We Are Family

My family is here now!

This past week has been a complete blur. Via Via four nights in a row, people coming and going within the house and just the general happiness that is around makes it so easy to just be.

On Wednesday Lauren and Meryl came to Camp Moses and we spent the day just having fabulous talks, listening to music and getting caught up on all of the office work we had been putting off. It was amazing how quickly time flew by. After work, another girl and I met some of our house girls in town for an ice cream sundae. Delicious as always. After that we headed down to the boys’ practice and gawked in amazement. They really are something spectacular. The fluidity of their movements is incomprehensible and they just make it look easy. Daddy had asked a few of the girls to take pictures for publicity and the rest of us certainly didn’t mind pretending that we weren’t enjoying ourselves way too much trying to capture their choreography.

When the practice had finished and we had wiped the drool off of our chins, I went with the girls to get some supplies for their trip to Uganda. Being the resident expert on way too long bus trips I didn’t mind tagging along and giving them suggestions on what keeps your stomach happy when it is getting slammed up and down so viciously on the dirt roads. We went home, had dinner and left again for Via Via.

The boys all met us there and we gave transferred the pictures we had taken. One thing led to another, and before we knew it Daddy was giving us dance lessons and we had turned a cute little restaurant into a salsa class. All of the other people that were there for a casual drink or dinner came and joined in and the party started. We stayed and danced and laughed and enjoyed ourselves until 2 in the morning before calling it a night. I could barely sleep I was so overwhelmed with excitement. Not only would my family be here in less than 24 hours, but also I was realizing how head over heels in love I am with all parts of my life.

Thursday was another quick day at work. Juliet had to go to Camp Joshua so it was just another volunteer and I at Moses. We had a bonding day with our kids, and I started to think about what it’s going to be like to go home without them.

After tuckering ourselves out playing, I came home to finish up some office work. I was so anxious about my parents coming and the events over the last few days that it was difficult to concentrate on much. I watched the clock, said goodbye to some of the girls who were heading out to Uganda for white water rafting and tried to busy myself while waiting for 7 pm to roll around.

Right on time, Agry came to BaseCamp (my house), with his big bus ready to get my family. It was a long and drawn out hour and a half trip to Kilimanjaro airport. It didn’t help that one of the two men Agry brought along to help out with bags was creeping on me the whole time. I ended up telling him I was twenty and married with children to get him to turn around and stop talking to me.

We were early (which Never!!! Happens in Africa.) so we stopped by Agry’s uncles place that is near to the airport for a quick soda. Agry told me his uncle was a guard and the airport and his uncle ended up hopping on the bus with us as we were leaving. We got to the airport and I bounced out of the bus and skipped to the main doors. Agry’s uncle motioned for me to follow him and before I knew it I was standing beside the airplane waiting for them to walk out. Turns out I have mad connections like never in Tanzania.

As soon as I saw them I felt the tears well up in my eyes. It was so surreal to have them in my new home, experiencing what I had lived in for the past three months. Agrys uncle took them to the front of the line, grabbed their passports and got them stamped, then took us to the baggage carousel. Behind us, we left 150 or so people in the line up. Sick connections, I know. Even with our head start, after waiting for 14 suitcases to get unloaded from the plane, we were the last ones to be leaving the airport.

Everything seemed to be way too easy; then we tried to clear customs. They asked for our bags to be opened and that’s where the trouble began. The customs officer wanted receipts for all of the donations that we were bringing into the country or for us to pay $150 USD. A little panicked and not sure what to do, Agry and his uncle stepped in. Agry talked to the man, followed him behind a corner into an office, then emerged again and the problem was solved. We hurried out of the airport, not wanting to wait around for anything else to go wrong.

We loaded the bus and were off. I chit chatted all the way back to Arusha, so excited to be telling all of my stories in person. They were exhausted and perfectly content with my just dropping them off at the hostel and saying goodnight. That’s where my night just started.

I bounded into my house overcome with happiness and excitement and just general positivity, retelling the airport story at least three times, chugging back some Konyagi and getting ready for a night out.

Via Via was even more fun then usual it seemed. Maybe it was the karaoke, maybe it was Contagious dancing and maybe it was just the fantastic mood I was in, but we danced and danced and danced, not making it home until after three in the morning. We made pizza, popcorn and ate cake in our kitchen, giggling about trying to keep up when we were dancing with the boys from the group. Off to bed, catching maybe an hour or so of sleep, before having to wake up and meet the family the next day.

