Well...Thailand didn't happen. In short, all of these people trying to tell me to go and me still not feeling quite right about it and me making a list of things I wanted this year that did not match up with THailand. Basically, I think I was infatuated with living abroad, being close to my sister and a dear friend from college, and being able to continue my wanderlust. But then I asked do I really want to be preparing lesson plans, not have holidays off, and teach 50-60 kids? Instead, I took a financial leap of faith and am living in Mpls. paying rent and living "normal" life. I have my tea on the coffee table ahead of me and am now an all-year cyclist. I'm teaching Spanish at the elementary schools, but only 4 teaching hours (10 paid hours regardless) and hoping to soon start teaching in my studio. I love saying that! It's such a great space. I'm also volunteering as the Program Director (my working title) and future board member of the El Sistema Twin Cities Music School Advocates for Community through Musical Excellence (www.acme-music.com). I'd love if you liked us on Facebook or signed up for our newsletter :)
The other day I heard the loudest geese flock ever. I know it's a random thought, but it truly was a sign of autumn and to me felt significant. It led to me writing a song tonight all about how animals hibernate, leaves fall, flowers wither, and yet humans continue to live life the same regardless of the season. The fact that I probably will never get over the wanderlust phase of life and I'm not so sure I need to. What does security mean in this economy and what is living "the life" if you don't have adventure? For me that's not "the life." I've found someone who will record for free so hopefully once I develop it further I can do so! I don't know what has changed this year, but I feel so inspired to write music and actually have content to write about. Not to say songs can't be happy, but I feel like some just require misery, at least on some level (this is not meant to be a pity party). Sarah McLachlan wrote a whole break-up album for instance and I will not be surprised if she wins yet another Grammy in Feb.
Spiritually, I'm also realizing traveling has changed me A LOT! It is very rare I can participate in a Bible Study, not because I won't learn something, but because I have a very difficult time expressing myself when no one can relate or people are on such different levels of faith and/or paths of life I feel like there is no common denominator even though there is (though some definitely define it differently). For me, love is first, the specifics of what that means are second. I understand God from a Christian perspective, but I truly am a pluralist encompassing ideas from all faiths. It's amazing how we fight and compete when most of the time we're talking about the same thing using different words. There's an interfaith church in Mpls I am dying to check out, but may have to wait til it's nice enough to bike outside again since public transit anywhere takes 40 mins to an hr 40 mins even when you go 5 miles! For now, I have found refuge in the most AMAZING yoga class ever and am currently reading Paolo Coelho's The Zahir. While I know this is no substitute, honestly I haven't gone to "church" in so long since Sun was my one day off last year, that I don't feel I'm missing anything. I still have plenty of philosophical/spiritual discussions and there's always YouTube and online devotions if I do feel a void. Meditation and prayer are enough for me right now. Moving here was based on faith alone, knowing se van a salir (things will result). And so far I'm breaking even and have a connection with one of the full time jobs I've applied for..Trust!
So as this holiday season approaches, I can't believe I've already been to an egg nog party and of course choirs are practicing Christmas music, I'm not just thankful for all my blessings, but also my experiences and the people who have made me who I am today. Part of me will forever remain in Tanzania regardless of my dislike for the city of Arusha itself. Maybe part of me will remain in Minneapolis. The diversity, the lakes, the zumba classes 8 blocks from my house with all Latin Americans, my now regular trivia and salsa nights and hopefully soon a female barbershop choir rehearsal, and the future farmers' market and music everywhere. Along with the bitter cold, the snow, the horrible Metro Transit system, and the kindergartners who will NOT stop talking. I'm trying it and while not thriving, immensely happier and hopefully setting up shop for the next step, whenever or whatever that may entail. At this point, I've put my hands up and surrendered. Life sometimes is out of one's hands. Though I would be thrilled if the article that said Minneapolis has the lowest unemployment of any big city in the US and it's the best place for the unemployed due to the relatively low cost of living were to prove itself. Right in my face. Tangible, bold, and daring. If it wants to be bashful, secretive and what most of you would consider more realistic, so be it.
Friday, November 18, 2011
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Hilarity at Holden
SO I guess this blog is continuing outside of Africa..First I'll tell about the past month at Holden Village in Chelan, WA. To get there one must take a 2.5 hr boat ride and then an 11 mile bus ride. Aside from wonderful people, local organic homemade food, and a BEAUTIFUL place being on the border of the Glacier Peak Wilderness, oh and I can't forget the insane double triple word bingoed word scrabble games (Thank you @Hunter), I had some pretty insane hiking experiences and my first experience with splitting and stacking wood even in the pouring rain along with being thrown into Hike Haus from day one while my supervisor was on his "out" (when they leave the village and go into the real world) so from day one people were asking me, "Which trail should we go on?" and me of course referring them to a map having never been there before. This also involved waking up at 5:30 AM daily to set up what they call the hiker bar (sandwich bar for hikers) which was a grand change from sleeping til at least midmorning with no plan back in Afton. In the month, a toenail fell off and I lost my glasses and then got conjunctivitis which of course resulted in me walking around semi-blind for several days and a realization I could hike a mountain, and cut vegetables, everything except read from a distance. And by week two, I was willingly waking up early on my breaks to go fishing and climb Mt. Fernow, which is the adventure I will share with you below!
It all started out at 4;30 AM when I had been warned we should leave at the ABSOLUTE latest at 5. I went to the dining hall to eat breakfast and was promptly ready to go at 5. Our leader decided 5:30 would be plenty fine and took his time with eating breakfast. Figuring he had done this three times before, I waited patiently and so we began our hike in the dark, the two boys debating if the bright star we saw was Venus or Jupiter and then guy gossip about relationships of people I didn't meet, quite amusing. We reached the top of copper basin around 7 and began the beginning of the trek up to the saddle, which is the hardest part. After many a rock field and scree, we came to a snow field and I used my ski instructing skills to walk up wide footed like a duck. M thought it would be easier (having led the way) since the snow was slick if we made it to the edge and went up the rocks. BAD idea! I tried to do this and ended up slipping clinging with my hiking pole to the snow not wanting to have to climb up again. I managed to get up and my friend John used an ice axe to carve stepholds. Thank goodness he had brought that cuz M said we didn't need one (correction: he didn't need one!). Upon reaching the summit, we saw the Entiat Valley and Mt. Maude which truly looked like a mountain out of a fairytale with its silver color and snowcapped peak.
Then it was just up, up, and more up of boulders, rocks, and snow. At 8000 ft J decides to tell me he's afraid of heights and I'm asking in my mind why in the world he decided to do a 9200 ft mountain if he is afraid of heights. But he overcame his fear and we made it to the fake summit of 9100 ft. M didn't feel comfortable with bringing us up the last 100 ft because of how slippery the snow was and we could see everything but Glacier Peak which I had seen in an amazing view from Image so I was content. If the leader isn't content, it's never a good idea to do it. So there we were with multiple layers in the wind (and a bar of cell phone service!) looking at peaks in Canada, Mt. Rainier, St. Helen's, Baker, and I think Adams. VERY beautiful and cool!
And so the descent began...I've always thought going down was more difficult than up and especially agree with that statement after this! We began the descent at 2 and had only made it down the first 500 ft in an hr when M realized he forgot his hiking pole. J was the closest to it b/c he was the slowest in the group and M decided to ask him to go back up and get it. In all honestly, I'm quite sure M could've gotten it in the time he succeeded in yelling back up the mtn and being comprehended and then J trekking for it. I told M it was 3:15 and he insisted we had plenty of time so I slowly continued trekking down. We made it back to the saddle and thus the snow fields downward began in a form even a child is familiar with-sledding. M showed us how to use our hiking pole as a brake..Jon had an ice axe. I went with my feet first, but my feet nor my hiking pole worked as a brake and I went flying, legs in a scissor position. M said I was starting to slow down but he grabbed my hand and feeling my heart beat inside was so relieved. I decided sledding was not the best idea and so tried to go down step by step with my hiking pole until that rolled down the hill. J gave me his yak tracks but they were too big and that too rolled down the hill. SO I waited there clinging to the spot I was in for dear life and waited for him to retrieve the two items that had fallen down the hill. An hr later we made it down that part with him carving spots for my feet and hands lowering me down one step at a time..until the 15$ ice axe decided to break and then we were literally just using the end. By this time it was 5:30. But the rest was a piece of cake in comparison. Boulders, rock fields, and scree. I decided to go ahead knowing I was slower coming down and decided to go in the trees being from MN and familiar with the woods. I felt like a monkey flying from tree to tree and descending rapidly. Until all there were were branches semi-rooted to the ground to which I clung to and decided it would be best to go back to the rock field bushwhacking through the trees until I reached the rock field. At this point, M and J were significantly behind me, but I didn't know which rock field to go down so I waited..and the sun began to go behind the basin (not sunset but the mtns are tall so the sun "sets" early). I realized we were going to be hiking down in the dark and so it began. We got our flashlights out just like we had that morning and began going down. Of course my hiking poles had to get caught in the crags of the rocks, but eventually we made it down to Copper Basin..in the pitch dark. So we start to go down to the path and realize we're on the wrong side of the creek. So backtracking, filling up water (we had been out for hours at this point), and with nothing on our minds but the Village we begin to descend radioing in telling them we will be back by 8:30. M told us he was only stopping for med emergencies and I agreed! Then J's headlamp bulb dies out...and then 30 mins later the battery. Of course we had to stop and hiking in the dark exponentially slowed our hiking down and something that took 1:45 to climb up took the same to come down when usually we had flown down this in 45 mins. At 10:15 we arrive back at the village, never been so happy to see it in my life!, and the HH guy and our emer contact are waiting there for us. I collapsed into lodge 6 and my roommate had already fallen asleep. 17 hours! G'night! But we did it and it was beautiful and all were safe!
And now my next adventure begins. I'm realizing I"m waiting for the unknown which could be forever and after taking an enneagram test (I'm a type 7 to the Tee!) realized I need to cease life to the fullest and found an opportunity to teach in Thailand for 4 months and receive my TESOL. Something in me was hesitant and questioning if I wanted to continue the nomadic life, but after friend, family, and stranger all saying nothing but GO! and then two sermons relating to getting out of your safety zone and the unknown, etc. I realized it was out of my hands and it's four months. What do I have to lose? A cafe job? I can do later if I really want to. So I'm going. Nov. 5! Between now and then I have to start and finish the 60 hr online portion, get my workshop CD for El Sistema ready to mail, and volunteer at a music festival in Black Mountain, NC, where hopefully more connections could arise. I'm committing! And Yes I'm excited even though it does seem crazy I'm jetsetting yet again. Thank you all for your support and of course I will continue to post!
It all started out at 4;30 AM when I had been warned we should leave at the ABSOLUTE latest at 5. I went to the dining hall to eat breakfast and was promptly ready to go at 5. Our leader decided 5:30 would be plenty fine and took his time with eating breakfast. Figuring he had done this three times before, I waited patiently and so we began our hike in the dark, the two boys debating if the bright star we saw was Venus or Jupiter and then guy gossip about relationships of people I didn't meet, quite amusing. We reached the top of copper basin around 7 and began the beginning of the trek up to the saddle, which is the hardest part. After many a rock field and scree, we came to a snow field and I used my ski instructing skills to walk up wide footed like a duck. M thought it would be easier (having led the way) since the snow was slick if we made it to the edge and went up the rocks. BAD idea! I tried to do this and ended up slipping clinging with my hiking pole to the snow not wanting to have to climb up again. I managed to get up and my friend John used an ice axe to carve stepholds. Thank goodness he had brought that cuz M said we didn't need one (correction: he didn't need one!). Upon reaching the summit, we saw the Entiat Valley and Mt. Maude which truly looked like a mountain out of a fairytale with its silver color and snowcapped peak.
Then it was just up, up, and more up of boulders, rocks, and snow. At 8000 ft J decides to tell me he's afraid of heights and I'm asking in my mind why in the world he decided to do a 9200 ft mountain if he is afraid of heights. But he overcame his fear and we made it to the fake summit of 9100 ft. M didn't feel comfortable with bringing us up the last 100 ft because of how slippery the snow was and we could see everything but Glacier Peak which I had seen in an amazing view from Image so I was content. If the leader isn't content, it's never a good idea to do it. So there we were with multiple layers in the wind (and a bar of cell phone service!) looking at peaks in Canada, Mt. Rainier, St. Helen's, Baker, and I think Adams. VERY beautiful and cool!
