MPP Student in Tanzania

Overnight in Qatar

2009-08-01T17:36:00.002-07:00

I owe a big thank you to my parents for my awesome experience in Qatar! So for all you travelers out there, sometimes you get crappy luck with layovers – and I managed a 15 hour layover in Qatar (overnight, no less) on my return flight. Originally I was supposed to fly from Johannesburg but as that was cancelled due to my being sick, I ended up with a somewhat random flight out of Dar es Salaam. My parents got me a hotel room in Qatar – and at a 5 star Marriott, no less!

Arriving in Doha, Qatar was much like arriving save one detail: we arrived in the middle of a sandstorm! Qatar borders Oman and Saudi Arabia so you can imagine it is smack dab in the middle of the desert! The sandstorm didn’t bother me in the since that there was sand all about, it looked more like a permanent tan haze. I got off the plane and headed through immigration – but I had to buy an impromptu Visa! The bad news is I had to drop 30 bucks just to leave the airport, the silver lining was that I got a Qatar Visa stamp in my passport – both arriving and departing!

Leaving the airport was strange. It is one thing to read about things like burkas and turbans, even to see the occasional one in the United States. As I walked out of baggage claim and into the lobby in a fairly crowded room I felt all eyes stare at me. I stuck out like a sore thumb no doubt – jeans, faded tee shirt, and my WFP feed the world bag – and I was the only Westerner in sight. Seeing the women was conflicting – all I could see were pairs of eyes staring back at me through a slit in the top of the burka. Were they sad? Confused? Angry at my imposition? I don’t know – most just stared back blankly. The men I couldn’t read either, they didn’t laugh or point or appear angry, but they stared just the same. I felt more like a foreigner in that moment than I ever felt in Tanzania, but I also wasn’t prepared to acclimate!

Marriott arranged for me to get to the hotel via a taxi. The drive was short but I still got out of the airport and got to see Doha. It’s somewhat cosmopolitan, surprisingly. I felt tired and the haze made me feel like am I even seeing this clearly? Figures disappeared beneath clouds of sand thanks to the sandstorm. Buildings lit up, signs posted in both Arabic and English. Bright lights and shiny windows.

The hotel was lovely – one of the nicest I’ve ever been in. It was amazing to take a hot long shower with water pressure after 3 months of cold drip-drop showers! I enjoyed some Italian thanks to room service and free high speed internet too! I felt something like a princess strolling around my hotel room in a spa robe (provided by the hotel). It was a total treat – I never travel this way – and truthfully I think coincidence complemented me, as my parents only trust the Marriott hotels! Thanks Doha, for having a 5-star one!

Picture: the view from my balcony – no it’s not blurry, it’s the sand in the air!

Goodbye Bagamoyo!

2009-08-01T17:36:00.001-07:00

My last day (rather, morning) in Bagamoyo was really nice. I went to the house with the triplets with Charles and other UKUN volunteers for about an hour. We just played and I cuddled with Kennedy – the triplet that has warmed up to me the most! They are all just adorable though. Saying goodbye is never easy for me – I teared up saying goodbye to the staff.

Really one of the most amazing things about the program was the staff. I know so many of the volunteers felt that way. They really are a family and you become part of that family when you are there. Especially staying for 12 weeks I really got to know them and spend time with them. Some days if I had my afternoons free I’d hang out with the kitchen staff – Chiku, Robert, and Edda and help cook (I was the resident chapatti expert haha). Every day Edna and Paulina, the housekeepers, are so cheery and sweet they make you smile. And Mama C is just everyone’s second mom over here, she is so calm and relaxed despite how stressed she must get managing the houses and all the volunteers! Didase is so silly and always makes you laugh with his unique perspective on everything. And Mama Thea is an inspiration – her story of focusing on education and working her way up and now the work she is doing to bring volunteers into the community, she is a great leader by example.

It wasn’t easy to say goodbye. I already miss them and my life there – waking up and biking to school, teaching, running errands, having lunch, spending my afternoons making home visits to HIV/AIDS patients, dinner then a drink with friends. It was wonderful – and I have a renewed conviction in what I want to do in life to work directly with and for people who seem to have so little but are truthfully some of the happiest people in the world.

Picture: Me and Elias, one of our drivers, saying goodbye before I left!

Farewell Party

2009-08-01T17:35:00.000-07:00

I had a great last night in Bagamoyo! I had a farewell party at Hillside, the bar close to CCS. I was so surprised when the entire staff of the Anglican Daycare came! Julius, Agnes, Upenda, and Babu (the cook) surprised me with another beautiful gift – a shawl, to be draped around my shoulders. It’s gorgeous!

I was in the company of great friends I made over the trip – Eva, Matiga, Rasti, Kristina, Carlee, Adam, Dane, Kelly, Devon and Anna – but I was definitely missing a few people. Especially the other half of the fab four – Nick and John – as well as the rest of the original crew. Still we enjoyed an extended curfew and traditional African hip-hop music (hello baybeee)!

I feel like I got most of my tears out in the morning which was good, I was really able to enjoy my farewell party. Everyone asked what I’ll miss the most and it’s no contest – my kids. Each and every one of my 36 kids. I hope they remember me and how much I love them!

Picture: Agnes and Upenda surprising me with the shawl

Meeting the Twins' Family

2009-07-29T05:01:00.000-07:00

Today was my last day at school, but it was also the first time I met the parents of my twins, Paulo and Paskali, that I write about so frequently. The father came to school to thank me for the backpacks for the twins. He invited me to their house so I went after school with the twins and my teacher.

It has bothered me for some time how hard my teacher is on the twins, I feel like he picks on them. It was an eye-opener for both of us to see where they live. Their father rents a small room in a traditional mud-brick house with tin roof (no windows). The whole family lives and sleeps in one room. The parents share a double bed and the twins sleep on foam cushions on the floor. Their school clothes I always noticed were torn, buttons missing, dirty, and their personal clothes are even more worn. They wear pants that hardly fit and shirts that have tears and holes to where you wouldn’t hardly recognize them as articles of clothing.

The parents were kind and generous, offering me traditional Tanzanian chai and bread. It is clear that these are the poorest students at my school yet the parents find a way to pay the 5,000 shillings per student per month (a little less than 5 USD) for them to go to school. It makes me feel like the extra attention I spent trying to get them to write letters and focus was worthwhile. I think these twins just need extra attention and love, they have little resources and a very poor family. I am hopeful that they will continue with their education in the years to come.

Picture: The Mbaga family – the mother Fatuma, the father Joseph, and the twins Paulo (in red) and Paskali

Last Day of School

2009-07-29T04:59:00.000-07:00

Today was my last day at placement. It was really hard to say goodbye to my kids. In 3 months here I feel like they have become a part of my life, they are not just cute little kids but they are little people that I know and love. I feel like I really know them – who is shy, who is outgoing, who is smart, who has trouble. I know their family situations and all of their names. Most didn’t understand I wasn’t coming back – they kept saying “kesho!” which is like “see you tomorrow.” But I am leaving so that is the reality.

The church and school got me a gift – a beautiful conga – and presented it to me at the end of the day. I was moved by the gesture, especially since they have so little and yet gave me such a nice gift. I felt progress with my students – we finished the alphabet today and their handwriting has really improved! I may not have taught them much, but at least that is something I am proud of.

Tomorrow I leave for the USA – I fly from Dar es Salaam to Doha, Qatar where I stay the night. The next day I fly to Washington D.C. where my mom will pick me up and drive to North Carolina. Sunday we drive to Florida where I will be for 2 weeks.

Picture: The Minister of the Church and Cook presenting me with the conga. I’m also holding lightness because she was crying from falling down earlier.

Sijali's story

2009-07-29T04:55:00.000-07:00

Sijali is a beautiful 41 year old woman who is living with HIV that has progressed to AIDS. I met her 3 weeks ago and have had several visits with her. She has been married 3 times and has 5 children from those relationships. All three men are still alive but she now lives at home with her mother. All her children are grown up and live in Dar es Salaam although they come and visit her. She has 3 brothers but 2 have died – one in a fight over a woman, the other from intoxication of being drunk. She says she has too many sisters to count, over 10 at least.

What struck me about Sijali was how frankly she discussed things – she lives with her mother because her mother went and took her from the husband who wasn’t taking proper care of her, she wasn’t taking her ARV medication and thus getting more sick. Once she recovered she went back to him and the same thing happened again, only this time she got TB, a respiratory infection. She is back home with the mother but weakened significantly by the dual medications of ARV and TB – so much so that even trying to eat is strenuous. The mother takes care of her but one eye is burned shut, so she only sees through one eye. Additionally, because Sijali is immobile she’s acquired a fungus on her feet and neck that have caused the feet in particular to swell, the skin stretching across bumpy swollen lumps on both feet.

