London and home!

Friday June 11, 2010
Heathrow is a bit of a scramble. It is 6:30 am and we have to change terminals, get our boarding passes, get some pound notes, and perhaps catch a tube into London. Manage to get everyone to the correct terminal in a couple of stages and get the passes. We jump on an underground train (tube) into London, not as simple as it sounds, and get off at Leicester Squre. Breaking up into smaller groups sounds like the most workable plan, so we ensure each group has at least one adult and go our separate ways, planning to reunite at the same tube station for the return trip to the airport. Peter makes sure everyone knows how to get back and when to be back in case we get separated, and off we go.
Some groups find the way to an H&M store for a shopping expedition, others wander around and others grab a bite to eat. When we meet at the appointed time, we only have 21 out of 29 people, but decide the others will find their way back and head off to the airport. Lose Larry after he fails to get off at the right terminal, so were down to 20 out of 29. Decide this is close enough and proceed through security. We tell the kids to just wander around and show up at the gate on time and lo and behold - they do! Such seasoned world travellers they have become! The missing 9 people have also showed up, so we are all together again and board the plane at the appointed time without incident. Peter has found out that one bag from our group's luggage did not get loaded - no idea whose, so everyone is sure it must be theirs. Get welcomed aboard and Megan is wished a Happy Birthday - she shares the birthday with the co-pilot.
We taxi out and then stop. They decide some computer thing is not working so they return and get someone to come fix it. We have our departure time pushed back by 35 minutes. Megan is invited to the front and has her picture taken with the co-pilot. Decide whatever is not working can't be fixed so they make arrangements to borrow one from another airline - it will take 35 minutes to arrive. Our 3 hour layover in Toronto is starting to look a bit tight and Peter is starting to get quite concerned. Not that we don't love the students and enjoy every minute spent with them, but we REALLY want to get them back to their parents in Winnipeg tonight! We keep an eye on the students to make sure they are okay with the stress, but Pete seems to be the only one having a meltdown.
We finally take off - we still have a little over 1 hour in Toronto to make the connection, but need to clear customs. Peter tries to make the plane fly faster through sheer will power.
Land in Toronto and bolt for the customs - clear it with no problems, despite the number of Masai knives and spears the kids are bringing back. Grab our luggage - it's Susan's extra bag that is missing - and head for the next check in. With helpful assistance from the Toronto airport employees, we get our baggage rechecked for the final leg and head for security. A testy agent there complains about the duty free stuff we have from Heathrow eventhough it is properly sealed. We all make it through except for Janice, who for no apparent reason has her purchase taken away, much to her very great displeasure. We are the last to get on the plane, just after the final boarding call.
After an uneventful flight to Winnipeg, we disembark and get the kids together as a group to go and meet the waiting crowd who greet them with cheers and applause. A few tears (happy ones) as our journey ends.
In a final ironic twist, Peter discovers he has lost his passport AFTER we landed in Winnipeg. This is my fault because he put it down while helping me get my carry-on from the overhead compartment.

All in all, it was a perfect trip and a truly life-changing experience for each one of us.

Waterfalls and homeward bound

Thursday June 10, 2010

This is the day we leave Africa. One more adventure before we set off - we get to visit the Marangu waterfall. The clouds have cleared this morning and from the back of the hotel grounds we can actually see the peaks of Mt. Kilimanjaro - something that was obscured yesterday. It really is breathtaking.
We are driven to the nicely designed park by the Marangu waterfall and descend to the base. It is a glorious sunny day and the waterfall is very picturesque. Spend a lot of time just enjoying the day and taking pictures. Hike back up to the top (yes, the legs are still a bit tired) and read the various bits of information. The students had learned a folklore tale about the waterfall and related the tragic story about a maiden who leapt to her death rather than facing a leopard after being cast out of her tribe for becoming pregnant.
Some people choose to wander around the village of Marangu. It is one of the semi-weekly market days so the village is very busy and colourful with lots of local produce for sale. Devin and Matt manage to trade their shoes for soccer jerseys. Marangu is obviously much more prosperous than Karatu, no doubt thanks to the high number of tourists in the region. They say that 100 climbers a day make it to the top of Kili.
Head back to the hotel to pack up, load the buses and have a last excellent lunch before setting out for the airport. The weather is the best we've seen - more like what we expected Africa to be like every day. Too bad it is time to go home. Stop briefly at one last craft market in Moshi and then straight on for the airport.
Getting everyone in and processed is a bit of a gong show in this tiny airport. Other passengers were a bit dismayed at the size of our group, but Peter manges to smooth everything out and gets all the baggage and the people loaded. By the time we take off at 7:40, it is pitch black as the sun has set on our last day in Africa. I have a seat beside, surprise!, another Canadian (east coast) who was doing some mission work in the Congo and decided make the full climb on Kilmanjaro before heading for home. He had some great stories, and made the puny hike we'd finished seem relatively tame in comparison. Still, I feel good about our accomplishment.
3 hours to kill in Nairobi Airport so we investigate all the little shops, buy snacks. Going through security I was stopped for a small pocket tool (tweezers and scissors) I had honestly forgotten in one of the pockets of my backpack. It's gone now - very embarrasing (sorry, Greg - it was yours).
The flight after we get off the ground was long and uneventful, yet still very difficult to sleep, although some manage.

