11/19 Beach Day

After a great breakfast we headed to the beach.

Check this photo out - this is what it looked like and this is where we spent the day. There was no one else anywhere!

We did grab snorkle gear and walk down to the beach to check out this ship wreck that was out by an old coral reef. We put on the flippers and started to snorkle out and all of the sudden I looked back at the shore and realized that if anything happened - there was no one there - not one person! So I decided that we shouldn't go over my head. Boring - I know but I felt really uncomfortable. We did see some fish and some sea urchins.

We also went on a walk - they have this nature trail that winds through around and ends up by the lagoon. While in there we saw a monkey -

11/18 - Ras Kutani - south of Dar es Salaam

We got up early - finished packing, made a couple pb & j sandwiches and then went over to the office to wait for the driver. I was really hoping it was going to be Machek again, because I knew he knew how to find us!

Waiting. Waiting. Waiting. We ended up joining the others for breakfast, our last one. The kids were all hanging out waiting to say goodbye to us too. Josephat, Vicent and Mole were really sweet - following Jack around.

Finally, sometime after 8 the jeep finally came and it was Machek, but this time he was the co-pilot. We said all our goodbye's - so sad. But I knew that I was returning. This was not a place that I could only see/experience once in my life. I think Jack felt the same way.

Hugs, waves, kisses, thank you's and we were off.....Kwa heri!

We arrived an hour and half later at the Manyara airstrip which was at the top of the Rift. It was a dirt airstrip that took off over Manyara - the park and the lake. Just beautiful. We had a little time to spare so we went over to a fancy lodge (one of the Serena lodges) and just checked it out. It was so nice! Beautiful views, a never ending pool, little walkways and huts. Even a couple conference rooms. Certainly a window into how the other side saw Tanzania. Wow - how different!

Back to the airstrip - watched a little TV. They had a TV in the waiting lounge and there was the equivalent of MTV playing. I took a video clip because I thought it was so great!

Our plane landed, the pilot jumped off - checked his hand written passenger list - saw us on the list and on we got. They put our suitcases in the nose of the plane. The plane was tiny - tiny seats, with no neck rests. Picture the back seat of an old 1970's style station wagon - but only for 2 people on one side of the aisle and for one passenger on the other side of the isle.

First stop: Arusha. "The Geneva of Tanzania" as the airport says on it's welcome sign. We had to actually go into a waiting room for about 30 minutes before boarding again. I think it was the same plane, same pilot - but who knew? there were so many planes on the runway, it was impossible to tell. We just crossed our fingers that our bags were on our plane.

The views from the air were all amazing! I took a lot of photos, but they just don't capture the true essence. It was beautiful.

The one thing we didn't see - that I wish had - was Mount Kilimanjaro. I guess that means we will have to come back again.

Second stop: Zanzibar. What a beautiful island - the ocean is so welcoming and warm looking - white sand beaches. Made me think we should have stayed there for a couple nights. But from the looks of it from the air - it really looked like a place that you would have to spend at least a week to thoroughly enjoy and explore.

Again - off the plane, into the waiting room for about 30 minutes and then back out to board again. Same plane, same pilot.

Oh - and none of these planes have toilets.

Finally - we landed in Dar. It's a huge city with about 3.5 million people. Wow! That's have the size of Swizterland all in one city. All went well - our bags made it and someone was there from Leopard Tours to pick us up and drive us to Ras Kutani.

Through the city we went, winding our way through the streets, past some really nice looking government buildings and then to the ferry docks. Somehow the driver managed to get us on the ferry that was right there...loading!

On we went. It was a drive on - drive off ferry. Just imagine about 15 cars and, I kid you not, over 800 walk-ons. The ferry was packed!

I started to feel a little uncomfortable. How many times have you read in the paper or seen on TV - A ferry in the 3rd world sinks and all the passengers drowned. OMG - this could be us! The ride was just 7 minutes - but it felt much longer than that.

I was so glad to get off on the other side.

We then continued on for another couple hours. Again, into the middle of nowhere. The driver (I can't remember his name) turned left onto an unmarked road with no signs anywhere. Winding around, up and over, the ocean came into view - just beautiful. And there we were!

All the walkways betwwen the huts were sand. I almost died when I saw our place. I think the picture will say it all. (I'll upload that later). We walked around and checked out the beach - it was just amazing!! I can't wait to hang out on the beach and read and relax!

11/17 Last Day

Monday, November 17

I can't believe it - our last day! The days and weeks have just flown by and both of us could stay for longer. But alas, our family and duties (school & work) are at home waiting for us!

A group of doctors/nurses/volunteers (12) arrived yesterday to do Medical evaluations for all the children at Gyetegi as well as another primary school nearby. They are here through the Mary Tidlund Foundation. Having so many more people here has changed the dynamics a little - more people for meals & new house mates.

In the morning, I let Jack have the preschoolers while I finished up with the letter writing for Anna's class. Simon, Evalina and Swedi hadn't finished their letters so we went into Tarangire to write. They are such little perfectionists! Writing in their best handwriting as well making great drawings. I can't wait to hand out these letters back at home. I'm hoping that some of these children will continue writing back and forth with their penpals.

I then spent the afternoon playing with the preschoolers & finishing up my very small to do list. I can't even begin to express the simplicity of life here. My to do list at home is a neverending list - a book. This was my to do list here:

• write comments in the English & Computer Class folder
• pack
• sort through clothes & meds that we are leaving behind
• take photos of everything!
• finish buying/paying for Mama Upendo's goodies
• return bottles to the Duka in Campi Nairobi
• catch up on blog and post!

Notice that there is no shopping, cooking, laundry, folding etc etc. I have been in heaven for the last 3 weeks here!

Jack spent the afternoon up at the school helping with the kids going through their medical evaluations (keeping them in line, moving, holding their hands etc). I think he found it very interesting. I wanted to go too - but I thought this was his thing, without his mother!