Charles and I stayed with her a while, hearing her story, and also explaining to her who I am and why I came to see her. We checked her CD4 count and she’s doing okay and hopefully it will go up as she continues to take her medication. The hospital is changing her medication to a different ARV so that will complement the TB medication and not weaken her so badly. We gave her an ointment for the fungus and next week I will go back with body oil to massage the feet and hopefully keep the skin from tearing – if the skin tears it may become infected and since she has progressed to AIDS even a minor infection may cause her to die.

My last visit with Sijali we talked more – she says she wants to get better and doesn’t want to live in pain. She has improved in terms of mobility, once a week she goes to the market. It still takes her time – as much as 5 minutes to stand then walk across the room. We laughed as I explained through Charles what an airplane is and how it takes so long to get back to America. We talked to her mother about Barack Obama – she cannot believe he has black skin. Once more, she can’t believe mzungu (white people) voted for him! I think she was encouraged though, to hear me talk about how he loves the people of the world and America.

Mwajuma's Story

2009-07-29T04:42:00.000-07:00

A week ago I met Mwajuma, a woman who is extremely poor. She lives on the porch of someone’s house – outside, on a rope threaded cot with no blankets or walls. A few months ago, she was bitten by a rat and became infected to the point of elephantitis. Her foot is swollen 3 inches deep on the bottom, 4 inches on the top. Only the first two toes are still there, the rest are indistinguishable from the swollen foot. We took her to the hospital and she needs to go to the national hospital in Tanzania. She has no one to take her there – her daughter died from cancer, has no husband, and her 4 grandchildren are in boarding school (secondary school at a government school so it is free for them).

She said to me today, my last visit with her, that sometimes she wants to give up. She thinks maybe it is better to die than to live in pain – she has just now developed a fungus that is eating the skin between her fingers on her right hand. This breaks my heart, not because I haven’t heard people that might feel that way, but it was the first time someone said it to me, and meant it. I told her never give up, and to keep trying. She is a very friendly, jovial woman and she is not HIV positive. I hope to hear her future improves even as I leave Tanzania.

Picture: Mwajuma cooking in front of her porch

Donations for the School

2009-07-28T07:40:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday the packages sent by my family and Courtney FINALLY arrived! There were 5 boxes in all so there was a lot to sort through – pencils, pens, colored pencils, crayons, stamps, stickers, construction paper, soccer balls, flashcards, and books! I was like a kid on Christmas opening those boxes!

Monday was the best day – bringing everything to school and seeing the look on my kids’ faces! Five of my kids – Paulo, Paskali, Alice, Saidi, and Naifati received backpacks. They were carrying their school supplies every day in plastic bags ripped and broken. All of them, especially Naifati were so surprised and excited. The twins were practically in shock – I don’t think they’ve ever gotten gifts. Paskali wore his backpack around the rest of the day – he refused to take it off! I also wrote each of their names on the backpacks so that they would know that the backpack was theirs.

My kids each got pencils and pens of their own. The oldest kids who will be starting Standard 1 at the primary schools in January received the bright composition books, my younger kids got the notepads. The crayons, colored pencils, balls, flashcards, and books will stay at school for all of them to share. They did get to color and play with the balls and they were so excited. What they were actually MOST excited about were the pencil sharpeners! I’ve mentioned before, but they never have pencil sharpeners so they have to sharpen with their teeth. Between the boxes my family and Courtney sent, they now have over 10 for the whole class! Some of the items will stay at CCS – the construction paper from my parents, the loose lined paper from Courtney, and a couple books – so that future volunteers can use those things at their schools too.

My dad also included a soccer ball pump so that is safe in the office at the school, but as the soccer balls get used and get deflated, now they have a way to fill them back up! I even taught Abdul, one of my kids, how to use it! I really love this because it’s sustainable – hopefully my school can use those soccer balls for years to come! I gave out a bunch of the stickers for my kids to play with too, which they promptly stuck all over themselves! They are really hilarious, I just love them.

It was a wonderful day and my kids were so appreciative. BIG HUGE thank you to my mom, dad, sister Jenni, Mama Doris, and Courtney for supporting me and my kids and sending boxes – that are not cheap to send to Tanzania in the first place – with no guarantee that they’d get here. I love and thank you all from the bottom of my heart!

Picture: Me with all 36 of my students after they got all their school supplies!

Trip to Zanzibar

2009-07-28T07:38:00.000-07:00

I spent my last weekend in Tanzania relaxing on the island of Zanzibar! We had a wonderful time! The weather was perfect the whole time – sunny, a little breezy, highs in the 80s. The water there is ethereal blue and clear as pool water.

Friday we woke up in beautiful Kendwa. During the day we relaxed, lay on the beach, and went for walks. That evening we watched the sun set on the Indian Ocean. The colors were incredible – bright orange, luminous pink, burnt yellow, and firey red.

Saturday a large group of us – 10 volunteers – went snorkeling on an island off the east coast of the island called Mnemba. It’s known to be one of the best places to snorkel and/or scuba dive. We had a blast! We saw dolphins, eels, angel fish, zebra fish, sea urchins, and beautiful coral. We had an underwater photographer with us so we also have some great pictures!

Sunday me, Carlee, Adam and Kristina headed to Stonetown. We bargain shopped for a while and had a delicious lunch at Kidudo, a little place in the heart of Stonetown. I bought some mneche (not sure of spelling) – turquoise colored stone carved into jewelry.

It was the perfect way to spend my last weekend in Tanzania!

Picture: me underwater in the coral reef!

Feeding the Triplets

2009-07-28T07:36:00.000-07:00

Feeding the triplets was an adventure! The first day we showed up with grapes – fruit in an attempt to meet their nutrition needs. The triplets were still a little unsure of me – this mzungu taking pictures and bringing strange food! Well I was feeling on top of the world showing up with grapes but it turned out not to be as simple as I thought.

The triplets had never had grapes before and so were scared of them! Despite their older siblings, Charles, me, and their mother eating the grapes, they refused to try them. Instead, they threw them on the ground. I was so discouraged – here I thought I was helping and instead the food was going to waste because I didn’t think about the fact that they are babies and picky eaters and I couldn’t make them try it!

So instead Charles and I sat with the triplets and fed them their dinner – ugali and peas. The smaller one, Kevin, must have been sick because he was in my lap eating one minute, and then threw up all of the food he had just eaten. This worried me because he is already the smallest of the remaining triplets (and like I mentioned in a previous post, the 4th baby died from malaria and diarrhea). The mother cleaned him up but we were still concerned.

The next day we returned with bananas – food that the babies have tried and like – to try again with the nutrition and also to check on baby Kevin. The babies were finally warming up to me – Kennedy let me feed him and David played peek-a-boo with me. Kevin was wrapped up on his mom’s back – she had taken him to the hospital and he tested negative for malaria so they put him on amoxicillin to fight whatever bacteria was making him sick.

Lesson learned: even good intentions need to be thought out! Thankfully the babies loved the bananas and we were able to make the second time around a success!

Picture: Me playing peek-a-boo with Kennedy

Return to Halfani's Grandmother

2009-07-28T07:33:00.000-07:00

I returned last week to Halfani’s grandmother to present her with some donations from my family. Since she is the sole provider for Halfani (and he has HIV) she never gets anything for herself. I gave her two solid longer sleeved shirts for her to wear with her congas (skirts). Previously she wore the only two congas she had – one around her top and one around her waist – but the one on the top had no straps or elastic so had trouble staying up. So she was embarrassed to leave the house as she could not cover herself properly. Now, she has two shirts that she can wear with the congas and she can also wash them properly when she isn’t wearing them.

It was an amazing feeling to give someone something who has so little and yet even the gesture seems too small – but she was so appreciative, so grateful. Charles told me – “She says she will never be able to thank you enough, she will never forget how generous you were.” As part of giving the donation we both put our hands on the shirts, raised them above our heads, then she put on the shirt. That ceremony symbolizes the act of giving, acknowledgment that the gifts are now hers, and in the end we are friends and we hug.

Many thanks to my family for their unconditional support.

Picture: Me and Halfani’s grandmother, in one of her new shirts!

Traditional Drumming & Dancing

2009-07-20T02:27:00.001-07:00

Saturday night I headed with my friend Matiga and several volunteers to the Art College for a concert – several groups from Dar es Salaam, Kilimanjaro, Dodoma, and Tanga were performing traditional African drumming and dance.

I can’t wait till I get the chance to post videos – descriptions can’t do it justice! The performances were amazing, from the costumes to the rhythms to the dancers! I was incredibly impressed with how vibrant the culture is and how valuable it is to keep traditional drumming and dance alive.

Most of the performances included drums, marimbas, and rattles. The last group also had an electric guitar (I’m thinking not traditional, but a modern twist). The dancers were spectacular – I don’t know how they get their hips to move so fast while still moving their feet to the drum rhythms! Their personalities really shone while dancing – huge smiles, incredible athleticism and endurance, and genuinely appearing to have fun!

