Almost to an End

I cannot believe that my trip is almost over.  It has really flown by.  Tomorrow my brother comes and in just over two weeks I'll be back in Holland.  I hear it's cold there-I've stopped complaining about the heat in anticipation of the cold which I'm sure is much worse! 

This weekend we went back to Kipipeo to spend some time on the beach but mostly to go kayaking which was another excellent excursion.  We spent just under 3 hours kayaking along the ocean and past mangroves that felt slightly eery but beautiful at the same time.  There were many obstacles such as the tide dragging us in the opposite direction, low hanging branches and sand banks but we managed to avoid most of them successfully.  Tandem-kayaking is definitely a team building exercise and it takes finding a good rhythm to really get going.  I had never been but am amazed at how quickly I caught on (yep- I'm tooting my own horn :)  Once we got into a groove it was pretty smooth sailing, that is except for when a jumping fish jumped right into Olaf's pants.  From my point of view in the front (away from the slimy fish, it was quite funny, but for him, not knowing initially what it was (it could have been a snake) it was a pretty daunting experience.  Definitely laughed about that one after the fact though.  Basically, I would say kayaking is recommendable to anyone interested in doing a little physical activity while still enjoying the beach/mangroves.

The evening before kayaking we had gone to another hotel to make sure that my Christmas reservation was received and when we got there we were invited to watch a turtle hatching.  This is extraordinarily lucky so of course we stayed to watch this.  And wow, what a sight.  All these super cute little turtles hatching and wandering about somewhat sleepily at first as they make their way to the water.  A really special sight to see.  I wish I had pictures but we forgot the camera.  I guess you'll just have to come visit and see it for yourself (if you're lucky)!  The turtle hatching is somewhat unpredictable.  Although there are conservationists who protect and observe the turtles, just like humans, they are on their own schedule and predicting when they might hatch is a matter of watching and waiting near the end of the cycle.  I couldn't believe our luck.  Many people come just to see it and never do and here we were just dropping by and got to watch this awesome event!

If the rest of my stay here is even remotely as special as my time here has been so far then I know I will end my 3 months here on a definite high note.  I hope to update in the next two weeks but may not have a chance.  I will definitely update when I get back.  For now, just in case I do not get another chance- Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everybody!!  Thank you all for your support.

A traditional ceremony to scare off evil spirits

Finally, As Promised, Pictures of Lushoto/Mkuzi

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Colobus monkey



At the edge of the world

not sure what I'm pointing at



does it get any better?



We stood right there

Our mid-day snack

This cow fell off the side and its owner couldn't get it back up

people

Amazing views

More amazing views

Clouds, but no rain, absolutely perfect weather

We also stood right there

Collapsed his own house to make red-clay bricks

Passion fruit flower

Chameleon

Being attacked by sugarcane plants

Our awesome guide Peter

Walking to the water to do laundry

So beautiful

Doing the laundry by the waterfall

And a little fishing to pass the time

Another chameleon- I touched it!

Just along the road

Two little ladies, lots of 'tude

Kiboko, our swiss host

Swiss Farm Cottage

Pretend picking tea leaves at the tea plantation

A-mazing :)

My driving was stalled by an obstacle- a wayward cow

Wow

That's one of the roads we drove on

More obstacles.

It's like a postcard :)



Here are the pictures of the Lushoto/Mkuzi trip.  As you can tell, I finally have internet again at the office (and power- all on the same day, it’s a miracle)

Finally I get a taste of the real “African experience”.  As you know we have not had power in the office regularly for about two weeks now.  Luckily we usually have power at home and have always had power at home at night.  That is, until yesterday.  Yesterday the power went off at the office just after four.  When I got home around 5 the power was off at home too.  No big deal since it usually comes back on again.  And it did this time as well.  Around 6 or so it came back on so I went to the supermarket to get dinner and when I got back pitch blackness greeted me.  I could hear the generator next door going and knew the power was out again.  This outage lasted all night and this morning when we left for work there was still no electricity. 

