Some more pictures

WOW!!!

Woo!! This has been a crazy past couple of weeks: getting arrested by immigration, fun nights at Maasai Camp and Via Via, presentations, hanging out with Doreen and much more. I know that I have not updated in a loooong time, but it has been so busy putting together my final independent study project paper! It was stressful, but the presentation and paper went well. The rest of the students and I spent our last week basically just trying to spend as much time together. We made a couple of trips to the local clubs Maasai Camp and Via Via. It was such a blast. Great times for sure! As of now there are only about 15 of us remaining in East Africa. A lot of the students went home on December 9 after our party. Right now I am sitting in the Adrift (white water company hotel) in Uganda. Farren and I just rafted and bungee jumped in the Nile River yesterday, and it was AMAZING. We flipped twice and I fell out twice. It was the most intense white water rafting I have ever done, but very fun. We started off with the bungee jumping, which boosted our confidence for the class 5 rapids. It was pretty much AMAZING. We took an 18-hour bus ride through three countries: Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda and now we are in Jinja, Uganda!!! I was also able to see Brian; he is one of my friends that have been studying here from Point Loma. That was really cool. I really like Uganda, the scenery and people are amazing. The fact that I am not going back to Tanzania and probably will not be there within the next year has really hit me though. I REALLY enjoyed my time there and the thought of not going back is not something that I want to think about. I spent almost 4 months here; it is a big part of my life. I met some really great people and shared some pretty amazing experiences with them! It’s going to be tough leaving that all behind. Anyways, I’m still really stoked for the future. I am going to be picked up in Jinja on Monday and I go on my way to Mt. Elgon, about 8-hours from Jinja to the hospital! I will be working at for about two weeks. I’m really excited about that it should be really fun. Well I will be seeing everybody in about 3-weeks and I can’t wait!!

Some pictures

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Man I have not been on this blog for awhile, but I have A LOT to say. School just ended yesterday and people are already on their way back to America. It's crazy to think that this leg of the journey is finished! I don't have a lot of time to write right now, but I am going to try to get something up soon. I leave for Uganda today via bus with my friend Farren. We are leaving at 2:30pm and should get to Uganda by Friday at 8am. First is white water rafting and bunjee jumping in the Nile and then I start the hospital work at Mount Elgon. I miss you all and can't wait to see you in around 3 weeks...man that's crazy!!!!

Independent Study Project

10-hour bus ride to Dar es Salaam
4 day waiting period for permit
2-hour flight to Tabora
1-hour flight to Kigoma
Trip to the Ministry of Home Affairs in Kigoma
Aimlessly wandering around in Kigom attempting to find bus station
3-hour daladala ride with 19 people squished in to Kasulu region
And finally I arrive in the beautiful Kasulu region of Tanzania.

