So here we are just an hour away from leaving our home of 5 weeks to fly back to the US. I am going to miss Tanzania so much. This has truly been the most eye-opening experience of my life...the culture, the poverty, educational system, and the people. My last day of placement was Friday and I never wrote about it so I wanted to write about it before we leave.
It was a very rainy day so we spent the entire day inside. I was in the P1 classroom (kindergarten age) and Catherine came from her hotel to join me and tell the children bye. The teachers and students put together a little good bye ceremony and presented us with khangas (the colorful wraps that women wear here). We brought peepee (suckers) for the kids as a farewell gift. Catherine and I both teared up when we had to say our last good byes and give our last hugs. The children at Tumaini School have enriched my life in so many ways...it was hard knowing that I will never know what will happen to any of them. Well, I've got to run eat dinner before we go to the airport. The next post will be the U.S.!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Friday, July 10, 2009
The Big Kili Climb
I returned home from my big 5-day climb of Kilimanjaro yesterday and have wonderful news....I made it to the very top of Mount Kilimanjaro- Uhuru Peak right at 19,341 feet-Africa's highest point! My total climbing time was about 35 hours and I am feeling pretty good. The most amazing part...I did it all by myself (well me and my guide Bakary). Surprisingly, I was one of the only people climbing it alone and got called all sorts of funny things along the way by all of the European climbers- Miss America, Miss Independent..etc. I made some friends along the way and decided that maybe all the friendly people from the world were climbing Kilimanjaro at the same time I was. I roomed with people from Korea, Sweden, Australia, France, Norway, and Uganda. I ate dinner with Canadians, Danish, Americans, and South Africans. Everyone was from around the world but somehow totally connected through their common goal...really a powerful experience.
Well, before I get too sappy, I guess will let you know the details of the trip. The climb took 5 days and went progressively more and more difficult as the days continued, mostly because the altitude was such a strain on my body. Your muscles tire out so easily that something that appeared easy became strenuous. Even my last night at the hut before the summit (about 15,000 ft) I was tossing and turning in my sleeping bag and became out of breath just because of the altitude! My climb "party" consisted of my guide, 2 porters (to carry my stuff, food, equipment, etc), and myself. It is incredible that one climber needs 4 people to come with them just to be prepared for the top! The porters were one of the most incredible parts of the climb....they are all very thin and young (18-25) and they carry huge packs on their backs and even bigger packs, bags, baskets, or pots on their heads the entire way up! Incredible!
Day 1
Lauren was able to come with me and we arrived at the Marangu Trail gate for registration and to begin the climb. There were tons of climbers and porters all waiting to get on the trail. We finally started our climb and it was pretty gentle, just like hiking at home. It was so nice to have Lauren along for my first day/night! The land around us looked a lot like a jungle- very lush, green and vines were hanging from the trees. We saw monkeys and mongoose (or is it mongeese?) came out while we were eating lunch...really scary because they look like brown overgrown ferrets. Finally we made it to the the 1st huts- simple triangle-shaped huts with 4 beds inside. Their is a common dining hall for all of the climbers and this is at the center of the camp. Lauren and I roomed with an adorable couple from Sweden who were around our age (Biana and Erick). We had tea and popcorn in the dining area, then went to explore a crater close-by. Our cooks prepared dinner (cucumber soup, veggie stew, and an entire mound of potatoes) and our guides tried to convince us to eat all of the food by saying- you need the energy. We went to bed around 10:00 and I wished Lauren was staying for longer!
Day 2
We woke up at 6:00 to get the day started with breakfast (eggs, toast, and really soupy porridge) then got started on the hike. Lauren hiked for the first 30 minutes where the scenery began to really look different (more desert-Santa Fe). I was very sad to say goodbye to her, and wish she could have stayed for the entire journey! I made it to the 2nd camp where I had 3 new roommates (a man from Uganda and 2 women from the United States). I was given a tiny bucket of warm water to "wash up", but really was only able to wash my face and arms. Bakary (my guide) basically talked to me this entire day about American rappers and Obama....this got old REALLY fast after 5 hours, so I went to bed early and enjoyed the company of some other Americans. It was even colder at this hut and I slept in my entire ski outfit (ski hat, gloves, and 2 pairs of socks).
Day 3
Another early start to my day with breakfast (tea, fried egg, and toast) and we were off to the third hut (about 10 Kilometers). The terrain looked even more like a desert here,but we had finally climbed far above the clouds. Looking down, you could see clear blue sky above your head and what looked like an ocean of fluffy clouds, as if the sky had been turned upside down. This was truly one of the most spectacular things that I have ever seen, especially at sunrise. Bakary continued to talk about Snoop Dogg, Obama, and Beyonce...eventually he even played songs outloud on his cell phone. When I could barely stand it anymore, I told him blatently that I didn't vote for Obama...He didn't talk as much after that. whewww.
