Pub Grub and Curtseys

What a morning it has been already.  I got a little bit of a later start today since Olaf and I ventured to the Irish Pub yesterday for some good ol’ fashioned pub grub.  He was a little more adventurous than I was and had the Beef Stew.  I did manage to sneak a taste and it wasn’t half bad.  Anyway, more about that in a minute, first I have to tell you about my morning. 

It started quite well.  I lost a game of darts yesterday and so until Sunday I have to greet Olaf with a curtsey when I see him.  Actually quite hilarious and it certainly started the day off on the right foot.  Then we got to spy on the new neighbors who appear to be French (or Belgian or Canadian I suppose but with a French accent).  Not that this is a super sleepy town or anything but it really is the little things that make life exciting J  So the day didn’t really get wonky until I got on the daladala.  Apparently, my daladala had some issues.  Following an exchange between our daladala’s driver and another daladala’s conductor we pulled over.  From the pointing and discussions pertaining to the left hand side of the daladala I’m pretty sure we had gotten a flat tire.  We were lucky and the conductor of the other bus let us on to complete the journey to Mwenge.   It really is never a dull moment on the daladalas. 

When I got to the office we again did not have internet.  Of course, since I managed to upload this, you can see that it wasn’t a serious problem and I now have access to the interweb once more and can keep up with the ongoings in the world.

Today, I’ve continued work on my brochure for FGM.  Not having an advertising background, this is certainly outside my realm of comfort.  However, I am tapping into my artistic side and combining that with my talent for using legalese to put together something that will hopefully draw attention to this truly violating practice.  We also have to come up with a slogan (which is not easy considering FGM is such a horrible practice and slogans are usually fun and catchy.  I mean you can’t use something like “just do it” (Nike) or “have it my way” (Burger King) or “I’m loving it” (McDonalds) for FGM) so if anyone has any ideas, bring it on. 

Back to the Irish Pub.  It was really nice and has a great view of the water and you can actually see Slipway (where I was this weekend) from the outdoor sitting area.  It was a perfect evening weather-wise with hardly any wind or humidity.  The night became infinitely more entertaining when the karaoke started inside.  It’s true what they say, karaoke transcends all boundaries and is truly universal.  Plus, it can put anyone in a good mood.  Anyway, after the Irish Pub I probably should have called it a night but instead we played some darts which led to my demise.  Don’t ask me how we came up with the idea of the loser curtseying (I’m blaming Olaf for that one) but my dart game definitely needs work.  Curtseying has however proven to be a repeated source of humor and so not necessarily a bad thing.

As promised yesterday, I have included herein a picture of my banana stew.  It doesn’t look very appetizing in the picture but it was actually quite tasteful and I recommend it.  It is not sweet but savory since they use unsweet bananas.  As much as my food extravaganza has been both yummy and not so much, today I may take a break from trying something new and just stick with the chips mayai which so far is my favorite.  You never know though, I may still change my mind, the day is young J

Food For Thought

I had forgotten that I had told Emmanuel on Friday that this was going to be the week that I tried new food during lunch.  So no rice this week.  Ugali is the traditional food eaten in Tanzania.  It is a maize product that is cooked until it is cakey and then served in a big ball.  I think it’s highly appropriate to start my food excursion with Ugali.  My general first impression is that it is really filling but absolutely tasteless.  Having a dry, mealy consistency, even dipping it in the sauce it comes with does not really help the situation.  I do suppose that no taste is better than a bad taste.  The fun part about Ugali is that there is a traditional way to eat it.  Having learned the right way to wash my hands before lunch came in really handy.  The traditional way to eat Ugali is with the right hand only and to use only your hand, no utensils.  I’m not gonna lie, it was awesome (but a little difficult since your left hand is not allowed to touch the food at all)!  

