This was our motto during our two-week safari through the Rift Valley and Lake Natron (we got back to Arusha from this trip on Halloween, and have since scattered all over Northern TZ for our ISPs). Not only do we have chai (tea) 3x a day when we are out on safari, but I was served an enormous tin cup of steaming hot, super spicy chai at least 5x a day in Maasai land (the Lake Natron region, where our boma was, gets upwards of 100 degrees F no problem). Still, we always needed another caffeine break--we were pretty busy on safari. Here's the low-down on those epic weeks:
On 10/18 we drove out to the Crater--It's the biggest one in Africa (maybe the world?) and the geology we saw is spectacular. We pitched our tents on the edge of the crater, with elephants hanging out at the edge of the campsite and warnings against wild pig raids on our tents (turns out they're attracted to aloe, so we all stored our after-sun creams in the cars). We spent the next day exploring in our Land Rovers, checking out the wildlife, and packed up our campsite the next am.
En route to the Serengeti, we stopped at Oldavai Gorge for a lecture and a look at the museum that's been set up (the first human footprints were found here. And lots of other things). One of the exhibits was about a Japanese scientist who spent over 10 years tracing the human migration. He started biking in Oldavai Gorge, and his trek took him all the way into South America. The bike and hiking boots were on display.
We spent 4 days in the Serengeti--my research group went down to the hippo pool every morning, getting up before sunrise and collecting data on hippos' social interactions for a couple of hours. After a couple of chai breaks and lunch, we would head out on our afternoon "game drives," looking for cheetahs and climbing 'copies' (ancient mountain peaks that have been buried in volcanic ash). These few days in the Serengeti were amazing--full of animal sightings (all of the usual suspects--you know, elephants, zebras--plus a couple of leopards. And a cheetah from maybe 5 feet away). We also had presentations and conversations about wildlife conservation, land rights, and some of the other issues surrounding national parks that we've been working through over the course of the semester.
From the Serengeti, we headed over to Lake Natron and our Maasai homestays. I can't begin to write about this experience--I lived in a boma with a mama, a 15-year old brother, and a 5-year old sister. I was dressed in the full robes and jewelry (about 10 necklaces, arm cuffs, the works), and hung out with the kids in the boma all day. I communicated in Kiswahili, but most people speak Kimaa. Basically, I just counted in Kiswahili, Kimaa, and English everyday--the easiest way to communicate. And we sang a lot. This homestay was a truly special experience, and I have tons more to say about it, but I'm also still sorting through a lot of the things I felt, saw, and am still thinking about.
Maasai culture is a lot to get used to, very non-western. They practice polygamy and female circumcision, and all of the students left the homestay with tons of questions. We had all-male and all-female focal groups with an interpreter, which was an amazing way to learn about each other (the Maasai men asked about lesbian relationships and our group had this incredibly funny conversation about how women have sex. So much of American culture is new and weird to them in the same way their lives in the boma were so strange to us--it was a very cool cultural exchange).
So, then we went to Arusha! Now I'm in Lushoto!
Also, please treat this as an ordinary email chain and not a blog that is supposed to have pictures. I have no way to upload them.
Love Bec
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
Weeks in the Bullfrog
I cant find apostrophes on this keyboard, but I wanted to give everyone the low-down on all of our safari adventures \I cant find parentheses either, but now that you all know a little more about my ISP in Lushoto, heres some more about our adventures in the savanna and tropical forest.../
In Tarangire, Lake Manyara, and Mozambai we were all camping out, living in a little tent village. Ive been sharing a two person tent, the Bullfrog, with my friend Adrienne. It was great to have a tent buddy in the savanna, where we could hear hyenas and elephants roaming around and maybe black mambas. Our drives around the savanna, counting zebras and baboons, hanging out by the hippo pool at Lake Manyara, were all part of class. We would present our data on the diversity of non-ruminant species in the woodlands or plot the behaviors of baboon troupes before lunch. This study time was always followed up by an afternoon of tourist time. We drove down to the Silalai Swamp, the main water source in the park, and got to take group photos and check out the hundreds upon hundreds of elephants and birds. We even found a couple of lions, draped over tree branches by the road. Pictures eventually, promise.
