Tuesday, October 27, 2009
I was told last night that the internet on campus will probably be out until next monday because someone forgot to pay the bill for the university or something. Seriously. I went off campus to an internet cafe that I paid to use a slow, old computer for a half hour and my time is almost up. I'm sorry if you sent me an email or message or something because I probably won't have time to respond to them today but keep them coming and I'll be able to catch up soon enough. Kwaheri.
A Great Weekend
“Wikendi Nzuri Sana”
25 October 2009 6:24 PM
Unfortunately for those reading this blog, the internet is not supposed to back up and running again until tomorrow sometime and I haven’t been online since a week before that so there should be a giant heap of posts suddenly on here from previous times. I think I typed something up about all of the shortages and things we have here often and even since then we had 10 hours without power on Friday which I think was government planned and over 24 hours without running water which I don’t think was planned. I’m not going to go back and edit those old posts now though because the point of this is to share whatever mindset or state I was in while writing using the knowledge I had at the time. Therefore, I apologize for inconsistencies and the anachronistic nature of these posts, but if you stop reading this paragraph now, you ought to be able to scroll down and see the older posts. Otherwise, it would be like when we used to put a VHS tape in the tape player only to have it automatically start right during the climax because someone didn’t rewind it. So now that there’s been warning and chance to go back, I can move on and share the latest news.
I just got back less than an hour ago from my trip to Morogoro, a city that is a few hours west of Dar es Salaam via bus. Our journey began just yesterday morning though it feels like that was ages ago, just like any good trip or experience should when it’s over. The story really begins Friday night with a good evening spent meeting new people from a program called SIT (worth looking up). They are a group of about our size doing exchange mostly on Zanzibar but visiting and staying at UDSM for about 10 days and the people in the program remind so much of people back in Eugene. I hung out with them for a few hours on Friday night and it felt like I was just meeting new people at a laid back little hangout in Eugene. This has made me realize that a lot of the people who have chosen to study abroad here are just normal people like me and my friends and this was different than what I expected. The people I usually meet who are well traveled to exotic and obscure places like Dar es Salaam, Tanzania generally have an air to them like their experiences make them unique. I’ve met too many people who seem a little full of themselves just because they’ve seen places that I will never see and I’m sure that anyone reading this has met people like this too because they are everywhere. If I ever come across like this or anything, please let me know immediately. The point I’m trying to make though before I continue my story is that I have been expecting to have some greatly significant and life altering experience here already because I’ve talked to people that make it sound like everywhere they traveled has made them so “fascinating”. My experiences thus far have been contrary to this expectation, but I’ll be here for a while and this blog ought to let everyone track that progression to smarmy-dom.
(Edit: One thing I did just remember though that probably comes across like what I was talking about is that after being here even for a day I have come to view a lot of my education differently. As an International Studies major, we talk a lot about problems and issues in different regions of the world as well as just about what life is like there. Actually being here is significantly different than reading about it though and hearing about it. It is difficult for me to see the subtle effects of the major structural issues we talk about in class when I am just walking down the street. Maybe this is all just because I am focusing on trying not to get mugged, but what I really mean is that it’s hard to accept one person’s voice and opinion as the absolute truth on just what the people of a country are facing or what their experiences are like.)
On with the story. I stayed up later than I intended with these cool strangers and I finally had to leave them because I was falling asleep when I still had to pack, shower, and so many other things before our 6:30 AM departure time in the morning. I ended up just opting to wake up early and do all of these things though because I was so tired which meant a 5:30 AM alarm. After being awoken several times after 3:30 by our exceptionally rambunctious/exceptionally intoxicated American floormate, I was surprised to be capable of rising from my bed before the sun even rose. All things were taken care of on time for me though and the six of us were off in a daladala on our way to Ubungo, probably Dar es Salaam’s main bus port. I apologize for failing to mention until now that this was a trip taken independently of CIEE and only about half of our total group went. The divisions in the group are becoming clearer now as expected, so I’m not sure what everyone else did this weekend, but Dylan and I have become pretty good friends so far with four of the girls who live on the same floor in the other dorm so we planned it out together. When we told Ken, our program director, that we were planning this trip (I think we have to do so by policy,) he told us we had to have someone from the links office or his assistant, Cecelia, come with us. We didn’t find this out until Thursday, but we were lucky to find that Batista, a recent Economics and Geography graduate from UDSM and employee at the links office, was willing to accompany us on this voyage. We were to cover all of his expenses which maybe cost eight USD or so per person, but having him there was invaluable from the second we arrived at Ubungo. Our daladala was so full that we couldn’t even see out the windows, so we didn’t know which direction the bus depot was. Batista was able to track us down after a few phone calls and led us to the bus station where we got our tickets squared away and were on the road soon after.
Like most things I’ve found so far in Dar es Salaam, the main purpose of the bus was not comfort but to move people. They managed to squeeze a whole extra column of seats in from what is standard for most buses back home and the 2-3 set-up made it feel a bit like an airplane. I was very excited to be taking a cool trip like this to a place I’ve never been before because this is something I don’t ever really do back home. It was still early in the morning though so I wasn’t able to stay awake for the whole ride though I did take in the view outside frequently. Departing from the city is something else though, I’ll tell ya. I was able to see the transition from urban to rural occurring while changing climates from a coastal region, to a high flat area and then eventually arrive nestled in a valley with tall peaks. I’m pretty sure there aren’t a whole lot of road outside of cities or in between them though and I’m pretty sure the road we took was the main one (aka the only one) heading west out of Dar. That meant that we would see much of the same thing along the way in terms of the shops that line the roads and the rush of people trying to sell drinks, nuts, newspapers, etc. every time we pulled over and slowed down in some areas. We could see many homes though that were not built far from the road and many were made of brick or concrete, but also we saw a lot made from just mud and sticks. I’d really like to learn more about the lives of the people who live in these homes are like and just to meet them would be something. I’m sure that some of the kids will end up at UDSM one day and I am just curious as to what the transition would be like from a rural place to a huge and busy city like Dar es Salaam.
We arrived slightly later than we intended, but still before noon. I think we were all in agreement that it felt nice to step off of the bus in a different setting than Dar though we still got quite a bit of attention from the local drivers waiting there because of the color of our skin. It took some confusion and a little extra money to get us to the cultural center where the guide for our hike was located and we found out very soon that it would be much more expensive than advertized in the outdated guidebook and also it wasn’t even possible to do the hike we were hoping to do. Fortunately we were able to work out another hike that would take about five hours or so and would let us see some of the local people who live in the hills along the way. After paying our fees (much of which goes to local preservation and conservation) and having lunch, we hit the road on foot approaching the looming peaks. The entire hike was very good for lifting my spirit as I’ve always enjoyed hiking but this was different from any hike I’d ever been on before. The wildlife and plants were different species than I had ever really seen and the entire hillside was dotted with homes of the locals so we were walking on the paths that they use. We reached a point where we got to do a bit of cultural tourism and see women making little soil cakes that I can’t remember the name of. They take this clay-like soil collected from elsewhere and turn it into a powder that they mix with some water so that they can roll these little sausage-shaped things. It’s the same color as bricks and tastes similar, but apparently they are a good source or iron and other minerals. After they are dried, they are sold at markets where they are mainly bought by pregnant women as it is traditional for them to eat them for the nutrients. You’ll be able to see pictures of this soon I hope.
The rest of the hike was not incredibly difficult or technical though the heat did sap quite a bit of energy from us all. The entire walk was just fascinating though and I loved every second of it without a doubt. I was able to think quite a bit along the way about just how fortunate I am to get to be here as well as how nice my life back in the U.S. really is. It was the first time I was really overwhelmed and overjoyed to be here and I think that it was not only because of how nice the area was but also because I didn’t have the normal concerns I have had everywhere else I have been here so far. Instead of having to keep my eyes open for people who might try to mug me or thinking about which classes to take, I was able to just focus my mental capacity on enjoying the hike. We were rewarded for the trek when we reached these two waterfalls that were a welcome site for us to relax. I didn’t come prepared to swim but a couple of the girls did take advantage of the pool at the bottom of the second waterfall. The rain also decided to join us right before we were going to continue the hike and we had to hang out by a wall of rock for ten minutes or so while we waited it out. The walk back down took a little work as we were all just a little tired and definitely ready for dinner. I could write so much more about this hike but I think the pictures will explain things even better when I am able to get them up.
We walked to our hotel which was run by a Greek lady who spoke outstanding English and Kiswahili which was weird to see being spoken fluently by a white person, but she was really hospitable and the food there was outstanding. I was able to get some moussaka which I’d never had before and she also added pesto to a lot of our dishes for free. The room was fine though the bathroom was pretty questionable with no pan under the shower, just a drain in a different corner under the sink. It was only 20,000 shillings per room for the night though (not even $16) and we slept four and three to a room so it was cozy. We woke Sunday morning several times to church bells and began our day with some tea, bread and some fried eggs. The rest of our time spent in Morogoro was just us walking around and through all the parts of town. We were able to go inside the soccer stadium, walk through many busy markets and even just walk down a residential street so we really saw a lot of different aspects of the same city which I really appreciated. I didn’t buy anything because I had to save money for the ticket back but I got some pretty good ideas for gifts to bring back home with me so we’ll see what I return with when that time comes. Before taking the bus ride back though in the afternoon, we got lunch in this dingy little place by a gas station where I am actually almost bothered by the fact that I haven’t yet been sick from the condition of the food there but maybe I just have a stronger immune system now. I’m pretty sure a mosquito got fried onto the fold of one of my samosas though, just sayin’.
The return home was surprisingly easy and uneventful except for someone brought a live chicken in a small black plastic bag along for the ride and another guy was passionately selling bars of soap and lotion for about half an hour during the ride. It was better than the god-awful Tanzanian soap operas they played on the ride to Morogoro though. I think we’re getting better and more confident in taking transportation around here or maybe we were just too exhausted to be stressed by the time we got but we’d experienced so much over the last day that it felt like so much longer since we left. I wasn’t able to type this all after I started writing it yesterday so it’s not about 2:15 in the afternoon on Monday. I still don’t have a roommate yet though that is supposed to be coming really soon and we are all doubting that we will actually have a normal day of class this week. We learned today that we will be tested for placement into Intermediate (or Advanced for a few people) Kiswahili classes here on Wednesday which I am still quite nervous about but hopefully I will do fine. Also, I was told that internet would be working again here on Monday but here we are going another day without a functioning internet connection. I do kind of enjoy being forced to go without internet though it is causing a logjam of blog posts here. It has been very difficult the last days to not hear from anyone or know anything of news back home and I think a little bit more homesickness is setting in. I know I’ll be fine though I can’t think of many things that I want more than to see some friends again or have clean clothes/bathroom/etc. This is life though and it’s part of the process so the most I’m really hoping for right now is to be able to get these online sometime soon.
