Saturday morning we woke up early and made our way into town to go to the Maasai market. After three Dalla-Dalla rides and a one hour drive with 25 people crammed in to a 12 person van, we made it to Dumila. For one of the first times since I've been in Tanzania, I was certain this is where we got off the Dalla-Dalla. The field was full of colorful tribespeople herding their cattle towards the market. The paths were lined with dietict bright fabrics of the Maasai people.
The Maasai are pastoral nomads who have actively resisted change, and still follow the same lifestyle that they have for centuries. Their culture centers on their cattle, which provide many of their needs- milk, blood, and meat for their diet, and hides and skin for clothing. The land, cattle, and all elements related to cattle are considered sacred.
Maasai boys pass through a number of trasitions throughout life, the first of which is marked by the circumcision rite. Successive stages include junior warrior, senior warriors, junior elders, and senior elders; each level is distinguied by its own unique rights, responsibilities, and dress. The most important group is that of the newly initiated warrions, morran, who are in charge of defending the cattle. Maasai women play a subservient role and have no inheritance rights. Polygamy is widespread and marriages are arranged by the elders, without consulting the bride or her mother.
The women wear Kangas of saphire blue and plum purple, large, wrapped gold bands around their wrists and ankles, and have their ears stretched long enough to put a toonie through. Added to their colorful dress are layers of large, beaded necklaces and earings. The men wear one Kanga wrapped around their waist, topped with a shoulder sash on one side. They carry a long stick (which is used to control the cattle) and have a machete and tobacco pipe always fastened around their waist.
For me, walking through the market was like flipping through the pages of my Anthropology textbook; a year ago I studied the Maasai, trying to memorize their lifestyle for a test, now I was walking amidst that very lifestyle I was trying to memorize only so I could pass a test. This has been one of the highlights of my African adventure. I've always dreamed about seeing indigineous tribes, but I never thought I would be able to get that close to observing their lifestyle. As I shook hands and conversed with the Maasai people, ther was undoubtably a surge of ecstatic energy flowing through my veins. One more notch ticked off my "50 Things to do before I die".
Monday, March 16, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
Play Day
This Saturday we had Play Day at the Faraja home based department. The play program has been running since the beginning of YCI's partnership with Faraja trust fund. The play program strives to ensure that children living with HIV/AIDs have a safe and accessible space in which to play and be creative. As we all know, playing is an essential part of childhood development and at Play Program we aim to give children a positive and stigma-free environment for creavity, energy, and fun.
So from 9am to 1pm, us four girls were given the task of arranging games and activites for a potential 122 children aged 2-17. Although we did not have a full capacity, we still managed to entertain a good 80 or so kids. For those of you trying to picture this in your mind, let me throw you some key words: chaos, screaming, yelling, crying, running, laughing, soccer,basketball, jumprope, bowling, puzzles, crayons, playdoh, duckduckgoose,reading, drawing,punching,kicking,music, pinethetaleonthedonkey,dressup,telephone,tag...36degrees celsius.
Although I sustained minor injuries, (ie getting kicked in the head, pulled hair, peed on, and bitten twice), this has been one of the most eye opening experiences for me thus far. Every single one of these children were HIV+ and many will not make it to their 15th birthday, let alone 20th. In fact, two children who were at the last play day on January 31st have since passed.
What does HIV/AIDS look like to you? I dont think a single person could pick one of those children out from a crowd and say "Watch out- that kid has AIDS." The stigma these children have experienced from almost birth is enough to rob them of their innocence. At school, they're often shunned- no one wants to play wit the kid who has aids. For these kids to have at least one day a month where they can gather and play with no harassement, no worries, no judgement, this makes sucha difference in their livelihood. Everychild desereves the right to play, be loved, be picked up and hugged, just do know that they're supecial.
As chaotic, loud, and overwhelming as 80 children in 36degree weather was, I will never forget the hundreds of hugs and thousands of smiles I experienced that day. I encourage you all to do your part: reduce the stigma behind HIV and AIDS. HIV is not a death sentence: You cannot get it from touching an infected person, using the same toilet seats, mosquito bites, kissing, or drinking from the same cup. Ignorance is the biggest killer.
So from 9am to 1pm, us four girls were given the task of arranging games and activites for a potential 122 children aged 2-17. Although we did not have a full capacity, we still managed to entertain a good 80 or so kids. For those of you trying to picture this in your mind, let me throw you some key words: chaos, screaming, yelling, crying, running, laughing, soccer,basketball, jumprope, bowling, puzzles, crayons, playdoh, duckduckgoose,reading, drawing,punching,kicking,music, pinethetaleonthedonkey,dressup,telephone,tag...36degrees celsius.