At Lake Manyara, we stayed at a campsite and went on a walking tour of the village. Our group walked through the rice paddies and banana plantations, sipped some homemade banana beer, and checked out painting and carving shops. After a night out and some more field work, we headed back to Bangata, then spent the following week at Mozambai.
When we got to Mozambai, Adrienne and I pitched the Bullfrog in the grass, right by a flowing stream and manicured gardens, and the whole group went out into the forest to "greet" it. Basically, we had the whole morning without watches or a schedule to explore. I climbed trees, waded through streams, hiked through little farms and bushwacked through undergrowth, getting muddy and scratched and covered in bugs. This morning adventure definitely set the tone for the week. We would hike around the forest every morning as students, counting and measuring trees, laying out plots and estimating canopy cover in various parts of the forest. We had talks about the cultural and ecological history of the Usambara Mountains and the forest reserve and went over the data we collected. In the afternoons, however, we were released. We kept exploring the forest, finding valleys of prehistoric fern trees and getting trapped in their thorns. We would also nap, read, walk through the neighboring villages...this was our post-midterm "spring break."
even more love today then yesterday--I hope everybody is happy and healthy and enjoying the New England fall...carve a pumpkin for me
In Tarangire, Lake Manyara, and Mozambai we were all camping out, living in a little tent village. Ive been sharing a two person tent, the Bullfrog, with my friend Adrienne. It was great to have a tent buddy in the savanna, where we could hear hyenas and elephants roaming around and maybe black mambas. Our drives around the savanna, counting zebras and baboons, hanging out by the hippo pool at Lake Manyara, were all part of class. We would present our data on the diversity of non-ruminant species in the woodlands or plot the behaviors of baboon troupes before lunch. This study time was always followed up by an afternoon of tourist time. We drove down to the Silalai Swamp, the main water source in the park, and got to take group photos and check out the hundreds upon hundreds of elephants and birds. We even found a couple of lions, draped over tree branches by the road. Pictures eventually, promise.
At Lake Manyara, we stayed at a campsite and went on a walking tour of the village. Our group walked through the rice paddies and banana plantations, sipped some homemade banana beer, and checked out painting and carving shops. After a night out and some more field work, we headed back to Bangata, then spent the following week at Mozambai.
When we got to Mozambai, Adrienne and I pitched the Bullfrog in the grass, right by a flowing stream and manicured gardens, and the whole group went out into the forest to "greet" it. Basically, we had the whole morning without watches or a schedule to explore. I climbed trees, waded through streams, hiked through little farms and bushwacked through undergrowth, getting muddy and scratched and covered in bugs. This morning adventure definitely set the tone for the week. We would hike around the forest every morning as students, counting and measuring trees, laying out plots and estimating canopy cover in various parts of the forest. We had talks about the cultural and ecological history of the Usambara Mountains and the forest reserve and went over the data we collected. In the afternoons, however, we were released. We kept exploring the forest, finding valleys of prehistoric fern trees and getting trapped in their thorns. We would also nap, read, walk through the neighboring villages...this was our post-midterm "spring break."
even more love today then yesterday--I hope everybody is happy and healthy and enjoying the New England fall...carve a pumpkin for me
Sunday, October 11, 2009
we're not watoto...
hihihi! Since my last post, I've been on a safari week at Tarangire and Lake Manyara national parks, wrapped up my homestay in Bangata, taken midterms, and spent a week at the Mozambai Forest Reserve for our tropical ecology course. Now, we've started to shift gears: instead of our host families or a safari camp crew feeding us, our Bangata mamas doing our laundry, and SIT organizing buses and hotels, we're learning how to get around Tanzania like grown-ups.