And so the descent began...I've always thought going down was more difficult than up and especially agree with that statement after this! We began the descent at 2 and had only made it down the first 500 ft in an hr when M realized he forgot his hiking pole. J was the closest to it b/c he was the slowest in the group and M decided to ask him to go back up and get it. In all honestly, I'm quite sure M could've gotten it in the time he succeeded in yelling back up the mtn and being comprehended and then J trekking for it. I told M it was 3:15 and he insisted we had plenty of time so I slowly continued trekking down. We made it back to the saddle and thus the snow fields downward began in a form even a child is familiar with-sledding. M showed us how to use our hiking pole as a brake..Jon had an ice axe. I went with my feet first, but my feet nor my hiking pole worked as a brake and I went flying, legs in a scissor position. M said I was starting to slow down but he grabbed my hand and feeling my heart beat inside was so relieved. I decided sledding was not the best idea and so tried to go down step by step with my hiking pole until that rolled down the hill. J gave me his yak tracks but they were too big and that too rolled down the hill. SO I waited there clinging to the spot I was in for dear life and waited for him to retrieve the two items that had fallen down the hill. An hr later we made it down that part with him carving spots for my feet and hands lowering me down one step at a time..until the 15$ ice axe decided to break and then we were literally just using the end. By this time it was 5:30. But the rest was a piece of cake in comparison. Boulders, rock fields, and scree. I decided to go ahead knowing I was slower coming down and decided to go in the trees being from MN and familiar with the woods. I felt like a monkey flying from tree to tree and descending rapidly. Until all there were were branches semi-rooted to the ground to which I clung to and decided it would be best to go back to the rock field bushwhacking through the trees until I reached the rock field. At this point, M and J were significantly behind me, but I didn't know which rock field to go down so I waited..and the sun began to go behind the basin (not sunset but the mtns are tall so the sun "sets" early). I realized we were going to be hiking down in the dark and so it began. We got our flashlights out just like we had that morning and began going down. Of course my hiking poles had to get caught in the crags of the rocks, but eventually we made it down to Copper Basin..in the pitch dark. So we start to go down to the path and realize we're on the wrong side of the creek. So backtracking, filling up water (we had been out for hours at this point), and with nothing on our minds but the Village we begin to descend radioing in telling them we will be back by 8:30. M told us he was only stopping for med emergencies and I agreed! Then J's headlamp bulb dies out...and then 30 mins later the battery. Of course we had to stop and hiking in the dark exponentially slowed our hiking down and something that took 1:45 to climb up took the same to come down when usually we had flown down this in 45 mins. At 10:15 we arrive back at the village, never been so happy to see it in my life!, and the HH guy and our emer contact are waiting there for us. I collapsed into lodge 6 and my roommate had already fallen asleep. 17 hours! G'night! But we did it and it was beautiful and all were safe!
And now my next adventure begins. I'm realizing I"m waiting for the unknown which could be forever and after taking an enneagram test (I'm a type 7 to the Tee!) realized I need to cease life to the fullest and found an opportunity to teach in Thailand for 4 months and receive my TESOL. Something in me was hesitant and questioning if I wanted to continue the nomadic life, but after friend, family, and stranger all saying nothing but GO! and then two sermons relating to getting out of your safety zone and the unknown, etc. I realized it was out of my hands and it's four months. What do I have to lose? A cafe job? I can do later if I really want to. So I'm going. Nov. 5! Between now and then I have to start and finish the 60 hr online portion, get my workshop CD for El Sistema ready to mail, and volunteer at a music festival in Black Mountain, NC, where hopefully more connections could arise. I'm committing! And Yes I'm excited even though it does seem crazy I'm jetsetting yet again. Thank you all for your support and of course I will continue to post!
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Back in the USA!
Hello All!
Thanks to no internet for the past month I haven't been able to update, but aside from finally making quality friends (thanks to frisbee), lots of work (concerts galore!) and trying to spend as much time at Maku to learn as many African dances as possible including making a Bukoba drum (16 hours later!) and realizing I still haven't done souvenir shopping, that would be a summary of the last month. Not to mention the goodbyes where I received metres of fabric! I had a fashion show with my housemate Nina as we tried on dresses, skirts, and other clothing made especially for us :) I will miss everyone immensely and saying goodbye is always hard for me to do, but adding that many don't have email and I don't know if I will ever see them again made it especially sad not to mention the goodbye to my now considered nephew 4 yr old Colin.
It's so weird to be home. When I got off the airplane in Amsterdam, I literally stared at the Svarinsky crystal store close to 5 mins realizing this store alone is more than the whole of GDP in Tanzania! And then there was the airport library equipped with 1 euro massage/spa, bubble chairs, fake fireplace, books and iPads about Amsterdam history and culture, and a grand piano that is the nicest piano I have played all year just sitting idly in the airport (I think you can guess how I passed the next hour or so :) Thank you Blue Heron music not fitting in my checked bag.
NBI baggage people were complete assholes and insisting I could onyl have 1 carry-on. Explain to me that I can travel across the US with 2 carryons but intercontinental is only 1 and they tried to have a blanket count as my carry-on, bull shit. The guy who was weighing bags was really nice and helpful and suggested I repack my roller board so it is under the 12 kg limit for hte plane but the air guy wasn't having it so I took everything out and made one bag overweight...I think I got tricked into having to pay for a 3rd carryon because I somehow repacked this and the whole flight home kept realizing things I could have taken out: contact solution, books, strapping more shoes to my backpack, wearing more clothes, ah well shoulda coulda woulda. 200 dollars later I was on the plane with a 2 hr delay and ended up eating dinner at 1:30 AM and then crashing kabisa for the next 5 hrs.The second flight was much longer, but both uneventful.
Nairobi was a great last day in Africa with an excellent host and a great place, and i had a wonderful day in NBI meeting up with a CS from Kenya, a guy she was showing around from Denver, and a girl I met on the bus from Princeton who was an avid bird watcher. We saw the elephants at an elephant orphanage called the Sheldrick Wildlife Foundation (you can even adopt an elephant!) and I even got to pet them. I couldn't believe how fast they guzzled the bottles of milk, 45 seconds later and Abrakadabra-gone. Did you know elephants have a memory of 25-3o years? They also entertained themselves with a good ol' fashioned game of football (soccer).
This followed by a no picture trip to the Uhuru Gardens (uhuru means freedom) and a taxi breakdown followed by one last mbuzi (goat) nyama choma, ugali, and tomato salad lunch for the price of $1.50, was my first kiss...with a giraffe! Basically described as a dog slobbering on your face except with a pellet of giraffe pipi (candy) in between my lips.
The Nairobi National museum was also fascinating! I had no idea Kenya was the discovery of so many early humans like Nutcracker boy, etc! And they had the skeleton of an elephant that was the only wild elephant that the government supported to protect.
A bit of heart rate acceleration with 40 min. traffic and a need to be at the airport in 2 hours, but all went well. Taxis are SO much more expensive in Nairobi but she made a point, everything is more expensive in Nairobi. The Kenyan shilling is 90 to the dollar compared to approx. 1500 in Tanzania!
************************************************************
Arrival in MN
You'll never guess the first thing I did after greeting my mom. Starbucks for a vanilla frappucino and an Asiago cheese bagel :) Just standing waiting for my mom was such culture shock seeing all these posh, very shiny (I didn't realize the difference of material they use on the cars here vs TZ), and tried to get in the car on the left side. Coming home, everything seemed so huge considering our whole house was the size of our family room! Had a lovely dinner of seafood spaghetti on the screened-in porch and admittedly took a nap to keep the jet lag at least a bit manageable. Minus being up at 5 AM jet lag is so far okay.
Not looking forward to unpacking and ECSTATIC to see friends I suppose this is my last blog until whatever the next adventure life brings me,
Kwa heri
Sara
PS A good friend of mine who is still in TZ who writes extremely well is whaleherdienda.com if you can't enough of TZ stories.
Thanks to no internet for the past month I haven't been able to update, but aside from finally making quality friends (thanks to frisbee), lots of work (concerts galore!) and trying to spend as much time at Maku to learn as many African dances as possible including making a Bukoba drum (16 hours later!) and realizing I still haven't done souvenir shopping, that would be a summary of the last month. Not to mention the goodbyes where I received metres of fabric! I had a fashion show with my housemate Nina as we tried on dresses, skirts, and other clothing made especially for us :) I will miss everyone immensely and saying goodbye is always hard for me to do, but adding that many don't have email and I don't know if I will ever see them again made it especially sad not to mention the goodbye to my now considered nephew 4 yr old Colin.
It's so weird to be home. When I got off the airplane in Amsterdam, I literally stared at the Svarinsky crystal store close to 5 mins realizing this store alone is more than the whole of GDP in Tanzania! And then there was the airport library equipped with 1 euro massage/spa, bubble chairs, fake fireplace, books and iPads about Amsterdam history and culture, and a grand piano that is the nicest piano I have played all year just sitting idly in the airport (I think you can guess how I passed the next hour or so :) Thank you Blue Heron music not fitting in my checked bag.
NBI baggage people were complete assholes and insisting I could onyl have 1 carry-on. Explain to me that I can travel across the US with 2 carryons but intercontinental is only 1 and they tried to have a blanket count as my carry-on, bull shit. The guy who was weighing bags was really nice and helpful and suggested I repack my roller board so it is under the 12 kg limit for hte plane but the air guy wasn't having it so I took everything out and made one bag overweight...I think I got tricked into having to pay for a 3rd carryon because I somehow repacked this and the whole flight home kept realizing things I could have taken out: contact solution, books, strapping more shoes to my backpack, wearing more clothes, ah well shoulda coulda woulda. 200 dollars later I was on the plane with a 2 hr delay and ended up eating dinner at 1:30 AM and then crashing kabisa for the next 5 hrs.The second flight was much longer, but both uneventful.
Nairobi was a great last day in Africa with an excellent host and a great place, and i had a wonderful day in NBI meeting up with a CS from Kenya, a guy she was showing around from Denver, and a girl I met on the bus from Princeton who was an avid bird watcher. We saw the elephants at an elephant orphanage called the Sheldrick Wildlife Foundation (you can even adopt an elephant!) and I even got to pet them. I couldn't believe how fast they guzzled the bottles of milk, 45 seconds later and Abrakadabra-gone. Did you know elephants have a memory of 25-3o years? They also entertained themselves with a good ol' fashioned game of football (soccer).
This followed by a no picture trip to the Uhuru Gardens (uhuru means freedom) and a taxi breakdown followed by one last mbuzi (goat) nyama choma, ugali, and tomato salad lunch for the price of $1.50, was my first kiss...with a giraffe! Basically described as a dog slobbering on your face except with a pellet of giraffe pipi (candy) in between my lips.
The Nairobi National museum was also fascinating! I had no idea Kenya was the discovery of so many early humans like Nutcracker boy, etc! And they had the skeleton of an elephant that was the only wild elephant that the government supported to protect.
A bit of heart rate acceleration with 40 min. traffic and a need to be at the airport in 2 hours, but all went well. Taxis are SO much more expensive in Nairobi but she made a point, everything is more expensive in Nairobi. The Kenyan shilling is 90 to the dollar compared to approx. 1500 in Tanzania!
************************************************************
Arrival in MN
You'll never guess the first thing I did after greeting my mom. Starbucks for a vanilla frappucino and an Asiago cheese bagel :) Just standing waiting for my mom was such culture shock seeing all these posh, very shiny (I didn't realize the difference of material they use on the cars here vs TZ), and tried to get in the car on the left side. Coming home, everything seemed so huge considering our whole house was the size of our family room! Had a lovely dinner of seafood spaghetti on the screened-in porch and admittedly took a nap to keep the jet lag at least a bit manageable. Minus being up at 5 AM jet lag is so far okay.
Not looking forward to unpacking and ECSTATIC to see friends I suppose this is my last blog until whatever the next adventure life brings me,
Kwa heri
Sara
PS A good friend of mine who is still in TZ who writes extremely well is whaleherdienda.com if you can't enough of TZ stories.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Value of the Arts from a personal account
I just heard the saddest thing. On our way to Umoja Ensemble today, we saw one of the boys at home and figured he must just be sick or have to help out with family duties. We asked the other kids in the ensemble what was wrong with Yusto. It turns out his father is prohibiting him to do Umoja Ensemble because he was sent to that school to be someone, “not a f%^&’in musician!” This saddens me so greatly because little does that father realize how important music can be into developing somebody into someone. This is the kid that shows us every week what step or drum pattern he has practiced (Dad, this was the one that was obsessed with your iPhone). I want our Tanzanian teacher to go talk to his parents, but know it needs to come from the school. Our only hope is that his test results don’t diminish so that he can see it’s not because of UE that his concentration is not there and he doesn’t like math. In fact, all the Umoja outreach kids are at the top of their classes. I looked today and saw all the kids at the top with one even having scores of 100, 94, and 91, with the lowest being 85. I’ve seen these kids transform from shy, giggling children to children who have self-confidence, a purpose, and are proud to be part of something. It breaks my heart that this boy can’t and that his father can’t see that. Sadly, I know this is the mindset of many parents, not only in Africa. Music is something you can do later. But do they know it is the only activity that stimulates both sides of the brain? That children who can play an instrument do better in school and have better concentration, not worse? Better coordination and most importantly are able to express themselves.
