An Informative and Out of Chronological Order Blog About the General Happenings in Africa

This post doesn't describe a day in particular, just our experiences in general...there may be more of these, so WATCH OUT!

Matonyok itself, as I have said, is the house and grounds of our orphanage. This isn't an orphanage like "Annie," though...it also functions as the house of the family, kids, and grandmothers, as well as the Sunday school. In total, there are 32 kids, 19 of which live in the house. As far as adults go, there is Ndemno (the dad), Emmy (the mom), Mike (the helper and our guide, also my Swahili teacher), Nosim (Emmy/Ndemno's daughter and helper), Emmanuel (they call him "Manuel," he is also a helper and the driver of the Land Rover that should probably be towed away...he speaks very very very little English), Susie (the cook), The Nameless Masai Grandmother (she's 91 and still kicking...literally, or at least beating chickpeas. I know I'm scared), and I think that's it. The Land Rover, by the way, in order to get going, requires that everyone push it down the driveway as Manuel revs the engine. While the family is obviously very poor, at least to our eyes, they are also very efficient. The children all share clothes, are constantly dirty, etc., but always very happy. The current project at the site is this biosomething fuel thing. It's two tanks buried in the ground into which flows mud and the people's waste. This creates a gas that can be used in the house. I mean, other stuff is involved so it doesn't smell like poop all the time, but the idea in and of itself is genius. Everyone loves everyone and they are very loyal to family. They are also very hard workers. Every morning we are given tea, and whenever a guest comes, they greet EVERYONE. Today, the agriculture people came over to check on the chickpeas for some reason, and greeted me as if I lived there. It was really a neat experience.

The city of Arusha is like any other city...except not. There is no traffic lights as far as I've seen, and if there were ever any street lines they have long since been erased. Cars drive on the left (technically), and it's really every man for himself. The other day we came to a section that was under repair, and must have been for some time, because everyone just drove around through the mud. We were in a dalla-dalla (rollercoasters of death, basically) and raced a truck 3 times our size down a bumpy muddy hill to get to the crossing first. AWESOME! (Ashton bumped her head). We think we are going to die every day because really there are no road rules...at all. I don't even know if pedestrians have the right of way, its just whether or not the driver wants to go through the hassle of wiping death off of his car. Everyone sits around and looks like they are doing nothing, while an equally large number have shops that seem to sell all the same stuff. We get hassled in the touristy parts by people called "fly catchers," who try to sell cheap African stuff to wide-eyed white people. Hapana sitaji, rafiki yangu! (No thank you, my friend!) Everything is dirty and crowded, but at the same time, everyone is very very friendly and helpful. Additionally, everyone seems to move slower and more relaxed. For the first few days, Mike would keep telling us to slow down and enjoy everything...a very anti-American ideal. While of course there are many things that America could offer to Africa, or at least Arusha, there are also many, many things that they could offer to us. It's like a modern city (sort of) with traditional ideals. Sweet! Oh yeah, and the Muslims. Apparently Africans don't like Muslims too much, but they live here anyway, and seem to own all the shops. When the ladies walk around in their full-body burkas, it makes the whole place look like Star Wars. 5 times a day (including like 2 o'clock in the morning...ugh) there is the standard call to prayer over the loudspeaker. It wakes everyone up and pisses everyone off, so I guess that is part of the reason why they don't like Muslims too much.

The standard American idea is that everyone wants to rob/hurt you in Africa. Never once have we felt in danger, and only the first few times walking around did we feel uncomfortable. On the contrary, like I've said, everyone is very friendly. So, if you ever come to Africa, pack lightly (I've worn the same outfit, except shirt and underwear, every day. We plan on donating all the stuff we bought for the trip, including clothes, to the orphanage), don't worry about your safety (except at night, because you will die...apparently), and embrace the culture. I know more Swahili after three days than Latin after 7 years. Also, don't do the tourist thing with safari packages, etc. Book a hotel (or an apartment in our case) that doesn't necessarily cater to Americans/white people, and just move around. You'll find it very entertaining sitting there with people from Tanzania laughing at the white people falling out of safari trucks and tripping over camera equipment and bottled water. Mike and I did that today at the cultural center. A white lady and her husband walked by me and I said "Mzungu" to her (it means "white person), to which she replied "Jambo!" (Hello!), I'm sure thinking that she was about as African as Nelson Mandela. So blaze your own trail, or whatever you want to call it. At least thats my opinion.

p.s. dalla dalla's are different...you will always be scared on a dalla dalla, but even so, after a few days you will love it, and when I leave here, it will be one of the things I miss the most.

p.p.s. not every mosquito carries malaria, nor does every piece of food have a deadly disease attached to it.