Wow I thought Northern Tanzania was beautiful, this place is AMAZING! When I exited the plane in Kigoma I was overwhelmed by camera flashes, video cameras and news crews. I noticed two HUGE (biggest planes I have every seen) United Nations planes. Turns out that the minister of Tanzania was on my flight and because of the refugee situations around the Kigoma area the UN planes are always there. But wow, I’m definitely moving to the Kigoma area, it is beautiful. It is green everywhere and the people here are even nicer than the ones in Arusha and Dar es Salaam. I met this lady on the plane who drove me to the Ministry of Home Affairs. I needed to get papers signed to confirm exactly what I was doing. I met with the director of home affairs, and after talking with him I didn’t think he was going to grant me permission. After waiting for 4 days in Dar es Salaam I finally received what I needed and traveling this far I was not going to let him turn me down. Turns out he allowed me, but on various conditions which is no problem (hamnashida). My next task was to find a bus station to take me to the Kasulu region of Kigoma, this is where the 1993 Burundi Refugees are. It was quite a task, but like I said the people are extremely friendly and I was able to find my way. I drove 3 hours in a daladala filled with 19 people. For those of you who don’t know what a daladala is, it basically is a Tanzanian version of a minivan, but a little different. It’s there taxi/bus service and their motto is “There is always room for one more in daladala.” And let me tell you that is no lie. It was jam packed, and our driver was absolutely insane, but what a great experience. Everyone was so friendly and surprised that Mzungu was taking a daladala to Kasulu. Usually the white people who come to the Kigoma region are involved with NGO’s and have cars that pick them up. They were stoked that I spoke Swahili and were talking with me the entire way, which was awesome. When I finally arrived in Kasulu James picked me up. James works for Woman’s Legal Aid Services, nicest guy I’ve met thus far in Tanzania. Took me to the office to discuss what I was doing here. Booked a hotel for me, but I told him it was too expensive so he welcomed me to his house for dirt-cheap. He hopefully is going to be my translator for the refugees. What a past couple days it has been, but the awesome thing is that God has never let me down. I arrived in Dar es Salaam, but had to change my flight because of logistical issues. That got worked out. Flew to Kigoma, had no idea where I was going, but ended up meeting Gema who gave me a ride to the Ministry of Home Affairs. Got worked out. Almost got denied access to the refugees, but a change of heart allowed me to press forward. Got worked out. I had absolutely no idea how to get to Kasuslu, but thanks to the helping hearts of Tanzanian people I found my way. Got worked out. Crazy fun ride to Kasuslu. And James allowed me to stay at his house for cheap and is going to act as a translator. Got worked out. I’ve known since the beginning that this study was going to be logistically challenging, but God has taken me this far I know that everything else is going to fall into place! Next task is to get the 100-dollar fee for transport to the refugees waved. Knowing that I will be going there everyday for the next 20 days I need to come up with something, hmmm. Any ideas! =) I’m stoked to get the interviews started tomorrow! Please continue to pray for my success with this study. Thanks.

Starting with purple: Megan, Catherine (shes crazy!) me, Doug aka Mbwa, and Noah

There is a lion hunting a group of Germans in a safari car to the right....I swear =)

TWIGA!!!!!!

Female Lion....not too happy.

Farren and I on top of a mountain overlooking the Serengeti

A lion eating a Warthog, so cool!!!!

This is the famous bird study team from Serengeti!!!!! We were the best group by far, I mean look at us! =)

Adam and I after the Safari (you get incredibly dirty from all the dust in the road, haha)

So as you all can see from the pictures I was on quite the safari. I was not able to write about it because of finals week. Following probably my best two weeks of my life we were thrown back into the city to start our finals. Now that it is all over I can share some of my experiences with you. The first week we went to Serengeti National Park. That was so amazing, it seems so long ago. Basically we were split into research teams. I drew the lucky straw and was able to study the birds……NOT! Haha. No one wanted the birds and the 6 of us who ended up studying them drew the short end of the straws, haha. I wanted to be in the predator or at least the hippo group. It ended being such an awesome group though. We had a great time together. We had to be up the earliest, of course as if studying birds wasn’t awesome enough!! Every morning we needed to be out of the campsite at 5:30 am! Haha. But once again it ended up being great. What most people didn’t know is we stopped frequently for lions to cross the road or watch the hippos slip into the water. Most activity within these National parks happens during sunrise and sunset. Oh seeing the sunrise over the Serengeti every morning wasn’t too shabby either AMAZING!!!! Anyways we also went on sunset game drives where we saw so much: Lions hunting and killing a warthog, leopards in the trees, lions having sex, (crazy, they do it every 10 mins for 48 hours straight!!) hippos, Elephants fighting, and on the last day in the Serengeti we saw a the world renown Tanzania Cheetah walk across the Serengeti plains during the sunset. We had been looking for a Cheetah since the day we got there, and it was soooo cool to see it the last day during the sunset. So much other stuff happened. Our campsite was literally smack dab in the middle of the Serengeti. Anything from Hyenas, lions, and elephants would walk across our campsite. You could shine your flashlight by the bathrooms at night and would see hundreds of eyes all over the place!!! I was going to the bathroom one night and on my way there I heard a high pitch scream. I thought to myself, oh crap someone just got attacked by a lion or something. So I ran over to the stall and saw my friend Chloe running out of the bathroom screaming and laughing. Apparently a bat lives in the drop latrine and while she was going to the bathroom a bat flew up and smacked her right on her butt!!!! Funniest thing ever! She had to be checked for rabies the next day!! Haha, but she is fine. So that is a very short clip from my time in the Serengeti. So much more happened, but it’s hard to type it all out! Haha. The next week we went to Lake Natron, where the famous Maasai tribe lives. I will hopefully get some more time tomorrow to write about that.