Although I sustained minor injuries, (ie getting kicked in the head, pulled hair, peed on, and bitten twice), this has been one of the most eye opening experiences for me thus far. Every single one of these children were HIV+ and many will not make it to their 15th birthday, let alone 20th. In fact, two children who were at the last play day on January 31st have since passed.
What does HIV/AIDS look like to you? I dont think a single person could pick one of those children out from a crowd and say "Watch out- that kid has AIDS." The stigma these children have experienced from almost birth is enough to rob them of their innocence. At school, they're often shunned- no one wants to play wit the kid who has aids. For these kids to have at least one day a month where they can gather and play with no harassement, no worries, no judgement, this makes sucha difference in their livelihood. Everychild desereves the right to play, be loved, be picked up and hugged, just do know that they're supecial.
As chaotic, loud, and overwhelming as 80 children in 36degree weather was, I will never forget the hundreds of hugs and thousands of smiles I experienced that day. I encourage you all to do your part: reduce the stigma behind HIV and AIDS. HIV is not a death sentence: You cannot get it from touching an infected person, using the same toilet seats, mosquito bites, kissing, or drinking from the same cup. Ignorance is the biggest killer.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Safari
Giraffes, elephants, monkeys, and hippos: The Tanzanian country side is beautifully decorated with an abundance of African wildlife. The girls and I arranged a safari excursion to Makumi National Park this past Saturday. 5:30 am came around and we hopped into our hired van that conveniently picked us up at our doorstep. After a short one hour drive, we reached the park gates; literally within one minute of being inside the park, there was monkeys running on the road and zebras crossing in the distance. Once we reached the safari area, we hired a guide and were on our way. The first animal to greet us was a lone giant, standing strong, chomping away at some grass, the Massai Giraffe. Standing about 5 meters away, he stared directly at us as if he was studying us as much as we were he. He stood tall, not moving an inch, before he turned away abruptly as if to say; move along now, shows over. After our first encounter with a giraffe, many more were to follow. The openness of the East-African landscape-broad rolling grasslands dotted with lone acacia trees- makes spotting a giraffe an easy feat. Their long legs and great neck stretch high to eat from the lone trees.
The following half-hour of our trip had us studying hippos as they bobbed about in the pond, gazing at packs of Impala standing on alert for predators, and laughing at Baboons as they played about with their family. We managed to see a great number of elephants in various herds scattered throughout the park. As we approached one herd of approximately four females, two babies, and at least one male, we were reminded that these animals are wild, unlike the many we see at zoos all over the world. We were at a standstill when all of a sudden the male of the group began flapping his ears wildly, shaking his head, raising and blowing his trunk, and running straight towards us. He charged us and came to a halt at about 15 feet away. I guess this was just his way of saying “screw off.” Luckily, I managed to capture this moment on video, so stay tuned for that.
Throughout the day, we managed to see more elephants and giraffes, monkeys, crocodiles, hippos, zebras, impalas, various birds, a giant lizard, water buffalo, saddle-billed stork, and wildebeests. Unfortunately, there was no Simbas for us L but that’s okay. You basically have to spend the night to be able to get up early enough to catch the lions in the morning, so we were grateful enough to have been able to see as much as we did.
The following half-hour of our trip had us studying hippos as they bobbed about in the pond, gazing at packs of Impala standing on alert for predators, and laughing at Baboons as they played about with their family. We managed to see a great number of elephants in various herds scattered throughout the park. As we approached one herd of approximately four females, two babies, and at least one male, we were reminded that these animals are wild, unlike the many we see at zoos all over the world. We were at a standstill when all of a sudden the male of the group began flapping his ears wildly, shaking his head, raising and blowing his trunk, and running straight towards us. He charged us and came to a halt at about 15 feet away. I guess this was just his way of saying “screw off.” Luckily, I managed to capture this moment on video, so stay tuned for that.
Throughout the day, we managed to see more elephants and giraffes, monkeys, crocodiles, hippos, zebras, impalas, various birds, a giant lizard, water buffalo, saddle-billed stork, and wildebeests. Unfortunately, there was no Simbas for us L but that’s okay. You basically have to spend the night to be able to get up early enough to catch the lions in the morning, so we were grateful enough to have been able to see as much as we did.
Netball
Yesterday Katie and I had our first net ball experience. And wow… was it a treat. First off, we met James at Faraja and he led us to where we would be playing. Once we got the field, what are the chances that school was just getting out. So here came over 100 wide-eyed children screaming Mzungu, pointing, and running towards us. So as James set up the court ( by attaching metal rings to giant sticks, digging a whole into the group and ramming them into place), we were swarmed by children looking at us as if we were on display at a zoo. We were in Chamwino which not many foreigners ever venture off into so we were being examined from all angles. Once James set up the court and some girls trickled in, we were to be begin. James put us on opposite teams and told us to start. Neither Katie nor I had any idea what netballs was, never mind how to play it. James doesn’t speak English, none of the girls do either, and we were unable to use the little Swahili we knew to communicate that we didn’t know the rules. But, the show went on. With the lines drawn in the dirt and teams made, we began running around, unsure of which direction to go or if we were even supposed to be running. Well, having Mzungu’s in Chamwino alone was an exciting event, now picture Mzungu’s running around with no idea what they’re doing. Our crowd (of say close to 150 people at this point) was roaring with laughter and screaming cheers when we did something right. We continued to play for about an hour and I think we have the basics covered now.
