Who I am
I am assuming that most, if not all, of the people who read this blog know me personally to some extent, but for those of you who don't know me or haven't been in touch with me for some time, this should help explain my perspective on all of this a little better. My name is Scott and I'm entering my third year of post-secondary education after graduating from Clackamas High School in 2007. I am a native Oregonian and a current student at the University of Oregon though I spent my first year of college at the University of British Columbia up in Vancouver, BC, Canada. I will be spending the next academic year as an exchange student at the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM for short) in Tanzania so I hope you understand the title of this blog better now. I never really know what to write and hate having to define who I am in a little box like this, but if you go on to read what I write on here throughout my trip, I'm sure you'll start to get a good understanding of who I really am.
My flight leaves this Saturday, early in the morning and I will hopefully be arriving in Dar es Salaam safe and sound on Monday afternoon (in Dar time, not PST). My international experience so far in my life has been relatively limited so this is a significant leap for me. I am very optimistic about this journey that I am about to embark on and I hope that I can handle any challenges that I may face between now and the time I finally become readjusted to living in the United States again.
Why Tanzania? Where is Dar es Salaam?
I transferred to the University of Oregon last summer because I really liked how the International Studies Program looked. One huge determining factor was that the program requires you to have a "significant international experience" meaning that students must spend at least 10 weeks (except for through a couple specific programs) out of the country traveling, working, interning, or studying in order to graduate. Although I did not initially know where I wanted to have this "international experience", I knew definitely that I wanted to spend a whole year abroad. I thought I would be limited to England, South Africa, and Australia because I am not fluent in any other languages and I didn't want to pay over $10,000 to not understand my classes, but fortunately for me I found a program sponsored by the University of Oregon at the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania that seems like a perfect fit for me.
Tanganyika (the mainland of Tanzania) was a German colony until the end of WWI when England obtained possession. Tanganyika and Zanzibar gained their freedom in the early 1960s and not long afterward formed a single nation called Tanzania, using parts of both areas' names. Julius Nyerere led the country from its beginning and established a communist nation that lasted until he finally left office about 20 years later. Nyerere died 10 years ago next month and is still a national hero and icon. In terms of many other African leaders, his regime maintained peace without firm/violent control of the people. Tanzania is currently one of the most impoverished nations in terms of GDP though it is relatively stable and peaceful. Dar es Salaam is the largest city in the country in terms of population (over 2.5 million) and it sits right on the Indian Ocean. The name translates to "haven of peace" (depending on your translation) and it is an Arabic word. The Kiswahili language has the history of Tanzania written into it as it borrows several words and elements of language from German, English, and Arabic (Zanzibar is predominantly Muslim with a history of Arabic sultans ruling the island). However, most of the language is derived from the native Bantu tribal dialects that have been spoken historically in many parts of the African continent. Rural areas in Tanzania still speak tribal languages in addition to Kiswahili though the tribal tongues will very closely resemble Kiswahili. Kiswahili is still an evolving language and I will hopefully be teaching you some through this blog as time goes on.
Education in Tanzania is a little bit confusing and I can't honestly say I fully understand it yet. From my understanding, Kiswahili is taught and spoken in school up until secondary school - so early teenage years I'm guessing. After that, students learn in English in schools through high school and university. There are Kiswahili classes that students can take at UDSM, but I assume it will be like the equivalent of academic English or other languages in our schools. What I'm trying to say though is that all of my classes will be in English at the university (with the exception being my Kiswahili class for foreign students) and this is because it is a former English colony so it follows their system. Outside of class, however, people will be speaking mostly Kiswahili.
I feel like I may have lost track in what I was trying to say in this little part but I'll go back and revise this post if there is any confusion, so let me know.
