Safari na Kwaheri Afrika (A Journey/Safari, and Goodbye Africa)

So here I am at the end of my Tanzanian adventure. In some ways I feel like I've always been here, and in others it seems to have flown by. I leave tomorrow evening for Amsterdam, then Detroit, then Moline, Illinois, where I will spend a few weeks with the family before heading back to Charleston for RA training. I have loved every day of being here and will miss it and the people I met here immensely. I think I have learned a lot, but it will take some time to see how deeply it goes and where the changes manifest themselves in my life. I do know that every individual has an obligation to be a responsible consumer, because when we buy products from companies that abuse and underpay their workers, we are directly responsible for the oppression of those people. And I do believe that God will hold us responsible for shutting out the suffering in the world that we cause, directly or indirectly, so turning a blind eye is no longer a viable option. I know that I can love people even if I don't seem to have much in common with them, that a common faith can be a great unifier, and that hot showers are manna from heaven.

For our last big hurrah in Tanzania, we set out on a Safari that lasted Wednesday and Thursday and took us to Lake Manyara and the Ngorongoro Crater, one of my favorite places on earth. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ngorongoro_Conservation_Area). Wednesday we spent the day driving through the area surrounding Lake Manyara, getting sunburned and coated in thick red dust, sleepy from our 6 am wake-up but excited. We saw elephants (one strolled right up to our jeep), wildebeasts, monkeys, baboons, various birds, impalas, gazelle, giraffes, hippos, and waterbuffalo. It was great seeing all the animals in their native habitats rather than in the Disney Safari ride at Animal Kingdom, which is going to be extremely lame to me henceforth.

After a sweet boxed lunch picnic and a long, bumpy drive back to our campsite, where we stayed in cozy little rooms, we had dinner and turned in early (after some episodes of Dexter, duh). The next "morning" (read: middle of the night) at 5 a.m. we woke up, had breakfast, wherein I ate 5 pieces of homemade bread with the best butter I've yet tasted, and headed to Ngorongoro, about an hour away. We circled around the top of the crater and then drove down into it, a bit precariously, where we spent a few hours seeing lions sprawled out on the grass, massive herds of zebra and wildebeasts making their way across the crater's basin, warthogs, gazelle, a gigantic elephant, and even an elusive cheetah. It was one of the most beautiful places I have been to so far in my life, and I'm so grateful I got the chance to experience it firsthand. I will miss this place, it's landscapes, hospitality, food, meticulously chaotic cities, and the crisp, cool village air. But I hope I'll come back someday and see more of all the beautiful things that East Africa has to offer.

 

^{Isaiah 10:1-3
1} Woe to those who make unjust laws,
   to those who issue oppressive decrees,
² to deprive the poor of their rights
   and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people,
making widows their prey
   and robbing the fatherless.
³ What will you do on the day of reckoning,
   when disaster comes from afar?
To whom will you run for help?
   Where will you leave your riches?

Imani Moja--One Faith

My church in Fairfield IA, First Lutheran Church, has a sister church near Arusha (about 160 km) called Mamba Lutheran Parish. Every year or two some members of my church come to Tanzania to visit, do some volunteer work, and help out with things at the church, which they helped build. It's really insane that the place I independently decided to study abroad is within travelling distance of the village my church has connections with. Before leaving Iowa, I was given a giant (heavy) duffel bag filled with children's clothes that some ladies in Fairfield sewed for Mamba. I was very blessed to have Ritha, a girl from Mamba who First Lutheran sponsors for college, living here in Arusha, and she agreed to travel with me.


So, on Saturday, I met up with Ritha and got on a Dala Dala (a converted van used as public transport, onto which two dozen people are sometimes smooshed) headed for the bus station. There we boarded a large charter bus headed to Moshi, about 2 and a half hours away. Bus stations in Africa have become markets, with people walking around with large baskets of snacks, drinks, electronics, shaving kits, and more balanced on their heads. They toss things up to the passengers who hand money down. These kinds of unofficial economies are what keeps places like Tanzania thriving. Then we got off at Moshi, caught a smaller bus to somewhere without a name, and took another Dala Dala to Mamba Village. I'm so glad I was with Ritha because I couldn't understand a word people were saying except that they were calling me "mzungu" (white person) and sometimes "chumba" (fiancee). I didn't see any rings though, so I had to politely decline.