At the time in university, I continued to take classes because they interested me and resulted in getting a major. Not the other way around. But now I’m realizing how fortunate I was to have that opportunity and it was up to me. That my parents supported me throughout my musical childhood and encouraged me, even if that meant nagging me to practice. I want to be able to give that same gift to others regardless of their background, supported or not, rich or poor, I want to help! Arts development is so important!!! Thank you to all who value the arts as much as I do!
On another note, we’ve had no Internet for over a week now and my computer is busted so I’m using an old Dell desktop. I have to play at Blue Heron but can’t print off music…and applying to jobs has been difficult to say the least. Regardless, I’m home in less than a month now!! See you all soon!!!
At the time in university, I continued to take classes because they interested me and resulted in getting a major. Not the other way around. But now I’m realizing how fortunate I was to have that opportunity and it was up to me. That my parents supported me throughout my musical childhood and encouraged me, even if that meant nagging me to practice. I want to be able to give that same gift to others regardless of their background, supported or not, rich or poor, I want to help! Arts development is so important!!! Thank you to all who value the arts as much as I do!
On another note, we’ve had no Internet for over a week now and my computer is busted so I’m using an old Dell desktop. I have to play at Blue Heron but can’t print off music…and applying to jobs has been difficult to say the least. Regardless, I’m home in less than a month now!! See you all soon!!!
Friday, May 6, 2011
An African Easter
So after finding out the visa for Burundi was twice as much as I had anticipated I was just thankful that I had an extra twenty. Note: ALWAYS carry extra dollars. THis was the second time they had saved me! So of course the first thing we did was pay and they held onto our passports for a suspicious amount of time before having us go with them to cross the Burundi border to give our money to the officials there, get receipts and then cross back to the Rwanda side and write down all our information before finally giving us our passports back. Talk about inefficiency!
Anyway, after 2 hrs we had driven from North to South of Burundi and arrived in Bujumbura where I was greeted by a text from my German CSer if I wanted to go to the house or straight to the beach. What a wonderful way to be greeted! After being welcomed at her house in which I had my own bed and bathroom with hot shower!!!, we took off for the beach called BOra Bora (best) appropriately named with a really nice beach bar, volleyball, jet skis, and a lake that had waves the size of a calm ocean. It was AWESOME! She had three dogs so it was really fun to have pets again and play fetch with them. I've missed having pets so much!
THe next day she had to do some cleaning for her parents' arrival the following week and I had mentioned wanting to see Burundi music so she took me to a boys' orphanage where she used to volunteer and I watched the most amazing Burundi drumming done by middle-school orphans. Swahili was my saving grace; without it, there would have been no communication and I"m realizing how competent I am in it not to sound cocky or anything. They all used Swahili from COngo which is a bit more...diffused. There's a saying Swahili was born in Tanzania, grew up in Kenya, died in Uganda, and was buried in Congo. I added a part. It was resurrected in Burundi. Anyway, after watching them balance drums on their head and then kick their foot up to the drum (I have video clips!) I met up with another CSer who took me to meet every family member and friend and tried a new way to eat goat meet called muchopo. I'd describe it as ceviche (lime and onions) except with goat rather than fish. I then went to a Burundi bd party, but it was the wealthy Burundians that all left and went abroad during the Civil War so almost all spoke fluent English and I met a really nice French girl.
Easter was a good mix of relaxing and meeting more of this CSers friends. I attempted to go to church but it was in Kirundi and had 3000 people! I entered more than an hr late, heard one song, and then a ceremony of new members began. After an hr of hearing testimonies and not comprehending anything aside from hallelujah, I had enough and tried to go to the Catholic church. But we weren't welcomed and told we couldn't stand where we were standing so we left and the consecutive Fantas/beers began as we went from house insisting they serve us something. After greeting and drinking I don't know how many Fantas and finding excuses not to drink them (I just had one is not an exception) such as the kid coughed on it or just flat out giving it to a kid, I attempted to buy a bus ticket for the ride back to Arusha across TZ. But it was 10 hours longer than the person in Kigali said so at 11:30 PM i was searching for fares and splurged on Easter to buy a plane ticket back home via Nairobi. Little did I know we also stopped in Kigali so I was in 4 countries in 1 day! I splurged on some delicious fish brochette and a fruit smoothie and loved sitting on the beach and playing with the dogs. It was a good African easter.
The plane ride was uneventful and I got my own row so I slept the whole time. I couldn't find my TZ SIM card upon arrival and it being Easter Mon the border was not harassing people to buy them or other trinkets for that matter. Boy did a hot shower and my bed and clean clothes feel good!!!!! And now it's less than 2 months til I'm home in the USA!!
Anyway, after 2 hrs we had driven from North to South of Burundi and arrived in Bujumbura where I was greeted by a text from my German CSer if I wanted to go to the house or straight to the beach. What a wonderful way to be greeted! After being welcomed at her house in which I had my own bed and bathroom with hot shower!!!, we took off for the beach called BOra Bora (best) appropriately named with a really nice beach bar, volleyball, jet skis, and a lake that had waves the size of a calm ocean. It was AWESOME! She had three dogs so it was really fun to have pets again and play fetch with them. I've missed having pets so much!
THe next day she had to do some cleaning for her parents' arrival the following week and I had mentioned wanting to see Burundi music so she took me to a boys' orphanage where she used to volunteer and I watched the most amazing Burundi drumming done by middle-school orphans. Swahili was my saving grace; without it, there would have been no communication and I"m realizing how competent I am in it not to sound cocky or anything. They all used Swahili from COngo which is a bit more...diffused. There's a saying Swahili was born in Tanzania, grew up in Kenya, died in Uganda, and was buried in Congo. I added a part. It was resurrected in Burundi. Anyway, after watching them balance drums on their head and then kick their foot up to the drum (I have video clips!) I met up with another CSer who took me to meet every family member and friend and tried a new way to eat goat meet called muchopo. I'd describe it as ceviche (lime and onions) except with goat rather than fish. I then went to a Burundi bd party, but it was the wealthy Burundians that all left and went abroad during the Civil War so almost all spoke fluent English and I met a really nice French girl.
Easter was a good mix of relaxing and meeting more of this CSers friends. I attempted to go to church but it was in Kirundi and had 3000 people! I entered more than an hr late, heard one song, and then a ceremony of new members began. After an hr of hearing testimonies and not comprehending anything aside from hallelujah, I had enough and tried to go to the Catholic church. But we weren't welcomed and told we couldn't stand where we were standing so we left and the consecutive Fantas/beers began as we went from house insisting they serve us something. After greeting and drinking I don't know how many Fantas and finding excuses not to drink them (I just had one is not an exception) such as the kid coughed on it or just flat out giving it to a kid, I attempted to buy a bus ticket for the ride back to Arusha across TZ. But it was 10 hours longer than the person in Kigali said so at 11:30 PM i was searching for fares and splurged on Easter to buy a plane ticket back home via Nairobi. Little did I know we also stopped in Kigali so I was in 4 countries in 1 day! I splurged on some delicious fish brochette and a fruit smoothie and loved sitting on the beach and playing with the dogs. It was a good African easter.
The plane ride was uneventful and I got my own row so I slept the whole time. I couldn't find my TZ SIM card upon arrival and it being Easter Mon the border was not harassing people to buy them or other trinkets for that matter. Boy did a hot shower and my bed and clean clothes feel good!!!!! And now it's less than 2 months til I'm home in the USA!!
Monday, May 2, 2011
The Land of a Thousand Hills
IN short, Rwanda is GORGEOUS!!!!! Every turn was just wow. First stop, Gisenyi to see Lake Kivu. I stayed with a PC volunteer outside GIsenyi meaning an hr and a half bus ride. Little did I know what that would entail. Picture as many people as a NY subway, but with ruts every 2 ft in the road, then add the fact there is only one pole to hold onto and people 3 to a seat on either side of you, then add the fact that you have a backpack and a grocery bag not to mention the huge backpack I had, and it was a dirt road with meandering turns. Then I think you will have some type of picture. However, on the way was SO beautiful and it was so hard not to take pics!!!!!!! The sun was setting so the light was hitting the houses as if it were an NG cover pic and the sunset over Lake Kivu could not be captured on film though of course I did try (see Facebook) but pls know this is a failed attempt. Then the people were SO nice, tying my bag around the seat, a guy offering to hold my bag for me and even helped me take the failed attempt pics. People in Rwanda: HELPFUL! And not expecting money in return (a first!). Arriving at the PC house I had NO idea I was going to be in a rural African village. This was my first experience living in this setting. But aside from the mold in the house, she had a pretty nice set-up: a big garden, a very impressive, resourceful kitchen which resulted in 5 WONDERFUL homemade meals, and her village was in the process of getting power. The next day we took a walk which involved climbing through eucalyptus forest that they sadly plant to chop down for firewood, and up many hills to the beautiful Lake Kivu with 30 children trailing us and I'm not exaggerating (see the pic if you don't believe me). Then she showed me the village and after having Rwandan tea with a family had more village children follow us. Everyone wanted their photo picture and it was a bit nostalgic of Ecuador with the kids all wanting to carry my water bottle. I also had a lesson in Congo Swahili.
The next part of the trip was a bit more grim. I went and visited the Kigali Memorial of the 2004 genocide where almost 1 million people were killed in 3 months! What bothered me most was my naivete towards the whole event. We are bombarded with the Holocaust in schools, but learn nothing of this RECENT event. IT was so real because every Rwandan has been affected and there are still many refugees outside of Rwanda. To read of how the people were killed or hiding in an outhouse and the profiles of the children was mortifying. The most amazing thing is that people are going to the prisons and forgiving their killer, letting them free and them helping to rebuild. They also had articles of clothing and to see a US university shirt and running shorts made it so close to home. It could have been anyone. AND the beginning of this whole thing was Belgium ethnically dividing the people into groups by how many cattle they had and then France financially supporting the genocide. I can't fathom a country wanting to help with such a thing. Rwanda was a unified country and then the colonizers came and did THIS. If you go to Kigali, you NEED to go to this museum. It is very well done and very moving. There was another section on other genocides going on in the world which I also had not heard about. Armenia, Balkan Islands, Cambodia, and of course The Holocaust. But why do we only hear about the latter?!?
On a happier note Butare was a WONDERFUL stop! My first stop was a place I heard had homemade bagels and turned out to be a women's coop that had the first all-women Rwandan drumming group and had homemade ice cream :) Check them out here:
I also visited Africa's largest mountainous rainforest which was GORGEOUS although transportation was a PAIN because buses went from Kigali only so you had to pay the price (double) from Kigali and have the middle seat where your legs were up to your chest and a person ahead of you leaning back since the chairs had no back support. Beautiful though! Met some more PC volunteers and was amazed at the contrast of the house of this one with the other one: indoor bathroom, 2 bedrooms, toilet, shower, and a ceiling!
On my way down to Butare, I saw two museums in Nyanza. One was of a king's traditional hut and the other of Rwandan art which was really cool because I saw mediums I had never seen before: colored sand and tree bark, and they all had an annual theme that related to the genocide. I couldn't take any pics. When I went to the National Museum, I was a bit jaded of reading after already having visited two museums and kept hearing singing and dancing sounding like it was coming from the back of the museum. After asking the museum and them having no idea what I was talking about and continuing to go back in the museum and hear the sounds again and again, I decided to investigate. I went out back and sure enough there was a dance class going on with a choir. THe biggest difference I noticed in what I saw was the acapella quality of the music. I never got the opportunity to see Rwandan drumming so I can't comment on that, but the dances were VERY different than that of TZ. First of all, the women did not shake their hips. There was a lot of stomping (yes like Appalachian clogging or even Irish dancing or tap) and they did a lot of birdlike movements with their arms outstretched. But apparently it wasn't a bird, but rather a defense and power symbol. It began to pour so I ended up watching quite a bit of the rehearsal and regrettably couldn't take photos or movies since I was just a student observing not a tourist (this would've involved paying $25).
