Moshi

Took a bus with Mary today to Moshi, a litte town at the base of Kili! Waiting for the clouds to part so we can actually see it. im about to go search for some "Zanzibar pizza" from the street vendors--every pizza i have had in this country is delicious, and once again this is not just because I am in Africa and sometimes crave american food--it really is amazing.

sight of the day:
a burqua clad woman walking through teh gas station wtih a whicker basket balanced on her head.

yesterday's:
the Massai man, dressed head to foot in traditional clothing and beadwork, pulling the camel I got to ride across the dirt whilst jabbering on his cell phone. globalization not at its finest

be free my friends

back from Uganda!!!! and had an epic time.
we left at three and drove through Nairobi-- a pretty ugly and sketch city , but then again what developing city isnt idk. the highlight of that legof the ride was hitting paved road--godamn potholes made the bus jump like crazy. from nairobi we finally got to Jinja in Uganda at 10 am the next day wamp wamp. oh well part of hte adventure. the rafting place was b-e-autiful --a huge deck overlooking hte nile and--wait for it--hot showers! the first real shower i have had in a month, it was glorious. ate breakfast on the deck the next morning, and then bungee jumped waaah! i tandum jumped with hannah- it was the most petrifying thing i have ever done, but definitely definitely worht it--(desolee maman ne sois pas en colere i couldnt pass it up!). too bad we couldnt go for free :] we rafted the next day all day, stopped for lunch on an island ---the most delicious pineapple i have ever tasted-- and then rafted till almost sundown. rafted again today and then hoppped back on the bus . the ride back home was slightly more miserable just because i wasnt able to pass out as much, but oh well. now i am back in Arusha--tomorrow Im going to sit in on a trial case at the UN Rwanda tribunal that is stationed in Arusha, and then hopefully take a bus to Moshi, a town at the base of Kilimanjaro. We head bakc to babati on sunday for two more weeks of teaching, than were done. time you are crazy. cant wait! love lvoe
emmanuelle

T.I.A.

for people here having no hair there are a shit-ton of hair salons, and they all have murals of diddy or some other chain wearing thug on the side of the door. salons and guesthouses aka hotels that also serve as prostitution rooms are also a plently here- needless to say i slept on top of the sheets whilst staying at Cypress Hill. today Haji and I are settting up appointments to teach at some various ones by home--the mamas in charge want the girls working at the guesthouses to be taught, which is pretty awesome.
Arusha here i come!! we leave tomorrow morn, and I begin my excursion to the Nile monday afternoon to raft- a glorious 24 hr busride through Uganda to get there. waaaaah!
this is africa
love emmanuelle

be free

i love starting the day. after breakfast i stick my money in my bra strap, my keys on one hip and my phone on the other and head out. good morning baaabati.
today we had a teaching in the mornign at a church- 40 little kids and about 20 bigger kids-- it is quite a sight to see a bunch of four yr olds elbowing eachother to be the one to hold your hand in a circle game.
my younger brother charles has all of his homework in englihs. did i already blog abotu that? oh well it is very impressive and thus deserves recognition-every single subject they learn in school is in english , and he is just attending a normal secondary school.
highlight of last week: an impromtu sing off after class with the babati day sekondari school girls. they knew more rhianna lyrics than i did.
tanzanians love dancing! this makes me very happy, as i also have a love for dancing--no language barrier there :]
as i type here in the internet cafe there are a few people reading over my shoulder. it is quite a funny feeling to always be watched uggh. last night at dinenr my baba had a few guests--they all watch me like a hawk and it can be kind of akward. when they reffered to me as mzungu (european/white person) my baba was quick to say that my name is emmanuelle, not mzungu--very cool. after they found otu Tumaini isnt from the same tribe as they are (Tuma is Massai from Kenya) they spoke in their native tongue throughout the rest of dinner-rude!
another highlight--eating cassava outside frank nad jarrod's home with neighbors at dusk. so neat!

