Water, water everywhere!

I promised a flooding story, so now I will deliver. Last month, out of now where, my school got hit with a huge hail/rain storm that lasted several hours. I was stuck on campus during the storm, but as I left the school buildings to return home, I followed a small, but swift moving stream of water downhill toward my house. I sloshed through mud several inches thick on my front porch and opened my front door to see a puddle where my living room once had been  

The mud on my porch and the puddle inside the front door

Also, due to the contouring of my floors, the water managed to flow into every room of my house… lucky me. On the bright side, I have concrete floors, so I was able to just let the water dry over the next couple days, then swept and mopped the dirt and mud that had accompanied the water.
Word got around pretty fast about my house flooding and several students came by the next day to help me dig a ditch around my house to divert the water back around  to my garden during the next storm. And what do you know, it worked great. No more flooding for me.

Moat around my house in action

Well, I seem to be adjusting to everyday life here, but it’s not without its challenges. I tend to live in a very buggy part of Tanzania. In fact, I have killed more bugs in my couple months here than I have in my entire life combined (its times like these that I wish I had my little brother.) I have nightly invasions of giant flying termites, known here as kumbikumbi. The locals like to catch them, fry them and eat them as a snack… I haven’t been brave enough to try them yet, but I will let you know when that day comes. I also have a family of spiders in my ceiling the size of my hand that come out only to bask in the beautiful glow of my energy efficient light bulb that turns on for several hours a night. I let them live, but only because I’m petrified of them and they stay out of reach. I also have a mouse that lives in my room. He is a baby, but he still gives me anxiety, so I’m planning getting a cat come January.

I don't think those hairs would feel good if you touched them

One of my jirani (neighbors) has several cattle that get lose just about every day (I’m starting to wonder if he even ties them up) and like to eat the grass in around my house and stomp through my garden, grazing at what few plants have sprouted. Most days when I return home from school, I have to meander around cows to get to my front door.

Just a few feet from my front door near, I think he would classify as my closest neighbor

 Every day here is full of surprises here, but last week, when I went out to use the bathroom in the morning, I had to sidestep around an amputated chicken foot in my courtyard. Didn’t expect that one. Don’t know where it came from, or how it got there since my courtyard is surrounded by  12 foot tall concrete walls with glass on top… but like I said, everyday is an adventure, right?

I’ve also been handy around the house. I tried to change out my outdoor porch light that was burnt out, but despite my innovative attempts, I couldn't get tall enough without the real fear of breaking my neck (see photo below.)

a little sketchy to say the least. a desk, balanced on stairs by the aid of 2 bricks and a piece of wood... and I still wasn't tall enough to reach the light!

These last few days, my school has hired some fundi’s to finish the construction on the dorms across from my house, so the students hauled dirt and rocks to help with the landscaping for a few days and we didn’t have class; but that’s how things go here. Classes will be canceled so the students can clean, work in the shambas (farms), the list goes on.  Flexibility is key when  being a Peace Corps Volunteer.

hauling dirt with 5 gallon buckets to fill in the space between the dorms

 Well, I am in the homestretch for Christmas break. The Form II students left last month, the Form IV students finished up their NECTA’s just a week or so ago and headed home to await their results, and my Form I and III students are in the process of taking their annual district exams. I have to admit, it feels strange to be playing a different role in the exam room. I now proctor the exams rather than take them, answer questions rather than ask them, and grade the exams rather than await my score. Being on this end of things is much less stressful, so you won’t hear me complain (too much).

 

Later days!

President, tornado, Darryl's graduation

My first month here at site has been full of adventures! My one of first weekends, my school held a celebration for the Catholic Student Association of Tanzania. The students used local materials to construct a large tent-like structure to hold the ceremony under.

This ceremony was just held with students, faculty and 2 honored guests from the church. There was a lot of singing, dancing, and food and cake! In Tanzania, it’s customary for the recipient of a party to feed cake to guests, and this celebration was no different. Catholic students that were being honored that day bought cake and fed it to whom ever they chose (I had like 4!). This celebration started Friday and continued through the weekend with singing and dancing until late Sunday night. 