For the first time, the altitude really started to affect my muscles.I was drinking at least 4 liters of water during my climb and still felt dehydrated. What seemed to be a gentle hill at first glance became difficult and my muscles ached...I had to stop every half hour or so to take deep breaths.We made it closer to the final hut and it was incredible. I had a perfect view of both peaks now (Uhuru and mawenzi). Uhuru is the peak that I would climb and Mawenzi is a more rocky, older peak unfit for climbing. The sight was breathtaking and a little surreal to think of climbing that in a matter hours!I had an early dinner (around 5:30) and went to bed at 7:00...we would be starting the climb at 11:30 PM that evening.
Day 4
I was woken up at around 11:00 PM to eat some "breakfast" and get ready to climb to the summit. Breakfast came...cookies and tea. I opted for a power bar because I would be climbing for over 10 hours and I just don't think that a cookie would give me the boost I needed to climb in the middle of the night. I bundled up in 5 layers of clothes (on top- dry fit shirt, 2 long underwear, 1 thin fleece, 1 thick fleece, and a very heavy jacket...also 5 layers on the bottom, 2 pair socks, 2 hats, a face mask and 2 pair gloves). I looked a bit like the michelin man, but I was determined to stay warm! The temperature on the summit was around 12-15 degrees Farenheit, but the gusty wind made it feel MUCH colder.
I don't know if they require you to start at night because they don't want you to see the steepness of the mountain you are climbing or to prevent sunburn. Either way, the hill felt unbearably steep as we snaked accross in a zig-zag to compensate for the steepness. I was walking at about the pace of an old person with a walker so very "pole pole (slowly" as Bakary kept reminding me. The wind was beating down and it became very difficult to breath. For every few shuffled steps, I would have to stop and breath very deeply. My muscles ached from lack of oxygen and people around me began to get sick from the altitude (throwing up, ugh).
We continued only concentrating on the moonlit path ahead and taking each step slowly and carefully. My mind felt hazy and I tried to block the thought that we were still 6 hours away from the summit...under the beautiful full moon it all felt a little like a dream. I couldn't feel my body because I was pushing it so hard, my fingers felt frozen, but with my mind so cloudy I pushed on. People all around kept stopping, some turned back, some sat to catch their breath....but I knew that stopping would only make me colder.
After my water had frozen and we had been climbing for about 5 hours, we reached a very rocky area full of huge boulders...now I had to use my hands and all my muscles to climb over them. Rocks slipped under my feet, but somehow I was concentrating too much to be afraid. I did find out later that a man in a group behind me had be hit by a rock and his nose was nearly taken off!!!
We reached the first, lowest summit (Gillman's Peak) and it was still dark. Part of me wanted to rejoice in reaching this point and a part of me was exhausted, desperate for air and ready to turn back. Somehow I pulled up the energy to continue the 1 1/2 hour climb to the highest peak (Uhuru). We walked and climbed over rocks and after what felt like days, we made it just as the sun rose. It was stunning- the bright moon still high in the sky, surrounded by huge peices of ice, the clouds far below and the sun peaking up through the clouds. I have NEVER seen anything so beautiful...it felt like a different planet. I took pictures and we headed down the moutain (this took only 4 hours rather than 7).
Once back at camp, I rested and ate then we headed another 11 kilometers to the lower hut.
Day 5
My body was hurting a little and I had had a VERY good night's sleep despite the hard beds. I roomed with 3 Korean men and they all seemed to be very nice, but spoke barely any English...I think the only thing they said was "You are Gorgeous." and late they said "African rice is not happy".
We climbed the rest of the way down the mountain (about 20 Kilometers) and finally made it to the gate. The journey seemed to pass so quickly and all felt a bit surreal. Looking back at the summit from such a low point made me feel even more accomplished.
Well, before I get too sappy, I guess will let you know the details of the trip. The climb took 5 days and went progressively more and more difficult as the days continued, mostly because the altitude was such a strain on my body. Your muscles tire out so easily that something that appeared easy became strenuous. Even my last night at the hut before the summit (about 15,000 ft) I was tossing and turning in my sleeping bag and became out of breath just because of the altitude! My climb "party" consisted of my guide, 2 porters (to carry my stuff, food, equipment, etc), and myself. It is incredible that one climber needs 4 people to come with them just to be prepared for the top! The porters were one of the most incredible parts of the climb....they are all very thin and young (18-25) and they carry huge packs on their backs and even bigger packs, bags, baskets, or pots on their heads the entire way up! Incredible!
Day 1
Lauren was able to come with me and we arrived at the Marangu Trail gate for registration and to begin the climb. There were tons of climbers and porters all waiting to get on the trail. We finally started our climb and it was pretty gentle, just like hiking at home. It was so nice to have Lauren along for my first day/night! The land around us looked a lot like a jungle- very lush, green and vines were hanging from the trees. We saw monkeys and mongoose (or is it mongeese?) came out while we were eating lunch...really scary because they look like brown overgrown ferrets. Finally we made it to the the 1st huts- simple triangle-shaped huts with 4 beds inside. Their is a common dining hall for all of the climbers and this is at the center of the camp. Lauren and I roomed with an adorable couple from Sweden who were around our age (Biana and Erick). We had tea and popcorn in the dining area, then went to explore a crater close-by. Our cooks prepared dinner (cucumber soup, veggie stew, and an entire mound of potatoes) and our guides tried to convince us to eat all of the food by saying- you need the energy. We went to bed around 10:00 and I wished Lauren was staying for longer!