25 October 2009 6:24 PM
Unfortunately for those reading this blog, the internet is not supposed to back up and running again until tomorrow sometime and I haven’t been online since a week before that so there should be a giant heap of posts suddenly on here from previous times. I think I typed something up about all of the shortages and things we have here often and even since then we had 10 hours without power on Friday which I think was government planned and over 24 hours without running water which I don’t think was planned. I’m not going to go back and edit those old posts now though because the point of this is to share whatever mindset or state I was in while writing using the knowledge I had at the time. Therefore, I apologize for inconsistencies and the anachronistic nature of these posts, but if you stop reading this paragraph now, you ought to be able to scroll down and see the older posts. Otherwise, it would be like when we used to put a VHS tape in the tape player only to have it automatically start right during the climax because someone didn’t rewind it. So now that there’s been warning and chance to go back, I can move on and share the latest news.
I just got back less than an hour ago from my trip to Morogoro, a city that is a few hours west of Dar es Salaam via bus. Our journey began just yesterday morning though it feels like that was ages ago, just like any good trip or experience should when it’s over. The story really begins Friday night with a good evening spent meeting new people from a program called SIT (worth looking up). They are a group of about our size doing exchange mostly on Zanzibar but visiting and staying at UDSM for about 10 days and the people in the program remind so much of people back in Eugene. I hung out with them for a few hours on Friday night and it felt like I was just meeting new people at a laid back little hangout in Eugene. This has made me realize that a lot of the people who have chosen to study abroad here are just normal people like me and my friends and this was different than what I expected. The people I usually meet who are well traveled to exotic and obscure places like Dar es Salaam, Tanzania generally have an air to them like their experiences make them unique. I’ve met too many people who seem a little full of themselves just because they’ve seen places that I will never see and I’m sure that anyone reading this has met people like this too because they are everywhere. If I ever come across like this or anything, please let me know immediately. The point I’m trying to make though before I continue my story is that I have been expecting to have some greatly significant and life altering experience here already because I’ve talked to people that make it sound like everywhere they traveled has made them so “fascinating”. My experiences thus far have been contrary to this expectation, but I’ll be here for a while and this blog ought to let everyone track that progression to smarmy-dom.
(Edit: One thing I did just remember though that probably comes across like what I was talking about is that after being here even for a day I have come to view a lot of my education differently. As an International Studies major, we talk a lot about problems and issues in different regions of the world as well as just about what life is like there. Actually being here is significantly different than reading about it though and hearing about it. It is difficult for me to see the subtle effects of the major structural issues we talk about in class when I am just walking down the street. Maybe this is all just because I am focusing on trying not to get mugged, but what I really mean is that it’s hard to accept one person’s voice and opinion as the absolute truth on just what the people of a country are facing or what their experiences are like.)
On with the story. I stayed up later than I intended with these cool strangers and I finally had to leave them because I was falling asleep when I still had to pack, shower, and so many other things before our 6:30 AM departure time in the morning. I ended up just opting to wake up early and do all of these things though because I was so tired which meant a 5:30 AM alarm. After being awoken several times after 3:30 by our exceptionally rambunctious/exceptionally intoxicated American floormate, I was surprised to be capable of rising from my bed before the sun even rose. All things were taken care of on time for me though and the six of us were off in a daladala on our way to Ubungo, probably Dar es Salaam’s main bus port. I apologize for failing to mention until now that this was a trip taken independently of CIEE and only about half of our total group went. The divisions in the group are becoming clearer now as expected, so I’m not sure what everyone else did this weekend, but Dylan and I have become pretty good friends so far with four of the girls who live on the same floor in the other dorm so we planned it out together. When we told Ken, our program director, that we were planning this trip (I think we have to do so by policy,) he told us we had to have someone from the links office or his assistant, Cecelia, come with us. We didn’t find this out until Thursday, but we were lucky to find that Batista, a recent Economics and Geography graduate from UDSM and employee at the links office, was willing to accompany us on this voyage. We were to cover all of his expenses which maybe cost eight USD or so per person, but having him there was invaluable from the second we arrived at Ubungo. Our daladala was so full that we couldn’t even see out the windows, so we didn’t know which direction the bus depot was. Batista was able to track us down after a few phone calls and led us to the bus station where we got our tickets squared away and were on the road soon after.
Like most things I’ve found so far in Dar es Salaam, the main purpose of the bus was not comfort but to move people. They managed to squeeze a whole extra column of seats in from what is standard for most buses back home and the 2-3 set-up made it feel a bit like an airplane. I was very excited to be taking a cool trip like this to a place I’ve never been before because this is something I don’t ever really do back home. It was still early in the morning though so I wasn’t able to stay awake for the whole ride though I did take in the view outside frequently. Departing from the city is something else though, I’ll tell ya. I was able to see the transition from urban to rural occurring while changing climates from a coastal region, to a high flat area and then eventually arrive nestled in a valley with tall peaks. I’m pretty sure there aren’t a whole lot of road outside of cities or in between them though and I’m pretty sure the road we took was the main one (aka the only one) heading west out of Dar. That meant that we would see much of the same thing along the way in terms of the shops that line the roads and the rush of people trying to sell drinks, nuts, newspapers, etc. every time we pulled over and slowed down in some areas. We could see many homes though that were not built far from the road and many were made of brick or concrete, but also we saw a lot made from just mud and sticks. I’d really like to learn more about the lives of the people who live in these homes are like and just to meet them would be something. I’m sure that some of the kids will end up at UDSM one day and I am just curious as to what the transition would be like from a rural place to a huge and busy city like Dar es Salaam.
We arrived slightly later than we intended, but still before noon. I think we were all in agreement that it felt nice to step off of the bus in a different setting than Dar though we still got quite a bit of attention from the local drivers waiting there because of the color of our skin. It took some confusion and a little extra money to get us to the cultural center where the guide for our hike was located and we found out very soon that it would be much more expensive than advertized in the outdated guidebook and also it wasn’t even possible to do the hike we were hoping to do. Fortunately we were able to work out another hike that would take about five hours or so and would let us see some of the local people who live in the hills along the way. After paying our fees (much of which goes to local preservation and conservation) and having lunch, we hit the road on foot approaching the looming peaks. The entire hike was very good for lifting my spirit as I’ve always enjoyed hiking but this was different from any hike I’d ever been on before. The wildlife and plants were different species than I had ever really seen and the entire hillside was dotted with homes of the locals so we were walking on the paths that they use. We reached a point where we got to do a bit of cultural tourism and see women making little soil cakes that I can’t remember the name of. They take this clay-like soil collected from elsewhere and turn it into a powder that they mix with some water so that they can roll these little sausage-shaped things. It’s the same color as bricks and tastes similar, but apparently they are a good source or iron and other minerals. After they are dried, they are sold at markets where they are mainly bought by pregnant women as it is traditional for them to eat them for the nutrients. You’ll be able to see pictures of this soon I hope.
The rest of the hike was not incredibly difficult or technical though the heat did sap quite a bit of energy from us all. The entire walk was just fascinating though and I loved every second of it without a doubt. I was able to think quite a bit along the way about just how fortunate I am to get to be here as well as how nice my life back in the U.S. really is. It was the first time I was really overwhelmed and overjoyed to be here and I think that it was not only because of how nice the area was but also because I didn’t have the normal concerns I have had everywhere else I have been here so far. Instead of having to keep my eyes open for people who might try to mug me or thinking about which classes to take, I was able to just focus my mental capacity on enjoying the hike. We were rewarded for the trek when we reached these two waterfalls that were a welcome site for us to relax. I didn’t come prepared to swim but a couple of the girls did take advantage of the pool at the bottom of the second waterfall. The rain also decided to join us right before we were going to continue the hike and we had to hang out by a wall of rock for ten minutes or so while we waited it out. The walk back down took a little work as we were all just a little tired and definitely ready for dinner. I could write so much more about this hike but I think the pictures will explain things even better when I am able to get them up.
We walked to our hotel which was run by a Greek lady who spoke outstanding English and Kiswahili which was weird to see being spoken fluently by a white person, but she was really hospitable and the food there was outstanding. I was able to get some moussaka which I’d never had before and she also added pesto to a lot of our dishes for free. The room was fine though the bathroom was pretty questionable with no pan under the shower, just a drain in a different corner under the sink. It was only 20,000 shillings per room for the night though (not even $16) and we slept four and three to a room so it was cozy. We woke Sunday morning several times to church bells and began our day with some tea, bread and some fried eggs. The rest of our time spent in Morogoro was just us walking around and through all the parts of town. We were able to go inside the soccer stadium, walk through many busy markets and even just walk down a residential street so we really saw a lot of different aspects of the same city which I really appreciated. I didn’t buy anything because I had to save money for the ticket back but I got some pretty good ideas for gifts to bring back home with me so we’ll see what I return with when that time comes. Before taking the bus ride back though in the afternoon, we got lunch in this dingy little place by a gas station where I am actually almost bothered by the fact that I haven’t yet been sick from the condition of the food there but maybe I just have a stronger immune system now. I’m pretty sure a mosquito got fried onto the fold of one of my samosas though, just sayin’.
The return home was surprisingly easy and uneventful except for someone brought a live chicken in a small black plastic bag along for the ride and another guy was passionately selling bars of soap and lotion for about half an hour during the ride. It was better than the god-awful Tanzanian soap operas they played on the ride to Morogoro though. I think we’re getting better and more confident in taking transportation around here or maybe we were just too exhausted to be stressed by the time we got but we’d experienced so much over the last day that it felt like so much longer since we left. I wasn’t able to type this all after I started writing it yesterday so it’s not about 2:15 in the afternoon on Monday. I still don’t have a roommate yet though that is supposed to be coming really soon and we are all doubting that we will actually have a normal day of class this week. We learned today that we will be tested for placement into Intermediate (or Advanced for a few people) Kiswahili classes here on Wednesday which I am still quite nervous about but hopefully I will do fine. Also, I was told that internet would be working again here on Monday but here we are going another day without a functioning internet connection. I do kind of enjoy being forced to go without internet though it is causing a logjam of blog posts here. It has been very difficult the last days to not hear from anyone or know anything of news back home and I think a little bit more homesickness is setting in. I know I’ll be fine though I can’t think of many things that I want more than to see some friends again or have clean clothes/bathroom/etc. This is life though and it’s part of the process so the most I’m really hoping for right now is to be able to get these online sometime soon.
Deficiencies
22 October 2009 2:27 PM
And so we finally meet again. I typed up two little blurbs that I’ll be posting at the same time as this. I’m using some free time I have right now to relax, listen to music, and try and catch up on this blog. We’ve been dealing with a lot of nonfunctioning water in our dorms lately and also nonexistent internet. The power hasn’t really gone out lately though so I don’t think there is really a pattern or way to predict when we will and won’t have things. Don’t worry though, I knocked on wood after writing about the power there last sentence. It was really nice to find out the girls had internet in their dorm last week and that we actually got respectable speed where I was even able to use a webcam with Skype, but it hasn’t really been the same since Monday so I haven’t been able to check emails, post blogs, etc. It took us about 10 days or so into the trip to realize just how little we know about current events and world news and since then we’ve been trying a little harder though this makes things difficult. Also, the only newspapers I’ve seen out of the hotels have been in Kiswahili and/or exclusively about sports and such. No TV, internet, or newspapers definitely make it a challenge to stay caught up on the latest things that are going on at home and around the world.