Picture: One of the groups that performed at the Art College

Dalla-Dalla Adventures

2009-07-20T02:26:00.000-07:00

How many people can you fit inside a van? Bagamoyo dalla-dallas (vans) might be pushing for the Guinness Book of World Records on this one! I was heading to Dar es Salaam Sunday to meet a friend, and found a comfortable seat in a dalla-dalla and waited for us to depart. Every seat was taken and one person was standing as we pulled away from the Bagamoyo bus station.

That doesn’t sound so bad but on our way we kept picking up passengers. At one point there were 15 people standing – not counting the ones sitting, which including the driver totaled another 15. 30 people in a van – it was nuts! Of course the dalla-dalla doesn’t go straight to Msasani peninsula, which was where I was headed so I had to change to different dalla-dallas – TWICE! This was also exciting because by the last dalla-dalla I was out of change so I had to give the driver 10,000 Tzh. For a 250 Tzh. Ride!

I am proud to say though I averted any scams and didn’t get lost – and I got to Dar es Salaam for less than 2,000 Tzh. (1.50 USD)!!!

Picture: a CCS van that is the same size as a dalla-dalla – yes 30 people in this size van!

Halfani's Story

2009-07-18T00:29:00.000-07:00

Halfani is a little boy who was born with HIV. Both of his parents died from AIDS and he now lives under the care of his grandmother (his mother’s mother). He is 6 years old and bright and charismatic with a beautiful smile. The grandmother is old and sick, it is hard for her to work. At her age after years of hard labor traditionally she would be taken care of by her children but all her children have died. Halfani, her one grandchild, is now in her care so she works hard and raises him on her own.

The house they live in is a very hard living situation. It is one room barely big enough for a twin size bed. A dirty mosquito net ridden with holes hangs above the bed and cooking pots line one of the walls. Outside there is a porch which serves as a makeshift living room, one torn up couch and a chair that’s only remnants are the frame and springs line the wall. The grandmother has only scraps of congas so she is often pulling them up to cover her chest.

We have brought the grandmother a mosquito net and we are going to help her clean this one. Additionally, we are going to bring her shirts so she will be covered and then can wear the congas as skirts. The boy we bring him little things like food – he gets additional care from a center in town, and he goes to primary school. Mostly Charles checks to make sure the grandmother is remembering to give the boy his medication. She forgets many times, and this is not good because if medication is not consistent it’s not effective.

Halfani is a sweet boy and proof to me that with the right care, HIV does not have to be a death sentence. He is living a life where he goes to school and can have a future. All people with HIV should be living lives of dignity and meaning.

Picture: Halfani at the entrance to his house

The Triplets' Story

2009-07-18T00:26:00.000-07:00

This was one of the most heartbreaking home visits I’ve been on. I met triplets – 3 boys – who do not have HIV but are labeled as “vulnerable children.” They look alike – David, Kennedy, and Kevin – and although they will be 2 in November, they did not look more than 6 months old because they are so small and malnourished. When Charles and I arrived at the house they were crawling around naked in the front yard in the dirt – no clothes on, no diapers, with dirt in their eyes and on their bottoms.

The reason they are vulnerable is that their mother does not take care of them. All day she goes and uses money to do her hair and things, while their older siblings watch after them. They are badly malnourished. I learned from Charles that there was a 4th baby – they were originally quadruplets – there was a girl baby Catherine. When she was 10 months old she died from malaria and diarrhea. By the time her mother took her to the hospital, it was too late.

The triplets look very much alike even though they are fraternal. They cry but mostly are not attended to. When we got there we helped dress them – Charles has donated to the mother little clothes, but if she doesn’t dress them then often they crawl around with nothing on. Next week we will bring some fruit to help balance their diet, and also some toys for them to play with because they have nothing except the dirt in their yard.

It was very sad, it was hard not to cry. But I try to remember that I’m here to learn, and to provide what little help I can to improve their lives and give them hope.

Picture: The triplets all in a row, all with the same bewildered expression!

About My Afternoon Placement

2009-07-18T00:24:00.000-07:00

In the afternoons I am back to volunteering at UKUN, a local NGO specializing in HIV/AIDS patient home care. UKUN is run by Charles, a local Bagamoyo man fluent in Swahili and English. The organization focuses on outreach to people with HIV in the community and seeing that they are taking medication, evaluating if they are receiving proper nutrition, and providing services and assistance when possible.

Charles is a fantastic person who truly cares about people with HIV and vulnerable children who may have parents with HIV. My work with him in the afternoon usually starts around 2:00 and we ride his motorcycle around town making visits to homes UKUN has identified. Charles is the project manager of UKUN and the organization receives funding indirectly from USAID through Tunajali, a regional NGO.

I will be starting to post stories about the people I’m encountering on these visits, as well as photos. I want to share their stories because each one is so unique but reflects broader social and cultural problems in Bagamoyo and Tanzania. I find these people to be beautiful and surprisingly content and at peace with their situations. What help is provided they appreciate immensely.

Picture: Charles during one of our home visits

Corporal Punishment

2009-07-17T03:36:00.000-07:00

This is a hard post to write – a hard thing to think about, much less observe. Corporal punishment is technically outlawed in Tanzania but it still happens – it’s when teachers are allowed to discipline students physically by hitting them, usually with a stick or ruler. There have been a few instances in my class, as the teacher knows I disagree he refrains most of the time from using it.

One time that was particularly bothersome to me was during exams and Mariam, one of my sweet girls, did not know how to write “simba” but she knew that the picture was a lion. My teacher was frustrated I think, and so he told her to put out her palm and he whipped it with a stick 3 times. She cried. I cried. It was terrible. I couldn’t help but wonder what kind of message that sends about education – get it right or be hit?

Another case was this week, when 3 of my students forgot their notebooks. Well I believe that Paulo and Pascali (my twins that both forgot) didn’t bring their books because the day before at school the plastic bag they carry their books in broke. My teacher whipped each student’s palm 3 times with the stick (I guess that’s the typical corporal punishment penalty, at least at my school). Then they were all sent home and told to return when they had their books. This made me quite angry – these kids are only 5 years old and they walk to school alone – they aren’t grown-ups and they’re going to forget things. All 3 boys cried – Paulo, Pascali, and Haridi – then headed home. An hour later Paulo and Pascali returned, carrying the broken bag with school supplies in it. Haridi didn’t return until today.

Lastly, today was another use of corporal punishment. This time, Ramadhan and a boy from another class (not sure of the name) were I guess playing at the beach when they got mad at each other, and Ramadhan kicked the boy so hard he scraped his skin and he was bleeding. The boy cried and Ramadhan was punished – again 3 whips with the stick on his palm. Then Ramadhan cried. I couldn’t help but think, no wonder the kids hit each other, they are learning that from the teachers.

Physical punishment shouldn’t be the answer but it’s clear why it is. There is a lack of social norms surrounding expectation of education and so while maybe parents let their kids go to school they don’t have the same expectations of performance. Many schools in Bagamoyo are funded by NGOs and outside organizations, there are few (if any that I know of) that are self-sustaining: the remaining schools are government-run. Physical punishment also yields immediate results and the kids fear the teachers. Whereas for students to be good without physical punishment the process is longer, less concrete, and definitely less easy. Lastly, physical punishment is also used by parents so you can see how it is socially acceptable – parents use it at home, teachers use it at school.

Is it any wonder, though, why kids in Tanzania hit each other more than kids in America? That is how they learn to express anger and frustration.

Little People

2009-07-16T07:46:00.001-07:00

I really have gotten the impression from my kids here in Africa that they are like little adults – forced to grow up so fast. Kids in Bagamoyo – and Tanzania – walk sometimes miles to school – alone. When I was 4 years old I don’t think I played outside alone, much less walked miles to school by myself!

One of my students, Nashfat, had been absent at school for about a month. Thursday she came with her mom and her mom was explaining why. Apparently her baby teeth aren’t falling out but her other teeth are growing in anyway – so she’s had several removed. No novacaine and cotton gauze in her mouth. It just broke my heart because she was so tough – not crying or anything. But when I scooped her up in my arms she just laid her little head down on my shoulder and lightly clutched my shirt. I cannot even express the amount of love I felt at that moment for my little Nashfat! I just adore these kids they are the light in my life.

Today on my UKUN home visits I happened to pass 4 of my kids! I hear them shout “Dana” (but it sounds like DEENA) and they come running up to me and Charles on the motorcycle! Nashfat was one of them and she ran so fast and just lept up into my arms! I also saw Ramadhan, Abdul, and Haridi today. A lot of my kids leave in the areas most affected by HIV and AIDS so it’s not surprising that I saw them – I guess I should expect that to happen more and more!