Ugali

After lunch the entire office cleared out.  Apparently everyone had appointments outside of the office so I was left all by myself.  Because it is so quiet anyway, I barely noticed.  It is certainly a different atmosphere from where I have worked in the past.  Since everyone had left already, when the internet became temperamental and shut down, I decided it was an omen telling me to leave a little bit early (which is allowed).  So at 4:30 I locked up and left the building.  I grabbed a daladala (the right one this time!!) and was happily surprised that I was the only one on it and so I grabbed a prime spot next to a window right by the door.  Even though the bus was not full and there were plenty of empty seats, a lovely woman came and sat next to me and started talking to me.  This is beyond exciting since even though everyone says mambo or habari to you as you walk down the street, I had yet to have a proper conversation with someone and usually everyone keeps to themselves on the daladalas.  She was a delightful woman named Margaret and works in the Bank of Tanzania and sells cosmetics on the side.  She was very engaging and I almost missed my stop but since this time I had told the conductor where I needed to go, he made sure I got off.  All in all a very pleasant daladala experience and I hope to have many more of those (maybe I should leave work early more often J

So yesterday was my turn to cook and since my repertoire of recipes is not that extensive, spaghetti Bolognese was on the menu.  I went to a new supermarket down the road from the bus-stop and found all the ingredients I needed that I couldn’t get at the vegetable stand around the corner.  With my shopping bags in hand I wandered back to the house.  Olaf invited his colleague, Sunday, who is also a lawyer, to come for dinner so the pressure was on.  Thankfully I kept expectations low!  As luck would have it, as I was trying to boil the water the gas stove ran out of gas (after nearly burning my eyebrows off on ignition).  So no spaghetti.  We did stick with an Italian theme and ordered pizza instead.  Perfect!  We had a wonderful time discussing all types of interesting subjects, including the law, politics, movies, and so much more.  A truly memorable evening (even without my culinary extravaganza!)

Today for lunch I tried chips mayai.  This is an omelet with chips (potato wedges) cooked into it.  This was right up my alley.  Initially I had said I was going to try the banana stew today but now I have to admit I was not quite feeling brave enough for that today so it’ll have to wait until tomorrow.   I also took a picture of this delightful meal as you can see.  Notice how the egg is really white- that's because the yolk in eggs here is really super pale.  Explain that.  There is also a picture of the actual “restaurant” where we have lunch.  Notice the name- Careen Café.  I think that’s kind of appropriate!  My new phrase for today was nina njaa and nime shiba (I am hungry and I am full).  Those are very important for me to know.  Anyone who knows me knows that nina njaa will become a permanent fixture in my vocabulary J

chips mayai



My regular lunch spot



On a side note.  There is some strange bird outside the office that is making a noise very similar to a squishy toy.  Not sure what that’s all about.

Since our internet is still on the fritz this will be a long update.  On the plus side, I do have the pictures uploaded and they are included so you can get a visual of all the lovely food I’m getting to try.  Yesterday I really did cook and although some of the ingredients and I exchanged some profanity, all in all a successful experience.  To my surprise, Olaf had gone to market and bought a ginormous bag of fruit which he intended on juicing in his magnificent juicer- just make sure the waste cup is in position or it can get quite messy.  What I’ve learned from this is that it takes a gazillion pieces of fruit to make a small amount of fantastic juice (so totally worth it!)  We mixed passion fruit, mango and avocado.  Healthy and delicious, I could really get used to this.  When I move out, the juicer may have to go with me!

passion fruit and mango

Yesterday was a quiet evening and we watched Kick Ass.  Now that is a movie I had imagined being completely different.  It was honestly a little disturbing but hugely entertaining.  I actually thought it would be funnier, imagine my surprise.  I won’t ruin it for anyone but again, not for the faint of heart. 

As for plans for the weekend, those are starting to take shape.  Since I have yet to actually go into Dar city center, that is on the list for Saturday.  The thought right now is for me to rent a bike (thank goodness I don’t have to ride Olaf’s again.  I feel sorry for him already that he’ll be riding it!) and ride with Olaf and Sunday to Dar center where we cycle around and then take the ferry to the beach.  Sounds like a pretty good day to me (really anything involving beach is going to be alright with me!)