The ceremony structure made of wooden poles, straw and cloth

The Form IV members of  Catholic Student Association posing

The Catholic celebration was just a warm up, because then 2 weeks later was Form IV Graduation. The O-level (ordinary level) secondary schools go through Forms I-IV (the equivalent of 8^th-11^th grade), and after Form IV, they graduate and continue onto A-level (advanced level) Forms V and VI if they pass their National Exams in November. For the Form IV Graduation, parents and family members came to witness and celebrate. There was singing and dancing, plays and gift giving. It was an all-day event, and everyone was so happy, even the guests got up and danced during the music gap fillers between events. It was so fun to be a part of. Then we had a huge Tanzanian meal together: parents, teachers and students, because sharing a meal here shows that you care and is an important part of culture. Unfortunately, schools are not equipped with hundreds of plates and utensils, so everyone ate off of paper plates with their hands. But the food was good!

The method of transportation for many family members to my small village for graduation

Students parade into the ceremony

A couple weekends later, I was invited to a graduation at a nearby village (an hour away by bus) where a fellow Peace Corps Education Volunteer named Darryl teaches. So, Friday morning I caught the bus from my village to his. His graduation was very similar to mine with shade tents of local materials, singing, dancing and food, except that Darryl played guitar and sang! They also put on a fashion show and did some very impressive acrobatics. It was a great time. That night we were invited out to the after celebration the teachers were having in the science lab. This consisted of more eating and dancing. They loved to laugh at how we danced! Tanzanian’s are so welcoming, I felt right at home and comfortable at this new school and village.

Painted in the dirt to welcome parents and visitors to graduation

Darryl singing a song he wrote at his schools graduation

Darryl in at a pig raising project at his school

Graduating Form IV students 

These models in the fashion show were dressed as Masai

Impressive acrobatics

Taking photos in the Tanzanian style

 The next morning, Darryl and I woke up early to catch a bus to Njombe town where we quickly caught another bus to a small village called Kipenguere about 1 hour south of my village. Why, you ask? Well, on the day of Darryl’s school’s graduation, the President of Tanzania, Dr. Jakaya Kikwete, came to Njombe town to officially declare Njombe an independent region. About 2 years ago, this area used to be part of the region to the north called Iringa, but after the census, they decided to separate it to create new region. Just goes to show the pace of life here in TZ, when the President comes to officially open it 2 years after the fact. Anyway, the next couple days after his appearance, he traveled around to remote villages in Njombe to greet the people and just make an appearance. Darryl and I couldn’t pass this up, so we made our way out for the festivities. We arrived in Kipenguere at a soccer filled all decorated and full of people awaiting the President’s arrival. We joined the crowd, and not 20 minutes later were pulled through the crowd to the front (they spotted the mzungu). We were then asked what villages we were representing were escorted to seats just 50 feet away from the President’s table.

We went from this view in the crowd...

to this view!

The President's table just 50 ft left of our chairs

When Dr.Kikwete arrived, the crowd was full of energy, and they sang and danced to welcome him. Kikwete was accompanied by his wife and all of the Ministers of Tanzania. All of the Ministers proceeded to give speeches, followed by the First Lady, and finally Kikwete himself. 

students from a local elementary school sing and dance to welcome the President

His grand enterance

And his arrival

The First lady giving her speech

Dr. Kikwete giving his speech

Dr. Kikwete greeting Father Caleo

 About 20 minutes after the President left the building (or the small outdoor dugout-like structure of the soccer field…), Darryl and I witnessed a small dust devil, several hundred yards away. It grew larger and larger and eventually lifted the roof off of a housing structure! It was the closest thing to a tornado I had ever seen, and boy was it cool!

Toto, I think we are in Kansas!

It is the beginning of rainy season here, which means I have been experiencing more storms lately…

Like last week, my house flooded. But I feel like I have written enough already, so I will save that story for another post J