Another Week, Another Placement

Happy belated Boxing Day to you and yours!

And Merry Christmas to those of you who celebrated on Monday.

I had a really wonderful long weekend. I spent some time on Kilimanjaro enjoying the breathtaking views and doing some hiking, I ate lunch at the home of a woman from my placement, and, on Boxing Day, I went in to one of the orphanages to play with the kids.

Several of you have mentioned and I'm sure even more of you have noticed that I haven't written much about my placement at the Amani Group. This is primarily because I didn't have a lot of good news to report. In the end, it was a stressful and difficult assignment, and I didn't feel that we accomplished much. As of this past week, I have been assigned to a new placement. It isn't particularly exciting work, but isn't unpleasant, either - a step up.

Here's how a day went at my old placement: leave in van around 7:30 after breakfast, drop off several other volunteers at their placement, arrive at the bottom of the hill around 8:00, bounce and jolt up what many locals consider to be the worst "road" in the area, arrive around 8:15 or 8:30, meet up with Grace (secretary and translator), go to Mama Mollel's house (founder), spend about an hour and a half slowly talking about nothing, meet the women in the office, have a "meeting" with them until about 11:30, start heading down the hill (including walking through a freezing stream), meet the van at the bottom of the hill. Sometimes we went on home visits to the various members. Those days were pretty similar to what I described above except that we brought gifts to the members' homes and spent time there instead of at Mama Mollel's.

It became clear pretty quickly that the group could not agree on any projects because the founder kept blocking the women's ideas. Worse, the founder had stolen hundreds of dollars from these very poor women. We managed to get a few figures from her, and I did some math, and we ended up having to confront her and demand the money, which she has yet to repay. The group has all but disbanded, and I'm trying to help them start another group, which will be primarily a microfinance organization.

Two upsides: 1) the women themselves were wonderful, and I'm so glad to have met them and learned a bit about their lives, and 2) I got quite an education about what these women (and others) face when trying to turn their lives around. I hope to write more about both of these in the future.

I can't believe I only have a week and a half left of the volunteering portion of my trip. It's been such a great learning experience, but I'm also ready to move on.

-Jenna

A Sense of Tanzania

First, Happy Chanuka! (Don't know how to say that in Swahili or Maa.....)

I ran a very successful chanuka party at the home base over the weekend, complete with something resembling potato pancakes, applesauce, jelly doughnuts, candlelighting, a retelling of the chanuka story, and several games of dreidel! People really enjoyed it.

And now back to our regularly scheduled program.

Touched: a teeny kitten who appeared from among the livestock on a homestead, the hand of a 90-year-old Maasai woman who had survived all nine of her children, the damp, red clay of a Chaga tunnel, an hour-long massage ($14), a baby who immediately started crying when he realized he was being held by a white person, the very cold water of the stream I had to walk across every day on the way home from my placement, teeny Maasai beads spread out as I strung them and in the form of finished jewelry, sweltering heat (luckily, a dry heat), many pieces of cloth hanging up in a shop

Smelled: the night air filled with the scent of flowers from a nearby tree in bloom, lots of sweat (warm climate, low use of deodorant), bug spray, diesel and other visible emissions from cars and trucks, a rarely-cleaned squat toilet

Tasted: a fantastically delicious meal at the headquarters of Pete O'Neal (former Black Panther), orange Fanta while on a home visit to one of the members of the women's group, a poolside pina colada at a nearby resort, ugali (stiff, bland cornmeal staple of Tanzania), very unique chanuka food at the home base, a glass of red wine at a nice restaurant

Heard: roosters at 4:30 AM (and almost every other time), vehicles honking at each other either in greeting or in warning, depending on the situation, an English translation at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, a large loud waterfall at the bottom of a beautiful steep ravine, I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas blaring across a local market, muezzins, the stamping feet of Maasai women dancing, dogs fighting at 10:30 every evening, an open air concert including classical, African, and fusion music

Seen: women carrying small suitcases on their heads, a disabled man sitting cross-legged and propelling himself with his arms, a live chicken tied by its feet to the handlebars of a bike, a small mob tying a man to a cart in order to dump him in the river (because he was not clean enough), donkeys carrying sacks and bundles on their backs, streams cutting their deep way through the soil, vans with special names on them ("Domination," "Tokyo Express," God is Great," "Chuchu Trans," "Jesus Power," "Sabra"), fields of maize and beans

Hope everyone is keeping warm.
Kwaheri!
-Jenna

Home Sweet Home

Guess what? I'm about to become a Tanzanian resident. How cool is that? Well, actually I'll only be a temporary resident, but I still like the idea. : )

