Phase 3 Songota Falls, Arusha, Tanzania

 

In Tanzania, like in Canada, Christmas is for family...unlike Canada, not a gift was exchanged.  Today we had the privilege of visiting with members of Joyce & Raymond's family.  First we are invited to lunch with Preska's family.  When her mom saw us she squealed.  Apparently she knew she was having company, but she didn't know white people would be visiting.  If she had known, she would have prepared differently. As it was, she prepared a wonderful lunch...chicken, beef, rice, potatoes, cucumber, coleslaw.  We met Preska's family, including Winnie (we think Preska's niece).

 

After lunch we were off to visit with  Grandmother (Ella) & Grandfather (Davis).  They too were very happy to have us visit.  Grandfather, Davis spoke very good English, so we were able to have a nice conversation with him.  He spent time in the US in 1969.  He worked for many years in administration for the Luthern Church. 

 

As we travelled through the streets of Arusha, we saw many sites...we did not take many pictures because it is either unsafe or we feel that it is intrusive.  Let's just say it is very different than anything we are used to.  Most of the streets are dirt, which means mud when it rains and in Arusha it seems to rain on and off all day.  Almost everyone walks, so there are always lots of people that the cars have to maneuver through.  Shops & homes are all made of concrete, most with tin roofs.  Homes may be just a couple of rooms separated by a curtain.  Outside is dirt/mud...or if you are very lucky there may be some grass.  All of the cooking and clean up is done outdoors.  We did notice television...apparently there is free television, so many have it.  Water is piped in for many...which is good.  Hands are washed prior to eating and eating is done with your fingers.  We are given cutlery😎.

 

 

We visited Living Waters Children's Centre.  It is the orphanage that Joyce's brother runs.  There were about 30 kids there and they were beautiful and wonderful.  The lady who was there didn't speak much English, but the children did.  Suzanne jumped in and introduced herself to each of the children and had them tell her their name.  That took a little while but it broke the ice.  They all then got very excited about showing us around.  It is unbelievable...nothing that most North Americans can fathom.  There are so many living in such a small space it is amazing.  They have bunk beds and the mattresses are foam.  It looked to us like they could use new ones but when we asked what they needed one of the boys said notebooks and pencil sharpeners.  They had no toys or things to play with, but they did have a television and a CD player.  The kids sang We wish you a Merry Christmas...and they knew all of the words to all of the verses...we did not.  It was very heartwarming.  We played a couple of games with a few of them and others went back to doing their laundry...scrubbing by hand in buckets and hanging on the clothes line. 

When we returned to Joyce's, her brother Anza and his son David were there to talk to us about the orphanage, their plans and their needs.  They have the orphanage, they have built a primary school and now they want to build a secondary school.  The kids here don't get adopted and they don't go back to their family so those who operate and work at the orphanage are their family and they want to support  them until hopefully they can send them off to university.  Their needs are textbooks, land and $ to build their school.  The last school cost $50,000 for the land and $400,000 to build.  Annual budget is $200,000.

 
We went for lunch at a local café in downtown Arusha, went to the Masaai Market and the  Heritage Cultural Centre.  Both were amazing in their own way.  The market is just like a big flea market with hundreds of stalls selling pretty much the same things...and at each stall you will get a "very good price."  We were offered discounts for being the first customers of the day, for being Canadian and for Boxing Day sales.  At one of the first stalls, Suzanne tried her hand at weaving beads...it wasn't easy.  It also meant that she was pretty much obligated to purchase something that was like what she had helped to make...okay...not really.  She bought 4 beaded coasters.  We also bought some miniature kalimbas and a bracelet.

 The Cultural Centre was amazing.  The building itself is a work of art.  Artwork depicts the history of Africa as well as current modern art.  Each level of the spiraling floors has a different focus.  There were also depictions of daily life outside including imitation huts and a slave boat.  Seeing the slave boat was quite emotional, particularly when Preska said that her grandparents had been affected by/had experienced the slave trade.  There were also gift shops which contained many of the same items sold at the Masaai Market, but with fixed prices, so no hassles and no bargaining...

We returned to Songota where many new people had arrived.  We met Bob and Karen from Washington State who had just returned from safari and were very excited.  They were ready to socialize as they had been out for 12 days with just themselves and their guide.  We had a great visit.  They are off to climb Mt. Meru for 4 days and then back.

Note to self...when leaving shoes out overnight in the rain at least be smart enough to turn them upside down.

