Sink or swim
We are in Dar es Salaam for a few days now before we head off to shadow a current PCV. Russ, Thomas, and I will be going to Njombe (south west) for a few days before we head back to training and find out where we will be living for the next two years!
Thanks for the mail everyone! David, the star chart is great!!
Each of us had to find our own way to Dar and that was a little intimidating but really, PC knows what's best for us and the "sink or swim" style is alright to me. We went in groups and as far as I know we all made it to Dar safe and sound. It was actually pretty simple. Buy your ticket as you get on the bus. But if you're going farther then you buy your ticket in advance. There's a lot to think about on the ride over. I saw people living on the side of the road with nothing more than mud and branches for walls and a thached roof. People working day in and out to make bricks just to scrape by and others selling mkaa (charcoal) because everyone uses charcoal stoves.
All of us trainees visited different NGOs and created a seasonal calendar. But the trip for me was more of getting to know what type of NGOs are in Tanzania and what their major problems are. My group went to a non-profit that educates people with and without HIV/AIDS and help those who have HIV/AIDS and want help with some medications and foodstuffs. Our discussion was mostly in Kiswahili but one of our language instructors was with us to help out when needed. The NGO I visited said their busiest and most difficult time of the year is between January and May when the rainy season causes an uprise in Malaria and it's harder to get to the people that need help (mud is a major transporation issue). What they really need is a loan so they can have the capital to build a farm which the workers will manage. They plan on using money made from the farm to use to buy medication and foodstuffs (flour, sugar, etc.) for those most in need. The organization has about 200 members and they also try to help over 400 orphans but getting them together to do fun activities or giving them whatever foodstuff they have available.
A funny story...so my host family knows I don't like to drink beer so for Joline's confirmation they bought a small bottle of Konyagi for me. I used about half the bottle that day putting it in soda. So a few days ago mama and baba got some beers out and Russ and one and I just had a soda. Then Russ reminded me that there's still some Konyagi in the cubbert so I went to get it. What I found was an empty bottle! I showed mama and she cracked up laughing...she was trying to say that accidentally the rest of the Konyagi fell into her cup! I didn't care it was just so funny that they would leave that empty bottle in the cubbert.
Oh, and baba got a computer! It's pretty good...10 GB drive, running XP, etc...and we put our pictures and video on the computer and mama was just blown away at the video of her at Joline's confirmation. I haven't had enough time to upload it to the gallery (18 megs). Oh well, it's really short anyway.
Thanks for the mail everyone! David, the star chart is great!!
Each of us had to find our own way to Dar and that was a little intimidating but really, PC knows what's best for us and the "sink or swim" style is alright to me. We went in groups and as far as I know we all made it to Dar safe and sound. It was actually pretty simple. Buy your ticket as you get on the bus. But if you're going farther then you buy your ticket in advance. There's a lot to think about on the ride over. I saw people living on the side of the road with nothing more than mud and branches for walls and a thached roof. People working day in and out to make bricks just to scrape by and others selling mkaa (charcoal) because everyone uses charcoal stoves.
All of us trainees visited different NGOs and created a seasonal calendar. But the trip for me was more of getting to know what type of NGOs are in Tanzania and what their major problems are. My group went to a non-profit that educates people with and without HIV/AIDS and help those who have HIV/AIDS and want help with some medications and foodstuffs. Our discussion was mostly in Kiswahili but one of our language instructors was with us to help out when needed. The NGO I visited said their busiest and most difficult time of the year is between January and May when the rainy season causes an uprise in Malaria and it's harder to get to the people that need help (mud is a major transporation issue). What they really need is a loan so they can have the capital to build a farm which the workers will manage. They plan on using money made from the farm to use to buy medication and foodstuffs (flour, sugar, etc.) for those most in need. The organization has about 200 members and they also try to help over 400 orphans but getting them together to do fun activities or giving them whatever foodstuff they have available.
A funny story...so my host family knows I don't like to drink beer so for Joline's confirmation they bought a small bottle of Konyagi for me. I used about half the bottle that day putting it in soda. So a few days ago mama and baba got some beers out and Russ and one and I just had a soda. Then Russ reminded me that there's still some Konyagi in the cubbert so I went to get it. What I found was an empty bottle! I showed mama and she cracked up laughing...she was trying to say that accidentally the rest of the Konyagi fell into her cup! I didn't care it was just so funny that they would leave that empty bottle in the cubbert.
Oh, and baba got a computer! It's pretty good...10 GB drive, running XP, etc...and we put our pictures and video on the computer and mama was just blown away at the video of her at Joline's confirmation. I haven't had enough time to upload it to the gallery (18 megs). Oh well, it's really short anyway.
posted by lisa at
14:38
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