When I walked to get the kindergarten kids at 3:30 - the one thing Edina kept saying was that all those people at the school 'scared her'. Of course I tried to tell her that they were people just like me, that they cared about her and that they wanted to make sure she was healthy from the inside of her body too. I'm not sure that I convinced her.

While we were walking back a class (Doctor etc) were coming in a lines, 4 wide, down the path to the rec hall for gym with Mike. I took a video clip - they were singing...... just amazing!

I also had our exit interview with Sara. Basically to settle up with internet fees and tips as well as to chat about how our stay had been here. Of course, I thought it was amazing so didn't really have any negative feedback. It's so well organized here! Everything is so well thought out and thought through.

Early to bed as we are getting picked up at 7 am tomorrow.

11/16 Scavenger Hunt & Birthdays

Sunday, November 16

Up early - big day today. Andrew and Ellie are leaving, we are doing a scavenger hunt with all the kids, a group of 12 doctors, nurses and volunteers are arriving for 2 weeks and it was the day to celebrate November birthdays!

We said good bye to Andrew and Ellie sometime after breakfast. They were heading to Arusha to spend the day before they fly out later tonight to go back to the States. Molly, Carolyn and I wrapped all the birthday presents. Saidi got some pretty nice stuff including a Timex watch and a slinky. We all thought that was pretty ironic because we had just discussed at dinner last night that a slinky wouldnít be the same here because they are no stairs here. The only stairs are those 6 or so steps leading into the library/preschool and those are most likely too wide. No one here has seen a full staircase, or so we think.

Molly then helped me make a quick crossword puzzle (times 5) for the Scavenger Hunt which started at 11:00. We divided them all into 5 teams with team leaders (Benja, Lucy, Riziki, Doctor and Abdul), handed them the instructions and off they ran. They had an hour and a half to collect all the items. One of them was to get Jackís signature and clever Jack went and hid on the top of the water tower so it took them all a bit to even find him first!

It was a great success - they all had a great timeÖ.at least until the points were tallied. It was then that the poor sports in the group stuck out like sore thumbs. Sore losers are universal! Two teams tied with 68 out of a possible 70 points. And luckily Carolyn had some smarties and little chocolates to give them as a prize.

After lunch and nap time Jack got a good game of hide and seek going again while a day visitor took polaroids of all the kids. They were each to get one photo - but instead it turned out to be quite difficult as they all wanted more than one and were back in line as soon as their image came through on their photo.

As we are coming to the end of our stay, Jack and I went around and took photos of everything we wanted to show everyone at home. All the houses, the garden, the incinerator etc. I also made sure to get photos of all the Mamaís that I got to know - in particular Mama Gracie, Mama Upendo and Mama Renea. They were all so cute when they saw their faces on my camera. Giggles galore!

At 4:00 we celebrated birthdays. We brought over the birthday cakes that Elias and Seba made to Tarangire There were cakes to all the houses - all made from scratch. In Tarangire we were celebrating JoJoís and Musaís birthdays. They were so cute. They all sang HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU and then a fast clucking in the mouth sound. Musa was even more wide eyed than usual. Presents were opened and cake was had by all.

As it was a chapatti night, Mama Gracie was busy rolling. She had me roll out a couple and made sure that Jack documented it on film! Mama Gracie also wanted to make sure that she and I had a photo together - wait until you see that one. The bottom line is that in all the photos all their faces, their skin is just so beautifulÖand mine looks so white and old and wrinkly!

The new group all arrived - 12 in total - so we are quite a crew for meals. Half are eating here in the Volunteer House (Lengai) and the other half down at Indiaís. They are doing health screenings for Gyetigi and another school around here Gyetigi alone has about 400 kids. Look forward to hearing how their first days goes on Monday night at dinner.

11/15 Saturday

Saturday, November 15

Had a good night sleep and enjoyed breakfast for 2. All the other volunteers were still down in Karatu. I spent the morning catching up on blog entries, wrote a couple postcards and made a final to do list of all the things that I want to make sure that I do before we leave on Tuesday morning.

Jack usually spends the mornings after breakfast doing his homework. Heís been spending about 3 hours a day doing homework not including reading - he is so disciplined!!! Certainly not a trait from me.

After lunch I worked on the Birthday posters for Musa, Habiba, Masala, JoJo, Mama Upendo, Saidi and the dogs, Winchester and Kira. As I like to doodle I thoroughly enjoyed this!

Jack had a great game of hide and go seek going which was better than playing soccer in the heat. I usually end up in the preschool room drawing with the kids. They usually want me to draw things for them. I keep telling them that they have to learn to draw themselves - that they need practice. As it turns out Saidi is a great artist. He went to get a soccer book that was filled with drawings of how to play and he drew them free hand. Amazing!

Cocktails down at India's with everyone to celebrate the months of work that Andrew and Ellie here. Sitting on Indiaís veranda is just beautiful. We enjoyed snacks and popcorn while watching a storm roll in with lots of lightening. The party was cut short as we all wanted to get back to Lengai before the rain came.

And did it rain!

11/15 We have Funzas!

Funzas

On Saturday morning Jack asked me to look at his left pinky toe. It looked like a planterís wart so I told him not to worry about it and we'd deal with it when we got home.

Not an hour had passed when a group of boys wanted me to go on a walk with them. As I was putting on my socks I saw something that almost looked like a blister on my second toe. I grabbed my nail clippers and started ëclippingí. I clipped and clipped until there was a perfect round hole at the top of my toe. I saved what I clipped and ask the boys to take a look.

"You have a funza that has many babies!".

Ahhhhh I had a funza.

And that meant that Jack did too. So when we were both back from our walks (he took a different group of kids) we went to Sara and Peter who were able to successfully get his out.