At work I have been working on a brochure about female genital mutilation (FGM) and have to say that some of the stories you read are so heartbreaking.  The fact that this is done for no other reason than tradition is unfathomable given the psychological and physical damage it does to the victims of FGM.  Tradition is also something that is very difficult to argue with.  I am noticing that much like with religion, tradition is so deeply rooted that the idea of there being something different that might be better is inconceivable. 

Today I finally tried banana stew for lunch, known as ndizi (In my quest to learn Kiswahili I have found that it really is about wrapping your tongue around a lot of consonants you are not used to putting together but end up making very pretty sounds).  It was surprisingly good.  I will post a picture of it tomorrow.  It doesn’t appear very appetizing but in this case looks are deceiving.  I was telling Emmanuel that I ugali was not on the top of my list of favorites and he told me it was all about the sauce and vegetables you eat with it so he told me to have it again somewhere else and I would probably like it better.  So not to be disheartened, I will absolutely try it again (somewhere else).  So far, so good on my excursion into different foods- no weird side-effects (yet). 

I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride my bike...

I finally have some fantastic pictures to show you.  This weekend started out great with Koshuma taking me for a welcome drink at the Golden Tulip.  It was wonderful to get to know one of my coworkers outside of the workplace and I enjoyed it thoroughly (especially since it meant I could stay out after dark J I learned from Koshuma that there is a tribe from the Kilimanjaro area that proudly consumes alcohol all the time (his words, not mine).  Men and women are equally taught to drink and look strangely upon those that don’t.  Sounds like an interesting tribe.  I’m pretty sure I know some folks who would claim to be a part of this tribe! 

Koshuma told me about some must-see places while here in Tanzania and the top of his list is to climb Kilimanjaro.  I do have about 8 days at the end of my work placement and could possibly fit it in.  I’m not sure yet, as it will take substantial training and some investment in proper gear.  However, I would really love the challenge and do hope to do it at some point in my life even if not now.  Stay tuned for the outcome of that one.

So Friday I made it an early night as I had big plans to take the bike down to Slipway and hop on a boat to Bongoyo Island early the next day.  The bike ride went well (although there was substantial saddle soreness as the seat was very unforgiving- not sure how Olaf rides it, especially on the dirt/rock roads) and I made it to Slipway in record time.  I was early for the boat which left at 9:30 am so I had time to look around.  I  wandered around the Slipway and finally put my camera to good use until it was time to leave.  There were only about 10 of us and we took a small boat to a larger boat and about 30 minutes later arrived at the island where we hopped back on the little boat and road ashore.  One of our guests was so enthusiastic he tried to get out when it wasn’t his turn.  He was immediately punished for this as the water was much deeper than he had anticipated and with one leg in the water and one leg in the boat you can imagine the look on his face as his future ability to have children may have been impaired.  Side note- I later noticed that this man had no belly button.  Weird.

The island was more beautiful than I can ever describe in words so for your viewing pleasure, I have added a whole bunch of pictures below.  As soon as I arrived I was able to get a hut and a seat and was thrust a lunch menu and asked what time I wanted to eat.  Having learned that you must always ask what is fresh, I did and was happy to hear it was the crab and lobster.  As you can see from my picture below, I ordered the crab.  I was a happy camper for I’m pretty sure Bongoyo Island is close to paradise.  One of my fellow beach bums approached me as I had camera in hand and told me he had the tip of the day.  He informed me that there was no need to snorkel as there was a pool with all types of marine activity just off to the side.  Since I hadn’t brought my snorkel gear, this was indeed the tip of the day.  I was pleasantly surprised and immediately aware of my loose footing when I saw these gigantic eel-looking fish with what appeared to be very sharp teeth and the very distinct look of hunger in their eyes.  I quickly took the pictures and returned to the safety of my hut.  I have now learned that these are Moray Eels.  I look forward to eating one, granted I’m not eaten first.  Not sure I would have won that fight had I fallen in!

I needed a beach read (of course) and was recommended Zanzibar’s Chest by Aiden Hartley.  So far, I am only halfway but it is a great read and I highly recommend it.  It is a bit graphic at times so not for the faint of heart.  It grippingly describes the hardship and torment this continent has had to endure and is certainly an interesting commentary on colonialism and what followed.