In honor of the occasion, I thought I'd share a small detail about my new country of residence - the shower routine:

1. Turn on a light to see whether there is any power
2. If no, there will be no hot water, so probably skip the shower
3. If too dirty, either take very cold shower or go down to kitchen to get your bucket filled with hot water. See 8 below, but do all in the dark.
4. If there is electricity, turn on the hot water to see if it's working
5. If no, see 3 above
6. If yes, get towel, flip-flops, etc.
7. If water is hot, use showerhead to wet hair. Let water fill bucket while washing hair. Use showerhead to rinse hair. Let showerhead/faucet continue to fill bucket
8. Use small bucket to wet and wash various parts of body
9. Turn off water when bucket is full (if applicable)
10. Use small bucket to rinse entire body
11. Dry, etc. as usual

It's actually not a bad shower once you get used to it!

I'll post again soon. : )
-Jenna

Tribal Matters

Takwenya! (hello in Maa)

Being in the Maasai region, we see Massai everywhere. Some are obvious in their distinctive red and blue clothing, body piercings, jewelry, and walking sticks. I still do a double take when I see these men (and some women) in the grocery store or the bank. Others, like the women in my placement, blend in more with their surroundings, to some extent by command of the church. These women's families have been Christian for a few generations, and the church is very strict about the consequences of certain traditions. The women clearly identify as Maasai and they speak Maa, the Maasai language, but they've learned to ridicule some of the traditional beliefs.

I had a chance to witness these traditions and hear about these beliefs when I went on a "cultural safari" to a Maasai village about a week ago. The Maasai live in bomas (enclosures) of maybe 30 adults and children, all related to each other in some way. Their huts are small on the outside and surprisingly spacious on the inside, although they're also very smoky. The women and men separately showed us how they dance, and we mzungus joined both groups. I was, of course, the first one to take up their offer! They showed us how to make some simple beaded jewelry; we interviewed the boma's elder; and we played a lot with the children. We learned about their traditional medicine and were glad that we don't have to use it. Everything they use on cuts is apparently excruciatingly painful. We also watched a traditional goat ceremony, which includes eating not only the meat but also the blood because that is the life and the strength of the animal. The Maasai are complete party animals. They get up at the crack of dawn and only eat one meal a day, but they were dancing long after we were asleep.

Cows are sacred to the Maasai. They believe that God gave the tribe all cattle on earth. Because of this, the Maasai have developed a fierce warrior culture to protect themselves against wild animals but also to gain more cows by stealing them from other tribes. You get just as many "points" for stealing a cow as for killing a lion! Needless to say, this has not led to good relations with the neighbors - those who were left...

One region to the east is the area of the Chaga tribe. We were able to see two traditional types of Chaga homes on a field trip last week. In good times, Chagas lived in two story huts, made a lot of banana beer, and tended to their livestock and farms. Husbands had multiple wives and wives had one husband but official "lovers" to ensure plenty of children (insurance) for everyone. Sons live in the mother's house until they're seven, and then they live with their fathers. Daughters stay on until they're married. Our assistant program director lived in this type of household until he was 10, although the model has almost completely died out. One really nice touch is that each homestead has a sacred space surrounded by plants where they carry out lifecycle events, important conversations, meditation, etc.

In adaptation to the Maasai, the Chaga kept their livestock in pens by day and inside the huts by night. Each family also built an elaborate system of tunnels in which they could live (with their livestock) for up to six months if necessary in times of Maasai attacks. The Maasai and Chaga are now at peace, although the Maasai still attach other tribes.

I'm thinking of starting my own tribe. Let me know if you have any suggestions!

Serena (goodnight in Maa),
Jenna

Springtime for Jenna and Tanzania

Habari za leo? (How are you today?)

I think I've failed to mention that it's spring in Tanzania right now. Trees sport new leaves and blossoms, butterflies and flowers are everywhere, and everything is lush and green. Last night I was speaking with someone outside, and I realized the air was full of the most wonderful smell. Everywhere, people are preparing land and planting crops. Almost all of the trees here are unfamiliar, which is not surprising given the extreme difference in climate. Speaking of which, several people have apologized to me for the cold, while we're wearing sandals, t-shirts, and the occasional long-sleeve shirt. They're shocked when I tell them that it's 0 degrees at home!

We're supposed to be in the "short rains" season, but there has actually been a lot of rain. I've assumed that this is related to global warning. North of us, this has led to some serious flooding and displacement; here in Tanzania it's a good thing. There had been a serious drought before and, since the electricity is all hydroelectric, a power shortage as well. The mornings usually start out hazy or cloudy, burning off by late morning. Rains tend to come either in the afternoon or overnight, the afternoon ones not lasting to long. The sun is up pretty much from 6 to 6 (or 0 - 12 in traditional time-telling).