Bottom line: they sound a lot worse than they are and the visual I had in my head before I got one was also much worse than the real thing.

These funzaís had managed to get through out socks and our sneakers!

11/14 Skyping!

Friday, November 14th

Breakfast, preschool, play dough, Lego. The usual.

I did have to take baby Vicenti out again - have him on my lap and go over the fit throwing, then hitting spells that he has. I could just eat him up! I love that he sits there on my lap and our "sessions" always end up as a good snuggle.

It was hot hot hot today!.we all felt like we were melting. Even Jack decided that soccer was also out of the question! So instead we worked on the Scavenger Hunt for Sunday (I'll upload that as a separate entry). Jack and I are in charge of Sunday mornings activities.

At 4:20 I grabbed Jack's Mac and headed into the Preschool room so I could Skype with Scott's class. It was GREAT! We got through - I had Joshua, Vincent, baby Vicenti, Yusufu and Boazi with me and they were all sticking their heads right up to the camera and introducing themselves! From my side it looked like they could see me but I'm not sure. Scott and his classmates asked me some great questions - about the government of Tanzania, the foods we are eating, the weather, how many children etc. It was so great to hear Scott's voice!

Sara and I went for about an hour plus walk to the beginning of the Ascona coffee plantation - I was hot and sweaty but so beautiful! We were on the road on the way to Oldeani Village which would have been another 45 minute down the road.

The rest of the gang went down to Karatu for the night. They were going to go out dancing - so I decided that I should be a responsible mother and stay here with Jack!!

So Jack and I ended up having dinner in Kiran with India, Suzie, Sara and all the kids. It was so great - pasta, salad, linen napkins, table manners and great conversation! India's house is great - the design is perfect and it's very nicely decorated.

One of the Askaris walked us back to Lengai.

Medical Issues

Medical Issues

I am sure many are wondering about the medical stuff! Our stomachs, are we sick?, the water, malaria, dehydration, sunburn, worms etc etc.

So far, knock on wood, neither of us has been sick. All the water is treated here in the village and all the food is washed with that water, including salads. We brush our teeth with the purified water that we transfer into small bottles that we can easily take into the bathroom. And for showers, we do our best to keep our mouths shut, so that we donít drink any by mistake. Some of the volunteers brush their teeth with the water from the tap - I just didn't want to take a chance since we were only staying here for 3 weeks.

We take our malaria pills every morning  - and have been since the day before we arrived and will continue to do so until 7 days after we get back. We're taking malerone which you have to take with food and has a side effect of dizziness - which neither of us has had so far.

Dehydration is very common - Jack and I are drinking at least 1-2 liters of water everyday, if not more. So far we haven't felt dehydrated. There was one afternoon when I made Jack a huge bottle of Gatorade (we brought a tub of the powder mix) because he had been out there in the hot sun playing soccer for at least an hour. He once got dehydrated when we were in Co. a couple years ago so he knows that he doesn't want to be dehydrated!

The sun. Yes, we are just below the equator and in the sun it is HOT! And yes, you can fry! We've been diligent about putting on sun screen. Except for one day when Jack was out there playing soccer - he got a little sun burn but by the next morning it was ok. 

Worms. Yes, we can get worms and I am not really sure if we have them or not. You can get them from the food or water. When we leave, we'll get a de-worming pill that we'll take when we get home.

There are also these other kind of worms called Funza's. And these come from the dust - i.e. the ground. If you wear socks and shoes - you shouldn't get them. But if you wear flip flops and the dirt is dry you can get them. They burrow themselves into your feet or under your toenails. At first they itch like crazy and then your foot starts to throb. Peter is the resident expert funza remover! 

Jack and I have opted for socks and shoes everyday. (Which is practically killing me in this heat. I love flip flops!)

Colds. With 42 children here - yes there are colds that go around, even strep. But we have been vigilant about washing our hands so are hoping to avoid getting a cold!

Ringworm. Many of the kids have ringworm which you can see as white spots on their heads. They all have their hair cut pretty short so you can see everything! It's a type of fungus and when adults get it it shows up as a red dry spot that has a perfect circle around it. A couple of the volunteers have gotten them and they just put cream on it until they go away.

So far so good! Fingers are crossed we'll stay healthy!

11/13 Last English Class

Thursday, November 13

No breakfast duty this morning! Slept in until our breakfast which was great! I don't think I have ever slept so much - I am enjoying every minute of it. Maybe at home I haven't been getting enough sleep for a long time? Maybe I am catching up on lost sleep (I know this isn't possible but it's a thought?)!.

Back with our preschoolers this morning. We added play dough to our repertoire of options and they just love it! Between Lego and play dough there is silence! So enjoyable! Vicente (age 3) tends to get into trouble quite a bit because he's hitting people and throwing screaming fits. Today I decided I was going to attempt to stop this pattern.

Soooo - when he grabbed someone else's Lego and was just about to hit - I picked him up and carried his outside. He sat on my lap screaming in my ears for about a minute (felt like ten) until he finally stopped long enough to be able to listen to what I was saying. I told him that if someone made him mad, he should come to me and tell me what made him mad. Do not hit! He sat there, listened and then we just hugged. He is so cute.

At 2:00 we had our last English class for the older ones. Molly and I walked to the Duca in Campi Nairobi and bought Fantas and Sprites for the class (in glass bottles). Ten bottles cost me 4'500 shillings - which is under $4.00. As we were walking back we saw Upendo walking to school - she of course offered to carry the bags - which we didn't let her!

We handed back the exams and Lindsay went through the questions one by one with the class. In the meantime I was writing their homework assignment on the white board. We want them to keep a diary - write at least once a week about what they are doing. Noting especially to use their past, present and future tenses in each entry.  And I also told them that we really wanted them to speak English with each other when they saw each other. They aren't coming back for classes until January 12 - so they have plenty of time to forget everything they have learned!