"Watoto" means children in Kiswahili. My Bangata mama always called me one of her watoto, serving me food, walking me to school, and giving me a potty for my room so I didn't have to leave the house and pee at night. Even after leaving Bangata for Tarangire and Mozambai, we didn't have to worry about buying bus tickets or food. We pitch our tents, wake up for tea and breakfast, have class from safari cars or under the canopy of a tropical forest, work on our readings and presentations, take naps, eat the enormous meals that our camp crew serves us, explore the savannah or forests or towns we stay in...basically, we don't have a lot to worry about. We're living on Africa time, with all of these opportunities to talk with students and our professors and to learn about the people, the wildlife, and the ecology of the places we visit.
Now, I'm living in the Usambara mountains in a town called Lushoto. It's smaller than Arusha, but is the center of the district, with a bank and government offices and some tourists that come to hike on their way to Dar Es Saalam, Zanzibar, or safaris. I'm staying in a guest house with another SIT student for the week, working on logistics for my Independent Study Project. In a month or so, I'll come back here to live for three weeks to study a few women's groups that produce briquettes (like green charcoal, made from corn husks, manure, newspaper) in the region. They have developed a sort of micro-finance loan system that funds their project, and I'm going to do all of these interviews, help make and sell these briquettes, and try to figure out how much money they're making, how they can get more materials or sell more briquettes...or something. Deforestation is a real serious problem up in these mountains, and all over Tanzania. People cut trees down for fuelwood or charcoal production, soil degrades, farmers cant grow things. So--thats what im learning about
I'm really looking forward to our upcoming adventures, but am most excited to be on my own in Lushoto. I have tons more to say, and 1 minute left on the computer. lots of love, becs
"Watoto" means children in Kiswahili. My Bangata mama always called me one of her watoto, serving me food, walking me to school, and giving me a potty for my room so I didn't have to leave the house and pee at night. Even after leaving Bangata for Tarangire and Mozambai, we didn't have to worry about buying bus tickets or food. We pitch our tents, wake up for tea and breakfast, have class from safari cars or under the canopy of a tropical forest, work on our readings and presentations, take naps, eat the enormous meals that our camp crew serves us, explore the savannah or forests or towns we stay in...basically, we don't have a lot to worry about. We're living on Africa time, with all of these opportunities to talk with students and our professors and to learn about the people, the wildlife, and the ecology of the places we visit.
Now, I'm living in the Usambara mountains in a town called Lushoto. It's smaller than Arusha, but is the center of the district, with a bank and government offices and some tourists that come to hike on their way to Dar Es Saalam, Zanzibar, or safaris. I'm staying in a guest house with another SIT student for the week, working on logistics for my Independent Study Project. In a month or so, I'll come back here to live for three weeks to study a few women's groups that produce briquettes (like green charcoal, made from corn husks, manure, newspaper) in the region. They have developed a sort of micro-finance loan system that funds their project, and I'm going to do all of these interviews, help make and sell these briquettes, and try to figure out how much money they're making, how they can get more materials or sell more briquettes...or something. Deforestation is a real serious problem up in these mountains, and all over Tanzania. People cut trees down for fuelwood or charcoal production, soil degrades, farmers cant grow things. So--thats what im learning about
I'm really looking forward to our upcoming adventures, but am most excited to be on my own in Lushoto. I have tons more to say, and 1 minute left on the computer. lots of love, becs
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
"Pole"
We’re in the middle of our second week in Bangata, and are completely saturated in Kiswahili. We’re slowly improving, learning vocabulary and sometimes making sentences, but as a group we probably all sound like we’re three.