The language barrier was immense but it didn’t prevent the game from going on. This was definitely the toughest situation to date that I’ve had to face in Africa. It’s in times like these where you both panic and have a freak show because you have no idea what’s going on, or you just laugh and take it like it is. In my opinion, the only way to survive here is to live each day and laugh it out. Once we were finished the girls all came up and “nipe tano-ed” us (give me 5) and all asked when we would be playing again. I guess we made the cut. The following Thursday, since we play every Tuesday and Thursday, the girls showed up with their version of jerseys. They were blue skirts that had nice watermelons and mangos for decoration. Oh, did I mention that it is mandatory to play netball in skirts? So Katie and I were each given a uniform and… well, lets just say we were too fat to fit. The only way we could wear them is if we hiked them up to almost right under our boobs. We looked great.
The language barrier was immense but it didn’t prevent the game from going on. This was definitely the toughest situation to date that I’ve had to face in Africa. It’s in times like these where you both panic and have a freak show because you have no idea what’s going on, or you just laugh and take it like it is. In my opinion, the only way to survive here is to live each day and laugh it out. Once we were finished the girls all came up and “nipe tano-ed” us (give me 5) and all asked when we would be playing again. I guess we made the cut. The following Thursday, since we play every Tuesday and Thursday, the girls showed up with their version of jerseys. They were blue skirts that had nice watermelons and mangos for decoration. Oh, did I mention that it is mandatory to play netball in skirts? So Katie and I were each given a uniform and… well, lets just say we were too fat to fit. The only way we could wear them is if we hiked them up to almost right under our boobs. We looked great.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Ushujua Kwa Uhai- Courage for Life
Thursday night was our first talent show night that we organized. Michelle and I have been working with a local drama group here and they prepared some skits, as well as raps, dances, and songs all with a focus around HIV/AIDS awareness. This talent shows theme was Testing. With a slow turnout in the beginning, approx 100 people were in the audience, Marco ( our local project coordinator) got things rolling with him being the head MC. I would guess that near the end there was about 300 people in the audience. Three girls went on stage to perform talents which we were super excited about because female participation is a huge challenge here in Tanzania. Habibu and George, new friends I have made who are also in the drama group, were my translators for the event. I was in charge of condom distribution and demonstrations. So lets just say, I am officially a condom expert now. It was amazing to see how many people had no idea how to use a condom, or what they even were for that matter. I demonstrated the correct 12 step procedure I would say at least 15 times to probably a crowd of at least 150 people combined. Many people did not even know what it was used for, here are some of the questions I received: What does it protect from? Can I wash it and use it again? Do I wear it all day? What kind of air is in that package that makes it kill sperm? And so on... now you can see the lack of education that east africa faces. Everyone was eager to learn so I was excited to be demonstrating... at times, people were so anxious that they would actually push and shove eachother just to get closer. Thank goodness Habibu and George were there because I would have been trampled for sure!
Starting Work
This past week has been jam packed as it was the first week of programming. Tuesday was my first presentation to seconday students in an area outside of Morogoro known as Bigwa. We were greated by the second master of the school who introduced myself and the local consultant/translator that I will be working with. This school has about 700 students and the head master told us that so many students signed up to be a part of our governance workshops that they had to select students. So what they did was take the top students from different school departments and thats who we're teaching: the cream of the crop. The level of respect and readiness to learn was astonishing. The first lesson was a success and I hope that all the ones to come will be as well. This is the first time YCI has ever done Governance so this is a huge leap for the organization.
My second task was to start Gender workshops in the area of Chamwino. Chamwino is known for being low-income and under-resourced. It is also the site of high rates of youth prostitution, early pregnancies, unemployment, alochol/drug abuse, HIV/AIDS, and other illnesses. The houses in this area are stick-mud huts, usually with six to ten people living in one room. The girls that come to our workshops are un-educated and have little to no english knowledge; thus, a translator is needed at all times. Although a mere five girls attended the first workshop, many important questions they had were addressed. Their eyes were glued to our presentation as they studied our makeshift drawings of a woman's uterus and discussed details of the women menstral cycle. It was aparant that these women know little about their bodies and issues that face them so I am excited and eager for the coming weeks.