And then it was onto Burundi.
The next part of the trip was a bit more grim. I went and visited the Kigali Memorial of the 2004 genocide where almost 1 million people were killed in 3 months! What bothered me most was my naivete towards the whole event. We are bombarded with the Holocaust in schools, but learn nothing of this RECENT event. IT was so real because every Rwandan has been affected and there are still many refugees outside of Rwanda. To read of how the people were killed or hiding in an outhouse and the profiles of the children was mortifying. The most amazing thing is that people are going to the prisons and forgiving their killer, letting them free and them helping to rebuild. They also had articles of clothing and to see a US university shirt and running shorts made it so close to home. It could have been anyone. AND the beginning of this whole thing was Belgium ethnically dividing the people into groups by how many cattle they had and then France financially supporting the genocide. I can't fathom a country wanting to help with such a thing. Rwanda was a unified country and then the colonizers came and did THIS. If you go to Kigali, you NEED to go to this museum. It is very well done and very moving. There was another section on other genocides going on in the world which I also had not heard about. Armenia, Balkan Islands, Cambodia, and of course The Holocaust. But why do we only hear about the latter?!?
On a happier note Butare was a WONDERFUL stop! My first stop was a place I heard had homemade bagels and turned out to be a women's coop that had the first all-women Rwandan drumming group and had homemade ice cream :) Check them out here:
I also visited Africa's largest mountainous rainforest which was GORGEOUS although transportation was a PAIN because buses went from Kigali only so you had to pay the price (double) from Kigali and have the middle seat where your legs were up to your chest and a person ahead of you leaning back since the chairs had no back support. Beautiful though! Met some more PC volunteers and was amazed at the contrast of the house of this one with the other one: indoor bathroom, 2 bedrooms, toilet, shower, and a ceiling!
On my way down to Butare, I saw two museums in Nyanza. One was of a king's traditional hut and the other of Rwandan art which was really cool because I saw mediums I had never seen before: colored sand and tree bark, and they all had an annual theme that related to the genocide. I couldn't take any pics. When I went to the National Museum, I was a bit jaded of reading after already having visited two museums and kept hearing singing and dancing sounding like it was coming from the back of the museum. After asking the museum and them having no idea what I was talking about and continuing to go back in the museum and hear the sounds again and again, I decided to investigate. I went out back and sure enough there was a dance class going on with a choir. THe biggest difference I noticed in what I saw was the acapella quality of the music. I never got the opportunity to see Rwandan drumming so I can't comment on that, but the dances were VERY different than that of TZ. First of all, the women did not shake their hips. There was a lot of stomping (yes like Appalachian clogging or even Irish dancing or tap) and they did a lot of birdlike movements with their arms outstretched. But apparently it wasn't a bird, but rather a defense and power symbol. It began to pour so I ended up watching quite a bit of the rehearsal and regrettably couldn't take photos or movies since I was just a student observing not a tourist (this would've involved paying $25).
And then it was onto Burundi.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
The Pearl of Africa
Wow I don't think I've ever been this bad at blogging. Sorry about that. The past month and a half were crazy because my boss waa here so work was constant. We had a very succesful fundraiser, I turned 23, and socially things are much better. It was so great to play classical piano again in public! A LOT of work but I'll say it was worth it :) And my black Talbot's cocktail dress find at mtumba was also great and quite funny since everyone else was wearing $1000 dresses courtesy of our finance person.
Uganda was amazing!!!! Beautiful country and beautiful people. I didn't feel like a mzungu nearly as much and it didn't get pointed out to me everywhere I went (only on public transport). After a horrendous bus ride from Nairobi, I arrived in Jinja where I was greeted by a wonderful CS named Micheal who brought me home and introduced me to his wife and baby. Women here have no problem nursing in public. It doesn't matter if it is someone else's home, a bus, or a church, they just pull out the milk makers right then and there and this women was voluptuous in a way I rarely see. Aside from seeing 100 school children at the source of the Nile where I learned Gandhi spoke and eating a full lunch of 10 diff kinds of carbs and Nile Perch fish for under $2, the day was pretty uneventful. The night on the other hand was the first time I knew what it felt like to be in a tin roofed house while a rain storm occurred and my stomach growling of hunger. Eventually, I asserted myself and they drove me to get some food, but that definitely took some courage and I knew what it was like for many who don't have a car to rescue them and go to bed hungry.
People were so helpful, helping me find my CS's workplace in Kampala. After dropping my heavy 7 kg bag off, I found a local place for lunch where I could finally have some greens and a yogurt. IT's so nice to be able to choose for yourself what food you want. As great as it is to eat with local families, food diversity is something that I learned in Chile was really important. I ended up meeting another CS who did art with local kids and aside from a great museum with a section dedicated to music, the highlight of Kampala was the Ndaris Center where I got to see several different Ugandan tribe dances and music. I also went to my CS's grandma's house for lunch after a mega-church service with a TV-like commercial and announcement video on a big screen. I couldn't believe I was in Africa with this high tech stuff.
But my most memorable part is the wonderful family I found at Lake Kifunika campsite after a taxi sedan with 8 people in it broke down and they refused to let me get out and a boda (motorcycle) ride through the countryside (the main way to get around). Meble helped cook there but she at age 21 was also teaching tourism students aged 19 and 20 birding and debate. They invited me to go along and I have never seen such excellent birds. Hear that? That's a ... See that? That's a ... which was succeeded by confirming it in the bird book. She was right every time. I also had a very detailed guide show me every type of botany we passed and went to two Ugandan schools and taught them a song I do with Umoja Ensemble and recorded it and then decided to be silly and do Head Shoulders Knees and Toes. They loved it! I didn't go to Murchison Falls but this Bugahoma Falls was GORGEOUS (and free)!. For the next three days I was a part of their family and no one wanted me to leave and the feeling was mutual. I had originally chosen this part of Uganda to see the chimps, but sadly aside from the beauty of the park it was a waste as I could only see a black blur of fuzz 100 ft. up a tree in a nest. I did learn about them and heard them coughing and through the binoculars caught a glimpse of their face but there are no photos to document this.
The next day was hell. I woke up saying a tearful goodbye and couldn't believe how attached I got after 3 days, realizing I did not feel this same attachment in my current location after 8 months! My host arranged a ride with a courier driver who was wonderful and stopped to let me take pics of the crossing of the Equator and showing me viewpoints of Queen Elizabeth Park, but once we arrived in Mbarara that was the end of the fun. I still had another at least 3 hr bus ride and didn't know anyone at the other end. But after repetitive ATM failed attempts, a really bad connection Internet cafe and no answer at home to see if they could transfer money, I got a really bad exchange rate and forcibly exchanged a $20 blil so I'd have at least enough money to take a bus and have accommodation for the night. Yet all the buses had already left after this 2.5 hr detour so instead I went in a dala dala shoved to the window by 3 other people and my knees pressing up against the seat in front of me only stopping once for a "short call." On the way I had one of the most horrific experiences. I saw an ambulance blur past us and hit a man who instantly collapsed with blood dripping from his nose. AN AMBULANCE! Suddenly the whole town went to help the poor old man and our dala dala continued on its way. I was so scared after that.
After finally arriving in Kabale, I found out where I wanted to stay was still another 1.5 hrs but I figured the day had already been ruined and I may as well do all my traveling in one day. So I found a taxi and found out it really takes 2.5 hrs to get there so this would be in at 8:30 and the park guide was willing to meet me and help me find accommodation. Greedy greedy taxi drivers. 5 passengers wasn't enough for him (4 in the back, 1 in front) and we did not leave til an hr later when we had 7 psgers (AGAIN!). I was realizing this was a standard in uGanda and that taxis are not safer, faster, or more comfortable than a daladala in Uganda and was very thankful that taxis were not like this in Tanzania. So I began as the 4th person in the back. Yet the road was meandering every minute and I could not handle the weight of three people crushing my ribs as I was shoved even further into the door. Once one passenger left, I decided it'd be more comfortable in the front even with a gear stick where my feet should go so I switched. Taxis were the ONLY thing that made me irritated in Uganda, but I was completely peeved both times and this time muffled tears into my fleece with all the talk of the "mzungu" and knowing I was arriving in an unknown location at 10:30 at night. Thank god the guide was going to meet me there.
The next day made up for the preceding. I got to see the gorillas and not only that but had my own private tour!!!! And they actually care if you're a resident there so I got charged $25 less than the tourist rate and had wonderful accommodation with a very caring staff and excellent food. I had no idea it could get that cold, but thankfully I had packed wool socks, a Maasai shuka (blanket) and one long sleeve shirt. After a hot bucket shower and a cup of hot chocolate with a vegetable curry and chapati I bathed in the sun and reflected on the amazingness that was the gorillas! They were so BIG and one shook an entire tree branch at me but they told me not to run away as they were testing who was friend and who was enemy. When he rolled on his back and farted, I realized just how human they really were. No one has stressed how difficult gorilla trekking is though so I will attempt. Bush as high as you, going up and down grass tufts, through thorny trees, and only with a walking stick to guide you. I was VERY thankful for my rain pants! And I saw Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda. BEAUTIFUL area! Then it was boda boda to the border which I presented my passport and walked right across into the Land of Thousand Hills: Rwanda.
Uganda was amazing!!!! Beautiful country and beautiful people. I didn't feel like a mzungu nearly as much and it didn't get pointed out to me everywhere I went (only on public transport). After a horrendous bus ride from Nairobi, I arrived in Jinja where I was greeted by a wonderful CS named Micheal who brought me home and introduced me to his wife and baby. Women here have no problem nursing in public. It doesn't matter if it is someone else's home, a bus, or a church, they just pull out the milk makers right then and there and this women was voluptuous in a way I rarely see. Aside from seeing 100 school children at the source of the Nile where I learned Gandhi spoke and eating a full lunch of 10 diff kinds of carbs and Nile Perch fish for under $2, the day was pretty uneventful. The night on the other hand was the first time I knew what it felt like to be in a tin roofed house while a rain storm occurred and my stomach growling of hunger. Eventually, I asserted myself and they drove me to get some food, but that definitely took some courage and I knew what it was like for many who don't have a car to rescue them and go to bed hungry.
People were so helpful, helping me find my CS's workplace in Kampala. After dropping my heavy 7 kg bag off, I found a local place for lunch where I could finally have some greens and a yogurt. IT's so nice to be able to choose for yourself what food you want. As great as it is to eat with local families, food diversity is something that I learned in Chile was really important. I ended up meeting another CS who did art with local kids and aside from a great museum with a section dedicated to music, the highlight of Kampala was the Ndaris Center where I got to see several different Ugandan tribe dances and music. I also went to my CS's grandma's house for lunch after a mega-church service with a TV-like commercial and announcement video on a big screen. I couldn't believe I was in Africa with this high tech stuff.
But my most memorable part is the wonderful family I found at Lake Kifunika campsite after a taxi sedan with 8 people in it broke down and they refused to let me get out and a boda (motorcycle) ride through the countryside (the main way to get around). Meble helped cook there but she at age 21 was also teaching tourism students aged 19 and 20 birding and debate. They invited me to go along and I have never seen such excellent birds. Hear that? That's a ... See that? That's a ... which was succeeded by confirming it in the bird book. She was right every time. I also had a very detailed guide show me every type of botany we passed and went to two Ugandan schools and taught them a song I do with Umoja Ensemble and recorded it and then decided to be silly and do Head Shoulders Knees and Toes. They loved it! I didn't go to Murchison Falls but this Bugahoma Falls was GORGEOUS (and free)!. For the next three days I was a part of their family and no one wanted me to leave and the feeling was mutual. I had originally chosen this part of Uganda to see the chimps, but sadly aside from the beauty of the park it was a waste as I could only see a black blur of fuzz 100 ft. up a tree in a nest. I did learn about them and heard them coughing and through the binoculars caught a glimpse of their face but there are no photos to document this.