When it rains it pours or so they say.  It did rain last night, which was actually a blessing because it cooled everything down just a teeny tiny bit.  The bad news was that this weekend we had no water from the main so we were unable to fill up the tank.  Yesterday, we ran out of water so I was really glad when the water from the main was trickling at least a little bit into the tank.  At least we could shower.  Then I was reminded that without electricity, the pump would not work so it was all just a pipe dream and the shower would not be happening.  So this morning I had my first bucket shower.  It actually sounds a lot worse than it is.  I guess when you’ve been sweating all night long, a shower, bucket or otherwise is a welcome event. 

I’m currently in my last week of work because next Tuesday my brother is arriving.  I’m very excited to show him around and we have lots of fun things planned during his stay.  It’ll be a whirlwind but fantastic fun, I’m sure.  I’m also really excited to see a familiar face and to have a family member here.  Olaf and I are finally going to get to go to the Selous.  We were going to do a test run of it before my brother arrived but never got around to it.  We will also be going to Zanzibar and I will definitely be showing him all around Dar (although not the most exciting part of Tanzania, it’ll be fun showing him where I work and how I’ve been living here).   

Power outages some more and Sinterklaas goodies galore

So I know I promised to post pictures of the trip to Lushoto and Mkuzi but we still don’t have internet at the office.  I apologize to all the people whose emails I have not been able to respond to yet.  I will get to it as soon as I have a consistent connection.  Although I have been assured that the bill has been paid, it is impossible to tell since the power has been out in half the office the entire week and all the office half the week.  The half that is working right now can hardly be called half since it is two sockets and one fan.  This means no A/C and no internet and it means that we are all risking our lives hooking all the computers and printers up to the two functioning sockets.  It is like an electrical nightmare in the middle of a burning inferno.  It appears that they are rationing the electricity and this is apparently quite normal as no one is too surprised by it.  I think most people were surprised that we didn’t have more in September and October but now that elections are over, it all kind of makes sense.  It amazes me because they do not have a back-up plan when the power goes out.  When the power goes out I usually continue working on my laptop at the office until the battery dies at which time I go back home to finish working there if there’s power there (which it also a crap-shot since our area is also rationed but not usually at the same time as the office which is good).  I wondered what those working on desktop computers would be doing and I was surprised as they were still staring at their screen even though there was no power.  What I have learned is that they simply sit there and wait.  They don’t even pretend to be busy, for several hours, until someone brings up the idea to go home.  In the meantime they’ve texted all their friends a hundred times and read the paper cover to cover.  I feel almost bad for them for having to sit there waiting which must be extremely boring.  I did ask why we don’t have a generator since the hospital (in which we occupy an office on the top floor- no need to remind you that hot air rises) has one and I figured it would be big enough for the entire building.  I was told that the hospital indeed has a generator that we are even permitted to use for a small contribution.  This seems reasonable enough to me, especially given the frequency with which the power outages are hitting during working hours and the loss of production this clearly causes, however, this is not so apparent to the coordinator and so we do not contribute and do not get to enjoy the use of the generator.

Anyway, as frustrating as this is, I am getting used to the routine and have saved some money by being able to eat lunch at home.  This has also been a welcome break from the chips mayai and wali I’ve been having for lunch interchangeably until now.  It also helps my productivity as it gets extremely hot in the office in the afternoon even with the A/C and I have learned that my brain begins to fizzle a bit in extreme heat.  Although we don’t have A/C at home we do have a very powerful fan that I can position myself under while sitting in extremely airy clothing, something I cannot do at the office. 

I have been working on the brochures for the organization itself and for the child marriage campaign.  I have decided that all the brochures should have a common design element so that people can recognize them as the work of CDF.  Since the logo for the organization has the colors blue and pink in it the coordinator requested that these colors be represented in the brochure somewhere.  This is not an easy task as pink and blue can quickly make something look like a birth announcement and is difficult to make look serious, however, by using darker tones of the colors and some more modern designs, I think I have managed to make the colors the design element that flows through all the brochures.