All males, except the Maasai, seem to wear Western clothing, whereas women are split between traditional and Western clothing, some wearing a combination. (As in many non-English speaking countries, t-shirts often say some nonsensical things. For example, on an old businesswoman, "Bank of Dad.") We volunteers were told that women don't wear pants here, but we have actually seen a small but real minority, some even wearing very tight jeans. The women I've spoken to in my placement laughed at the instructions we were given. Schoolchildren's uniforms are all Western. (Uniform, book, and notebook costs lead to a 50-something % enrollment in school.)

On a walk yesterday, my friend and I were joined by an 18-year-old named Jacqueline who wanted to practice her English, and the other day I ended up guiding a 10-year-old through the long process of filling up that day's page of his calendar with the day's events. Students start learning English at 7 or 8, and 8th through 13th grades are taught entirely in English, but somehow a lot of the students don't seem to have learned as much as you would expect. (I have spoken with some English teachers, and their low proficiency is one clue.) Nevertheless, we find it quite easy to get along in English with a few Swahili words thrown in.

Many small children, if not greeting us with "Mzungu" (white person), shout out "Good Morning" regardless of time of day or "How are you?" If we ask them how they are, we realize that they don't know what it means. If we answer them in Swahili, they often get very shy and don't want to answer us. It's very cute! Older children (from about 7 or 8 on) rarely call us mzungu and often say "Shikamoo," the greeting for someone older than you, thus acknowledging us as people rather than novelties.

And that's all the news for today.

Serena (good-bye in Maa)
-Jenna

Springtime for Jenna and Tanzania

Habari za leo? (How are you today?)

I think I've failed to mention that it's spring in Tanzania right now. Trees sport new leaves and blossoms, butterflies and flowers are everywhere, and everything is lush and green. Last night I was speaking with someone outside, and I realized the air was full of the most wonderful smell. Everywhere, people are preparing land and planting crops. Almost all of the trees here are unfamiliar, which is not surprising given the extreme difference in climate. Speaking of which, several people have apologized to me for the cold, while we're wearing sandals, t-shirts, and the occasional long-sleeve shirt. They're shocked when I tell them that it's 0 degrees at home!

We're supposed to be in the "short rains" season, but there has actually been a lot of rain. I've assumed that this is related to global warning. North of us, this has led to some serious flooding and displacement; here in Tanzania it's a good thing. There had been a serious drought before and, since the electricity is all hydroelectric, a power shortage as well. The mornings usually start out hazy or cloudy, burning off by late morning. Rains tend to come either in the afternoon or overnight, the afternoon ones not lasting to long. The sun is up pretty much from 6 to 6 (or 0 - 12 in traditional time-telling).

All males, except the Maasai, seem to wear Western clothing, whereas women are split between traditional and Western clothing, some wearing a combination. (As in many non-English speaking countries, t-shirts often say some nonsensical things. For example, on an old businesswoman, "Bank of Dad.") We volunteers were told that women don't wear pants here, but we have actually seen a small but real minority, some even wearing very tight jeans. The women I've spoken to in my placement laughed at the instructions we were given. Schoolchildren's uniforms are all Western. (Uniform, book, and notebook costs lead to a 50-something % enrollment in school.)

On a walk yesterday, my friend and I were joined by an 18-year-old named Jacqueline who wanted to practice her English, and the other day I ended up guiding a 10-year-old through the long process of filling up that day's page of his calendar with the day's events. Students start learning English at 7 or 8, and 8th through 13th grades are taught entirely in English, but somehow a lot of the students don't seem to have learned as much as you would expect. (I have spoken with some English teachers, and their low proficiency is one clue.) Nevertheless, we find it quite easy to get along in English with a few Swahili words thrown in.

Many small children, if not greeting us with "Mzungu" (white person), shout out "Good Morning" regardless of time of day or "How are you?" If we ask them how they are, we realize that they don't know what it means. If we answer them in Swahili, they often get very shy and don't want to answer us. It's very cute! Older children (from about 7 or 8 on) rarely call us mzungu and often say "Shikamoo," the greeting for someone older than you, thus acknowledging us as people rather than novelties.

And that's all the news for today.

Serena (good-bye in Maa)
-Jenna

Happy International Volunteers' Day

Hamjambo!

In honor of the day, I thought I'd talk about my fellow volunteers and our living conditions here.