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro - almost halfway!

Wednesday June 9, 2010
After a great continental breakfast in a swanky dining room at the Arusha Hotel, we pack up and leave for Marangu. Have to deal with a temperamental elevator to get all of our luggage down. One was out of order and the one that was working would stop at your floor, open it's doors teasingly and quickly close them before anyone could actually enter. You would then have to wait for it to go all the way down and all the way back up before getting a second chance. Everyone had the same issue, so it took a while to get everyone down. It tried to maim my arm as I tried to jump off with all my bags, backpack, and custom-made African xylophone in tow.
Met our new tour company - CPAR had broken our visit up so the last 2 days were handled by different people. It was a bit disappointing after having such a great relationship with the drivers from Leopard, our previous company. The new drivers and guide were a little less inclined to get to know us, or even share information. We have 2 buses instead of smaller jeeps. We load all the luggage on top and take off for the Marangu Hotel, over 2 hours away. Arrive and get our rooms in fabulous guest cottages, dump our bags, collect a bagged lunch and then head off for Kilimanjaro so we can get on the trail before noon.
The description of the hike said it was a 3/4 hour climb, which we assumed meant 45 minutes, when in fact it actually meant 3 to 4 hours. Some dismay expressed by some of our group, but we assured everyone they could just do whatever they felt like. Go through lengthy formalities at the gate - they need everyone to sign in before they go up the mountain, probably in case they don't come down. Divided up into groups with 5 different guides - first group was the keeners down to those out for a brief stroll who had no intention of making it to the first rest stop.
We set off at about 12:25 up the rainforest trail. Have to try and take in the fascinating scenery as we struggle up the trail - very rough going in a few places. Our goal is the Mandara huts, which is stopping point for the first day of climbing. We have to hike back down after reaching the huts, whereas "real" climbers would spend the night in the huts and rest for the next day, so our pace was a little brisker than the other climbers. The boys are booking it up the trail, with Peter in hot pursuit. At the halfway point, Karen G. decides to wait for the next group and go back down while Megan and I take a brief rest and push off. We keep each other going, even when the going gets tough, and then even tougher. As we near the end of the trail, we start getting the rain in rainforest. We are the last group to make it to the hut - it took us about 2 hours and 40 minutes and we are elated but exhausted. Devin, Matt, Jeremy, Daniel, Bronwyn, Alanna, Morgan, Kayla, Carah, Peter, Joe, Darcy, Susan, and Karen S. have also reached the huts. We have to turn around and head back down immediately as we need to be down before 6pm. I ask the guide if going down is easier, and wish he'd lied to me after he said "no."
The rain continues for most of the descent, but we are so tired we barely notice. It actually was a little faster going down, although we were cautioned "pole, pole" (slowly, slowly). We get down to find one bus had already left. The people that had only walked a short distance were tired of waiting for the rest of us so went back to the hotel to enjoy its magnificent gardens.
Drag ourselves onto the bus (you know you're going to feel worse the next day) and get back for a nice shower and the best meal we've had all trip. We turn in early -for some reason 9:00 seems like a reasonable bedtime. Janice and I are in a guest cottage secluded away from the cottages of the rest of the group, so we decide Susan and Peter will have to supervise this night. Jan first had to squish a grasshopper on our wall - neither of us had the energy to gently shepherd it out the door. When I pointed out that the squashed carcass on the wall was not much of an improvement, Janice graciously scraped the guts off before we flaked out.

Arusha

Tuesday June 8, 2010
While everyone is packing and preparing to leave, I run down to the CPR office to collect our passports and check email for the last time - no more Internet until we get home. Have to run the gauntlet at the gate - all the street vendors are waiting outside to see the kids one last time and make any last minute deals. Left Peter helping the boys clean out their room - it was a job for a real man.
After saying goodbyes, we drive off to Arusha. As we get further away from Karatu and the Ngorongoro highland area, we actually start to see some sunshine! By the time we stop at a nice picnic spot, it actually feels like we thought it would be every day in Africa - sunny and hot. We spend a bit of time just basking in the unaccustomed sunshine and then drive on a bit to stop at a place in Arusha called Cultural Heritage. It is a craft shop/ tanzanite dealer/ restaurant/ museum. We get a fascinating lecture on the history and quality of Tanzanite - a recently discovered gemstone that is only found in Tanzania. The jeweller lets us hold some raw gems in our hands and take it out into the sunshine, casually mentioning it is valued at about $10,000 US. He then shows us the "cheaper" stuff. Not quite as nice as the "good" stuff we'd admired first, but still pretty. A few people manage to drop a few bucks here - really, the stones are so lovely how can you resist?
Move on to a strip mall with an actual grocery store. Interesting to see the different items. Students are overjoyed to find a gelati store and have some very good gelati at a fraction of the cost on Corydon. We find a specialty coffee shop and stock up on African coffee and teas. One last stop at another craft market. The crafts are very good quality and the vendors are a little more forceful - big city instead of small village, and the kids are out of money so tire easily and ready to go.
We arrive at the Impala Hotel and get our really great rooms. We have to say a tearful goodbye to our drivers and some email addresses are exchanged. Some kids manage to get a quick swim in the hotel pool while others just relax. Janice and I are on the 7th floor and have a great view of the city and mountains in the distance. We have dinner in the Indian resatuarant with Jean and Japhet, who brings his wife Diana to meet us. We turn in early as we get picked up at 7:30 the next morning for our next adventure.