I get to Anglican daycare around 7:45am and I stay till noon. I have lunch at CCS then I do UKUN home visits from 2:00-5:00. Then dinner at CCS, maybe internet and to a bar for a drink. I bike to Anglican and UKUN which is great, I feel part of the community and I really feel like I live here.

Simple Kindness

2009-07-14T04:37:00.000-07:00

This is my tenth week teaching the 5-year old class at Bagamoyo Anglican Daycare. Something I’ve noticed is that each kid in my class is unique – they are little people with their own personalities and learning styles. I’ve learned that many have home lives that are extremely difficult and almost too sad to mention.

I have twins – Paulo and Pascali – who my teacher always referred to as the “bad boys.” This became evident as I saw them pick fights, yell, cry, and fail to pay attention in class. However, as time went on I noticed they were also usually late to school, their uniforms dirty and probably not washed in weeks, lacking shoes and backpacks carrying their notebooks in a red and white striped plastic bag. Both are malnourished – the skin pulls at their eye sockets and joints. Their knees are covered with boils, their arms dotted with scattered scars. They never smiled… I found them to be truly sad people, made even sadder by the fact that they are only 5 years old.

During the summer weeks at first they didn’t come to school. But the last three weeks they have and I was able to give them some special attention. I spent 20 minutes with Pascali practicing writing capital letter “D” over and over again until it didn’t look like an “O.” I revised Paulo’s work over and over again to get him to write in a straight line, a seemingly impossible task even though he has a lined paper notebook! Each day I said to them “tutaonana kesho” [see you tomorrow] hoping to encourage them to continue coming to summer school classes.

This week normal classes resumed and I noticed a difference. The twins now sit in the front row of the class and pay attention, repeating after me and looking at the board. They get so excited when they do well enough on work to get a sticker – they will revise their work repeatedly to get that sticker! They cause less trouble in class (although still some, Paulo constantly talks chalk dust and wipes it on Wahida, one of the girls in the class). Today Pascali smiled and it warmed my heart.

Every day I tell them “Nakupenda” – “I love you.” Every day I encourage their work. Every day I remind my teacher not to hit them even when they are bad. He seemed confused at first but I asked him to watch them. He finally noticed the difference, a change in their attitudes and behavior. He looked to me and said “simple kindness?”

Simple kindness indeed.

My Mentee

2009-07-14T04:35:00.000-07:00

The past few weeks I have been mentoring Anisa, a secondary school student I met during one of my and Nick’s presentations about HIV/AIDS awareness. She was a student and had many questions so we started meeting and became friends. We meet at a local restaurant and have sodas and she asks me questions about myself, my goals, what it’s like to be a female in America. She is so smart and wants to be a lawyer but faces some obstacles because she is female. However, her family values education and she is the oldest girl so they pay for her to be in secondary school and when she graduates she will get to go to University in Dar es Salaam then graduate school to become a lawyer.

She is so sweet and not much younger than me – she is 20, my sister’s age. It’s amazing to me how many challenges she has faced and how gracefully and humbly she discusses them. She has lived very far from home – her family is in Kilimanjaro – for the past 5 years while she goes to high school. She eats only ugali, Tanzanian porridge, for most meals. She only gets to see her family once or twice a year during school breaks. At the secondary school she must share books with other students because there aren’t enough for everyone. She studies English hard because to be a lawyer in the courts all proceedings are done in English. I can’t imagine what it must be like! I admire her and she is one of the friends I’ve made here that I will truly miss.

Picture: Me and Anisa this past Friday at Hillside

Low-Key Week

2009-07-14T04:33:00.000-07:00

So after the hospitalization Sunday I had a really nice low-key week in Bagamoyo. It’s funny how the unexpected brings a whole new set of adventures! I spent a lot of time this week at the art center down the street playing with the kids and hanging out with the artists. My school was closed so thankfully even though I was sick I wasn’t missing out on teaching my usual student. Instead, I was at the art center with Dickson, James, Ali, Nyola, and Matiga and the students they teach.

All the guys are talented artists. Dickson is a beautiful painter and he also plays guitar and has an amazing singing voice. James and Ali make beautiful jewelry and James is a great dancer. Nyola drums and does a little painting, while Matiga is a drummer, guitar player, songwriter, and singer. Matiga has his own CD which I bought a copy of – he’s incredible! The art center they run they teach these traditional African skills to street kids while also feeding them and playing with them.

This week I watched the kids make jewelry, practice their dance moves and drumming, and dangle from the rafters in the center like little gymnasts! I was actually really grateful for the experience because it was so low-key and I was still sick, very nauseas from all the medication, and I saw a totally different side of Bagamoyo. Because of a more prominent Art College, Bagamoyo is actually a hot spot for Tanzanian culture.

We also had a nice farewell lunch for Sam, one of the volunteers, on Friday. Dickson makes lunch for the center and the kids and when it’s a volunteer’s last day he’ll sometimes invite over a few of us and include us in lunch. They made coconut rice, a vegetable sauce, avocado, sliced cucumber, and passion fruit juice. Eva and I also brought sodas for the event – enough for all of us and the kids, which was a real treat!

I also had time to do a little shopping and have some more clothes made. There are many pemba shops where you can by congas, or African fabric, in all different colors and patterns. There is also a tailor where you can take the congas and have them made into clothing – like pants, capris, skirts, or dresses. I’ve had a few things made for myself, but also some gifts too! I’m so used to seeing congas in different styles every day it will be strange when I’m the only one wearing them back in the United States!

Picture: Me and Sam with some of the kids at the art center

Reining Filing Queen

2009-07-03T22:52:00.000-07:00

So my afternoon work the past couple days slowed down – not a lot going on at the hospital – so I’ve been helping them file HIV/AIDS patients’ records! It’s been fun going back into filing-queen mode from my days at the State Attorney’s Office in Tallahassee! My skills have actually been really useful – we have different color folders for pediatrics (children under 16) and adults and now we file them on different shelves. I’ve also gotten to enter a lot of data in their computer systems. It’s heartbreaking to see how many kids are born with HIV – they are innocent yet they are already fighting incredible odds.

The staff in the Care and Treatment Clinic (CTC) where I work has made some interesting comments. The woman I work for, Martha, feels strongly that there is responsibility on women who have been diagnosed with HIV not to get pregnant. You can only take ARV drugs for your fetus if your CD4 count is high and you have no reactors in your blood. If you’ve already passed to that stage then you cannot have that type of ARV thus your baby will be born with HIV.

Martha says so much health education goes on at the CTC yet she sees women time and again come in pregnant when they are in stage 4 of HIV (full-blown AIDS) and are teetering on the brink of survival themselves. She says unfortunately many of these women are not independent, they rely on boyfriends or husbands to work and they willingly have sex without protection and wind up pregnant. The HIV kids we see every day she calls “the innocents” as they come into the world with HIV yet they have no ability to control or prevent it.

This drove home an interesting point to me – even with resources and education, there are often prevailing cultural attitudes that may keep global health problems like HIV rampant in developing countries. Traditional gender roles may play a stronger role than I realized – so it’s important to think about multiple underlying factors. Personal responsibility shouldn’t be overlooked either, especially when it concerns something as serious as HIV. Whether it’s having unprotected sex and spreading the disease or bringing children into the world infected with HIV, there are definitely ways for individuals who are HIV positive to impact the spread and magnitude of the disease.

As with most of my findings here I’m seeing repeatedly that there is no one-size-fits-all solution to development efforts in Tanzania. Rather than focus on one thing or another, I’m excited about positively affecting the ways that HIV, education, nutrition, and poverty interact with one another. By looking at the whole picture from the micro level, maybe I’ll see how different policies may make a greater impact!

Picture: CCS Volunteers cleaning up the outside of the new CTC clinic

From Malaria Patient to an Appendix Surgery

2009-07-01T03:41:00.001-07:00

I started my placement at the hospital today. Boy was I in for a big surprise! My first day I was allowed to observe Dr. Allen, one of the CCS volunteers, operate on a woman with appendicitis. He removed her appendix in a surgery that lasted about 2 hours and I was fully scrubbed in, complete with white boots, a surgeon’s cap, and facemask.

The surgery was really interesting – a contrast in many ways from what I’ve “seen” in the United States. The resources are dramatically less and it was clear that Dr. Allen was the expert, even though he was “assisting” the head surgeon with the operation. I watched as first an incision was made across the oblique abdomen, then once through the layers of fatty tissue and weaved through muscle fibers, we were in the body! I saw the small intestine, an ovary, and the appendix, of course!

The removal took longer than I thought and there was less blood than I thought. Periodically dabbing, Dr. Allen had tied off all the ruptured blood vessels and you could see the organs reasonably clearly. Basically the appendix is tied off and the tube rerouted before the actual appendix is removed. I don’t understand a lot of the details, but this equaled a lot of staring at the appendix and watching Dr. Allen tie knots with medical thread. Once the appendix was out he tested the rest of the area just checking that everything looked normal. Then she was sewn back up and taken into recovery!

