Tanzania – Wiki Kumi na Nane

A "rugged" bridge over a creek in Mwanza.

Alison and I spent Monday morning (the 3^rd) at our computers – blogging, preparing English lessons, and writing up a contract for the translator. When we finished, we walked into town to run errands via the Maasai Market. Our Maasai lady (Anna) has been inundated with requests as we commission jewellery to be made by her to give to people at home… we’re giving her lots of business! After a couple unsuccessful attempts to get online, we grabbed lunch and managed to get online for 20 minutes before the connection cut out completely. We did a grocery shop and splurged on some vegetables from the “Veggie Boys” who sell plastic-wrapped produce across from the “mzungu” supermarket, because we didn’t have time to go to the city market. From town, we hurried to Mabatini to meet with the mamas & teach our English lesson, then hurried to Tunza to make it to our yoga class. After yoga, we drove out to Capri Point to have a sushi dinner with Jodie, Ania, Lyndsey and Nina… Ania had brought all the necessities for sushi from Canada (including bamboo mats and wasabi!), so we enjoyed a fairly authentic meal – delicious!

I started my day off on Tuesday (the 4^th) at the internet café, trying to finish up the tasks that the connection wouldn’t let me finish the day before. I came back upstairs for an arranged meeting with Mama Joyce, who brought several hand-written letters/spreadsheets/meeting minutes (in Swahili) for the TASAF and NGO applications which we typed up together while Alison prepared an English lesson for later in the week. After a brief meeting at Kivulini, we headed to town. We had another unsuccessful internet attempt, ate a quick lunch, and walked to the Regional Commissioner’s office to drop off our documents for the NGO application. We waited for a while for the Community Development Officer to finish up his other tasks before he was ready for us… he then proceeded to take us through the application process (which we are familiar with from a previous meeting with him) painstakingly slowly, step by step… and later informed us that our application couldn’t be completed as we’d need to hand the material in ourselves in Dar es Salaam. Needless to say, we were feeling very frustrated with him and pushed him to try and come up with a solution for us within the RC’s office in Mwanza, promising to return the following week for an update. We managed to get online before rushing to our Swahili lesson and then returning home. We had a visit from the Tuelimishane boys before we left for Tilapia for a celebratory “just the two of us” dinner, giving us a chance to reflect on our time here as we near the end of our internship.

Neighbours - a mansion and a shack near the orphanage in Bwiru. Classic example of the divide between rich and poor in Mwanza.

On Wednesday (the 5^th) morning, we had a 9am meeting at City Council with Mr. Luanda, the Project Manager for the new plots of land at Nyamongoro. After waiting for a typical hour or so for him to be ready, we drove up to the site together (picking up Mama Elisabeth along the way). We were able to see the plot plans and survey the land ourselves to get an idea for position and size. It turns out that the plots which are ideal for our project (bigger, close to the main road etc.) are significantly more expensive than what we were first quoted, but I still think it’s a very worthwhile investment for the project to make as we look to the future of Tukwamuane. We returned to City Council to get some supporting documents and to meet briefly with Mr. Ngowi, the TASAF coordinator. After our morning meetings, we ran a bunch of errands (internet, travel agency, Maasai Market – to pick up a gift for us made by Anna, tailors etc.) and then walked to Mabatini to teach. I went over the kitchen’s November bills with the mamas… unfortunately, their costs are still soaring high above their sales figures… this is the result of the large quantities of yogurt which they give away to the HIV+ population. It’s difficult for me to see how this gap will be filled in the future, but increasing sales is certainly the first step to take towards making profit. It is a bit frustrating to see that this discrepancy is still so significant after we’ve put in months of effort to mediate the problem, but I suppose that’s typical for aid work in some senses. Even the simplest problems can sometimes seem nearly impossible to solve because of the complications of culture, poverty, lack of infrastructure etc. Although not all of our results are tangible at the moment, I hope that the steps we’ve taken in regards to protocol, education and planning will have laid the groundwork for future success.

On Wednesday evening, we went to Papae’s house in Capri Point for a dinner to celebrate the start of wedding festivities for his sister, Kiran. They were playing host to friends and family who flew in from all over the globe and the celebrations started early and in full force as is typical of Indian weddings. We arrived in his colourful courtyard and were treated to singing and drumming before enjoying a delicious meal. Definitely a taste of things to come with an entire weekend of wedding events ahead!

Kiran (the bride), me, Alison, Papae, Ania, Vandy and Jodie.

We celebrated Sinter Klaas (Dutch Christmas) on Thursday (the 6^th) with shoes filled with treats… I managed to keep the tradition alive for yet another set of roommates, but unfortunately my Dutch roomie (Ruben) wasn’t in town to enjoy the day. We tackled piles of project emails at the internet café but realized that we’re still essentially at a standstill waiting for answers from Canadian and Tanzanian partners on several pressing project issues. We came back to the apartment and I worked for a few hours on my internship debriefing report, which I had started earlier in the week – basically a breakdown of all WHE-related issues pertaining to my involvement with the project both at home and during my time in Africa. In the afternoon, we met Jo at our tailor’s to pick up a bag of Indian clothing which was being passed around the volunteers in town so that we could all dress ourselves appropriately for the weekend’s events. We walked on to Swahili lessons, where I’m sad to be realizing that my Swahili efforts are coming to an end – I hope that I won’t lose it all completely when I get home but I know that’s the likely outcome without somewhere to practice! After class, we went to Tunza for yoga and dinner with friends.