Day 2
We woke up at 6:00 to get the day started with breakfast (eggs, toast, and really soupy porridge) then got started on the hike. Lauren hiked for the first 30 minutes where the scenery began to really look different (more desert-Santa Fe). I was very sad to say goodbye to her, and wish she could have stayed for the entire journey! I made it to the 2nd camp where I had 3 new roommates (a man from Uganda and 2 women from the United States). I was given a tiny bucket of warm water to "wash up", but really was only able to wash my face and arms. Bakary (my guide) basically talked to me this entire day about American rappers and Obama....this got old REALLY fast after 5 hours, so I went to bed early and enjoyed the company of some other Americans. It was even colder at this hut and I slept in my entire ski outfit (ski hat, gloves, and 2 pairs of socks).
Day 3
Another early start to my day with breakfast (tea, fried egg, and toast) and we were off to the third hut (about 10 Kilometers). The terrain looked even more like a desert here,but we had finally climbed far above the clouds. Looking down, you could see clear blue sky above your head and what looked like an ocean of fluffy clouds, as if the sky had been turned upside down. This was truly one of the most spectacular things that I have ever seen, especially at sunrise. Bakary continued to talk about Snoop Dogg, Obama, and Beyonce...eventually he even played songs outloud on his cell phone. When I could barely stand it anymore, I told him blatently that I didn't vote for Obama...He didn't talk as much after that. whewww.
For the first time, the altitude really started to affect my muscles.I was drinking at least 4 liters of water during my climb and still felt dehydrated. What seemed to be a gentle hill at first glance became difficult and my muscles ached...I had to stop every half hour or so to take deep breaths.We made it closer to the final hut and it was incredible. I had a perfect view of both peaks now (Uhuru and mawenzi). Uhuru is the peak that I would climb and Mawenzi is a more rocky, older peak unfit for climbing. The sight was breathtaking and a little surreal to think of climbing that in a matter hours!I had an early dinner (around 5:30) and went to bed at 7:00...we would be starting the climb at 11:30 PM that evening.
Day 4
I was woken up at around 11:00 PM to eat some "breakfast" and get ready to climb to the summit. Breakfast came...cookies and tea. I opted for a power bar because I would be climbing for over 10 hours and I just don't think that a cookie would give me the boost I needed to climb in the middle of the night. I bundled up in 5 layers of clothes (on top- dry fit shirt, 2 long underwear, 1 thin fleece, 1 thick fleece, and a very heavy jacket...also 5 layers on the bottom, 2 pair socks, 2 hats, a face mask and 2 pair gloves). I looked a bit like the michelin man, but I was determined to stay warm! The temperature on the summit was around 12-15 degrees Farenheit, but the gusty wind made it feel MUCH colder.
I don't know if they require you to start at night because they don't want you to see the steepness of the mountain you are climbing or to prevent sunburn. Either way, the hill felt unbearably steep as we snaked accross in a zig-zag to compensate for the steepness. I was walking at about the pace of an old person with a walker so very "pole pole (slowly" as Bakary kept reminding me. The wind was beating down and it became very difficult to breath. For every few shuffled steps, I would have to stop and breath very deeply. My muscles ached from lack of oxygen and people around me began to get sick from the altitude (throwing up, ugh).
We continued only concentrating on the moonlit path ahead and taking each step slowly and carefully. My mind felt hazy and I tried to block the thought that we were still 6 hours away from the summit...under the beautiful full moon it all felt a little like a dream. I couldn't feel my body because I was pushing it so hard, my fingers felt frozen, but with my mind so cloudy I pushed on. People all around kept stopping, some turned back, some sat to catch their breath....but I knew that stopping would only make me colder.
After my water had frozen and we had been climbing for about 5 hours, we reached a very rocky area full of huge boulders...now I had to use my hands and all my muscles to climb over them. Rocks slipped under my feet, but somehow I was concentrating too much to be afraid. I did find out later that a man in a group behind me had be hit by a rock and his nose was nearly taken off!!!
We reached the first, lowest summit (Gillman's Peak) and it was still dark. Part of me wanted to rejoice in reaching this point and a part of me was exhausted, desperate for air and ready to turn back. Somehow I pulled up the energy to continue the 1 1/2 hour climb to the highest peak (Uhuru). We walked and climbed over rocks and after what felt like days, we made it just as the sun rose. It was stunning- the bright moon still high in the sky, surrounded by huge peices of ice, the clouds far below and the sun peaking up through the clouds. I have NEVER seen anything so beautiful...it felt like a different planet. I took pictures and we headed down the moutain (this took only 4 hours rather than 7).
Once back at camp, I rested and ate then we headed another 11 kilometers to the lower hut.
Day 5
My body was hurting a little and I had had a VERY good night's sleep despite the hard beds. I roomed with 3 Korean men and they all seemed to be very nice, but spoke barely any English...I think the only thing they said was "You are Gorgeous." and late they said "African rice is not happy".
