First day home and feelings about going home

I had mixed feelings about going home. It seemed like it would be weird and good at the same time. On the flight from DC to Boston, I talked to a woman who works for the USDA. She was going to Boston for a conference or something. The DC-Boston flight was short as usual. 12/8/08: First day at home Today was my first full day back home. I woke up early, at around 9 am. I walked to Trader Joes in the cold. I went by K-mart in the afternoon to see about working there over winter break. Overall, I pretty much settled back into being home. 12/12/08:First Friday at home Only noteworthy because today I realized that I was bored of being home already. Actually, there is still stuff to do, but soon, I will be bored and longing to go back to school. Today I spent some time unpacking my backpack This will probably be the last Africa blog entry. Hope you have enjoyed reading my Blog

Journey home

12/6/08: We awoke at 5:00 and packed up our stuff. We took a 5:30 cab to the airport and got there a little after 6am. Our flight was delayed for about 2 hours. So, we needn't have arrived at the airport so early, but better to get there early than to have missed our flight. The flight was fine, and it went pretty fast. I watched 3 movies, played some cards, and listened to my ipod. I had almost a whole row to myself, and in general, the plane was pretty empty. Getting my bag and getting through customs in London was pretty slick. I spent the night in the airport with some others from my group. We slept in a nook that was near some computers and some restaurants. I didn't sleep very well at all that night, I think because of all the light. 12/7/08: Around 3 am, I got up and used the internet. Afterwards, I tried to fall asleep, but I was unsuccessful. Around 5am, I got up, changed, and packed up my stuff. I then checked my bag. Luckily, I was able to get on a considerably earlier flight out of London. Rather than leaving at 12:40, I left at 7:40. If all went according to plan, I would get home at about 2pm. The London to DC flight was fine, but it left late, and so I missed my connection. Luckily there was one to Boston at 1:45 that I was able to catch. The London flight was also pretty boring because the movies weren't as good, and I couldn't think of much to do.

Arusha/Return to Nairobi

12/3/08: In the morning we checked out of the hotel and moved into a different one that was a lot nicer. The rooms were suites. They had a living room, a bedroom, a kitchen, and a bathroom with a tub. Despite the nice room, the beds were hard as rocks. The internet was free so I spent a lot of time on it. 12/4/08: Today I had my Swahili oral exam. It wasn't too hard. Once I finished, I was done with my academic obligations for the semester. Sweet! 12/5/08: Today thirteen of us began our journey back to Nairobi. We rode in a bus, and took up most of the room inside of it. The ride took about 8 hours. It would have been faster, but we hit traffic on the way into Nairobi. The hotel that I had planned to stay in didn't work out, so I ended up staying with 4 other people in a different hotel. Apparently the hotel I had planned to stay at was in a pretty sketchy neighborhood, at least that's what my Swahili teacher said.In the hotel we ended up staying in, we shared a triple. 3 people slept in the beds, and two slept on the floor. We all went to bed pretty early because we had to get up at 5:00 to take a taxi to the airport to catch our flight to London.

Journey back to Arusha

12/1/08: Today we woke up early and began our journey back to Arusha. We drove about 7-8 hours to the campsite that we were planning to stay at. The campsite was on the floor of the Rift Valley. It was humid and hot at the campsite. The campsite was near Lake Natron and near a waterfall 12/2/08: In the morning we walked to a waterfall. It was cool to see and to swim in. The water didn't look that dirty, but it was full of sand. I might still have sand in my shorts from swimming in the water Afterwards, we loaded into the Unimogs. We drove for a little and arrived at Lake Natron. There were tons of flamingos there. The lake is a breeding ground for flamingos. In the evening, at around 6, we arrived at our hotel in Arusha. The hotel was decent and I got to take a warm shower, which was nice after being in the bush for a month.