We're all busy at school during the week, and the weekends are full of cooking, cleaning, and family time. We watch soccer on TV if the power's working, and all of the neighborhood kids flood our backyard to do laundry and dishes together. The big event this past weekend was the secondary school graduation that I went to with Mama. After the ceremony, the students lined up while their parents fed them bites of cake, and everyone was roaming around taking photos and passing out presents. I met students, their teachers, and a couple of pastors, and then made the dusty, hilly trip back with Mama and her friends. I also explored the town a little more, walking through forests and swimming in waterfalls with groups of American students. Over the last couple of days, I started helping out at my family’s “duka,” or shop after school—sometimes I pour the kerosene and count out change, but usually I just sit on a stool in the corner and play with my little brothers. It’s getting much easier to understand my family, and talking with customers is great Kiswahili practice (even though they laugh at me most of the time).
In Tanzania, everyone in big on greetings—whenever you meet an elder, or even pass one in the street, you say “shikamoo,” or “I give you my respect.” They respond, “marahaba,” or “I accept your respect,” and then you exchange news of your day, school, work, family, or health. This whole dialogue goes on for a while, and there are tons of variations on greetings that I’m constantly mixing up and stumbling over. So, I have a new favorite word: “pole” (pronounced pole-lay). It technically means “condolence,” but it is also used to express an apology or to say, “excuse me.” Really, it’s condolence with some cheerleading built in. In fact, “pole” doesn’t typically have a connotation of regret or sadness. Walking home from school with our backpacks, we often get pole-ed. When someone is climbing a hill, riding a bike, or carrying some banana trees on their head, you greet them with a “pole.” Rather than the feelings of embarrassment that surface when one is caught in a “sorry” exchange, trading “poles” in the middle of a hot, dusty trek or after a long day is really uplifting.
More news from Tanzania: This coming Saturday, we head off to Tarangire National Park for another safari. So, more camping and many more animals. It’s the dry season in Tanzania right now, which means that impalas, zebras, and wildebeest are heading towards the main water sources (one of which runs straight through the national park). Their predators (lions) are right behind, so we should see some of those from our Land Rover…and the park is filling up with elephants.
Here’s a better address to send mail to: PO Box 6007, Arusha, Tanzania. No pressure…love
We're all busy at school during the week, and the weekends are full of cooking, cleaning, and family time. We watch soccer on TV if the power's working, and all of the neighborhood kids flood our backyard to do laundry and dishes together. The big event this past weekend was the secondary school graduation that I went to with Mama. After the ceremony, the students lined up while their parents fed them bites of cake, and everyone was roaming around taking photos and passing out presents. I met students, their teachers, and a couple of pastors, and then made the dusty, hilly trip back with Mama and her friends. I also explored the town a little more, walking through forests and swimming in waterfalls with groups of American students. Over the last couple of days, I started helping out at my family’s “duka,” or shop after school—sometimes I pour the kerosene and count out change, but usually I just sit on a stool in the corner and play with my little brothers. It’s getting much easier to understand my family, and talking with customers is great Kiswahili practice (even though they laugh at me most of the time).
In Tanzania, everyone in big on greetings—whenever you meet an elder, or even pass one in the street, you say “shikamoo,” or “I give you my respect.” They respond, “marahaba,” or “I accept your respect,” and then you exchange news of your day, school, work, family, or health. This whole dialogue goes on for a while, and there are tons of variations on greetings that I’m constantly mixing up and stumbling over. So, I have a new favorite word: “pole” (pronounced pole-lay). It technically means “condolence,” but it is also used to express an apology or to say, “excuse me.” Really, it’s condolence with some cheerleading built in. In fact, “pole” doesn’t typically have a connotation of regret or sadness. Walking home from school with our backpacks, we often get pole-ed. When someone is climbing a hill, riding a bike, or carrying some banana trees on their head, you greet them with a “pole.” Rather than the feelings of embarrassment that surface when one is caught in a “sorry” exchange, trading “poles” in the middle of a hot, dusty trek or after a long day is really uplifting.