After enjoying a relaxing morning and lunch on Bongoyo Island, I returned to Slipway and was happily surprised to see that the bike was still exactly where I left it (having lived in Amsterdam, I know this is not always the case!)  I went to the supermarket where I had parked the bike to buy some basic necessities, bread, water, etc. and off I went on my bicycle back to the house.  On the way back, traffic was a bit heavier and so I had to use my keen maneuvering skills to avoid any accidents.  Near the end of Kimweri where it gets increasingly busier I have to admit I got off the bike and walked (for my own safety and that of others).  The most shocking part of my day was on the way home when some man in a gigantic SUV (polluter) yelled at me out of his window and called me a crazy a$$.  I didn’t even know they used terms like that here.  I guess on the positive side, he didn’t call me Mzungu and so maybe I am starting to fit in!

View from Slipway

fishernen at low tide

the little boat attached to the bigger boat

heavenly

Moray eels

can you see the teeth?

mmmmm....lunch

it's been a hard week

any which way as long as it's here :)

Slipway

On Sunday Olaf returned from Tanga with wild stories of bat caves and his own bicycle adventure and I have now added Tanga (with a stop in Lushoto) on my list of places to see.  We went to dinner at the mall (they actually have some great restaurants there and we went to one which was made of old ships.  Pretty cool.  Even better, they had Sangria.  Yum.  Then off to see “The Other Guys” a film with Will Ferrell and Marky Mark.  Let’s just say that my new favorite quote (besides the one about Gater and Jimmies- see the movie to know what I’m talking about) is “I am going to climb that anger wall and it is going to be glorious.”  Awesome.

So a great end to a great weekend.  I have to admit though that I have missed my daily meal of rice and am looking forward to a delicious lunch of wali na mboga mboga.   Oh, I almost forgot I promised an update on my accomodation situation.  I still have not found any accommodation and so the search continues.  I am motivated to find something but fear that I have been spoiled by my current place.  I am staying on top of it and have started my own search.   Until next time, enjoy a few snap shots of my current 'hood J

Let's Get Serious For a Minute

Firstly, I would like to wish my mother a happy birthday.  I wish I could be there to celebrate your 49th birthday with you mam!! Hartelijk gefeliciteerd.  Dikke kus en heel veel liefs.  Or as they say in Kiswahili- Happy Birthday!!  As many of you may know already, my mother was born in Dar and I'm sure that is part of the reason I ended up here.  So I should probably thank her for that because so far this has been a fantastic experience (fingers crossed that it continues that way :) 

Tonight I am going to see my other accomodation options and hopefully they will be a little bit better than the one I saw yesterday.  Ocean view definitely does not have the same meaning here as it may in other countries.  It was in the Upanga area which is closer to the center of Dar than where I am staying with Olaf.  It's the same bus though, just a couple of extra stops so I will still be going against the traffic to get to work (which is good since going back to the house I got stuck in it yesterday and it took me 45 minutes to go a distance that would normally take 10 minutes, add on to that a bus crammed full of sweaty people and you have a quite unethereal experience!)

This weekend I am still planning on taking the bicycle to Slipway and then off to Bongoyo Island so I should have lots of pictures to post on Monday.  Since I am not here to just sightsee, it is important to me that I use this outlet as another mechanism to raise awareness.  As you all know by now, I am here to try and assist Children's Dignity Forum in their work related to eradicating child marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM) in Tanzania.  In the process of doing this I have just been handed a fact sheet about children in Tanzania and thought it was important to mention these facts.  These are in addition to the facts I have already listed on this site.