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.

It was also meat and bread day. I went with Mama Wambura’s son, Jacob, (Soooooo many ‘J’ names here!) to pick them up. We got the meat, and went to get the bread but they were closed. On the way back, Jacob pulled over and said “okay, go slow” and got out of the car. I did the same and climbed into the drives seat! I was really driving in Africa!!!! I drove all the way back to Camp Moses and didn’t even crash! Go me!

After lunch we all piled into the car again and Jacob insisted I drive again as I had done so well the first time. The other girls weren’t too sure but played along. I did great all the way to the bread place and then all the way into town! I dropped them off at different places and handed the keys back over to Jacob. Such an exciting day!

I met with Meryl and Lauren at McMoody’s before going home. We had banana stew for dinner, then got a text from the b-boys to meet them at Via Via again. All of the crew that went to Zanzibar was home and a lot of us went to meet ‘the boys’. We had a few drinks and lots of laughs and I decided I never want to leave! Knowing how soon my family was coming made everything seem so much better. I truly love this place and when my family gets here, there won’t be much at all that I’m missing.

At home, Ronnie gave us bitty names… I’m officially Itty Bitty.

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.

We hung around for the morning, updated files and just doing a little work here and there, waiting for the group to be all ready to go. The creepy man who has started donating juice to LOHADA, mostly because of the opportunity it provides him with to look at attractive foreign volunteers, showed up just before we were leaving. He offered to drive some of us to Joshua so that he could ‘see the school’. The girls, wary of the juice man, climbed in Mama Wambura’s car, leaving the boys and Juliet to ride with ‘him’.

Paulo, the volunteer from France, did not disappoint. We spent the day sitting in on classes, playing soccer and I even managed to get the rest of the Sponsor A Child letters finished. Three o clock came quickly and I joined Lauren and Meryl in their trip into town. We went to McMoody’s for a quick sundae (delicious) and then went to see the B-Boys practice.

Some of the other girls in our house had met some of the locals that are in a dance crew, Contagious, that performs at some of the local clubs. I never really understood their fascination with them and had just brushed aside all of their comments. But today, since Lauren and Meryl were already going, and I just happened to be with them, I figured I’d join.

We went into a gym downtown that I had no idea existed and took a seat to watch ‘the boys’ practice. They did not disappoint. All of them were fantastic dancers and completely mesmerized us. The were doing what Daddy, the main guy/choreographer of the group, called contemporary-afro dance. Whatever it was I was impressed! We left an hour and a half or so in, and went to grab dinner at a near by local restaurant. One of the girls had been ‘seeing’ a boy in the crew and wanted to make it back before practice was over. We ate quickly and then got a call from ‘the boys’ to meet them at Via Via for a drink. Off we went and looking back now, this and the preceding events were what have caused the biggest change I’ve seen in myself over the trip.

The three of us girls sat with the boys and had drinks and listened to music and just really enjoyed the surroundings. The sun set and some of them left, the music got louder and I have never talked so openly about the cultural differences with locals. They taught us a bit of dancing and we closed the place for the night.

I have no idea why I was so happy after all of this. Maybe it was because I finally really embraced the culture here, maybe it was because I took the time to talk to locals that weren’t employed by Volunteer Abroad, and maybe it was just because I’ve started to grow up and learn to take advantage of opportunities presented to myself.

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.

We all showered and got dressed and headed to town to do some exploring. Not all of the ‘new girls’ knew their way around town so we showed them all of the ins and outs. We had a great salad for lunch and had finished our exploring just in time to make it home for dinner.

After dinner, I was exhausted. It was the first day in a loooong time that I hadn’t had a nap. We agreed as a team that we’d have a quick nap after dinner then go down the street for karaoke. Eight thirty we went down for our nap, and I didn’t get back up until morning. The rest of the girls went out and had a great time. I was just excited when I woke up Sunday morning and wasn’t sick anymore!

Ronnie came home from Uganda on Sunday and made us delicious French toast for breakfast. We gorged ourselves on that and fruit then decided it was the perfect day to go to Kigongoni Lodge. We laid by the pool until five in the evening, then went for Indian food. Delicious to say the least!