We climbed the rest of the way down the mountain (about 20 Kilometers) and finally made it to the gate. The journey seemed to pass so quickly and all felt a bit surreal. Looking back at the summit from such a low point made me feel even more accomplished.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Happy Saba Saba!
Happy Seven seven! July 7th is farmer's holiday in Tanzania so I did not go to placement at Tumaini School today. Instead CCS took volunteers to visit Mama Sara and some of her group members living with HIV. Mama Sara and I (Catherine too) have become friends over the last couple because we have made a point to go do home visits with her in the afternoons. Getting to know Mama Sara and the other group members has been a moving and truly heart-wrenching experience. It has made the poverty and HIV problem in Africa real for me and made me aware of the how desperately these people need help. I hope to continue to keep in touch with Mama Sara once I return to the states, and continue helping her build her group.
Today we visited four group members that I had not met before. When we go to visit members of the HIV group we walk to their homes. It is very sad how many people are living with HIV in such a small area. It never takes more than five minutes to reach the home of one of the members. Mama Sara is working hard to create awareness and offer a support system for those effected by HIV. She is a great lady so today it broke my heat when I found out she was having trouble paying her rent. I asked her how she was feeling and she said something along the lines of stressed because her landlord has been harassing her to pay her rent. I asked her how much it was and she said 60,000 shillings (about 45 or 50 US dollars) for three months. I have been her in home and it is tiny. She supports three children herself because her husband died of HIV a couple years ago, needless to say it took all my energy not to just fork over the money. I just feel so bad because she keeps the donations people give her for her HIV group and doesn't touch that money for personal use. It is so difficult to see people living like this. We are all so blessed!
Today we visited four group members that I had not met before. When we go to visit members of the HIV group we walk to their homes. It is very sad how many people are living with HIV in such a small area. It never takes more than five minutes to reach the home of one of the members. Mama Sara is working hard to create awareness and offer a support system for those effected by HIV. She is a great lady so today it broke my heat when I found out she was having trouble paying her rent. I asked her how she was feeling and she said something along the lines of stressed because her landlord has been harassing her to pay her rent. I asked her how much it was and she said 60,000 shillings (about 45 or 50 US dollars) for three months. I have been her in home and it is tiny. She supports three children herself because her husband died of HIV a couple years ago, needless to say it took all my energy not to just fork over the money. I just feel so bad because she keeps the donations people give her for her HIV group and doesn't touch that money for personal use. It is so difficult to see people living like this. We are all so blessed!
Monday, July 6, 2009
Kilimanjaro
Yesterday Catherine and I left CCS Karanga (our home in Tanzania) with a crew of guides, porters, and cooks and headed to Mount Kilimanjaro. Catherine was prepared for her 5 day hike to the summit, which reaches an altitude of 5895 meters (around 19,000 feet), ski clothes and all. I opted for a two day hike instead. The base area where you begin hiking is about an hour drive from Moshi, but on a clear day Kilimanjaro looks much closer because it is so massive.
Once we arrived at the gate of Kilimanjaro National Park it was already much colder than in Moshi. Our starting point was at an altitude of 1970 meters/ 6400 feet. We signed the Marangu Route log book and waited to begin our hike with our head guide Barcary (sounds like Barcardi without the d) who could not say my name properly. He kept calling me “Lion” so we just laughed and went with it. Catherine and I both agreed that we looked ridiculous in our backpacks, rain jackets, kaki walking shorts, and tall hiking socks, but we did look the part. We even had trekking poles which definitely came in handy once we finally began our 3 to 4 hour hike to the first huts (8.4km). The slope was much gentler than I envisioned. The very difficult part does not come until the hike to the summit. Evidently it is very very steep and intense hike of seven hours.
The vegetation on the hike to the Mandara huts was gorgeous! It rains a lot around the bottom of the mountain so the forest area is incredibly green. The trees are huge and are covered in dark green moss and a much lighter dusty green moss hangs from all the branches. There are tiny purple and white wildflowers that grow along the trail. There is also the relaxing sound of a creek babbling down from the snow capped summit. Ahhh the sounds of nature. I have to mention that we did listen to Chris Brown, Rihanna, and T.I. on our hike as well. Bacary is a huge fan of rap and hip hop music and he just couldn’t resist playing some of his favorite songs from his phone. He sang them in a Swahili accent which was hiliarious to say the least. I’m sure Catherine will have many more stories about Bacary when she gets back.
After we hiked halfway to the first set of huts we stopped to eat our boxed lunches while a little mongoose popped out now and again to search for scraps. Mongooses are really freaky by the way. My lunch was a hamburger with a fried egg on it and Catherine had a veggie sandwich that tasted like beer. Thank goodness we bananas and muffins were included.
We made it to the Mandara huts where the terraine actually looked very much like New Mexico or parts of Colorado. The trees were smaller and everything looked much drier. It is very true what the say about there being micro-climates on Kili. In three hours we went from mossy rainforest to tall grasses, smaller trees and more rocks. We walked to a crater about 15 minutes from our hut. The center was filled with tall grass and from rim we could actually see Kenya!