One key thing that I haven't talked about yet (and the point of the condensed history lesson/geography lesson) is that I don't want to say I'm going to Africa. A lot of people talk about how I'm "going to Africa" which is technically true, but grosslysimplifies an entire continent. Here is a good image I've seen to put things into perspective:
If I said I was going to Asia, people would ask where in Asia. If I did the same for almost anywhere else, even Australia, people would wonder which part, yet when it is an African nation it seems as if the continent is just one place that is the same anywhere you go. I apologize for this little tirade, but I feel like Africa gets brushed over pretty easily by people and this is one reason why it is so easy for people to just shrug when they hear about intense poverty, genocide, or epidemics that occur on this country. It is a diverse continent with a history just as rich as Europe's yet it is not taught in our schools except for in relation to European history (sometimes it seems like it's just something that was in England's way as they were trying to reach India). I'll probably be writing a lot more on this in the coming months so please take the time to give these people the same respect and dignity that you give to Western Europeans.
My expectations
I have learned a bit about Dar es Salaam and Tanzania through my Kiswahili classes and through other classes where I chose to do projects on the country yet I still assume that I will face some intense culture shock upon landing. The first thoughts that come to mind on what to expect are heat and humidity (it is not too far south of the equator) and being the whitest person in an entire country. There are a few other students from Oregon (3 total from UO, two from OSU, one from PSU) so I won't be the only one feeling like a fish out of water here. However it is going to be difficult not only having to get used to foreign experiences like sleeping with a mosquito net and traveling to places in minibuses, but also I have to get used to some more simple things like sharing a dorm room (which I've never had to do) or not having four clearly defined seasons anymore. Also, I've been told that the internet is pretty slow over there and this will definitely take some getting used to though I think it will probably improve my patience. I don't know how often I'll be able to update this or if I'll be able to talk on Skype, but I am hopeful that I will figure this out.
People have been giving me a lot of advice on what I should be doing in preparation and once I get there and some of it has conflicted with other bits of advice, but the bottom line is that I just have to do what I am going to do. I am trying to prepare myself but I feel like the most important thing I have to be prepared for is to be unprepared. I can't think of everything and I don't want to come in with expectations that prevent me from having a pure experience so there really is a fine balance. I can have every map and medication ready but I feel like I will be more prepared if I just get into the right mindset and remember the knowledge I've gained through my past experiences.
What you can expect from this blog
This blog is a place where I will share my experiences, stories, pictures, etc. from my time at the University of Dar es Salaam and wherever else this program takes me. I previously used this blog as a somewhat of a personal journal where I reflected on many of the things that I feel were very personal to me and I don't know how much I will be doing that this time as I will be making my posts my widely available; however this probably will still happen to some extent because I feel like readers will better understand what this process is like for me if they are more fully able to read where my mind is at. I am not an objective journalist, so most stories will be told almost exclusively as from my own perspective and relative to me so I apologize if that is what you are looking for. All things considered, this is my blog made up of my stories so although most posts will probably be a commentary on certain things, the overall collection of these commentaries will still be telling my stories. I expect to learn a lot from this trip and I honestly hope that anyone reading will learn something as well.
How to contact me
You can post comments to this post or any other posts and I don't think you even really need an account to do so. In fact, I'm pretty sure you can choose to remain anonymous in your comments so feel free to do that if you're not comfortable with me or others knowing who you are. The comments section of these blog posts will generally receive the most direct attention in terms of this blog if you are just wanting to write regarding what I have written on here. I am also available through email at ScottM.Berry88@gmail.com as well through snail mail if you would like and that address I can send to you if you contact me via email. I do have a Skype account (I apologize in advance for my Skype username) and you can feel free to add me on that though I am not sure how great my internet connection will be. Lastly, I may end up getting a cell phone while abroad and hopefully it will get free incoming calls so if you don't mind spending the money or using a calling card, we can be in touch that way. More details will come once I get there and get settled so don't hesitate to ask.
Thanks a lot everyone for reading. I hope you enjoy reading my writing and my stories. If you have any questions or feel like I should address some other topics in this post, go ahead and leave a comment.