My second task was to start Gender workshops in the area of Chamwino. Chamwino is known for being low-income and under-resourced. It is also the site of high rates of youth prostitution, early pregnancies, unemployment, alochol/drug abuse, HIV/AIDS, and other illnesses. The houses in this area are stick-mud huts, usually with six to ten people living in one room. The girls that come to our workshops are un-educated and have little to no english knowledge; thus, a translator is needed at all times. Although a mere five girls attended the first workshop, many important questions they had were addressed. Their eyes were glued to our presentation as they studied our makeshift drawings of a woman's uterus and discussed details of the women menstral cycle. It was aparant that these women know little about their bodies and issues that face them so I am excited and eager for the coming weeks.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
The Rash.
Over the past few days here I have developed an allergic reaction to something resulting in a crazy rash. My program officer has never seen a rash like this before, and neither have any of the local Mamas so I have no idea what is causing it. We think it might be something I ate but we do not know. So I took Benadryl a couple of times and it did nothing so I had to go to the hospital. The doctor suggested getting a Cortizone injection so thats what we did. Well I didn't know it had to go in my butt! So my first hospital visit in Africa had me bent over with my pants down with a huge needle stuck in my fat. As soon as the needle was in, I could feel all the contents oozing into my body, all down my legs and into my feet. Suddenly, I was overtaken by extreme sweat and heat, followed by the most massive head rush i've ever experienced. This caused me to almost faint and then I started vommiting everywhere. I couldn't stand at this point so the nurse plopped me onto a chair where I could barely hold myself up. The head rush didn't leave so I had to lay down for 10 minutes. Once I finally had enough strength I got up and began the walk home with Marko. A walk that would normally take five minutes took me 25, stumbling along in my woozi and light-headed mannor. The rest of the day I spent laying in bed because the nauseous feeling and lightheaded-ness did not go away for a few hours. So now, here I am with a sore ass, but the rash has gone down a little. The pictures I will put up were the first stages of the rash. After this, they swelled up even bigger and were a blood red.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Mambo Vipi??
Greeting is an essential part of Tanzanian culture. Some people spend five, maybe ten minutes simply greeting eachother, typically holding hands the entire conversation. There are about 5 different ways to first greet someone and these are all based on age. When greeting an elder, it is your responsibility to start the conversation and only use the polite terms of everything. For people more around your age, "mambo" is thrown out every directions. To this, there are many ways to reply. They all, in one way or another, translate back to "fine". A typical conversation between two people could translate to this: Hey, how are things? Good. Problems? -no problems. How's the morning- Fresh. Hows the house? -Peace. How are the children- Clean. How is your partner-ok. Hows work?- Nice... and on and on and on. And the trick is... there is never a negative answer. If your parents are dead but someone asks hows are your parents, you say good. If you just found out you have cancer and someone asks how are you, you say good. The backbone of relationships are built soley on these greetings. To impress the Rastas with street talk, we throw out the ocassional, Mzuka... which they then think we're the coolest people around! It's really quite neat how much emphasis is put soley on greeting; maybe this is something our culture needs to put a little more effort into.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
My new home- Morogoro
Transportation is different in Tanzania. The buses don't leave simply until the entire bus is full. So we arrived around 10am, and the bus did not pull out until 12... just some more delays in Africa we will need to get used to.
The drive to Morogoro was spectacular. As we left Dar we passed various villages and little cities along the way. I watched out my window as women would sit on the ground in the front of their mud hut peeling potatoes and cooking over a charcoal fire. The children would run about the yard shoe-less and the men hack at crops with a machete. Then about 10 minutes later we would pass another village where you could see women going to fetch water from the well and carrying it in big buckets on their head and children work in the fields looking for any life that might have survived the African sun. If any of your are having a hard time picturing this, simply turn on the memory of world-vision comercials and this was simply the sight.
Once we arrived in Morogoro, my breath was taken away. The mountains that once cascaded in the distance were now within my vision with Morogoro situated at their base. Any picture I had seen of here previous was nothing compared to what was standing before my eyes. Having lived in the mountains my whole life, I thought it would be just like home, but it is so so so beautiful.
Life here is busy on the one paved road of downtown. People hustle and bustle about and if you're not careful, you surely will get run over. There are many Dukas (shops) that sell basically anything we will need and many places to buy fresh fruit and vegi. However, you walk five minutes from downtown and you are in peaceful and quiet residential areas. I live about a 15 minute walk from down town on a red dirt road that is covered in potholes. Once you past the front gate, there is an courtyard that houses about 15 chickens and two dogs, as well as an avacado, papaya, and apple tree. Our house is, well, lets just say HIGH standards for Tanzania. We have a computer (no internet tho), a TV with satelite, stereo and our Mama insists that she warms our water to wash with. We also have two house girls that cook and clean, but I am sure to learn from them. And the food, well that is one thing I will have to get used to. Ugali, is a traditional dish that is made up of cornflour and.. well I dont know. It basically tastes like cream of wheat, but without any milk. Rice is served ocassionally and Chapati, which is a type of fried bread, similar to Naan. We have chosen to eat only chicken for meat here because there is a butcher shop across from our house and we see the beef hanging there... all day... in the sun. We usually have spinach with our meals as well and sometimes fruit. So, like I said, I will get used to it.