They then had a choice - play games (learning more English) or watching a movie in the Volunteer house while drinking their sodas. They chose the movie - as they had seen the first part yesterday after the exam. It was the animated "A Little Mermaid". They seemed to all enjoy it - but I have to say, I am not convinced they understood it all!

We took a couple photos of the class - and lots of hugs all around while saying goodbye!

At 5, I did another workout in the rec hall (a DVD with Cathe - Body Max) - it almost killed us! And Jack was back out by Campi Nairobi playing soccer. You should see his legs and socks when he's done. 

Absolutely filthy!

11/12 Ngorongoro Crater

Wednesday, November 12th

Itís safari time again! Twice in one week - what a privilege. Fredy was on again and today we went with Suzie, Molly, Jen, Lindsay, Jack and myself. A full car!

Our destination today was the Ngorongoro Crater just down the road from us. Bumpety, bumopety we go out to the main road. Iíve labeled the road at A Sports Bra Road, especially if you are sitting in the back. In fact I have to lean forward while driving on this road as it kills my back to sit up straight. Somehow by leaning forward it seems to take away the feeling of my vertebrae smashing into one another.

At the entrance of the crater there were already plenty of baboons. We all stayed clear of them after our picnic visitor from Manyara the other day! Driving up to the top of crater seemed a little hairy to me - the road looked washed away on many parts and it really looked like a car could go over the cliff at any time. Fredy assured us weíd be fine. We could see some huge buffaloís on the steeps sides of the road.

The crater, by the way, was an old volcano that had the middle drop out 2 million years ago. Whatís left is a huge flat area inside the volcano walls that is filled with animals and a small body of water. So we have to drive to the top and them descend into the crater. You can see several safari lodges as you drive up and around to the road in - they all look beautiful. Fredy told us that some of them run $1í000 a night! Can you imagine?

There are also lots of Masai around there too. We could see their Bomas dotting the countryside with herds of cattle grazing followed many times by a young herder. A Boma is what their little villages are called. Usually in the middle is a circular stall surrounded by lots of branches and twigs. This is where they put their animals at night to protect them from the wildlife. And then around that you will see a handful of round mud huts - the number varies depending on how many families, wives live there. Their clothing is also very bright, many reds and purples, and is very visible against the light brown dry grasses. These Masai near the crater are used to the safari cars and tourists and are doing their best to supplement their incomes courtesy of the tourists.

They charge you $10 a person to come into one of their Bomas. We declined as it takes more than an hour and we all really wanted to get down into the crater. Basically, they give you a tour of their huts, explain about their life, charge you to take their photo and then want you to buy their beaded items. They make really cool things - bracelets, huge round beaded necklaces, and anything else you can make with beads. And itís all really colorful! At the entrance into the crater - at the top - on our way down we were surrounded by at least 6 Masai trying to sell their wares. They were so aggressive that they were actually opening our windows and sticking their arms, laden with necklaces and bracelets into the jeep. The women make them and the men sell them. I took a video clip which is pretty entertaining!

So down we went. We werenít allowed to open the top until we got to the bottom of the crater. Apparently a safari car (thatís what they call them, but they are really jeeps) tipped over with tourists standing up with their heads out the roof and I guess it was a pretty bad accident. At least thatís what Fredy told us!

At the bottom, while opening the roof, there were more Masai. Suzie paid them for their photo and bought a couple things - including a spear. It was definitely his spear - he had no others to see. Fredy helped with the negotiating and got the spear down to 20,000 Schillings which is less than $20.00!

After a quick bathroom stop - we had to back up to some trees and then there was a tiny shack with 2 openings that holes in the ground, no doors - we started our safari.

Again, we saw lots of animals and birds - hereís a list:

Baboons

Jackal

Spotted Hyaenas

Lion

Cheetahs

Elephant

Zebras

Wart hogs

Hippos

Wildebeest

Impala

Grantís gazelle

Buffalo

Bushbuck

Dik dik

Agama lizard

And these birds were added to our master list:

Kori busfard

Cape rook

Black headed heron

Spur winged goose

Common moorhen

Cattle egret

Stuhlmannís starling

Pretty amazing! The highlight was definitely the lion. At first she was sitting far enough away so that we couldnít get very good shots with our cameras. But she got up and then started walking towards us and ended up about 6 feet away. She was strong and powerful with such an air of confidence. She was so impressive. It really appeared as though she was stalking for a killÖ..and she was clearly nursing.

The way out of the crater was a very steep road, certainly not of Swiss construction. A little hairy to say the least. We stopped at a lodge at the top and had a coke. The views from up there were amazing. 

As we drove back down around we went past the first viewing spot that we stopped at on the way. There were a several rangers with guns walking around which we had not seen earlier. When I asked Fredy about this he said that this one spot was notorious for bandits taking advantage of tourists stopping to take photos. 

As it had rained a little, the road was pretty muddy (itís all red clay/dirt) and there was a truck that had slid off the road. We were all glad that it wasnít us!

While driving down we were all coveting the Masai spear that Suzie had bought so we asked Fredy if we could stop somewhere so we could all buy one. Sure enough, when we were back on the main road, Fredy eye spyed a friend of his on the side of the road. He jumped in and off we went to his store. We all managed to get a spear - for $20! Great deal!

It was a great day!

11/11 Jack's Soccer

Tuesday, November 11

Back on for breakfast in Tarangire! It was an Ugi morning so showing up at 6:20 is ok! That extra couple minutes sleep really makes a difference!

9-10:30 back with the preschoolers. We have a pretty good system going now - they have to work until about 9:40/9:45 - then playtime - then story time. We have these small daftaris (notebooks) that they each have and they can practice their letters and math in there. That way, anyone can see how each child is progressing. It's amazing how much each child actually knows if you can sit alone with them - one on one and just focus on that one child. They shine! 

