Dreams to Destinations

Oh Africa, I love you so...

dmarii — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 21:28:00 GMT

It seems as if a lifetime has happened since I last blogged... I will have to wait until I have my journal around to be able to do this effectively.

But a quick catch up is in order I think....

So I went to Shanga River House and Bead Factory which was pure luxury. It was incredible. Shanga is a unique community of disabled persons living in Tanzania who have used their abilities despite their disabilities to create incredible pieces of art. While my visit there was by far one of my most expensive adventures so far, a large part of what I spent goes directly to helping disabled persons in Tanzania who are so sorrowfully neglected.

The next day I went on a 5 day safari which was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!! A much needed break. All of my pictures are on Facebook soo feel free to take a peak. That story will have to be told another time. Too long for right now.

I went back to school which was also a much needed return. I am falling more in love with my kids everyday and I want to take them all home! (Don't worry family I am not actually going to despite how much I want to!)

Tomorrow I am taking Dennis out to lunch. Dennis is a 5 year old boy who goes to my school. He is very neglected. His mother ran away when he was a baby and his step mother hates him. She does not care if he gets fed or bathed and in the month that I have been here he has never changed his clothes. His father is an alcoholic and is very unsupportive. He is so damaged by his experiences at the young age of 5 that he shudders when I attempt to give him physical contact, he runs away when I try to hug him, and eye contact is almost unheard of. Dennis is in an incredibly difficult situation so tomorrow I am taking out to lunch and buying him some new clothes and shoes. I know that it isn't much and that it will do very little to ease his suffering but I hope to build a friendship and trusting relationship with him. It is going to take a long time, and it will be very difficult but this boy needs some serious love and I can only hope that I can supplement some of that which is missing.

My director Selestine and I are also getting everything together to launch our fundraising campaigne; so keep an eye out for our newsletters and facebook page!!! This weekend I am going to church with him, his wife, son, and mother, and after that we are walking around Uswwahilini to look for land to purchase once we have raised that which is needed.

Thank you for all of your support. I love you all and I miss you even more!

God bless!

Aclimating to Afica

dmarii — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 23:45:00 GMT

So a lot has happened since I last posted.

Last weekend on Saturday we went to visit Meru Falls. That was probably one of the most challenging and intense experiences of my life. Of course, it was during the most intense rainstorm I have experienced while I have been here. We got up early Saturday morning and started the trek to the foothills. We walked for about a half hour through a ghetto before reaching the bottom of the mountain. The majority of the hike was almost a 90 degree climb and while we were going up the trail turned into a river going down because of all the rain that was falling. About an hour later we got to Rogers (our tour guide) house which was a mud shack perched on a cliff which over looked the most amazing view ever. Incredible. After we had some chai we kept hiking. From that point forward the hike was fairly mellow until we got to the cliff we had to hike down to get to the river. Because of the rain the cliff was extremely slippery and the only safe way down was to cling to roots and branches and to slide on out butts. When we got down to the river Rogers had to make a stop and the military office posted in the jungle to pay them off so that we would be allowed to be there. Then he had to go all the way back to his house to get the necessary documentation for the gov't. While we were waiting for him (which was about 2 hours) an armyman appeared out of the bush. He ended up spending the rest of the trip with us and he was very funny. I think he asked 5 or 6 of us to marry him. The rest of the hike was literally through the river. When we finally got to the waterfall I hiked up some rocks so that I was positioned directly behind the falls. It was absolutely incredible. I will never forget it. On the way back home I met some very nice women who joked with me for quite a while. At one point one of them handed me their 50 pound sack to carry on my head. Needless to say it was a miserable yet comical failure.

The past week at school has been good, however because of the rains the mud has been almost unwalkable and unfortunately my rainboots leak... bummer. The kids seem to be getting used to be because they are being very naughty. I spend most of my day just trying to get them to sit still. When Agie (my Tanzanian co-teacher) is in the room they are incredibly well behaved but as soon as she leaves all hell breaks loose.

