame route. It is regarded by many as the most enjoyable, although it is longer and according to most, more arduous. The route begins on the south side of the mountain; the trail passes through some of the mountain’s finest features, including the cloud forest of Kili’s southern slopes, the dry and dusty Shira Plateau and the delightful senecio-clad Barranco Campsite.  

Unlike the Marangu Route, on the Machame Route you don’t use the same path to descend as you took to climb up the mountain, but instead you come down via the Mweka Route, a steep but very pretty descent encompassing inhospitably dry mountain desert and lush lowland forest in a matter of a few hours.

Weather on Kilimanjaro

Kilimanjaro is big enough to have its own weather pattern. The theory behind this pattern is very simple. Strong winds travel across the oceans, drawing moisture as they go up. Eventually they collide with a large object (Mt. Kilimanjaro). The winds are pushed upwards as they hit the mountain slopes, and the fall in temperature and atmospheric pressure leads to precipitation (snow and rain).

The south-east trade wind brings rain from the Indian Ocean between March and May. Then there are the dry ‘anti-trade’ winds from the north-east which carry no rain and hit Kilimanjaro between May and October. A second seasonal rain-bearing wind, the north-east monsoon, having already most of its moisture after travelling overland for a long period, brings a short rainy season between November and February. However, all the rain falls mainly below 3000m. You may be wondering how the snow on the summit got there if all the precipitation falls below 3000m? The answer is blowing in the (anti-trade) wind: though these winds normally blow very strongly, as those who walk north across the Saddle will testify, they occasionally drop in force, allowing the south-east trade winds that run beneath them to climb up the southern slopes to the Saddle and on to the summit. Huge banks of clouds then develop and snow falls. This, at least, is the theory of Kilimanjaro’s climate. In practice, of course, the mountain is rarely so predictable.

What is the temperature on Mount Kilimanjaro?    

The short answer is that the temperatures on Mount Kilimanjaro range from hot to bitter cold. The journey from the gate to the peak is like traveling from the equator to Antarctica in a matter of days. This is because the routes to the Uhuru peak cross different ecological zones. Mount Kilimanjaro has five major ecological zones, each approximately 3,280 feet (1,000 m) in altitude. Each zone is subject to a corresponding decrease in rainfall, temperature and life as the altitude increases.

Mount Kilimanjaro does not experience wide temperature changes from season to season. Instead, the temperatures on Mount Kilimanjaro are determined more so by the altitude and time of day. At the beginning of the climb, at the base of the mountain, the average temperature is around 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit (21 to 27 degrees Celsius). From there, the temperatures will decrease as you move through Mount Kilimanjaro's ecological zones. At the summit, Uhuru Point, the night time temperatures can range between 0 and -15 degrees Fahrenheit (-18 to -26 degrees Celsius).

Note: The Seven Summits, a well-known mountaineering objective, are the highest peaks on each of the seven continents. The Seven Summits, from highest to lowest, are:

1.   Asia: Mount Everest 29,035 feet (8850 meters)

2.   South America: Aconcagua 22,829 feet (6962 meters)

3.   North America: Denali AKA Mount McKinley 20,320 feet (6194 meters)

4.   Africa: Kilimanjaro 19,340 feet (5895 meters)

5.   Europe: Mount Elbrus 18,510 feet (5642 meters)

6.   Antarctica: Mount Vinson 16,067 feet (4897 meters)

7.   Australia: Mount Kosciusko 7,310 feet (2228 meters)
OR

8.   Australasia/Oceania: Carstensz Pyramid 16,023 feet (4884 meters)

Other interesting Facts!

-          Just when I thought the daladala rides couldn’t get any worse I was proven wrong. On the morning of my birthday (Thursday) it was pouring rain! Luckily I had my umbrella, so I made my way to catch the daladala. Thursdays and Sundays are market days in Ngaramtoni so the daladalas are absolutely packed! After letting a few jam packed daladalas pass, I realized I just had to get on the next one or else I’d never get there. I don’t know how I fit, but all I know is that the door was open and I was hanging on for dear life! Later in the day Chris returned to tell me he also had a horrible daladala experience. He was sitting beside a man holding around 20 live chickens by the feet which were flapping right at his legs! This must have been extra disturbing for Chris as he has a fear of chickens! Pole sana!

