Getting to Know Arusha

June 26, 2008

**FYI** I just wanted to let you guys know that due to my very sparse internet time, I write my blogs into a Word Document and then copy and paste it into my blog. So the times and dates written on my blogs are not going to line up with the time that I actually posted it. I have no internet access at the hotel and we're hardly at the Center - and even when we are there, we're in class, so there's really not much time. I'm actually writing this from an internet cafe in town and have to leave pretty soon because we're going on a hike at Sundance Lodge in a little while.

Anyways, onto the blog!

It’s been quite the couple of days!

On our first day, we were picked up in the dola-dolas (I have no idea if I’m spelling that right) which are like public busses, except they are more like shuttles or large vans. They are easily recognized by often piling 25 people into a 16-seat vehicle, manned by erratic drivers and their crazy assistants whose job is to yell out the window to ask if you want a ride, and often have famous American rappers or NBA teams advertised by being painted all over the windows (see me and Ludacris posing together below). The dola-dolas are really intimidating to ride in, especially since they don’t speak English or have set fares, and so they literally shake a fist full of change in your face when they want you to pay. There are routes (sort of…) but they’re really hard to follow and not really designated. And there’s definitely no schedule or designated stops like there are for public transportation in America. However, it only costs about 25 cents a ride (300 shillings) so I guess it’s a pretty good deal, as well as quite the overall experience.

We were taken to the Nyerere Center for Peace Research of Arcadia University, which is where we will have our classes and lectures. The first two days have been Orientation, so we have had lectures in the morning (on Wednesday, it was a general program orientation and on Thursday it was a 3 hour Swahili Language lesson). In the afternoons, a group of young people (all around our age) from the Arusha chapter of Miracle Corners of Tanzania (MCT) came and took us out into the city in order to get more acquainted. MCT is a non-profit which was established to teach the youth of Tanzania English and basic computer skills, both of which they are awarded certificates at the end of their program. They also have the Perfect Youth Group (PYG) which puts on plays, does traditional Tanzanian singing and dancing, and performs with drums and other instruments.

The first afternoon, we wandered around the city with our guide, Brian, helping us to find the bank, post office, market, and other useful places for the next month. He also took us to lunch – which was an experience in itself. The diet of Arushans mostly consists of rice or chips (like French fries) with meat (usually beef, maybe pork) or roasted chicken. They also have beans and spinach for the sides. At all of the restaurants, these are basically the only options, as well as fresh fruit. However, we can only eat the fruit with thick skins – so plantains, watermelon, oranges, papaya, mangoes and pineapples have been our fruit option. I have pretty much eaten rice at every meal, except breakfast, and have come to the conclusion that by the time this trip is over, I will have eaten more rice in a month than I have in my entire life before this. It’s really filling and really cheap – and it’s becoming obvious to me why it’s such a staple in many parts of the developing world. Brian also took us to a little area slightly more outside the city where it was a bit more rural. There were cornfields, homes, and a school. It was absolutely beautiful, and my favorite part of the day. I can’t wait to go on our nature hikes and our safari in the coming weeks – the countryside is so beautiful and it will be nice to get out of the city – it’s quite smoggy and dirty.

The second afternoon, on Thursday, they took us over to MCT after lunch. It was such a great afternoon – we introduced ourselves in our broken Swahili to the students in English class (“Jambo! Mimi ni Caroline. Ninatoka Merikani, jimbo la North Carolina”) and then they introduced themselves in English. Needless to say, they were much better than us. After that, we got a tour of their quaint facility and then they took us outside for their show. They performed two skits and then did three traditional song and dance performances, with two drum players, one xylophone player, and everyone wearing the traditional clothing. It was soooo good! I want to take African dance classes now. I’m on a mission to find some when I get back to California.

The most endearing part of the afternoon was that all the little children from the neighborhood came running over to watch the show. We put them on our laps so they could see better and they LOVED our digital cameras – always wanting us to take pictures and then show them on the playback screen how it turned out. We taught them handshakes (and they taught us a few) and had so much fun with them. As my roommate and I were talking about, it’s funny how even though we couldn’t verbally communicate, that didn’t matter at all. We were able to have such a good time playing with them without that being a problem.

