Better Late than Never

Since I have received some comments about not including enough information about my work, I thought I’d give you a quick update on what I’ve been doing since completing the brochure on female genital mutilation.  On a side note- the brochure is being translated into Kiswahili which is somewhat of a challenge given that the Kiswahili language is limited in vocabulary and just as the Eskimos may have ten words for snow, English has more words than Kiswahili so finding a way to translate some of the terms is turning out to be quite difficult.  However, to make the brochure accessible to those it is designed to reach, it needs to be in Kiswahili. 

As for my larger project, the training manual for the children’s help center volunteers, last week at work I worked primarily on the ice-breaking and confidence building portions of the training manual.  This was actually a very interesting exercise for me as I think we probably could all use some confidence building every now and then.  I also find that my training as a Guardian ad Litem and Mediator has come in useful here as I recognize that a lot of the tools such as role playing and participant interaction actually cross boundaries and cultures and are therefore also good tools when designing a training manual such as this one.  I had to have a lengthy discussion with my supervisor over who the target volunteers were to be.  This is the first time that there was a noticeable culture difference in our approach to this project.  My supervisor was suggesting that girls as young as 12 could work as volunteers at the help center.  Although I agreed that if they were victims themselves that this would certainly make them able to connect to the victims that would be seeking help, I did raise the point that at that age, although they may seem quite adult due to the fact that they have probably seen more hardship than most people see in a lifetime, it is not fair to make them have to process the hardship of others too.  Furthermore, given that they will be taught the law and part of their job as a volunteer is to advise the children seeking help on their options, they have to be able to process and make decisions quickly and effectively and it is my opinion that at 12 you are not able to do this.  As I said, this appears to be a cultural difference as where I am from, we want to protect our children from as much as we can (I dare say that few of us would want out young children to know about FGM or some of the other horrors out there) and it appears that here, because you cannot protect them you must teach them.  I have a hard time reading some of the stories of these young girls so I cannot imagine as a young child having to listen to these stories over and over as a volunteer with this program.  We agreed that some of the information being handled would probably be too technical for young children and settled on the fact that 16 may be a good starting age but that the volunteers would have to be screened to make sure they have reached the maturity necessary to deal with the very sensitive subject-matters they will be dealing with. 

This week I am going to face a bit more of a challenge when it comes to work as I am focusing on the communication aspect of the manual.  Given that the trainees will be speaking primarily to victimized children the training should really cater to that.  Given that I am by no means a specialist in this area, this is a daunting task.  It does help somewhat that the constrictions that exist in the legal system that I was trained in do not exist to the same extent here with regards to interacting with children who have been victimized.  In speaking with my supervisor about this portion of the manual I did indicate it would probably be a good idea to have a child psychologist involved to give some advice on this part of the project. 

Work aside, I promised on Friday that I would give a rundown of my weekend today.  It was fantastic.  Although I didn’t make it to the wedding on Friday, I did manage to have Florence at work henna my nails for me just like hers and Grace’s.  As you can see from the picture, only half the nail is actually covered.  It looks really cool in person, I’m not sure if the picture does it justice.  It also does not chip.  It was a really bonding experience and I think I am finally starting to get a little closer to some of my coworkers.  Although I was a little disappointed not to make it to the wedding, I did have a wonderful time at Kipipeo Beach and had a truly local experience at the Tanzania v. Morocco football match.  Kipipeo Beach is a ferry ride away from Dar es Salaam and is maybe 9 km outside the city.  Once you get there you feel like you’re in a different world.  I stayed in one of their bandas (Kiswahili for hut) which is made from predominantly local materials and is very eco-friendly.  The bandas are located a little behind the beach in a completely secluded wooded area and when you’re in them you feel like you are completely alone in the world.  A truly mesmerizing feeling.  They are extremely simple; there is a bathroom downstairs and upstairs is just a plain open room with a beautiful balcony with a hammock.  The place is very open and with the sea breeze blowing through, it stays a perfect temperature all day and night.  It is so quiet that you can hear the ocean.  It helped that it was a relatively quiet weekend and the bandas around mine were empty!

On Saturday we went to the Tanzania v. Morocco football match.  It was a shame that Tanzania lost but the atmosphere was really great.  The stadium was packed.  Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium holds 60,000 people and it appeared pretty full to me.  Interesting bit of random information- the stadium was predominantly funded by the Chinese government who paid more than half of the 56.4 billion TZS it cost to build the stadium.  You would think with that kind of investment that they would have functioning bathrooms.  Since I’d spent the morning at the beach, I had drank a lot of water.  Normally, this would be a good thing, except when you are at the Tanzanian National Stadium and the toilets do not have a seat.  Instead it is a hole in the ground and you pee standing up, just like the fellas.  I’ve never had to go so bad and not want to go so bad in my life!  I have now officially opened myself up to all kinds of new experiences given that this is the first time I have actually peed standing up (hovering over the toilet in a skeevy bar is not quite the same).  The picture is not super clear, but I think you get the idea.  Had there not been a tremendously long queue to get out of the stadium, I would’ve made it. 

After the game, Olaf’s colleagues from Finca invited us to go to a local bar, Jollies, for some food and drinks.  As we sat in the back of the pick-up truck Sule and Mussa took the time to explain local football to me.  This started after they took a picture with the head coach of the Young Africans football club who happened to be wandering around the parking lot after the game.  Mussa wanted to make it clear to me that he was not a Young Africans supporter but that he just wanted a picture with the guy because, well, he’s famous.  You see, Mussa is a Simba fan, and Simba is a big rival of Young Africans.  As the debate between Mussa and Sule went on they decided I would be the deciding vote.  I told them I could not decide without watching each team play.  Hopefully, this will mean many more football matches will be watched with Sule and Mussa (as well as Gershom, Mike and Olaf) because I had a truly fantastic time and am very much looking forward to choosing a local team to root for. 

As I said, the game was such a great experience.  We got to sit super close to the action even though we were a little bit late.  Although we were late, we did not miss the national anthems.  Usually these are played before the beginning of the game, turns out that for the second time in a row there was a glitch with the sound system and they could not play the anthems at the beginning of the match and instead played them just before the second half.  Lucky for me because I got to hear the Tanzanian national anthem being sung by 50,000 Tanzanians. 

As with the last Tanzanian football match, the President was in attendance.  Very important, especially now, since the elections are at the end of the month.  My understanding is that CCM is the favorite and that Jakaya Kikwete will win once more.  At least in Dar it is clear that he has devoted much time and effort (money) to campaigning.  His face is everywhere which is noticeable mostly because you see very few posters or billboards for the opposition.  I guess we’ll know soon enough if it worked.  As for the debate of which is better, Simba or Young Africans, that remains to be determined J

my  banda at the kipipeo beach village

There were lots of navy personnel on the beach, not sure what country they were from though

seriously comfortable, seriously difficult to get out of

the view from my bed

my banda

Kipipeo Beach

Kipipeo Beach

This picture does not do it justice, the water was so beautiful, clear and blue

View from the ferry

View of Dar from the ferry

Tanzania is in blue, Morocco in red

Olaf and I at the game

Sula, Mussa, Gershom, Mike and Olaf at the game

Sule and Mussa with the coach of African Youth

Alfred and Twaha with the coach from African Youth

Mussa, Sule and I in the back of the pick up truck



My henna-ed hands





the infamous toilet in the floor