hey homies
here are logistics for those of you who were wondering--ok mama this is for you.
a typical day in b-a-bati
i wake up around 7:30 or 8 to the sound of blaring african music --its usually a woman singing about God with a group of background dancers on the beach- this music comes from the tv, which is constantly on. at home this would greatly annoy me, but for some reason i love it here--i love mornings in tanzania- the air is fresh, the vibes are so good and the weather is always beautiufl. after i wake up i stick my head out my window and say good morning to my mama who is allllwways in the backyard washing clothes or cooking. then my mama eats breakfast and chi with me , which usually consists of two pieces of immensely buttered toast, a chapati, doughnuts and a banana-and then when im done she gives me more. after chi i usually walk into town which takes 10 minutes-oh lets talk about the celebrity walk--hordes of small children shrieking and jumping at the sight of my white ass--everyone greets me in english , and i greet them back in swahili. when i get back my group --ivette, mary, tumaini who's my roomie and haji- meet at my house and make our lesson for that day. this week we have been teaching at two at an all girl's boarding school--today we brought with us dada lulu, an hiv + woman with the biggest heart--she is so charismatic and lively it is really great. she talked to the class about her experience living with it, and the stigma she recieves from the community. after teachign we head back down--oh did i mention this school is on top of a hill uggh my calves are getting so strong aha-- and head back into town. today i walked around with haji to set up more community teachings. in the eve i have been visiting other volunteers' homestays--tonight i visited Rachel's and her mama gave me a kanga and we took pictures because she was wearing the same one- that woman is hilllarrrious and so kind. sometimes i visit Mariam --my sister--at work- she takes care of one of my baba's shops. sometimes i walk by my baba's hardware store to say hey. rachel and i are shopping for tumaini's boys--the orphaned boys she takes care of by the garbage dumps. jeans are about $2 and shirts $1. around 8 i head home , where all the kids are usually watching tv--my baba gets home around 9 and then we eat. i look forward to dinner so much- my mama always serves it in these tupperware bins with lids, and everytime she opens them its liek a new surprise---whats for dinner tonight?! after i finish eating my mama puts more food on my plate. dinner is always different-someitmes its chicken adn home made fries, sometimes its brown rice with this meat soup, sometimes its fish and ugali and spinach. after dinner they mostly go back to the tv, where a terrible soap opera is playing. deliciously bad as my daddy would say. sometimes i sit and watch and laugh, and other times i go straight to bed and pass out. and then i wake up to another beauuutiful day in babati.

yesterday we made guacamole and tonight we bought bananas and peanutbutter--an event definitely worth blogging. never tasted so good

love emmanuelle

highlights of this week
--teaching a classroom of 70 girls at a boarding school-we only needed translation for half the time it was neat. these girls are smart. it was the first time they were hearing hiv/sex ed info in a classroom
--going to church with my family. for three hours. sounds painful but it was actually really cool --drums and songs adn old bent-backed mamas dancing in the aisles. i had to stand the introduce myself and give a little speech aha :/. i almost had to lead a church song in english --thank god tumaini was there to save me
--telling an hiv + mama that her child wasnt . she was told hiv tests didnt work for kids
--finding out passion fruit is an actual fruit
--finding my mama in the kitchen shoving pop rocks in her mouth after giving them to liliani for her bday. haha


things that are still bunk
--doing laundry in a bucket? african mamas have the strongest backs
--kids sleeping on glass-they ALL have sphyillis
--ugali- a corn mush-really bland- eaten with whatever.

my african friend Hajii was pissed we had to go teach when ryan ceacrest's top 40 was on. that idiot is heard here to0?!

hey you guys
i moved into my homestay yesterady and let me tell you it was exactly opposite of what i was imagining/hoping for, but nonetheless i love it. our house has an iron gate in front and the sides have stone/cement looking walls. we have a huge front area and two patios that are tiled. the hosue inside is beautifully tiled , and we have a porcelain pit toilet adn an actual shower head. i think i live in the nicest homestay which is kind of funny considering i put down that i was very willing to "rough it". its bigger and made out of better quality than my house back home. the living room has 4 sofas with a tv constantly blaring a tanzanian soap opra/bbc special on exotic animals/tanzanian love songs. we have about 4 or 5 bedrooms-theres one part of htehouse i havent even seen yet. oh but the kitchen is still outside and consists of a fire pit supported by cement blocks and fueled by coals and firewood--the most modern house with the most primitive cooking style idk. my family is awesome--we have 11month baby samuel, who had a fit hte first time he saw my mzungu face hahaha he was so scared- but now i already sense a mutual attachment. i have two 14 yr old brothers, charles and gasper who speak good english its impressive. my mama is so sweet--she cant be older than 23- my baba is very young too. oh and there is sister easter and mariam--i really dont know how all these people are related, but we all live together . i love taht about african culture--i call strangers my age sister/brother and anyone that looks like a father/mother baba and mama. my mama cooks me delicious food and my tights under my conga are already cutting off my circulation ahahah. babati town is very diverse--we live in a freaking palace, and right down the street are groups of thatched mud homes.
this morning we talked a bunch of community leaders-we start teaching on friday at babati girls' secondary school! so. stoked.
saturday we are speaking to a group of mamas, and on sunday a community leader is setting up a youth grouping for a teaching. things are already happening its great. next week were teaching every day at the school.
amy k, the first thing sister mariam said to me when i told her i was from america was "mariah carey??"
the word for bread is mkate.
love emmanuelle