Pascal, hiding in the trees at Forever Angels.

On Friday morning (the 7^th), I went down to the internet café to check for progress on the WHE front and came back up to work on my internship report as Alison wrote the day’s English test. We walked up to Mabatini and made it to the kitchen just before a rainstorm hit. We were a bit surprised to find Mr. Ndassa (the Community Development Officer) sitting in the kitchen, talking with the mamas – although we met with him earlier in the month to get his approval of our constitution and other material related to our NGO application, after receiving 5 bound copies of our documents (not cheap to do in Mwanza!), he found some minor changes that he wanted us to implement. We had another painstakingly slow discussion with him to review the changes and promised to return with the updated material before our departure. After the meeting, we travelled to NIMR to drop off Mama Elisabeth (who went to pick up another batch of probiotic milk since the Wednesday batch was spoiled) and went on to the orphanage for the afternoon. I was happy to find out that Forever Angels has received more funding for construction and are now able to start building a pre-school adjacent to the main building. After returning home, I met with Jovita (from Kivulini’s Legal Aid) to discuss some logistical matters about the potential purchase of the Nyamongoro land. We’ve been so lucky to have had access to Kivulini’s staff… they’ve been invaluable in terms of the advice and support they’ve given us since August.

Getting my henna done at Friday night's party.

On Friday evening, we were invited to Tilapia for a Henna/Mendhi party for Kiran’s wedding. We joined the other women sitting on mattresses to get the intricate designs drawn onto the backs and palms of our hands, and watched as the older women sang and danced to the beat of drums. Later in the evening, Kiran and her ‘ladies-in-waiting’ joined us. Kiran’s mendhi designs were amazing… it took five hours to complete the designs on her hands, forearms, feet and calves, and the result was nothing less than a work of art. We spent the rest of the evening waiting for our hands to dry, watching dance performances, and indulging in a delicious dinner.

Kiran's (the bride) intricate mendhi designs.

Alison and I had a delightfully quiet day on Saturday (the 8^th). I enjoyed breakfast while watching “A Muppets’ Family Christmas” which is still one of the greatest holiday films of all time, in my opinion. I spent some time online before we walked to town to run errands and then returned home to relax. We had visits from friends and were happy to greet Claire and Ruben when they finally returned home from their travels. Claire had been in Ghana all week at a CRS conference, and Ruben in Dar to settle immigration issues – both had their planes delayed/cancelled and had a disastrous trip back to Mwanza. Here’s hoping I don’t have the same luck on my way back home! (knock wood!) We were happy to extend an invitation to them to come with us to Stephanie and Riaan’s house for a BBQ to celebrate Riaan’s birthday and enjoyed hearing stories about their week away.

Alison, me, Ania, Claire and Jodie outside of the temple.

We woke up early on Sunday morning (the 9^th) to get ready to attend our first Sikh/Hindu wedding ceremony. Uncle Sira (a jovial older man who has taken us under his wing during our time in Mwanza) picked us up at 9am and we drove together to the temple in town for the wedding ceremony. We joined the women waiting in a hallway looking onto the courtyard and made our first social faux-pas as we neglected to remove our shoes… luckily that was as bad as it got for us. Kiran and her ladies arrived soon after and she was escorted up to a waiting room away from the crowd. Shalin (the groom) came in later with an elaborate headdress on, complete with tassels covering his face. We watched as the two families arrived and greeted each other, exchanging garlands and hugs. Finally, the bride descended from her room and met her groom… they were hoisted up in the air in celebration and then she returned to her room again to prepare for the ceremony. After an interlude for refreshments, we all went to the temple (with shoes off and heads covered) to watch the ceremony. The bride and groom must make 4 circles together (the bride is ‘supported’ around the circle by brothers and close male friends) to complete the service. Afterwards, we stayed for lunch (where the men and women ate separately) and then returned home.

The bride and groom receiving blessings in the garden.

I spent part of the afternoon at Jodie’s fundi (tailor) getting alterations done on a dress so that I’d have something to wear to the reception, and then met Claire and Alison at a salon below our apartment. We decided to splurge and spend 1,500 Tsh (about a dollar) to get our hair curled for the evening… a very funny experience to share together! We set off to Tilapia for the wedding reception and finished off a beautifully traditional weekend celebrating the union of the bride and groom. I was so happy to have the opportunity to be involved in the wedding… it was a perfect way to spend one of our last weekends in Mwanza!

Hennaed and in traditional Indian attire.

The next time I write will be from Canada (I depart Mwanza on the 16^th and arrive in Toronto midday on the 17^th)… it’s incredible that my time in Africa has come and gone already! I have been avoiding thinking about the goodbyes that I will have to say next week as I prepare to leave for home. Though I’m excited to return home, I’m sure that within a few weeks, everything will have returned to ‘normal’ and I will be pining for the adventure of my time in Africa again. This experience has given me such an incredible opportunity to develop and challenge myself… I know I will treasure the memories of my time spent in Tanzania for the rest of my life.

“You get a strange feeling when you’re about to leave a place, I told him, like you’ll not only miss the people you love but you’ll miss the person you are now at this time and this place, because you’ll never be this way ever again.” - Azar Nafisi, Reading Lolita in Tehran