-          I ate a fish eye! Usually when you order fish from a restaurant here you are served exactly that – a whole fish – eyes and brains included. I haven’t had the guts to do it for a while, but finally on my birthday I went for it! I’ve heard they have a lot of protein too!

Boiled Tilapia

Arusha!

Bus Trip to Arusha

On Tuesday morning Chris and I awoke bright and early at 3:30am to complete darkness, as the power was out yet again! Luckily we had done most of our packing in the daylight and only had a few last minute items to pack up! Stanley arrived to pick us up at 4:00am (on time!) and kindly drove us to the bus station.

                Our bus departed Mwanza at 6:00am and we arrived in Arusha at 7:00pm! Yes, it was a very long 13 hours! We had one stop at the side of the road and one stop at an African café for a total of about 10 minutes. Other than that, there were only a few short stops at random bus stations where there was virtually no time to leave your seat! The ride was not exactly the most comfortable either, for the majority of the time we weren’t even driving on paved roads – they were all dirt roads with huge pot holes that jostled me around my seat and there was virtually no space between Chris and I. But, all in all in wasn’t as bad as some of the horror bus ride stories I’ve heard, and I can now say that I survived a 13 hour bus ride in Africa!

                Arriving at the Arusha Bus station is another story! It was probably the most stressful experience I’ve had since arriving in Tanzania. It was dark when we arrived so Chris and I knew we had to be quick and efficient in collecting our bags and finding a taxi! As soon as I stepped off the bus I was surrounded by about 5 different men asking me if a I needed a taxi, grabbing my arm, trying to take my bags, etc. Then a young British man asked me if I was from Western Heads East and I quickly said YES!! It was Tom, a man who works with the Mondo Foundation and had arranged to meet us at the bus station! Wow, I was so relived!

Side note: What is the Mondo Foundation?

The MondoChallenge Foundation was registered by the Charity Commissioners in October 2004 and has already raised more than £550,000 to support education and business development in countries across the developing world. The donors include UK and international companies, grant giving trusts, individuals and mondochallenge volunteers, who have long been supportive of the Foundation.

What are their Aims?

They believe in community based programmes, providing education and business support projects to those who are most in need. The local managers guide and monitor donations. This enables them to act quickly, with the support and help of local people, on grassroots projects that make a huge difference to people’s lives.

Their efforts are focused towards providing support for education at all levels, as well as working towards the relief of sickness and financial hardship through for example:

Making grants of money to enable those suffering from HIV and related illnesses to set up small businesses, as well as providing local support to maximize the success of these businesses.
In Tanzania, they have already helped 300 HIV affected widows to create a livelihood and to provide their families with better food and housing.

The Mondo Foundation is the organization that is helping the Yoghurt Mamas here with the startup capital for their business.

Chris managed to get our bags from beneath the bus, but not without having to pay money because apparently they were too big. I was relieved to finally be in a taxi with all our belongings and heading to Sakina Campsite, my new home for the next month and a half. We were kindly greeted by Robert (a worker here) and Regina (the cook). I was absolutely exhausted, and basically dropped by suitcases into my room ate some dinner and went to bed!

I was feeling much better when I awoke on Wednesday morning to the beautiful sunshine! I had finally caught my breath and ready to take in my new surroundings. I walked around the campsite a little bit and there is an amazing view of Mount Meru from the backyard. Mount Meru, is a dormant volcanic cone that, at 4566m, is Tanzania’s second-highest mountain.

Mount Meru View from Campsite

 Sakina camp is a very nice bed and breakfast type hostel located between Arusha town and Ngaramtoni (which is where the yoghurt project is). Currently, Chris and I are the only people staying here so it feels like we have so much space and attention, especially coming from Mwanza where we shared a room and were living with 3 other people in a small apartment.  Everything is so new and different and feels like we are living a completely different lifestyle than Mwanza. However, we were informed that there are 14 missionaries arriving on Monday for 2 days, so the peace and quiet we’ve enjoyed sounds like it may come to an end for a couple days, but it will be nice to meet some new people! We were spoiled in Mwanza where we lived with two previous interns who showed us all around and introduced us to lots of people. Here, Chris and I are little bit more on our own to find places and meet people!

