One of my last emails from Tanzania!
Jambo, everybody!
Unlike the epic emails I have sent in the past, this one is going to be fairly short. It's my last week in Tanzania (ahh!!) so I have been extremely busy - I didn't get a chance to write out my journal entries yet - actually, I'm only up to Saturday in my journal, so I'm a few days behind!
It's crunch time on this trip, as I try to cram in all of the things I need to get done before I leave on Monday morning. Since I'll be home soon, I'll get a chance to explain the things that have happened to me in greater detail (and with pictures!). For now, here's a brief recap of the things that have happened since my last email, at least the ones I can remember without consulting my journal:
-We spotted a monkey in our backyard! It was awesome. Unfortunately, we haven't seen it since.
-I took a trip to Bukoba. It's the biggest city in Karagwe district. I didn't get a whole lot of shopping done since the marketplace was kind of dingy and weird. I did manage to pick up a couple of things though.
-Also in Bukoba, I got to visit a baby orphanage. I haven't ever attempted to entertain an infant before, so that was quite an experience. I loved it though - I didn't want to give him back!
-We took a trek through a random forest on the side of the road with our tour guide/minion, Innocent, and found this amazing waterfall hidden among the trees.
-There was probably more happening in Bukoba, so I'll talk about it later.
-I attended a party at the home of Innocent and his family. I learned to dance and I watched an amazing Kenyan music video about Barack Obama. I'm trying to convince Innocent to let me burn it onto my hard drive because seriously - it's fantastic. In the most hilarious way possible.
-We attended a wedding of a Danish missionary and a Tanzanian reverend. It was apparently a history-making ceremony - things like this don't happen often at all. The wedding was extremely unique and attempted to incorporate tradition from both cultures. I managed to hold onto my wedding program, which has text in English, Swahili, German and Danish. It was incredible - and long. I spent time at wedding festivities from 10:30am to 7:30pm. And by the time I left, it still wasn't even over! I wouldn't be surprised if it went for twelve hours or more. There was so much going on that it could be an entire email by itself (it has taken up two pages in my journal already), so I can't wait to tell everyone about it.
-I'm back to working at WOMEDA, the economic and legal organization for women. Currently they're having me digitize their records. There are lots and lots of records, and they are all exclusively in Swahili. It's a bit of a pain, but pretty rewarding - and I'm glad I'm able to help them in exchange for all of the help they offered me with my project. I'll be going back tomorrow and probably one or two more times before I leave.
-I have no idea how I'm going to pack my bag. Wish me luck. Also wish me luck in my shopping endeavors because we all know how much I love shopping...
-I really am enjoying this experience but I can't wait to be back home and see everybody! I've taken 450 pictures so far (and a few videos) so there won't be a shortage of those, in case anyone is wondering. :)
Unlike the epic emails I have sent in the past, this one is going to be fairly short. It's my last week in Tanzania (ahh!!) so I have been extremely busy - I didn't get a chance to write out my journal entries yet - actually, I'm only up to Saturday in my journal, so I'm a few days behind!
It's crunch time on this trip, as I try to cram in all of the things I need to get done before I leave on Monday morning. Since I'll be home soon, I'll get a chance to explain the things that have happened to me in greater detail (and with pictures!). For now, here's a brief recap of the things that have happened since my last email, at least the ones I can remember without consulting my journal:
-We spotted a monkey in our backyard! It was awesome. Unfortunately, we haven't seen it since.
-I took a trip to Bukoba. It's the biggest city in Karagwe district. I didn't get a whole lot of shopping done since the marketplace was kind of dingy and weird. I did manage to pick up a couple of things though.
-Also in Bukoba, I got to visit a baby orphanage. I haven't ever attempted to entertain an infant before, so that was quite an experience. I loved it though - I didn't want to give him back!
-We took a trek through a random forest on the side of the road with our tour guide/minion, Innocent, and found this amazing waterfall hidden among the trees.
-There was probably more happening in Bukoba, so I'll talk about it later.
-I attended a party at the home of Innocent and his family. I learned to dance and I watched an amazing Kenyan music video about Barack Obama. I'm trying to convince Innocent to let me burn it onto my hard drive because seriously - it's fantastic. In the most hilarious way possible.
-We attended a wedding of a Danish missionary and a Tanzanian reverend. It was apparently a history-making ceremony - things like this don't happen often at all. The wedding was extremely unique and attempted to incorporate tradition from both cultures. I managed to hold onto my wedding program, which has text in English, Swahili, German and Danish. It was incredible - and long. I spent time at wedding festivities from 10:30am to 7:30pm. And by the time I left, it still wasn't even over! I wouldn't be surprised if it went for twelve hours or more. There was so much going on that it could be an entire email by itself (it has taken up two pages in my journal already), so I can't wait to tell everyone about it.
-I'm back to working at WOMEDA, the economic and legal organization for women. Currently they're having me digitize their records. There are lots and lots of records, and they are all exclusively in Swahili. It's a bit of a pain, but pretty rewarding - and I'm glad I'm able to help them in exchange for all of the help they offered me with my project. I'll be going back tomorrow and probably one or two more times before I leave.
-I have no idea how I'm going to pack my bag. Wish me luck. Also wish me luck in my shopping endeavors because we all know how much I love shopping...
-I really am enjoying this experience but I can't wait to be back home and see everybody! I've taken 450 pictures so far (and a few videos) so there won't be a shortage of those, in case anyone is wondering. :)