The group in the house right now is what has changed my attitude so drastically. The general mentality is so positive and open and it’s infectious. I love being around them and am really happy with the way everything is working out!

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.

We both saw how important the children are to us and that we want the saw things for them. I’m ecstatic of how things have worked out. The confidence that I had been lacking in all of the work I was doing has been restored. I went home and new that something had changed for me. I didn’t believe it was possible, but I started to love Africa and Tanzania and Arusha and my life here even more.

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.

Friday was Marlee’s last day in Arusha. I woke up but still felt crummy, so stayed in bed. I managed to climb out to go for lunch with the girls, but didn’t last long after that. I said goodbye to Marlee, and was left the last of the original five. I had the room to myself! After sleeping with so many people in the same room for so long it was more than strange to be the last one standing.

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.

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.

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.

Our house had planned on going on a big camping trip, and I was excited to get out of the house for the weekend. Meghan had come home from summiting Kilimanjaro the night before and we were set on making her last weekend in Africa a good one!

We got our bags together, made sure we had enough chocolate and graham crackers to see us through a few days, and boarded the dalla dalla. The whole way to the hot springs, Maji Moto (literally translated to ‘hot water’) we sang and sang and entertained the local that was driving us. Only eight of us went down on the Friday, as the rest didn’t want to stay over night. We pitched our tents and started a fire. Joseph, not my baby but our assistant cook at the house, came along with us to make our meals. Life of luxury indeed. Two of the four new volunteers joined us, and I really enjoyed getting to know them.

We spent the night talking and making s’mores around the campfire. It was really just what I needed to set me straight again and give myself a huge attitude adjustment.

The next day we ate breakfast, put on our swimsuits and dove into the hot springs. The water was warm and beautiful and just perfect. We swam and laughed and enjoyed the relaxation that Maji Moto brought us. The other group came around lunch time and by then we had already finished in the water. For the rest of the day, I took pictures and just hung out. This was the first time I’d just relaxed at somewhere other than Kigongoni Lodge or our house. It felt fantastic! We found a turtle and looked at fishies and just loved the day.

As the afternoon wore on, more mzungu’s from different groups in and around Arusha showed up. I grew happier and happier with my decision to have camped out the night before as I got my swimming done in the morning and didn’t feel rushed or obligated to do much of anything at all. The rest of the group all swam till three or four in the afternoon, then we packed up camp and drove away from our glorious weekend.

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.

The next day was Saba Saba, or the seventh of July. It’s a farmers celebration day and most people don’t work. Feeling like I was most people, along with others in our house, stayed home for the day. Ana and I decided to be adventurous and make cinnamon buns. And an adventure it was. In the process of learning to make the buns, we also learned how to make corn syrup and brown sugar, as both are non-existent in Arusha. The three or so hour long process was absolutely delicious in the end. Ana and I are known as the African Betty Crocker’s.

Baking has been a pretty big part of our white-house-on-the -hill life. We’ve made everything from chocolate chip banana muffins to apple coffee cake and now were proud to add cinnamon buns to the ever growing list… and waistline.

Tough Times

Even though Meghan and Marlee were still around, and the new volunteers had arrived the night before, I couldn’t help but feel like holing myself up in my room all weekend, and that’s just what I did. That Saturday and Sunday completely blur together. Somewhere in there Meghan left to climb Kili and I watched the first two seasons of the TV series Weeds. I walked around town like a lost puppy, stayed in bed until ridiculous hours and just felt sorry for myself.
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.

We all woke up feeling like champions the next day. We went for breakfast at Africafe and wished that the clocks would all stop. Andrea was going to be the first to leave, departing just after noon. We all moped around our room, Andrea and Cassie packing up two months worth of memories. Agrey, our taxi man, pulled into the drive and we loaded her suitcases in. Proving myself as the baby of the house, I teared up and said goodbye to a great friend. The rest of us sat around for the rest of the day, in disbelief of how fast two months had gone by. We went for dinner to our favorite restaurant; savoring every bite and not wanting to go back home. On the way back, I realized that in the past two months, Cassie and I had not spent one night apart. On all of our trips and the whole time in the house we had shared a room. At home, Agrey came once again and took away another friend. Meghan, Marlee and I, the last three of the original five, sat on the front steps of our house and tried to come to terms with how little time we had left and how much had already gone bye.

