8/5/2019 0 Comments We made it to Arusha!Arriving to Arusha, Tanzania was exciting. This soon became my favorite city of the trip because of all of the beautiful souls we met there. Our rafiki (friend) Vinold met us at the airport and drove us through the busy traffic of the city. On the drive, we were able to see many trees and crops on the sides of the road. We also learned that Arusha is known for its view of Mt. Meru. We were unable to see it because she was hiding behind clouds in the distance, but seeing the base of the mountain was just as exciting.
Our first stop was the Cultural Center where we were able to shop for souvenirs. The stores were full of great gifts and trinkets for tourists to take home to their families. Personally, I bought a beautiful hand-crafted backpack that will probably be used for my future travels. I also bought small jewelry for my family members. The center included a large art gallery with all of the art available to be sold and shipped. I was surprised that most of the prices were displayed in US dollars because I thought only shillings were going to be used in the country. I now can understand that the center was targeting their large population of tourists and consumers from the United States. We left the center and arrived to Christina House, a beautiful guest house with trees and gardens all throughout. We also were greeted by Gerald and Jonas, who quickly became our friends (whether they liked it or not). We also met the loving and cheerful Mama Christina who gave us a warm welcome to Arusha and Tanzania. The hospitality here was wonderful and the food was exquisite as well. It was my favorite place that we stayed in and I will never forget the experience. After we settled into our rooms, we met Vinold for our Swahili lesson. I thought I would be overwhelmed because Swahili seemed like a very intricate language to me. I enjoyed the language lesson and after reviewing my notes a few times, was able to piece together small sentences to communicate with our new Tanzanian friends.
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After class fun!JI SAfter we met with the classes, we regrouped in the headmaster’s office. We were invited to “tea and bread,” something I started to realize was a common time to break in many establishments, but I was not complaining. After tea, the teachers invited us to the back field for a small presentation. The students organized a small Tanzanian dance complete with traditional clothing and music to share for us. It was such a beautiful surprise that I was not expecting and to be honest, it brought a tear to my eye. I was truly happy to meet all of the teachers and students here. And the fun did not stop just yet!
Once we said our goodbyes to the students, they had a break for lunch. We met with the teachers in our changemaker group. The US teachers changed out of our professional clothes for a hike. I was surprised to see that the Tanzanian teachers joined us on the hike in their professional clothing and it was no big deal for them. We hiked up a dirt road with beautiful trees, and then down a hill on a very steep trail. When we were down the hill at a clearing, beyond the trees a beautiful waterfall was visible. We made it to Nkweranja Falls! When we arrived at the base of the water, everyone began to take pictures. I took a few and then noticed that Goodluck had his feet in the water! I removed my shoes and did the same. It was such a fun experience to share this with our Mwalimu (teacher) friends. We took our group pictures and enjoyed exploring around together. Finally we hiked back up, enjoying and laughing all throughout. This was one of the most memorable hikes I’ve had in all the ones I’ve had abroad. I’m glad this was a part of the trip because it was such a fun time. After the hike, we returned to say thank you and goodbye to the headmaster and teachers. We shared our experiences and gratitude with the headmaster. He welcomed us back several times, as did many of the teachers. I remember telling Danyella: I had such a good friendship with those teachers instantly that I feel like I have known them my entire life. It was hard to leave such a nice group of humble and caring educators. I will always cherish this time with them and everything I learned here. Following the hike, our rafiki (friend) Vinold showed us the school he is a professor at. Students there become fluent in Swahili to carry out various programs in Tanzania. It was a large, beautiful campus. He gave us a tour of the classrooms and offices. The school also had a tall lookout tower that had a view of Mt Kilimanjaro. We wanted to go up and see the mountain, but it was closed that day. Nonetheless, it was a unique asset for the campus. We continued walking around, and we were able to look at the pop up shop with traditional Tanzanian gifts. All the shops were filled with beautiful handmade jewelry, elephant pants, and Masai warrior figurines. Everything was colorful and elaborate. We left the school to have a nice buffet style lunch at Triple A to follow our busy morning. Vinold and Ombeni joined us. I asked Ombeni if he gets the day off of work to hang out with us. He said “Well, yes.” I replied that it’s a good group to be a part of, and he agreed with a smile. We continued our adventure at the Shanga workshop. Here, people with various abilities are hired for the workshop and create beautiful masterpieces. Glassware and jewelry were available for sale. I enjoyed that this was a very inclusive employment opportunity for all people involved. From my research conducted previously, I understand that many African countries do not always include people with disabilities. This Shanga establishment went against the norms of the country to not only include these particular members, but to employ them to create amazing works of art. I was very pleased with visiting the workshop. We were not able to have a full tour because we arrived just before closing time, but we still were able to look around the work areas and shop. Our day ended back at Christina house just before another delicious dinner. It was a busy, but exciting day. It resulted in being my favorite of the entire trip. The school, hike, and workshop truly opened my eyes to all of the beauty that Tanzania had to offer. |
Photo used under Creative Commons from deborah's perspective