Market Day

Monday June 7, 2010
The 7th of every month is market day for the entire district. There is a huge field just outside of town which becomes the district market. People start arriving in town the day before from villages many miles away, resulting in increased activity on the main street the night before. They come to the market to buy, sell, eat, drink, and meet.
We had a nice relaxed start to the day, as the market doesn't really begin happening until around 11:00. We told the kids to eat a good breakfast, as lunch was going to be a bit on the "different" side - nyama choma at the market (more about that later). We also put the fear of God into them about keeping safe at the market around so many strangers. We walked over in groups at about 11:00 down the road crowded with vendors pulling carts, women carrying produce on their heads, people driving livestock, and a general crowd of other participants. It was a bit strange to be walking down the street and look beside you at the cow being walked along, much like someone would walk a dog here in Canada.
As we round the last corner (careful where you step) and catch our first sight of the market grounds, some of the teachers' enthusiasm quails a bit. It's huge - people, animals, and merchandise as far as the eye can see. The students all take off in groups, buddy system firmly in place, walking confidently and with "attitude" - as recommended by Jean. Peter and I, posessing a little less "attitude," are immediately surrounded by craft vendors eager to sell their wares. It was a little like being a piece of raw meat thrown into shark-infested waters. These vendors were from villages farther away and were a little more aggresive than the ones we were familiar with in town.
We have soon spent every last shilling, and Peter trades his shirt (a spare, not the one off his back) for a batik painting. He then trades his shoes (the ones he's wearing) for a couple of wood carvings. I stopped him from walking around in his socks, noting the broken beer bottles lying nearby, so he managed to negotiate a replacement pair of cheap plastic sandals as part of the deal. For this, the vendor insisted he give up his socks as well. We stopped before Peter lost his pants as well. They REALLY wanted our watches, and kept trying to convince us that our sports watches would be a fair trade for a couple of bead necklaces. Peter finally hid his in his pocket so they would stop asking for it.
After a very difficult search, wandering through random displays of clothing (much of it bales 0f cast-offs from the US and Canada), fabric, tools, sugar cane, produce, and anything else you can think of, we found some of our CPAR friends. They led us to the tent where we were to eat our lunch of nyama choma (roasted beef). This is essentially hunks of beef (practcally a whole cow for a group our size) stuck on sticks. One end of the stick is buried in the ground to hold the meat at an angle over the open fire. When cooked, the stick is brought into the tent and someone, Japhet and Ndiringo in our case, will hack off small chunks and drop them onto a platter which is passed around with a small pile of coarse salt. Everyone takes a piece and passes it on. If the meat is too tough, you spit it out on the ground behind you and one of the ever-present skinny yellow dogs will slink up and gratefully wolf it down. A couple of the girls were a little disturbed by the carnivourous feast (one being Preet, our resident vegetarian), so I took them outside the tent and fed them soda and granola bars (thank goodness I filled my suitcase with several packages - they'd come in handy!). Jean also arrived with a few veggie samosas I had requested the night before and Oswald, one of our drivers, had arrived to feast with us so he let them eat in his jeep so they wouldn't be hassled by the vendors lurking outside the tent.
After eating (meat, salt, and soda pop, what more could you want?) we decided we'd had enough of the market (and had no more money) so we went back to the hostel for a break.
Most people headed into town to collect dresses or pick up last minute souvenirs. Susan assured us she knew where the bank machine was and led the group of teachers to a bank to perform a cashectomy. For some reason, the bank she selected was at the opposite end of town and a lo-ong walk instead of the one right around the corner - I have a suspicion she hadn't quite forgiven us for leaving her behind the day before. I discovered, as others had before me, that TD cards didn't work in Karatu - a big problem when you are devoid of funds and far from home. Fortunately, Janice's credit union card worked just fine, so she made me a loan. Nice to have cash again, even though I realize it too will be gone soon.
The vendors all realize that we are leaving tomorrow and want to make sure that we don't have any shillings left in our pockets that could be lining theirs. They are bartering everything they can from the kids - clothing, shoes, watches.
Back at the hostel we have our (thankfully) last supper. Same old - except the meat is lamb. After the lunch we had, most of us can't face the thought of eating sweet little lamb and opt for a very sparse meal before we retire to our rooms to begin packing.

Hiking, Swimming, and where's the teacher?

Sunday June 6, 2010

On Sunday the power is shut off from just before 8 am until after 5 pm. This is done to conserve energy. This meant that Sunday morning there was enough hot water left in our tank for one shower - lucky Janice! Breakfast was cooked over a propane stove.