The Maasai homestay

In the morning on Thursday (Thanksgiving), we walked over to the secondary school. The classrooms were cylindrical with a pointed roof. In the afternoon we returned to the school to be picked at random for our Maasai homestay. The first night was pretty interesting, and a little awkward. Many people's mothers didn't speak any Swahili. Luckily, mine did so we were able to communicate a little without the translator. That night I attempted to milk a cow. I was not successful. The home I was in was hot, smoky, and full of flies. Although it was Thanksgiving, it did not feel like it. I suppose, Thanksgiving only matters if you are in the US. Friday: In the morning I attempted to milk a cow again. This time I succeeded. After breakfast, which consisted of tea and chapati, I went with my mother to get water at a nearby stream. We filled up the jugs with a cup. I carried it back on my head. It was really hard to do. I'm glad I don't have to do it every day like they do. Later we got fire wood, which I again carried back on my head. Carrying the wood was a lot easier than carrying the water. Saturday: Saturday was very similar to Friday. We milked the cow, gathered water and firewood, and cooked. Sunday: In the morning, I fetched water and packed up my stuff. Afterwards, I hung out in my small, smoky, buggy, hot home. Health: I noticed during my three days with the Maasai that some of the kids had a cough. It seemed to be that the more time spent in the home, the worse the cough. One of the little kids coughed a lot. I wonder how harmful the home conditions are to the overall health of the Maasai women who spend so much time in the smoke. Flies: The kids were covered in them. They must have gotten used to them, because I couldn't handle them any where near my face. In the afternon I returned to camp. we served our mothers lunch. There was so much rice. It filled up a pot that seemed like the equivalent of two lobster pots. It was nice to have a chance to shower after being around all the smoke and flies. After lunch, the Maasai women held a market. I bought a couple of necklaces. Afterwards, the Maasai left. The following day, we began our journey back to Arusha. Photos: Top left: Maasai home (not mine) Top middle: my boma Top right: my mom milking a cow Bottom left: one of my Maasai brothers Bottom right: more siblings, the main room of the house

Days before the Maasai homestay

On Tuesday we arrived at our campsite near the Maasai homestay. On Wednesday, we learned what it was like to be both a Maasai women and a Maasai man. The women do pretty much everything. All the men do is herd animals and sit around. The homestays were sponsored by the pastoral women's council. The pastoral women's council is a non-governmental organization that focuses on educating women, and giving them more authority to control their lives. That night we were taught some Maasai words that would be useful during the homestay. I didn't remember any of the words though.

The Serengeti

After spending a night on the rim of the crater, we headed out. We drove around the serengeti. We stopped at Olduvai Gorge and at the shifting sands. The gorge was a site where some hominid remains had been found. Shifting sands is a mound of sand that moves a little bit every year. We found a mummified frog, and several dead dung beetles in the sand. The whole area was a little creepy. That afternoon we arrived at our campsite on the outside of the serengeti. We stayed at that campsite for a few days. It was very windy there. My tent was blown down, and others were damaged in the wind. One of the days, we walked to a hippo pool. The pool smelled terrible because of hippo defecation and the lack of moving water. We had our test in bio the final full day we were there. It wasn't too difficult. On monday morning we moved to the campsite near where we would be doing our Maasai homestay.

The Ngorongoro Crater

November19th-November 21st We drove from the Yaida Valley to the outskirts of the crater on the Wednesday the 19th. For part of the drive we were on paved roads. It was the first time in awhile that that had been true. Usually we were on dirt roads, or following tire tracks in the dirt. Anyway, the campsite we stayed at was pretty nice. It had warm showers and an area with electricity. The following morning we woke up at about 5 to go inside the crater. Instead of taking the Unimogs into the crater, we took smaller land rovers because the unimogs are not allowed in. In the crater we saw tons of animals. My favorites were the hippos and hyenas. There were also tons of wildabeests, buffalos, warthogs, and birds. We saw a couple of lions, and a baboon troupe, along with some black-faced vervet monkey. That night we camped right on the rim. As we were listening to someone give their presentation, an elephant walked through the campsite. It wasn't ours, but it was pretty close. It was also about as cold as the Nou forest on the rim because we were at a similar altitude, like around 8,000 feet. Photo: The unimogs, taken at our campsite in the Nou Forest