Shifting gears to some reflection, it’s funny the things that you don’t appreciate or notice in America that suddenly you miss once you don’t have. I have been feeling that way about a few things over the past couple of days.

Things I miss about America:

1. Crosswalks, Stoplights and Stop Signs
1. Oh. My. God. These things literally do NOT exist in Tanzania. At all. It’s a free for all on those roads – and to make it worse for us Americans, they drive on the left side of the road thanks to the British having control over Tanzania until the early 1960’s. Crossing the street is waiting for a break and then just booking it, hoping a pineapple cart or Land Rover won’t hit you. But there are so many people that it’s not that dangerous because everyone is doing it all the time. However, I still miss those basic traffic laws…
2. Western-style toilets
1. Okay, so I’m not completely ignorant and I knew that I might have to encounter some holes in the ground, but I thought that was going to be out in the villages. Not the case. At the restaurant on our first day of lunch, I went to find the restroom (or “choo” which means “toilet”). When I walked in the door, I thought I had stepped into the Janitor’s closet or something… because there was no toilet. I kept gazing around confused until finally I spotted a porcelain hole in the ground filled with mysterious fluids. I gasped and ran out of the bathroom. I wasn’t prepared for that. You think you are, until you’re face-to-face with the impending act of squatting, and suddenly, it’s a whole other ballgame.
3. Proper signage
1. This may sound weird, but there are no street signs and no safety signs. For example, there are huge potholes and other holes in the ground, all over the place. But there is literally no kind of signage or grates put up at all. You used to hate those orange cones or blocked off areas on the sidewalk, thinking they’re a nuisance, but then you come to appreciate them as you almost break your ankle in a gaping gorge in the walking path.
4. Unlimited Hot Water

Yeah, I knew that might be an issue – but I still miss it.

But there are some definite advantages that must be duly noted.

Things I love about Tanzania:

1. CHEAP EVERYTHING
1. Let me start by being kind of shallow - There’s a nice bar across the street that about 12 of us went to the other night – the Backpacker’s Lounge. It’s a western tourist haven. There’s a TV, free internet, it’s nicely decorated, western toilets, and guess what… cheap booze! Well, it’s expensive for Tanzania standards, since it’s a tourist bar, but $2.00 beer and $2.50 glasses of wine are just fine with me. We also got some really good toilet paper at a fabulous place across the way called Shop-Rite for only 30 cents a roll. Hot damn.
2. The Music
1. They play music everywhere and it’s my favorite kinds of music – as many of you know, I love hip-hop. Not only do I hear a lot of Chris Brown, Ludacris, Jay-Z, Sean Kingston and Beyounce everywhere I go, I also hear fantastic reggae and African hip-hip music playing intermittent with the American hip-hop. And I LOVE it.
3. The Kindness of the People
1. So, they have a saying here which is “T.I.A.” which means “This is Africa.” Basically, whenever things are shady or kind of go wrong, people just shrug and say TIA. So, while you do have to guard your bag at all times and lock up many of your belongings in the hotel, you have to remember TIA.

Other than those people (which exist in every country, no matter where you go) I have found that people here are generally more kind and welcoming. As we learned in our Swahili lesson, people will constantly greet you by saying “Jambo” or “Habari” on the street – and it’s taken very rudely if you don’t answer. There is a guy in our group from Dar es Salaam, the capital of Tanzania, and so he is helping all of us with our Swahili, including the slang. We’re now able to say “Mambo”, the slang for hello, and then respond “poa” which means “cool.” It’s so funny because people will say hello to us on the streets, just because we’re American, and they also laugh when we turn around and yell “poa!” I like that general friendliness. There’s still a bit of it left in the South, but being in Southern California for the past three years, I have sorely missed that hospitality and general kindness. Adding to that, one of the more poignant moments of my trip so far came when our tour guide Brian was showing us around town on the second afternoon. He had to basically order all of our food and handle our bill at the restaurant because there are no menus and they didn’t speak any English. Afterwards, I thanked him for having to help us so much. And he responded, in rough English, “no problem. We are all human beings. We all have hearts.” So simple, but so moving. I feel like that is Tanzania wrapped up into just a few words. I wish the whole world thought that way.

Anyways, that’s all for tonight So, with that, kwa heri! (Good night).