The day is cool and overcast as usual- coldest day yet since we've been in Africa (none have been very hot). We head out to Gibbs' Farm - a tourist resort/coffee plantation in the Ngorongoro highlands for our hike to view some elephant caves and a waterfall.

It was almost raining - a very heavy mist - as we get there. The jeeps were forced to stop halfway up a steep, grassy, slippery drive as the drivers didn't think they would make it all the way up. We got out to walk the rest of the way up. We were met by a guide, Charles, who quickly pointed out the stinging nettle plant so we could avoid it. Susan and Mary later discovered how aptly it was named. After about a 500m hike straight up the wet grassy drive, we get to the start of the trail. We stop, gasping for breath as we meet our second guide, Liza, who carries a gun to scare off any dangerous animals we might encounter. We let Liza go first.
We started off down the increasingly muddy, jungle-like trail full of mist, vines, huge plants and animal tracks. We almost expected to see Tarzan come swinging out of the trees or Indiana Jones come pelting down the trail chased by who-knows-what. We passed by many fresh, wet piles of dung, mostly buffalo. You could hear people helpfully yelling out “Poop!” up and down the line so you knew when to watch your step. The trail grew progressively muddier and steeper (downward) and more difficult to navigate. Finally felt like we were wading and sliding through the slippery red, volcanic mud up to our ankles. It was only a matter of time before someone slipped. Shortly thereafter, from the back of the pack everyone hears Janice’s distinctive laughter boom out of the forest, and we all knew she must have been the first to land on her butt (but she certainly wasn’t the last). We saw glimpses through the mist of the mountains in the distance and the valley below with the acacia trees silhouetted against the backdrop of green – absolutely stunning. Traversing a particularly treacherous stretch of the path, Charles, our helpful guide, took my hand to help me balance. When I assured him I was doing fine, he said that the younger girls were very strong and didn’t need any extra help. I did not kick him over the edge, but it was tempting.
Arriving at the end of the trail, we see the caves near a muddy stream. No elephants, but a couple of buffalo skeletons from animals that got stuck in the mud. The guide explained how the elephants could walk up the steep slope to the caves, which have a lot of minerals in them to keep them healthy, but to get down they have to basically toboggan on their knees. Sounds like quite a site!
The trail to the waterfall leads us to the top of the waterfall – not the most spectacular way to see the actual waterfall but stunning anyway. Teachers were quite worried about the kids getting too close to the edge of the 400m drop – no such things as guard rails or warning signs in Africa. However no one fell over (although Larry did cause Peter a few anxious moments) and we got some great pictures before heading back up the trail. The trail was just as slippery going back, although by this point we were much less careful about avoiding the mud (poop - yes, mud – who cares) as we are covered completely in it. Another hazard to avoid is the ants. Big, bitey ones, as Morgan can attest.
After completing the hike, exhausted and exhilarated and very dirty, we admire the grounds of Gibbs’ Farm. As we are strolling through the beautiful gardens (apparently impatiens grow 5 feet tall) we make a marvelous discovery – a gift shop! We make a few purchases and head back to the hotel/hostel to clean up for lunch. Not an easy task with no warm water and no lights.

Lunch – Tanzania style
The day is still overcast – usually it burns off by afternoon but not today. We are all wearing sweaters or jackets except for Peter who refuses to wear a jacket in Africa because everyone knows Africa is hot, even if the temperature is only 14 degrees and there is no sun. We drive to a restaurant called Dofu to dine outside (no lights inside) on a wonderful meal of ugali, chicken, beef, vegetables, salad, and the ever-present bottles of soda pop. I can’t believe how much soda people drink, but I guess if you can’t drink water… Ugali is sort of a porridge or dumpling made from maize, water, and salt. Basically tasteless – a bit like bland potatoes – it’s a staple of Tanzanian diet. It fills the stomach very well. Jean insists we eat with our hands to get the real African experience. Wish I hadn’t taken the extra gravy.
Although it’s still cold and overcast we have swimming planned for the afternoon, and Jean has managed to get us in to another very posh resort to use their saltwater pool. We quickly drive back to the hostel to pick up our swimming stuff. As the last couple of teachers are coming out of the room, the first jeep leaves followed by 2 others loaded with students. We jump into the last one, which has 3 of the boys. I’m asking the boys (okay, Matt is the only one who actually pays attention) if all the kids are in the other cars and go through each of the names. He assures me everyone was accounted for. A few miles down the road, we are enjoying the scenery when Jan suddenly says “Where’s Susan?” Peter, Janice, and I look at each other in horror and then burst out laughing. We attempt to radio the other cars to see if she’s in one of them, but can’t get a response. Decide to go on to the resort as it’s very close to see if she’s there, rather than turn back. Meanwhile we’re drawing straws to see who has to go back to get her and imagining vividly her reaction. Sure enough, we lost 1 teacher. Pete heads back but doesn’t get very far when she drives up with Japhet. She apparently came out of her room in time to see the last jeep drive out the gate and, after a few choice words, started walking down the road when Japhet drove up and jokingly asked if she’d been left behind. He also roared with laughter when she said “Actually, yes!” and then was kind enough to drop her off at the resort. Ironically, this was the first time we left anywhere without doing a head count.
The resort is absolutely gorgeous, with individual guest houses and an elegant dining room. It grows coffee and bananas as well as many beautiful flowers on the gorgeously landscaped grounds. Most of the kids opt to go swimming, despite the cool weather. There was also a really great gift shop! It actually accepted credit cards – first place we’ve found since coming to Africa. So for letting our students use their pool (there was no one else around as everyone goes on safari during the day) the resort made a small fortune in their gift shop.
We return to the hotel at about 5:30 (yay – power is back on!) and get ready for another party night at Happy Days. We have a cake for Karen G in honour of her anniversary (ok, so her husband was halfway around the world, it was a great excuse for a song and dessert). It’s an early night as everyone is quite tired from the strenuous activities of the day. We carefully count everyone, including Susan, before we head off home.