We finally arrived at Mamba, which is nestled into a beautiful valley surrounded by massive mountains, and headed to Ritha's house, where she lives with her sweet grandma, great aunt, two sisters, and mom. They fed us a lunch of rice, some kind of meat that I believe was beef, and delicious fresh bananas and avocados. I am pretty sketched out by meat in general and they kept piling it on my plate. I ate all I could and then Ritha's mom said, in Swahili, "The food is very bad? You are not eating much." So I felt terrible and made myself keep eating it because it is an honor to be given meat in a place where it's a rare commodity. I also drank some tea, which I was sure was giving me a bacteria infection because of the water quality, but I am still feeling fine, thankfully. Ritha's family was very kind and welcoming and showed me around the village until the Msuyas (an older couple who came to visit us in Iowa last summer) came to pick me up and take me to their house.

At the Msuyas', we had dinner and then everyone who stays in their house gathered around the living room table and we prayed, read the Bible, and sang familiar hymns in Swahili. It was so great to sing the same songs I grew up with in church in another language. The whole theme of this trip was seeing firsthand that God is everywhere and is a God of all people, regardless of language, geography, culture, or personal circumstances. This is one of the things that I've always known, but visiting Mamba made me know it firsthand, from experience. The next morning we went to Mamba Lutheran Parish for Church and it was one of the greatest things I've ever done. The church is beautiful, and I got to sit in on Sunday School, where the kids yelled out answers to their teachers' questions in happy unison. What really drove the connection to my church and family home to me was seeing the quilted banner that several ladies from my church made for Mamba hanging on the wall of the church. The banner has a photograph of Mamba, a photograph of First Lutheran, and reads, "Imani Moja- One Faith". I got a little teary seeing Fairfield in the middle of Africa, and seeing the global Christian community firsthand. This is what Christianity is supposed to be about--people from all over the world loving each other and helping each other however they can, regardless of any external factors that tell them they are different. I loved the African church music the choir sang, and hearing the familiar hymns sung in beautiful Swahili. I gave the dresses to the parish and had to awkwardly say a few words on behalf of the church in Fairfield. Afterwards Ritha and I headed out, and her mom gave me two beautiful Kangas (pieces of wax printed Tanzanian fabric)--one for me, and one for my mother. All in all it was a wonderful experience and I'm so glad I got to worship with people I have little in common with except Jesus. The people of Tanzania are so warm and hospitable, and it was great seeing life from a village perspective since we've been living in the city.

Lala Salama! (Sleep Well)
Jenna

Last Week: A Review

First, a brief overview of the past week:

Sunday: Went on a camel ride! For three hours. We had some really nice Masaai guides who made us sack lunches and my camel was really well behaved. Unfortunately sitting on a camel for three hours does things to a person that are difficult to put into words. All I can say is, if you are a male, photoshop yourself into an existing camel picture or something. It was definitely a cool experience to have though. Also Sunday: Writing research paper.

Monday: Research papers due. Taylor Batch's 21st Birthday! We went to the best Indian restaurant I have ever experienced, called Big Bite, and then hung out at the house with two really cool Belgians. Then we had an adventure because it got too late and no taxis were working and one of the guys needed to get home to take some medicine, so we stayed up until 5 am trying to get someone to come pick them up. Class the next day was great, as you might imagine.

Tuesday: Sleep catch up, watched some Dexter (ADDICTING), chilled.

Wednesday: Wrote my take-home final exam for class. Went to Cradle of Love Orphanage and played with some adorable and sticky children! Tom the Belgian's last night in Tanzania--ate at Khan's Barbeque, which was amazing, and then went to a local bar and danced goofily.

Thursday: Went to my first Bollywood movie, which was hilarious and long. Then came back to the house and watched "Easy A" with the roomies.

Friday: Everyone else went camping, and I hung out with Ruben-- we went to lunch at a little hole in the wall place and I tried Samosas for the first time, which was a fantastic experience. Then hung out by a beautiful hotel pool and played chess at the house (I WON). Then I met Ritha, the girl who my church in Iowa sponsors for university and who was escorting me to Mamba Village the next day. We went to her dorm and I got to meet all of her sweet friends and have dinner with them.

Saturday: Ritha informed me we would be leaving at 8 am, so I woke up at 7. 8:15 AM, text Ritha that I'm ready and she says, "Great, I'll be there around 10). Learn that African time is not the same as American time. I think I will break this into two chunks to make people feel like they are reading less.