The next day was hell. I woke up saying a tearful goodbye and couldn't believe how attached I got after 3 days, realizing I did not feel this same attachment in my current location after 8 months! My host arranged a ride with a courier driver who was wonderful and stopped to let me take pics of the crossing of the Equator and showing me viewpoints of Queen Elizabeth Park, but once we arrived in Mbarara that was the end of the fun. I still had another at least 3 hr bus ride and didn't know anyone at the other end. But after repetitive ATM failed attempts, a really bad connection Internet cafe and no answer at home to see if they could transfer money, I got a really bad exchange rate and forcibly exchanged a $20 blil so I'd have at least enough money to take a bus and have accommodation for the night. Yet all the buses had already left after this 2.5 hr detour so instead I went in a dala dala shoved to the window by 3 other people and my knees pressing up against the seat in front of me only stopping once for a "short call." On the way I had one of the most horrific experiences. I saw an ambulance blur past us and hit a man who instantly collapsed with blood dripping from his nose. AN AMBULANCE! Suddenly the whole town went to help the poor old man and our dala dala continued on its way. I was so scared after that.
After finally arriving in Kabale, I found out where I wanted to stay was still another 1.5 hrs but I figured the day had already been ruined and I may as well do all my traveling in one day. So I found a taxi and found out it really takes 2.5 hrs to get there so this would be in at 8:30 and the park guide was willing to meet me and help me find accommodation. Greedy greedy taxi drivers. 5 passengers wasn't enough for him (4 in the back, 1 in front) and we did not leave til an hr later when we had 7 psgers (AGAIN!). I was realizing this was a standard in uGanda and that taxis are not safer, faster, or more comfortable than a daladala in Uganda and was very thankful that taxis were not like this in Tanzania. So I began as the 4th person in the back. Yet the road was meandering every minute and I could not handle the weight of three people crushing my ribs as I was shoved even further into the door. Once one passenger left, I decided it'd be more comfortable in the front even with a gear stick where my feet should go so I switched. Taxis were the ONLY thing that made me irritated in Uganda, but I was completely peeved both times and this time muffled tears into my fleece with all the talk of the "mzungu" and knowing I was arriving in an unknown location at 10:30 at night. Thank god the guide was going to meet me there.
The next day made up for the preceding. I got to see the gorillas and not only that but had my own private tour!!!! And they actually care if you're a resident there so I got charged $25 less than the tourist rate and had wonderful accommodation with a very caring staff and excellent food. I had no idea it could get that cold, but thankfully I had packed wool socks, a Maasai shuka (blanket) and one long sleeve shirt. After a hot bucket shower and a cup of hot chocolate with a vegetable curry and chapati I bathed in the sun and reflected on the amazingness that was the gorillas! They were so BIG and one shook an entire tree branch at me but they told me not to run away as they were testing who was friend and who was enemy. When he rolled on his back and farted, I realized just how human they really were. No one has stressed how difficult gorilla trekking is though so I will attempt. Bush as high as you, going up and down grass tufts, through thorny trees, and only with a walking stick to guide you. I was VERY thankful for my rain pants! And I saw Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda. BEAUTIFUL area! Then it was boda boda to the border which I presented my passport and walked right across into the Land of Thousand Hills: Rwanda.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Safari w/ Parents
In summary, it was an experience I will never forget! To explain all the animals we saw would be way too lengthy, and I haven't stayed in accommodation with views like that ever. My dad spotted a black rhino with his spotting scope as soon as we arrived at the hotel (there are only 13 left in the world so it's pretty rare!). The food was unbelievable at the Serena lodges with things like red peppers, cherry tomatoes, and lots of other veggies I hadn't seen in quite awhile. YUMMY! Even the beef at lunch was delicious unlike the tough, chewy meat here. Our driver was a very nice 27 yr old who said things like war-thogs and everything was "no proh-blem". He was so cute saying he missed his sister and how much more important family was than getting a wife. We came REALLY close to lions to the point where I stopped taking pics I was too cared it would jump up and snatch it. We never saw an attack but we did see lions and cheetah enjoying their prey. Saw lots of birds I didn't expect to see like the largest owl in Africa, flamingoes, ostrich, coral bustard (which we kept thinking our guide said bastard), crane, stork, stalk, and hornbill. We saw hippoes in and out of the water. They are ENORMOUS!!! And lots and lots of giraffes, elephants, and the migration of zebras and wildebeests and their relative the hatabeest. I did not know they made such sounds!! It was like an animal choir. Warthogs necks are too short so they have to kneel down on their front knees. Quite hilarious!
We stayed in a luxury tent where we had the equivalent of a chamber pot, but hey there wsa a toilet in the tent, and we all gathered around a campfire before dinner. I love camping so much!!! I'm realizing I can't go more than 6 weeks without it. The Masai boma (traditional house) minus being hot was really cool and had a beautiful view. The crater was GORGEOUS and we were right on the rim.
It was so great to have my parents here. They got to see a lot for nine days and can understand why I'm here after they saw the outreach concert and Umoja Ensemble. Though the dynamic when I was teaching by myself was VERY different!! Much more chaotic and not as good listeners/obedience.
Check out Facebook for MANY a photo of Safari. I tried to upload a photo but it failed :(
We stayed in a luxury tent where we had the equivalent of a chamber pot, but hey there wsa a toilet in the tent, and we all gathered around a campfire before dinner. I love camping so much!!! I'm realizing I can't go more than 6 weeks without it. The Masai boma (traditional house) minus being hot was really cool and had a beautiful view. The crater was GORGEOUS and we were right on the rim.
It was so great to have my parents here. They got to see a lot for nine days and can understand why I'm here after they saw the outreach concert and Umoja Ensemble. Though the dynamic when I was teaching by myself was VERY different!! Much more chaotic and not as good listeners/obedience.
Check out Facebook for MANY a photo of Safari. I tried to upload a photo but it failed :(
Friday, January 21, 2011
Musings about Zanzibar (and a pinch of Dar/Bagamoyo)
Musing #1 Dala Dalas in Zbar
Aside from Zanzibar’s BEAUTIFUL white, fine sand beaches lined coconut and palm trees, abundant mangoes for less than a dime and whole pineapples for less than a dollar, something tour books fail to mention are the dala dalas in Zanzibar. They are more or less a truck with an open-aired back lined with long benches and a roof. We managed to squash 28 people onto these benches with luggage from flour sacks and pails of tomatoes to eggs, chickens, briefcases, and in my case a backpacking size backpack. So the benches are full of people and the area between the people are filled with the above mentioned items so you’d think that if someone gets on first, they would scoot further up the bench so as to allow other passengers to get on easier. Not so. Instead, me with my 73 cubic meter backpack, already too tall for the dala dala, crawling over the aforementioned tomatoes, eggs, flour sacks, etc. to get an open spot on the bench. But before I am seated the dala dala lurches forward and everyone follows suit. Of course there are no seat belts although the fellow passengers on both sides of you serve as a constrictor keeping your thighs glued to your seat because you are unable to move them either way due to the other people. I will note that this position when you have horrible sunburn on the backs of your thighs and butt is not ideal (never mind I put spf 55 on and wore a shirt when I went snorkeling). Another main difference is that the dala dala can lurch forward. In Arusha, there is so much traffic that you maybe go 30 mph maximum and most of that is when you are passing in the invisible middle lane. In Zbar, no traffic, no problem. So the daladala goes a considerable speed. Then the conductor taps with a shilling coin on the outside of the truck (yes he is just holding onto the back of the truck as are four other men) and the truck, brakes screeching and all, lurches forward again, stopping one second later. The word gradual does not exist! Then we pick up the passenger, load on the baggage, and with the tap-tap of the shilling coin lurch forward again. Even though we paid 4x what we should have, it was still 1/10th the amount of a taxi and why would I trade this experience for a $50 taxi ride?...
Musing #2 Resort food or fish market?
So besides the 8 cent mangos and dollar pineapples, there really isn’t any other food one can buy in Matemwe, a northern beach resort town with the best snorkeling I’ve ever done in my life! It was like looking at an aquarium! Except for the fish market. We were tired of going to resort dinners and spending a minimum of $12 on a plate (I haven’t spent this amount on food in a very long time!) and decided it would be a nice gesture to cook fish for our couchsurfers. They work at a resort and told us they ate there for every meal. What I didn’t realize is they truly meant EVERY meal. They had lived there four months and did not own salt, pepper, oil, a sharp knife, or even cooked in their kitchen-anything. Not cereal, bread, emergency pasta ration, nothing. So after buying this fish, which was a beauty and around $4, and carrying it by a string attached to its mouth for the 3k walk back home, we realized we had forgotten the key. It turned into a comedic act because of course many stopped us seeing mzungus carrying a fish on the beach. And then we walked by them again. The cook at the resort gave us a bit of butter, oil, and salt/pepper mixture and a sharp knife because they didn’t have any. The fish turned out quite well and the next day we were stopped multiple times with something along the lines of “Weren’t you two the ones with the fish yesterday?” I think we made a legend.
Musing 3 The Zanzibari/Western Muslim Wedding
So my main reason for going to Zanzibar when I did was my colleague’s wedding, which was a very cool cultural experience I will never forget. It began with a frazzled Sara trying desperately to find the place because there was no sign and the name I was given (Dhau Countries Music Academy) none of the locals knew. I walked in at 4 pm on the dot which is when the ceremony was supposed to begin. But upon arriving, I saw everyone was just waiting around and we were on typical Tanzania time once again. About 45 mins later the western bride walks in, decorated with 6 hrs of Henna up and down her arms and legs (and her shoulders were bare) and goes to her dressing room. 15 mins. later we hear drums and women fluttering their tongues. Down below 4 stories is a processional of the groom's whole family, probably 100+ people dressed in beautiful gowns, women all with their hair covered, and waving money above their heads. We were served lemongrass tea, a sweet gelatin with sesame seeds called halau, and a samosa, while the Arabic singing continued. I did not feel like I was in Tanzania AT ALL. Eventually, the groom showed up and entered the bride's dressing room, where I think is where the religious part of the ceremony took place. I saw a man (I would guess to be the equivalent of a preacher) putting his hand on her head as a sign of blessing and then unveiled her and they had a photo shoot and then walked out holding hands, no kiss. It then turned into a paparazzi shooting as they walked down the aisle with kisses on the cheek, and people attaching small bills of money to her dress. After parading around for probably half an hour, they did the exchange of the rings. It seemed very evident to me that this was not a common occurrence because all the women continued to talk and so it was very hard to hear. And then they finally kissed :) It was interesting to see how reserved they were with the family there because they had lived together beforehand for a year. Then we went to the groom's house where sat on mats on the floor and waited and then saw an Arabic men's dance where they all danced in kneeling synchronized movement with one hand behind their back and the other varying between waving in the hair and sweeping the ground and them leaning back on their calves.
Day 2 of the Wedding
The second night was mainly just a party. Though MUCH later than expected. I had arrived early because my CS host insisted on giving me a ride and I didn't want to tell him to wait for a certain time. When I arrived hardly anything had been set up so I helped fill the centerpiece bags of sand (for the candles). Luckily the ground was sand so it was an easy task. The bride lived in Japan for 3 years so each table had 3 origami flowers. It almost became a joke when the guests walked in at 7:30 to help with the various tasks still not done. By the time the bride and groom walked in (9:45!!!), it had rained, wind had blown all the candles out and had to be relit multiple times, and I could hear my stomach quite clearly, having not eaten a large lunch knowing dinner would be huge. The bride's dress was BEAUTIFUL!!! Purple and gold with a train. They were seated and Tarab music (a Zanzibar style where they use flat two, major 3, and lots of tetrachords) began followed by the most insanely awesome Capoera I had ever seen! They made the sand look like a trampoline doing flips right there! And then they dragged the groom out, he removed his suit coat, and took part. AWESOME! 11 PM food was finally served with the largest fish I had ever seen, pilau, salad, and sugar cane juice, delicious!! I was amazed to see all the Muslim women with uncovered hair, bare shoulders, and drinking beer. But one of the brothers explained that they can do these things for special events like parties or invites. Interesting. No wedding cake, but a delicious fruit salad and banana bread. This was followed by dancing starting with rockin' robin swing and evolving into Poker Face (club music) lol. And then the party was over.
The spice tour was really cool because they made leaf jewelry and made it much more about the presentation of the spices then the spices themselves. The most impressive was a guy climbing to the top of a coconut tree (pics will be on Facebook soon). A book that might be interesting to read is Memoirs of an Arabian Princess about a Zanzibari princess who learned to read secretly (women couldn't read) by writing Koranic verses on the shoulder blade of a camel and then escaped to Germany where she converted to Christianity and changed her name and gained independence. I also learned that henna started as a way to cool off with a simple dot and then people got bored and started making designs. Coolest sunset bbq with you-name-it seafood for under 5 bucks. And we stayed with a Zbar family which was a really cool experience! I love TZ children!