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.

We loaded the bus and I wasn’t surprised when the new girls, who were American, ensured the babies sat on their laps and insisted on giving them too much sugar. The most frustrating thing was that they didn’t acknowledge how much Caroline, another volunteer, and I knew about these kids already and they didn’t bother to ask what we had already done for them. They just assumed we were all starting from square one. I napped as usual for the remainder of the trip and gladly got off the stuffy, stinky bus when we came to Moshi.

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.

We went back to Moshi the next day, relieved to finally be able to go at 9 am (I’m really not a fan of early mornings). Andrea had finished her placement and was looking for something to do, so came with Caroline and I to Moshi. I slept the ride away and was so overjoyed to see that my baby was still okay at the hospital. We bought Mama Lydia and Joseph lunch, made sure they had plenty of fruit and water in the room and enough money for food until Monday when we were planning on coming back. Relieved at the idea of a short trip after the marathon of a day we had the day before, we headed back to Arusha. After dinner, to celebrate a good day, we all went to the movies to see Prince of Persia. Terrible movie, but still fun!

It was heart wrenching to leave my baby behind at KCMC, but I knew this was the first step into getting the right care. So much emotion was intertwined throughout the day, it didn’t feel like I was in Africa anymore. The more reflection I do on my trip and the changes I’ve seen in myself I realize how much I love the culture here. It has really become a part of me, and I hope I can bring the ‘pole pole’ or slow and relaxed methods back to my life in Canada.

Stone Town

Sunday morning, with very little sleep, I woke up determined to fully embrace the last day I had as a beach bum. I made my way to the beach, memorizing the brilliant blue of the ocean and the soft squish of the white sand between my toes. Nothing felt as perfect as the heat of the sun beating down and the ocean breeze blowing over. Begrudgingly, Cassie and I packed up our stuff and left Kendwa Rocks at 11 that afternoon. We got a taxi and headed to 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!

Kendwa

Thursday morning Cassie and I grabbed our bag(s) (one backpack each, we've gotten really good at packing light), hopped in the cab and headed to the airport. Airing on the side of caution, we got to the airport an hour and a half or so early. The airport is about the same size, if not smaller, than the one in Penticton. One runway, a few planes sitting here and there, and no indoor waiting area. We 'checked in', which entailed showing the piece of paper that said our flight times, and sat in the little waiting area beside the tarmac. Our backpacks had little tags put on them and sat beside us, waiting to board.. We went through security/a metal detector and walked over to our plane. Cassie and I gawked in something that resembled confusion as we took our seats.. We could literally reach in front of us and touch the control panel. It was even more surprising when the last of the nine passengers got on and sat in the co-pilot seat.

It was a beautiful, bumpy and fast flight to Zanzibar, over the Indian Ocean. As we drooled out the window at the crystal blue water, it felt like we were heading to the Caribbean and not the coast of Tanzania. As soon as we touched down and the pilot opened his window, we were overwhelmed by the heat. Finally! Lately, the weather in Arusha had been calling for jeans and sweaters. Not the Africa you'd expect. Anyways, we got off the plane, grabbed our bags and slid into a taxi.

An hour and a half later, we got to Kendwa Rocks. For $30 a night, the two of us stayed in paradise. At least a mile of white sandy beaches was less than a minute from the door of our room and the resort's bar and restaurant sat right in the middle of it all. Cassie and I dropped our bags, threw on our bikinis and headed to the water. Food, of course, was our first mission. After stuffing ourselves with pizza and sprite we went to the beach. We soaked up every last bit of sun before it set, then called it a day. After a long, hot shower, we changed and headed for dinner. 'World Cup Fever' had definitely infected all of Kendwa and we ate our dinner to the persistent buzz of vuvuzelas. We headed to bed early, ensuring we'd be up with the sun, ready for a full day of beaching!

Friday morning we headed down to the beach to scope out what we could fill our days with. After breakfast we went over to the snorkeling place and lucked out that they had ordered extra food for the boat that left at 9:00, meaning we could head out! We tried on some flippers and climbed onto the dhow; the traditional African fishing boat that looked like it could capsize at any minute. (Papa, it was pretty cool and made entirely by hand.. They are still used today for fishing. You should look it up!). Not even ten minutes into the ride, Cassie and I were asking for the sea sickness pills the guide had told us they carried. Luckily, I nipped my tummy issues in the bud, Cassie wasn't as fortunate. After almost two hours we finally made it to the site where we would snorkel. It was right beside a private island, where you could stay for a measly $2,000 a night.