Only in Africa would I probably be allowed access to such procedures. I have no medical training or background, and I think the last science class I took was Astronomy my freshman year of college! Still there I was in the back, scrubbed in with 3 other volunteers (all going into medicine) and I asked questions. I was curious, and interested in the process.

Some of the policy issues that struck me were issues of knowledge and procedure. Everyone in medicine in the United States talks about how the field is never static; it’s always changing and there are always developments and improvements. It’s clear though that the basics are still lacking in Tanzania, let alone advanced improvements in surgery skill like Dr. Allen brought to the operating room.

It will be interesting to see what lies ahead in my future adventures at the hospital!

Looking Through God's Window

2009-06-29T04:25:00.000-07:00

The last few days I’ve had quite a lot of time to feel sorry for myself. And, when I wasn’t efficiently distracting myself with books, journal writing, or gchatting with friends on the internet, I found myself dragged into despair. Here I am, wanting to help and be out in the community and I’m stricken with a relatively mild case of malaria feeling sorry for myself in a fittingly blue room in the Cross Cultural Solutions compound.

So it’s not surprising, then, that Sunday morning my depression was noticeable. CCS staff and volunteers were going to church… did I want to come? My heart tugged at wanting to get out of the building even though my body was screaming to just sit still on the patio. As a compromise, I hired a bajaji, a Tanzanian taxi type vehicle which looks more like remnants of Mister Toad’s Wild Ride at Disney World. Nick who had recently twisted his ankle but probably could have walked to the church rode with me for company.

The church was a really unique experience and surprising to me since I teach in a church. But it was just one room, cement walls, with a couple 8 by 11 drawings of Jesus on the cross hung about the room. People were dressed in their Sunday finest with local women sporting beautiful outfits, bright colors, and their nicest jewelry. Children were not only welcome they were abundant – through the aisles, wandering the building throughout the music and service. Church here is interactive… I found it instantly captivating. There are no hymnals, no Bibles unless you have your own, yet people were reciting scripture together and singing Jesus’ praises. Hands clapped, feet stamped, and bodies moved side to side and I felt myself surrounded by people who were really praising God.

It didn’t take long for me to become infatuated with a baby, not more than 5 months old behind me, in a long green dress with big deep black eyes. As I turned to make a little face at her, her Babu, or grandmother handed her across the pew to me. Thrilled but taken aback, I held the baby in my arms and felt meaning, purpose, and happiness seep back into my veins. The baby girl just stared up and me, curious to see this white mzungu with long brown hair. The latter quickly became a plaything, and the baby wrapped and twisted my curly brown hair in her fists and in her mouth. If I wasn’t so happy and laughing to the point of tears streaming out of my eyes, I might have been bothered, but truthfully I couldn’t have cared less.

While my heart was alive my body was still hurting and as our group left the church some 2 and a half hours later (with the service still going on) I collapsed thankfully next to an acutely aware Nick who caught me and kept me from hitting my head. I was immediately surrounded by church well-wishers, men and women who were worried. CCS staff explained – she has malaria – but she will be okay. Edna, one of the housekeepers finally said to me “Dana, they want to pray for you. Is this okay?” I said okay somewhat dumbfounded at the question. No sooner had I shakily replied yes did I see why.

Women grabbed my feet, men grabbed my hands, women touched my knees and elbows. All started to pray out loud. Through the murmurs of my broken understanding of Swahili I heard God, Jesus, malaria, and the word mzima which means good, or to make better. I was breathless at both the strangeness of the multiple people praying out loud and the total unselfishness and true caring that I observed from these total strangers as I lay on the dusty concrete at the front of the church. Here I was clutching my Italian rosary in a pair of nice Gap jeans with strong medicine in my system and a safe healthy lunch upon my return to CCS, and these strangers were just praying for me like I was dying. I’ve never experienced a thing like it in my life. I mumbled asante sana – which means thank you so much – but I was truly at a loss for words.

That’s the thing about these sorts of trips. Even the most unplanned, unpredictable, unfortunate event has brought me to a unique cultural understanding through these experiences. I feel very lucky and very happy to have 5 weeks to still embrace the people of Bagamoyo and try to give them even half of what they give me every day: love.

And it’s amazing when you’re down on yourself and you’ve spent fits in self-pity and prayed out loud hoping for a change that even when my body still wouldn’t recover, God lifted my spirits out of the sadness and reminded me again how blessed and loved I am, even by strangers in a remote corner of the world.

A Wonderful Surprise

2009-06-25T22:48:00.000-07:00

There’s no doubt that malaria is an unpleasant experience, but by Wednesday my illness had taken a toll on my spirits. I confided in Mama Thea, the Cross Cultural Solutions country director who diligently checked on me and ensured I had all I needed, that I was quite sad – mostly missing my kids. I thought, they don’t know why I’m not at school, they will think I abandoned them. As I teared up she told me that it wasn’t uncommon for kids to sometimes visit if their teacher is ill, she said she would see what she could do.

Thursday morning I managed to keep down breakfast – two pieces of toast and an egg – but felt quite tired and returned to bed. A few hours later, around 10:00, there was a knock at my door and Didase (CCS staff) said “hurry now, they are here!” Half asleep I wandered out to the front yard in hot pink pajama pants and a giant baggy tee shirt wondering who he was talking about.

To my total surprise and delight, all of my kids were sitting in the front yard at CCS singing to me. Of course in my weakened state I started to cry, my kids are absolutely the sweetest things. The teacher I assist explained to them in Swahili that I had been sick with malaria, and that class today would be time to visit me and cheer me up. My kids responded “Pole Sana Mwalimu” which means “very sorry teacher” when they heard I had malaria. I can only imagine how many of my kids have also had it, strangely I felt this connection to them, unspoken, but how they must be able to relate to my feelings.

Adrenaline kicked in for a while and I played a few games with them: paka paka simba (which means cat cat lion – it’s their version of duck duck goose haha!). Also we sang a few songs – Jinereza, jinereza which is the “introduce yourself song” and Bingay bayo which is a dance song. For jinereza, this is what you say:

Jinereza, jinereza, jinereza jinereza mama (everyone)

Mimi apa ni Dana
Mimi mama angu ni Quenta
Mimi baba angu ni Larry
Jiyeresha sasa

So this is what I say – my name is Dana, my mom is Quenta, my father is Larry, this is how I introduce myself. Then everyone sings the chorus and the next person introduces themself and so on.

The second song is absolutely hilarious when the kids do it – it’s a dance song. I’ll post a video when I’m back in the US because it is priceless. They say “Bingay bayo bingay bayo tu namtaka na Dana tu muonay, ni boyaka… bingedee bingedee baca ching! Basically they fill in the name and when your name is called you go to the center of the circle and when they get to the end bingedee bingedee baca ching you basically break it down – do a little dance and baca ching means you pop to the ground then back up. Of course to see my little 4 and 5 year olds do this is hysterical – they can move their little hips and they’re totally uninhibited!

As their visit wore on I became more tired. As a treat for them, in Tanzania when you have a visitor it is custom that you offer them a drink. So my kids got a soda each! They were totally excited about this – a lot of them had orange Fantas and proceeded to stick out their orange tongues at each other. In this way (and so many others) they are just like American kids.

Their visit lifted my spirits – and my teacher was kind to take some photos of us playing. I look sick of course, but hopefully my happiness translates through the pictures. My kids are the light in my life here, they keep me centered and I know why I’m here, what I’m learning to hopefully improve the hopes for their futures. Mama C, my program coordinator came out and asked them what they want to be – mwalimu (teacher), doctor, policia, and they shout “mimi apa!” when they hear what they want to be. My thoughts, my prayers, my energy will continue throughout my life to make their dreams a reality.

Strangely enough, this day where I was stricken with malaria and feeling so low, suddenly became a day I will not only remember as one of my best days in Tanzania, but one of the truly happiest moments in my life – to see my kids singing to me and running to hug me and make me feel better. They are beautiful, unselfish, absolutely incredible little tiny people who I love dearly.

Malaria Progression

2009-06-25T22:47:00.000-07:00

I’ve gotten so many well-wishes I am so appreciative, but also many questions. So a bit more about malaria – how I got it, the symptoms, and the treatment I’ve received. Last week, around Thursday I started to notice multiple mosquito bites on my feet. This came as a surprise to me because I am extremely consistent about putting on bugspray particularly in the evening. As the day went on the bites seemed to multiply before my eyes – by the end of the day I counted 32 bites – just on my feet! I mentally considered and verbally expressed my concern that I had put myself at serious risk of malaria.