Bagamoyo had an interesting history being the resting place of the slave traders with bwagamoyo literally meaning lay your burden of your heart down. Dar, aside from being hot and crowded, was wonderful and traffic over the holiday wasn't bad at all.We fell in love with the bucket shower, which is exactly what it sounds like. You dump buckets of cold water on your head. Saves A LOT of water and is so refreshing when it's so hot outside. Though you really do get used to the heat and with a parasol it's not so bad. The university was so green and people were so friendly. I felt like I made more friends traveling and showing me all the local places and going out every night then I do here in Arusha after 5 months. This Sun marks the halfway point. And I actually can believe it. Back to work this week. Fingers crossed on parents coming in two weeks!
Aside from Zanzibar’s BEAUTIFUL white, fine sand beaches lined coconut and palm trees, abundant mangoes for less than a dime and whole pineapples for less than a dollar, something tour books fail to mention are the dala dalas in Zanzibar. They are more or less a truck with an open-aired back lined with long benches and a roof. We managed to squash 28 people onto these benches with luggage from flour sacks and pails of tomatoes to eggs, chickens, briefcases, and in my case a backpacking size backpack. So the benches are full of people and the area between the people are filled with the above mentioned items so you’d think that if someone gets on first, they would scoot further up the bench so as to allow other passengers to get on easier. Not so. Instead, me with my 73 cubic meter backpack, already too tall for the dala dala, crawling over the aforementioned tomatoes, eggs, flour sacks, etc. to get an open spot on the bench. But before I am seated the dala dala lurches forward and everyone follows suit. Of course there are no seat belts although the fellow passengers on both sides of you serve as a constrictor keeping your thighs glued to your seat because you are unable to move them either way due to the other people. I will note that this position when you have horrible sunburn on the backs of your thighs and butt is not ideal (never mind I put spf 55 on and wore a shirt when I went snorkeling). Another main difference is that the dala dala can lurch forward. In Arusha, there is so much traffic that you maybe go 30 mph maximum and most of that is when you are passing in the invisible middle lane. In Zbar, no traffic, no problem. So the daladala goes a considerable speed. Then the conductor taps with a shilling coin on the outside of the truck (yes he is just holding onto the back of the truck as are four other men) and the truck, brakes screeching and all, lurches forward again, stopping one second later. The word gradual does not exist! Then we pick up the passenger, load on the baggage, and with the tap-tap of the shilling coin lurch forward again. Even though we paid 4x what we should have, it was still 1/10th the amount of a taxi and why would I trade this experience for a $50 taxi ride?...
Musing #2 Resort food or fish market?
So besides the 8 cent mangos and dollar pineapples, there really isn’t any other food one can buy in Matemwe, a northern beach resort town with the best snorkeling I’ve ever done in my life! It was like looking at an aquarium! Except for the fish market. We were tired of going to resort dinners and spending a minimum of $12 on a plate (I haven’t spent this amount on food in a very long time!) and decided it would be a nice gesture to cook fish for our couchsurfers. They work at a resort and told us they ate there for every meal. What I didn’t realize is they truly meant EVERY meal. They had lived there four months and did not own salt, pepper, oil, a sharp knife, or even cooked in their kitchen-anything. Not cereal, bread, emergency pasta ration, nothing. So after buying this fish, which was a beauty and around $4, and carrying it by a string attached to its mouth for the 3k walk back home, we realized we had forgotten the key. It turned into a comedic act because of course many stopped us seeing mzungus carrying a fish on the beach. And then we walked by them again. The cook at the resort gave us a bit of butter, oil, and salt/pepper mixture and a sharp knife because they didn’t have any. The fish turned out quite well and the next day we were stopped multiple times with something along the lines of “Weren’t you two the ones with the fish yesterday?” I think we made a legend.
Musing 3 The Zanzibari/Western Muslim Wedding
So my main reason for going to Zanzibar when I did was my colleague’s wedding, which was a very cool cultural experience I will never forget. It began with a frazzled Sara trying desperately to find the place because there was no sign and the name I was given (Dhau Countries Music Academy) none of the locals knew. I walked in at 4 pm on the dot which is when the ceremony was supposed to begin. But upon arriving, I saw everyone was just waiting around and we were on typical Tanzania time once again. About 45 mins later the western bride walks in, decorated with 6 hrs of Henna up and down her arms and legs (and her shoulders were bare) and goes to her dressing room. 15 mins. later we hear drums and women fluttering their tongues. Down below 4 stories is a processional of the groom's whole family, probably 100+ people dressed in beautiful gowns, women all with their hair covered, and waving money above their heads. We were served lemongrass tea, a sweet gelatin with sesame seeds called halau, and a samosa, while the Arabic singing continued. I did not feel like I was in Tanzania AT ALL. Eventually, the groom showed up and entered the bride's dressing room, where I think is where the religious part of the ceremony took place. I saw a man (I would guess to be the equivalent of a preacher) putting his hand on her head as a sign of blessing and then unveiled her and they had a photo shoot and then walked out holding hands, no kiss. It then turned into a paparazzi shooting as they walked down the aisle with kisses on the cheek, and people attaching small bills of money to her dress. After parading around for probably half an hour, they did the exchange of the rings. It seemed very evident to me that this was not a common occurrence because all the women continued to talk and so it was very hard to hear. And then they finally kissed :) It was interesting to see how reserved they were with the family there because they had lived together beforehand for a year. Then we went to the groom's house where sat on mats on the floor and waited and then saw an Arabic men's dance where they all danced in kneeling synchronized movement with one hand behind their back and the other varying between waving in the hair and sweeping the ground and them leaning back on their calves.
Day 2 of the Wedding
The second night was mainly just a party. Though MUCH later than expected. I had arrived early because my CS host insisted on giving me a ride and I didn't want to tell him to wait for a certain time. When I arrived hardly anything had been set up so I helped fill the centerpiece bags of sand (for the candles). Luckily the ground was sand so it was an easy task. The bride lived in Japan for 3 years so each table had 3 origami flowers. It almost became a joke when the guests walked in at 7:30 to help with the various tasks still not done. By the time the bride and groom walked in (9:45!!!), it had rained, wind had blown all the candles out and had to be relit multiple times, and I could hear my stomach quite clearly, having not eaten a large lunch knowing dinner would be huge. The bride's dress was BEAUTIFUL!!! Purple and gold with a train. They were seated and Tarab music (a Zanzibar style where they use flat two, major 3, and lots of tetrachords) began followed by the most insanely awesome Capoera I had ever seen! They made the sand look like a trampoline doing flips right there! And then they dragged the groom out, he removed his suit coat, and took part. AWESOME! 11 PM food was finally served with the largest fish I had ever seen, pilau, salad, and sugar cane juice, delicious!! I was amazed to see all the Muslim women with uncovered hair, bare shoulders, and drinking beer. But one of the brothers explained that they can do these things for special events like parties or invites. Interesting. No wedding cake, but a delicious fruit salad and banana bread. This was followed by dancing starting with rockin' robin swing and evolving into Poker Face (club music) lol. And then the party was over.
The spice tour was really cool because they made leaf jewelry and made it much more about the presentation of the spices then the spices themselves. The most impressive was a guy climbing to the top of a coconut tree (pics will be on Facebook soon). A book that might be interesting to read is Memoirs of an Arabian Princess about a Zanzibari princess who learned to read secretly (women couldn't read) by writing Koranic verses on the shoulder blade of a camel and then escaped to Germany where she converted to Christianity and changed her name and gained independence. I also learned that henna started as a way to cool off with a simple dot and then people got bored and started making designs. Coolest sunset bbq with you-name-it seafood for under 5 bucks. And we stayed with a Zbar family which was a really cool experience! I love TZ children!
Bagamoyo had an interesting history being the resting place of the slave traders with bwagamoyo literally meaning lay your burden of your heart down. Dar, aside from being hot and crowded, was wonderful and traffic over the holiday wasn't bad at all.We fell in love with the bucket shower, which is exactly what it sounds like. You dump buckets of cold water on your head. Saves A LOT of water and is so refreshing when it's so hot outside. Though you really do get used to the heat and with a parasol it's not so bad. The university was so green and people were so friendly. I felt like I made more friends traveling and showing me all the local places and going out every night then I do here in Arusha after 5 months. This Sun marks the halfway point. And I actually can believe it. Back to work this week. Fingers crossed on parents coming in two weeks!
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Two Mountains in One Month
2 Mountains in One Month
I figured instead of writing about each mountain separately I could do a compare/contrast thing. But it ended up really long. Well, here goes.
Statistics
Mt Meru: 4512 metres, 3 days, 60k, 3000m vertical
Crew: A 53 yr old man from Texas (more or less a colleague) by the name of Tom, an armed ranger, a porter, and me
Mt. Kilimanjaro: 5895 metres, 5 days, 60k, 4000m vertical
Crew: Tom, a guide (we couldn’t do this one independently), 2 porters, a cook, a waiter, an assistant guide, and me
Day 1 Mt. Meru
After learning they don’t accept cash in the parks to prevent corruption, we stood in line at the bank for 45 mins. waiting to get these park cards. Going back and forth between lines and just a lot of red tape we find out that despite these are national park cards, they are only accepted at some parks, of course not the one we were going to. I had put the majority of my money on this card, we were 1.5 hrs out of town, and still had to pay..Luckily, Tom had a Visa card so we paid with that and were so thankful we had wasted 45 mins. of our lives standing in line at the bank for nothing! (Luckily we were able to recover this money later after writing a letter to the branch manager, coming back when they were closed, and eventually getting the money).
After arriving to the park, we found out that the fees for the porters had changed from 10,000 tsh to $10/day. Of course we were in favor of supporting the porters with a better wage, but again not knowing this was very frustrating when it came to budgeting. Then despite we were an independent group they told us we were going to be with 3 Germans and 7 of their porters! We wanted to leave soon so that we could go to the Mt. Meru Crater after arriving at camp and they told us we had to wait for this group. After, yes I’ll admit it, being very stubborn and okay a bit of complaining, they gave in and we got our own group and went to the huts via the crater…Little did we know this would involve an extra 10k. Beautiful botanically, not a whole lot of wildlife, some buffalo scat, lots of ants, a dyka, and a few birds, but a road full of scree and quite literally 20k straight up hill! The crater was beautiful and it was the first time I could just sit there and hear nothing-no birds, no wind, no people, nothing. Despite Lonely Planet guidebook telling us it was a short walk from the hut and the ash cone could be climbed, we found out you needed a special permit from the director of TANAPA (the TZ parks association) and had to be doing geological research. We saw the huge tree that the Meru people consider sacred and our guide who was from the area told us we were the only ones he had ever taken this way. We realized what idiots we were, but it was a beautiful detour! As we arrived to the hut, it began to rain. Perfect timing! This rain was a blessing because it served as fresh drinking water for the next day. We made some delicious soup on our camp stove and attempted cribbage without a board (not recommended). We were the only people without a guide, but we didn’t mind. The huts were really nice! Shared bathrooms with 4 bunks in each room and each group had their own room so we had two spare bunks to put our stuff on and no roommates. We conked out quite early with Ibuprofen digested ready for another day.
Day 1 Kili
We had pre-paid Kili Bike &Trek so we didn’t have to worry about park fees upon arriving. HIGHLY recommend them if anyone is thinking of doing Kili and we got a really good deal (well Kili pricewise). They picked us up from our houses and we went to see the waterfall in Marangu which also included a Chagga (an indigenous tribe) cultural lesson. The first day was only 7k and SO beautiful! We went through the rainforest and saw lots of monkeys, birds, and beautiful green rain forest. Each day had a designated lunch spot with a bathroom (well a square hole in the ground, why it was square I will never know!) and picnic tables. We arrived at the hut and then only had a 15 min walk (contrasted with the extra 10k) to view the crater. We could see the plains of Kenya and a waterfall in the distance. We also saw some hyrax on the way. The huts were a little more basic with a mattress on the floor and much smaller. But the food was substantial! A vegetable soup followed by a main dish followed by fruit, oh and I forgot the tea and popcorn upon arrival. We played cribbage, this time with a board (Tom got me one for Christmas), and went to bed.
Day 2 Mt. Meru
This day was very misleading because it was only 5k..but that actually translated as 4 hrs of stairs! I climbed 1000 official stairs and then probably another 1000 things that I would call stairs but the ranger told me were not included in the 1000. At the top we began to see Little Meru (3800 m). We had dinner around 3:30 and slept from 4-12, ready for the midnight climb.