I’m having a great time. I just started my Independent Study Project yesterday. I took a 10-hour bus ride to Dar es Salaam and was supposed to catch a plane this morning to Kigoma. A lot of logistical failures occurred and I will not fly out until Wednesday. It was very stressful at the time, but everything happens for a reason and I know it will work out. I’m going to be studying the Burundi Refugees from the 1993 Genocide. My study question is:

My study will examine the following question: If given the opportunity, would 1993 Burundi refugees choose to naturalize, repatriate or resettle? To help understand their choices, I will document their living situations and experiences of their life just before 1993, and their current living situations in Tanzania now.

So basically this question will give me the opportunity to find out about their history and experiences during the genocide. It’s going to be pretty intense, but I cannot wait! These 1993 Burundi refugees are not given any choice but to return back to Burundi (repatriate). Some of these people saw their entire family get killed, it’s pretty awful that they will have to go back to that same house, especially because a lot of the killers have not yet been brought to justice. Some of them are even receiving death threats that if they return they will get killed. So hopefully my study will shed some light on their thoughts, and maybe even help their story be heard to the government. Please pray that logistical stuff will work out and I will be able to leave on Wednesday!

The end of a 2-week safari!

Maasai Woman

Me with Puz Ndawa (coolest kid!)

Sunrise at Lake Natron

My Maasai family and I

Aiming for a lion

My Maasai family and I!

View of all of Lake Natron

Probably one of the most beautiful places I have been to, Lake Natron

We got caught in this huge dust storm, CRAZY!!!!

Piga Piche!

Indian Ocean in Dar es Saalam

Cloee and I

At the Mozumbai Forest Reserve

My friends Isaya and Innocent

Me, Doreen and Heidi

Enjoy the Pictures!!!

Quick update

I had a meeting with the Director of TCRS (Tanzanian Christian Relief Services) to talk about my independent study project I will be doing the month of November. I was really nervous because this was my only shot on persuading him to work with me to build up my report. I came specifically to Dar Es Salaam (remind you 9-hour bus ride) to speak with him. And the interview couldn't have gone any better!!!! We are setting up the logistics right now, but it looks like I will be speaking with refugees that have escaped their camp and are living illegaly in Dar Es Salaam first, then I will fly to Kigoma and actually go inside the camps. After Kigoma I will head to Burindi Refugee camps in Tabora. I'm leaning my study to cover the social aspects of the Refugees life. I want to collect their life story, specifically their journey over to Tanzania. I want to record their most vivid memory of the journey and talk to them about life in Tanzania now. Have they lost their identitiy? How they are treated? If they could go home would they? Questions along those lines. This was a total God thing too. My Academic Director explained to me how no one has ever done a study with refugees because it is logistically very difficult. It is hard to obtain the permits to go into the camps and most of the time the refugees don't want to talk because they are illegal. But this organization is going to handle all of the logistics of it. I am so stoked for this project, pray that everything works out these next couple of days, it's going to be stressful to get all of the bugs worked out!

Back from the Rainforest!