We got settled in our tiny hut with our Swedish roommates Eric and Bianca (a couple from Stokholm who were really nice and spoke great English).Then we had dinner in the dining hall area and went to bed. Everyone on Catherine’s climbing schedule is really nice so I think she is going to have a great experience.The people sitting with us at dinner were from Canada, Norway, and London.People literally come from all over the world to climb Kili!
After a night of sleeping in two pairs of wool socks, gloves, a t-shirt, a fleece, jeans, and a raincoat and breakfast with our international friends Catherine and I parted ways. We both got teary eyes and agreed that it was a stupid decision for me not to attempt to climb Kili...it is always more fun to have your sister (dada in Swhaili) by you side. I miss Catherine already. It was not the same hiking down with just a guide.Keep Catherine in your prayers.She will begin climbing the summit just after midnight and reach the summit around sunrise on Wednesday morning (Tanzania time).Five to seven hours up to the summit and two to four hours down to the third set of huts. Go Catherine!
Once we arrived at the gate of Kilimanjaro National Park it was already much colder than in Moshi. Our starting point was at an altitude of 1970 meters/ 6400 feet. We signed the Marangu Route log book and waited to begin our hike with our head guide Barcary (sounds like Barcardi without the d) who could not say my name properly. He kept calling me “Lion” so we just laughed and went with it. Catherine and I both agreed that we looked ridiculous in our backpacks, rain jackets, kaki walking shorts, and tall hiking socks, but we did look the part. We even had trekking poles which definitely came in handy once we finally began our 3 to 4 hour hike to the first huts (8.4km). The slope was much gentler than I envisioned. The very difficult part does not come until the hike to the summit. Evidently it is very very steep and intense hike of seven hours.
The vegetation on the hike to the Mandara huts was gorgeous! It rains a lot around the bottom of the mountain so the forest area is incredibly green. The trees are huge and are covered in dark green moss and a much lighter dusty green moss hangs from all the branches. There are tiny purple and white wildflowers that grow along the trail. There is also the relaxing sound of a creek babbling down from the snow capped summit. Ahhh the sounds of nature. I have to mention that we did listen to Chris Brown, Rihanna, and T.I. on our hike as well. Bacary is a huge fan of rap and hip hop music and he just couldn’t resist playing some of his favorite songs from his phone. He sang them in a Swahili accent which was hiliarious to say the least. I’m sure Catherine will have many more stories about Bacary when she gets back.
After we hiked halfway to the first set of huts we stopped to eat our boxed lunches while a little mongoose popped out now and again to search for scraps. Mongooses are really freaky by the way. My lunch was a hamburger with a fried egg on it and Catherine had a veggie sandwich that tasted like beer. Thank goodness we bananas and muffins were included.
We made it to the Mandara huts where the terraine actually looked very much like New Mexico or parts of Colorado. The trees were smaller and everything looked much drier. It is very true what the say about there being micro-climates on Kili. In three hours we went from mossy rainforest to tall grasses, smaller trees and more rocks. We walked to a crater about 15 minutes from our hut. The center was filled with tall grass and from rim we could actually see Kenya!
We got settled in our tiny hut with our Swedish roommates Eric and Bianca (a couple from Stokholm who were really nice and spoke great English).Then we had dinner in the dining hall area and went to bed. Everyone on Catherine’s climbing schedule is really nice so I think she is going to have a great experience.The people sitting with us at dinner were from Canada, Norway, and London.People literally come from all over the world to climb Kili!
After a night of sleeping in two pairs of wool socks, gloves, a t-shirt, a fleece, jeans, and a raincoat and breakfast with our international friends Catherine and I parted ways. We both got teary eyes and agreed that it was a stupid decision for me not to attempt to climb Kili...it is always more fun to have your sister (dada in Swhaili) by you side. I miss Catherine already. It was not the same hiking down with just a guide.Keep Catherine in your prayers.She will begin climbing the summit just after midnight and reach the summit around sunrise on Wednesday morning (Tanzania time).Five to seven hours up to the summit and two to four hours down to the third set of huts. Go Catherine!
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Happy 4th of July!
We hope that everyone back in the States is having a wonderful Independance Day full of sun, time on the lake, BBQ, and fireworks! We are having a slightly different celebration here in Tanzania, but are working hard to bring some of the All-American celebration to Tanzania with us!
Last night we toasted at midnight to the 4th of July at a local bar while listening to Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the U.S.A" in a bar full of Europeans in the middle of the African jungle. And today we are looking forward to some relaxation with the other Americans at the Home Base...maybe even hamburgers (although they will be veggie and kinda African style) and watermelon.