Rest Day

Saturday June 6, 2010

A nice easy day to kick back and relax – no real plans!
Meet at the CPAR office for a debriefing session in the morning and to go over the rest of the agenda. We’ve seen many different faces of Africa, it’s very hard to sum up our experiences. There is also a huge economic gap that is very difficult to rationalize. Here are some of our thoughts:

Matthew- the world is so unfair. The western world is so far ahead of this place, and it’s just not fair.
Mary – people here are so happy even though they have so little. It’s very unbalanced.
Nitasha – being in the Sopa lodges was unreal, like a vacation, whereas being here at the hostel feels more like home.
Karen S – we were able to get a real flavour for Africa. I had mixed feelings about coming, but am glad I did. It was the experience.
Karen G – the need for education is a recurring theme here. Our kids take it for granted.
Morgan – we wouldn’t have had the same experience without CPAR. They were able to put together so many experiences and get us access to so many places. It was so much better than the average tourist would get.
Alanna – it was really good that we had the contacts here through Jean and Japhet because we enjoyed it so much more.
Bronwyn – it makes me feel proud to see people trying to make a change to imprive their lives or the lives of others.
Alyssa – there were two extremes. I felt bad in the hotel knowing there were people that didn’t have the same luxury, and had a hard time being in the first hospital because we have free health care in Canada.
Megan – everything was so much more than I expected. Parts were hard – it was good to see that we had made a positive change.
Preet – we got to experience everything, rich and poor. It tells us what we need to focus on. You need commitment and passion to help, more than money.
Riley – the huge culture shock was hard. It was amazing how hard poor people work. I felt guilty and helpless some of the time.
Janice – amazed and bothered by the exploitation. There are probably many other issues in Tanzania that we haven’t seen. You need a connection (like CPAR) to be able to travel and really see the country. We need to start some fair trade ventures and keep our connections to the communities we visited.
Kathy – watching the change in the KE students means that our project was successful – they are certainly more aware of being global citizens. Positive impact in the Tanzanian communities was great. Although not the heart of our trip, the luxury lodges and safari were a nice frill. Seeing Africa wouldn’t have been as complete without that experience.
Peter – makes us that there are lots of issues in our own communities back home that need to be addressed. Gilala school was overwhelming, really enjoyed conversations with KE students, the animals here are absolutely majestic.
Susan – until we actually saw the difference in the community it wasn’t real. It was good to know some of the KE students better. The safari was part of the experience. Amusing to see an African farmer dressed in traditional clothes and using primitive equipment suddenly stop and pull out his cell phone.
Devin – absolutely amazing. Overwhelmed by how they fed us at the first school even though they were so poor. At the farmer’s field school they gave us stuff (bottled water) and danced for us even though we didn’t do anything but visit. Why are we bartering for things when they need the money?
Jeremy – it was one thing to see how poor everyone is, and another to see how organizations like CPAR and others are helping and making things better.
Cheryl – it’s a much poorer place than our world. It was important to make personal connections with people to give it a face. I’m so proud of our kids, and know their parents are too. We have so many options in our life at home, and now our kids will appreciate that so much more.
Erin – haven’t processed my thoughts yet – I need to look at my photos to remember everything. I gave a man my watch at the Masai village because he kept asking for it and it is so easy for me to just get another one at home, but he may not have access to a watch ever again. The alarm on the watch is still set, so it probably beeps at him at 6:30 every morning – hope he figures it out. The real culture shock will probably occur after we get home.
Jessica – when I think back to how much we complained over the last few years (tired of doing fundraising, don’t want to work at the dinner) it seems ridiculous. It was so worth it.
Vanessa – When we left home our group was in different cliques. We are still in them out here, but I feel like I have no problem talking to anyone. There are no differences out here.
Kayla – not going to say much (mostly because I feel like I’m going to throw up because I just took my malaria pill). There is no way I will be able to explain all of this to anyone at home – you have to experience it to actually feel it.
Carah – there are 2 themes – how much people give and how much they need. This experience has helped me decide what I want to do with the rest of my life.
Daniel – it was amazing, life-changing. I feel like I’m a better person after this. The water from the farmers showed their respect for us. It’s unfair how many really smart people there are in Africa that will never get the chance for post-secondary education. I think the CPAR people (Jean, Japhet, Dayo, Ndiringo, Mohammed) are absolutely amazing.
Delainie – everyone here smailes and waves despite what they are going through. The schoolchildren were overwhelming. The safari lodges were nice, but this is the real experience.
Joseph – you see the life and the drive in the people working as a community. Everything is done to improve their conditions. It would be interesting to see where they are 30 years from now.

