Click here to view our Picture GalleryHello from Tanzania! -Jan. 22nd
As we walked outside the Kenyan airport terminal onto the cement runway, it felt like Africa. All you could see were miles and miles of African plains... all low shrubs except for those trees with the long horizontal branches (you know the kind of trees you think of when you think of Africa). In front of us was our very small plane! The plane only sat about 10 people. During the flight all that separated us from the pilots was a thin curtain...and for most of the flight we could see the arm of the pilot steering the plane. About half way through the flight we passed through a heavily clouded area...the plane went up and down dramatically...we could feel our stomachs going up and down with the motion. It was unsettling...but also kind of fun and exciting! The most amazing part was looking out the window near sunset and seeing Mt. Kilimanjaro! The sun was so large in the sky that it looked as though it were resting on the wing of the plane...and then it hit us: Africa.
After debating with the customs manager about our visas (trying to change them from single entry to double entry...we were unsuccessful... but don’t worry we just have to get a new visa when we enter TZ again from Ethiopia) we saw the leaders of the Dr. Herman Wrice Community Center, Felix and John, for the first time. They were holding a sign that said: "One World Youth Project: Jessica & Lindsey".
We all got into a cab (a van with lots of seats) they had rented and drove from Kilimanjaro to Arusha. It was just becoming dusk. They were playing local music on the radio and talking in Swahili. They also talked to us for a while (in English...thank goodness...because however much we tried to learn a bit of Swahili...we are not particularly talented at it) about One World Youth Project, Massachusetts, California, the weather, etc!
When we pulled into the entry area of the Inn we are staying at and started getting out of the car we heard these very loud bang sounds and the sky flashed like fire. At first we thought it was fireworks...so unphased we walked into the building. But, then we looked around at John, Felix, the taxi driver, and the receptionist in the lobby and they looked concerned or confused. Another bang went off and the receptionist rushed farther inside the building ...the taxi driver also ran inside. So, we rushed farther in as well. Again: bang! Boom! A flaming color glow of orange and yellow. After some conversation in Swahili ...and a translated explanation to us...it was concluded that they were actually fireworks (being set off only a few meters from our room at the Inn). We walked back outside to watch the display. Fireworks do not happen very often in Arusha apparently...so it was a shock to everyone.
We put our stuff down in our room at a local Inn and went to dinner with Felix and John. It was nice to finally meet them after months of communication by internet for One World Youth Project.
This morning we woke up around 8:30am, each wanting to take a shower. Lindsey took the first shower...and little did we know that as she was showering (and Jessica was still lying half asleep in bed) that our entire room was flooding with water (our suitcases were on the floor). She opened the door from the bathroom into a puddle of water! We carefully lifted all of our stuff onto the counter and tried to mop what we could up with towels. But, eventually we had to go find the staff of the Inn. It wasn’t the nicest way to wake up...but it did make us alert!! However, beyond the flooding, the hotel is very nice... two beds, toilet, shower with hot water, mosquito nets, a window and patio, and even a small kitchen!
Today we walked all around Arusha!! We went to the craft market and the food market...the bank...the internet cafe...two different restaurants. It was definitely a culture shock. People were walking everywhere in bright colored clothing, cars were whizzing every which way (no traffic lights); smells were a mixture of a magnolia/honey suckle scent, burned peanuts, car exhaust, and Indian cuisine. We did so much today and learned so much... that it is hard to take it all in and distill it for the purposes of this entry. Everything from shopping for rice at the market to cook in our room... to riding in a dalla (a Tanzanian taxi car... very unique experience involving the shoving of cars back and forth and lots of people getting in and out...but only costs 100 shillings)... to trying to learn a few Swahili words with John’s help.
We will leave you with some Swahili:
Habari- How are you?
Hujambo- How are you?
Sijambo- I’m fine
Kwa-heri- goodbye
Asante (sana)- thank you (very much)
Ndiyo- yes
Hapana- no
Naitwa- My name is…
Jambo- hello
Cheers!
Sincerely,
Jess
After debating with the customs manager about our visas (trying to change them from single entry to double entry...we were unsuccessful... but don’t worry we just have to get a new visa when we enter TZ again from Ethiopia) we saw the leaders of the Dr. Herman Wrice Community Center, Felix and John, for the first time. They were holding a sign that said: "One World Youth Project: Jessica & Lindsey".
We all got into a cab (a van with lots of seats) they had rented and drove from Kilimanjaro to Arusha. It was just becoming dusk. They were playing local music on the radio and talking in Swahili. They also talked to us for a while (in English...thank goodness...because however much we tried to learn a bit of Swahili...we are not particularly talented at it) about One World Youth Project, Massachusetts, California, the weather, etc!
When we pulled into the entry area of the Inn we are staying at and started getting out of the car we heard these very loud bang sounds and the sky flashed like fire. At first we thought it was fireworks...so unphased we walked into the building. But, then we looked around at John, Felix, the taxi driver, and the receptionist in the lobby and they looked concerned or confused. Another bang went off and the receptionist rushed farther inside the building ...the taxi driver also ran inside. So, we rushed farther in as well. Again: bang! Boom! A flaming color glow of orange and yellow. After some conversation in Swahili ...and a translated explanation to us...it was concluded that they were actually fireworks (being set off only a few meters from our room at the Inn). We walked back outside to watch the display. Fireworks do not happen very often in Arusha apparently...so it was a shock to everyone.
We put our stuff down in our room at a local Inn and went to dinner with Felix and John. It was nice to finally meet them after months of communication by internet for One World Youth Project.
This morning we woke up around 8:30am, each wanting to take a shower. Lindsey took the first shower...and little did we know that as she was showering (and Jessica was still lying half asleep in bed) that our entire room was flooding with water (our suitcases were on the floor). She opened the door from the bathroom into a puddle of water! We carefully lifted all of our stuff onto the counter and tried to mop what we could up with towels. But, eventually we had to go find the staff of the Inn. It wasn’t the nicest way to wake up...but it did make us alert!! However, beyond the flooding, the hotel is very nice... two beds, toilet, shower with hot water, mosquito nets, a window and patio, and even a small kitchen!
Today we walked all around Arusha!! We went to the craft market and the food market...the bank...the internet cafe...two different restaurants. It was definitely a culture shock. People were walking everywhere in bright colored clothing, cars were whizzing every which way (no traffic lights); smells were a mixture of a magnolia/honey suckle scent, burned peanuts, car exhaust, and Indian cuisine. We did so much today and learned so much... that it is hard to take it all in and distill it for the purposes of this entry. Everything from shopping for rice at the market to cook in our room... to riding in a dalla (a Tanzanian taxi car... very unique experience involving the shoving of cars back and forth and lots of people getting in and out...but only costs 100 shillings)... to trying to learn a few Swahili words with John’s help.
We will leave you with some Swahili:
Habari- How are you?
Hujambo- How are you?
Sijambo- I’m fine
Kwa-heri- goodbye
Asante (sana)- thank you (very much)
Ndiyo- yes
Hapana- no
Naitwa- My name is…
Jambo- hello
Cheers!
Sincerely,
Jess