Yesterday we saw the most beautiful view of Kilimanjaron yet, the sky was completely clear and all of the trees around our Home Base framed it perfectly! SOOO pretty and made us so excited for the week ahead. Tomorrow we start our climb of Kilimanjaro (Lauren will be hiking for 2 days, 1 night and Catherine will hike to the summit in 5 days, 4 nights). The first day will be a 3 hour hike and we wil stay in huts along the way each night. The night of the climb to the summit is intense and long as you wake up at 11:30 at night to climb to the top and then spend a few hours climbing back down (it is too cold to stay for long). I am sure we will have tons of stories about our adventure when we return.
Last night we toasted at midnight to the 4th of July at a local bar while listening to Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the U.S.A" in a bar full of Europeans in the middle of the African jungle. And today we are looking forward to some relaxation with the other Americans at the Home Base...maybe even hamburgers (although they will be veggie and kinda African style) and watermelon.
Yesterday we saw the most beautiful view of Kilimanjaron yet, the sky was completely clear and all of the trees around our Home Base framed it perfectly! SOOO pretty and made us so excited for the week ahead. Tomorrow we start our climb of Kilimanjaro (Lauren will be hiking for 2 days, 1 night and Catherine will hike to the summit in 5 days, 4 nights). The first day will be a 3 hour hike and we wil stay in huts along the way each night. The night of the climb to the summit is intense and long as you wake up at 11:30 at night to climb to the top and then spend a few hours climbing back down (it is too cold to stay for long). I am sure we will have tons of stories about our adventure when we return.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Catherine's last day at Tumaini school
Today was my last day at our placement (Tumaini English Medium School). After trying to capture so many memories during my last week, it was hard to believe that this part of our adventure has come to an end. The two other volunteers that have been working with us all month at Tumaini (Valerie and Stephen, brother and sister) also will be leaving the placement. We have gotten along with them so well and it seems that everything has worked out so perfectly for us since we arrived...the children are incredible, we had a wonderful teacher at the school to help us and I just know that we will stay in touch with Valerie and Stephen long after we leave here!
Today was really special as we said all of our goodbyes, the school had prepared a little ceremony for us including cookies, muffins, and punch. They even gave us gifts (wood carvings and a kanga-colored and patterned cloth that women wear around their waist as an apron). All of the teachers told us it was "our day" with the children, so we play games, sang and colored all day long. Lauren, Valerie and I all started crying because seeing the poverty around this area makes you realize how much work and sacrafice was put into this celebration. The teachers at our school support their families on a salary of $80 a month. I am so grateful for this experience and for becoming humbled, welcomed, and loved by the people at the school. All of the children gave us lots of hugs as we left, but many of the small ones seemed to not understand what was going on.
I wanted to use this post to reflect on some of my very favorite memories from Tumaini and all of the children there:
#1) The Elephant song-
The kids burst out in song every time we see, draw, or mention elephants...truly precious. "Elephant, elephant go to the bus. No No No...Why Why Why?..Because I'm too big!...Because I'm too big!"
#2) The entire school chanting and jumping as we arrived everyday "TEACHA! TEACHA! TEACHA!"
#3) Beatrice (my favorite little 7 year old)
We lovingly called her "Beatay" and she has the biggest case of ADD (super sneaky and knows she is cute). She dances around the room ALL the time, recently lost a front tooth, and has huge, mischievous eyes. One day I decided to have a dance circle with them and Beatay created a new dance move to the tune of the Limbo song...she basically rubs her stomach around and around while she swings her hips. She knows it makes me smile, so now she does it ALL the time. I wish I could take her home with me.
#4) Porridge time
At 10:00 each morning, all of the children take a break to eat "porridge" before they have play time. They all scramble outside and grab different colored plastic cups and bowls (many are bigger than their faces) and gulp down what looks like flavorless, watered down grits.
#5) Clara (/Corrola/ Crala/Krala)
While it took an entire month to find out what her name actually was...Clara is one of the most beautiful children I have ever seen! She is 3 1/2 with a tiny little voice and she wonders from classroom to classroom to say "hello", ask for a pencil, or get picked up. I wish I could put her in my pocket.
#6) Awkward questions from the teacher David
Every day since our arrival, we have gotten a variety of questions about culture, traditions, and beliefs in the US. David (the head teacher at Tumaini) has offered a wide variety of strange ones including: "Do you have a different tribal language in the United States so that you can't understand eachother?", "Why don't you have children yet (at age 24)?", "How is your mother no longer having children? (my reply "ummm she is 56") and a variety of others.
#7) The recited morning greeting from the children each day
"Good morning teacha!"- good morning class, how are you today?
"I'm fine teacha, thank you. How are you too?"
#8) All of the children yelling "me goose, me goose" during Duck, Duck, Goose
#9) Valerie and Stephen
We just have way too many funny stories about everything from upset stomachs to language barriers to making up random things to teach when we had NO idea what we were doing.
#10) The girls playing "beauty shop" with my hair everyday
Many of the girls at Tumaini were totally fascinated by the way that my silky hair felt different than their hair. Almost everyday, my ponytail was down as they tried to smooth out the curls and make it stay (they way their's does). I always left Tumaini with a new (usually not very attractive) hairstyle.