We also pulled out the Legos for the first time. What a hit that was! Jack helped them and they all made cool cars, rockets, space ships etc. There was no time for a book because everyone was so engrossed in the legos, even Jack!

After lunch, Molly, Lindsay and I have our English class. We spent the entire time reviewing because tomorrow they have an exam on all that they have learned since July, when they started. For the most part they are all pretty good. They can easily have a conversation - with greetings and questions about you and your family. They can also tell you why they are taking the class and what they want to do. I think they all realize that English is an important language to learn! We played scattergories and that had us all laughing. Adding the element of time to any game seems to break the ice and make people laugh and enjoy!

Teaching this class is so different from being with the younger children. Certainly doesn't leave you with a headache and I never have to say, "Please use your inside voices". In fact most of these young Tanzanians need to turn up the volume when they speak as it really sounds like they are whispering. You would think it would be only when they speak English- but it's also when they speak Kiswahili.

We use a whiteboard to write everything down (as making handouts/copies is just not realistic for every class). And they love to come up and clean the board whenever we need it cleaned. They are all so sweet, full of smiles and want to learn!

I joined Sara and Ellie in the rec hall again for another workout - this time with weights! While I was sweating in there Jack was out on the town field by Campi Nairobi playing soccer with the older guys. 

When I was finished, I walked out there to watch him - I so wish I could post of picture of what I see.

The field is slanted - not from goal to goal but side to side. I sit on the higher side and look down across the field, past a line of purple jacaranda trees, to the red brick square homes of Campi Nairobi with grey smoke hovering over the roofs, to lines of laundry hanging from house to house, to small children running around, and playing, to chickens and goats roaming, to the sun setting in the background. 

It's just beautiful.

Anyway, they play until they can't see the ball anymore. At that point the only one I can see is Jack who was playing on the No-shirts team - they have the front of their T-shirts over their head so their stomachs and chests are visable. Of course when it's dark - I can't see any of the Tanzanians!

Yet another night of cold showers - I'm getting used to it - you just have to deal and then throw on some warm clothes after.

11/10 Manyara

Monday, November 10

Safari Day! Seba made us a picnic lunch and off we went with Fredy. It started out as just Susi, Jack and myself for the first hour or so. We picked up Jessie and her friend Jen at a place just at the top of the Rift (as in The Rift Valley) where they had stayed on Sunday night. Menyara is just at the bottom of the Rift so we were there and in the Park by 9am. 

The vegetation here was totally different from Tarangire as parts of it are rainforest. Just driving through it the air smells wet, the birds chirping and singing away and tons of baboons everywhere! We saw lots of animals and birds - here is a list of what we saw:

Vervet monkey

Baboons

Banded mongoose

Lots of elephants (up close)

Lots of giraffes

Hippos galore

Zebras

Warthogs

Impala

Coke's Hartbeest

Wildebeest

Thompson's Gazelle

Agama Lizard

All just amazing and beautiful. I think the highlight was how close we were to the elephants and at one point I think there were 8 or 9 giraffes in the same area. Wait until you see the photos!

And birds - here is a list of new birds we saw. We did see many of the same birds that we saw at Tarangire  - so this list is in addition to some of those we saw:

Cinnamon chested bee eater

Red billed hornbill

Jackson's hornbill

Rufus chested swallow

Fish eagle

Violet backed starling (just stunning!)

African grey hornbill

Tawny eagle

Wooly necked stork

Grey headed king fisher

Crowned plover

Crowned crane

Sacred Ibis

Hadada Ibis

Geater Flamingo

Lesser Flamingo

Common Bulbul

Red Billed Oxpecker

I got a lot of pictures of the birds - but as I only have my 10x optical zoom camera with me, the verdict is still open as to whether the birds will really be identifiable!

Jack and Susi are a great pair for bird watching. Jack spots them - he's amazing - and then Susi knows where to find them in her amazing field guide to Northern Tanzanian birds. And then I try and photograph. Teamwork.

We stopped for lunch at a great view spot, sat down on some benches and enjoyed our egg salad sandwiches. All of the sudden, Jen said that she didn't feel very comfortable with this one baboon getting closer. She had hardly finished saying it when the baboon jumped up on the bench next to her. You have never seen so many people run away. Fredy grabbed some rocks and started throwing them at him and a park ranger came over with his gun in hand. 

Baboons can be very dangerous! They can really hurt you. 

With disaster averted, we enjoyed the rest of our lunch and continued along with the safari. The hippo pool was really cool! There must have been 50 hippos lying in the water - snorting/grunting/yawning/rolling. Awesomeust! And all around them, including on their backs were tons of birds!

Near there, we spotted at least 10 vultures flying overhead. They are huge and when you see them up close are pretty scary looking things. All I could think of was the scene in The Jungle Book with the vultures singing their sinister song from the tree tops.

The elephants were also amazing - we were so close - some of them were almost right up at the safari car. It did rain a little while we were there - which was a bummer - but it didn't last long so we popped the roof back up. The roofs pop up so that our heads are sticking out of the top. We must have looked pretty silly!

It was a great day!

I also managed to do a workout with Sara and Ellie - Tae Bo - Just KILLER!!!!

11/9 The BAT

Sunday, November 9

At 5:15 this morning I woke up to some serious scratching in our room. I sleep with my flashlight in my bed - so I felt around for it and pointed it around the room. What do you think I saw? A BAT climbing up and down our laundry basket. Before I had a second more time to be grossed out, I jumped out of bed, grabbed the basket with the bat clinging on, opened the door, pushed the basket into the hall, closed the door and jumped back into bed. Phew. Good riddance!