In the meantime, I have also finished the book, "Do They Hear You When You Cry" and was very impressed by the story (not so much by the writing).  It is very simply written so an easy read and an important story.  I'm sure I should have liked it more because the story included a lot of the legal issues that surround FGM and asylum but there was just something missing.  I really can't explain what it was but the emotion just didn't really seem to be there.  Perhaps this is a cultural difference between the narrator (author) and myself but I felt very disconnected from her.  Anyway, still a worthwhile read, just to understand the progress made in the campaign to end FGM and to recognize it as a human rights issue.

On a happier note, to all my Dutch family and friends- veel plezier met Sinterklaas!!  and thanks to my mam who sent me a gift box with pepernoten, marzipan and chocolate letters in honor of the celebration.  They arrived just in time and will be heartily consumed this weekend :)  It's always nice to have a little bit of home when you're far away.  I am shocked by how well the mail appears to work (although I do have to have it sent to Olaf's office because there are really no physical addresses and most people simply have P.O. Boxes because buildings mostly go by plot numbers and I've never actually seen a postman).

A Relaxing Weekend in the Mountains

This weekend can only be described as amazing.  Everything from the drive up to the drive back to Dar was mind-blowingly fantastic!  I will definitely be repeating this experience again.  So now that I Have your attention, I’m sure you’re wondering what I did this weekend.  This weekend Olaf and I went to Mkuzi, near Lushoto, which is in the Usumbara Mountains, a beautiful mountain range where we were able to hike around in cool, crisp air.  Not only because we were at 1700 meters was it pretty close to heaven.

We stayed at the Swiss Farm Cottage which is owned and run be Sepp, a great big Swiss man with an appetite for food and life the size of Tanzania and a personality to match.  He was extremely hospitable to us and took excellent care of two very exhausted city-slickers who were much in need of a relaxing weekend in the mountains.  His cooking is phenomenal and, best of all, reminds a little of home as it is home-cooking at its best, from the pork-chops to the goulash to the home-grown vegetables used.  After a long day of hiking, having a delicious meal made by Sepp waiting for you is sure to revitalize you for the next hike!  Understandably, I sound like a walking advertisement for this place.  Truth is, we only discovered it slightly by accident as Sepp (or as everyone here calls him, Kiboko- meaning Hippo) has only recently taken over the place and completely revitalized it.  It’s not in any of the guidebooks, although it definitely should be.

Anyway, back to our little slice of Switzerland in the middle of Tanzania.  We left on Friday and naturally the Dar traffic made us somewhat behind schedule.  It is about a 5 hour drive, however, it took us close to 6 ½ to get there.  Not to worry, we had plenty to eat and drink and lots of good music to entertain us along the way.  Not only that but the drive up, once you get the Usambara Mountains in view, is so breath-taking you’ll hardly notice the rest of the trip.  I drove some of the way (Olaf apparently likes to live dangerously!) and I learned some new Dar driving rules.  When a bus is trying to overtake a truck coming towards you, move out of the way- playing chicken with a bus is never a good idea.  When the road is not clear to pass the truck in front of you will sometimes turn his right blinker on, then when it is clear to go, he will turn on his left blinker.  This is enormously helpful given that the roads can be windy and traffic slow.  This and the fact that lots of the dala dalas and private vehicles don’t have any break lights (that is not an exaggeration, there are probably more without than with) and the endless random speed-bumps make for a somewhat exhausting drive.  We arrived at the farm having already placed our dinner order as Kiboko takes his food very seriously and you have to order dinner in the morning as some dishes take all day to prepare.  He also maintained contact with us through text to make sure we didn’t get lost or have any problems.  Truly a generous and considerate thing to do which was much appreciated.