I still haven’t been able to register for classes and only today was I able to see an actual timetable that listed when and where classes will be held starting Monday. They apparently release like four more drafts of the timetable before things settle and I don’t know how long that will take. I’ve also heard that when the schedule changes, you find out just from some bulletin posted on a wall. I’m expecting quite a bit of confusion in the coming weeks and the best I can hope for is to just get into five classes or so that I’m satisfied with even if they’re not the best or coolest ones they offer. I also learned yesterday that we will not really be given a placement exam for our Kiswahili class, but instead we just show up to the intermediate class that we want to get into and if we are able to converse well enough with the teacher early on, we can stay in that class. If not, we have to take a written exam or something to prove ourselves or just give up and take classes with the people who are starting from scratch. I’m actually pretty nervous about this because I have quickly realized just how poor my Kiswahili is here and I went from being considered outstanding in a small class in Oregon to unable to get by without immense confusion or a fluent speaker. I can’t go back and take beginning Kiswahili again though because it is just too slow for me. My goal is to convince the teacher that I will be able to keep up in the intermediate class even if I don’t have same foundation that others do. We’ll find out on this pretty soon.
All of the first year students here arrived on Monday for their UDSM orientation. We were originally told that the first two weeks were CIEE orientation and then this week would be UDSM’s orientation for us but we haven’t really changed anything or done anything explicitly through the university. Tomorrow they have some special stuff for the international students but a lot of lectures are ones by the exact same people on the exact same topics that we had the week before or the one before that. There are more international students trickling in slowly though. On my floor we now have two new German guys on my floor in addition to the guy from Uganda (I think) who moved in the day we moved in. I haven’t really met him but the last room in the hall has a guy from Denmark who is pretty cool and he worked it out with this other guy from Milwaukee, Wisconsin so that they could room together. Oh yeah, and there’s a guy from South Korea who got a single room and has a cool setup where he has been cooking his own meals and he has a TV and a DVD player in his room. He’s been living here for more than a month though I think. The Dane and guy from Wisconsin have been organizing some pickup soccer games though for the last couple days and we’ll play again tonight. They have been a lot of fun so far and it’s good because I’m not the worst person playing. It’s also been a good way to meet people and learn names better.
Other than these things, this week has been mostly uneventful for me. I guess I’m just a little more experienced at taking bucket showers now than last time I wrote and I’ve done more laundry though I definitely am completely and utterly horrible at that. My socks were pretty much freestanding by the time they dried yesterday. We’re planning on taking an overnight trip to Morogoro for one last getaway before classes start up. It will just be me and maybe five other people from the program that I’m closer to I think though rather than the whole group. We also have to get someone from the links office to come with us but I think we have that figured out. I really hope this works out because it has the potential to be a really good experience. I think I’m ready to take a trip more on my own rather than just part of the program also. Hopefully I’m able to post these online sometime soon and hopefully I’ll get to head out away from the coast this weekend so I’ll have new and exciting things to write about next time.
I just remembered too that we’re going to try and start a group Flickr account or some online photo hosting thing so that we can all combine our pictures from this trip and share them with everyone else we know. I’ll get a url out once we figure it out and get internet again.
And so we finally meet again. I typed up two little blurbs that I’ll be posting at the same time as this. I’m using some free time I have right now to relax, listen to music, and try and catch up on this blog. We’ve been dealing with a lot of nonfunctioning water in our dorms lately and also nonexistent internet. The power hasn’t really gone out lately though so I don’t think there is really a pattern or way to predict when we will and won’t have things. Don’t worry though, I knocked on wood after writing about the power there last sentence. It was really nice to find out the girls had internet in their dorm last week and that we actually got respectable speed where I was even able to use a webcam with Skype, but it hasn’t really been the same since Monday so I haven’t been able to check emails, post blogs, etc. It took us about 10 days or so into the trip to realize just how little we know about current events and world news and since then we’ve been trying a little harder though this makes things difficult. Also, the only newspapers I’ve seen out of the hotels have been in Kiswahili and/or exclusively about sports and such. No TV, internet, or newspapers definitely make it a challenge to stay caught up on the latest things that are going on at home and around the world.
I still haven’t been able to register for classes and only today was I able to see an actual timetable that listed when and where classes will be held starting Monday. They apparently release like four more drafts of the timetable before things settle and I don’t know how long that will take. I’ve also heard that when the schedule changes, you find out just from some bulletin posted on a wall. I’m expecting quite a bit of confusion in the coming weeks and the best I can hope for is to just get into five classes or so that I’m satisfied with even if they’re not the best or coolest ones they offer. I also learned yesterday that we will not really be given a placement exam for our Kiswahili class, but instead we just show up to the intermediate class that we want to get into and if we are able to converse well enough with the teacher early on, we can stay in that class. If not, we have to take a written exam or something to prove ourselves or just give up and take classes with the people who are starting from scratch. I’m actually pretty nervous about this because I have quickly realized just how poor my Kiswahili is here and I went from being considered outstanding in a small class in Oregon to unable to get by without immense confusion or a fluent speaker. I can’t go back and take beginning Kiswahili again though because it is just too slow for me. My goal is to convince the teacher that I will be able to keep up in the intermediate class even if I don’t have same foundation that others do. We’ll find out on this pretty soon.
All of the first year students here arrived on Monday for their UDSM orientation. We were originally told that the first two weeks were CIEE orientation and then this week would be UDSM’s orientation for us but we haven’t really changed anything or done anything explicitly through the university. Tomorrow they have some special stuff for the international students but a lot of lectures are ones by the exact same people on the exact same topics that we had the week before or the one before that. There are more international students trickling in slowly though. On my floor we now have two new German guys on my floor in addition to the guy from Uganda (I think) who moved in the day we moved in. I haven’t really met him but the last room in the hall has a guy from Denmark who is pretty cool and he worked it out with this other guy from Milwaukee, Wisconsin so that they could room together. Oh yeah, and there’s a guy from South Korea who got a single room and has a cool setup where he has been cooking his own meals and he has a TV and a DVD player in his room. He’s been living here for more than a month though I think. The Dane and guy from Wisconsin have been organizing some pickup soccer games though for the last couple days and we’ll play again tonight. They have been a lot of fun so far and it’s good because I’m not the worst person playing. It’s also been a good way to meet people and learn names better.
Other than these things, this week has been mostly uneventful for me. I guess I’m just a little more experienced at taking bucket showers now than last time I wrote and I’ve done more laundry though I definitely am completely and utterly horrible at that. My socks were pretty much freestanding by the time they dried yesterday. We’re planning on taking an overnight trip to Morogoro for one last getaway before classes start up. It will just be me and maybe five other people from the program that I’m closer to I think though rather than the whole group. We also have to get someone from the links office to come with us but I think we have that figured out. I really hope this works out because it has the potential to be a really good experience. I think I’m ready to take a trip more on my own rather than just part of the program also. Hopefully I’m able to post these online sometime soon and hopefully I’ll get to head out away from the coast this weekend so I’ll have new and exciting things to write about next time.
I just remembered too that we’re going to try and start a group Flickr account or some online photo hosting thing so that we can all combine our pictures from this trip and share them with everyone else we know. I’ll get a url out once we figure it out and get internet again.
Security
If there had to be one recurring theme from this trip so far, it would be security. We’ve had countless lectures on it and just side comments and conversations. Every time I think that I’ve heard the last thing I can about security, the issue comes up again and we’re back on the topic. No one from our group has been robbed yet or anything though a camera and a phone or two have disappeared when accidentally left somewhere for even a short period of time. Still, after all of this talk on security, they have got us feeling at least slightly paranoid to do much of anything that isn’t sitting alone in your room with the door locked. And even that is supposed to change once our roommates move in.
The University of Oregon travel clinic described getting diarrhea as not a matter of if, but when and that is basically how getting things stolen has been described to us. I can’t even count all of the different ways that they said people will take things and I guess there is some truth to these stories as even the brass fixtures on our bathroom sinks were stolen before we moved in. However, we consistently are given the message that Tanzanians are friendly people and like to talk, but more frequently we are told not to give away any true information about where we are from or what we are doing at the university, etc. This is definitely a conflict and I think it will continue to be difficult to even make good first impressions with people here if we aren’t even supposed to be honest with them and tell them our names. It’s just small talk to say where you are from and they have a right to be curious as you are obviously foreign. Why it matters that I am from Oregon or even just America, I do not know though they tell us “this is information.” We have to tell our roommates that they can’t hang out with friends in our room because people might scope out the layout and where things are, even try to trace your key to make a copy just so they can steal stuff from you. I can’t imagine it will be easy for me to befriend my own roommate if I am supposed to suspicious of him at all times and have to lock all of my things that I don’t even consider “valuables” in my closet right in front of him.
We just found out today that the impression they gave us about the housing thing here was that our roommates would be people who signed up to live with foreign students or something is not actually true. There is no screening process other than checking if they have a disciplinary instance on their record to keep someone from living with us. They made it seem like you have to interview and express interest to end up living in the dorms with an international student but now it sounds more like these people might be surprised to find out they’re living with some foreigner and not another one of their countrymen. I am still confident that things will work out and comfortable with this, though I thought it ought to be remarked on.
Though none of us have been threatened or robbed yet really by violence, there have been instances in the last week and a half that have prompted them to bring up security again. One international student from Austria or somewhere who has been here for a while but isn’t part of a program or anything foolishly went downtown on her own where she was tailed by a gang of thugs before they kidnapped her at gunpoint. They said they had seen her the day before at Mwenge (an outdoor market area closer to campus) and they made her tell them where she lived. They then drove her back to campus, made her go get her ATM card which they quickly withdrew the maximum amount from 7 or 8 ATMs in the area. Another unrelated incidence was that two international students were walking back from one part of campus to another where they were held up at machete point and had their backpacks with their laptops in them stolen. This one is a little bothersome because it occurred right on campus, but it’s important to take note of some things here.
I don’t tell you these things to freak you out because, believe me, the people in my group are much more bothered by knowing them than you are or ought to be. Knowing that they happened does not change the fact that they did, but the point of this blog is to get people into the same mindset that I am in and share my experiences with them. My philosophy on getting robbed, mugged, or anything else is that if someone really wants to do it, they will find a way to. This doesn’t mean that people shouldn’t be vigilant and such but rather that we shouldn’t live in fear or have to do so. We may have a target placed on us because we are white travelers who seemingly (and almost certainly do) come from wealthier and more luxurious backgrounds. If you get robbed, you do what you have to do to stay alive and sound. No stuff you own or amount of money is worth that. If you are in a situation where you can be cunning and escape greater loss, more power to ya, but it’s not worth risking putting yourself in even greater danger. I understand that there is probably some psychological damage that occurs and how your whole study abroad experience would be altered if you had an ordeal take place like the girl who was kidnapped, but the reality is that her situation was avoidable. In short, be safe and smart, but paranoia won’t do anybody any good.