Yes, but then I could hear all the noises, the scratching and the shuffling around above our heads. I have no idea how Jack sleeps all through thisÖ. I pointed the flashlight up to the ceiling in hopes of scaring the bat or rat that dared to keep me awake.

I did manage to sleep an hour or so before having to get up and help for breakfast in Tarangire. And this morning I made myself a cup of coffee and took it with me. I wonder why I havenít been doing that every morning? Live and learn!

I spent the morning sorting through all the baskets in the preschool closet - the blocks, lego etc etc. Of course you turn your back for 5 minutes and things are put away in the wrong place. Oh well. I then joined Susie in the library and we went through all the videos and DVDís and made sure that the video/dvd in each case matched the case and that they were filed correctly. They have hundreds of movies! Itís just amazing. And to think that they all came over from the US in duffle bags. There are also hundreds of books as well - Lindsay sorted those properly yesterday.

There was also a little bit of excitement this morning; Elias and Seba killed a rat in the Volunteer House! It was running through the kitchen, back behind the TV and then back towards our room behind the freezer. Yuck, yuck and yuck! Have I already mentioned that I hate rats?Ö.even bats are better than rats. Oh, and I donít mind spiders at all - so I kill those whenever one is found. (Ruby knowsÖ..). But the worst part about the rat was that it was dead just on the grass by the door to the Volunteer House. Just gross! I had to have Elias toss it into the bushes.

Who knows, maybe the rat ate the bat?

I am glad we are on day13 with this happening. I just might have been thrown off a bit had all this batty/ratty excitement happened our first day! At this point, I think I can handle it.

Speaking of the days, three weeks is really the shortest amount of time that one should come here. It takes a week to let it all soak in, another week to get with the program and feel like you are really getting to know all the children and the last week to just enjoy! Not to mention that if you are going to come all the way here you need to squeeze in the safaris as well. Three weeks is just perfect.

All the other volunteers are much younger - in their 20ís and are at very different places in their lives, so itís much easier for them to stay for much longer. Several of them are here for more than a year. Itís been different hanging with the twenty something crowdÖ.in my heart I have always felt that I am still 27 (God only knows why, but itís true)Ö.but Iím not sure anymore. They have all been fun to get to knowÖ

Itís also been great for me to watch Jack. He really does his own thing quite a bit, interacting with the children. In particular, the soccer boys and the boys in Tarangire. Heís taken to helping Vicenti with bath time and getting undressed and dressed. Itís so sweet. Jack also knows all of them by name. I still get a couple confused - but he knows them all! Heís so independent and is really enjoying himself.

There is truly something to be said for leaving everything behind and only focusing on what is here. Heís been doing homework for an hour or so every morning and then again for another hour or so during nap time - such discipline, which, by the way, he did NOT get from me!. As a student I was always a 9th hour kind of gal. Still am in many ways. My creative juices really only flow under pressure, or so I think!

11/8 Nap & Walk

Saturday November 8

Going to bed at midnight and getting up at 6:30 after you have been sleeping at least 9 to 9  hours a night was NOT easy! The funny thing is that I do this all the time at home, but for some reason here I was just exhausted!

Weekends are a bit more relaxing with not so much scheduled. However, Jack and I are in charge for organizing an activity next Saturday. We asked Andrew what was a good one in the past and he said a slip and slide was the most fun. So, assuming the weather is good, next Saturday Jack and I will organize that. We need to ask Peter to get more liquid soap and show us where the tarps are. 

And as a backup plan we'll do a Scavenger Hunt. I saw a sample on the Volunteer laptop so I'll modify it to make it new. It's quite clever the way it is - but I need new things on there.

The rains came and went all day so it meant not so much sun - ie not so much power. So we couldn't really charge anything today. Am hoping for more sun tomorrow because I want to make sure my camera will be charged for our Safari to Manyara on Monday.

A relaxing afternoon playing with the kids in the preschool room, drawing etc. Oh, I actually took a nap after lunch. All the kids do - but today I fell asleep too. And I am NOT a napper!

I did take a group for a walk around 3:30. We walked up to Mama India's old house. Happy, Janie, Christina, Christopher, Rehema and Edina all came. It's just so beautiful up there. They picked some fruits (still have to find out what they are called) and some flowers. And just as we were walking past Campi Nairobi it started to pour! We got soaked - but it was fun and we were all laughing and having fun.

I also forgot to mention that many nights after dinner Jack and I lie on my bed (the bottom bunk) and watch a movie. We watched the Secret Gardner over the last 3 nights and started Into The Wild tonight. I only lasted about 20 minutes so we'll watch more tomorrow night.

11/6 3 Weeks is Perfect

Thursday November 6

I was back on duty for breakfast and it was a PB & J morning. So I got there early but Mama Gracie had already made them all! As usual I also make Fatuma's milk and then sit with Vicenti, who gets annoyed with me for the first 2 minutes when I ask him how he slept but them demands me to sit next him while he finishes his breakfast. Vicenti is just so captivating - I could hang out with him all day long!

Back into preschool with Jack this morning We set up puzzle stations around the room hoping that they would move around the room and do all the puzzles. That didn't really work but at least those that wanted to do the puzzles did them. We ended with water coloring and story time.

Usufu has been sick for a couple days now - meaning he's been in bed. So after Ugi we went and hung out with Usufu keeping him company. They are really good when they are sick - they really do stay in bed all day. If you are not well enough to school  - you stay in bed. No if, ands or buts!

Back to English and computer class in the afternoon. It made a big difference today because we were in the Library with access to a big white board. They started by taking the test (that Lindsay had made, saved on a thumb drive, gave to Sara, who printed it out, who sent it down to Karatu for 10 copies!). They had half an hour to complete the test and some of them still were not finished after that. We then spent the rest of the time reviewing things they have learned so far; greetings, countries, who/what/where/why/how?, numbers, continents, saying telephone numbers, and then a spelling game. Each team sent someone up to the white board and they had to spell the word we gave them as fast as possible! They were really good spellers! Some of them may not know what the words mean - but they can spell them! All of them loosened up a bit and were laughing and really having a fun time. They asked about Molly (who had taught the class before us) and said that they missed her - which was so sweet! 

