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!