We just got back from the Rainforest Reserve in the Usambara Mountains. It was so amazing. There were trees, animals, rivers, waterfalls, everything. We went hiking and did out classes in the middle of the Rainforest, it was great. I went on this really long hike up a mountain, and like I said in a previous blog Tanzanians don't mess around with switchback they are straight up, haha. At the very top it was so beautiful. It had just stopped raining, and the top of this mountain was above the clouds, it was great. Our schedule in the Rainforest was basically breakfast, classes in the rainforest for 3 hours, free time which was spent mostly in the rainforest for me, bootcamp (exercise with our academic director) and dinner. It was so relaxed, but at the same time I learned so much! The last day we all departed in different directions, its the prep week for our research. Basically this week everyone flies, drives or buses all over Tanzania to where they want to do their research. I went to Dar es Salaam, it's basically the New York of TZ. I'm hoping to work with this organization called TCRS ( Tanzania Christian Relief Services). I'll be here until Friday, and then I have to make my way back to Arusha (10 hours bus ride!!!!). The city is great, very differnent from the rest of the country. I just had my first meal here, and man o man was it good. It was a buffet with chicken, rice, chipate, soup, chocolate cake, fruit, pizza everything. It took quite a while to find a hotel, but I ended up finding one that is pretty cheap. I miss you all of you A LOT. I can't believe that it has almost been 2 months already. I'll keep you updated!

Tunakwenda Safari!!!!

Sunsets in Tanzania are the best!

Yes I do realize my mouth is always open in photos, but c'mon there were elephants right there!

This past week was soooo great! We all said our goodbyes to our homestay family and made our way to Klub Afrikko (a hotel) for the night. A couple of us went to the local club called “Maasai Camp” which was really fun. They played Tanzanian music for about half the time and the other half they played the Jay Z and Beyonce music of course. It was a blast though. The next day we made our way to Tarengirie National Park. That entire week we would do classes until about 12. Classes consisted of venturing on a 4-hour safari, and we would research the dynamics of the Savannah Ecosystem. It was so awesome! I was talking with one other student, Abby, and we were talking about the learning dynamics of this program. It’s easier in a way that I am not spending hours upon hours memorizing science terms and trying to figure out if I mix this compound with this compound what will happen. They learning is very hands on and experience based, which makes it seem easier, but we are constantly being challenged with new ideas and new experiences. So far this program has brought so much perspective to my life, way more than I could of ever asked for, and it sure isn’t easy changing the way you have been thinking for your whole life. I can’t wait to see what’s next.

That same week we visited a high end Game Hotel, and it was nice!!!! It actually had a swimming pool so I finally got to take a “shower” in the pool. Before then I had not taken a shower in 6 days, yeah I know it’s gross, but that’s the way everyone was. That’s where deodorant comes in handy, ha =) We left Friday for Mtu Wa Mbu (which literally translates into “River of Mosquitoes”) This town was so awesome. We did classes at Lake Manyara, which was so beautiful. We saw Twiga’s (Giraffe) Simba (lions), hippos (don’t know how to say that in Swahili) and much more. It was great. Since it is dry season a lot of the animals flock to this reserve. We spent the afternoons with a “Cultural” company who showed us all around town and introduced us to some local painters and wood carvers. This was the best part of the entire safari (journey). It’s amazing what some of these guys can do they are very talented individuals. All of their work would sell for thousands in the U.S, but they do not have the chance to advertise their work. We were encouraged to purchase items from them rather than from the town in Arusha because it cuts out the middleman, and allows for better financial assistance to the locals. When you buy the art and woodwork you meet the guys who actually did your piece. They even did some custom paintings for me and some other students. That night we were able to experience the local nightlife in that village by going to a place called “The White House Disco.” So apparently disco is a commonly used name to describe a club. I thought that they were going to be playing Disco music, but in reality it’s just a way of describing a dance club. I was very surprised when 50 cent came on, haha =)