 

Next we went to Diluti Lake where we saw many species of birds, trees and iguana.  The lake provides water for the local community but it has to be boiled first.  As we hiked around the lake we could hear singing and chanting.  Our guide Anton said that the land next to the lake is used for praying.  If someone is sick or in trouble, people will come to the area and pray, for maybe a day or a week.

 

The highlight of the day was the Mulala Women's CollectIve.  Mamma Anna started the collective for the Meru village.  The women make honey, cheese and coffee and sell their products.  Proceeds support the village...schools, etc.  Some of the women own a cow. When that cow has a calf, the calf is given to another woman - and so on. Our guide was Justin...Mamma Anna's son.  Justine is 23 years old and attends boarding school in town to study Tour Guide Management.  He was great.  The highlight though was Mamma Anna herself...she had so much spunk and positive energy.  We learned how to make mozzarella cheese, honey and we got to practice getting the coffee bean from the plant to the ground state.  It was informative, but more importantly a ton of fun.  Lastly, we learned how to carry bananas on our heads.  Mamma Anna first rolled banana leaves to place on the top of our heads and then came the bananas.  With much singing and dancing, balance was tested.

                        

On the hike Justin pointed out the peace plant.  It is planted between 2 fields owned by different people.  If a disagreement occurs, one person takes a leaf from the plant and gives it to the other person as an apology...and then all is forgotten and they go on.

 

Today we visited the Masaai Museum and we were supposed to visit a village...but an upset tummy turned us around to return to Songota Falls.  The Masaai Museum was very informative.  They had lifelike displays of huts, hunting tools, cooking tools, Masaai dress, explained circumcision for both men and women.  Our guide was Oly and he was very good.  Masaai are nomads and the men can have up to 10 wives.  The wives all work together and the Masaai men split their time among their wives...he said they actually schedule their time.  They have as many houses as they have wives.  The women build the huts and the men tend to the animals. 

Met with some friends of Joyce's who have set up a women's collective to support each other and their community.  They provide $200 micro-loans for a woman to start her own business or to send her child to school.  Government school is not very good, so many people try hard to get their kids into private school which costs $700-$1000 per year. A monthly salary in Tanzania is around $150 so education is out of reach for many.

 


Joyce is very involved in supporting and improving her community.  The community land is originally Masaai and when members of other tribes buy land from the Massai, they essentially become a community together...no tribal lines exist.  The women's collective is helping all women, but in particular, they want to help Masaai women be self sufficient and able to support their children.  Masaai men collect wealth through owning cattle...if a Masaai has 10 wives, he likely had over 100 cattle to purchase them...he would be considered wealthy.  His wealth however does not support his wives and children.  In our terms the Masaai warrior probably epitomizes male chauvinism.

 

We also met a young card shark by the name of Khalid. He would be around 9 and goes to Living  Waters school. His English is great and he told us of his safari trip with a young traveller friend. Then he proceeded to show us a number of card games. Either we're not that bright or the rules were being made up as we went along. It was a great afternoon with a new friend.

 

Our friends arrive...yeah! We awaken early by our standards (6 ish) on New Year's Eve in order to pick up Sue and Shelly at the Kilimanjaro airport. We have Raymond go with a sign so we can hang out and surprise the ladies. They end up surprising us when they emerge a few minutes early from the terminal.

 
The rainy days have let up and the day is sunny and warm. Sue and Shelly are "ready to go . . . We're in Africa don't you know". So off we go on a drive toward the elusive Kilimanjaro. The ladies saw Kili from the air and we saw a quick glimpse on the drive in. Then the clouds roll in and she's gone for the day. We end up at Kilasiya Park, where we do a hike to a waterfall. It's a nice hike, with many stairs. We realize along the winding staircase that what goes down, will probably also involve a trip uphill as well.

 
Our guide is Nelson and he takes the time to point out plant life and birds along the way. We take pictures at the falls with Presca posing of course, and Shelly and Heather trying to stay dry - mission accomplished! Sue and Suzanne stay at the bottom of the stairs and take photos of those of silly enough to walk the rocky path through the waters to the falls.

 Part way on the uphill trek, Heather needs to stop and take a break as the humidity combines with low energy and lack of appetite. Then we make in back to the car and realize that S &S are more tired then they realize. We stop for a "quick" lunch break of pappadum, chips and spring rolls and then head back to Songota.

The ladies have a nap and a shower and then join us to ring in the New Year. We share wine with Raymond, Joyce and even Ombeni takes a break.  Together with S & S we give Ombeni some school supplies for his son and enough cash to purchase a new cow for his wife. Then it's off to bed at 9 although the churches, fireworks, drums, etc. ensure that a quiet night is not exactly going to happen.