Last night we walked back from dinner at an on campus establishment along an unlit road which might actually have been the one that those people were held up on. There were nine of us though and I stared down one guy that may have been following us from the place until he turned away. I don’t know if he was actually following us or if he could tell I wasn’t going to let him try and hassle us, but either way you just have to do what you can and leave the rest up to fate or God to decide.
That’s about all I have to say on that.
The University of Oregon travel clinic described getting diarrhea as not a matter of if, but when and that is basically how getting things stolen has been described to us. I can’t even count all of the different ways that they said people will take things and I guess there is some truth to these stories as even the brass fixtures on our bathroom sinks were stolen before we moved in. However, we consistently are given the message that Tanzanians are friendly people and like to talk, but more frequently we are told not to give away any true information about where we are from or what we are doing at the university, etc. This is definitely a conflict and I think it will continue to be difficult to even make good first impressions with people here if we aren’t even supposed to be honest with them and tell them our names. It’s just small talk to say where you are from and they have a right to be curious as you are obviously foreign. Why it matters that I am from Oregon or even just America, I do not know though they tell us “this is information.” We have to tell our roommates that they can’t hang out with friends in our room because people might scope out the layout and where things are, even try to trace your key to make a copy just so they can steal stuff from you. I can’t imagine it will be easy for me to befriend my own roommate if I am supposed to suspicious of him at all times and have to lock all of my things that I don’t even consider “valuables” in my closet right in front of him.
We just found out today that the impression they gave us about the housing thing here was that our roommates would be people who signed up to live with foreign students or something is not actually true. There is no screening process other than checking if they have a disciplinary instance on their record to keep someone from living with us. They made it seem like you have to interview and express interest to end up living in the dorms with an international student but now it sounds more like these people might be surprised to find out they’re living with some foreigner and not another one of their countrymen. I am still confident that things will work out and comfortable with this, though I thought it ought to be remarked on.
Though none of us have been threatened or robbed yet really by violence, there have been instances in the last week and a half that have prompted them to bring up security again. One international student from Austria or somewhere who has been here for a while but isn’t part of a program or anything foolishly went downtown on her own where she was tailed by a gang of thugs before they kidnapped her at gunpoint. They said they had seen her the day before at Mwenge (an outdoor market area closer to campus) and they made her tell them where she lived. They then drove her back to campus, made her go get her ATM card which they quickly withdrew the maximum amount from 7 or 8 ATMs in the area. Another unrelated incidence was that two international students were walking back from one part of campus to another where they were held up at machete point and had their backpacks with their laptops in them stolen. This one is a little bothersome because it occurred right on campus, but it’s important to take note of some things here.
I don’t tell you these things to freak you out because, believe me, the people in my group are much more bothered by knowing them than you are or ought to be. Knowing that they happened does not change the fact that they did, but the point of this blog is to get people into the same mindset that I am in and share my experiences with them. My philosophy on getting robbed, mugged, or anything else is that if someone really wants to do it, they will find a way to. This doesn’t mean that people shouldn’t be vigilant and such but rather that we shouldn’t live in fear or have to do so. We may have a target placed on us because we are white travelers who seemingly (and almost certainly do) come from wealthier and more luxurious backgrounds. If you get robbed, you do what you have to do to stay alive and sound. No stuff you own or amount of money is worth that. If you are in a situation where you can be cunning and escape greater loss, more power to ya, but it’s not worth risking putting yourself in even greater danger. I understand that there is probably some psychological damage that occurs and how your whole study abroad experience would be altered if you had an ordeal take place like the girl who was kidnapped, but the reality is that her situation was avoidable. In short, be safe and smart, but paranoia won’t do anybody any good.
Last night we walked back from dinner at an on campus establishment along an unlit road which might actually have been the one that those people were held up on. There were nine of us though and I stared down one guy that may have been following us from the place until he turned away. I don’t know if he was actually following us or if he could tell I wasn’t going to let him try and hassle us, but either way you just have to do what you can and leave the rest up to fate or God to decide.
That’s about all I have to say on that.
Chakula
“Food” (cha is one of many ways to say “of” and kula is the infinitive form of the verb “to eat”)
My experiences with Tanzanian food so far have been made somewhat public in past posts. I am, by the way, completely over and adjusted now from that little episode and I do appreciate everyone’s advice though I really didn’t need everyone to play nurse. The food here and the whole eating experience though has been relatively easy to get used to and form expectations. Almost everywhere in or around Dar es Salaam that we go has the same menu exactly with only a few unique exceptions for each restaurant or establishment. Therefore, I feel like I can adequately sum up how must of us have interpreted our dining experience thus far.
The first thing to know about Tanzanian cuisine is that the main course will almost always be exclusively carbohydrates. The three main staples that I’ve seen are white rice, chips (French fries actually, but they were a British colony so they call them that), and ugali which is essentially just steamed cornmeal or something that you ball up and eat with whatever else is on your plate (sauces, meats, vegetables, etc.) There is also tambi which is pretty much spaghetti noodles, but it hasn’t been as widely available as the big three above. When I say that the main course is carbohydrates, I am referencing something I learned yesterday morning in our Kiswahili class. Although any of those three things would be horribly bland and inadequate by themselves, they are the most important and the staples in the diet here. When ordering a dish, you say “rice” or “chips” first and then whatever meat or other thing you are getting with it, hardly ever the other way around. I’ll let you interpret that and figure the significance of it on your own.
The restaurant experience here is also something that we are still getting used to, but pretty much have figured. We still aren’t sure if it’s customary to tip or not… pretty sure it isn’t but we always kind of leave a little extra instead of just getting change. One thing that we have figured out though is that you either need to think fast or come up with several different meal choices at once because they have never actually had everything that is on their menu. This can obviously be very discouraging as sometimes you see something that sounds really good and you get your heart set on it only to find out they don’t actually have it or not on that day. However, you may never even get to see what they have because they might not even have a menu to bring you or you have to ask them directly if you want to see it. Last night we went out and they really only had I think four things that they were serving. We haven’t really figured this out yet either, but I’m pretty sure they won’t bring you your check until ask them to.
Dar es Salaam is a coastal city where fishing is a common occupation and seafood has been available at a lot of the places we go. I’ve ordered calamari and octopus so far which have both tasted fine and actually pretty similar. Also, I’ve eaten king fish which is a relatively large fish and they cut it and cook it kind of in steaks rather than just filets. I haven’t really gotten any other fish yet (I will though sometime) and here’s why. When you order a fried fish or something, you generally just get a gutted fish that they fried. It still has the eyes and the tail, which were fried too, but you get to do the fun part and stab into and tear the meat off, leaving a fish head, skeleton, and tail. I wasn’t much of a fish fan at home anyway and there have pretty much always been better options when we go out, but hey, when in Rome…
There are also some clear outside influences on food here though they seem to have their own Tanzanian twist – as in something gets lost in translation. I ordered a cheeseburger at a restaurant last week and it was pretty good, though it had cucumber slices on it. I don’t know if this was supposed to be like pickles but it actually wasn’t that bad so I didn’t mind. Chapatti is a pretty standard food here and many places will have samosas and pilaf, all of which I think are Indian or Middle Eastern in origin. Like I wrote earlier though, almost everywhere will have “chips” which surprised me. I like to joke when we go out by just asking everyone what they’re going to get with their fries because they are seriously everywhere.
One thing to note here is that a foreign experience for us here has that the food here is actually made here and not somewhere else. This shouldn’t be a foreign experience, but it’s making us realize even better now just how many foods at home are processed or how you never really see foods in their raw form, only as a finished product. I learned this summer about how capitalism involves a production process and this is huge in the U.S. with foods. You don’t buy a chicken and cut it yourself but rather just buy parts of it in a bag and frozen. I don’t even know if I’ve seen a freezer here, but I definitely have seen people flattening the dough to make chapatti or cracking the eggs to make chips mayai. One reason might be that it could be cheaper to just hire someone to do the work than actually buy a freezer and prepackaged products.
Our cafeteria meals here are subsidized to some extent by the government here so we are a bit spoiled because we find prices will often be double at restaurants. However, double the amount we pay still definitely is not much. For example, I paid 800 shillings today at breakfast ($1 USD always equals at least 1,300 Tanzanian Shillings) and this got me two decent tortilla-sized chapattis, two bananas (smaller than the ones at home, but still respectable) and also some fresh cut pineapple. For lunch I paid 1000 shillings for a plate covered by rice with some beans, tasty cabbage prepared and probably boiled in some spices, and two beef cubes with sauce. It’s getting a little easier to understand how people could survive on less than a dollar a day though you also have to realize that that would have a very simple, not diverse diet that has little nutritional value and also your income probably would not be stable so there is not security that you will even have a dollar to eat with every day.
Lastly, the soda coolers are always stocked full of coke, pepsi, fanta, sprite, mirinda, you name it. These all come in glass bottles which they return and reuse which is a much better and sustainable way of getting drinks than in the U.S. with our disposable plastic bottles that don’t even recycle well at all. I haven’t seen any fountain drinks and only a few cans of beer (they reuse the glass beer bottles too) and pop. What’s also strange is that I have yet to find a place where they sell beer, pop, water or any liquid really in a package with more than one. If you want to buy beers at the store, you have to buy each one individually which is kind of weird, but I guess it makes sense because it’s not like we have a way to cool them here.
All in all, I was very excited when I first arrived to get a lot of food for a small price, then that wore off when I stopped digesting that food, now I’m kind of back there again as we explore more and more places to eat. We still haven’t gotten to the point where we just accept and get used to the fact that we will be eating the same or similar foods everyday, multiple times a day. A pretty popular thing to do, or at least what I find myself doing several times a day, is talking about foods that would be really good. We’re definitely missing ice cream and other sweets but also things like milk or just diversity in our diet sounds really good right now. I’m sure this will come to pass and we’re very realistic about the fact that we aren’t going to have that for quite some time, but it’s still just nice to remember and be thankful for all of the delicious, nutritious, and satisfying foods we have back home.
My experiences with Tanzanian food so far have been made somewhat public in past posts. I am, by the way, completely over and adjusted now from that little episode and I do appreciate everyone’s advice though I really didn’t need everyone to play nurse. The food here and the whole eating experience though has been relatively easy to get used to and form expectations. Almost everywhere in or around Dar es Salaam that we go has the same menu exactly with only a few unique exceptions for each restaurant or establishment. Therefore, I feel like I can adequately sum up how must of us have interpreted our dining experience thus far.
The first thing to know about Tanzanian cuisine is that the main course will almost always be exclusively carbohydrates. The three main staples that I’ve seen are white rice, chips (French fries actually, but they were a British colony so they call them that), and ugali which is essentially just steamed cornmeal or something that you ball up and eat with whatever else is on your plate (sauces, meats, vegetables, etc.) There is also tambi which is pretty much spaghetti noodles, but it hasn’t been as widely available as the big three above. When I say that the main course is carbohydrates, I am referencing something I learned yesterday morning in our Kiswahili class. Although any of those three things would be horribly bland and inadequate by themselves, they are the most important and the staples in the diet here. When ordering a dish, you say “rice” or “chips” first and then whatever meat or other thing you are getting with it, hardly ever the other way around. I’ll let you interpret that and figure the significance of it on your own.
