My family is here now!
Sunday, July 25, 2010
We Are Family
Itty Bitty
Caroline and I were finally at work on the same day! We hadn’t seen each other in almost a week and had so much to catch up on. We spent the day chit chatting and playing with the kids. It was the American family’s last day in Tanzania and LOHADA said their goodbye’s to them.
Contagious
Newfound friendships at their best, and boy gossip at it’s highest, I was pumped to go to work on Monday. The American family was gearing their trip down and preparing for their last day in Tanzania. Already set on going to Camp Joshua for the day to scope out the new cute French volunteer, I was happy to see that everyone else at Moses had the same plan, minus the French volunteer part.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Good Vibrations
As a team, we decided that we just wanted a relaxing weekend. We slept in Saturday morning, and then did a workout video on the balcony. Our cleaning lady thought we were crazy as we kicked and sweated our way through P90X cardio.
Keepin On Keepin On
Wednesday, Caroline was sick and didn’t make it into work, leaving it to be just Juliet and I and some new Danish volunteers at the office. I went to go talk to her about how soon my family was coming, and it ended up turning into one of the best conversations we have had. All of the miscommunications from the past were brought into the open and we realized that that is just what they were. I explained the work I had been doing and what I was planning on doing for the rest of my time here. We finally understood where each other were coming from.
The next day I woke up feeling really cruddy. I was still excited about the previous days success, but had a nasty cold. I made it to work in the morning but didn’t last long. There was a new family from the states at the orphanage taking pictures and doing videos, along with 3 Danish volunteers. They all looked at me like I was walking dead, and to be honest that’s how I felt. I really didn’t want to risk getting the kids sick and I didn’t know how much longer I’d be able to stay awake, so at 11 I headed home. I got back to the white house, tucked myself into bed and slept until 4 that afternoon. The house was strangely empty, as 6 people had left the day before to go to Zanzibar. I had dinner, and went back to bed, hoping I’d wake up the next day feeling better.
I started feeling better after dinner, and the new girls and I had a nice and relaxing in night. We made banana splits and pineapple banana muffins and read Cosmopolitan magazines and just had a great girls night. I was finally starting to get to know the people in my house better, and I was happy about the way everything was going. All I needed was to feel better and life would be perfect!
Joseph
Anxious to see how Joseph had done the previous day, I had no problems being at the bus station at seven the next morning. Like a worried mother, I couldn’t sleep the night before and just wanted to know that he was okay. Juliet, Caroline and I, along with Mama Lydia, got onto the bus and went to see our baby. We met Eamon in Moshi, grabbed something quick to eat, and went in to see him.
Juliet had gotten to the hospital before us, and as I walked into the room all I could see was a large lump on the bed where Joseph was supposed to be. Juliet looked at me with her beautiful brown eyes and asked me to give her my hand. My heart has never beaten so fast. I had no idea what she was going to tell me.
Much to my relief, she said, “our baby is okay, Joseph is fine”. The lump was a cage that they had placed over the majority of his body so the blankets wouldn’t touch the wounds. He was very sedated, but he was still my baby and he was still okay.
The surgery had taken 2.5 hours, but was successful. They had cut into his lower abdomen and found that only the head of his penis had been cut off; the rest had simply retracted into his abdomen. They were able to bring it outside and took a piece of skin from his thigh to create a new head. The doctors said they weren’t sure the penis would function at 100%, but he would still have sensations there and he should go through a normal puberty. Success! The only downside was that Joseph would have to stay at KCMC for at least 14 more days to recover as he still experienced great amounts of pain while he urinated.
Happy about our brilliant day, the trip home didn’t seem nearly as long. Even though I had to leave my baby in Moshi, I knew he was going to be okay.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Becoming Normal
One of the new volunteers, Lauren, had been placed at Camp Joshua, so I brought her to work with me on Monday for her orientation. Still not fully recovered from the tiff with Juliet, things weren’t 100% safi at work.
While we were in the office, Juliet popped her head in and casually mentioned that my baby, Joseph, was having his surgery that day. Like it was no big deal. I almost started to cry. She said we should all go to Moshi the next day, and I of course agreed. Then she mentioned that someone would need to pick up the bread for the rest of the children the next day as Mama Wambura (and her vehicle) were still out of town. Great. I was left with the dilemma of whether to go see my child after his surgery or to pick up the bread so 120 children could have their one slice a week.
I, being completely frazzled and much to close to tears for comfort, called Ronnie, the genius-all mighty problem solver, and he agreed that if we paid his gas money he wouldn’t mind picking up the bread the next day. Even though he was sick, he was still a great coordinator!
After Lauren and I had finished at Camp Moses, Ronnie came over and had a quick meeting with Juliet to confirm Lauren’s details and then we went to town. I was more than excited to be the ‘oldie’ for once; showing Lauren the hot-spots in Arusha and helping her get familiarized with the city….
It just sort of struck me that I now think of Arusha as a city. As the hub of everything. As normal.