Front View of Sakina Campsite

Front lawn of Sakina Campsite (great for tanning)

                On Wednesday Regina (the cook here) took Chris and I into Arusha town to the Market. Arusha is a lot different from Mwanza, it is much more developed and there are many more tourists as Arusha is essentially the gateway to many tourist destinations including, the Serengeti, Ngorongoro crater, Mount Meru, Mount Kilimanjaro, etc. Walking around town for the first time, I found I didn’t get as many stares or “mzungu” comments which was kind of nice! Coming from Mwanza to Arusha town is somewhat like going from London Ontario to New York City. Chris and I continued to explore the town for a couple hours to try and figure out where things were and get oriented. We realized this it will definitely take a few days, especially for me and my poor direction sense! As we were walking, we came across a store called “Shoprite” which is essentially the Superstore of Africa. It sells a wide selection of American foods and when I walked in I felt like I was in a grocery store in Canada, but to be honest I don’t miss the American feel. I was expecting the products to be outrageously priced, but I didn’t find this, in fact it is the cheapest place to buy water I’ve seen yet and is now the go to place to stalk up!

Other Opportunities

Anyone who knows me well is aware that I love to be busy…ALL the time! Since the mamas have vocalized that they really want to lead the project and their business, my involvement with them won’t be everyday especially for the time being while we are waiting for them to receive the funds. This means I need something else to keep me occupied!

I expressed this to Robert who works at Sakina Camp and he kindly got me in touch with a man named Herry who is the director of an organization called Home of Hope, which is a small non-profit organization that provides support in a variety of ways for families who are victims of extreme poverty. They have a new centre which just opened in 2010 that is used as a nursery school and also holds awareness classes for adults in the village. The classes teach about HIV/AIDS and educate people on how they can try to improve their lives and bring themselves out of poverty.

I met with Herry on Friday and he basically told me his life story. He came from a very poor family and I think this is where is motivation to start this school comes from. The school located in Ngaramtoni as well.  It is very tiny with only two small classrooms and two teachers. There is a morning program from 8:30-11:30 for 3-7 year olds then older children come at 3:00-5:30pm. He said they always need volunteers to play with the kids, teach, etc. I got a good vibe from the school and the kids when I visited so I told him I will be back on Monday to see where I can help! 

Home of Hope School

Classroom

Chris and I with some of the kids

New Sahara Café

This café is also located in Ngaramtoni and as mentioned earlier David owns the Café. David is a member of the Mondo Foundation and is involved with helping out the Naserian Yoghurt Mamas. He is such a kind man and is constantly welcoming me and asking me if I am ok. He has hosted many volunteers at his home and said he loves introducing foreigners to Ngaramotni. I decided to ask him if I can help him out at all with his café. He said he would love my help! So, on Friday he introduced me to the staff and he taught me the basic Swahili words to say as a waitress (i.e, Karibu = welcome, una taka nini: what do you want? Una ongeza = do you want more? Etc) and I began serving the customers! It was an awesome experience! The Café is really popular serving authentic African dishes including Uglai, Wali, Mboga, Nyama, Beans, Mchicha, chapatti, chai, doughnuts, etc.

There are about 3-4 waitresses, 2 cooks, 1 dish lady, and 1 cashier who work every day of the week from 7:00am-9:00pm!!! Talk about a long day! 

Other interesting observations

1.       Dust town!

-          I thought Mwanza was extremely dusty/dirty, but to my surprise, I find Arusha to be  a lot dustier, and Ngaramtoni even more so! There are times when Chris and I will be walking through town and all of a sudden a huge dust storm blows in and we can’t see one step in front of us! At the end of the day I pretty look another shade darker than I actually am because I have a film of dirt covering me!

Street in Ngaramtoni

2. -          Sakina Camp is located on an unfinished highway, so when we walk out it is basically just   rocks that are very hard to navigate through. The other day, a taxi that came to pick us up got stuck and the boys had to push it free!

Pushing the stuck taxi!

Last Week in Mwanza!

