Home Visits

This week Scottie and I visited all the children in our school at their homes. We divided the visits into three different days based on where the children live. Our school "bus" (safari jeep) driver Hassan took us each day along with one of the teachers.

On Monday,we visited all the families who live in a fairly poor area of town behind the supermarket. I had no idea there was such a huge population living behind Shoprite--it's almost like a city in itself. Hassan asked someone to show us the way to each house because finding them would have been impossible without a guide. The area we walked through was extremely windy; once we entered there was no way for us to tell which direction we were heading. The walkways were extremely narrow and on either side of us there were houses built out of mud and metal.

Navigating our way to the home stays

Visiting each of the families that day went really well. Scottie and I slowly figured out a sort of routine at each house, and we pretty much stuck to asking the same few questions. We usually asked who lived at the house, whether or not the child had brothers or sisters, how long they had been at the school, and what changes they had seen in their child since starting the school. All the parents had positive things to say about St. Dymphna, which was good to hear, and most of the families were happy to see us and very welcoming while we were there.

I think by far the hardest thing we encountered on Monday was seeing two of our favorite students, who are brother and sister, in their home. Most of the homes we saw were very similar and consisted of one or two small rooms with either a dirt or cement floor, a few pieces of furniture such as a bed, a china cabinet, and a couch, and walls that were made of either mud, metal, or cinder blocks. Most families decorate their houses with handkerchiefs on the sofa, chairs, and table, and with religious posters on the walls. Almost all the houses we visited were very small. What stood out so much when we visited Jackson and Lucia's house was that there was no furniture whatsoever, just piles of clothes on the floor and hanging on a line stretching across the one room. Both Jackson and Lucia were sweating from being inside the house all day, although they were both very excited to see us. Hassan noticed that outside they had two buckets fulls of guinea pigs, which Jackson told us they kept to eat. It was a humbling and sad visit, but it truly illustrated for us that regardless of how corrupt and frustrating African schools can be, all of our students are lucky and much better off when they are at St. Dymphna's.

Little Lucia in her house



Also on Monday, Hassan was also nice enough to take us to his house, which was a cool experience because he lives on a farm and grows bananas, coffee, avocados, and corn. Again, I was amazed that lush farmland was so close to the busy town where we always spend our time. I felt so fortunate to have someone who was able to show us around, because otherwise, we never would have known that anything different existed beyond the busy, paved streets of town. We even saw a monkey in Hassan's yard!

On Tuesday, we went on only a few home visits, just outside of town and in the Sakina area by where we live. These visits went well, and we were even able to see what a few of our wealthier students' houses looked like--we saw our first refrigerator and a few houses with many rooms. One thing I noticed on Tuesday was how small the students from the "big class" look when we were going on home visits. At school they seem so big, because they always help the children from the "little class" and in general tower over everyone at school. In their homes however, they seemed so little, and reminded me how young and vulnerable our students are! I also got to hold on of our student's baby brothers--so adorable!

My face is never this shiny in America

Wednesday was the longest day of home visits; 21 students in one day! The families we visited  lived mostly near our school, so we were able to get through many in a short time. Two of the children at our school live on a coffee plantation, and we got to walk across much of it to get to their houses. It was a cool experience although I was amazed to realize how far those kids walk to school every day! We got to visit Zainabu at her house, which was great, because we love he so much, and we got to see a few of the older girls who live in Massai huts. I didn't realize that traditional Massai huts were built anywhere, but we were welcomed into many; some traditional, and some more modern, but all amazingly constructed and designed. I can't believe how many people and jobs are done in such a small place, but they definitely seem to make it work. In order to find the houses of a few of our students that live far away, we had to ask for help a lot of times. It was pretty cool though, because we were high up alongside of Mount Meru, figuring out our way to our students' houses by word of mouth only. We had to do a little bit of hiking, but it was totally worth it; especially when little Carol saw us at her house and ran to give us a big hug. It was great.

Obviously, going to so many houses in such a short time, Scottie and I are choka sana (very tired)! We leave on Friday for a trip to Lushoto, Tanga, and Pangani to meet Clare, Joe, and Hannah. Lushoto is supposed to have great mountain hiking and Tanga and Pangani are on the coast, so hopefully we can still come home with a bit of a tan! We are excited to be able to see a little bit more of Tanzania before we leave. When we get back, we'll only have one week left at school!

Oh--also, Scottie took it upon himself to hire someone to fix our second swingset at school. The kids were so excited, they almost don't want to use the old one anymore :)

The swingset all fixed!

We hope all is well with everyone--we are crossing our fingers that the Midwest heat wave keeps up well into April for when we get home.