Oh, did I mention how hot it is here? While you all are freezing, im sitting in about... 28, 29 maybe, but with very little humidity, which is nice. Soon we will be starting our work and I am really looking forward to it. I have received my placement assignments and I will be working with a Drama/music group, helping them make skits and plays and arranging places for them to perform, as well as arranging local talent nights here in Morogoro. The next is Gender workshops focused on healthy lifestyles. So over 5 weeks we will cover topics like HIV, STI's, Condoms, Birthcontrol, and many other issues aimed towards women. The next is Governanace Modules, so I will be teaching youth in Morogoro about their rights as a Tanzanian and other topics regarding government and politics. Then myself and another girl will be working with the womens netball team, attenting practises and arranging matches for them if possible. Next I will be doing Home Based Care, which is where I visit the homes of children who are living with HIV and play with them and build relationships. Also once a month they have play days where 125 HIV+ children come together to play in a safe, stigma free environment. My final project is a Youth Lifeskills Manual that I must compile information regarding all aspects of living a healthy lifestyle and put it in an organized manual. I will have a heavy work load but I am very excited.
The drive to Morogoro was spectacular. As we left Dar we passed various villages and little cities along the way. I watched out my window as women would sit on the ground in the front of their mud hut peeling potatoes and cooking over a charcoal fire. The children would run about the yard shoe-less and the men hack at crops with a machete. Then about 10 minutes later we would pass another village where you could see women going to fetch water from the well and carrying it in big buckets on their head and children work in the fields looking for any life that might have survived the African sun. If any of your are having a hard time picturing this, simply turn on the memory of world-vision comercials and this was simply the sight.
Once we arrived in Morogoro, my breath was taken away. The mountains that once cascaded in the distance were now within my vision with Morogoro situated at their base. Any picture I had seen of here previous was nothing compared to what was standing before my eyes. Having lived in the mountains my whole life, I thought it would be just like home, but it is so so so beautiful.
Life here is busy on the one paved road of downtown. People hustle and bustle about and if you're not careful, you surely will get run over. There are many Dukas (shops) that sell basically anything we will need and many places to buy fresh fruit and vegi. However, you walk five minutes from downtown and you are in peaceful and quiet residential areas. I live about a 15 minute walk from down town on a red dirt road that is covered in potholes. Once you past the front gate, there is an courtyard that houses about 15 chickens and two dogs, as well as an avacado, papaya, and apple tree. Our house is, well, lets just say HIGH standards for Tanzania. We have a computer (no internet tho), a TV with satelite, stereo and our Mama insists that she warms our water to wash with. We also have two house girls that cook and clean, but I am sure to learn from them. And the food, well that is one thing I will have to get used to. Ugali, is a traditional dish that is made up of cornflour and.. well I dont know. It basically tastes like cream of wheat, but without any milk. Rice is served ocassionally and Chapati, which is a type of fried bread, similar to Naan. We have chosen to eat only chicken for meat here because there is a butcher shop across from our house and we see the beef hanging there... all day... in the sun. We usually have spinach with our meals as well and sometimes fruit. So, like I said, I will get used to it.
Oh, did I mention how hot it is here? While you all are freezing, im sitting in about... 28, 29 maybe, but with very little humidity, which is nice. Soon we will be starting our work and I am really looking forward to it. I have received my placement assignments and I will be working with a Drama/music group, helping them make skits and plays and arranging places for them to perform, as well as arranging local talent nights here in Morogoro. The next is Gender workshops focused on healthy lifestyles. So over 5 weeks we will cover topics like HIV, STI's, Condoms, Birthcontrol, and many other issues aimed towards women. The next is Governanace Modules, so I will be teaching youth in Morogoro about their rights as a Tanzanian and other topics regarding government and politics. Then myself and another girl will be working with the womens netball team, attenting practises and arranging matches for them if possible. Next I will be doing Home Based Care, which is where I visit the homes of children who are living with HIV and play with them and build relationships. Also once a month they have play days where 125 HIV+ children come together to play in a safe, stigma free environment. My final project is a Youth Lifeskills Manual that I must compile information regarding all aspects of living a healthy lifestyle and put it in an organized manual. I will have a heavy work load but I am very excited.
Habari za Leo!
