ay jamani

GODDAMNIT I JUST DELETED MY ENTIRE BLOG ughhhh ok im over it here i go again, its goign to be a little rushed but oh well.


"ay jamani!" i love this phrase--apparently it means "oh my goodness" or something along those lines, but i hear it about 20 times a day, usually from tanzanian mamas who are surprised when i great them in swahili. Ay Jamani ...I finally got to climb a Boabob tree! yes to me--these things are epically massive and so impressive; i had many a hand helping me down.

I happened to have just had a glass of delicious white wine before coming to this internet cafe..why? Because there just happens to be a cheese and wine store next door, owned by a middle-aged ex-pat Frenchman named Leonel, who just happened to offer me a glass on the house as he smoked his cigarette while his co-worker finished her cheese fondue-an that is how the French do it, even here in Arusha, TZ. Man I cannot wait for next semester.

Village work is going great. we just got hte ball rolling on a Peer Educator Program, in which 10-12 of the class's best students will be trained to be community educators in HIV/aids education. We essentially train these kids how to teach the curriculum the way were taught in orientation, ensuring the sustainability of SIC's work after the volunteers leave the villages. I would say that tanzanian students generally have a greater respect and maturity for their studies than American high school students, so working with them has never been a challenge. Its really neat actually to see them stoked and eager to learn.

I did laundry for two hours the other morning..be impressed. A couple shirts, pants, kangas, and a sweater (finally! that thing was getting bunk) and a few bloody knuckles later and I was a happy camper. Youre actually not supposed to get raw knuckles from doing laundry, so essentially I was scrubbing wrong the whole time. Oh well at least I am clean!

Jena and I are in town for the weekend, so last night we went to this delicious Syrian restaurant-the best falafal I have ever had--smothered it in hummus. Fried hummus dipped in hummus. Its been too long. Village food is lots of beans, rice, parachichis (avocadoes), ndizi (bananas) and mandazis (little fried-doughnut-delicious-things). I think I overloaded on teh parachich and ndizi the first month, because I haven't been able to eat them for a few weeks now-but no worries mama! i am being fed very well.

ok must get back! tonight we staking out chinese food--you would be pleasantly surprised at the large variety of good restaurants in Arusha!

love love lvoe
emmanuelle

Pics of Ilkiding'a!

Yes, this IS my home!

I told you Ilkiding'a ward was beautiful. Jena took this pic on our walk back home from visiting a village where we had to watch a teaching and give back constructive criticism. The pic above is of our favorite Mama; she owns the shop (duka) were standing in; she sells tea and donuts. nom. Sometimes I watch the World Cup in there on the 10 '' tv they have hanging on the wall, with the rest of the neighborhood football fans---Cameroon owned that game against Japan, what a sad ending.

Kids are so inventive! yesterday I saw a hoard of them with jump ropes made out of tree vines. Soccer balls made out of a bunch of plastic bags tied into a ball with rope is popular too.

I hate missionaries--sorry if youre reading this and are offended---they come in with a van, drop off a bunch of useless toys (balloon animals and plastic balls), preach their bullshit and then leave. I hear "give me my money" and "give me a present" from 50 kids a day as a result. Its all these kids know, so you really cant let your frustration get hte b etter of you.

love lvoe love!!

Emmanuelle

hello friends

I came in town for the day to bring a volunteer to the clinic--turned out to be a bacterial infection, not malaria--hoorah! although malaria is super easy to treat anyways--$4 for some pills and the symptoms are gone in a few days at worst.

The villages we are working in are b-e-a-utiful and remind me a lot of the countryside in France. The volunteers are spread throughout six villages, and to get to each one I walk through fields of corn and tomatoes--its so neat, I looooove it. Some homestays are pocketed on grassy slopes that i have to cross river beds to get to. We are staying in a rented house in teh first village, complete with large grassy lawn--electricity but no running water. Sometimes Ill come home in teh afternoon to a hoard of small children playing in the yard-other times the children will be replaced by grazing cows. hahaha its great. The kids call my frisbee kipepeo (butterfly!) and they love it, which makes me very happy. Daily work has consisted of walking to homestays (an hour walk to the farthest one?) to bring supplies and talk with groups when small problems arise.

---I ate eggplant and LIKED it! the vegetables are so fresh
---every morning Jena, Glady and I get hot milk for breakfast, straight from the neighbor's cow, for 40 cents a liter. Its so neat

---Last night I successfully carried a 3 gallon bucket of water on my head. Usually our cook (who lives across the street) boils water for us at night to shower. Last night he was busy so I decided to go--I asked a little girl to show me where to get it and soon Jena and I had 10 small children following us to the water source with their own buckets--which turned out to be a river 15 minutes away and down this steep, muddy embankment. balancing it on your head is actually much easier, because there is no way in hell i would have been able to make it back up the hill and all the way home carrying this heavy bucket. My skirt was drenched and my feet were filthy by the end, but i was a proud mzungu when we finally made it home.