Sunday evening I noticed myself feeling particularly sore and irritable. My muscles ached and it hurt to sit, stand, walk, or do anything really. Monday I slept through my alarm and spent the entire day in bed. Most of the day is fuzzy to me in my memory. My friends here tell me I appeared in a daze and simply voiced my need to sleep. Tuesday my condition worsened – I couldn’t get out of bed at all, even going to the bathroom was a chore. By Tuesday night I had not eaten since Sunday night – I had totally lost my appetite. Any attempt to eat anything I threw up. Tuesday night the CCS staff decided I must get tested for malaria.

The next morning, Wednesday, I remember again somewhat hazily. I was extremely emotional and weak, crying on the way to the hospital (and probably worrying my parents to death sending them text messages). For a malaria test the doctors prick your finger and then test the blood for parasites, which they observe through a microscope. I was diagnosed with Malaria IV, meaning that there were approximately 4 malaria parasites attached to each white blood cell in my blood. While this is certainly not the worst type of malaria, my condition was considerably worse since I had not eaten any food in 3 days. I was put on a 3-day medication which attacks the malaria parasites in my blood. Most importantly, I was told to try to keep down some food and drink lots of fluids. Arriving back at CCS after the malaria test I attempted to drink but was too weak – and upon heading into the main house I collapsed on the front porch (in front of a new group of volunteers that had never met me by the way, an excellent first impression). Again I was lucky, one of those volunteers was a doctor here with his wife and 2 daughters and he knew all I needed was rest and fluids. By Wednesday evening I had managed to eat a whole piece of bread, 2 glasses of water, and a glass of juice. While this sounds like hardly anything, I considered it major progress.

Yesterday, Thursday, I was better – my spirits lifted thanks to my kids (read more about that above) – but still very weak. My energy comes and goes, fatigue is one of the main symptoms of malaria both before and after treatment. Even this morning, Friday, I feel very weak and tired so after posting I will be returning to bed to get some rest. I have to be careful to observe my energy levels and take care of myself, even as the disease goes away. Malaria parasites can return and of course I must continue to put on bug spray so I do not catch another strand of the malaria virus.

What strikes me most about my encounter with malaria is how fortunate I am to have the attention and care of doctors, the CCS staff, my friends and family around the world. So many people get this illness and far worse cases of it and do not have the support network that I could so easily take for granted. I feel extremely grateful for the resources and help extended to me but cognoscente that millions of people around the world are not so lucky. I will definitely be staying in Tanzania for the remainder of my volunteer time, so another 5 weeks, then off to South Africa.

Thank you all for your kind words, love and support. I am grateful beyond words and hope to continue sharing my experiences in Africa with you all.

Malaria

2009-06-24T07:20:00.000-07:00

My first major health encounter happened today. I had been feeling very sick for a couple days so I went to the hospital for a malaria test. I have type 4 Malaria, definitely not the worst kind but it's not good either. The doctors gave me medication and I plan to rest and try to recover in the next few days.

Malaria is a parasite born infectious disease transmitted through mosquito bites. It ranges from a small number of parasites to a large number of parasites. Actually over 350 million people catch malaria every year, around 3 million die, most are children who go undiagnosed and receive no medication for the illness. Most people I know in Bagamoyo have had malaria and in fact get it recurringly but develop a resistance to it from being born in the area where it manifests. It can be more serious for foreigners, particularly if they do not get treatment immediately.

Malaria is a very serious illness in Tanzania, I have seen the effects when it goes untreated. I feel lucky to have caught it in a very early stage and also be able to afford the medication to fight it off. Keep me in your thoughts and prayers - I am truly experiencing life in Africa but feel so grateful to be here, surrounded by fantastic and loving people.

Safari Adventures!

2009-06-24T07:15:00.000-07:00

We just got back from an exhausting 4 day safari adventure! It was amazing! We saw a ton of animals – lions, zebras, wildebeests, giraffes, monkeys, baboons, hyenas, hippos, and even a rhino! It was way WAY cooler than any zoo experience I’ve had. We had our own open-air safari jeep and we were driving right next to the animals in the middle of these parks! We had a great guide who found all kinds of animals – given you are in the wild, they are not in cages easy to find, sometimes you have to really search!

The first day we were supposed to fly to Kilimanjaro first thing in the morning. Well, thanks to Dar es Salaam and less-than-Precision Airways our flight was delayed 6 hours. We still got to hike the base of Kilimanjaro which was great – AND I got to see a waterfall and make coffee! That night we were in a somewhat-shady motel that had multiple poweroutages in a triple room which made for a series of funny stories!

The second day we drove to Tarangire Park which was the quintessential safari in my eyes. We were on a dusty plain with grains and baobao trees (which basically look upside down, very cool). Tarangire has many elephants and zebras, these are what we saw the most of. We also got to see giraffes and many birds. The park is large so we drove for 4 hours seeing different animals and scenery all the time.

The third day was Ngorongoro Crater. It is an absolute must-see if you make it to Tanzania. It is the largest crater in the world and home to the most diverse wildlife you will ever see in one place! We drove up the rim then descended down into the crater – some 600 meters – WOW! What a view! Our first goal was to see the wildebeests and hyenas which we came across very quickly. Next, lions! Our tour guide Abdul was very funny, he stopped and asked the zebras “simba wapi?” which means where is lion? Haha! But we did find them – hidden in the tall grass. There were two lionesses, two cubs, and a male lion! They were far away though so we were a bit disappointed. Luckily we didn’t give up because they got up and walked RIGHT past our vehicle heading to the river for water. I was right next to them (scary and cool). We also saw in the distance a rare rhino (most have been wiped out thanks to hunters). The drive around we saw ostriches, zebra, tons of birds, and baboons which have really funny butts. The highlight was climbing the outer rim again and pausing at the top just to look into the crater and take a few pictures. Magical!

Our last day was a drive around Lake Manyara. Here is where we saw hippos. They are HUGE! I mean HUGE! There was a big hippo pond near the Lake that hosts 15-20 hippos at least! We also saw giraffes down by the water, blue monkeys, velvet monkeys, some more baboons, and wildlife. This was a shorter day because we left at noon to head back to Bagamoyo, but well worth including in our adventure!

HIV/AIDS Presentations

2009-06-16T01:29:00.001-07:00

Nick and I had our first round of HIV/AIDS presentations at secondary schools. They were very successful but very different from the kind of presentation you’d expect.

We had a two-prong approach: medical and social/cultural. Nick let the medical presentation and I led the social/cultural presentation. Nick explained how viruses work, how HIV works differently from any other virus, and answered questions about the science of how the disease spreads and what can be done to slow its effects. Particularly useful were drawings on the chalkboard that he used to illustrate how HIV is different from other viruses – drawing antibodies like a variety of puzzle pieces (regular viruses have just one puzzle piece). This seemed to translate well to the students.

I led the social/cultural discussion about the challenges that Tanzanians face in terms of prevention, diagnosis, treatment and loss. We discussed how it is taboo to discuss sexual behavior yet many young people are sexually active. Without the proper education, they don’t know why they should protect themselves. We talked about how guys in particular don’t want to use protection and the HIV/AIDS infection rate is 56% female, 44% male. Without telling them what to do, I led a discussion about how diagnosis is important but acknowledged it can be scary. We discussed how not getting tested won’t make it go away, and the advantages to knowing early can prolong your life 5-10 years. They talked about the negative stigma for HIV/AIDS people and asked how it was in the United States. They had many questions.

We also talked about the confusion surrounding death – Nick explained that people don’t die from HIV but rather from flu, diarrhea, pneumonia, malaria – other viruses that your body, crippled from HIV, cannot fight. I used an analogy of a fistfight and said for them to imagine they are fighting a disease. What HIV does is it ties your hands behind your back – makes it a lot harder to fight. This analogy seemed helpful.

Of course they are secondary students so they still got giggly when we talked about sex and protection and things like this. Overall they were extremely engaged in the discussion and eager to understand the disease better. The goal was to empower them, not dictate, and I believe that was achieved. We have more presentations coming up, so wish us luck!

Walk the World

2009-06-10T22:58:00.000-07:00

Dar es Salaam was a great one night trip out of Bagamoyo. Interestingly enough, the feel of the city reminded me of Rome – in that it was rustic and lacking the typical touristy feel. The city wasn’t as diverse as I expected – for the most part we saw only black Africans. On the way into the city the extreme urban poverty is visible – slums dot the skyline of the city and despite some urban development, there are desperate waves of people. Some approach you offering to exchange currency; others try to sell a variety of products.

Sightseeing was a short endeavor! We went to see the Botanical Gardens but the National Museum was closed. We saw a few statues and churches around the city but as I said, it lacks a touristy feel and contrary to Rome it subsequently lacks touristy activities. Saturday night we went to a restaurant called Addis in Dar that came highly recommended from a few friends. It was traditional Ethiopian cuisine which means we had to eat everything with our hands! It was delicious! We had lentils, lamb, beef, chicken, and egg. Everything was savory and to eat you use this spongy flat bread to sop up the dishes. Yum!