We were warmly welcomed and since we were the only ones staying in the cabin, we had the whole place to ourselves- including the fireplace which was immediately lit because it is cold up there.  In fact, I would say the temperature in Mkuzi is perfect.  Not too hot, but sunny during the day and crisp and cool at night- perfect hiking weather.  It also means there are no mosquitoes (which means no fighting with the mosquito net) and that you can sleep with the window open.  Kiboko joined us after dinner for a drink and to discuss some of the Tanzanian idiosyncrasies.  It was really nice to commiserate with someone who has been here going on 30 years and still can share the same frustrations (apparently they don’t go away).  We also learned about his carpentry shop (everything in the cabins made from wood was handcrafted in his woodwork shop) and discussed the hikes we would be making while there.  Such an extremely personable man with a huge personality (to match his huge belly).

On Saturday we met our guide, Peter, who, besides being a guide, is a carpenter working for Kiboko but also has his own shop.  We were planning a day trip that would include Yogio Point and Irente Point with a stop for lunch at Irente Farm.  Peter and Olaf and I quickly built up a strong rapport and we talked him into taking us down some new paths (not that it took a lot to convince him, he was as excited about it as we were!)  Peter was extremely nice and had an immense vault of information about the Usambara Mountains, but also just in general.  He was very generous with his time and took us to some amazing spots along the way.  He even managed to point out some colobus monkeys (twice) which is rare.  We were incredibly lucky to have Peter guiding the way. 

I do not feel that I can accurately describe the beauty of these mountains.  The pictures will have to do that.  We could see for miles and miles from the peaks we reached and it felt like you were on the edge of the world.  Taking new (at least for us and Peter) routes only made it more fascinating and exciting.  We didn’t stop for lunch until almost 4 pm but didn’t feel hungry.  That is, until we got our food.  Irente Farm is a non-profit farm that makes delicious cheese, yogurt and many other dairy products, as well as fruit jams, muesli and bread.  All home-made, all delicious.  These are all very high commodities in Dar where cheese is imported and super expensive, as is yogurt and don’t even talk about sour cream.  As you can imagine, after finishing lunch, we stocked up.  Kiboko had asked us to bring him some cheese as well so we bought all they had and loaded up the back-pack.  Olaf is training to climb Mount Kili so it was good practice to carry that heavy load! 

We arrived back at the lodge just as it was getting dark and Kiboko was so disappointed as he was very excited to show us property, which includes half a mountain apparently.  We were a little disappointed too as the views from the cottage seemed amazing and it would’ve been nice to get a tour (don’t worry, we managed to squeeze one in before we left on Sunday).  However, exhaustion was starting to hit so we returned to the cottage for a hot shower and a seat by the fireplace.  Dinner was served promptly at 8 as requested and was brought to our cabin which has a really nice dining area.  Let’s just say, the mashed potatoes were incredible and the only thing that could beat them was the fantastic vegetable medley that we got with it.  I’m salivating just thinking about it!  True home-style cooking is sorely missed and I am definitely looking forward to my mom’s cooking again! 

Kiboko kindly allowed us to store our dairy products in his fridge and even let us freeze our cooler packs so that we could safely transport our goodies back to Dar on Sunday.  As you can imagine, Saturday was an early night.  Kiboko kindly brought us some hot chocolate (the real stuff not the sugar and milk they give you in Dar where it’s too hot to drink it anyway).  We hiked for about 6 ½ hours that day and that will wipe you out.  I was surprised to discover on Sunday that I had no muscle aches and that I was ready for another day of hiking.  Peter was ready too and we got an early start since we needed to leave on time to make it back to Dar.  We went to the Mkuzi waterfalls, taking the long route (because that’s just how we roll).  There we relaxed for a little bit as we watched a group of boys/young men do their washing and fish with a stick and some string.  Whereas the day before we visited some of the peaks, on Sunday we walked through parts of the rainforest.  It is so lush and alive, the complete opposite to Dar which is hot and dusty and very, very dry.  Again, I cannot do it justice by simply describing it and hope the pictures give you a better idea of the environment.  We were lucky enough to see another colobus monkey (some people come for a week with the special purpose of seeing one and don’t get to, so we feel extremely lucky- of course, they are super fast so the pictures are a little blurry) and we managed to curb our hunger by eating some berries Peter found.