Jean told the group that they were a very unique and special group of students.

Piled in the jeeps to go for lunch and shopping at Fine ArTZ – an upscale little place that has more original art from local artists sold as fair trade, as opposed to the usual trinkets peddled by the kids on the street. Jean and I took the student with injured hand up to the FAME clinic to get it checked out. Very bumpy ride at breakneck speed. The Tanzanian doctor looked at it and said it was just bruised. They cleaned it again and put a small bandaid on the knuckles. Since we were with Jean, the cost for this service was 5,000 shillings (about $7 Canadian) – if we had been run-of-the mill tourists it would have been about 100,000 shillings. Tourists usually have medical insurance (not that we didn’t, it was just easier this way) and so it is a way for the clinic to make some money to provide more services to Tanzanians.

We met up with the others at the café and craft shop for gourmet pizza and salad, a gorgeous view of the Ngorongoro highlands and some excellent artwork. Of course, more shopping ensued.
Drop off purchases at hostel and then split up to visit the market, relax, or go to visit the Crater Rim View hotel where the parents are staying. Pretty swanky! Glad we (the teachers and students) didn’t see this at the beginning of the trip – great accommodations, lovely grounds and a really nice lounge where entertainment is provided. More than a little envious, we head back down to the market to divest ourselves of more Tanzania shillings. A flurry of fabric buying (so many patterns!) – you can purchase a length of material and have it sewn into a dress custom-made to fit (almost) after selecting a style from a tattered role of sample pictures for less than $25 and 3 days. Many of the girls had already bought and many others decided to try it as well. Roamed around dogged by the ever-hopeful vendors (we usually do break down and buy still more of their stuff). Stopped to purchase phone cards so we could contact home. Back at the hostel, Pete tried unsuccessfully for several minutes to load the phone credits. I tried and it still wouldn’t work. Found first available teenager, happened to be Morgan, and she did it in about 9 seconds – I swear I did exactly the same thing! Moran politely did not mock our ineptitude – gotta love it when they show respect for their elders.
That evening we went to CPAR office for kuku choma (roasted chicken). This is a whole mess of scary looking chickens with legs stuck out in every direction cooked over a huge wood-fired barbeque by a special cook known as Kuku Georgie. He also cooks potato fries in oil over a wood fire and prepares kachumburi - a salad dish. You get your plate and the cook hacks off huge chunks of chicken parts and throws it on your plate along with a mess of chips and salad. We sat around in the unlit courtyard (i.e dark as pitch) and ate Tanzanian-style (no forks). It was a little better to not see what you were eating and everyone and everything became covered with grease. Some great African music played and then we danced. The Tanzanians love to Twist - they will Twist to anything with any beat - somehow it works. Drivers and CPAR people danced up a storm with the students. Someone plugged in a student iPod to play the kids' music, so we wrapped up shortly thereafter so we didn't have to listen for long.