The last few days were spent in Dar doing orientation. The last day or two we had the commissioner of the Tanzanian Aids Coorporation come in and talk to us about the present situation in Tanzania. He is a very well known man here and it was an honour to meet him. He told us that the HIV prevelance rate here has gone down from 7% to 5.7% so that was good news but he also told us that 12% of tanzanians are orphaned children. Later YCI brought in a head mama to talk to us about the current issues that will face us regarding gender. Tanzania has over come many leaps and bounds over the last 15 years but still has much to learn. 10 years ago women were forbade to wear pants, now almost every woman wears jeans. This may seem like not a big deal but it is a huge freedom for women. Although in the city we may not witness many of these problems women face, however, the country side is where women are still very opressed. Rape is still heavily practised among the masai community which is increasing the rate of HIV infection.
So we spent the last night together as the group of 8 before departing our seperate ways in the morning. We said our goodbyes, and off to Morogoro it was for me.
The last few days were spent in Dar doing orientation. The last day or two we had the commissioner of the Tanzanian Aids Coorporation come in and talk to us about the present situation in Tanzania. He is a very well known man here and it was an honour to meet him. He told us that the HIV prevelance rate here has gone down from 7% to 5.7% so that was good news but he also told us that 12% of tanzanians are orphaned children. Later YCI brought in a head mama to talk to us about the current issues that will face us regarding gender. Tanzania has over come many leaps and bounds over the last 15 years but still has much to learn. 10 years ago women were forbade to wear pants, now almost every woman wears jeans. This may seem like not a big deal but it is a huge freedom for women. Although in the city we may not witness many of these problems women face, however, the country side is where women are still very opressed. Rape is still heavily practised among the masai community which is increasing the rate of HIV infection.
So we spent the last night together as the group of 8 before departing our seperate ways in the morning. We said our goodbyes, and off to Morogoro it was for me.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Double Dose of Amsterdam
Well.. Im here!! And wow... was it an adventure. Once in Amsterdam, we boarded our connection flight to Dar. At about four and a half hours in there was an announcement that we were having some technical difficulties and the plane had to be turned around. I guess the cabin pressure monitors went down for about 10 seconds and the pilots had to wear oxygen masks, but then the monitors went back on. We had to turn the plane around and go all the way back to Amsterdam! We were flying above Egypt at the time but we could not land there to fix the problem because it would take a few days. We would not be able to leave due to immigration issues so the best thing was to go all the way back. So, we got off the plane, waited 20 mins, and got back on another that was waiting for us. The flight that was supposed to be about 9 hours took nearly 21! But, we arrived and we are here in Dar Es Salaam now. It is HOT but not unbearable. It doesn't really feel like we're in Africa yet, just another big city with lots of dark skinned people haha. Suprisingly, I would say there are more people moving about here than in China! More cars, more people walking, more everything! It is beautiful and really neat to see but I think more will kick in once I head off into the more rural Morogoro. We have until friday here for orientation before we go our seperate ways to the different locations. I am not sure of the next time I will be able to access the internet so this was just a short little update so you know I have arrived. I will be thinking of you all, wish me luck!
Sunday, January 25, 2009
The past two days the group has spent doing sessions with the Center for Intercultural Learning. Throughout various workshops we were taught many skills on how to be effective working in an intercultural environment, ranging from games on group dynamics, culture shock, c!ultural sensitivity and adaptation. The training was productive and I think will be a valuable asset to helping me make realistic goals and achieve success in my own measure.
Last night, a group member and myself decided to really treat ourselves for our last night in Canada. Despite being the coldest night of our entire week in Toronto, we found ourselves walking around downtown finding a good place to get some Canadian grub. Seeing as how we are staying in the Fasion district, the first few blocks of eateries were... lets just say, out of our league haha. Finally deciding on a s teakhouse, we walked in to have our last meal. I, of course, orderded a giant steak and potatoes. Satisfying my cravings, we opted to having a few glasses of wine and even dessert. Once we were finally stuffed, we realized we had spent more on this entire meal than we had all week on eating. Oh well! I think I may be looking at eating vegetarian while in Tanzania, that steak may have been my last look at beef.
We just checked out of our hostel and now we're just bumming around Toronto until it is time to head off to the Airport. Suprisingly, I have remained very calm throughout this whole time; I don't have that nauseous nervous feeling in my stomach that I had before taking off to China. In all honesty, I still have no idea what to expect of what I will be doing in Tanzania, but I'm okay with that. We fly out of Toronto to Amsterdam at 6pm Toronto time this Sunday evening and do not arrive in Tanzania until 11pm January 27th. Once I'm in country, we have a few days of orientation in Dar Es Saalam before venturing off to Morogoro. Wish me luck and I'll talk to you all once im in AFRICA.