Sunday was Walk the World. It was a fantastic event albeight different from traditional walks I’ve done in the United States. It was somewhat less organized yet everyone seemed to know what to do and where to go. There were several thousand people at least – including a lot of young kids and many school kids. The keynote guest who did the walk was Salma Kikwete, the wife of the President of Tanzania. She was very friendly and we didn’t know she would be there so that was a great surprise!

The energy during the walk was unparalleled to any walk I’ve done in the United States. People were jogging, singing, and chanting on the streets. What is fascinating to me is the salience this issue must have for people in Tanzania – many who probably have experienced hunger, malnutrition, or starvation. It was incredible to walk the streets with so many people united for a cause I care so deeply about. It was truly a wonderful and unique experience, and a much-needed getaway from Bagamoyo.

Fight World Hunger!!!

The Incident at the Home Base

2009-06-10T22:55:00.000-07:00

I am very thankful for the story I am about to tell, I feel lucky to have experienced it and gained a valuable perspective despite what will sound terrifying. There was an incident at the home base where I live.

A man who called himself George Wilson befriended one of the volunteers, John, last week. He spoke excellent English and expressed that he had relocated to Bagamoyo from Dar es Salaam and that his wife was a social worker that was hoping to work for UKUN, the organization that John and I volunteer for. He wanted to give John her resume and so came back to the house with John although he was not allowed inside. He wrote the resume on a piece of paper and left.

Later that evening John called for a “Bajaji driver” (aka a taxi) around 5:45pm. He left and a few minutes later, around 6:00pm there was a knock at the door. Nick answered and this man walked in who Nick believed was the Bajaji driver. In fact it was George Wilson looking for John. Nick explained John had left and still thinking it was the Bajaji driver, called John to make sure John had gotten a ride. He had.

This man then sat down and also called John. We later discovered he faked the phone call, as he did not actually speak to John. He said John wanted him to explain why he was there. He said he worked for an NGO (a ficticious one) and that he was selling soaps. At this point I walked in. Nick was explaining that they weren’t interested. I knew we weren’t supposed to have visitors in the house, and I asked Nick if he would meet me outside. I went back across the street, grabbed my purse, and was trying to explain to the guards when it happened.

As soon as I left the man got up to leave but instead pulled out a 12 inch machete. He threatened to kill Nick, Kara and Jill who were still in the house. He made Nick sit down first – he held the knife up to Kara and said “Do you love her? I will kill her.” He had Nick sit down in the back of the room, Jill sit on the couch, and Kara went to get money – he wanted 100,000 US dollars. Kara gave him what she had – 40 dollars. He laughed and held the knife up to her neck and said he wanted more. She moved to head back to the bedroom then turned and ran out the door.

I was across the street, walking back to the house with Elias, one of our guards, when Kara ran out screaming. I saw the man, previously so polite and composed, run out of the house with the 12 inch knife. Elias sprinted after him and our neighbors started to as well, yelling “thief thief!” I ran back into the house and got Eva out and we and Jill went back to the main Cross Cultural Solutions house.

All the guards were running after the guy and I went back to the front gate – they caught him and were dragging him back to the compound. Elias was dragging him surrounded by over 50 people. I was trying to deadbolt the front door when they brought him back inside. Our guards explained that the mob was ready to kill him – they would douse him in gasoline and light him on fire. Mob justice often prevails in Tanzania. I stood with Mama Thea, our program director for all of Tanzania, in front of the mob as she saved this man’s life – this man who threatened to kill my friends. The mob grew to over 100 people and more kept coming. Our neighbors and friends in the community were very concerned and on our side.

Once in the house the man would not stop moving. He claimed it wasn’t him – clearly it was, we found him with the bag with the cell phones he had taken from us in it. The guards beat the shit out of him. I found myself jumping in front of this man at one point because it was too much for me, even though I could see the logic he deserved it, my heart couldn’t bear the thought of him getting seriously injured.

The police came. They drove into our compound and put the man on the truck. Many of the volunteers were crying. We went to the police station to give statements – me, Nick, Kara, Jillian, and John. Of course the most affected were the 3 that were in the house when he pulled the knife. I feel very lucky that I left the room when I did, and that Elias and I were out in the street when the man ran out, giving Elias a chance to catch him.

We learned more about the man. He was certainly a convincing actor – he was in fact from Kenya, not a Tanzanian or Bagamoyo resident. He had tried to get in at one of the schools and they would not hire him, they thought he was a thief. He targeted John because John was white and he believed John would have money. He did research and was well spoken. He appeared at the house looking for John intending to threaten John and get the money. We are not sure if he would have hurt anyone or not, at this point we just remain thankful that no one was hurt.

Friday we went to court. The man was making up lies and lies which I guess is to be expected. We produced witness after witness to support what had happened. The justice system is quite different here – the incident was Thursday night and the trial was Friday morning. The man did escape from prison Thursday night by pretending to be dying so was taken to a hospital. He then escaped and was captured, and now faces criminal charges for that incident as well. He is clearly a foreigner and clearly a sociopath, a liar, a very bad person indeed.

I was absolutely amazed by the CCS staff, our neighbors, and the community. While I am very thankful we are safe, we also learned that we must be careful and that the rules here exist for a reason. John should not have shown him to the house. Nick should not have let him in. I should have reacted much faster when I noticed him in the room. The CCS staff was incredible. Elias ran after this man with the butcher knife and chased him until he caught him and threw him to the ground. He put himself in danger to catch this criminal. Our kitchen staff kept all the girls calm in the back of the house, who of course were understandably shaken up by the events. The guards kept the man tied up and did not turn him over to the angry mob outside the gate. Our neighbors ran out of their houses to held chase down this criminal. They hate thieves.

What I have learned is that you must be very careful, even a place like here where the Bagamoyo people are so friendly and kind and good, there are bad people who will attempt to take advantage of our ignorance. This story could have happened in any country – a hold up at a gas station or a bank is not uncommon. It does not diminish how much I love Bagamoyo or Tanzania or how safe I feel in our compound and houses.
We all learned valuable lessons. We are all thankful and happy.

The picture I’ve posted is from outside the police station. The police were somewhat cavalier about the event, saying things like we should have let the mob kill him. I am very glad we did not. I don’t believe in playing God and determining if someone should live or die. I believe we are here to promote development and we should support the court system and its efforts to be respected and legitimate. We take this for granted in the United States that we have a criminal system – one in which you are innocent until proven guilty. Mob justice would not give the accused such parameters, and this man would be dead if not for the brave actions of our CCS staff members.
I will be in Dar es Salaam for Walk the World and will have another update soon. I love my family and friends, please do not worry. All the best – Dana.

Education System in Tanzania

2009-06-10T22:52:00.000-07:00

Photo credit: Nick Bishop

As a teacher and a volunteer I’m learning quite a lot about the Education system in Tanzania. Primary schooling is done entirely in Swahili with English as a subject. However, secondary school is done entirely in English with Swahili as a subject. Multiple problems arise: the kids don’t know enough English to study other subjects in this foreign language, the kids don’t understand the teachers when the teachers speak English. Additionally, many teachers just teach the subjects in Swahili. This might not be such a problem if education in Tanzania wasn’t nationalized – but it is – thus all examinations are in English as well.

What I’ve seen is that kids don’t really understand English. They repeat letters and sounds and words but there is a block in terms of actual comprehension, even at the secondary school level. The teachers don’t make a lot of money and lack the resources and community support to change the education system.

I’m not sure of a perfect solution, but I find switching the main language from Swahili to English at the secondary school level (kids are 10 by this time) to be extremely problematic. Something should change – it’s a policy question – but how it should change, I’m not sure yet.

Adventures in Bicycling and Singing

2009-06-02T04:01:00.000-07:00

I have a newfound respect for bikers! I have recently purchased a bike so that I can go by myself to school in the morning and to my afternoon placement at the ngo in the afternoon. The morning ride is beautiful – I bike past hotels, the fish market, and I get there in record time! Cars fly by me though it can be quite scary! Also, the little kids see you biking and they will run behind you and hop on! I had 3 hanging on the back yesterday I was convinced I was going to crash and have all 4 of us in big trouble! I don’t have a front brake and this isn’t a mountain bike so going up hills can be something of a challenge (and downhill, for that matter, I have to be careful not to pick up too much speed!).

Saturday Nick and I taught music – an additional music class – at the primary school. We taught them Jason Mraz’s “I’m Yours” and to hear them all sing in unison was amazing.

“I won’t hesitate no more, no more
This cannot wait – I’m sure
There’s no need to complicate
Our time is short – this is our fate
I’m Yours”We also sang the Beatles “Let It Be” – it was an amazing morning. Their voices give me chills! I wish you could hear.

School Update!

2009-06-01T01:50:00.001-07:00

Mambo!!!! POA!!!!