* There are 8 million children living in poverty (NBS and UNICEF)
*1 in 4 girls under 18 has already begun child-bearing (Tanzania Dempgraphic and Health Survey 2004)
*50% of babies are born without skilled attendants (Household Budget Survey 2007; Ministry of Health and Social Welfare)
*445 children under the age of 5 die each DAY of these, 140 are younger than one month old (Calculation is based on Census projections 2010, National Bureau of Statistics and Under-Five Mortality Rate of 29 per 1000 live births reported in Tanzania HIV/AIDS and Malaria Indicator Survey 2007/8)
*25 women die each day during pregnancy or childbirth (Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey 2004)
*Over 2.5 million children are chronically malnourished (Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey 2004)
*In 2010 alone there are expected to be 43,000 child deaths due to malnutrition (TWAWEZA)
*3 out of 5 schools do not have on-site water supply
*9 out of 10 children in rural areas are not enrolled in secondary school
*Over 90% of children under five years of age do not have a birth certificate.

Just a Little Lost

Yesterday my luck with the daledales definitely ran out.  I somehow managed to get on the wrong bus.  Thankfully, I was able to eventually get on the right bus (by jumping off one moving bus and somehow managing to jump on another bus that was also still moving all while asking to make sure that this time I had the right one) and an hour later made it to the correct stop.  Then I somehow managed to get slightly lost on the way back to the house.  All in all, not a good end to the day.  Having already taken the wrong bus (which was due to not knowing that some of the buses have the same beginning and end destinations but different routes) I was a little frazzled since it was very close to getting dark and I must have just spazzed a little as I was taking a new route to the house and somehow managed to completely pass it without realizing.  I did make it in the end.  I knew I was close because I could hear the muslim prayer over the loudspeaker that I hear each morning at 5 a.m. Without a map and only my usually inept sense of direction and instincts I managed to make it without any other problems.

This has renewed my interest in getting to know my way around a little so this weekend I am planning on taking Olaf's bicycle to the Slipway where I can park the bike and take a boat to Bongoyo Island which is supposed to be beautiful and relaxing.  No worries though, if I get lost, I have my keen sense of direction to guide me back (and this time also a map - which doesn't always help since most streets have no name and are not on the map). 

Hopefully, today I will also meet again with my supervisor to have my work plan approved.  This is a big step in the process as it will outline my tasks for the next 12 weeks.  I should also be checking out some accomodations today so hopefully that will result in a new place to stay (not that Olaf's place hasn't been wonderful).  I will certainly update on how that goes.

Since my last blog I have had two of the best meals ever.  The first was Monday evening at a divine fish restaurant where we ordered the seafood sampler.  This was no run of the mill “Red Lobster” sampler and was the perfect end to my first day.  De-lish!  Although it was not a typically authentic experience given that it was a very “western” restaurant that appears to cater to tourists, it is well worth repeating and may become my go-to place to eat if I need a little comfort or just want to relish in the yumminess of the best seafood I’ve had (not to mention the exquisite shoe-string French fries that were perfectly salted)!  The picture didn’t really turn out very well so I’ll definitely return to take a better one.


So day two at the office also went quite well.  I managed to take the daledale (bus) to Mwenge bus stop and then somehow, purely on instinct managed the ten minute walk to work which I had never walked before and also had not mapped out beforehand.  Apparently I am beginning to get my bearings a little.  Once I got to the office I began by reading up on some of the materials they had provided me regarding the Child Act of 2009.  What is very noticeable is how quiet the office is.  No one really talks to one another and if we didn’t have noise from the hallway and the cawing of the black crow on the windowsill it would be eerily quiet.  I made tea for my colleagues and learned that most people here prefer it with lots of sugar as Emma (Emmanuel) chastised me jokingly for forgetting the sugar!  

I went to lunch with Emma at a local food stand where I stayed away from the fish since I didn’t want to have to eat the head but also didn’t want to be rude.  Instead I opted for the meat.  Although the seasoning was great, the meat was interesting (don’t ask me what animal it was, I have no idea) so my lunch consisted mostly of rice!  It only cost me TSh 2,000.00 (roughly 1Euro) for lunch and a bottle of water which I would say is quite reasonable and I definitely got my money’s worth. 



That afternoon I got my very own key to the office (which is a good thing since I was the first one here this morning- no idea how that happened!) and locked up.  After work I walked down to the Mlimani Shopping Center from the office which is about a 10 minute walk or so.   There I met Olaf and we went to the grocery store where they had literally everything you could imagine.  We even managed to find Oreo cookies.  It’s fantastic being in such a modern place one minute and buying vegetables and popcorn at the local venders the next. 