Our compound is made up of three buildings which are very close together. The main building was originally a house and includes a living room, the office, and one bedroom. The dining hall has no walls except an internal one separating the kitchen area from the dining area. Two long tables end at a shorter one from which we take the food. The third building is the dorm building. Each floor has three rooms with bathrooms en suite. Each room has two bunkbeds and houses up to four volunteers. The property also has a guardhouse on stilts, a small lawn, and a small area with banana plants. Three tortoises live on our property as well as two birds who have taken to flying at our faces on a regular basis, presumably to defend their nest. Today we built a sort of scarecrow to try to fend them off, but it doesn't seem to have worked. : )

There's not really sufficient storage space for four people in each room, but we manage somehow. We have intermittent electricity, although the generator helps fill in the gaps at certain hours, intermittent hot water, and very little water pressure. There are certain rules that I won't go into regarding how to use the (Western) toilet. The mattresses are very comfortable. Each bed is draped with a large mosquito net even though I have seen almost no mosquitoes anywhere and have only gotten one bite in a week and a half.

Breakfast is at 7ish each day, and those of us who go to our placement by van leave around 7:30. We get back around 12:30, and lunch is at 1ish. The people who have been here for more than three weeks then have free time, and we newbies have classes, field trips, and the like. Dinner's at 6:30 and then there's free time for everyone. Everyone tends to be asleep by 10 or so.

The food is good although not quite as healthy or as varied as I'd like. There's plenty of vegetarian food, especially since we alerted the cook to the fact that there are three vegetarians. Since we're not very active, we're all gaining weight. We've tried to ask for whole wheat bread, oatmeal, etc., and they're trying to be responsive. When we need to do laundry, we either do it ourselves or send it out to local women, who end up charging about $1.50 or so for a small load.

A bunch of volunteers just left over the weekend, and now there are about 20 of us left. Countries of origin range from Switzerland to Australia to Ireland, with the majority coming from the US. Everyone is very friendly and nice to each other. At breakfast we ask each other how we slept and tell each other to have a good day. At dinner we ask how the day was at the placement. It's really a pleasant environment. Most people are in their 20's, but a few are 18, a few are in their late 30's/early 40's, and one is 62.

On Sunday night we sent my roommate to the hospital with terrible symptoms. She was doubled over in pain, dehydrated, moaning... She just came back today. Today we sent my placement partner to the hospital, but they ended up just giving her meds and sending her home. In the recent past, people here have had malaria and pink eye and some bacterial things. They've all been treated well and returned to home base promptly.

Tomorrow we have an all-day field trip, so I'm going to sign off with a salute to my fellow volunteers throughout the world.

Kwaheri,
Jenna

Happy World AIDS Day

Of course, there's not much that is happy about the state of AIDS in the world today, including in Tanzania. Yesterday we visited an AIDS hospice and orphanage. It started out only as a hospice, but they quickly discovered that no-one would take care of the HIV-positive children left behind when the patients died. After we saw the four current patients, we visited the sixteen orphans, who range in age from 1 to 15. They were adorable and so happy to see us. The 1-year-old would not let me put her down and later fell asleep against me. It was almost impossible to imagine that these lively children already harbor the seed of their death: their life expectancy is not more than 17 or 18. What struck me the most was the difference between the caring and love the staff provide and the terribly poor environment in which they operate.

Several of the women in my placement are also HIV-positive. Some of them are open about it, but most keep it secret because of the huge stigma a positive status brings. Most people in the country don't even get tested because of this stigma, despite free testing and free antiretroviral treatment. (They also have free birth control and condoms, and some of the women I spoke with responded with disbelief and pity that people must pay for these things in the States.) The practice of multiple wives, the growing practice of prostitution, traditional beliefs about condoms, and the lack of sanitation in doctors' offices and hospitals also add to the crisis. There is absolutely no coordination of various treatment and education sites. There is, of course, a large community of caring people who spend every day trying to combat all of these obstacles, and those who are discovered to be positive actually get what sounds to my untrained ear like excellent and fairy comprehensive treatment, all things considered.

Today was marked with a parade through downtown Arusha in the morning, a conference in the afternoon, and a gala in the evening.

On a different note, a few things that I've seen since I've been here:
The Sahara, an astoundingly vast and barren expanse
Women carrying impossible things on their heads
A restaurant sign: Masai Restaurant - Italian Food with Pizza
A clerk in a huge supermarket waiting patiently in the dark until the power came back on and she could check out the next customer
Maize, coffee, and other crops growing in neat green rectangles up the side of a mountain
Men carrying large boards covered with merchandise on their backs
A herd of goats crossing the road

Last thing for today: if anyone has questions, feel free to email me, and I'll address them in the next post.

Kwaheri,
Jenna