The restaurant experience here is also something that we are still getting used to, but pretty much have figured. We still aren’t sure if it’s customary to tip or not… pretty sure it isn’t but we always kind of leave a little extra instead of just getting change. One thing that we have figured out though is that you either need to think fast or come up with several different meal choices at once because they have never actually had everything that is on their menu. This can obviously be very discouraging as sometimes you see something that sounds really good and you get your heart set on it only to find out they don’t actually have it or not on that day. However, you may never even get to see what they have because they might not even have a menu to bring you or you have to ask them directly if you want to see it. Last night we went out and they really only had I think four things that they were serving. We haven’t really figured this out yet either, but I’m pretty sure they won’t bring you your check until ask them to.
Dar es Salaam is a coastal city where fishing is a common occupation and seafood has been available at a lot of the places we go. I’ve ordered calamari and octopus so far which have both tasted fine and actually pretty similar. Also, I’ve eaten king fish which is a relatively large fish and they cut it and cook it kind of in steaks rather than just filets. I haven’t really gotten any other fish yet (I will though sometime) and here’s why. When you order a fried fish or something, you generally just get a gutted fish that they fried. It still has the eyes and the tail, which were fried too, but you get to do the fun part and stab into and tear the meat off, leaving a fish head, skeleton, and tail. I wasn’t much of a fish fan at home anyway and there have pretty much always been better options when we go out, but hey, when in Rome…
There are also some clear outside influences on food here though they seem to have their own Tanzanian twist – as in something gets lost in translation. I ordered a cheeseburger at a restaurant last week and it was pretty good, though it had cucumber slices on it. I don’t know if this was supposed to be like pickles but it actually wasn’t that bad so I didn’t mind. Chapatti is a pretty standard food here and many places will have samosas and pilaf, all of which I think are Indian or Middle Eastern in origin. Like I wrote earlier though, almost everywhere will have “chips” which surprised me. I like to joke when we go out by just asking everyone what they’re going to get with their fries because they are seriously everywhere.
One thing to note here is that a foreign experience for us here has that the food here is actually made here and not somewhere else. This shouldn’t be a foreign experience, but it’s making us realize even better now just how many foods at home are processed or how you never really see foods in their raw form, only as a finished product. I learned this summer about how capitalism involves a production process and this is huge in the U.S. with foods. You don’t buy a chicken and cut it yourself but rather just buy parts of it in a bag and frozen. I don’t even know if I’ve seen a freezer here, but I definitely have seen people flattening the dough to make chapatti or cracking the eggs to make chips mayai. One reason might be that it could be cheaper to just hire someone to do the work than actually buy a freezer and prepackaged products.
Our cafeteria meals here are subsidized to some extent by the government here so we are a bit spoiled because we find prices will often be double at restaurants. However, double the amount we pay still definitely is not much. For example, I paid 800 shillings today at breakfast ($1 USD always equals at least 1,300 Tanzanian Shillings) and this got me two decent tortilla-sized chapattis, two bananas (smaller than the ones at home, but still respectable) and also some fresh cut pineapple. For lunch I paid 1000 shillings for a plate covered by rice with some beans, tasty cabbage prepared and probably boiled in some spices, and two beef cubes with sauce. It’s getting a little easier to understand how people could survive on less than a dollar a day though you also have to realize that that would have a very simple, not diverse diet that has little nutritional value and also your income probably would not be stable so there is not security that you will even have a dollar to eat with every day.
Lastly, the soda coolers are always stocked full of coke, pepsi, fanta, sprite, mirinda, you name it. These all come in glass bottles which they return and reuse which is a much better and sustainable way of getting drinks than in the U.S. with our disposable plastic bottles that don’t even recycle well at all. I haven’t seen any fountain drinks and only a few cans of beer (they reuse the glass beer bottles too) and pop. What’s also strange is that I have yet to find a place where they sell beer, pop, water or any liquid really in a package with more than one. If you want to buy beers at the store, you have to buy each one individually which is kind of weird, but I guess it makes sense because it’s not like we have a way to cool them here.
All in all, I was very excited when I first arrived to get a lot of food for a small price, then that wore off when I stopped digesting that food, now I’m kind of back there again as we explore more and more places to eat. We still haven’t gotten to the point where we just accept and get used to the fact that we will be eating the same or similar foods everyday, multiple times a day. A pretty popular thing to do, or at least what I find myself doing several times a day, is talking about foods that would be really good. We’re definitely missing ice cream and other sweets but also things like milk or just diversity in our diet sounds really good right now. I’m sure this will come to pass and we’re very realistic about the fact that we aren’t going to have that for quite some time, but it’s still just nice to remember and be thankful for all of the delicious, nutritious, and satisfying foods we have back home.
Mende
“Cockroach”
I was over at the girls’ dorm the other night just to hang out and use the wireless connection they have when I heard a bunch of them in the hall freaking out about something. I stepped out to see what the commotion was about and there was a bunch of ants parading down their hallway carrying a cockroach carcass. I checked their progress a little later and they were carrying the thing into the bathroom and maybe into the wall, not totally sure. I thought it was pretty cool but most of the girls were really grossed out or bothered by it. Their dorm definitely has more wildlife in it. Or so I thought.
A day or two later I woke up before class to go through my morning routine. I can’t remember if this was Monday or Tuesday but I might have gotten up early to do laundry or something so my suitcase that I keep my dirty laundry was moved from where it normally is. I didn’t notice until maybe 15 minutes before I was going to leave for breakfast that there was a dead cockroach laying on its back next to my desk where I usually have my suitcase/dirty laundry hamper. I thought it was pretty gross because it was maybe 2.5” long with antennae that had to stretch at least 4”. I took some pictures of it on my digital camera and continued with my morning for a bit just to delay the dreaded picking-up-and-carrying-to-the-wastebasket. When that time finally did come though, I tore off some toilet paper to grab it with, but when I reached down to wrap it up, the thing started kicking and scrambling. Apparently it had just fallen from somewhere onto its back and, very turtle-like, couldn’t get right itself.
After taking care of all other things I had to do before breakfast, it was time to face the music and dispose of this thing. I don’t really like to senselessly end the lives of any animals or insects so I had to think of a way to just get it out of my room (also, imagine the sort of spatter and stench of crushing the life out of a bug of the size… no thanks.) The solution I arrived at was to just finish the six liter disposable water bottle I had and somehow scoot it in there. The mouth wasn’t significantly larger than the cockroach, especially with its legs kicking around, but it was the only option I really had. I invited Dylan from next door to come watch and I set my camera on the floor because I might as well film this with my video setting. Cutting to the chase, I was successful in getting it in the jug without it flipping over to run around (or maybe fly; can they do that?) and it was time to leave and eat.
I wasn’t able to come back to my room for maybe three to five hours later in the day and I kept forgetting and remembering throughout the day that I have a cockroach in a water jug sitting on my desk… not pleasant to come home too. I ended up just setting it by the trash can on our floor and it’s gone now, but unfortunately it wasn’t the only thing to go. I guess I forgot to put my memory card back in my camera so the video definitely did not save. There is a very small amount of internal memory in the camera so some of the pictures I took are still alive but I can’t figure out how to get them off of my camera. I’m kind of bummed because I feel like visuals would help you understand what I was talking about here. Sorry.
One last thing that is sort of off topic is that I generally get back to my room after dark because the sun sets here before dinner time and I’ll often hang out with the other people over at their dorm. When I got back last week, there was a little gecko under my window that I tried to shoo away towards the window, but ended up chasing behind my bed, right where I keep the other suitcase I traveled with. Last night after I got back, I had to remake my bed and re-tuck the mosquito net, including the area at the foot of my bed where that suitcase is. This time when I got near that spot, a bigger gecko came running out dashing up the wall towards the window. As far as animals around here, I like these lizards the most because I’m pretty sure they eat the bugs like flies and mosquitoes which are more pests to me than the geckos are. This one escaped, though I don’t know how because the window has a screen. I wish he would have stayed to eat some bugs but I guess I’m just not that fortunate.
Some closing thoughts/issues from these stories:
- I don’t know how these bugs get in or where they live but these are definitely not rare or isolated cases.
- There was only one cockroach that I saw. I don’t know how it got there, why it was laying on its back, if there are others, etc.
- The biggest lizard I’ve seen here so far was able to sneak out my window and around the screen somehow. These screens must not be very effective.
I was over at the girls’ dorm the other night just to hang out and use the wireless connection they have when I heard a bunch of them in the hall freaking out about something. I stepped out to see what the commotion was about and there was a bunch of ants parading down their hallway carrying a cockroach carcass. I checked their progress a little later and they were carrying the thing into the bathroom and maybe into the wall, not totally sure. I thought it was pretty cool but most of the girls were really grossed out or bothered by it. Their dorm definitely has more wildlife in it. Or so I thought.
A day or two later I woke up before class to go through my morning routine. I can’t remember if this was Monday or Tuesday but I might have gotten up early to do laundry or something so my suitcase that I keep my dirty laundry was moved from where it normally is. I didn’t notice until maybe 15 minutes before I was going to leave for breakfast that there was a dead cockroach laying on its back next to my desk where I usually have my suitcase/dirty laundry hamper. I thought it was pretty gross because it was maybe 2.5” long with antennae that had to stretch at least 4”. I took some pictures of it on my digital camera and continued with my morning for a bit just to delay the dreaded picking-up-and-carrying-to-the-wastebasket. When that time finally did come though, I tore off some toilet paper to grab it with, but when I reached down to wrap it up, the thing started kicking and scrambling. Apparently it had just fallen from somewhere onto its back and, very turtle-like, couldn’t get right itself.
After taking care of all other things I had to do before breakfast, it was time to face the music and dispose of this thing. I don’t really like to senselessly end the lives of any animals or insects so I had to think of a way to just get it out of my room (also, imagine the sort of spatter and stench of crushing the life out of a bug of the size… no thanks.) The solution I arrived at was to just finish the six liter disposable water bottle I had and somehow scoot it in there. The mouth wasn’t significantly larger than the cockroach, especially with its legs kicking around, but it was the only option I really had. I invited Dylan from next door to come watch and I set my camera on the floor because I might as well film this with my video setting. Cutting to the chase, I was successful in getting it in the jug without it flipping over to run around (or maybe fly; can they do that?) and it was time to leave and eat.
I wasn’t able to come back to my room for maybe three to five hours later in the day and I kept forgetting and remembering throughout the day that I have a cockroach in a water jug sitting on my desk… not pleasant to come home too. I ended up just setting it by the trash can on our floor and it’s gone now, but unfortunately it wasn’t the only thing to go. I guess I forgot to put my memory card back in my camera so the video definitely did not save. There is a very small amount of internal memory in the camera so some of the pictures I took are still alive but I can’t figure out how to get them off of my camera. I’m kind of bummed because I feel like visuals would help you understand what I was talking about here. Sorry.