On the boat there were about 17 or so other people. 8 were going to scuba dive, 5 of us were snorkeling and the rest were guides. We watched as the divers suited up and jumped in, then followed behind them. Turns out I don't like snorkeling at all. The whole not being able to breathe through your nose thing really freaks me out. After being in the water for about 5 minutes, I decided it wasn't really for me. I opted for just the mask and the fins. One of the guides took my by the hand and convinced me to follow him to a reef. He told me when to put my mask down so that I'd see some fishies. It was just like being in Finding Nemo. Yellow fishies, blue fishies, clown fishies and parrot fishies everywhere! We swam right through schools of them.. or at least that's what it seemed like through the magnification the mask provided. I lasted 10 more minutes or so before hauling myself back onto the boat. Cassie and I did a bit of suntanning until the rain came, then we hid for cover. After it passed, I climbed up onto the roof and got one of my first marriage proposals! Pretty exciting. Down below, Cassie wasn't as lucky and was definitely feeling the effects of the ocean. Despite her being sick, we ate lunch and took one more little dip before having a nap while we waited for the scuba divers to come back from their second dive.

Even though the trip back was much quicker, as the waves had calmed down, we still felt like kissing the ground once we landed on the beach. We turned in our flippers and grabbed a beach chair to enjoy the last hour or so of sun the day had in store for us. We had a quick dinner and once again headed to bed early; we needed our beauty sleep for the Full Moon Party the next day.

Saturday morning we didn't skip a beat on our way from our beds to the beach. One book, a little bit of rain, and a lot of sun later, I finished my first full day without a burn! I'm finally getting the hang of the African sun I guess. Before we went down for dinner, Cassie and I booked our hotel room in Stone Town for the next night and tried to take a quick power nap. Unsuccessful in this, we headed down for the big Full Moon buffet. While eating dinner, we joined in cheering for Ghana as they played against the United States, and got up and danced with everyone else when they one. The win led into a high energy evening, with a mix of people from all over the world. Zanzibar is apparently a European tourist hot spot. The dance/Full Moon party was just that, dancing under the full moon until 4 in the morning. Tired and tipsy, Cassie and I headed to bed.

KCMC

6:15 came a lot earlier than I wanted it too. Agrey, our favorite taxi man, had agreed the night before to come pick me up and take me to the bus station. Half asleep the six mzungus, Juliet, Mama Lydia and Joseph, headed off on our little adventure. We pushed our way through the Tanzanian men yelling "Moshi, Dar, Moshi, Dar, where you going mama, where you going sista", and climbed on what looked like a safe bus and took a seat. Before the bus pulled out, I was fast asleep.

Two hours later we arrived in Moshi. Hopped off the bus, got on a dalla dalla and made it to KCMC, Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Center. KCMC is the closest thing to a western hospital that I have seen so far... And this is my third one in Tanzania. Still not sure if I would want to get treated there if something were to happen to me, so let's just hope nothing does. We found our way to urology and took a seat.

After waiting around for about an hour we finally approached a doctor to see what we should really be doing. They informed us that there were never clinics on Wednesdays and we'd have to come back on Friday. We went to the reception desk to confirm and they said no, clincis were only on Thursdays. After talking to three or four other people, we confirmed that the clinic was indeed on Friday and that we would not be able to be seen today.

In a last ditch attempt at making the trip worthwhile, I approached a doctor and asked if there was anyway that our little guy could be seen before we left. Apparently being white has more pull than I thought and before I knew it we were in an exam room with a doctor. Joseph was so good as we splayed him out on the table. The doctor pressed on his lower abdomen and looked around a bit before saying that he believed it was an inverted penis. By this time, I had been pushed to the back of the room and was getting frustrated that the doctor was not seeing what the nurses had previously pointed out to me. I piped up and told him to look at the scar tissue. With this comment, the sea of white overbearing people parted and I made my way to the kiddie. I pointed out the scar leading from his anus through his testicles. The doctor said "oh, I think you may be right". I think that's the moment where I lost most of my faith in the doctors here. He called two more doctors in and they all looked at my baby, then agreed that exploratory surgery was going to be necessary.

