Tick Tock

These past few days have been busy with composing final reports and making sure to get enough time in with everyone we met before heading back home. The past 8 weeks have been the fastest of my life. In the time those weeks have flashed by I made new friends, traveled to beautiful places and learned more about myself and the world around me.

Last minute projects are finally coming together and I hope to have them finished before I leave. Last week Lonny and I finished writing CVs in our boys club and rumour has it that one member already has a job offer. Carla and I run an English class out of the youth centre and this phase saw 4 new women join. They have shown up regularly over the past month showing their commitment to learn. That in turn motivates us to provide the most practical and beneficial lessons with the intention of bringing them back class after class. Consistent attendance can measure success.

Lonny and I live with a generous and loving host family. We wanted to thank them and show them that their hospitality was greatly appreciated. We picked up some school books for Ash and Robert and made a photo collage for the family that is now hanging in the living room. No doubt I will miss them.

Not only am I leaving my friends in Tanzania, but also my colleagues with whom I've made life-long friendships with. They have given me support, provided moments of uncontrollable laughter and challenged me to be who I am. They will be the only ones who can truly appreciate these stories and tie them to a moment in their life.

I do miss home and all the amenities that come with it. Using a bucket to shower is fine, its the Wiener Schnitzel and potato salad I miss the most.

A Sign?

The last two days have been ones of shock.

Yesterday I was doing some work on a laptop in my room. We have a power bar in the room that allows for all plug configurations because the laptop has a North American plug. Plugs here are the same as the UK. I unpacked the laptop and the power adaptor for the laptop. While the adaptor wasn't connected to the laptop I plugged it into the live power bar. Then I grabbed the other end that plugs into the laptop.

ZZZZZZZZZZAP!!! "WOAH!"

My right arm flew into the air and I couldn't control it. My entire right side from my shoulders to my hips tingled with a surge of electricity. Definitely a new experience.

I finished my work on the laptop and closed the computer.

ZZZZZZZZZZAP!!! "Wwwhat the hell!"

Again. This time with less surprise, but with just as much tingling.

Later that day I came home during the hottest part of the day to take nap. It gets warm under a tin roof so I decided to turn on the fan. The fan has a European plug. It is also plugged into the power bar. This time no shock.

A few minutes later I can smell smoke and look at the clock. It's around lunch time and I figured it was Mama cooking lunch. This time it wasn't food smoking. I turned to look at the fan. The fan had overheated and burst into flames. I grabbed the fan, pulled out the plug and run it outside. Walking back to the room I can see a haze of smoke.

What a day. Bad luck or was my life in jeopardy?

A look into Life at "Home"

The Spin Off

Baba and I having a soccer ball spin off.

Chapati, Mandazi and Rice!

Baba and Mama invited the girls over for dinner today. It was going to be a feast. Lonny and I said we would help out with the groceries and the cooking.

Lonny and Baba spent that morning in town at the market. They picked up flour, oil, tomatoes, cucumber, onions, peas, beans, rice, pineapple, coconut, meat, spinach, and bananas.

I spent the morning in the kitchen making mandazi. Mandazi is a fried pastry similar to donuts. Mama uses coconut as her special ingredient. So, first things first...crack open the coconut. A few hard whacks with a metal rod and it cracks. I get to try the coconut milk. I scrap out the coconut meat with a crazy contraption that has a serrated blade at one end. Definitely hard, manual labour. So three coconuts later and we start making the dough; flour, yeast and rinsed coconut. The water we rinsed the coconut with was also added. We then made small balls with the dough and fried them in hot oil.

Lonny and Baba made Cinnamon Buns. Yup!

We spent most of the day cooking for dinner making sure the ladies had the best of the best. First course was rice, beans, beef stew and peas with a tomato, cucumber and onion salad. Second was Mandazi, Cinnamon Buns and Chapati served with hot Chai. Third was sweet pineapple.

Even though the power has been out for about 3 days we had an awesome candlelit dinner!

Also, the rain has arrived. Mud and the hazardous walk without falling is a daily routine now. At least it has cooled down with the clouds hiding the sun.