 

My Dar guru and dart champion

Olaf was kind enough to show off his culinary techniques and made a yummy tuna pasta with fresh vegetables that from now on is going to be referred to as Pasta alla Olaf.  My only job was to pour the wine and wouldn’t you know, I managed to miserably fail at that as the box of wine we had purchased had definitely turned.  And yes, it is quite a distinctive taste.  Lesson learned.  The meal was not lost as we had a back-up.  Phew!  Follow that with some apple madeira cake and a game of darts (in which I was completely whooped) and you have a wonderful evening.

Apple Madeira

This morning came much too quickly and for the first time I had a little difficulty getting out of bed.  The cold shower definitely woke me up and I was ready to start the day.  I’m having really good luck with the daledales and it arrived not long after I got to the bus-stop.  Apparently we were close to running out of petrol on the way and so we stopped at a petrol station and filled up before continuing on the journey. 

This morning we didn’t have internet, not because the system was down but because neither Florence nor I knew that we had to flip a switch.  Lesson learned!  I have also learned my lesson from yesterday’s lunch and did not order the meat today.  Since it looks like lunch will be at the same place everyday I need to mix it up.  Today I had just rice.  Tomorrow, I have decided I am going to try one of the fried buns in the glass case.  I think that may be asking for trouble but apparently they’re sweet and they looked fried so how bad can it be?!  In my short time here I have learned that Tanzanians always wash their hands before dinner because they often eat with their hands.  There is either a bucket and spigot or someone comes around with a pitcher, soap and a bucket.  Yesterday I failed to see the spigot and naively washed my hands in the bucket (I knew it was dirty but I didn’t want to be rude).  Apparently no one saw and thankfully I got a spoon with my food or I’m not sure what I would have done.  Today, I used the spigot.  Florence went with me to lunch and since it has been just her and I in the office today I got to know a little more about her.  Apparently she takes care of her three younger sisters because her mother lives in a rural area near Kilimanjaro and she wants to be able to keep an eye on them and make sure they get a proper education.  She is also determined to be a good example to them.  Knowing that money is extremely tight for her, I offered to pay for her lunch.  Best investment ever given that the lunch for both of us including bottled water wasn’t even 2 Euros and I am hoping it opens the door to a possible friendship.



I thought it might be fun to summarize some of the lessons I have learned so far since there seem to be a lot.  Besides the new vocabulary I am learning every day, I am also learning good life and culture lessons which are as follows-



Do not ride a scooter in Dar

Do not buy boxed wine at the Shoprite, especially if it is dusty

Oreos and popcorn make a delicious appetizer



Mystery meat in Dar is truly a mystery

Tanzanians drink their sugar with tea

Always look for a spigot when washing hands before eating and do not use the bucket

I am sure there will be many more lessons to be learned and I will keep posting them here.  One lesson I hope to have learned without putting it into practice is not to drink the water.  Knock on wood, so far so good.





I'm here!

What a whirlwind it has been since I arrived.  I was met at the airport by a friendly taxi driver who is a friend of my supervisor at CDF, Koshuma.  He was very patient as I asked him many questions about the random speedbumps in the middle of a very large road that come without warning and in general about the traffic rules in Tanzania (there are very few).  I did notice that his turn signals were either not working or he just enjoyed signaling by putting his arm out the window and honking at people to let them know he was coming.  All in all, I now see why he had two large gashes in his windshield.  What made the drive one that I will definitely never forget is when we drove by a crowd that had gathered in the left lane (slow lane over here since they drive on the other side) and as we drove past I realized they were all looking at a man’s (or woman’s) partial body and partial skull.  As the driver explained to me- you should not drive a moped in Dar.  Lesson learned.  I will spare you the gory details but I will say that I did not instantly recognize that it was a person.