Day 2 Kili
We left the rainforest and went onto the moorlands. Many open meadows with beautiful flowers, a lot of birds that no guide knew the name of, but black with turquoise and black with red both beautiful!, and had some beautiful views across the mountain. It was a much easier climb than Day 2 Meru with a gradual ascent and a GORGEOUS view! 11k but MUCH more scenic and no stairs :) Pretty uneventful.
Day 3 Meru 12 AM
Made some midnight oatmeal and then began the what-I-didn't-know-at-the-time 6 hr climb! We had a full moon so my cell phone torch was not needed. But I DEFINITELY underestimated 30˚ with no sunlight! In my mind, 30˚ is xc-skiing in a t-shirt so I figured climbing a mountain would keep me warm. I forgot about how cold wind can be and how hard it is to stay warm with no sun. Despite having leggings, two fleeces, a scarf, a hat, and woolen socks, I would say the only thing on me that was warm were my feet. Unfortunately, I had left my other woolen socks at the hut so my poor fingers had to wear cotton socks as mittens, which as you can guess was very poor insulation! My hands were literally molded into the pole position and took quite awhile to straighten them. And so we began pole pole (slowly) up the zigzag ridge. I can do this, I thought to myself. Little did I know this was just the beginning.
We reached the point they call Rhino Point that is the same altitude as Little Meru and then began the true adventure. To get off of Rhino Point, you had to walk down a knife ridge with 100m drop off on each side (remember it's dark). This was followed by walking across a rock wall. My thrill transformed into terror when I slipped on the wet rocks and had nothing to hold onto not being able to see where the drop off was. That was when I began to doubt and yes some tears were shed. The guide was very good, helped me to calm down, and had me put my foot on his, and took my poles so I could tangibly grasp the rocks. Pole pole I made it across, not knowing this wasn't even a 1/4 of the way! Next was climbing up a very narrow volcanic ash cone with huge drop offs on both sides. One wrong step and the rest was history.
At this point, I could feel the altitude and exhaustion and knew the only thing keeping me upright were my poles! After a steep incline and repeating to myself "I can" in as many languages as I could think of over and over again, I made it to the top of the ash cone and began climbing up rocks, more or less rock climbing. I had thought I had seen the top and I kept telling myself the only way is up. But the guide told me that was only the halfway point. That was when I thought I couldn't do it anymore. I have no idea how I continued, but it was getting dark so the guide handed me his headlamp and I continued onward.
After many more ridges, we finally had thought we reached the top-AGAIN-but the sun was on the verge of rising and I told our porter (who became our guide, our guide stayed where he gave me his light and took a nap I later found out) I didn't want to miss the sunrise over Kili-that was my motivation for climbing. So we kept climbing and continued to check for the sunrise. It happened and it was GORGEOUS! We could see Kili peaking above the clouds (see photos on FB) and the light was hitting the ash cone so beautifully. Morning light is so beautiful! The sky turned an aquamarine color and the first rays of warmth for the past 6 hours appeared. I realized how hungry I was and ate some dried fruit and nuts watching the beautiful sunrise. Tom and I looked at each other and were quite content. We had seen the sunrise, we had climbed the ridge, we were ready to go down. But our guide wasn't having it, "Twende," he says (Let's go!). So we continued. After 4 more ridges and 2 more false quits, we reached the boulder, that once we reached the top would FINALLY be the summit. It was marked with the TZ flag. I continued to climb as my eyes were fixed on that flag. There was no way I was giving up now! 40 mins later we had reached the top, signed the registrar, and saw all of Arusha. I tried to locate my house, but it was too foggy and far away.
And then down we went! Down, down down. The drop offs were even more magnanimous than I could ever have imagined in the dark. No wonder you climb in the dark. No one would do it in the daylight! After 4 hrs we made it back to the hut, had a quick lunch, and went down. We figured going down the stairs would be quick..but 3 hrs later we had only arrived at the first hut ready to tackle the last 3 hours down. We took the route that most people took to climb up and after being in a permanent 45˚ angle descent for almost 4 hrs I am very glad we took the longer more scenic way up! I was quite literally limping by the end and there got to a point where I couldn't walk any longer and the park truck came and picked me up. By that time I had walked continuously with an exception for lunch and a brief 5 min stop at the 1st hut for a little short of 16 hrs!!! The only high point was seeing a giraffe and buffalo on the way down. I got my certificate, had a delicious Mexican meal, and fell asleep by 8:30. That was BEYOND pushing my limits, but it just goes to show your body is capable of anything even if you don't think it is. Mind over matter and I felt like I could do ANYTHING after that!
Day 3 Kili
Day 3 for Kili was only the halfway point so not nearly as exhilarating or exhausting. We decided to take the "longer route" (by less than a km) because it was more scenic and brought us to the base of Mawenzi, another peak. On the way, we saw some very interesting rocks appropriately named zebra rocks, an eagle flew over us so I felt we had luck for the night ahead of us (the climb to Uhuru peak), saw many alpine chats (a small bird), and learned many plants. Did you know the pretoria flower from S Africa comes from a flower found in TZ called Pretoa? Or that there are two types of Arica, red and white? This route also gave us our first view of what we would be climbing that night..daunting to say the least, but this view soon disappeared with clouds and fog completely surrounding us. THe last few steps to Kibo Hut were the most difficult as we were now at the altitude of the peak of Mt. Meru, couldn't see what we had already traversed and what was ahead of us except for the hut way off in the distance. Walking on gravel sand that gradually ascended with a chill and sudden sting of cold in the air. I used my Ckon knowledge and started walking up in a zigzag formation not letting myself stop and very thankful for the Camelbak on my back.
Upon reaching the hut, we checked into a much bigger dorm room type hut with 10 other Aussies and tried to not smell the stench coming from the hole-in-the-ground toilets as it is too high for them to empty so nothing circulates...We had dinner at 3:30 and attempted to sleep from 4:30-11.
Day 3 11 PM-Day 4
My alarm clock went off and I brutally made my body leave its warm 30˚ sleeping bag and start piling on the layers. I ended up with a long sleeve, a light wool pullover, a down vest, and a waterproof heavy jacket, wool pants, pants, and snow pants, 2 pairs of wool socks, a scarf, a fleece hat, and goretex warm gloves. No this wasn't overdressing! I was not going to have another Meru again!
This time called for a flashlight as the moon had already left the sky giving us nothing but stars to look at as we began the zigzag climb up to Gilman's point. Note: there was a trail the whole way. I knew there was a 5 hr climb ahead of me and knowing there were only 2 hrs, 1.5, 1, 30 min. etc left really helped! At the halfway point I got some hot tea and ate some chocolate and chapati (Tanzanian tortilla) realizing that was the main problem. I had only eaten 2 biscuits and some hot tea before beginning to climb (they don't give you a lot of food because many throw up with the altitude). Luckily my diamox was doing its job (high altitude pill) except it serves as a diaretic..I started to get a horrible stomachache but in 45 mins would reach Gilman's Point where everyone told me, if you make it there you can do it for sure! Seeing shooting stars also gave me hope, and I saw Venus and Mars, and the sky turn orange in the distance as a thunderstorm occurred in Moshi. BEAUTIFUL.
After Gilman's Point, my water was completely frozen and I saw my first snow since last winter! It was so weird, but yet felt so familiar to be walking on ice and so the trek across the ice cap began. Then the sun began to peak on the horizon and I was on a ridge. All around me glaciers lit up with the ice gleaming, the clouds were like a puffy blanket, and Uhuru Peak was in sight. The hardest part were those last 40 mins to the top! I could definitely feel the altitude, I couldn't drink my water, and I was so tired! But 7:52 AM I finally made it! It was beautiful. I could see Meru across from me, the clouds were completely surrounded and the glaciers were beautiful. Honestly, I think the climb up to Uhuru from Gilman's point onward was just as gorgeous as the peak itself but there I was a bit short of 6000m on the highest point in Africa!
The best part: coming down. Whoever said you need snow and skis to ski is wrong. I skiied in hiking boots, hiking poles, and sand. We began to traverse down the zigzags and then he asked do you know how to ski? And so we went straight down (with more-or-less parallel turning of course) and were at the bottom in an hr 15! It felt so great to ski knowing it was my only opportunity this year and I can now say I've skiied down Kili!
A 20 min rest, a bowl of hot soup, and so began the 8k back to Hurongo Hut where we spent the 2nd night. 8k in my mind doesn't sound like anything, but I assure you this was the longest 8k in my life! Perhaps because I had already done 12k (6k to the top, 6k down), perhaps because I had been awake the past 12 hrs, or because of the nature of the path being super rocky and again in the permanent 45˚ descent making my toes push against the front of my shoes. It involved climbing some ridges and going down, down, down. We went the "shorter route" back and it made me very glad we had done the "longer route" because the shorter route did NOT feel shorter, was not scenic, and was a lot less gradual. We got to camp around 3:15 and I slept til dinner at 5 and then went to bed at 6!
Day 5
Down, down, down. My feet were hurting so badly, but the views and weather were beautiful and I didn't mind going through the rainforest again at all! We reached the bottom, I bought a Kili shirt with all the diff routes and my fav pole pole saying on it, and were treated to Kitimoto (hot pork chops), ugali, fruit, salad, and cold beverages. We finally met the other 3 people in our group who sang the song of Kilimanjaro for us (yes I took a video) and had an awards ceremony receiving our certificates.
Came home and crashed!
And that is the end of my mountain climbing in Africa! Mind over matter! Kili was MUCH easier and really cool to meet people from all over the world! I got to speak some Spanish, a lot of Swahili, and a bit of Italian. Now back to work tomorrow :(
Dar/Zbar entry will have to wait
I figured instead of writing about each mountain separately I could do a compare/contrast thing. But it ended up really long. Well, here goes.
Statistics
Mt Meru: 4512 metres, 3 days, 60k, 3000m vertical
Crew: A 53 yr old man from Texas (more or less a colleague) by the name of Tom, an armed ranger, a porter, and me
Mt. Kilimanjaro: 5895 metres, 5 days, 60k, 4000m vertical
Crew: Tom, a guide (we couldn’t do this one independently), 2 porters, a cook, a waiter, an assistant guide, and me
Day 1 Mt. Meru
After learning they don’t accept cash in the parks to prevent corruption, we stood in line at the bank for 45 mins. waiting to get these park cards. Going back and forth between lines and just a lot of red tape we find out that despite these are national park cards, they are only accepted at some parks, of course not the one we were going to. I had put the majority of my money on this card, we were 1.5 hrs out of town, and still had to pay..Luckily, Tom had a Visa card so we paid with that and were so thankful we had wasted 45 mins. of our lives standing in line at the bank for nothing! (Luckily we were able to recover this money later after writing a letter to the branch manager, coming back when they were closed, and eventually getting the money).
After arriving to the park, we found out that the fees for the porters had changed from 10,000 tsh to $10/day. Of course we were in favor of supporting the porters with a better wage, but again not knowing this was very frustrating when it came to budgeting. Then despite we were an independent group they told us we were going to be with 3 Germans and 7 of their porters! We wanted to leave soon so that we could go to the Mt. Meru Crater after arriving at camp and they told us we had to wait for this group. After, yes I’ll admit it, being very stubborn and okay a bit of complaining, they gave in and we got our own group and went to the huts via the crater…Little did we know this would involve an extra 10k. Beautiful botanically, not a whole lot of wildlife, some buffalo scat, lots of ants, a dyka, and a few birds, but a road full of scree and quite literally 20k straight up hill! The crater was beautiful and it was the first time I could just sit there and hear nothing-no birds, no wind, no people, nothing. Despite Lonely Planet guidebook telling us it was a short walk from the hut and the ash cone could be climbed, we found out you needed a special permit from the director of TANAPA (the TZ parks association) and had to be doing geological research. We saw the huge tree that the Meru people consider sacred and our guide who was from the area told us we were the only ones he had ever taken this way. We realized what idiots we were, but it was a beautiful detour! As we arrived to the hut, it began to rain. Perfect timing! This rain was a blessing because it served as fresh drinking water for the next day. We made some delicious soup on our camp stove and attempted cribbage without a board (not recommended). We were the only people without a guide, but we didn’t mind. The huts were really nice! Shared bathrooms with 4 bunks in each room and each group had their own room so we had two spare bunks to put our stuff on and no roommates. We conked out quite early with Ibuprofen digested ready for another day.
