Last Wednesday I left Germany and didn't get into Tanzania till Thursday
afternoon. While I was in Germany, I honestly wasn't thinking about Africa because I was having such a great time and enjoying myself that I wouldn't let my nerves take that away, but the nerves definitely caught up to me. Before I left Kaila's I was having a little bit of a freak out, it was finally hitting me that the trip that I have been
planning for the last couple months was actually here. Once I got to the airport and boarded the flight
the nerves were surprisingly gone and I was flooded with the feelings of
excitement and Let’s do this!
On my flight from
Germany to Ethiopia (first stop), I was sitting next to a Tanzanian woman who
could barely speak English, but we were able to get around the language barrier
and have a conversation. Her husband is German, so they live in Germany but her
family was still back in Tanzania and she was going back to visit for she just
became a Grandma. She was so nice, she gave me safety tips as well as dos and
don’ts of the culture. She happened to be on every flight I had to Tanzania.
From my flight from Ethiopia to Tanzania I met a brother and sister from
Colorado who were in the same program as well. So overall my flights were
pretty good, had no problems and thankfully my luggage didn't get torn apart
from people going through it or my luggage getting lost, which is a frequent
thing that happens when you travel to Africa. The brother and sister not so
lucky, the airlines lost all 4 of their bags. When we left the airport we were
greeted by two staff members from TVE (Tanzania volunteer experience), who is
partnered with IVHQ and they took us to our accommodations. After we arrived we headed to the other
volunteer house for social night, which is every Thursday, were all the
volunteers get together for a BBQ, chat, swap stories and get to know one
another.
On Friday, the new volunteer's had orientation, which was long and jam pack of information, we went through the rules, had a Swahili lesson, and finished off with a tour around town. To get to town or places in Arusha you can either take a taxi, walk, or this van buses called Dala Dala's. Dala Dala's are vans that seat comfortably 12 or 14 but Tanzanians will fit as many as they can, because it is more money. For example, there’s been a record of 28 people fitting into one dala dala. Also, locals will use the dala dala’s to transport their chickens or goats… There are basically no rules when it comes to a dala dala. So about 20 of us new volunteer's hoped on to a dala dala for the first time and headed into town. When you first get into town it is pretty overwhelming, with street vendors constantly coming up to you, people asking for money, and hearing people call you “Mzungu”, which is the word for white person. Often with the word "Mzungu" comes with the request for money... as in most locals eyes, all white people have money to share. I already have had 2 people try to talk to me about their business… I guess the words “student” and “unemployed” don’t really matter here if you are white. Other than that most of the locals I have come across in town have been very friendly and have greeted me when they pass me on the street.
I am staying in a Volunteer house with 7 other volunteers, which are all girls at the moment. I love it! Most of us are at different placements, so it’s pretty awesome to come back after a day of placement and hear everyone else’s experiences. Each volunteer house has Mama’s who watch over us and some cook our meals. We get 3 square meals a day as well as water, and so far the food has been very good! Mama Eliza, who is the main Mama of our house, is one of my favorite people here. She makes sure that you are comfortable, like if you are having an issue she helps you figure it out, especially when it comes to your placement (which I am having right now, which I’ll explain later).
On Friday, the new volunteer's had orientation, which was long and jam pack of information, we went through the rules, had a Swahili lesson, and finished off with a tour around town. To get to town or places in Arusha you can either take a taxi, walk, or this van buses called Dala Dala's. Dala Dala's are vans that seat comfortably 12 or 14 but Tanzanians will fit as many as they can, because it is more money. For example, there’s been a record of 28 people fitting into one dala dala. Also, locals will use the dala dala’s to transport their chickens or goats… There are basically no rules when it comes to a dala dala. So about 20 of us new volunteer's hoped on to a dala dala for the first time and headed into town. When you first get into town it is pretty overwhelming, with street vendors constantly coming up to you, people asking for money, and hearing people call you “Mzungu”, which is the word for white person. Often with the word "Mzungu" comes with the request for money... as in most locals eyes, all white people have money to share. I already have had 2 people try to talk to me about their business… I guess the words “student” and “unemployed” don’t really matter here if you are white. Other than that most of the locals I have come across in town have been very friendly and have greeted me when they pass me on the street.
I am staying in a Volunteer house with 7 other volunteers, which are all girls at the moment. I love it! Most of us are at different placements, so it’s pretty awesome to come back after a day of placement and hear everyone else’s experiences. Each volunteer house has Mama’s who watch over us and some cook our meals. We get 3 square meals a day as well as water, and so far the food has been very good! Mama Eliza, who is the main Mama of our house, is one of my favorite people here. She makes sure that you are comfortable, like if you are having an issue she helps you figure it out, especially when it comes to your placement (which I am having right now, which I’ll explain later).
Maasai Village
Every
volunteer house has security guards for the nighttime and ours is named Zackey,
who is from a Maasai Village outside of Arusha. Zackey treats us like we are his own children. He watches over us and loves to teach us Sawhili! On Saturday a bunch of us
took a day trip to his village, which took us 3 hours to get out to (half of
it all on dirt and bumpy roads). When we got to the village, most of the
families were out in the front welcoming us with there traditional welcome song
and dance. We then followed them into the village were they continued to do
this dance were you bounce up and down and the men jump as high as they can.
It’s kind of hard to explain through a blog but a picture will hopefully be
able to explain it better. Zackey joined in and kept telling us volunteers to join in
with all of them, so we all took turns and went up to dance. After all the
dancing we walked around the village and went to see Zackey’s home, which is a
mud hut made of mud and sticks. The hut inside is very very dark and only
consists of 2 rooms, one for the mother and children and one for the father.
The mother and father do not sleep in the same bed, only when they “are
together” (if you catch my drift). After, some of the volunteer’s paid the
village to kill a goat, which then the volunteer’s have the opportunity to
drink the blood and eat the meat when it is cooked. I declined because after I
saw the neck fully sliced open, I pretty much lost my appetite. Drinking the
blood of the animal is a very common thing in the Maasai culture because the
blood is full of nutrients and helps keep the village strong, especially when there is a shortage of food. The remainder of
our time we played with the kids, and embraced being able to have this experience. As you leave the village we
gave them gifts to thank them for their hospitality, which is expected of you
when you visit a Maasai Village. The Maasai culture is a huge part of Tanzania, so being able to go out and really see the daily life of a Maasai is pretty eye opening and amazing!
The Maasai
Some of the huts
Zackey!
Some of the Maasai Children
Some of the Maasai Women