 

Chris and I have just finished our last week in Mwanza working with the yoghurt mamas and will soon be off to Arusha! We have had an amazing time here and met so many awesome people. I’ve done things I never imagined I could do and have learned a lot about myself! We will be leaving for Arusha on March 8^th, and although we are sad to leave, we are both excited for the next adventure that awaits us in Arusha. I am looking forward to living in another area of Tanzania and experiencing a new atmosphere and meeting new people. We are scheduled to work with another group of Yoghurt Mamas in Arusha who have just started, but are not exactly certain on the status of the project. But, we are excited to see what Arusha has in store for us!

Here are a few highlights from our last week!

On Sunday, Chris and I were invited to a teacher’s house from Mtoni Secondary School (Perpetua). Once we finally arrived it was a lovely afternoon visit, but..getting there was another adventure! It began with a squishy, sweaty ride in a daladala where Chris and I were virtually scrunched up into pretzels, sitting two feet from the floor. Perpetua informed us to tell the driver of the daladala to let us out at the “bodany” (or something like that) stop and she would meet us there.  The problem was that the driver didn’t seem to understand what we were saying and neither did anyone else in the daladala. So after arriving in the village of Buswelu where she lives, we randomly decided to get out before we got too far away! It felt like we were in the middle of nowhere. There was one stone and one or two shops in sight, apart from that, a long dirt road etched by rivulets and sinking tires. So, I called Perpetua and tried to describe to her where we were, but of course she had no idea. So we started walking down the deserted road to try and find some kind of landmark. Finally we reached a sign pointing in the direction of a school so we stopped and called her again. But, still she didn’t understand where we were, and the poor reception with the phone cutting in and out didn’t help much either! A few minutes later a man called me and asked where I was…he explained that he was Perpetua’s husband and that he would come and pick us up. I put Chris on the phone and he told the man where we were. About 15 minutes later a black van pulled up beside us with a man inside saying he was here to pick us up. Hmmm…this was definitely a little sketchy.  Chris said we were not getting in that van as it might be some scam to rob or kidnap us or something. The man said he was Perpetua’s husband, so Chris told me to call her back again and ask if her husband had a black van, etc, etc. It turned out that it was him and he was an extremely nice man and kindly escorted us to their home. Finally…we had arrived, at times I had my doubts that we would never find her!

                I was so happy when we arrived! They have a beautiful home (definitely upper class for African standards) with a couch, t.v, hot plates for cooking, running water, etc. We were introduced to her beautiful daughter Irene who is two years old and her house girls. We were served delicious pilau, mchicha, and nyama which I was also pleased about because I knew Chris would be happy about this, and I was feeling a bit bad, because I did kind of drag him along on this expedition (pole Chris!). But I definitely wouldn’t have made it there without him! I guess I should take a minute to thank Chris so much for being so helpful and tolerant of my severe lack of direction! He seems to have a built in compass in his brain, which is great for me because for some reason me and directions just don't mix!

On Monday, I went back to Igombe with one of the ChemChemi Mamas. I really enjoy visiting the women there, and I think what the ChemChemi program is doing for young women and their children is amazing! I had the opportunity to speak with a woman there who provides nutrition education to both pregnant women and women with small children. I was thankful that she spoke some English so I was able to ask her some questions about what types of things she talks to the mamas about since this is essentially what I am studying in school and part of the role of a dietitian. She told me that the first thing she asks them is what type of food they have. This is extremely important because there is no use preaching to people about what they should eat, if they can’t afford that type of food. She also said that she tells them to leave the maize flour unpolished so all the nutrients remain and are not washed off. I also learned that if the children are not following a healthy pattern on the growth chart they must attend the education and uji preparation session that is provided free of charge. It’s really nice to see such a great health education program here in Africa because in general, I feel like people are no aware about the importance of health and nutrition.

Following this I gave the yoghurt Mamas in Igombe two fact sheets on the health benefits of probiotic yoghurt. Currently they do not add the probiotics to the yoghurt as they have few resources and are just starting to build their business. They were very thankful to receive the resources and one mama read the entire fact sheet out loud to everyone!

Mama reading the Probiotic health benefits to everyone!