#11) The smiles
This trip (and especially Tumaini) has helped me gain a greater appreciation for the power of a smile when nothing else seems to make sense. The crooked teeth, the bright white ones, the newly missing front teeth in contrast with the dark skin of all of this children will probably be the picture that I always keep in my head.
Today was really special as we said all of our goodbyes, the school had prepared a little ceremony for us including cookies, muffins, and punch. They even gave us gifts (wood carvings and a kanga-colored and patterned cloth that women wear around their waist as an apron). All of the teachers told us it was "our day" with the children, so we play games, sang and colored all day long. Lauren, Valerie and I all started crying because seeing the poverty around this area makes you realize how much work and sacrafice was put into this celebration. The teachers at our school support their families on a salary of $80 a month. I am so grateful for this experience and for becoming humbled, welcomed, and loved by the people at the school. All of the children gave us lots of hugs as we left, but many of the small ones seemed to not understand what was going on.
I wanted to use this post to reflect on some of my very favorite memories from Tumaini and all of the children there:
#1) The Elephant song-
The kids burst out in song every time we see, draw, or mention elephants...truly precious. "Elephant, elephant go to the bus. No No No...Why Why Why?..Because I'm too big!...Because I'm too big!"
#2) The entire school chanting and jumping as we arrived everyday "TEACHA! TEACHA! TEACHA!"
#3) Beatrice (my favorite little 7 year old)
We lovingly called her "Beatay" and she has the biggest case of ADD (super sneaky and knows she is cute). She dances around the room ALL the time, recently lost a front tooth, and has huge, mischievous eyes. One day I decided to have a dance circle with them and Beatay created a new dance move to the tune of the Limbo song...she basically rubs her stomach around and around while she swings her hips. She knows it makes me smile, so now she does it ALL the time. I wish I could take her home with me.
#4) Porridge time
At 10:00 each morning, all of the children take a break to eat "porridge" before they have play time. They all scramble outside and grab different colored plastic cups and bowls (many are bigger than their faces) and gulp down what looks like flavorless, watered down grits.
#5) Clara (/Corrola/ Crala/Krala)
While it took an entire month to find out what her name actually was...Clara is one of the most beautiful children I have ever seen! She is 3 1/2 with a tiny little voice and she wonders from classroom to classroom to say "hello", ask for a pencil, or get picked up. I wish I could put her in my pocket.
#6) Awkward questions from the teacher David
Every day since our arrival, we have gotten a variety of questions about culture, traditions, and beliefs in the US. David (the head teacher at Tumaini) has offered a wide variety of strange ones including: "Do you have a different tribal language in the United States so that you can't understand eachother?", "Why don't you have children yet (at age 24)?", "How is your mother no longer having children? (my reply "ummm she is 56") and a variety of others.
#7) The recited morning greeting from the children each day
"Good morning teacha!"- good morning class, how are you today?
"I'm fine teacha, thank you. How are you too?"
#8) All of the children yelling "me goose, me goose" during Duck, Duck, Goose
#9) Valerie and Stephen
We just have way too many funny stories about everything from upset stomachs to language barriers to making up random things to teach when we had NO idea what we were doing.
#10) The girls playing "beauty shop" with my hair everyday
Many of the girls at Tumaini were totally fascinated by the way that my silky hair felt different than their hair. Almost everyday, my ponytail was down as they tried to smooth out the curls and make it stay (they way their's does). I always left Tumaini with a new (usually not very attractive) hairstyle.
#11) The smiles
This trip (and especially Tumaini) has helped me gain a greater appreciation for the power of a smile when nothing else seems to make sense. The crooked teeth, the bright white ones, the newly missing front teeth in contrast with the dark skin of all of this children will probably be the picture that I always keep in my head.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Weekend and Coffee Hike
This past weekend was very festive...After our cooking class with Wilfred, we relaxed and headed out with 3 other volunteers to our favorite "mzungu" (white people) bar in Moshi called the Watering Hole. The bar is decorated rustic and with an African feel, it is full of Europeans and Americans and we always meet interesting people there...many are headed on safari, are teaching English here, working on a phD in AIDs/public health. On Saturday, we were some of the first customers there and we had one of our best nights yet. We are now very good friends with the bartender (a German guy named Olaf) and by the end of the night a drink had been named for Catherine ("the Cathrita"-a margarita with beer in it). We paid a little respect to Michael Jackson by listening to his greatest hits all night (who knows how many times we listened to "Man in the Mirror"). Olaf even agreed to open the bar for us on Sunday night (usually they are closed).
Sunday morning came too soon and we woke up early to go on our 9:00 AM coffee hike. In our sleepy daze, we were quickly surprised to see an old white van pull up to the Home Base to pick us up. This was no ordinary van- it was blaring Swahili rap music, both the interior and exterior were covered in old, poor quality photos of American rappers (Snoop Dogg, Jay-Z, and even Beyonce), the seats had been covered in electric green fake leather, and the ceiling had broken disco lights hanging. Our guide, a 24 year old athletic-looking guy named Oscar got out of the car wearing a tight black shirt and ARKANSAS RAZORBACK pants....so random and hilarious!? We knew then that the day would be interesting.