Loves,
Laura and Scottie

Cricket, Sex Ed, and St. Patty's, Oh My!

This week was a busy one!

On Sunday, Scottie and I went to TGT, a country club just outside of Arusha, to watch our friend Joe play in the Arusha City Cricket Championship. It was both Scottie and my first experience with cricket, and our first time at TGT, so it was definitely an adventure. TGT is a beautiful place; so different compared to the town of Arusha. I think Scottie and I felt like we were at home, sitting under a pop-up tent with a drink in hand watching sports on a perfectly manicured field. Scottie learned a lot about cricket and I was impressed with Joe's "bowling" ability. Joe's team, The Wanderers, won the tournament, which was very exciting and they even had an awards ceremony afterwards. The Wanderers put on their own awards ceremony following the official one, with loads of beer and made-up "fouls" to each teammate for silly or bad behavior throughout the season. The night turned pretty crazy...the team (and I) started drinking out of the championship cup like it was the Stanley cup and the left elbows kept flying up to indicate increasingly ridiculous "fouls" as the night went on. We learned a lot of funny new drinking games (prepare yourselves at home, rafikis!) and seriously had a blast. All in all, the night reminded me a lot of the end of season volleyball awards we used to do in college, which made it all that much more fun.

The signs we made for Joe's cricket match. They're hard to see, but the best one reads, "We're with the ginger!"

On Wednesday, Clare and I planned a sex education lesson for the big class. Considering that the children in the big class are between the ages of 12-23, and their general vulnerability, we thought it would be a good idea to go over the basics of puberty and safe sex with them. Besides, what better way to step outside your comfort zone than to teach sex ed to African teenagers with special needs?
We discussed our lesson beforehand with the teachers and each other so to avoid any awkward moments, and to prepare our visuals. Without the stand-by book or video like we all had in grade school, we had to make our own materials, and I have to say that Clare did an excellent job illustrating all the points we wanted to make. On the day of, we did two sessions; girls and then boys. The girls lesson went really well. Clare and I assumed the stuff we were discussing regarding puberty was pretty much a review for the girls (body changes, hygiene, etc.) but we were surprised to hear all the super basic questions the girls had for us. I was so proud of the girls putting aside their embarrassment to ask us questions, although it was interesting that they had never been talked to about this sort of stuff with their parents or sisters. More horrifying was the girls' lack of knowledge regarding the "consequences of sex". None of the girls knew that sex could lead to pregnancy or STDs and Clare and I both felt better at least explaining to girls the risks involved and how to protect themselves; although we stressed that abstinence is the preferred method of birth control in Tanzania.

The conversation with the boys was a bit trickier. Salma, our teacher and translator extraordinaire, felt it was "bad" to explain to boys the physics of everything, which I feel left the boys feeling somewhat confused on how to handle their body changes as well as keep themselves safe. The lesson with the boys was like an analogy for our lives as teachers in Tanzania: we feel like we've succeeded because of the knowledge we're introducing, but we always feel like they're not quite getting the point, which makes us wonder if it's worth it at all. But I think it is worth it, in the end. I know Clare and I felt better leaving school knowing that these teenagers at least have a better knowledge of how to stay safe and take care of themselves. Sex ed. in Africa--who would've thought?!

I also took the opportunity this week to take some photos of our students. Here are a few of my favorites:

Thursday was Clare's last day at school, and a very emotional one. We have gotten so close to Clare and Joe and we are so sad to see our friends leaving. We have already decided that there will be many meet-ups around the world in the future, and we are planning to meet them for a week near the the mountains and the coast of Tanzania in two weeks. Of course, being their last week in Arusha, we had to send them off properly with a big night out on Friday--with loads of beers, delicious smoked pork, and dancing. Besides, it was St. Patrick's Day weekend, so we figured we had to have a little fun.

Demonstrating how to make St. Patrick's Day hats

Drinks with Clare and Hannah at the "Lively Lady"

Scottie and I are preparing to go on home visits to all 40 of our students' homes this week. I think it is going to be an exhausting, but eye-opening experience. Today we bought 40, 1 kilo bags of sugar to give to each of the families. You should have seen all the people at Shoprite staring at us crazy mzungus!

Looking at our calendars for the the next three weeks, we've realized how much we have left to do in so little time! I think our last few weeks here are going to be good ones!

Love to all,
Laura and Scottie

Cradle of Love

This week, Scottie and I spent a day at "Cradle of Love," an orphanage that was founded by an American women in the 90s, and houses about 55 orphans below the age of three. Cradle was beautiful, with lush gardens, a playset, and tons of space, food, and materials for all the children. We were lucky enough to get to spend the morning there playing with the babies. It was such a change from being at our school, and it was so fun snuggling and loving the little ones all day. We left exhausted, but with happy hearts. Check out our pictures and try not to melt:

Scottie's entourage



This little one was so cute!