Gilala Primary School

Friday June 4, 2010
Another later start to the day as we don’t have to be at Gilala school until 10:00. Peter and I gather up empty 1.5L water bottles to take to the CPAR office to fill to use for drip irrigation for the trees we are to plant. Water from the Karatu pipeline is a muddy brownish colour. People must boil it before they can drink it.
Into the jeeps and on the way in the heavy mist – very close to rain. Gilala Primary School is located in the picturesque highland village of Kili Matembo (Elephant Hill). There is mud everywhere! We get out of the jeeps and take about 10 steps before we are carrying an extra 10 pounds on each shoe. We are welcomed by the head teacher and the assistant head teacher, who acts as the translator and MC and seems to be in charge of the agenda. First, into the office to sign the guest book. Next, ceremonial welcoming speeches. The Tanzania students sang us a Tanzania song (not the national anthem but a very pretty song about Tanzanian pride) and the Canadian contingent introduced each individual. Again, I find it hard to explain that I teach Computer Science to children that don’t have electricity. I just say I’m a teacher. We toured the tanks, girls latrines, and drinking/handwashing stations. They demonstrated how everything worked and explained the job of the school water committee, stressing that it consisted of 2 boys and 2 girls so there would be gender equality. The teacher looked at the CPAR reps as he made this last point, but I’m not sure everyone really bought in to the gender equality concept – there’s a ways to go. We then planted trees with the students. It was a lot of fun – we were already completely covered with mud. Those children, obviously farmers, were no strangers to working a hand hoe! We planted about 50 trees in the fertile volcanic soil and settled in the pop bottles for drip irrigation. Cleaned up for lunch – we ate in a separate classroom since we had box lunches and the African students were eating a maize and beans mixture. Their food was actually very good – Janice traded parts of her lunch for a sample of their lunch and we all had a taste. Following lunch was more ceremony – singing and dancing. The village chairperson made a speech about how pleased they were with the collaboration and hoping it would continue. We were presented with gifts of Masai shukas (blankets). Janice was drawn into a dance and wrapped in a kanga – she was so excited she nearly ripped a hamstring jumping around. Peter finally danced! Susan was presented with 2 shukas (one's for you, Daria!). The parents were honoured with 4 and the students presented with 4, which we will divide up randomly.
We then brought out the bag of sports equipment for the school and a soccer game ensued. 3 - 2, thanks to Devin for both goals. Everyone was playing some kind of game or making some sort of connection. Even the tour bus drivers were playing soccer with the kids.
The people in this village seemed to be a little more worldly, perhaps because they are a bit closer to Karatu town. They had much better English, and were very curious about life in Canada. I brought out some pictures of my family and some winter pictures and was immediately mobbed by people young and old who were absolutely fascinated with the photographs. As usual, everyone is very curious about Mary – they do not understand the concept of a black Canadian and assume she is the only one. Some other ideas are also difficult to explain. What is the importance of forests in Canada? Do we use them for firewood? How do our houses withstand the cold (many people here live in houses with walls of mud and a roof of thatched grass)? Why am I not a grandmother at my age? (tried not to let that last one get to me). Finally left at about 3:30 and drove back home. Many students went into town but I sat out with a book in my hands – which immediately attracted people to sit around and talk. Everyone got spiffed up a bit and we went to Happy Days for a change of pace for dinner. Some students wanted to go home immediately after dinner (having a bit of a hard time adjusting to new experiences) but we told them to stick it out for a bit. Started playing the kids’ music (shudder) and they all started dancing and even had some of our drivers up and dancing with them, so everyone had a good time. Went home at about 10:00 and had a minor mishap when one student had her hand caught in a jeep door. Peter cleaned and carefully bandaged it while someone held a flashlight. After he was finished, the student with the injured hand pointed out that he had missed the actual wound, so we had to take it off and do it again.

Farmers' Field School

Thursday June 3, 2010

Get a fairly relaxed start to the day, giving everyone a chance to sleep in a bit. Pile in the jeeps and head off in the direction of Qaru Lambo to the village of Basodawish where we are going to visit a secondary school and some farmers. First stop is the village office where we all need to sign the guest book. This is a very important ritual – every office of every elected official has a guest book. The more signatures in the guest book indicate that said official has been doing a wonderful job so he is likely to get elected again the next time.
We walk over to visit the secondary school, which is hard at work in preparations for the torch ceremony which will be stopping at the school the next day. Sounds kind of like the recent Olympic torch run across Canada, except it happens every year in Tanzania and there is no competition at the end of it.
Due to the impending ceremony, the school is in immaculate condition. A very new school, it is surrounded by beautiful gardens. The school was built by the community, mostly farmers, because they recognize that education for their children is the key to future growth and the only chance they have for improving their future. Once a community has built a school, the government provides the teachers, although not always enough of them. Inside the school, many of the classrooms did not have enough desks or desks at all, meaning students would be required to sit on the floor. There were also very few other resources – no textbooks in evidence. Teachers’ residences at the back of the school have been marked out but the community ran out of money before they could be built, so they have 4 teachers sharing the one existing house.
The teacher makes about 200,000 (approx. $130 Canadian) shillings a month, before taxes. Students at the school are given 2 meals a day. The first is a porridge, which is really just sweetened flour and water – no real nutrients, it just fills the stomach so the students don’t feel hungry. The second is ugali (sort of the same thing, only thicker and not sweet) and beans, so there is some protein. Secondary school has school fees – only primary education is “free”. On top of the school fees, students or their parents must pay for their food, contribute water, pay for a uniform, and pay a host of other expenses each term. Skipping classes is not a problem at all – attending school is not only a privilege but also a great hardship on their parents to provide this education, so it is very highly valued.
We then visit a small dairy goat farm run by Mikali and his wife. They have 3 children, the second of which is disabled due to a condition at birth. CPAR provided one female dairy goat which the farmer breeds and sells the extra goats. He now has a herd of about 5 or 6 goats, which he can sell for about 100,000 shillings each. The extra money he has is now used for visits to the doctor for his son. The milk he uses for his family. His farm was spotless and very well-tended. The precious dairy goats were in a separate barn to keep them free from diseases carried by ordinary goats or cows, which were kept in a separate enclosure formed by a ring of trees. Mikali travels 2 km twice daily to collect water for his family, and collects water for his animals from a nearby (about 1.5 km away) slough.
Off to another area to see the Farmers’ Field School. This is a cooperative of 21 farmers, male and female, who each have paid to rent one acre of land. They experiment as a group with the combined acreage, planting ground cover crops like beans between rows of maize to help the soil retain moisture and return nutrients to the soil. The teachers are the CPAR staff workers – Nderingo, Dayo, and Japhet, who all hold degrees in agricultural studies from university. Through this experimentation, the farmers have been able to increase their yield by as much as 8 times that of traditional methods. Harvest from the shamba darasa (Farmers' Field School) is sold and the money reinvested in the group, which is quite formalized with a chair, vice-chair, secretary, and treasurer. After the discussion of the project, the farmers danced a traditional Iraqu tribal dance to welcome us and express their pleasure at our visit. They handed us each bottles of mineral water, a most precious gift indeed, as a sign of their respect.
We then split up, as some students were feeling in need of a rest. Some went back to the hostel while the rest of us drove out into the countryside near the Ngorongoro highlands to the village of Kampi Simba to visit a women’s cooperative vegetable garden. The surrounding area is lush and green with many fields of flowers and other crops. The flowers (cosmos, nasturtiums, and marigolds) are used to make pesticides.
First, of course, we file into the village office and sign the guest book. Public service posters in the village office make you realize you are really in a different culture. One had a picture of a couple in wedding finery. The Swahili translated to a message encouraging people not to marry young, and to be faithful to avoid HIV. A second showed a picture of a young man, and the caption read “I respect myself. I don’t rape. What about you?” The third showed a happy family and the caption “My wife is not mutilated. She is faithful to me and our family is strong.” Not quite promoting male fidelity yet - baby steps.
The women greet us with song and dance and showers of flowers and proudly display their garden. This project involving 21 women uses a new and simple drip irrigation technique to grow different vegetables that will be sold at the market. One of the problems they have is trying to keep the animals out of their garden – things like elephants. Not something your average Manitoba gardener has to worry about. These are incredibly strong women and again the message they have is that they key to success lies in education. So many times we hear that from so many different people in Africa.
After another very bumpy ride back to Karatu, we stop at the Bureau de Change to get more shillings. We immediately attract a flock of vendors that dogged our heels the entire walk home. Some of the girls picked up dresses they had had custom tailored and some bought more lengths of material. As we made our way home with dusk falling, we had to encourage the girls to keep up with us. They love chatting to all the street kids, but may be a little naïve when it comes to thinking they are their friends. The street kids are charming and love to find them good deals, but they are definitely looking after their own interests first. Many of them say they are selling trinkets to pay for school fees – hard to say what is true and what is just a story to tug at tender heartstrings.