Day 1 Kili
We had pre-paid Kili Bike &Trek so we didn’t have to worry about park fees upon arriving. HIGHLY recommend them if anyone is thinking of doing Kili and we got a really good deal (well Kili pricewise). They picked us up from our houses and we went to see the waterfall in Marangu which also included a Chagga (an indigenous tribe) cultural lesson. The first day was only 7k and SO beautiful! We went through the rainforest and saw lots of monkeys, birds, and beautiful green rain forest. Each day had a designated lunch spot with a bathroom (well a square hole in the ground, why it was square I will never know!) and picnic tables. We arrived at the hut and then only had a 15 min walk (contrasted with the extra 10k) to view the crater. We could see the plains of Kenya and a waterfall in the distance. We also saw some hyrax on the way. The huts were a little more basic with a mattress on the floor and much smaller. But the food was substantial! A vegetable soup followed by a main dish followed by fruit, oh and I forgot the tea and popcorn upon arrival. We played cribbage, this time with a board (Tom got me one for Christmas), and went to bed.
Day 2 Mt. Meru
This day was very misleading because it was only 5k..but that actually translated as 4 hrs of stairs! I climbed 1000 official stairs and then probably another 1000 things that I would call stairs but the ranger told me were not included in the 1000. At the top we began to see Little Meru (3800 m). We had dinner around 3:30 and slept from 4-12, ready for the midnight climb.
Day 2 Kili
We left the rainforest and went onto the moorlands. Many open meadows with beautiful flowers, a lot of birds that no guide knew the name of, but black with turquoise and black with red both beautiful!, and had some beautiful views across the mountain. It was a much easier climb than Day 2 Meru with a gradual ascent and a GORGEOUS view! 11k but MUCH more scenic and no stairs :) Pretty uneventful.
Day 3 Meru 12 AM
Made some midnight oatmeal and then began the what-I-didn't-know-at-the-time 6 hr climb! We had a full moon so my cell phone torch was not needed. But I DEFINITELY underestimated 30˚ with no sunlight! In my mind, 30˚ is xc-skiing in a t-shirt so I figured climbing a mountain would keep me warm. I forgot about how cold wind can be and how hard it is to stay warm with no sun. Despite having leggings, two fleeces, a scarf, a hat, and woolen socks, I would say the only thing on me that was warm were my feet. Unfortunately, I had left my other woolen socks at the hut so my poor fingers had to wear cotton socks as mittens, which as you can guess was very poor insulation! My hands were literally molded into the pole position and took quite awhile to straighten them. And so we began pole pole (slowly) up the zigzag ridge. I can do this, I thought to myself. Little did I know this was just the beginning.
We reached the point they call Rhino Point that is the same altitude as Little Meru and then began the true adventure. To get off of Rhino Point, you had to walk down a knife ridge with 100m drop off on each side (remember it's dark). This was followed by walking across a rock wall. My thrill transformed into terror when I slipped on the wet rocks and had nothing to hold onto not being able to see where the drop off was. That was when I began to doubt and yes some tears were shed. The guide was very good, helped me to calm down, and had me put my foot on his, and took my poles so I could tangibly grasp the rocks. Pole pole I made it across, not knowing this wasn't even a 1/4 of the way! Next was climbing up a very narrow volcanic ash cone with huge drop offs on both sides. One wrong step and the rest was history.
At this point, I could feel the altitude and exhaustion and knew the only thing keeping me upright were my poles! After a steep incline and repeating to myself "I can" in as many languages as I could think of over and over again, I made it to the top of the ash cone and began climbing up rocks, more or less rock climbing. I had thought I had seen the top and I kept telling myself the only way is up. But the guide told me that was only the halfway point. That was when I thought I couldn't do it anymore. I have no idea how I continued, but it was getting dark so the guide handed me his headlamp and I continued onward.
After many more ridges, we finally had thought we reached the top-AGAIN-but the sun was on the verge of rising and I told our porter (who became our guide, our guide stayed where he gave me his light and took a nap I later found out) I didn't want to miss the sunrise over Kili-that was my motivation for climbing. So we kept climbing and continued to check for the sunrise. It happened and it was GORGEOUS! We could see Kili peaking above the clouds (see photos on FB) and the light was hitting the ash cone so beautifully. Morning light is so beautiful! The sky turned an aquamarine color and the first rays of warmth for the past 6 hours appeared. I realized how hungry I was and ate some dried fruit and nuts watching the beautiful sunrise. Tom and I looked at each other and were quite content. We had seen the sunrise, we had climbed the ridge, we were ready to go down. But our guide wasn't having it, "Twende," he says (Let's go!). So we continued. After 4 more ridges and 2 more false quits, we reached the boulder, that once we reached the top would FINALLY be the summit. It was marked with the TZ flag. I continued to climb as my eyes were fixed on that flag. There was no way I was giving up now! 40 mins later we had reached the top, signed the registrar, and saw all of Arusha. I tried to locate my house, but it was too foggy and far away.
And then down we went! Down, down down. The drop offs were even more magnanimous than I could ever have imagined in the dark. No wonder you climb in the dark. No one would do it in the daylight! After 4 hrs we made it back to the hut, had a quick lunch, and went down. We figured going down the stairs would be quick..but 3 hrs later we had only arrived at the first hut ready to tackle the last 3 hours down. We took the route that most people took to climb up and after being in a permanent 45˚ angle descent for almost 4 hrs I am very glad we took the longer more scenic way up! I was quite literally limping by the end and there got to a point where I couldn't walk any longer and the park truck came and picked me up. By that time I had walked continuously with an exception for lunch and a brief 5 min stop at the 1st hut for a little short of 16 hrs!!! The only high point was seeing a giraffe and buffalo on the way down. I got my certificate, had a delicious Mexican meal, and fell asleep by 8:30. That was BEYOND pushing my limits, but it just goes to show your body is capable of anything even if you don't think it is. Mind over matter and I felt like I could do ANYTHING after that!
Day 3 Kili
Day 3 for Kili was only the halfway point so not nearly as exhilarating or exhausting. We decided to take the "longer route" (by less than a km) because it was more scenic and brought us to the base of Mawenzi, another peak. On the way, we saw some very interesting rocks appropriately named zebra rocks, an eagle flew over us so I felt we had luck for the night ahead of us (the climb to Uhuru peak), saw many alpine chats (a small bird), and learned many plants. Did you know the pretoria flower from S Africa comes from a flower found in TZ called Pretoa? Or that there are two types of Arica, red and white? This route also gave us our first view of what we would be climbing that night..daunting to say the least, but this view soon disappeared with clouds and fog completely surrounding us. THe last few steps to Kibo Hut were the most difficult as we were now at the altitude of the peak of Mt. Meru, couldn't see what we had already traversed and what was ahead of us except for the hut way off in the distance. Walking on gravel sand that gradually ascended with a chill and sudden sting of cold in the air. I used my Ckon knowledge and started walking up in a zigzag formation not letting myself stop and very thankful for the Camelbak on my back.
Upon reaching the hut, we checked into a much bigger dorm room type hut with 10 other Aussies and tried to not smell the stench coming from the hole-in-the-ground toilets as it is too high for them to empty so nothing circulates...We had dinner at 3:30 and attempted to sleep from 4:30-11.
Day 3 11 PM-Day 4
My alarm clock went off and I brutally made my body leave its warm 30˚ sleeping bag and start piling on the layers. I ended up with a long sleeve, a light wool pullover, a down vest, and a waterproof heavy jacket, wool pants, pants, and snow pants, 2 pairs of wool socks, a scarf, a fleece hat, and goretex warm gloves. No this wasn't overdressing! I was not going to have another Meru again!
This time called for a flashlight as the moon had already left the sky giving us nothing but stars to look at as we began the zigzag climb up to Gilman's point. Note: there was a trail the whole way. I knew there was a 5 hr climb ahead of me and knowing there were only 2 hrs, 1.5, 1, 30 min. etc left really helped! At the halfway point I got some hot tea and ate some chocolate and chapati (Tanzanian tortilla) realizing that was the main problem. I had only eaten 2 biscuits and some hot tea before beginning to climb (they don't give you a lot of food because many throw up with the altitude). Luckily my diamox was doing its job (high altitude pill) except it serves as a diaretic..I started to get a horrible stomachache but in 45 mins would reach Gilman's Point where everyone told me, if you make it there you can do it for sure! Seeing shooting stars also gave me hope, and I saw Venus and Mars, and the sky turn orange in the distance as a thunderstorm occurred in Moshi. BEAUTIFUL.
After Gilman's Point, my water was completely frozen and I saw my first snow since last winter! It was so weird, but yet felt so familiar to be walking on ice and so the trek across the ice cap began. Then the sun began to peak on the horizon and I was on a ridge. All around me glaciers lit up with the ice gleaming, the clouds were like a puffy blanket, and Uhuru Peak was in sight. The hardest part were those last 40 mins to the top! I could definitely feel the altitude, I couldn't drink my water, and I was so tired! But 7:52 AM I finally made it! It was beautiful. I could see Meru across from me, the clouds were completely surrounded and the glaciers were beautiful. Honestly, I think the climb up to Uhuru from Gilman's point onward was just as gorgeous as the peak itself but there I was a bit short of 6000m on the highest point in Africa!
The best part: coming down. Whoever said you need snow and skis to ski is wrong. I skiied in hiking boots, hiking poles, and sand. We began to traverse down the zigzags and then he asked do you know how to ski? And so we went straight down (with more-or-less parallel turning of course) and were at the bottom in an hr 15! It felt so great to ski knowing it was my only opportunity this year and I can now say I've skiied down Kili!
A 20 min rest, a bowl of hot soup, and so began the 8k back to Hurongo Hut where we spent the 2nd night. 8k in my mind doesn't sound like anything, but I assure you this was the longest 8k in my life! Perhaps because I had already done 12k (6k to the top, 6k down), perhaps because I had been awake the past 12 hrs, or because of the nature of the path being super rocky and again in the permanent 45˚ descent making my toes push against the front of my shoes. It involved climbing some ridges and going down, down, down. We went the "shorter route" back and it made me very glad we had done the "longer route" because the shorter route did NOT feel shorter, was not scenic, and was a lot less gradual. We got to camp around 3:15 and I slept til dinner at 5 and then went to bed at 6!
Day 5
Down, down, down. My feet were hurting so badly, but the views and weather were beautiful and I didn't mind going through the rainforest again at all! We reached the bottom, I bought a Kili shirt with all the diff routes and my fav pole pole saying on it, and were treated to Kitimoto (hot pork chops), ugali, fruit, salad, and cold beverages. We finally met the other 3 people in our group who sang the song of Kilimanjaro for us (yes I took a video) and had an awards ceremony receiving our certificates.
Came home and crashed!
And that is the end of my mountain climbing in Africa! Mind over matter! Kili was MUCH easier and really cool to meet people from all over the world! I got to speak some Spanish, a lot of Swahili, and a bit of Italian. Now back to work tomorrow :(
Dar/Zbar entry will have to wait
Indigenous Tribes at Lake Eyasi
So I guess I should start out by saying don’t listen to Lonely Planet. Momoya is not the “enterprising” man LP claims him to be. More like he sees that I’m mzungu and the things he said in the email “work with your budget, give you the resident rate” etc. go out the window. There is serious reverse discrimination. We were even going to give him a ride. Anyway…after much off-roading, we found Lake Eyasi, or the place they call lake Eyasi. The lake is actually completely dry until the rainy season and feels a bit like walking on the moon with the dry, crispy texture of the salt crunching beneath your feet. Anyway, a nice Jambo tourist guide hut awaits us and the guide tells us half the price Momoya did, hops in our car, and shows us a campsite for $5 and then gives us a complete tour of the area showing us a huge vegetable garden, telling us about the surrounding flora and fauna, and then taking us to the Datoga tribe free of charge. This was a very interesting tribe similar to the Maasai, but their hobby is taking scrap metal such as a padlock and melting it into jewelry. They trade this with other tribes for things like honey. Sadly I don’t support this business with money because the only things money can buy in these isolated tribes are things like glue for sniffing, marijuana, cigarettes, or alcohol-i.e. nothing good. I had my chance at grinding corn flour to make ugali, the local white flour here, which was quite difficult and saw their boma. After a gorgeous sunset, a starry night and the goodness of camping, we woke up at 6 AM to go hunting with one of the last hunter-gatherer tribes, the Hatzabe. Upon arrival, after some extreme off-roading in a Suzuki Escudo, they were roasting a monkey over a fire and skinning a dik-dik. Breakfast time. We went hunting with them with our game being a Francoline. It takes a lot of skill to hunt with a bow and arrow! Right there and then, they plucked off the feathers, rubbed two sticks together and voila there was fire. I tasted it and it wasn’t too bad. I’d describe it as chewy chicken. It was certainly an experience I will not forget!
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