Look at those eyes!

Aw.

We went for a walk and picked berries.

Double-fisting the fruit. Cutie.

Noelle. So adorable.

Cutie!

Love of my life, George.



This past week I tried to do more lesson planning so that I was more mentally prepared for the week. Doing this made a big difference on my stress level, and while the activities were usually very basic, the children were typically entertained for a significant amount of time with whatever I brought, since the materials were so novel to them. Our frustrations continue with the staff of the school and our school bus constantly breaking down, but we are doing our best to stay positive and have fun with the kids. We are planning some exciting and interesting lessons and activities for our kids in the next few weeks; we'll keep you posted with how they go! Additionally, we are hoping to continue visiting other schools affiliated with our volunteer program in the upcoming weeks to get a better idea of what schools and orphanages in Tanzania look like.

Only one month left! I can't believe it's going so fast!
Best to everyone at home!
Love,
Laura and Scottie

The Art of Bargaining

One of the things Scottie and I have gotten to practice a lot here is bargaining. Bargaining is an important part of the Tanzanian culture; it is expected when shopping at the local markets.

Scottie and I have visited the Massai market quite a few times since we've been in Africa. Initially, the market was completely overwhelming. The aisles are narrow and each of the 100+ vendors harasses you by saying, "Welcome sister," "free looking," "come inside," and by sometimes physically guiding you into their shops. Typically, the vendors more or less have the same things for sale so you are inclined to pick and choose which ones to go into, but often you feel guilty for passing them up.

Here is how a typical purchase will go:
Me: "How much is this?" (holding item that cannot cost more than $3 at home)
Vendor: "15,000 Tanzanian Shillings (tsh)"
Me: "I will give you 5,000."
Vendor: "5,000?! For this? Dada (sister), this is real bone!"
Me: "I will give you 5,000."
Vendor: "No, no dada. You have to come up. 5,000, I make no profit. You come up."
Me: "Okay, how about 6,000?"
Vendor: "I can maybe do it for 12,000.
Me: "That's too much. 6,000."
Vendor: "Maybe you do it for 11,000."
Me: "Hapana (no). I don't need it then." Starts to walk away
Vendor: "Dada, dada...Okay, I do it for 9,000. This is fair price."
Me: "I'll give you 7,000."
Vendor: "You have to come up!"
Me: "I already came up from 5,000.
Vendor: "Okay, 10,000."
Me: "You went up, not down!:
Vendor: (laughing) "Pole (pronounced pole-ay; means "sorry"). 8,000."
Me. "Okay. 8,000." Hands them a 10,000. "You have change?"
Vendor: "I keep the 2,000 and buy coke?"
Me: "No. I get the change. Asante sana (thank you).

Exhausting, right? This is the way it goes for every item. It takes forever. And of course, there are the inevitable variations...

Sometimes, seeing that you are a mzungu (white person), they will quote you way more than the item is worth. For example, once, a man quoted a shirt being 65,000 shillings, when I knew volunteers who had bought them for 10,000. When someone quotes a price that high, I usually just walk away. They're not worth even beginning the bargaining process with, and it's their loss for assuming I'm just a tourist.

The other funny part is that we get so worked up about paying 1,000 or 2,000 too much for something here, because we don't like feeling like we're being taken advantage of simply because we're white. But really, 1,000-2,000 tsh is less than $2.00 at home, and we are typically already getting items for so much less money than we'd pay for them at home. I think it's more the principle of the matter, but I know it will be a big change to go home and see the big price tags on things and not be able to pay a fraction of the price.

The other day, I took advantage of our private dala ride home from the Snake Park, and took pictures of town out the window as we were driving. The pictures aren't great, but it was one of my only chances to get some shots that give everyone a better idea of what Arusha looks like. Here are some of my favorites. You can see more on facebook.

A woman shucking and selling corn on the side of the road.

I honestly can't imagine how incredibly heavy that bag is on her neck.

Street markets outside of town.

 Women selling fruit and vegetables on the side of the road.

A man pulling a rickshaw full of giant tires. Classic.

Typical living conditions.

A woman walking with her baby on her back.

The seasons in Tanzania are starting to change, and we are now getting a taste of what rainy season will be like in April, when it's in full swing. The temperature has cooled a bit with the increase of rain, and we've had a number of extremely heavy thunderstorms in the last few weeks. Hopefully, the roads will remain walkable and the sun warm enough to dry our clothes on the line; other than that, we'll take some relief from the extreme heat!

Missing you all,

Laura and Scottie