The new doctor introduced himself to us as Dr. Afrika and was the one to give us a cost estimate. He said that around 150,000 shillings should cover the bed and surgery costs, and that we should come back Friday to try and secure a bed for our little man. He gave us his cell phone number and asked us to text him if we had any questions. The only catch was we had to talk to him in French. Dr Afrika spoke was from Rwanda, and spoke mostly KiRwandan. After that his best language was French, then Swahili and his English was only good enough to be spoken face to face. Once again, I wish I'd payed a little more attention to Mme Aubin.

We left KCMC happy that at least a little had been accomplished. We loaded ourselves onto a dalla dalla, onto a bus, and fell asleep. Three or so hours later, I made it home! My body was definitely not used to getting up so early so I just crashed. The rest of the group had agreed that they would go to Moshi again on Friday with Joseph and hope for the best. I, on the other hand, was off to Zanzibar.

Moshi

The week leading up to my trip to Zanzibar was definitely an interesting one...

Come Monday I headed off to Camp Moses to make a plan for the week. Mama Wambura was there when I got there and I told her how Bryson's appointment had gone the week prior and how something really needed to be done about Joseph. After that, Juliet and I chit chatted throughout the day, and she showed me the referral that was written for Joseph to see a urologist almost 8 months ago. It seemed like my persistent nagging had finally paid off, and they (Mama and Juliet) were starting to see how much I care about these kiddies and want to help them.

Juliet and I decided that Wednesday would be the best day to go to KCMC. KCMC is a big hospital in Moshi, which is the next big town over. It was said to be only an hour and a half away by bus. The only thing Juliet seemed to have a problem with was money. They had none. zero. zilch. She explained that there weren't any shillings for the dalla dalla, none to pay the mama's (Moses has 4 mama's during the day and 2 at night, Joshua has 2 full time mama's) or the teachers, and most definitely no money for a trip to Moshi to see a doctor. She explained that it wouldn't cost anything to see the doctor because we had a referral, but it would cost 4,000 shillings there and back for the bus. 4,000 shillings is just over 2 USD. I told her that I was sure my mom would have no problem sponsoring the bus trip. We agreed that the next day I'd do the orientation for some new volunteers and get everything in order for our trip.

It would've been easy to just reach into my bag and hand over the money for the bus. To make it seem like no big deal. And really, it's not. But this sort of thing has been happening since the day I arrived. Oh, we need a few thousand shillings for this, and shillings for the bus, and shillings for bread. I'm almost more than fine to hand it over, because what's a few bucks here and there? Turns out, after a while it's a lot. More than the money, it's the idea that they're getting that they can just simply ask the Mzungu for whatever they need whenever they get themselves in a pinch. This time I made sure it was different. By showing them that I needed to contact outside sources, and search for the money, I hope to change their view of the quick fix and show them how to fix some stuff on their own. You have to draw the line somewhere, and it's not always the easiest thing to do.

Tuesday I came to Camp Moses to finalize the plans for Moshi, and took a new volunteer to Unga Ltd to see Camp Joshua. It was an uneventful trip for the most part; did the tour, sat in on a classroom and watched the kids play a bit of soccer before we decided to head back to town. Over lunch, my phone rang. Earlier I had texted (yes, I have a cell phone in Tanzania.. most people do (locals included!) Much cheaper than in Canada though!) Juliet and asked her to remind Mama Wambura to pick up the bread. Juliet was calling me to explain that Mama Wambura had, yet again, failed to tell anyone she would be out of town and had taken her vehicle with her. This was the only vehicle that was around to pick up food. Juliet said that I needed to go and get the 10 loaves of bread that SunKist donates weekly. This left me with a little problem as there are no dalla dalla's that run to the factory, and although I have a cell phone I don't have a car. Try explaining all this to the new volunteers that were having lunch with me. "Well you see, we don't know how the children are going to get the 1 slice of bread a week because we have no car and Mama has disappeared". Little do they know that this is perfectly 'normal'.