One last thing that is sort of off topic is that I generally get back to my room after dark because the sun sets here before dinner time and I’ll often hang out with the other people over at their dorm. When I got back last week, there was a little gecko under my window that I tried to shoo away towards the window, but ended up chasing behind my bed, right where I keep the other suitcase I traveled with. Last night after I got back, I had to remake my bed and re-tuck the mosquito net, including the area at the foot of my bed where that suitcase is. This time when I got near that spot, a bigger gecko came running out dashing up the wall towards the window. As far as animals around here, I like these lizards the most because I’m pretty sure they eat the bugs like flies and mosquitoes which are more pests to me than the geckos are. This one escaped, though I don’t know how because the window has a screen. I wish he would have stayed to eat some bugs but I guess I’m just not that fortunate.
Some closing thoughts/issues from these stories:
- I don’t know how these bugs get in or where they live but these are definitely not rare or isolated cases.
- There was only one cockroach that I saw. I don’t know how it got there, why it was laying on its back, if there are others, etc.
- The biggest lizard I’ve seen here so far was able to sneak out my window and around the screen somehow. These screens must not be very effective.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Ninafikiria
Hello all. We just got back a few minutes ago from a weekend trip to Bagamoyo which is a town about an hour north along the coast from where we live on campus at UDSM. Bagamoyo is one of the oldest cities in all of East Africa and has an extensive and fascinating history. Our first stop was the Kaole ruins where the weathered limestone structures are standing from 13th century settlers from Persia or somewhere in the Middle East I think. We were able to stand in the site that was the first mosque in East Africa and examine the old graves/tombs of the settlers that had some cool designs.
Our tour guide who was explaining all of this to us came with us and spoke at a few more places we visited and I thought he was a pretty cool. I found out he is from the same region and tribe as my Kiswahili teacher at University of Oregon
The second destination on our tour was the museum in the old trading post where ivory and slaves would come to be sold. It is from this spot that Bagamoyo gets its name as “Bwagamoyo” means something like “leave your heart here” amongst several other really depressing and sorrowful translations that I can’t remember. It is the end of the central slave trade route on Tanzania
We walked a few more places including the fish market which is basically just a bunch of people huddled around a couple guys on the beach auctioning off fish and squid. It was a pretty cool scene and the random Congolese tourist who kept filming us and asking us questions only added to the atmosphere. The current president of Tanzania Tanzania
I was very fortunately blessed with disproportionately outstanding food for the last three meals I’ve had as they were all buffet style from the nice hotel resort we were staying at. Our director, Ken, really came through for us once again and landed us a very very nice place right on the coast with full amenities. It’s hard to say if it was nicer than the first place we stayed at but the food definitely was better. Even though I haven’t quite been here for two weeks yet, it was still great to take a warm shower for the first time since Oregon
The reason I titled went with that title for this post is for a couple reasons – one relating to what I was just describing. I don’t know if you were able to tell from last time I wrote about staying at a nice resort, but it really makes me feel jaded to do so because it is so foreign to what my hopes and expectations of this trip are. Don’t get me wrong though because I am extremely grateful to have such an opportunity and I didn’t take these luxuries for granted. It is just such a huge contrast to what I’m sure the normal life experience is for a Tanzanian person. I did not choose to study abroad in Tanzania
Another thing that is on my mind right now is what courses I should register. They are releasing the initial timetable of classes tomorrow (which will apparently be heavily revised several times before a final version is available) and so we are supposed to pick our classes tonight and hopefully sign up for them tomorrow. I really like reading course titles and their seem to be a lot of interesting classes but I’ve been burned too many times before by taking hopelessly pointless and lame classes that don’t live up to the hype of the title of the course. What’s worse is that there isn’t any course descriptions listed so all I can do is assume based off of the three to six word titles that they give. I’ll only be taking maybe six or eight elective classes while I’m here so I really want to make them count. It’s about time now for me to look more into them so I’ll cut this post off and hopefully get back tomorrow or soon to share what I’ve signed up for.
One closing remark I’d like to make is that I really enjoyed being in the actual city of Bagamoyo Europe over other places. It’s just me admitting that I guess I do see at least some merit in it. See I’m not a total Europe hater.
Friday, October 16, 2009
INTERNET?
So the girls are finally getting consistent wireless in their dorm, which is ironic because the water hasn't been running on campus for maybe 10 hours and the power went out for about half an hour earlier. Either way, I was actually able to get a couple pictures uploaded (though the video failed to upload and also took like 20 minutes to decide it wouldn't work). Either way, here are a few photos I've taken so far.
Here's the sign that says "NO SLEEPING IN THE PRAYER ROOM" in the airport in Doha. Sorry I didn't get a photo of everyone actually sleeping in there...
Just walking back to my room in our hotel from the beach... no big deal. I wish the video would have uploaded but also I wish that our dorms were nearly as nice as this.
Sort of lame picture I took in my dorm room. I don't know why I uploaded it. I guess the thumbnail of it looked a little better but anyways, I'm not gonna wait again and for more photos to upload. Hopefully I'll put more up later.
Since I'm not doing the best job
Some other people in my program are keeping blogs I've noticed so I'll link you to them if you don't mind creeping them and you want different perspectives on a similar experience. I haven't read them and I don't know if this is cool but if you stay anonymous, that's the glory of the internet. Also, if they trash talk me, let me know.
My friend Elise: http://elisemcorrigan.tumblr.com/
Maddy, also from UO: http://maddyinafrica.blogspot.com/
and there was one more but it looks like she hasn't updated or it's private or something.
Saw monkeys in the dorms today though.
My friend Elise: http://elisemcorrigan.tumblr.com/
Maddy, also from UO: http://maddyinafrica.blogspot.com/
and there was one more but it looks like she hasn't updated or it's private or something.
Saw monkeys in the dorms today though.
Still figuring things out
Originally written 15 October 2009 8:26 PM
This blog is still new and I am still new to this place so it’s very difficult to both know a certain style to write in and also to decide what to write about. You have to use a filter when describing things and choosing what to write about and mine’s obviously pretty big, hence the long posts and paragraphs that go nowhere. Also, everything is a new experience to me and I want to write out long, thoughtful posts about them but I don’t have the time right now and when I will get the time, they won’t be fresh anymore. I’ll take the attitude that something is better than nothing though so even though I can’t think of a common theme or anything for what I’m about to write about (I’m not even sure what it is yet,) I’ll just be sharing some things that have been on my mind or I’m reminded of as I type. So allow my mind to wander.
First off, I apologize once again for my lack of presence online in any form. The power and water here are somewhat sporadic and unreliable at times so yesterday I tried to get online but the power was out, taking the wireless router down with it. Also, I’ve only been able to mooch the wireless from the CIEE office which crawls painfully slow and I am only able to be there during certain times. I kind of like not having internet though as I’ve had to kill time in different new ways though I completely understand that it’s not kosher to be leaving everyone back home in the dark with regards to my status here. One thing I realized today when I was able to check my Gmail and get on Facebook for about 10 minutes was that I am living almost entirely in the place that I am at now. What I mean by that is that I operate here in a different mindset and have a different mentality than I have back home and this is the only way I am able to function here. I am accepting the present as it is and enjoying that, but to see a familiar face here would be very confusing and cause some conflicting thought patterns for me. I am even treating the girl from my Swahili class back in Eugene that is on this trip with me just like I have everyone else because I feel like it’s time to live and act appropriately to this context. This connects to internet usage because every time I am able to check up on things back home, I have to use a completely different frame of reference that doesn’t really work in this setting. It’s very challenging to live in two different worlds at once and I don’t think I’m capable of doing it or even that it should be done so I really apologize for not trying to be active in affairs back home but I hope you understand my reasoning for this.
With that said, I miss you all dearly but my homesickness has mostly been limited to one person and she knows who she is. I am really enjoying reading your comments and seeing who is reading this though. Back to business though...
So I got sick on Monday night of this week and it wasn’t really the sickness they told me to prepare for or what I expected. Basically what happened was that my body wasn’t fully adjusted to the diet I’ve transitioned to here which is a lot of rice, french fries, and ugali (made from corn meal I think). I’ll write more on the food here in the future because it merits its own discussion but these three main staples are featured in almost every meal here besides breakfast (though it’s not always excluded). With that said, my body isn’t used to high quantities and large portions of these foods and is not a big fan of processing them. I didn’t realize this was happening until too late, but I could feel all these starchy things just sitting in my stomach and refusing to take the journey out. I eat other meals and kept getting fuller and fuller but nothing ever left to go to my intestines so I excused myself from dinner on Monday saying I didn’t feel well and then went back to my room to lay down where I spent the next several hours writhing in pain that progressively got worse. I’ve had indigestion before but never that high abdomen/stomach only area that felt like it kept expanding.
When you sit alone like that in pain you tend to think of the worst case scenarios too and I definitely do not want to have to get cut open for surgery in the country or have something rupture inside me. They told me I would probably vomit from food or get diarrhea while I’m here and those two alternatives were what I was hoping for to relieve the pressure and they’re also what they give you medication for, not the opposite but I wasn’t lucky enough I guess. I eventually caved and couldn’t take it anymore so I walked with my friend to health center at about 10 PM to see what they could do. They had just about closed up shop for the night there so all they could do was give me some pills to tide me over until the morning if problems still persisted. Those of you who know me well know that I don’t take pills and never want to (except for malaria medication now, I guess) but I really didn’t care at this point so I took two magnesium ones that are supposed to calm my stomach and two pain ones that got me pretty groggy. It’s hard to tell if they did the job but I felt like I could maybe sleep now until I woke up about 45 minutes later and finally threw up a little bit which took some pressure off. To cut this overly detailed account short (I didn’t mean for it to be like this,) I am still not totally over this and much less excited about the food as I was before unfortunately. I’m trying to get more fiber now though, I’ll tell you that.
I guess that’s my first sick experience here so far and it wasn’t quite what I expected but I’ve also had a few other first experiences since I wrote last. One is that I had to take my first bucket shower. I got up in the morning on Monday to find that the water was not running (except in the sinks for some reason) so I filled up my bucket they gave us and scooped water onto myself for a shower. It actually wasn’t that bad to be honest because it wasn’t as cold as the standard shower is and I didn’t have to deal with poor water pressure. My other new experience was hand washing and air drying laundry. I also used the same bucket for this and I now have decided to hold out on wearing some socks/underwear that I haven’t worn yet for a while because they will never be as soft again once they go through the washing process.