The director of my school and I are trying to figure out how we can raise $6000 to buy some land and build a bigger school because currently we have almost 40 kids in each class and somedays nearly 50. If anyone wants to be a part of this amazing venture please let me know!

Tonight I am going to an African circus which is supposed to be very similar to Cirque du Soleil. This weekend I'm going to Moshi, having a birthday party for some friends, and going to church.

I love it here but I miss you all at home so much. You are with me in my heart and in my prayers.

God bless.

Mama Africa

dmarii — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 22:07:00 GMT

Thank god for this amazing experience.

So far it has been really good. I had a bit of a frustrating day today but all in all it has been wonderful. I'm working with 39 children (watoto) and they are so awesome. It's a bit frustrating because the orphanage staff under estimates the abilities of the children and restricts what we can teach them. Also the children don't respect us like the respect the Nbongo teachers. They are SO crazy whenever the nbongo teachers leave the room which makes it hard to think let alone teach. I often find myself staring at the blackboard and quietly praying for patience.

My first day here was a lot of fun. I met all my housemates who i LOVE. They are so cool. I'm living with four Canadians and one Aussie (4 girls, 1 boy). I am also living with Mama Zubeda, her daughter Zubeda, and her other daughter Himena. We live in a very secure compound surrounded by 20 foot walls on all sides. I live in a room with 3 other girls and everyday we're all up around 5 am to get ready for work. Usually I wake up a lot earlier (3.30 or 4) to write in my journal and have some alone time. While i sit outside and write in my journal I am able to hear the local Imam's calling out the morning prayers. It is so beautiful.

We had orientation and a town tour which was really cool, however so many Mzungus all in one place certainly attracted a lot of attention. While we were doing the town tour we went to Maasai Market, which has some of the most awesome things ever and I can't wait to go back. While we were at the ATM and man asked me if I wanted to buy a necklace. I told him "Hapana shilingi asante sana" which means I don't have any money but thank you very much. We decide to walk to another ATM which was several blocks away and he followed us the whole way. After I got money he asked again at which point I awkwardly had to flatly say Hapana.

My first day at the orphanage was great because the kids didn't know me well so they were well behaved. No so much anymore though.

We went to second hand market to get green for Saint Patrick's day and some drunk Rasta hassled us for 40 minutes trying to get us to buy something from him. We eventually had to leave because he attempted to grab Nat's purse which did not bode well with any of us. The next day when I was going to placement two men fought over whether or not I would take their Daladala, and they ended up grabbing my arms and pulling me in both directions. It was kinda stressful I'm not going to lie. I walked away and found another Dala to take.

Last night was St. Patty's day and we all went out to the bar. Before we got there we ended up getting stuck in traffic which resulted in a bitch fight in the car which I might have instigated.... It was amusing. Some girls are so ridiculous.

I know this entry sounds like Tanzania is kinda crazy, which it is, but it is also one of the most amazing places I have ever been. The people here are so friendly. They all say Mambo when we walk by and we reply Poa. Often they laugh when we speak in Swahili, I suppose us Mzungus are pretty amusing.

My second day teaching I was able to teach a group of 3 and 4 year olds how to do basic addition and today we practiced practical English words like body parts, everyday objects, and building features such as wall, window, ceiling, and floor. They are so smart. So far I have noticed 2 very intelligent children who I am considering sponsoring. I love them all (Naku penda mimi watoto!)!!! It can be difficult though because they don't speak much English and i don't speak much Swahili.

Also, we're getting a puppy for Mama Zubeda! SO EXCITED!

Naku Penda!

Till next time! Lala Salaam!

From California to Amsterdam

dmarii — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 17:21:00 GMT

First of all, and most importantly I would like to Thank God that I have arrived in Amsterdam safely. Amen.

I am currently waiting for my connecting flight to Tanzania and let me tell you I am exhausted. I am going on two hours of sleep and I'm having trouble remembering what day it is. I am pretty sure it's around 1 am monday morning at home which means I have been up for 24 hours... so... tired... and still so far to go.

I don't even know what to say...

All I can think is... am I really going to Africa for three months? Holy Jesus.