Last night, a group member and myself decided to really treat ourselves for our last night in Canada. Despite being the coldest night of our entire week in Toronto, we found ourselves walking around downtown finding a good place to get some Canadian grub. Seeing as how we are staying in the Fasion district, the first few blocks of eateries were... lets just say, out of our league haha. Finally deciding on a s teakhouse, we walked in to have our last meal. I, of course, orderded a giant steak and potatoes. Satisfying my cravings, we opted to having a few glasses of wine and even dessert. Once we were finally stuffed, we realized we had spent more on this entire meal than we had all week on eating. Oh well! I think I may be looking at eating vegetarian while in Tanzania, that steak may have been my last look at beef.
We just checked out of our hostel and now we're just bumming around Toronto until it is time to head off to the Airport. Suprisingly, I have remained very calm throughout this whole time; I don't have that nauseous nervous feeling in my stomach that I had before taking off to China. In all honesty, I still have no idea what to expect of what I will be doing in Tanzania, but I'm okay with that. We fly out of Toronto to Amsterdam at 6pm Toronto time this Sunday evening and do not arrive in Tanzania until 11pm January 27th. Once I'm in country, we have a few days of orientation in Dar Es Saalam before venturing off to Morogoro. Wish me luck and I'll talk to you all once im in AFRICA.
Friday, January 23, 2009
Pre-Departure Training, Toronto
We live in a world that has two hundred million youth living in poverty, 130 million youth are non-literate, 88 million are unemployed and 10 million young people are living with HIV/AIDS. Most young people (roughly 85%) live in developing countries.
During this three day training period, YCI has helped me prepare myself to face some of these issues. Day two has a significant value for my learning; YCI brought in two Canadians who have been living with HIV. They spoke to us about their experiences in Canada what it is like to be HIV+. From them we were able to ask as many questions as we wanted, ranging from general info on HIV to personal questions about when and how they think they contracted the virus. Ester, a native from Zimbabwae, was asked the question "In which country did you feel a higher degree of stigma, your homeland or Canada?" I found it apsolutely astonishing that she replied with Canada. I encourage you all to become more educated on the topic of HIV/AIDS, get tested and help reduce the stigma; AIDS is becoming an epidemic everywhere, not just Africa. 60,000 Canadians are infected with the HIV virus and that number is increasing rapidly.
We have convered such a wide variety of topics in just our short three days. However, I think Gender will be my most challenging issue to tackle in the field once situated in Tanzania.
-Out of over 180 countries, only 13 are currently headed by women. (march 2007)
-Only 1% of the world's assets are in the name of women.
-70% of people in abject poverty- living on less than $1 per day- are women.
-Globally, women make up 60% of the 15-24 year olds who are HIV+
During this three day training period, YCI has helped me prepare myself to face some of these issues. Day two has a significant value for my learning; YCI brought in two Canadians who have been living with HIV. They spoke to us about their experiences in Canada what it is like to be HIV+. From them we were able to ask as many questions as we wanted, ranging from general info on HIV to personal questions about when and how they think they contracted the virus. Ester, a native from Zimbabwae, was asked the question "In which country did you feel a higher degree of stigma, your homeland or Canada?" I found it apsolutely astonishing that she replied with Canada. I encourage you all to become more educated on the topic of HIV/AIDS, get tested and help reduce the stigma; AIDS is becoming an epidemic everywhere, not just Africa. 60,000 Canadians are infected with the HIV virus and that number is increasing rapidly.
We have convered such a wide variety of topics in just our short three days. However, I think Gender will be my most challenging issue to tackle in the field once situated in Tanzania.
-Out of over 180 countries, only 13 are currently headed by women. (march 2007)
-Only 1% of the world's assets are in the name of women.
-70% of people in abject poverty- living on less than $1 per day- are women.
-Globally, women make up 60% of the 15-24 year olds who are HIV+
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Youth Challenge International- Project: Tanzania
For those of you who do not know exactly what I'm doing, here is a little info.
The overseas learning program opportunity I am involved with is an 8 week placement in Tanzania, Africa with Youth Challenge International. YCI-Tanzania is a non-profit, non-religious charitable organization funded primarily by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)'s Global Youth Leadership Program, building the skills, experience and confidence of young people to effect positive change in their communities. . Working alongside local community partner organizations, myself and other volunteers help improve capacity and assist in the delivery and expansion of local programming focused on mobilizing youth through skills development and employability training, HIV/AIDS awareness raising, gender equality training, and enabling local youth to take on leadership roles. In rural Morogoro, some of the projects I will be taking part in are: "The Courage Campaign" designed to decrease negative stigma attached to HIV/AIDS testing, to encouraged healthy lifestyle choices, and join the global fight against HIV/AIDS; Health and Life Skills Classes to educate youth in various aspects of health, as a means to improve abilities to make healthy lifestyle choices; A Girls Club to build the confidence, leadership and life skills of female students at the Faraja Shule; Sexual and Reproductive Health & HIV/AIDS School Presentations to secondary school students; International Women's Day.
