DAY 1
Mambo! Jambo! Welcome to Tanzania! The students have arrived in Tanzania and they were welcomed by the local Tanzania staff and the GLA Team. In the morning, we were serenaded by the sounds of moosulini the neighbor’s angry cow, the sounds of chickens, and the call to prayer. Breakfast consisted of chapati, mandanzi, toast, eggs, and fruit. The students began forging their relationships through icebreakers like name alliteration, storytelling, and bucket of dreams. Mama Simba, the regional director, led an informative orientation about the customs and cultural expectations of the community. Students were able to reflect on how their background and experiences compare to the lifestyles of Tanzanians. The students are looking forward to exploring the community and the local markets tomorrow.
June 25, 2017
Mambo! Me (Gabi B.) and Nani started the day by waking everyone up by playing music, since we were leaders of the day. There was a group of people who went to church at 6 am. We all got ready for the day and came down for breakfast. We ate delicious eggs, chappati, and cassava! Then Upendo (Mama Simba’s daughter) talked to us as a group about Tanzanian culture. We learned about polygamy, homosexuality, divorce, child labor, teenage pregnancy and other interesting topics. We can’t wait to teach you all we have learned from this lesson! After, we were split up into groups of 3-4 people and had lunch at the home base with a host family. Most of the host families only spoke Swahili so it gave us a chance to practice and teach them some English. After lunch, we left the home base with our families and groups. They took us to their homes and when we got there we gave them a host gift that consisted of fabric, matches and food. We went around town: lake/river, the market, farm and the families own restaurant. At around 5 pm we all came back to the home base after saying our goodbyes to our host families. We all had an awesome time! Later on, we had a yummy dinner of spaghetti, sauce, rice and fruit. Right after dinner we were given a teaching lesson by one of our mentors Tyler. She taught us how to approach the children that we will be working at the Patandi school. We then played a teaching game that helped us to practice teaching a lesson to others. Today was so much fun; Nani and I can’t wait for tomorrow when we get to work with the children in the classroom for the first time! Kwaheri!
~ Nani Blanco and Gabi Boiskin
June 26, 2017
This morning, we woke up and ate breakfast before leaving for the Patandi Elementary School to do service work. Though we were expecting to teach, the students were out of school for Eid (the end of Ramadan), so we ended up sanding the exterior of the building to prepare for a new paint job that we may or may not do. We were, however, accompanied by a few students that left home on their day off to assist us. After leaving the school and eating some lunch, a panel of five HIV/AIDS positive speakers educated us on their personal experiences and the aftermath of their diagnosis. Students were fascinated by the extent of their suffering, as well as their unawareness of the status of HIV/AIDS in America. We ended the day with a competitive (rough) game of soccer at a local field and time in our mentor groups, where we discussed our thoughts on the HIV/AIDS panel and connected their experiences with those we see from infected people in America.
Maggie Mattes, Ava
Visit to the Aston Village Orphange
Sanding the wall at Patandi School
Stay tuned for more great photos from yesterday’s hike around Kilimanjaro and today’s safari!!!
Safari Photos!