Yaida Valley Activities

The people of the Yaida valley are the Hadza. They are a hunter-gatherer tribe. They share what they obtain with each other. The society is egalitarian. The only thing that isn't shared completely is honey because honey can be sold for money to pay school fees or to purchase cell-phones, although cell-phones are shared amongst the different tribal members. Their language has clickls in it, one of which is indicated with an ! when it is written down. The first full day we were there, we went down to where they had set up camp. We went with the women to watch them gather. The main thing they seemed to be gathering was a root that they called !ekwa. I don't remember the English or Swahili name for it. There was a lot of moisture in the root. It might be a good dry season source of water for the Hadza. That afternoon we had the opportunity to do some bead work or make arrows. I chose to make an arrow. To straighten the wood, the Hadza use fire to heat up the wood so that it is easier to bend. For the tip, they use a flattenned nail. They must have used stones before they had contact with westerners. Mine turned out okay, but some where along the way that day I lost track of it. I don't know if anyone managed to get his or hers back to his or her home. The following day, we walked across the valley to the next campsite we were staying at. It was about a 9 mile hike. The unimogs (the trucks we drove around in) carried our bags. It was a pretty nice hike although by the end of it it got pretty hot. On the 18th, we split into groups and went out hunting with two hadza men. We got kind of close to catching a few medium-sized animals, but they got away. They did manage to catch a hyrax, which resembles a rodent, but is actually cousin to the elephant. We got really close to a wart hog. The hadza were gathering honey when we noticed a warthog just standing there, maybe 10 yards away from the two Hadza. Unfortunately, by the time they got their bows ready, the wart hog had run away. Back to the hyra, after walking around for a couple more hours, and eating a small amount of honey, we went back to camp. There we turned over the hyrax to the women who were going to cook it. They roasted it over the fire with the fur and everything still on it. As the hair began to burn, they peeled off the fur and hair. Unfortunately, the hyrax was a female and was pregnant. :(. Later that day, I watched a goat being slaughtered. One of the guys in our group slit it's throat. I watched the gutting process, and I got to see the stomach contents, which consisted of grass, digested to various degrees depending on the stomach it was in. Unluckily, the goat was also pregnant. The hadza eat every part of the animal that they kill including the all the organs. They even eat the fetuses. The hadza are a cool tribe because they are a window into the human past.

Nov 11th- 15th

On Wednesday we went to the the Nou forest. No one seemed able to tell me why, including the Iraqw who live on the edge of the forest. It was nice to have a break from the hot, dry weather of the plains, and be up in the cool forest. It was actually cold at night. On Thursday, we hiked down to a waterfall. The water around the fall was very cold. I didn't go swimming it, although some members of my group did. The next day we went to the village. We got to see one of the traditional houses. It kind of reminded me of a hobbit hole. It was dark and smoky on the inside. There were some pens for the animals inside of it. Apparently that style of house has been banned because it is a breeding ground for TB. Later on we got to see them dance. Some of the guys joined in with them. In general, the houses were made of the same combination of wood and mud that the houses in Tumbe were made of. The following day we drove to the Yaida valley. The Yaida valley had the same terrain as most of the other areas we had been in except for the Nou forest: Acacias, commiphoras, candelabra euphorbias. It also had these really annoying stingless bees that were about the same size as flies. They did make good honey though.

Tarangire National Park

In Tarangire we saw a ton of animals, including Zebras, lions, giraffes, baboons, birds (including Ostrich), gazelles, dik diks, impalas. The animals in Tarangire were way less concerned about the unimog than the animals outside of the park.

Tuesday Nov 4th- Nov 9th, Arusha- beginning of safari

Us, chillin on the top of Mt. Sambu View from the top of Mt. Sambu On Tuesday, we went into Arusha to buy any last minute items needed for safari and to check the internet one last time before a four week drought. On Wednesday, we found out that Barack Obama won the election. Some people got up really early to watch the coverage. Everyone was stoked. After we learned the results, we went to Olasiti village, a waArusha community near Dorobo's campsite. We got to talk to a villager, and to see the terrain from a hill near by that we walked up. On Thursday, we left Arusha and properly began our safari. We drove to Oldonyo Sambu. Oldonyo means moutain in kimaasai. En route we saw some animals. I think we saw giraffe and zebra, but I can't remember exactly. While driving I was suprised to see people. I really shouldn't have been, but we were in remote areas, which in the US would not have any people. I guess the difference is due to the fact that in Tanzania, the natives weren't killed off and kicked off their land in the same numbers as they were in the US. Friday: We talked with some Maasai in the morning because it was raining and we couldn't go for a walk. The person I was talking to was twenty years old. He was married. It was interesting to compare his life to mine since we were the same age. In the afternoon it stopped raining, and so we went for a walk and saw some animals. One of the more interesting things that we saw was a dead carcass hanging from a tree. It was apparently set as a lion trap. The idea was that the lion would come back again and again to the same spot, and would drop his guard, making it easier for a hunter to shoot him. On Saturday, we hiked Mt. Sambu in the morning. It was nice to get a broad view of the terrain. It was also cool to see an elephant in the distance. On Sunday we went on another walk to the mountain that we hiked the previous day. Overall, the first week of safari went well, no complaints here. Photos: Top Left: Us, on top of Oldonyo Sambu Top Right: View from Oldonyo Sambu Bottom Left: The group hanging out beneath the tent, Oldonyo Sambu Bottom Right: View from the hill we went to the top of in Olasiti Village