Visit to UMATU

Wednesday June 2, 2010 - pm
Walk up the road past the CPAR office to a beautiful compound that houses UMATU – a cooperative of women living positively with HIV. We were greeted by a boisterous group of women who performed energetic and entertaining dances and songs to make us laugh and set the tone for a very upbeat meeting. They then showered us with flowers as we all conga-lined our way into their meeting room. The house is one of the nicest ones we have seen yet in the village. It was built from funds raised by Valerie Pringle working with a group of breast cancer survivors who wanted to help other women. UMATU is a combination of words meaning love and hope. It began in 2005 by 2 women and has grown astronomically since then. There is a great stigma against HIV positive people in Tanzania. UMATU are women who have accepted HIV, are on ARV’s and have broken the silence. They talk to people, showing them that they are strong and healthy and provide counseling and encourage people to get tested for HIV. CPAR has helped build capacity in this organization so they can stand alone. They have a number of income generation projects under way, with many plans for expansion.
They had a very frank discussion with the KEC students. HIV is such a huge issue in Africa, they were surprised and somewhat horrified to find we are perhaps a bit complacent about it in Canada.
During the discussion, a chicken roamed in out of the yard and made herself at home in the very centre of the room, her comfort level illustrating just how closely people will live with their animals. We toured the building and the girls were delighted to find they could purchase bags made from kangas (brightly printed lengths of cloth with Swahili sayings printed on them). Any chance to shop makes it a great day! Many more ordered bags (they really are great!) for the next day.
We were excited to be able to support these women in their fair-trade income generation project. Interesting to see that the sewing machine used was an old-style treadle machine - doesn't need electricity.
Back to the hostel for supper and then over to the CPAR office for some computer time. After working in shifts, the students walked home ahead and left Peter, Susan and I in the office. We walked home in the dark just after 10 (and it’s very dark – no streetlights and big trees that obscure the many stars) to find that not only was the gate to the hostel compound locked but the escari (guard) was no where to be found. A few of the girls were waiting just inside the gate (tried to jump out and scare us, but we’re made of sterner stuff) and gleefully informed us that we would have to climb over the gate, like they had. The gate is iron bars about 10 feet high with sharpened spikes at the top. Susan was up and over first – it didn’t look too bad. However, when I scaled it next, shorter legs and a fear of heights came into play at the top of the fence – and did I mention the sharpened spikes? Very carefully crossed the top and made it back down then managed to get my camera out in time to catch a shot of Pete trying not to impale any parts of his body he wanted to keep whole. Janice (safely on the inside the whole time) stood by to shout encouragement, very glad she was locked on the right side of the fence for the night. All in all it added a bit of spice to an otherwise ordinary night in paradise.