---Kids here work so hard! as soon as youre able to walk youre set to work. The littlest one on my water-fetching journey last night couldnt have been older than 3 or 4. Of items that are balanced on heads by children, I am most impressed by the enormous stacks of firewood. All of the cooking for the family that lives across the street is done by two 10 ten year old girls.

TZ is great and I am a happy gal.

Emmanuelle

Today I was told that I had the "hair of Jesus Christ"-meant as a compliment nonetheless! The immediate image that came to mind was one of my dad yelling "Jesus Christ" at home after not being able to find the remote, so naturally i was a little caught off guard. Ok fine, it was raining and my hair was a big mess of moppy (sp?) curls and frizz, so I guess I can see the connection.

Being a coordinator is so fun! I enjoy my duties, which include making sure volunteers are well adjusted, leading sessions during Orientation on how to lesson plan, removing salamanders and grasshoppers from bathrooms (in abundance!), showing volunteers around Arusha on our days off, and visiting homestays to meet homestay parents.

"hamnashida, kabisa. Hamnashida, kabisa. Karibuni, Karibuni, make yourself at home"--This translates into "no worries, perfect. No worries, perfect (as in, everything is perfect and could not be better)- This being the general response of homestay parents after meeting and discussing logistics. so great!

Arusha is a pretty drab city with crumbling buildings and such-- apart from the out-of-place tourist hotels and restaurants. Sometimes these lavish hotels are placed right next to local dumps, where a few townspeople can be seen digging through the trash looking for plastic bags.

The other day while accompanying someone to the airport I was able to see Kilimanjaro! We had a great view for at least 30 min. So neat! Even the snow-capped peak was visible. What a great ride.

Thats all I got for now----we move into the villages on Tuesday, so probably no internet for two weeks. usiku njema (safe night!)

Emmanuelle

Hi people,

things are still great. All the volunteers have arrived, orientation has begun with the teaching partners. For a week we will be staying at this agricultural college, where the vols and tp's will be learning how to work together, teach classrooms of different ages, and learn what to expect in the villages. I happen to be in Arusha for a few days running errands.

--Its so FRUSTRATING having to bargain/argue my way through prices everyday in Arusha. Being white makes you a walking dollar sign and so i cannot escape the mzungu (European) price--even when i bargain in Swahili! Even lunch prices at the same restaurant go up from previous days. the day my Swahili gets good to enough to impress shop owners will be THE day.

--I cannot stress enough the genuine hospitality that is so unique to Tanzanian culture. Everyone I meet is very polite and very welcoming.

--enjoy your hot showers people!!! Its a great day when the hot water heater works haha

Emmanuelle

" I like you because...(pause)..you look..(contemplation)...like a giraffe"

so said a flycatcher (street vendor selling local art to tourists) to Steena as we were walking down the central street of Arusha, ah what a great moment. Steena IS super tall and graceful, and that was a definite compliment on his behalf.

The volunteers' flights are all delayed because of the damn volcanic ash! ugh. they are coming in an influx late tonight, I cant wait to meet everyone.

People are so nice here, it is very refreshing. Greetings to everyone in the room or passerby is a necessity, and which I think Americans tend to overlook (its importance, I mean).

Jena and I are helping to lead a workshop today for hte Tanzanian teaching partners--going over the cirriculum and the program. lunch time, which is mainly beans, rice, spinach, bananas, avocadoes, its NOW! cant wait.

Man i miss you guys! Its a funny feeling being so far away.

Were in a hostel till the end of the week,a dn then starting on Monday we will be living dormitory style for two weeks for orientation. Homestay move ins start the 2nd (i think?). No homestay for Jena, Glady, or me this time, but a house--with a field!! thanks meggles for not letting me forget to pack a frisbee!!!

Cheers!

Emmanuelle

here!

Hey friends

made it!! I flew in last night around 9pm, haggled with Customs for a bit, and then got on shuttle to meet my manager and settle in to the hostel we will be staying for the next week.

I'll be working with two other coordinators, both of whom taught with me last summer. Jena is from USC and Glady is Tanzanian. Its gonna be a great time.
--I forgot how fun frigid showers are! Oh well
--Tanzanian breakfast is great. This morning we had bread with butter nad jam, scrambled eggs, and milk tea.
--the weather is nice today--a little humid and just a little rain
--we have today off to run some errands in arusha dn tomorrow I start my coordinator duties--Ill be picking up volunteers at hte bus station and showing them aroudn town for hte most part.

my TZ phone # is 0681051093 if you happen to have a great international phone plan and want to send a text my way

siku njema

Emmanuelle