Pembe Abwe- October 27th- November 3

In Pembe Abwe we stayed in Bandas. They were kind of like cabins, but open, with only screens, and elevated off the ground. The one I stayed in had a toilet and a shower inside of it. We spent the week snorkeling. We went to a reef about forty-five minutes away from where we were staying, by boat. The reef we went to most of the days was called Maziwi. It is a protected area, and noone is allowed to fish there. Enforcement is problematic though, because the government organization who is supposed to be enforcing it, isn't really doing so. Some of the cooler things I saw were sea turtles, rays, and a stone fish. I took an identification test on some of the fish in the water. That was probably one of the cooler academic parts of the week. On Saturday, we did something called a reef check. During a reef check, 6 people count the organisms in a specific area. Two people counted fish, two counted certain invertebrates, and myself and my partner documented the other stuff that was along a 100m area. Every five meters there was a mark, and we dropped a weight where the mark was, and then documented what kind of sea life was below the mark. It was an interesting experience. On Sunday we had a written test, went snorkeling, and then had the afternoon off. On Monday, we drove, in a bus and a land rover, from Pembe Abwe, to the safari company's camp outside of Arusha. On Thursday, we depart into the Serengeti for the safari part of our journey.

Zanzibar again

On Tuesday we returned to Zanzibar and pretty much had the rest of the afternoon off. The follownig day we had our last Campion history class. We had the rest of the day off to explore and to write the paper that we had to write. For lunch I had Indian, but for dinner I had kebobs from a street vendor. They were tasty and cheap. On Thursday our essay was due, and we had our last Sperling culture class. We had a pretty intersting guest speaker. He was part of the office of prosecution in Zanzibar, and he explained when Islamic law is applied and when it is not. After he spoke, we had the rest of the day off. On Friday, we had a history final that was pretty straight forward and easy to complete. On Saturday, we left the Garden Lodge, and began our week of free travel.

Pemba and the Tumbe homestay

After we got to Pemba, we had breakfast at a hotel in Chake Chake. Afterwards, we went to a spice farm. After the tour, I purchased lemongrass, cloves, cardimum, and vanilla. Afterwards, we had lunch in Wete, and then proceeded to Tumbe. Tumbe is a small muslim village near Wete. Many of the houses in the village were made of mud. When we arrived in Tumbe, we went to the school and got assigned to our homestay families. I was paired with the Imam of the village. He has a motorbike that I got to ride on. His house was made of bricks, I think. In the center of the house there was an open area where they cooked and washed dishes. The bathroom consisted of a hole in the ground. The first night I was there, I travelled to this other village with my homestay father. I ended up having awkward converstations with people that were partially in Swahili and partially in English because I had trouble understanding their swahili. The first day I was there, I went to the beach with a group of people and walked along it with them. In the afternoon, I went to the forest and to a beach resort on the back of my homestay father's motorbike. The forest and the hotel were both pretty cool. On tuesday morning we left Tumbe, and went to the airport to fly back to Zanzibar. The plane that I took was a five seater plane. It kind of reminded me of a van with wings in terms of its size. Luckily, it landed safely back in Zanzibar. When we got there, we waited for one of the two other groups to arrive, and then proceeded to the Garden Lodge hotel where we were staying.

Zanzibar the first time.

On Friday, October 10th, we left Mombasa, and took a plane to Zanzibar, an Island off the coast of Tanzania. The plane we took was pretty small. I think there were maybe forty seats on it. Maybe less, I really am not sure. It was definitely pretty small though. The following day we went to a museum and in the afternoon we went to the anglican church in Stone Town. The church is on the site of the slave market in Stone Town. When the slave trade was abolished, the market was changed into the church. That night, we took a boat from Stone town to Pemba. The boat was way over-crowded, and people were sleeping in the aisles. The boat ride took 8 hours, and was overnight. The safety of the boat was questionable because there was only one exit that was open and the boat was way over capacity. Luckily, the boat got to Pemba safely.