Most of the volunteers are here for much longer than we are so they have the opportunity to really make a difference. And not to mention how rewarding it must be for them to see progress on all fronts - with the children growing, speaking better and better English, and the lasting memories that the children will have of their stays here. Three weeks allows you to get into the swing of things, get to know all the children in your assigned house pretty well, get a chance to really see how well everything is run and appreciate it!. And to allow you to realize how lucky you are to be able to come here and have these incredible children touch your life..as they are, all of them, truly amazing!

I was back on for dinner at 6:30 - but ended up working out in the rec hall with Ellie and Sara until then so was a little late. I also took a freezing cold shower because the power was off all afternoon as we had no sun. It rained - it poured - and it was so loud on the tin roofs. I took a video clip - you just can't believe how hard it rains here. 

11/7 A Gift to Share

Friday November 7

The pounding and pounding of the rain throughout the night was unbelievable. It was so loud! It almost sounded like water was pouring from the skies on the tin roofs from buckets as opposed to falling as raindrops. Despite the noise, we still had a good night sleep!

I was back on for Ugi breakfast in Tarangire which meant I could get their about 6:20. I literally roll out of bed, throw on some shorts and head over. After making Fatumaís milk and making sure Vicenti swallows his red vitamin pill and they all do their morning chores, I head back to the volunteer house for our breakfast. There were a couple mornings when there was a French press coffee pot and somehow it hasnít re-surfaced, so I am drinking instant with powdered milk. Breakfast, by the way, is toast, jams/jellies and hard boiled eggs. The first couple mornings I ate the yolk, but they donít really taste like ours so we have been only eating the whites.

Today I was back with the Standard 2ís helping them write their letters for Annaís class. They are so cute with what they want to say - favorite movie, color, subject, book etc. I forgot to mention that on Wednesday when I was with them one of them went to get their favorite book. And guess what it was?? It was Barry and Moritzís book ìA Gift to Shareî. I almost fell off my chair! Can you imagine that they have this book all the way over in Tanzania. I was thrilled to tell them that I knew the man who wrote the book and that Maoritz had actually been to my house. The world is truly so small! I have to make sure I send along all Barryís other books as well.

They are all just about done - only Evalina and Ismail have a couple more to write. I am hoping to get them to complete theirs over the weekend.

After Ugi, I went and helped Jack with the little ones. As Usufu was sick we only had Joshua, Vicenti and Rehema so we just played around outside.

I did another workout with Sara and Ellie in the rec hall between bath time and dinner. There was a lot of aerobics in this one and I was basically laughing and jumping around the entire time because the woman who was doing the video had such bad segways and wasnít really teaching the steps before she did them. Nonetheless, a good workout. I managed to squeeze in a cold shower before heading down to Indiaís for an apero.

Her place is beautiful with a lovely porch in the back that even had a fireplace. Great popcorn, guacamole and conversation. Itís just fascinating to hear how India landed here and all the work that she has done to prepare her for this role. She is an amazing woman - inspirational to say the least. Anything is possible!

Back to Tarangire for dinner and then Mama Gracie told the storyÖ. Of course we couldnít understand a word , but all 10 children were sitting captivated for 25 minutes. Laughing, listening, questioning. It was just great. I wish I could have understood the story as I am sure we would have enjoyed it just as much as they did.

After our dinner at the Volunteer House we all sat outside late into the night having a couple beers (NOT Jack!), looking at the moon and listening to Carolynís ipod. 

11/5 Obama!

Wednesday November 5

Obama won! 

Everyone here is thrilled. The Tanzanians love Obama, so much so that we have many cars with Obama bumper stickers and Jack even saw one bus with Obama's face painted on the back. They all feel connected to him because of his Kenyan heritage, even though Bush did some good things for Tanzania as well.

I wasn't on breakfast so I slept in until 7 - that was great because we were both just exhausted from the safari yesterday. I found out this morning that I would be helping out in the afternoon with the English and computer class from 2-4.

And this morning I left Jack with the preschoolers so I could go give the 3rd grade letters to the Standard 2 class. Carolyn has them in the mornings in Serengeti house for some tutoring before they go to school. I handed out all of the letter with the pictures of the maple leaves as well as the laminated pictures of each American 3rd grader You should have seen their faces! They couldn't believe it - letters and pictures to THEM - with their names on it. I had to run and get my camera. It was priceless. I wish I could have brought a letter and photo for each and every child!

After lunch I found I had a new job - to help with the English and Computer class. These 10 students have been taking this class since July and all live within a 2 hour+ walk from here. Can you imagine some of them walk over 2 hours to get to this class? Just amazing to me. They want to learn English!!

Lindsay and I had them in the Volunteer House around the table. First we split them up into groups of two and had them practice their greetings. They had to have a conversation with each other, practice several times and them get up in front of the class and repeat their conversation. They are all so shy and speak so softly - we kept having to remind them to speak a little louder. They speak the same way in Kiswahili so it's not surprising. 

Then we had them practice their vocab words having to do with travel (airport, taxi, road, boarding pass etc). We had them write them all down and then write a sentence with each - I think there were 10 words in total. Some are definatly better than others - to be expected - and it was a little frustrating because they were at such different levels. Most of them were about 18 years olf (+/- a year or two). One of the things I asked them all was what they wanted to be - what they wanted to use their English and computer knowledge for. The responses were great - a prime minister (a young woman), a safari driver (also a young woman, a teacher, a pilot etc. I love that they have dreams! And that they realize that learning more will and can help them!