On our 30 minute drive to the coffee hike, we listened to the same Beyonce song on repeat. We drove through the mountains as rain sprinkled down and quickly realized that the van wouldn't make it up anymore muddy hills, we would have to walk. All 7 of us got out of the car in a small village of wooden/mud shacks and for the first time in my life I felt like a total alien...we were completely surrounded by about 300 Tanzania children, women, and men wearing church clothes and staring at us. The activities of the entire village seemed to stop when we walked out of the car...clearly these people had rarely (or maybe never) seen white people before.
We started the trek to where we would be tasting the coffee. We hiked for 2 hours through the thick mud and our shoes quickly became heavy stilts of thick layers of mud. We fell numerous times and at one point Catherine completely flipped over on her back (covered head to toe in brownish orange mud). It was hilarious and we laughed basically for the entire way...imagine the stares we got as white people walking on dirt road all completely covered in thick layers of mud. Beyond the stares, we also got plenty of swahili yells from the men leaving the homeade banana beer pubs. Oscar was singing and walking briskly the entire way and we took a milllion pictures of his Raorback pants.We were high up in the mountains surrounded by some of the most beautiful scenary I have ever seen (miles of banana trees, corn fields, and mist...Kilimanjaro was in the background).
We finally arrived at Oscar's wooden house in the mountains. All of his family lived in this hut (mother, father, brother, cousins) and they were very friendly upon our arrival. It was an amazing experience to see the coffee from berry to cup. We picked berries from the plants right outside of Oscars house, removed the seeds, removed the shell, roasted the seeds, ground roasted beans, brewed the coffee and drank it. Honestly some of the best coffee I have ever had! Oscar sang and made up songs about every step of the coffee process ("twanga, twanga, twang" means squash). We were told that the coffee beans were always the job of the men and women tended to the bananas...after this experience I understand the hardwork of the coffee process, but I LOVED the experience.
Next we hiked an hour hike to a local waterfall through the mountains, trees, and streams. The waterfall was tall, huge, and so clear. To see this landscape in comparison to that of the dry, flat Serengeti is incredible! We hiked 2 hours back to the vans and drove back to the Homebase totally covered in mud 8 hours later....quite a long day, but definitely and incredible one!
Sunday morning came too soon and we woke up early to go on our 9:00 AM coffee hike. In our sleepy daze, we were quickly surprised to see an old white van pull up to the Home Base to pick us up. This was no ordinary van- it was blaring Swahili rap music, both the interior and exterior were covered in old, poor quality photos of American rappers (Snoop Dogg, Jay-Z, and even Beyonce), the seats had been covered in electric green fake leather, and the ceiling had broken disco lights hanging. Our guide, a 24 year old athletic-looking guy named Oscar got out of the car wearing a tight black shirt and ARKANSAS RAZORBACK pants....so random and hilarious!? We knew then that the day would be interesting.
On our 30 minute drive to the coffee hike, we listened to the same Beyonce song on repeat. We drove through the mountains as rain sprinkled down and quickly realized that the van wouldn't make it up anymore muddy hills, we would have to walk. All 7 of us got out of the car in a small village of wooden/mud shacks and for the first time in my life I felt like a total alien...we were completely surrounded by about 300 Tanzania children, women, and men wearing church clothes and staring at us. The activities of the entire village seemed to stop when we walked out of the car...clearly these people had rarely (or maybe never) seen white people before.
We started the trek to where we would be tasting the coffee. We hiked for 2 hours through the thick mud and our shoes quickly became heavy stilts of thick layers of mud. We fell numerous times and at one point Catherine completely flipped over on her back (covered head to toe in brownish orange mud). It was hilarious and we laughed basically for the entire way...imagine the stares we got as white people walking on dirt road all completely covered in thick layers of mud. Beyond the stares, we also got plenty of swahili yells from the men leaving the homeade banana beer pubs. Oscar was singing and walking briskly the entire way and we took a milllion pictures of his Raorback pants.We were high up in the mountains surrounded by some of the most beautiful scenary I have ever seen (miles of banana trees, corn fields, and mist...Kilimanjaro was in the background).
We finally arrived at Oscar's wooden house in the mountains. All of his family lived in this hut (mother, father, brother, cousins) and they were very friendly upon our arrival. It was an amazing experience to see the coffee from berry to cup. We picked berries from the plants right outside of Oscars house, removed the seeds, removed the shell, roasted the seeds, ground roasted beans, brewed the coffee and drank it. Honestly some of the best coffee I have ever had! Oscar sang and made up songs about every step of the coffee process ("twanga, twanga, twang" means squash). We were told that the coffee beans were always the job of the men and women tended to the bananas...after this experience I understand the hardwork of the coffee process, but I LOVED the experience.
Next we hiked an hour hike to a local waterfall through the mountains, trees, and streams. The waterfall was tall, huge, and so clear. To see this landscape in comparison to that of the dry, flat Serengeti is incredible! We hiked 2 hours back to the vans and drove back to the Homebase totally covered in mud 8 hours later....quite a long day, but definitely and incredible one!
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