After a few phone calls, my co ordinator agreed to take me to the factory. The only thing was he only has a motorbike. He emptied his big backpacking bag and we were off. Ten loaves of bread got stuffed into the bag and we dropped them off at Camp Moses. A few more people had congregated in the office there, and Juliet explained to me that they all wanted to come to Moshi the next day. I said alright, explained they were going to need to help with costs, and it was all set. We were to meet at Friends Corner (a downtown landmark) at 6:30 the next morning.

Catch Up!

After the long day with Bryson, all of us girls got a little dressed up and went to the mzungu hangout/bar Via Via. We danced and blew into vuvuzelas and had an overall great night. Ronnie only had to 'rescue' us on the dance floor a few times. We made it home by 2; overall a success.

The next morning no one was really up for work and I had a meeting in town, so we had a nice little sleep in before starting our days. I met with Jennifer (a previous volunteer) and we chit chatted a little more over what exactly went on at LOHADA and what really needed to be going on. Bottom line, I've got a lot of work to do.

After our meeting, the other girls I room with came and joined me for brunch. We sat around for a few hours then headed home. After dinner we all decided a movie would be a good way to end the day, and the week. We went and saw Date Night; movies here come out around 2 months later than they do at home... Looks like Sex and the City 2 will have to wait for the flight home.

On Saturday most of the house headed off to climb a volcano. It's about three hours outside of Arusha and has the coldest lava of any volcano in the world. I'm saving this trip for when my mother, the geography teacher, gets here!

While everyone was away, we relaxed. Saturday we did some souvenir shopping and had our favorite meal for dinner; chapati. After dinner, we went to Cassie's orphanage, armed with popcorn and pringles, for a Disney movie night. The kids were ecstatic and we left them all sugared up and ready for bed. Back at our house, Andrea and I watched the Lion King. It's crazy how accurate it really is! Props to you, Walt.

Sunday was an even lazier day that Saturday. We went to Africafe (pretty clever) for brunch and then lounged around home for a while. Andrea and Cassie, with the other two girls who didn't go hiking, went to Kigongoni Lodge, and I stayed at home. This was the first time I was actually all alone in two months.

When the girls got back, we had breakfast for dinner and devoured the baking I had done earlier in the day. Andrea and I opted for another Disney classic after dinner; The Little Mermaid. This weekend of relaxing was definitely needed, as we all had big weeks ahead of us. Andrea and Marlee would be attempting to summit Mt Kilimanjaro and Cassie and I were headed to Zanzibar.

Wooo, I'm almost all caught up now! This last little while has been crazy and has definitely opened my eyes to a whole new side of Africa, and myself! More on that later, as well as my trip to Zanzibar and Moshi!

Bryson

A few weeks ago, Ronnie (the Canadian co ordinator here) gave me a referral that had been written for one of the kiddies at my orphanage, Bryson, to see an eye doctor. When you meet him, it's obvious that there is something a little off kilter with Bryson. Hard to put your finger on at first, but after a while you can see that he is not developmentally where he should be. His pupils are constantly dilated and he runs crookedly with his hands outstretched in front of him. We were told that he had spent the first month or so of his life on his back and in a dark room. It was assumed that the problem was mostly in his eyes. That is what I was determined to figure out.

I got the the orphanage in the morning and asked Juliet to let one of the mama's know the plan for the day. Around 10, mama Suzanna and I left with Bryson. Once again, we were a spectacle on the dala dala; the white girl and an older woman carrying a baby. One in a traditional Khanga, one in jeans, and the other without shoes on a back.. I'll let you guess which is which.

We got to the clinic and met up with Ronnie. The eye doctor saw us right away. She was a middle aged Tanzanian woman who seemed to know what she was doing. Bryson sat on the lap of the mama as the doctor held objects in front of him, seeing how well he could track. I really had no clue what was going on and couldn't determine from watching what the prognosis would be. In the end she said that no, the problem was not with his eyes. They are developmentally behind, but no problems seemed to be present. She said that he was mentally disabled. Right away I asked what we could do, but in Africa there really isn't much. She just shrugged and gave us a name of a pediatrician who we would have to hunt down.I really wasn't sure how to take this news. It was almost a relief to have an answer, but with that answer so many more questions arose. I guess from here we just wait and see...

There is so much that I wish I could do here, it's getting harder and harder every day not being able to have a quick fix to the problems that are constantly presenting themselves. One step at a time is the best I can do.