Having gotten over the shock, I was welcomed to Dar properly by Olaf who kindly opened up his home to me (which is lovely) and is letting me stay with him while I sort out my accommodations (more about that later).  Although I was exhausted, I could not sleep but was wide awake and ready for the day this morning.  After having toast with Nutella (thanks Olaf :) for breakfast, off to work it was.  Since it was my first day I was allowed to arrive a little late.  As it turns out, I had the wrong address (they moved offices) and so we had to go back all the way across town in the opposite direction.  But we did finally make it.  Koshuma met us at the petrol station on the corner with a big welcoming smile.

My first day at the office has certainly been eventful.  Not many people can say they have seen two dead bodies within 12 hours.  I can.  As it turns out, there was a funeral for my colleague, Grace’s, mother who had recently passed away (not in a moped accident).  The services were in an airy Lutheran Church and included us walking by the open casket.  I didn’t want to be rude so I too walked by the casket.  So there you have it.  Two dead bodies in a day.  I believe this counts as my first “out of my element” experience.  Having sat through a wonderful service in Swahili, I now have a full appreciation of just how beautiful the language is and am therefore renewing my pledge to learn more of it.  So far I have learned Mambo (Jambo is what most people think is hello but is actually only used in Kenya) Habire (news?) Kariboo (you’re welcome) poa (cool) and pole (I’m sorry).  All very important words to know.  Not bad for a first day.  Now let’s hope I remember them!

Everyone at CDF was very friendly and welcoming.  I have my own little desk by the door where I will be working when in the office.  I have obtained permission to work from home (or internet café) at times and have also learned that I will be joining them in Mwanza and the Mara region (probably Tarime) to meet some of the girls that are in the programs that CDF has developed to combat child marriage.  In addition to learning about what CDF has accomplished so far (which is quite impressive- I will try and upload the chart they have created to outline their accomplishments and goals if I can get permission) I also learned about a new program they are involved in led by UNICEF.  The Children’s Agenda focuses on addressing politicians and lobbying them to approach decision-making with an eye towards children’s rights and benefits to children.  Basically formulating budgets that include child-oriented funding for things such as education and health care.  Florence is working on this project and has already had four politicians sign declarations that they will focus on children’s issues and bring them to the forefront.  Given that there are general elections in Tanzania in just a few weeks, this is no small task as apparently when they are campaigning politicians are impossible to get a hold of.  I told her she needs to find them when they are in Dar and just bug the crap out of them until they give her ten minutes of their time.  She informed me another organization that is also involved with the Children’s Agenda had successfully used this method. 

As for my role with CDF, that is slowly getting clearer.  After having spoken with Emmanuel and Koshuma at length about what CDF is involved with now and what they might need from an attorney, we developed what I hope will be an achievable project.  In the near foreseeable future I will be helping with the development of a brochure that outlines the law related to female genital mutilation both domestically and internationally and the available mechanisms to protect girls from this horrible but prevalent ritual.  FGM is a new focus that CDF is becoming involved in.  Following their substantial work on child marriage it became apparent that one of the underlying problems of child marriage is FGM and this could not be ignored. 

Hopefully this brochure will take shape quickly as my larger project is the one that really excites me.  So my bigger project is going to be designing a training framework to train young women and men on supporting children with any legal issues they may have.  What they have in mind is developing a service where children can ask questions and get appropriate and proper responses on how they can manage their particular situation.  For instance, take a girl of 12 who is about to undergo FGM.  She does not know what her options and rights are and also does not know where to go to find out.  CDF intends on creating a type of helpline service where these children can go to get responses that will inform them of their rights and the mechanisms available to them to invoke those rights.  My role in this is to design a training framework that will train unqualified people not only how to talk to children but also how to answer any of these questions that might come up.  The difficulty is not only designing such a framework but also in having to anticipate the types of questions that might arise.  Thankfully, CDF was involved with a PEER research program that gathered a lot of information related to what children are concerned about and what they have questions about.  This will help focus the training somewhat.  I’m very excited about this because the plan is to start the program in Tarime and then, if successful, to start a network of these centers where children can go for help.  It may be a lofty goal but as is evidenced by some of their other programs, such as the “girls club”, developing a strong basis will allow it to grow.  The intent is to train a group that will eventually be able to train other groups and thus make a sustainable program that needs less oversight even though it continues to grow.  Like I said, this is a big project!