We all headed home and it was so exciting to hear about the four new girls and their first day of placement experiences. I really feel like I have made a home and a family and that I could stay here for a long time.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Maji Moto
This weekend was a definite turning point for the better. The power was out all through Moshono (the area of Arusha Camp Moses is in) and the majority of the work I needed done was on the computer. I played with my kiddies, avoided any pee incidents, and left around noon.
Sunday was Meghans last full day in Arusha. Our original five was going to lose it’s third member! Meghan and I spent the day doing all the fun things around Arusha. We went and bought her bus ticket to Dar es Salaam, then to the market to get some last minute souvenirs, of course to Africafe for one last piece of cake and then back to the house to let her finish packing. We went to the Japanese restaurant for dinner and made our way home. I had a really good time getting to know Meghan better and really enjoyed our last few days together. It was the perfect ending to a really refreshing weekend.
Really? I Have How Long Left?
The next day I came to Camp Moses and met with Eamon and Caroline there. We sat down to have what started as an innocent talk, but ended in a fight. We began discussing what we really wanted to accomplish with the time we had left and what we had already done. Of course, this led to Joseph.
By now my attachment to him has grown immeasurably. He has really become my own and I feel responsible for everything that happens to him. Juliet wasn’t sure herself and Mama Wambura wanted us to continue sponsoring him because of how many people had gotten involved. Not only were Caroline and I sponsoring him, but also the two Danish volunteers that had been around for a few weeks had become involved as well as the pushy Americans that have since disappeared. They were thinking it would just be easier for them to just be in control. The language barrier was too much and we were all too frustrated with each other to continue the conversation. Showing my not-so-mature side, I left with Eamon and Caroline to go to town and cool down.
We had a milkshake and burger and discussed what had just happened in the meeting. Knowing I still had work to get done, I went back to Camp Moses after we had finished eating. Things were more than tense when I walked in. I spent an hour or so avoiding Juliet, which is not easy when the office is smaller than a bedroom, and going through sponsorship files before calling it quits. More devastated than ever, I went home.
To Moshi With Love
For the first time, Caroline and I ventured to Moshi just the two of us. We were more than okay with making it another short trip; only taking Mama Suzanna and Joseph for lunch and playing with our baby a bit before leaving. We left what we thought would be enough money for the next little while and came back to Arusha. Tired and still full swing with my private pity party, I ate dinner and went to bed.
Tough Times
I had heard that things hadn’t gone well at Camp Moses on Friday. From what I had been told (I spent the day saying good bye to Andrea and Cassie), there had been a huge meeting (that I wasn’t told about… my first frustration) that discussed Joseph and who was in charge of the funding and monitoring of his care. The new Americans insisted it was their prerogative to continue with Joseph’s well being, even though Caroline and I had done of the legwork to get him admitted to KCMC. The main issue, I guess, was that everyone wanted to help Joseph and the attention was being diverted from the other 120 kids LOHADA helps. With all of this happening, I dreaded more than ever going back to work on Monday.
With this terribly negative attitude, I did just that. Went to work, was a grouch and didn’t last long. Caroline’s co-ordinator, Eamon, came to Moses to discuss what had happened at the meeting on Friday and to see how things were in general at LOHADA. Five or six new volunteers had also shown up at Camp Moses, and I felt useless. We hung around until noon or so, then Caroline, Eamon and I went into town for lunch.
There were miscommunications left right and center and nothing was being done to fix it. I should’ve been on the ball at this point but was too pre occupied with being homesick. I was frustrated that it felt like no one was listening to my opinion and it just seemed like no one wanted to change anything or strive for what I saw as improvement. The pole pole nature of everything had gone from enjoyable to the source of frustration in a matter of days. I was clearly on the African emotional rollercoaster that I had been warned about.
It's Hard To Say Goodbye
The next few days, Andrea and Cassie started to pack their bags. Sad to see them leave, I decided a work-from-home day was in order. Andrea and I went to Kigongoni Lodge (they have wireless internet so I did get some work done!), and got ourselves pumped for the Canada party we were hosting that night. All of us girls took our time getting ready and put on our red and white; so proud to represent Canada in Africa! All of the law interns from the ICTR came to our house (they had all made friends with Ronnie) came over. We had a Canadian musician only play-list and danced our night away to the sounds of The Barenaked Ladies, Justin Bieber, The Tragically Hip and Bryan Adams. In front of the house, Ronnie set off the fireworks that he had bought and we celebrated the great nation we were from. After that, we loaded ourselves into a rented dalla dalla and headed to Via Via to share the Canadian spirit. We danced even more and made our way home in the wee hours of the morning.
At this point I was ready to come home. The thought that Andrea and Cassie would be seeing their friends and families in less than a day, and would be going back to normal made me resent my surroundings. I was tired of being shouted at walking down the streets and I craved the personal space that all of Arusha seemed to lack. I just wanted normal.
Back To Reality....