There’s not much else popping into my head right now so I’ll just say one last thing before I run out of battery. We’ve done just about everything as a group here so far and we really stand out as 10 white people walking around together, but I really like the people in my group. I told my dad this when he called me the other day, but I think you get a different type of person who decides to study abroad here rather than Europe or Latin/South America. We all have somewhat similar interests and intentions as well as philosophies but we are still a diverse group in terms of personality. I learned long ago how divisions arise and the early times are strange because people haven’t yet figured out who they will hang out with and such, but I’m honestly glad to have met all of these people and look forward to continuing this experience with them. I can already see some animosity in the group and lines forming, but it’s not going to be nearly as severe or dramatic as an average experience in a new setting is. We still have more than a week probably before everyone starts moving back in and the university ramps up which will also be a trying time, but there has been mutual respect from the beginning and our time here so far has been overwhelmingly positive.
I feel like that’s a good note to go out on so I’ll cut this off here before my contacts completely peel off my eyes.
Have a good night/afternoon/morning or whatever it is where you are.
This blog is still new and I am still new to this place so it’s very difficult to both know a certain style to write in and also to decide what to write about. You have to use a filter when describing things and choosing what to write about and mine’s obviously pretty big, hence the long posts and paragraphs that go nowhere. Also, everything is a new experience to me and I want to write out long, thoughtful posts about them but I don’t have the time right now and when I will get the time, they won’t be fresh anymore. I’ll take the attitude that something is better than nothing though so even though I can’t think of a common theme or anything for what I’m about to write about (I’m not even sure what it is yet,) I’ll just be sharing some things that have been on my mind or I’m reminded of as I type. So allow my mind to wander.
First off, I apologize once again for my lack of presence online in any form. The power and water here are somewhat sporadic and unreliable at times so yesterday I tried to get online but the power was out, taking the wireless router down with it. Also, I’ve only been able to mooch the wireless from the CIEE office which crawls painfully slow and I am only able to be there during certain times. I kind of like not having internet though as I’ve had to kill time in different new ways though I completely understand that it’s not kosher to be leaving everyone back home in the dark with regards to my status here. One thing I realized today when I was able to check my Gmail and get on Facebook for about 10 minutes was that I am living almost entirely in the place that I am at now. What I mean by that is that I operate here in a different mindset and have a different mentality than I have back home and this is the only way I am able to function here. I am accepting the present as it is and enjoying that, but to see a familiar face here would be very confusing and cause some conflicting thought patterns for me. I am even treating the girl from my Swahili class back in Eugene that is on this trip with me just like I have everyone else because I feel like it’s time to live and act appropriately to this context. This connects to internet usage because every time I am able to check up on things back home, I have to use a completely different frame of reference that doesn’t really work in this setting. It’s very challenging to live in two different worlds at once and I don’t think I’m capable of doing it or even that it should be done so I really apologize for not trying to be active in affairs back home but I hope you understand my reasoning for this.
With that said, I miss you all dearly but my homesickness has mostly been limited to one person and she knows who she is. I am really enjoying reading your comments and seeing who is reading this though. Back to business though...
So I got sick on Monday night of this week and it wasn’t really the sickness they told me to prepare for or what I expected. Basically what happened was that my body wasn’t fully adjusted to the diet I’ve transitioned to here which is a lot of rice, french fries, and ugali (made from corn meal I think). I’ll write more on the food here in the future because it merits its own discussion but these three main staples are featured in almost every meal here besides breakfast (though it’s not always excluded). With that said, my body isn’t used to high quantities and large portions of these foods and is not a big fan of processing them. I didn’t realize this was happening until too late, but I could feel all these starchy things just sitting in my stomach and refusing to take the journey out. I eat other meals and kept getting fuller and fuller but nothing ever left to go to my intestines so I excused myself from dinner on Monday saying I didn’t feel well and then went back to my room to lay down where I spent the next several hours writhing in pain that progressively got worse. I’ve had indigestion before but never that high abdomen/stomach only area that felt like it kept expanding.
When you sit alone like that in pain you tend to think of the worst case scenarios too and I definitely do not want to have to get cut open for surgery in the country or have something rupture inside me. They told me I would probably vomit from food or get diarrhea while I’m here and those two alternatives were what I was hoping for to relieve the pressure and they’re also what they give you medication for, not the opposite but I wasn’t lucky enough I guess. I eventually caved and couldn’t take it anymore so I walked with my friend to health center at about 10 PM to see what they could do. They had just about closed up shop for the night there so all they could do was give me some pills to tide me over until the morning if problems still persisted. Those of you who know me well know that I don’t take pills and never want to (except for malaria medication now, I guess) but I really didn’t care at this point so I took two magnesium ones that are supposed to calm my stomach and two pain ones that got me pretty groggy. It’s hard to tell if they did the job but I felt like I could maybe sleep now until I woke up about 45 minutes later and finally threw up a little bit which took some pressure off. To cut this overly detailed account short (I didn’t mean for it to be like this,) I am still not totally over this and much less excited about the food as I was before unfortunately. I’m trying to get more fiber now though, I’ll tell you that.
I guess that’s my first sick experience here so far and it wasn’t quite what I expected but I’ve also had a few other first experiences since I wrote last. One is that I had to take my first bucket shower. I got up in the morning on Monday to find that the water was not running (except in the sinks for some reason) so I filled up my bucket they gave us and scooped water onto myself for a shower. It actually wasn’t that bad to be honest because it wasn’t as cold as the standard shower is and I didn’t have to deal with poor water pressure. My other new experience was hand washing and air drying laundry. I also used the same bucket for this and I now have decided to hold out on wearing some socks/underwear that I haven’t worn yet for a while because they will never be as soft again once they go through the washing process.
There’s not much else popping into my head right now so I’ll just say one last thing before I run out of battery. We’ve done just about everything as a group here so far and we really stand out as 10 white people walking around together, but I really like the people in my group. I told my dad this when he called me the other day, but I think you get a different type of person who decides to study abroad here rather than Europe or Latin/South America. We all have somewhat similar interests and intentions as well as philosophies but we are still a diverse group in terms of personality. I learned long ago how divisions arise and the early times are strange because people haven’t yet figured out who they will hang out with and such, but I’m honestly glad to have met all of these people and look forward to continuing this experience with them. I can already see some animosity in the group and lines forming, but it’s not going to be nearly as severe or dramatic as an average experience in a new setting is. We still have more than a week probably before everyone starts moving back in and the university ramps up which will also be a trying time, but there has been mutual respect from the beginning and our time here so far has been overwhelmingly positive.
I feel like that’s a good note to go out on so I’ll cut this off here before my contacts completely peel off my eyes.
Have a good night/afternoon/morning or whatever it is where you are.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Karibu Tanzania
(I originally started writing this on October 8th but have been interrupted several times throughout so that explains the length and such.)
(edit: this is taking forever to upload so maybe in a future time or date I will post them. Really sorry about this.)
“Welcome to Tanzania
Thank you everyone for your patience and support throughout this early process. Quite a lot has occurred and I hope many of you have been anxious to read about what all I’ve been up to since my plane landed in Dar es Salaam Portland
My plane landed at about 1 PM local time on Monday and I made it through customs just fine with both my checked bags slowly making their way onto the carousel. I’d been studying from my Kiswahili text book that I used last school year throughout the trip and shortly before I left so I was prepared to speak the language despite how horribly jet-lagged I was. I found our driver right outside the doors of the international arrivals holding a sign with my name on it and he led me over to our program coordinator Ken. Ken has been with us quite a bit since we first got him and I’ve become his favorite person to pick on but we still get along for the most part. The three of us got some lunch while we waited for the next incoming flight from Dubai
I opted to study abroad in a place far from my comfort zone and I therefore was mentally prepared to go out and rough it. I’ll let the pictures and video do the talking for a bit so you understand just how nice this place is.
….Yeah. I’ve also got photos and some video of the scenes we’ve experienced while driving to and fro here which more accurately depicts what I was braced to find when I arrived in Dar es Salaam. I am writing now from my new dorm room; my home for the next nine and a half months which is whole world away from our luxury stay at the beach but let me just say that I haven’t really felt like I was even abroad or doing what I’m here to do until today because I’ve been spending all of my time with the eleven other students (all Americans – 7 of which with strong Oregon ties) in the program for the last few days and we’ve been separated from the realities of Dar es Salaam for the most part by the frame of an air-conditioned van. Traveling the streets of Dar es Salaam
We have done many things since we arrived here on Monday. (I stopped typing midway through this sentence on Thursday evening and am just now finishing up on Saturday morning. I’ve experienced quite a lot since then so there may be a different tone from this point on.) We’ve had to take care of some key business everyday so far and the number one priority seemed to be that we all have working cell phones so on Tuesday we headed out to a mall to buy phones and SIM cards. It’s free for me to receive calls and I think with Skype you can purchase credit and make calls to any number in the world for as low as two cents a minute so if you want my number and to try to figure out how to do that, let me know (keep in mind the time difference though please). The other days have generally all started with paperwork and/or meetings to help us get our study visas squared away and explain to us the importance of being safe. I’ll write more on the topic of safety at another time because I’m sure we still haven’t heard the end of that.
After our morning meetings, however, we have always had some sort of activity planned for the rest of the day or at least the afternoon. Wednesday was spent on Bogonyo Island
We finally were able to move into our dorms on Thursday and everyone was excited about that. My first impression of the campus area around the dorms is that we are living in Jurassic Park U.S.
There definitely is an entirely different set of standards here than in the United States
(I’m watching a four-inch-long lizard crawl along the corner of my room right now)
The rooms in the men’s dorms have windows opening into the hallway area and they didn’t have curtains so we had to head out on a wild goose chase late Thursday night into the streets of Dar es Salaam Dar es Salaam
It’s Sunday morning now, our first free day, and I finally will be finishing this and hopefully posting it online sometime today. Yesterday we went to the actual city center for the first time and it was once again an experience somewhat tainted by the fact that I was traveling with like 12 other people, most of whom are white. Being in downtown Dar es Salaam
We used the dala dala minibuses a lot yesterday and that will probably be the main way we move around when we’re here so I’ll write more on that in the future. I am getting more comfortable with the public transportation around here and that is a good thing because next I need to get better at just conversational Kiswahili so I can chat with the driver and negotiate a price so I don’t get screwed because they think I don’t know. We have been using this one guy that we pay extra to go off of his normal route for the last two nights because he took us to this Irish pub for a girl in this program’s 21st birthday last night that was a lot of fun. We also went out the night before to this cultural center place where we ate traditional food (ugali) and got to see/hear some traditional dance and music performances. They even brought us up to dance with them several times and it was a really fun time to see all of the people in our group up their dancing and kind of making a fool of themselves in front of everyone else. I didn’t have my camera but if someone else from my program posts pictures I’ll put them on here to share because it was a blast.