Mombasa and the Surrounding area

On Monday morning we departed Nairobi and headed for Mombasa. On the way to Mombasa, the bus we were on broke down three times. The first time it had basically just overheated. The other two times, some other more serious problem occured. After the third time the bus broke down, we called another bus, and waited two hours for it to come. While we were waiting, we hung out by the side of the road. When the bus finally came, and we arrived in Mombasa, we went to a swahili restaurant and had some pretty good food. Afterwards, we went to the hotel where we were staying and hung out some more. On Tuesday, we went to Fort Jesus. Fort Jesus is an old Portugeuse fort in Mombasa. Afterwards, we went to a resort hotel right on the Indian Ocean. On Thursday, we went to a mosque and school, to an Indian restaurant in Malindi for lunch, and then to the Gede ruins. The Gede ruins are the ruins of an old swahili community. It is not known why the Gedean people deserted the village, but it was deserted. Some of the houses had simple indoor pluming and cooling systems. After the Gede ruins, we went back to the hotel that we had stayed in during our first night in Mombasa.

September 12th-October 6th

The homestays continued. On the 12th, we went to the National musuem in nairobi. It had some stuffed animals and some other interesting exhibits. Afterwards, we went to a market. The market sold a large variety of clothes and fresh fruit. The hardest part of the whole day was finding a bus back from the market because a lot of them were already full. We ended up taking a cab because the buses just weren't coming. On the 21st of september, I nearly was in a car accident on the way back to Nairobi from the countryside. There were two cars in front of us. One slipped and swerved and hit the car next to him. In order to avoid the collision, the driver of my car swerved the car into the bushes. Luckily, neither the car nor any of the people were injured. The rest of the homestay was pretty uneventful, although we did travel to some towns around Mt. Kenya. On the 6th of October, I left Riruta and spent the night in the methodist guest house. The following monday, we left for Mombasa.

Homestays: Right now I am staying with a family in Riruta Satellite. The family has a TV, a DVD palyer, and a stereo system, but no running water. To bath, I have been using buckets full of hot water. My brothers are 9, and 4 (twins). They also have a house keeper. The mother is a caterer and the father is a mechanic. We are taking classes in a house where the group leader is staying. So far, classes are going okay. Rain and Mud: The last few days, it has rained. At home the rain comes, and things just get wet, in Riruta satellite, mud is the bigger problem. It becomes advantageous to leave before the rain starts, rather than try to walk home in the rain. Riruta Satelite: Riruta satellite is a suburb of Nairobi. There are various shops and kiosks along the road. Most of the streets are not paved, which partially creates the mud problem. The people in Riruta range from poor to upper-middle class. Middle class in Nairobi is not the same as it is in the states. It seems to mean that the people have certain comforts like a TV or a house helper. My experience in Riruta has been interesting so far. I have eaten many foods that I hadn't eaten before, like Ughali. Ugahli is a starch that is eaten as a utensil and is always eaten with other things. I have had it a few times. I leave the homestay at the beginning of October, then we will go back to the guest house, and then to Mombasa.

Guest house

So far, Africa is great. Had Ethipian food last night, and went to a posh mall near the place that I am staying at. Heading to homestays tomorrow. Dinner somewhere interesting tonight. Classes are going well. Post more the next time I am in an internet cafe. -Courtney

Getting ready for departure

So, I leave for Africa today in a little under two hours. It still hasn't sunk that I am leaving and will be gone for a little over three months. Craziness. Pre-trip prep is complete. I am excited and a little nervous. Well, Nairobi here I come (on tuesday).

August

So, it's august. I leave for Africa in a few weeks. I have spent so much money buying stuff for the trip. Why does it have to cost so much to travel to other countries? I am still really excited to go though. So now is the time to finish the essays I have to write and to learn some swahili. Nafahamu kiswahili kidogo lakini sivizuri sana. Woot! Africa here I come (in a few weeks, first to CA).

July

Shots, Canada, reading, work, excited

First Post

So, I have decided that until I actually arrive in Africa, I will only post once a month. I have been to Africa before. In 2005 I went to South Africa with people from my school in the US and other teenagers from a school in Scotland through World Challenge Expeditions, a company based in London. I am really looking forward to seeing a new part of Africa and getting to experience a new culture. So, my trip to Africa should be enriching.