So after an eventful day at work, it was time to ask about the buses and how to get back to Olaf’s place.  Florence was kind enough to walk me to the bus which I had to run after to catch and off I went.  I knew I had to go to Morocco and so that’s what I told the conductor (not a driver, I was corrected).  I paid my 250 TSH (approximately 13 Euro cents or 17 US cents) and got off at Morocco.  That’s when I was a little lost.  Thankfully I also looked a little lost and so I was asked if I needed help and where I was going.  I found my bearings and made it home (right before dark, which is good because I’m not sure I would’ve found it (made it) otherwise!).  I’m very excited that on my first day I completely managed to make my way around Dar. (also glad there were no dead bodies on the way home :)  Tomorrow I take the bus to work.  We’ll see how well that goes.  One step at a time!  Now it’s off to dinner with Olaf.  He seems to know all the little hotspots for good food so this is bound to be delicious!  Stay tuned, I’m not sure it gets weirder than two bodies in less than two days but you never know!

Countdown Begins

Just five days left before I make my big move to Dar.  All of a sudden time is going very fast and I seem to be moving very slowly!  Although I have started packing, not having a clue what to bring is making it very difficult!  Since this involves taking lots of breaks, I have been able to finish all my thank you cards so far. 

Being told that anything I may forget (because we all know there will be something!) will probably be available has reassured me.  Since it will be the short rainy season when I'm there, I'll definitely need a good raincoat and some sturdy shoes.  check and check.  Mosquito spray is also on the top of my list and has been purchased in high quantity.

On Sunday we had a fundraising party.  We held a proper English Tea with scones and sandwiches and all kinds of other delicious goodies.  I was so busy that I barely had a chance to eat but what I did taste was scrumptious and I'm sure everyone enjoyed it.  The party was in honor of my mother (doesn't she look beautiful :) who is having a milestone birthday, my father who is retiring in a few weeks and my little brother who just graduated college.  They all have such big hearts that they decided to ask people to donate to my trip instead of giving them individual gifts.  So now I can truly say that without the support of my family this all would not have been possible.  I am so grateful for their generosity as well as the generosity of all those who donated.  I had such a fun time speaking to everyone about what awaits me and am excited that they will (hopefully) all follow along on this blog.  It was great to see people who I haven't seen in a very long time.  One guest even brought a very old photo of me which was priceless.  That's it below.  That's me third from the left and my older brother (sorry Thomas :) is the little boy in the red sweater.  So fun and very thoughtful.

Back to plans for my trip.  I've now spoken to Olaf, who lives in Dar, and has very generously offered to let me stay with him for a few days while I sort out my accomodations there.  Although I have the option of having accomodations when I arrive, I think it would be good to see the places before I decide where to stay.  That, and it will be nice to see a familiar face :)  So with that said, I now must continue packing.  Wish me luck!  Any suggestions on what to bring can be posted in the comments and is greatly appreciated!

Visa Granted

Yesterday I got all of my shots at the health department.  A total of four were needed, two in both arms.  Needless to say, my arms both feel like they are about to fall off!  This is necessary as there are still significant health risks in Tanzania and under the premise "better safe than sorry" it is well worth it.  All my questions about possible health risks, including what to look out for (high fever) were answered and overall (except for the shots) it was a pleasant experience.  I also start my malaria pills today and given that some of the side effects include hallucinations as well as some even more severe effects I am hoping not to have any adverse reactions.

After my trip to the health department, I returned to the Tanzanian Consulate to pick up my passport.  For other Dutchies needing a Tanzanian visa- be aware- they do not accept debit/credit cards and are cash only.  As you can see from the picture here, my Visa was approved.  Apparently upon arriving in Tanzania I have to request a residence permit to stay longer than the allotted 90 days allowed under my Visa.  Keep your fingers crossed that this occurs without any problems :)  I will update on the progress of that as it occurs.

I also want to thank everyone who has donated so far.  I am deeply appreciative of all your donations.