Peter, being a wealth of knowledge, kept us entertained with stories of Mbega, the first Shambaa King and was even able to explain why a passion fruit is called a passion fruit (it has to do with Jesus, not with love- who knew!).  Truly an intelligent, kind man who not only took us on longer, more interesting hikes, but also showed us his home and his workshop.  He even let Olaf name his cow after he told him it was something they do in Europe.  He named the cow Eva.  Not only that, but Peter also gave Olaf a copy of a book about the history of the Germans and their relation to the Usumbara region which he helped translate from Kiswahili to Shambaa, and offered to ride with us as we left on Sunday to show us a back way that is much more scenic and takes you in between the eastern and western Usumbara mountains.  This turned out to be an almost four hour drive from which he took the bus back home.  A very generous offer that we did take him up on (thinking it was only 2 hours).  It was an incredible way to end the weekend as we drove winding roads through the mountains (I got to drive as well- thanks Olaf!) and saw not only the changing vegetation from rain forest to drier areas, but also managed to see four tea plantations.  We also managed to be slightly slowed down twice by cows.  It's a normal occurrence here :)  As we bode farewell to Peter, we heartily, and truthfully, promised to return soon.  We made the same promise to Kiboko who took some time before we left to show us his estate and to describe to us his fantastic plans to expand.  The Swiss Farm Cottage is not just comfortable and serene, the people make it colorful and rich.  An unforgettable experience to put it mildly. 

On the way home, I drove until dark to give Olaf a break and to continue practicing my driving (although we can hardly call it that since I’m driving around on my own now) when all of a sudden I am pulled over.  To be pulled over in Tanzania means a police officer stands in the road and points you to the side where you pull over.  I hadn’t done anything wrong but since my Kiswahili has not been improving as fast as I wish it were, I let Olaf do the talking.  The guy asked where we were coming from and where we were going and then whether we had any vegetables, which we didn’t.  For a minute I thought he might confiscate our cheese and sour cream and became very nervous.  No worries, we were able to bribe him with approximately 6 chocolate chip cookies.  The guy was just hungry (police get hungry too) and it was nearly dark so he was satisfied with our cookies.  A strange, but apparently not unusual experience.  He wished us a pleasant continuation of our journey and off we went.  We got home around 9:30, had some muesli and yogurt from Irente Farms (fantastic!!), looked at the pictures and went to bed.  It was an exhausting but exhilarating weekend that completely revived me and renewed my love for Tanzania after a somewhat exhausting and frustrating week.

As you may have noticed, I only updated the blog once last week.  This is because on both Tuesday and Thursday we were without power (in all of Dar- apparently they’re rationing) and on Wednesday and Friday we were without internet at the office so there was nary a chance to update.  On Friday I went to the immigration office downtown to try to extend my visa only to discover I had the wrong office- so frustrating.  Thank goodness for my relaxing weekend or I may have blown a gasket on Monday when there was still no internet at the office (they forgot to pay the bill I discovered) and after sitting in traffic for over an hour each way, I was told that they could not extend my visa until it was almost (as in a day or two) expired.  Of course, they could not tell me this when I called numerous times.  The ice-cream I bought as I sat waiting in the endless and senseless traffic of Dar helped ease the frustration.  So now hopefully we will maintain power and I can get back to work as I am trying to finish the brochures and the training manual in the next two weeks before my brother comes to visit. 

So sorry but the pictures will have to wait!  As usual, there was another power outage at the office today and my home internet is just not able to upload the pics.  Hopefully tomorrow I’ll have access again and I’ll be able to share the wonders of Lushoto with you.