We came home on Saturday and had a free day in Arusha. One thing that is so awesome about Tanzania is the hospitable people. I was at this cultural fair on Saturday listening to music, watching dances, and skits. A college guy came up and just started asking questions about America and the schooling there. I also had to try to explain to him in very broken Kiswahili/English (Swanglish) that it is not common to have a wife and three kids at the age of 20 in America. Ha. But he ended up walking me 4 miles (2 hours) back to my hotel. I don’t think I would ever think twice about taking 2 hours out of my day to walk a foreigner that barely spoke English home. It definitely taught me a lot about hospitality and helping people out. He is a student at University of Dar es Salaam, but is teaching at a secondary school in Arusha while he is on his break. He asked me if I would come in and encourage his students to work hard and not give up. That should be fun with the amount of Kiswahili I know, haha. Another thing I really like is that religion is openly talked about with everyone. Within 5 minutes of a normal conversation he was already talking about how he was a Lutheran and how God took his mother 2 years ago, but she is in a better place now. Most of the Tanzanians are very open people.

Well next week is mid-term week! Swahili mid-term, 10-page paper about an issue that Bangatta is facing, and many many flow charts, wish me luck! I miss you all and please continue to keep me in your prayers.   

By the way Chris I tried to ask about Mangole, and no one knew where it was so I'm guessing it's not by here! Hope you are doing well!

PICTURES

Here are some pictures like I promised. The internet was soooo slow so I couldn't upload all the ones I wanted, but here are some, ENJOY!

Farren, Me, and Chris with our cool new Tanzanian beanies (no we aren't American, haha)
Once again by an awesome waterfall!

On the slopes of a crazy hike!

Heidi and I next to an awesome waterfall!

Me with the Masaii, SO COOL

The Homestay continues.....

Man it seems like everytime I come on here something new happens! haha =) Well it's been a little easier to communicate with my homestay family, but still struggling with the language barrier. We do about 5 hours of swahili a day so one class is like 2 weeks of school, it's awesome! On Satruday me and two other people climbed up this mountain that is behind my house. Tanzania doesn't mess around with switchbacks, haha, it was about a 80% grade straight up! The view from the top was amazing! You could see all of Bangata from there. I swear if I dindn't know any better I would think I was in the Amazon Rain Forest. Everything is so green! The way down was a blast. None of us had any type of traction on our shoes so instead of hiking down it was more like a slide down the whole way. I felt like I was on a roller coaster! I got some good video with my camera though! It was crazy, there were Tanzanian kids yelling, A LOT of dust all over the place and us sliding. At the bottom of the mountain we all were caked with dirt even our teeth. I came home and my mama freaked. She brought out a bucket and told me to shower, haha =) I helped mama Koko milk the cow on Saturday, which was really cool. I've never milked a cow before, haha =) Yesterday another group of us hike to a waterfall. It was so sweet. We hiked about 20 mins through thick forest and it opened up into this beautiful waterfall! We jumped in and swam in it for about 15 mins, but out of no where little Tanzania kids started throwing rocks at us and yelling MZUNGU (that means white person in swahili, you get that A LOT here), haha. And when I say rocks that's an understatement. These rocks were legit boulders rocks. We ran out of the forest as fast as we could. Everyone made it out safe though! haha =) We are staying in Bangata until Saturday and then we make our way to Tarengerie National Park. Apparently because of the season that's where all of the wildlife is. Our acadmic director said at night you can feel the animals breath go by your tent, SO STOKED! I'm in Arusha town right now, and as always its crazy. Here in Tanzania pedestrians don't have the right of away so you really have to watch were you step. I don't want a fourth back surgurey, haha just kidding mom and dad =) Academically speaking, because this is study abroad, haha, I am trying to choose my proposal for my Independent Study Project (ISP) we do the month of November. Basically you pick a topic that interest you, it could be anything, and you go off and put together an ISP. It's actually pretty intense. It's a 25 day period and you are expected to write and give a presentation on your research. Some stuff actually gets published! I am choosing between two things: I will look at the Burhundi/Rwanda Refugees living in Western Tanzania, Kigoma, or I will look at this organization called Flying Doctors based in Arusha. They are basically an EMT/Ambulance, but as the name implies they do this through planes. Both would be incredible, but it just depends which one is more logistically possible. Ihaven't been able to upload any pictures yet because the internet is so dang slow, but I actually found a place that the internt is decent speed so I will attempt next time! The classes, people, scenery and animals are awesome I want to be able to share it with everyone! I really miss all of you back home and I wish you could be here too! Talk to you soon!