More news from Tanzania: This coming Saturday, we head off to Tarangire National Park for another safari. So, more camping and many more animals. It’s the dry season in Tanzania right now, which means that impalas, zebras, and wildebeest are heading towards the main water sources (one of which runs straight through the national park). Their predators (lions) are right behind, so we should see some of those from our Land Rover…and the park is filling up with elephants.
Here’s a better address to send mail to: PO Box 6007, Arusha, Tanzania. No pressure…love
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
First Days in Tanzania
Hiya! I'm in Tanzania! I've been here for about two weeks, and am psyched for the rest of the semester--we've already had a safari, started our homestay, and have loads of kiswahili projects. Fresh off the plane, our group headed out on safari. We camped out in Ndarikwai National Park for our orientation week, going on nature walks around the savannah (tons of elephants, zebras, just surrounded by amazing wildlife) and just getting to know each other. We started learning kiswahili at camp, but our real classes started this week.
On Saturday we moved in with our homestay families--I have a Mama and a Baba and two little brothers, and they have been really wonderful. All of the wanafunzi (students) do our kozi ya nyumbani (homework) together after shule (school), and then I go home to hang with Mama and the watoto (kids). We are living in Bangata, a mountain village right outside Arusha. It's so beautiful, tucked into the side of Mt. Meru and surrounded by banana farms and clouds. We're here for another week and a half, then safari again! then midterms! The work is a little overwhelming but I'm definitely into it--all of our readings and assignments and discussions have been really good. Also, the food is all fried, all delicious. Lots of beans and veggies, and Mama and I spend a lot of time cooking.
So, my new Tanzanian friends are great, and I'm so glad that I'm here! I love you all, and here's an address: Klub Afriko, PO 12248, Arusha, Tanzania.
On Saturday we moved in with our homestay families--I have a Mama and a Baba and two little brothers, and they have been really wonderful. All of the wanafunzi (students) do our kozi ya nyumbani (homework) together after shule (school), and then I go home to hang with Mama and the watoto (kids). We are living in Bangata, a mountain village right outside Arusha. It's so beautiful, tucked into the side of Mt. Meru and surrounded by banana farms and clouds. We're here for another week and a half, then safari again! then midterms! The work is a little overwhelming but I'm definitely into it--all of our readings and assignments and discussions have been really good. Also, the food is all fried, all delicious. Lots of beans and veggies, and Mama and I spend a lot of time cooking.
So, my new Tanzanian friends are great, and I'm so glad that I'm here! I love you all, and here's an address: Klub Afriko, PO 12248, Arusha, Tanzania.
Monday, August 24, 2009
mainland
Helloooo! So, I left Cape Clear Island today. I was farming with Fiona for about three weeks, and I’m hanging around Cork for the next couple of days. Thursday I’m flying out of Dublin…then Tanzania (gaaaahhh!)
I feel like I’m coming out the other side of this farming experience more relaxed, maybe just more ready to go to Africa. We’ve done loads of work for Fiona, but definitely adapted to the slow, island way of life. Each day on Cape followed this pattern: We wake up, make some breakfast, and get to Fiona’s at around 9. Whenever we walk up the hill to the house, her two dogs, Lucy and Poppet, start barking, flipping out. We’ll kick off our rain boots (or gum boots? wellies?) and have a cup of coffee while we plan our morning—or Fiona will run off a list of little projects as she leaves for work. Usually the am jobs are finished early, unless it’s the endless weeding and digging kind of job. Either way, lunch is 12-2 and we make some food, drink tea, read books…this whole trip I’ve had tons of tea, all the time. At 2 we go back to Fiona’s, usually waiting around for a while (hanging out with the dogs, maybe making some bread or watching the Discovery channel), until she’s back from work. The afternoon jobs usually involve more walking around, heavy lifting, but are always done by 5. Then done! We go down to the harbor, get groceries, go visit our wwoofing buddies Lilly and Gabriel and the Craft Shop, explore cliffs or ruins, or just sit on our porch and bum around.