One last little anecdote that I was wanting to share now so that I’m all caught up on this blog is something that happened on Friday afternoon after we finished our walking tour of campus. I was really thirsty at the end of our long walk and so were some other people so we stopped in at the dining hall to get some water to hold us over until dinner. The girls had seen a monkey outside their dorm the day before and were impressed, but we saw some more above us in the trees later that day just on our way towards the CIEE office. Outside of the dining hall we were walking towards were about 20 monkeys just running around playing with each other and trying to come in and steal food. Like I said, everything here is open air so they can just walk right in and go wherever which they did. Just yesterday morning one stole a banana off this girl’s plate as she was scooting her chair in. There is this one really big alpha male monkey though that no one wants to mess with. I call him “El Jefe” but hopefully he has a cooler and more Swahili nickname that works better. I’ll try and get some pictures of just how close, how many, and how cool it is to have monkeys right next to you in your own dining hall. Now come on, who else can say they have this sort of experience when they study abroad?
Cheers,
Scott
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
I Made It
Hey Everyone.
I made it here and everything so far has been going great. I haven't even really been here for a day and a half yet, but I have enjoyed every moment of it so far - except for a couple minutes ago when I got my first mosquito bite so far. We are currently staying at a resort on the coast until Thursday when we move into the dorms which isn't what I expected but I will enjoy and be grateful for this luxury while it lasts. I took some pictures of the place and the awesome beach it's on (the water is as warm as a pool, but it's the ocean... unreal). I have a lot of observations and first impressions but I don't want to pass judgment yet on anything because we've just been living in this hotel so far. Also, I'm trying to get to know my fellow students in the program and it generally will take me more or less an hour to type out a blog post and I really don't want to miss a moment yet. Sorry this is so short because we're going to dinner real soon but hopefully I'll find some time once we move into the dorms where I can just be by myself and type something nice out. Everything is good though and I'm very happy. More details in the coming days I promise.
I made it here and everything so far has been going great. I haven't even really been here for a day and a half yet, but I have enjoyed every moment of it so far - except for a couple minutes ago when I got my first mosquito bite so far. We are currently staying at a resort on the coast until Thursday when we move into the dorms which isn't what I expected but I will enjoy and be grateful for this luxury while it lasts. I took some pictures of the place and the awesome beach it's on (the water is as warm as a pool, but it's the ocean... unreal). I have a lot of observations and first impressions but I don't want to pass judgment yet on anything because we've just been living in this hotel so far. Also, I'm trying to get to know my fellow students in the program and it generally will take me more or less an hour to type out a blog post and I really don't want to miss a moment yet. Sorry this is so short because we're going to dinner real soon but hopefully I'll find some time once we move into the dorms where I can just be by myself and type something nice out. Everything is good though and I'm very happy. More details in the coming days I promise.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
East. Then Middle East. Then East Africa.
People who know me know that I don't like to spend money and that when I do, I keep things pretty cheap. For example, I got an excellent deal on airline tickets to get me to and from Tanzania, saving about $1000 from what the program guide estimated it would cost. I was pretty excited because that was essentially like getting a scholarship which really helped because I wasn't able to get a job this summer. There is, of course, a downside to selecting this option and that would have to be the wait time. I left my parents' house at 4:30 AM on Saturday and that is where I choose to say that I began traveling. After I land in Dar es Salaam, it will still take some time to get to the actual school and I'll count that too so this brings my grand total estimate of time spent traveling up to almost 48 hours. I don't mind the actual flying part of traveling, but the waiting in the airport is what destroys me and I'd say that the 48 is split evenly between actually moving and sitting around. Yikes.
As I write this right now, I'm sitting in the airport in Doha, Qatar where I arrived at 6 PM local time, an hour ahead of our scheduled arrival. My plane for Dar es Salaam (and then I can finally get out of an airport, thank God) starts boarding at 6:45 AM. As you can tell, I have not adjusted to the time or figured out how to sleep well in airport chairs. Every other airport I've been stuck at seems to shut down as it gets late and then starts back up again in the morning, but this place was tame when we first arrived and has had flights leaving almost every five minutes since I got here. Additionally, there is only one terminal for all of these flights to come into, so no matter where you are, you have to listen to all of the announcements for every flight - it's almost nonstop though it seems to be calming down now. It is really cool to see signs in the airport in Arabic and English though and there is also a mosque right in the airport. I took some pictures that I'll put up later, my favorite being the sign that says "No sleeping in the mosque". Of course if I walked by now that would be just about all anyone is doing in there so maybe I'll get another picture of that.
Right next to the mosque is the "Quiet Rooms". I put it in quotations because my actual experience with said rooms would require they be called something else. These rooms have chairs that are have sloped backs like they recline, though they are still just as uncomfortable as normal airport chairs. They don't have lights on in them, but the one of the walls is floor-to-ceiling glass so all of the light from outside it comes in. They also don't have intercoms in them so you are free from listening to the announcements, unless someone peaks in to see if there is an open seat and leaves the door propped open. First of all, it was very difficult for me to even find a seat in there so when I did I thought I made bank and I would just sack out until a little before my flight leaves. Well if the discomfort of the seat didn't prevent me from sleeping for more than 20 minutes at a time, my jet lag did... or maybe it was the guy snoring louder than my dad... or maybe it was the little kids playing around and making noise. To cut this rant short, I didn't really get to sleep much in there and actually got more irritated than before I entered. This is an example of a bad story, but most of my experiences on this trip have been great so far.
The airline I'm flying with is Qatar Airways which I would consider a luxury airline. Even though I was sitting in economy class, each seat still had its own screen to watch shows and movies or listen to music on demand and I ended up watching two indie films ("The Hurt Locker" and "Moon") which I wanted to see back in Eugene and then I fell asleep watching the Simpsons Movie. They served two meals though and both were easily the best airline food I've ever had, hands down. Also, I was near the back of the plane and they didn't fill most of the seats back there so everyone had just about three seats to themselves so I was able to spread out and lay down for a bit. My original plan was to sleep very little on the plane (which happened) so then I would fall asleep here at the airport and get myself accustomed to this time zone. We all know how that turned out as I'm wide awake right now. Whatever. This has still been a positive experience for me.
I haven't even reached my final destination yet and I've already accomplished quite a few firsts. I don't think I've ever been to New York before but my first stop was at JFK International Airport. I didn't actually leave the airport, but I was looking at the public transit maps from the airport and it was really cool to actually see all of the different neighborhoods and districts laid out. I've read so many novels based in New York and seen so many shows/movies too, but to actually see them on a map a few stops away from you on a train is really cool. Also, they're named after a lot of different international cities and I'm sure each definitely has its own culture. I'd really like to spend some time in New York City one day just because I didn't expect to feel like such a small-towner with a dropped jaw when I got there.
Another first for me was flying out over the Atlantic. I bet I've been on planes that have gone out over the ocean to turn around or something before, but it was awesome to actually fly across it. The plane flew far north first along Newfoundland, Greenland, Iceland, Scotland, etc. before cutting across Eastern Europe and Turkey to reach Doha. Although I didn't actually go to this places (I haven't even really been to Doha or NYC), knowing that I was right above them was still a fascinating first for me. I've definitely never been to the Middle East before, but here I am now and tomorrow I'll cross into the Southern Hemisphere for the first time. I'll let you know how the toilets flush later.
I think I've already written a lot more than I wanted to or should have in this post, but I just wanted to let my friends and family know that everything so far is so good. One last piece of good news before I go is that the outlet adapter for my plug isn't frying my laptop and battery right now. Yay!!!
As I write this right now, I'm sitting in the airport in Doha, Qatar where I arrived at 6 PM local time, an hour ahead of our scheduled arrival. My plane for Dar es Salaam (and then I can finally get out of an airport, thank God) starts boarding at 6:45 AM. As you can tell, I have not adjusted to the time or figured out how to sleep well in airport chairs. Every other airport I've been stuck at seems to shut down as it gets late and then starts back up again in the morning, but this place was tame when we first arrived and has had flights leaving almost every five minutes since I got here. Additionally, there is only one terminal for all of these flights to come into, so no matter where you are, you have to listen to all of the announcements for every flight - it's almost nonstop though it seems to be calming down now. It is really cool to see signs in the airport in Arabic and English though and there is also a mosque right in the airport. I took some pictures that I'll put up later, my favorite being the sign that says "No sleeping in the mosque". Of course if I walked by now that would be just about all anyone is doing in there so maybe I'll get another picture of that.
Right next to the mosque is the "Quiet Rooms". I put it in quotations because my actual experience with said rooms would require they be called something else. These rooms have chairs that are have sloped backs like they recline, though they are still just as uncomfortable as normal airport chairs. They don't have lights on in them, but the one of the walls is floor-to-ceiling glass so all of the light from outside it comes in. They also don't have intercoms in them so you are free from listening to the announcements, unless someone peaks in to see if there is an open seat and leaves the door propped open. First of all, it was very difficult for me to even find a seat in there so when I did I thought I made bank and I would just sack out until a little before my flight leaves. Well if the discomfort of the seat didn't prevent me from sleeping for more than 20 minutes at a time, my jet lag did... or maybe it was the guy snoring louder than my dad... or maybe it was the little kids playing around and making noise. To cut this rant short, I didn't really get to sleep much in there and actually got more irritated than before I entered. This is an example of a bad story, but most of my experiences on this trip have been great so far.
The airline I'm flying with is Qatar Airways which I would consider a luxury airline. Even though I was sitting in economy class, each seat still had its own screen to watch shows and movies or listen to music on demand and I ended up watching two indie films ("The Hurt Locker" and "Moon") which I wanted to see back in Eugene and then I fell asleep watching the Simpsons Movie. They served two meals though and both were easily the best airline food I've ever had, hands down. Also, I was near the back of the plane and they didn't fill most of the seats back there so everyone had just about three seats to themselves so I was able to spread out and lay down for a bit. My original plan was to sleep very little on the plane (which happened) so then I would fall asleep here at the airport and get myself accustomed to this time zone. We all know how that turned out as I'm wide awake right now. Whatever. This has still been a positive experience for me.
I haven't even reached my final destination yet and I've already accomplished quite a few firsts. I don't think I've ever been to New York before but my first stop was at JFK International Airport. I didn't actually leave the airport, but I was looking at the public transit maps from the airport and it was really cool to actually see all of the different neighborhoods and districts laid out. I've read so many novels based in New York and seen so many shows/movies too, but to actually see them on a map a few stops away from you on a train is really cool. Also, they're named after a lot of different international cities and I'm sure each definitely has its own culture. I'd really like to spend some time in New York City one day just because I didn't expect to feel like such a small-towner with a dropped jaw when I got there.
Another first for me was flying out over the Atlantic. I bet I've been on planes that have gone out over the ocean to turn around or something before, but it was awesome to actually fly across it. The plane flew far north first along Newfoundland, Greenland, Iceland, Scotland, etc. before cutting across Eastern Europe and Turkey to reach Doha. Although I didn't actually go to this places (I haven't even really been to Doha or NYC), knowing that I was right above them was still a fascinating first for me. I've definitely never been to the Middle East before, but here I am now and tomorrow I'll cross into the Southern Hemisphere for the first time. I'll let you know how the toilets flush later.
I think I've already written a lot more than I wanted to or should have in this post, but I just wanted to let my friends and family know that everything so far is so good. One last piece of good news before I go is that the outlet adapter for my plug isn't frying my laptop and battery right now. Yay!!!
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