The Homestay begins

This past Saturday I moved into my homestay, which I will be living in for the next three weeks! My family is: Baba Koko, Mama Koko, kaka Hamza, kaka Simba and dada Koko. If you didn't notice in Tanzania the parents name change when they have their first child, KoKo in my parents case. It has been one awesome experience! My family only speaks kiswahili so the level of communication is limited, but it also has forced me to learn the language more quickly! We are in a village called Bangata that is completely off the map. It is on the slopes of Mt. Meru and is absolutely beautiful! It is green and lush everywere. There are rivers, waterfalls and great people. Oh and I can't forget about the food, it is awesome! I thought for sure that I was going to loose weight coming to Tanzania, man was I wrong. We get breakfast, tea, lunch, tea, dinner and then tea. It is amazing! Yesterday I was sitting outside my house picking ticks off my leg, hearing my mama scream at Simba in Kiswahili and listening to the Muslim Mosk go off. I thought to myself, "Only in Tanzania!" haha. Swahili class is of course awesome, but actually really tough too. Languages just don't come easy to me, but the fact that my family only speaks kiswahili is an encouragement to learn faster! I miss all of you and please continue to keep me in your prayers!

Tanzania=awesome

There is not many words I can think of right now to describe the amazing time I have had so far. Right now I am sitting in an internet cafe right now in Arusha, and I don't have much time so I will try to break down this past week for everyone!

Right after everyone arrived we drove two hours to Ndarawkai National Park and have spent the past week there! We basically had Student Orientation at a National Park, I can't ask for anything better than that! WOW.

Over the past week we have been on abut six safari's and have seen anything from giraffes to elephants, we have had three kiswahili classes which were awesome and have met up with the infamous Tanzania/Kenya Masaii tribes. The Masaii peole are some of the coolest types of indigenous people I have ever met! We are fortunate enough to have one for our cultural class professor. His name is Baba Noah, nicest guy, he has killed three lions. (Ki cha cama boga, Crazy like a pumpkin!) He likes to call himselft that! haha. Sorry that I'm all over the place with this blog!

All the students/teachers here are great. Our Academic Director, Baba Jack, is such an intelligent person. You can sit with him and talk politics, people, culture and indigenous tribes for hours and not get bored. Bwana Ndege, our bird expert and Babu Liki, our language instructor are so awesome. They are native Tanzanians and know a lot about the culture and government surrounding Tanzania. We haven't even had an "official" class yet, but I have already learned a lot!

Just got a ten minute warning about the internet so I'm going to get this blog published. It's great to talk to you guys! Please continue to keep me in your prayers, God is doing awesome things! Love you all!

IM HERE!

The internet here is pretty bad, but I just wanted to let everyone know that I got here. I met this really nice Irish guy on the flight to Kilimanjaro last night and he gave Hilary (other student) and I a ride to this Ethiopian Hotel for the night. We are now waiting until about 5 o'clock when we will meet up with the rest of the students. Tanzania is such a great place I know I am going to have a blast already. We are leaving to go camping for a week tonight so I'm not going to have any type of internet, but I will update you all as soon as I can. Sorry, no pictures yet!! Thank you all for your prayers.

Leaving in two days, AHHH!!

Hi everyone, I just wanted to write this blog before I left to test the blog, but since I'm writing anyways I will let you know about last night!

Last night my dad and I had a going away party at my g-ma's house. It was so awesome being able to see all my friends and family together in one place!

It's getting down to the wire for both my dad and I, but hopefully all that preparation and hard work we did way before the last two days will pay off.....NOT! haha. I'm really excited to keep you all updated as much as the Tanzanian internet allows me to! Talk to you all soon!

Here are some pictures from last night!