Emilie and I were working with three other Wwoofers at one point—Ben and Jade from Australia and Miriam from Germany. For the past week, Ben and I were the only ones around. We’ve been herding cattle, cleaning the chicken coop, doing more yardwork. I learned how to use the weed-whacker (strimmer, whipper-snipper…), so I now I’m constantly finding little bits of grass stuck to my clothes, in my hair. I was also practicing my cooking, and I would walk down to the harbor and around the Island almost every day.
Also, working for Fiona has been really wonderful—I’m so glad I got to be on the island, on her farm. I’m more than ready to move on, to see Cork and Dublin over the next few days and then fly to Tanzania. I’m a little apprehensive, of course, but completely excited to get there, meet everyone on my program and start something new.
As my trip in Ireland winds down, I’ve been going over everything that I’ve done, and everything that I’ve learned about farming and traveling. I’m glad I got to experience it both with Emile and by myself for a little while, and this is just the most beautiful country. More than anything, I’ve realized how important it is to me, to my experiences abroad, to really be able to really live somewhere—at Fiona’s I was able to unpack my backpack, to feel more comfortable here than most tourists are able to. Although our bathroom is grimy, there are flies in the kitchen (maybe breeding in our compost bin?), nothing every dries completely, and most things around the farm are falling apart, I just stopped noticing.
ok, please send emails. buckets of love,
becca
I feel like I’m coming out the other side of this farming experience more relaxed, maybe just more ready to go to Africa. We’ve done loads of work for Fiona, but definitely adapted to the slow, island way of life. Each day on Cape followed this pattern: We wake up, make some breakfast, and get to Fiona’s at around 9. Whenever we walk up the hill to the house, her two dogs, Lucy and Poppet, start barking, flipping out. We’ll kick off our rain boots (or gum boots? wellies?) and have a cup of coffee while we plan our morning—or Fiona will run off a list of little projects as she leaves for work. Usually the am jobs are finished early, unless it’s the endless weeding and digging kind of job. Either way, lunch is 12-2 and we make some food, drink tea, read books…this whole trip I’ve had tons of tea, all the time. At 2 we go back to Fiona’s, usually waiting around for a while (hanging out with the dogs, maybe making some bread or watching the Discovery channel), until she’s back from work. The afternoon jobs usually involve more walking around, heavy lifting, but are always done by 5. Then done! We go down to the harbor, get groceries, go visit our wwoofing buddies Lilly and Gabriel and the Craft Shop, explore cliffs or ruins, or just sit on our porch and bum around.
Emilie and I were working with three other Wwoofers at one point—Ben and Jade from Australia and Miriam from Germany. For the past week, Ben and I were the only ones around. We’ve been herding cattle, cleaning the chicken coop, doing more yardwork. I learned how to use the weed-whacker (strimmer, whipper-snipper…), so I now I’m constantly finding little bits of grass stuck to my clothes, in my hair. I was also practicing my cooking, and I would walk down to the harbor and around the Island almost every day.
Also, working for Fiona has been really wonderful—I’m so glad I got to be on the island, on her farm. I’m more than ready to move on, to see Cork and Dublin over the next few days and then fly to Tanzania. I’m a little apprehensive, of course, but completely excited to get there, meet everyone on my program and start something new.
As my trip in Ireland winds down, I’ve been going over everything that I’ve done, and everything that I’ve learned about farming and traveling. I’m glad I got to experience it both with Emile and by myself for a little while, and this is just the most beautiful country. More than anything, I’ve realized how important it is to me, to my experiences abroad, to really be able to really live somewhere—at Fiona’s I was able to unpack my backpack, to feel more comfortable here than most tourists are able to. Although our bathroom is grimy, there are flies in the kitchen (maybe breeding in our compost bin?), nothing every dries completely, and most things around the farm are falling apart, I just stopped noticing.
ok, please send emails. buckets of love,
becca
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