Bright and early we all met at Friend’s corner. I was late, as usual since I’ve adapted so well to the African pole pole nature. Since I hadn’t been back to Camp Moses since my trip to Zanzibar, I was a little behind on what was all going on with regards to the care of our kiddies. Two extra girls were waiting at the corner and I was told they were from a separate organization that was interested in taking care of the cost of Joseph’s post-operative care. I had my first maternal instinct ever when I saw these strangers holding my babies and pretending like they knew them when I was positive they didn’t. I just wanted to take Joseph and Bryson from their arms and hold them and protect them and make sure they were safe.
On their last trip to Moshi they had already gotten an ultrasound for Joseph and we were ready to admit him. While we were waiting around and getting all of his papers in order, the American and I started talking. We talked about the organizations we had come with, how long we had been in Tanzania for (I was at 2 months, herself, 2 days), and then we got onto the topics of university. I told her I was going into my second year, she insisted that I wasn’t, and then asked how old I was. After I told her my age, she said, “Oh wow, you’re just a baby. You don’t really know what’s going on, do you?”. From that point forward I really didn’t like her. Not only did I not like her, but also I felt for the first time since being in Africa that I needed to prove myself to someone.
Frustrated with her, I left and went to pester Dr Afrika into coming to meet us. He ensured that there was a bed for Joseph in the urology wing of the hospital. We got Joseph and Mama Lydia settled into their new bed before worrying about Bryson. We paid the 65,000 shillings for Josephs stay and said our goodbyes. Starving, Caroline and I grabbed some lunch/dinner while the American volunteers went with Bryson to the eye clinic. If they had listened before, they would have known that he had already been to an eye doctor and had no problems with his eyes. Dinner was a little tense when they came back with Bryson and we attempted again to explain what we had done. With full bellies, we made our way back to the bus station and came home to Arusha. Frustrated that a) it had been a 14 hour day and b) that I had experienced ageism in Africa, I called my girlies and had them meet me at Africafe for a hot fudge sundae. Two of my girls had just gotten down from summiting Kilimanjaro so we all had lots to talk about.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Stone Town
The narrow, winding roads and brilliantly aged and intricate architecture made it feel like we had driven into a completely different part of the world. After our taxi driver expertly navigated the streets to our hotel, we dropped our bags and anxiously headed off to first find some food, then to explore.
While we were in Kendwa, we carefully studied the map of Stone Town, debating which hotel location would be most suitable to our plans. We decided on Mazsons, which was located fairly centrally. Our plan of attack was to start at one end of the town, close to the ocean, and walk alongside the water, venture into a few museums and do a bit of souvenir shopping. We figured that we would make it to the restaurant we wanted to have dinner at around 6 pm or so, as it was on the complete opposite end of town. After our delicious Italian lunch, we set out to accomplish just this.
As we walked, we were constantly side tracked by little shops and fantastic views. After finding the Old Fort and a few museums as well as the rose garden we noticed that we had only walked about 20 minutes, and were already halfway through the town. In another 10 or so minutes, we had made it to the port which was also where our restaurant was.. So much for the hours we thought we would be walking. Looks like mom's map reading skills didn't come through in my genes. Layner, guess you got 'em.
Since we had rushed ourselves a bit, worried we wouldn't get to the restaurant before dark, we back tracked a bit and successfully shopped our way through the twisted town. I bought spices galore and real vanilla, Hammer pants and some amazingly scented teas and coffees. We dropped off our bags at the hotel, did a quick change, and walked to Mercury's Restaurant for dinner.
Freddy Mercury, the old lead singer from Queen, had supposedly been born in Zanzibar. The restaurant Mercury's capitalized on his name and provided a perfect ocean view sea-food experience. Cassie and I watched the sun set (oh so romantic) and the ferries come in, while Germany (I think) was defeated in the World Cup. After dinner we found the night market. It was set up in the central park type area of Stone Town, and probably a hundred or so vendors had set up food stations all around. They sold everything from fresh seafood to Zanzibar pizzas, which were just crepes folded and filled with chicken, beef, and even Nutella and bananas. Even though we had gorged ourselves at dinner, Cassie and I still managed to devour a dessert pizza.
Content but exhausted, we sunk into our beds and fell asleep in our first air conditioned room since Rwanda. The next morning we ate breakfast and wandered around a bit before grabbing an iced coffee and a taxi. Off to the airport once more, our mini vacation was over. After an hour of waiting in a disgustingly stuffy and humid airport lounge, we boarded the tiny plane and waved goodbye to the most relaxing four days of our journey.
Our favorite taxi man was waiting for us when we landed in Arusha. We were greeted into the town by disgustingly congested roads and the hottest weather we had seen for almost the whole time we've been here. Stinky and all travelled out, we grabbed a burger at our favorite cafe and made our way home.

I realize how far behind I am on keeping this updated.. But I'm working hard on getting myself all caught up! I've got some great stories from the past couple weeks. Can't wait to share them!
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Kendwa
KCMC
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Moshi
Friday, July 2, 2010
Catch Up!
Bryson