Africa- some people think of elephants and lions, some think of naked tribes people, and then some people think of crime and danger. For me, ever since I was a little girl, I can remember dreaming about one day going to Africa. I always talked about it and conspired how I was going to get there; in all honesty, I never thought it would actually come true.
One day, I saw a posting about YCI online and I figured "What the hell, it doenst hurt to try." Low and behold, I got an email requesting an interview. Arranging a date and time, the interview passed and a week later I would find out. Despite stumbling past the questions and studdering my answers, I got the acceptance email. I read it, then I read it again, and then I read it some more. After the words on the screen finally sunk in, I sat down in my chair and cried. The tears, to tell you the truth, im not sure what they were coming from: Joy, fear, curiosity, excitement, anxiety, so many emotions were running through my head and now streaming down my face. After my minute of review, the excitement finally sunk in and I ran down the stairs to tell my mom what every mom loves to hear. "Mom!! Im going to AFRICA!!!"
Despite all my talks about one day venturing off to Africa, I dont think my parents really thought I'd go through with it either. But, despite all their fears, they put a smile on their face and congradulated me. So, here I am in Toronto for pre-departure training, 5 months later, $3,700 raised *cough cough more like $7,000 cough cough*, and my backpack packed, ready to go.
I want to take the time to thank my friends and family. I know everyone always says this, but honestly, I could NOT have done it without you. I appreciate every minute spent on one of my lame fundraisers and every penny donated towards my goal. Sincerely, thank-you.
To my family: Ever since I was little you taught me to follow my heart and to experience life for myself. You all led by example by never giving up when times got tough and showed me that I can do anything I want to. Your compassion, support, and good advice are thigns that I can never live without. I've learned to never fear the unkown and that I can accomplish anything I want to. Kyle, you showed me the way and led me onto a path that changed my life forever. Not many brothers would agree to take their 16 year old sis across the world for two months... so, thanks bro.
The overseas learning program opportunity I am involved with is an 8 week placement in Tanzania, Africa with Youth Challenge International. YCI-Tanzania is a non-profit, non-religious charitable organization funded primarily by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)'s Global Youth Leadership Program, building the skills, experience and confidence of young people to effect positive change in their communities. . Working alongside local community partner organizations, myself and other volunteers help improve capacity and assist in the delivery and expansion of local programming focused on mobilizing youth through skills development and employability training, HIV/AIDS awareness raising, gender equality training, and enabling local youth to take on leadership roles. In rural Morogoro, some of the projects I will be taking part in are: "The Courage Campaign" designed to decrease negative stigma attached to HIV/AIDS testing, to encouraged healthy lifestyle choices, and join the global fight against HIV/AIDS; Health and Life Skills Classes to educate youth in various aspects of health, as a means to improve abilities to make healthy lifestyle choices; A Girls Club to build the confidence, leadership and life skills of female students at the Faraja Shule; Sexual and Reproductive Health & HIV/AIDS School Presentations to secondary school students; International Women's Day.
Africa- some people think of elephants and lions, some think of naked tribes people, and then some people think of crime and danger. For me, ever since I was a little girl, I can remember dreaming about one day going to Africa. I always talked about it and conspired how I was going to get there; in all honesty, I never thought it would actually come true.
One day, I saw a posting about YCI online and I figured "What the hell, it doenst hurt to try." Low and behold, I got an email requesting an interview. Arranging a date and time, the interview passed and a week later I would find out. Despite stumbling past the questions and studdering my answers, I got the acceptance email. I read it, then I read it again, and then I read it some more. After the words on the screen finally sunk in, I sat down in my chair and cried. The tears, to tell you the truth, im not sure what they were coming from: Joy, fear, curiosity, excitement, anxiety, so many emotions were running through my head and now streaming down my face. After my minute of review, the excitement finally sunk in and I ran down the stairs to tell my mom what every mom loves to hear. "Mom!! Im going to AFRICA!!!"
Despite all my talks about one day venturing off to Africa, I dont think my parents really thought I'd go through with it either. But, despite all their fears, they put a smile on their face and congradulated me. So, here I am in Toronto for pre-departure training, 5 months later, $3,700 raised *cough cough more like $7,000 cough cough*, and my backpack packed, ready to go.
I want to take the time to thank my friends and family. I know everyone always says this, but honestly, I could NOT have done it without you. I appreciate every minute spent on one of my lame fundraisers and every penny donated towards my goal. Sincerely, thank-you.
To my family: Ever since I was little you taught me to follow my heart and to experience life for myself. You all led by example by never giving up when times got tough and showed me that I can do anything I want to. Your compassion, support, and good advice are thigns that I can never live without. I've learned to never fear the unkown and that I can accomplish anything I want to. Kyle, you showed me the way and led me onto a path that changed my life forever. Not many brothers would agree to take their 16 year old sis across the world for two months... so, thanks bro.
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