We also put in a movie for them to watch - but after about 10 minutes I realized that it was too fast paced and they couldn't really understand it very well - so we went back to the table and studied the words some more because they are going to have a quiz tomorrow.

At 4 I tried to skype Scott's class - but alas there was no internet! So scratch that for today - will try again tomorrow.

Was on for bath/ egg & toast snack and not for dinner - which was a bummer because dinner was chapate which we LOVE! They are like pancakes made out of flour, water, sugar, salt and lots of oil. They are just so good and the kids have them only on Wednesdays and Sundays.

11/4 Tarangire

Tuesday, November 4

Election Day!

Up at 5:15 today because we're heading out on our first safari. Andrew, Susie, Jack and I went with Freddie to Tarangire National Park. It was about a 2 hour drive to get there - back out from the village on one of the bumpiest roads I have ever been on, past Karatu, down the Rift into the Valley, past Menyara and back towards Arusha. Then right - south/west towards Tarangire. 

Even though we left early, it was HOT! The top of Freddie's jeep flipped off so we could stand on our seats to see the wildlife. We saw lots of elephants, zebras, wildebeests, giraffes, gazelles, impalas, orynx, watre bucks, egyptian geese, an ostrich, a lizard, mongoose, monkeys and birds, birds, birds!

Susie knows here birds and that was just great to be with her. She also had this great field guide to birds in Kenya and Northern Tanzania that had them all! Jack even turned out to have eagle eyes (thanks to his contacts) and was a GREAT bird spotter. Here is a list of the different kinds we saw:

1. Fisher's Lovebird
   
2. Yellow Necked Spurfowl
3. Red Necked Spurfowl
4. African Pied Wagtail
5. Blacksmith Plover
6. Lilac-breasted Roller
7. Egyptian Goose
8. White winged Stilt
9. Red Billed Buffalo weaver
10. White bellied tit
11. Black Stork
12. Yellow Collared lovebird
13. Ashy Starling
14. Superb Starling
15. Grey Heron
16. Bateleur eagle
17. African Fish eagle
18. Hammer Kop
19. Namagua dove
20. Ringnecked dove
21. Verreaux's eagle owl
22. White backed vulture

They were all so beautiful - the blues, greens, reds etc of these birds is truly amazing to see against the dry grasses of the Tarangire.

We stopped for lunch at a picnic site and had out egg salad sandwiches that Elias had made us. We were all so hot and were getting far too much sun - even though we were applying sunscreen all the time.

Freddie suggested we grab a cold soda at the Tarangire Lodge - WOW! What a place. The view over the park was just fantastic and they even had a pool, which we would have all loved to have had a splash in.

Headed back to the Village with a stop in Karatu - I wanted to get more drinks and a couple snacks for next weeks safaris.

That road back in to the Village is just killer - wait until you see the photos!

We had a great day and both went to bed by 9:00 pm -wondering how the voting was going back home.

11/3 Preschool Plan & Garden Walk

Monday, November 3

On breakfast duty again - Ugi -so I could come in around 6:20! I then walked with the school crew to school with Vicenti and Rehema. They all get to school at about 7:15 and then do their chores until 8am when school starts.

I came back, had breakfast - woke up sleepy Jack - and prepared for the preschoolers. I got some small notebooks from the office and 7 pencils - one for each and I put their names on each. My plan is to have them do a page for a each letter of the alphabet where they have to write the letter and them draw some pictures of the things that start with that letter. All went well except for Vicenti and Rehema who are just a bit too young. Rehema was really trying and got out a couple A's and I was so proud!! Such a little thing made me so happy!

Then we did some water coloring - that was amazing. They all actually sat still for about 20 minutes busily painting away. But shortly after that the chaos returned. It is getting better as they are starting to listen a bit more.

In the afternoon Jack and I took all the little ones on a walk to the garden which is just past Indiaís house They are lots of things growing in there - from beans and lettuce to some flowers and peppers. I think we eat a lot from the garden. The plants are all in raised beds of soil, which I found so interesting because I had just started The Poisonwood Bible where the Baptist Minister after arriving in the Congo in 1959 wouldnít listen to the house Mama about how to plant a garden. He cleared away the jungle and made the garden flat. This was all fine and dandy until the rains came and washed away all the seedlings. Upon seeing this he made raised beds - like burial mounds - for all the plants and they never washed away again. (Note that his plants did end up growing but never grew any fruits. He thought it was because there were no bees for pollination. This is not a problem here - there are bees!).

After the garden field trip we decided to clean up the Children's Village. Usufu, Joshua, Vicenti and Rehema filled a huge bag with garbage. And just scraps of garbage - small blue plastic pieces, bits of duct tape pieces, cardboard pieces and a variety of small toys (legos and beads). As a prize we gave them each a roll of Smarties - with the promise thar they had to brush their teeth extra well tonight!

Sara (the Volunteer Coordinator) and three other volunteers returned from their Gorilla trek to Rwanda this afternoon. They had been gone for a week and it sounded like an amazing experience! I canít wait to see all the photos. It was great to have more faces and people to share the work with. Jack and I had been on for a lot while they were all away. I am in no way complaining - it was just great because it gave us more opportunity to get to the know the kids faster and spend more time with them.

Who would have thought that I would have to come all the way to Tanzania to try Tae Bo (?sp)! At 5:15 in the Rec Hall, Sara, Carolyn, Ellie, Lindsay and myself did an hour and half Tae Bo DVD! Hot and fun - I told Sara to let me know when they were going to do it again, because I would love to join!

Jack was helping out with bath time, showered and then went back to Tarangire to help with dinner. Our dinner was great - listening to the stories of Rwanda was amazing.  The genocides & memorials were very disturbing. Africa is such a vast continent with so much to learn about and so much to seeÖ...