Babies getting weighed at the Igombe Health Center

Tracking their progress on growth charts

Reading the health benefits of probiotics

On Wednesday I visited Buswelu Primary school which, like Mtoni is partnered with a school in London Ontario called Tecumseh. The Tecumseh school has contributed to the building of desks and raised funds to support other needed supplies. Once we finally located the headmaster we were kindly ushered into his office where Stanley and I were presented with a large dusty guestbook to sign, which happens very frequently at various places we visit. I gave Leonard (headmaster) some paper and pencil crayons for the students and it is my hope to have them answer a few questions which I will collect before returning back to Canada.

Following this Stanley and I visited a few classrooms. Every time we entered a new class the students immediately stood up and said “Good Morning Madam, how are you Madam?” I felt so respected! Then, they asked me a few questions. One recurring theme I find that students ask about is related to the government in Canada. It seems like they are a lot more interested in Canadian politics than students in Canada.

Here are some of the questions asked:

1.      Who was the first Prime Minister of Canada

2.      Who is the current Prime Minister

3.      How many members of Parliament are there in Canada?

4.      What is the largest denomination of money (for one bill)?

5.      Is there a rainy season in Canada like in Tanzania?

6.      Do you like the black people?

From what I have observed, Buswelu is a more rural and impoverished area. By the stares and  looks of surprise I received, it became evident that these roads hadn’t seen many ‘mzungus’. Chickens, dogs, and goats darted onto the road at times, and the homes are generally constructed of clay or concrete.

Buswelu Primary School

Me with a Buswelu Class

SAUT Lecture

On Thursday I arranged to attend a lecture at St. Augustine University with a friend I met taking sociology. She kindly sent me her timetable and I chose to attend the Human Rights lecture which was a great decision. It was a cool experience to attend a university lecture outside of Canada and even more amazing to be in Africa! I would say most things were very similar, apart from the more advanced technology in Canada. For example, none of the students had laptops, just small notebooks, and there was no power point. The professor only used a small chalkboard to write down a few key words which I admit did make it hard to stay focused. Some similarities I noticed were that, students were free to ask questions, many students were on their phones text messaging, and some students left early. The lecture was 3 hours long with only one short 5 minutes break!

            I really enjoyed the topics discussed in the lecture. All were very controversial but really made me think and I enjoyed being back in a classroom setting. The main focus was “The right to life” and the different aspects discussed were: the death penalty, abortion, euthanasia, and disappearance. Thank-you very much to Lina for inviting me!

Farewell Dinner
On Friday evening Chris and I took the Mamas and a few friends out for our "goodbye" dinner. Although not all the mamas were able to attend it was a wonderful evening and I want to say a big thanks to Missy who helped out so much with arranging the location and menu! We couldn't have done it without you! I could tell all the mamas thoroughly enjoyed themselves and the food!
This pictures speak for themselves:

Chris and I before the dinner!

Mmmm Chakula!

Mama's digging in!

Delicious!

Enjoying the meal!

Picture from our last meeting:

A few more interesting facts:

Swahili vs. Kiswahili

     I was starting to wonder what exactly the difference is between Swahili and Kiswahili because it seems to me that the words are used interchangeably. But now, I think I finally understand: Kiswahili is the noun (the language) and Swahili is the adjective (i.e Tanzanians are Swahili people). 

Wild Life

       Dogs, goats, chickens, cats, and cows wonder freely along the streets and fields. The other day there was a goat on the soccer field during a game, but this phenomenon didn’t even phase the players. I also witnessed a cow on the playground of a primary school. If such a scene occurred in Canada I’m sure it would be making all the headlines!
Schedules

-          I don’t think there is a word in Swahili for schedule. People here are so “go with the flow.” Things are constantly changing, and a new unexpected adventure always seems to occur! Planning out your day can be helpful, but you have to realize, it almost never goes as planned.

-          It’s virtually impossible to go out and do just one thing. One event always leads to another unexpected adventure!

-         Although this is completely different from how I operate in Canada, I’m starting to get used to the random uncertainty and always enjoy the surprises each day brings! People here also have no concept of time. I’m starting to get used to waiting around. Arriving late here is not seen as a sign of disrespect, because everyone is always late! Also, if someone says I’m ready (tayari), you may still have to wait another hour

This is officially my last blog post in Mwanza! I will miss Mwanza dearly, but I am scheduled to return in May for one last time before heading home to Canada.

Stay tuned for my first update from Arusha where another adventure will begin…