This is a greeting in Tanzania – it means “how are things” and poa means “cool!”. It’s common everywhere so I like to use it. Things in Bagamoyo are wonderful and intense, overwhelming and humbling at the same time. I feel fortunate to have this experience and the opportunity to share it with those of you who are reading.
Today I taught colors at my school. The kids had a harder time grasping them because they already know them in Swahili! I’m trying to get them to associate the new words (blue) with Swahili equivalents (buluOur cultural activities this afternoon were great! I learned how to do wood carving, bead making, and drumming! I was best at wood carving actually – I’m going to finish the piece I started tomorrow with the teacher! The teachers came from a little art school on our road – it is a small building but them make beautiful jewelry and play amazing traditional Swahili music. The teachers find orphans off the street and teach them these trades so that they have a craft and do not resort to other means on the streets. They don’t charge either, it’s free, and they buy the equipment and materials with the sales of the jewelry. Amazing cause and the guys are totally awesome.

I found out my school goes on summer vacation for about 4 weeks so I am going to go work with a women’s empowerment NGO during those weeks in the mornings. I can run my own project ideas and help out the organization. That starts June 12th and I will spend 4 weeks with this organization. In 3 weeks our cultural activities wrap up and we can add an additional placement. I’m going to be placed with UKUN, which is an HIV/AIDS organization that does home visits and research on AIDS in the area. It’ll be really challenging, sad at times, but important to the overall experience. I’ll spend 9 weeks with this organization.
Also, Nick, another volunteer and I are going to be presenting a discussion on HIV/AIDS in terms of the cultural and social attitudes and how to address them to the secondary students at the school we visited yesterday. The kids are really eager for us to come they have so many questions – everyone knows HIV/AIDS is bad but it’s taboo to talk about it, sex, protection, all these things. We’re going to the school in a few weeks and we will have a discussion with them about how to maybe affect change from the inside out, empower these students with knowledge about the disease, facts they can work with, and a discussion of the social attitudes we’ve seen ourselves. It should be really exciting.u).

First Day at School

2009-06-01T01:47:00.000-07:00

Today was my first day at school. I mostly observed and didn’t teach. My day starts at around 6:00am, get up and get ready. The group eats breakfast from 6:30 till 7:30 then leaves for our placements. I am teaching 5 year olds at the Anglican Day Care, so this is before the kids start primary school. I help Julius who has a large class of over 30 students.

The class takes place in a small church. The kids sit on pews, no desks or school supplies. There is a single chalkboard about the size of a bulletin board for the teacher to write on. All the kids have uniforms and have to sit quietly. There are no lights, no air conditioning, only one noisy fan. There is no sink only an outhouse for the bathroom, no toilet paper, just a bucket of water and a hole in the ground.

The kids are so loving and joyful that I am amazed. They are truly the light in the day. They all greet me “Karibu Madam Dana” and are all smiling and shy and staring (this doesn’t last long, the shy bit at least). I get to see the other classes, with the 4 year olds and 3 year olds. They are so little, the last class. They call me “Mzungu” but my class apparently knows better. I get to stand in front of the class and do the Simama Ka song. When they realize that this is what we’re doing they get so excited! Ruka ruka ruka (which means jump jump jump) we are ALL jumping and laughing. It’s a nice 5 minute break too.

The kids get to eat lunch at school, porridge prepared in a hut behind the school. Everything is so small. The kids get very small plastic cups that they must wash themselves when they finish. Many eat fast to try and get seconds until they run out. It breaks my heart a little.

Just like kids in the US though, my kids range in personality and ability, focus and interest. My oldest kids are twin boys and they are behind, I think they are also 6. I have several bright girls in the class. When they leave for break they yell “vroooom” which makes me laugh! It starts to rain while we are outside so we all come rushing back inside and they say “beep beep” to pass each other – some things don’t change!

The lack of resources is astounding. The kids are often missing shoes, don’t have any pencils or pens much less paper or books. Lessons are all done on the chalkboard and each kid is given a very small lined book to complete exercises. There is a bag with some pencils but no sharpener, most are dull, no erasers. I grade with my ballpoint pen I brought with me. There are no posters, no stickers, no desks. Outside the kids play with each other and many grab my hand.

This reminds me, last night Malica and I were walking through Bagamoyo on a walk. We were stopped every few feet, met a few people who spoke English. On our way back a kids soccer game was ending and the winning school ran up the street celebrating. They saw us and yelled “Mzungu!” and before we knew it we were surrounded by hundreds of kids all touching our arms and hands. I wish I had it on camera or a picture, it’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen. We joke that we are famous only because we look so different, but the response is very loving. Those that can speak English say “welcome” or “we love you”

I really love it here and don’t want to leave…

Karibu Sana - Welcome!

2009-05-11T09:41:00.000-07:00

Hi family and friends,

Karibu sana! This is Swahili for welcome! I’ve heard it a lot over the past few days. The experience of getting to Africa is long but now that I’m here I can safely say it was worth it. The airport in Dar es Salaam, which is where I flew into, was very different. Very small, no air conditioner, all the stores were stands outside. The drive to Bagamoyo was long as well – we passed by shanty houses with tin roofs, so small and crunched together. Kids played with bike tires and there were no traffic lights, only dirt and stone roads.

Bagamoyo is an interesting town. The houses I’ve seen so far are mostly mud houses built into bamboo frame houses. Most are so small, smaller than my bedroom in North Carolina. Since Bagamoyo is on the coast I’ve also seen the fishing boats, and learned a little about the history. To this day there is a divide between the slave-trader descendants and the slave descendants. Intermarriage between the two groups is not encouraged and everyone seems to know who’s in which group. The slave-trader descendants argue their ancestors were just in good business at the time, and that the slaves got to travel to exotic places like the Middle East and the Americas. The slave descendants argue that families were separated, the labor was hard, you were not guaranteed or even likely to survive the boat ride there, and selling fellow brothers into slavery was not right. Thus the name Bagamoyo means lay down your heart, for if you got to the coast you were leaving on a ship and likely never to return.

The Cross Cultural Solutions house is nice – really nice – and the nicest in the area by a large margin. I do have running water but it’s not hot, so cold showers is the daily routine. Malaria nets are on each bed and you tuck it in around you at night. The rooms are reasonably spacious and have fans to keep things cool. The food is good and mango-passion fruit juice in the morning is my current favorite part of starting my day! There’s a bar around the corner with a thatched roof that you can enjoy a “Kilamanjaro” beer with your neighbors and other volunteers.

My reception so far has been mixed. I am called “Mzungu” by the children that see me, which means “white person!” in Swahili. They so rarely see white people that they will run after you. They know we come with cameras so they yell in English “take my picture” and jump around. They are really sweet and really cute. Everyone stares at you, because you look and dress different. The language barrier is hard but I’m trying to learn. So far there’s hardly any free time which has been the most exhausting part, I’m someone who likes my alone time a little very day!

The feeling that best describes the experience so far is overwhelming. It’s hard to explain what it’s like to see people living on less than 1 US Dollar a day. It’s hard to see people who can’t meet basic needs, like food, clean water, and medicine. Children with no shoes play happily with old busted tires and appear infinitely joyful compared to some of the unhappy spoiled children I have seen in the United States. I’ve seen people with no teeth, a missing eye, unable to walk, and children playing with machetes as toys. All in a matter of 2 days. The houses hardly seem able to withstand a breeze or rainshower, much less the monsoon season which is what we are in now. Yet they do, and it makes me feel eternally grateful and surprisingly aware of how happiness doesn’t seem to translate the more you have in terms of society. The people have so little yet offer to give so much – it is hard to relate to coming from the United States, where it is much more independence and acquisition of items for yourself and your family and friends. It’s not bad or good really, it’s just interesting. The people are quite content and I’m just starting to understand cultural norms and values.

Still the people are so giving, they invite you to their houses and some try very hard to speak English and they are patient with you as you stumble out phrases in Swahili. I use frequently “Jina lunga ni Dana, natoka Marekani” which means my name is Dana, I am American. I am often greeted with “karibu sana” or “habari gain” which mean welcome, or how are you. The rest is a work in progress. Common farewells are “badaari” which is just later and “tuta onana” which means we will meet again.

The art in the community is beautiful, everything is made here and we get to watch craftsmen make carvings out of black wood that are gorgeous and really beautiful paintings with bright vivid colors symbolic of Africa. The music is really fun, so far I learned this to teach at school:

Simama ka
Simama ka!
Ruka! Ruka! Ruka!
Simama ka

This means standup (simama) sitdown (ka) standup (simama) sitdown (ka). Ruka ruka ruka (jump jump jump), standup (simama) ka (sitdown). It’s supposed to settle the kids down. I’m going to try to use it tomorrow at school! I’ll be teaching English, Mathematics, Science, and Singing at the Bagamoyo Anglican Daycare with the 5-6 year olds. I have 50 students in my class so wish me luck!