A Story of Life and Death

At the village, Sacha and I together have witnessed and joined different villagers in their joys and sadnesses. In our month at the village, we have assisted the nurses in four births. When the first mother gave birth in the labor room lighted by kerosene lamps, my first “real” birthing experience was over in less than 30 minutes. The baby was delivered within minutes and with great ease. My first time seeing a newborn baby still with the umbilical cord attached was amazing. Then, when the placenta came out, it was incredible to witness God’s perfect design of the human body to create and sustain a new life. When the second mother gave birth, it was still a relatively simple birth. The mother and all her relatives were overjoyed and we felt consumed in happiness, laughing and celebrating the life of this new baby girl.

However, life is not easy in the village. Successful births are as common as miscarriages, stillbirths, and children never making it to the age of 5. Most of the mothers we met have lost at least one baby and some have given birth 5 times with only one surviving child. One Saturday night, we have met family members of an anemic patient who has come from another village for medical treatment. However, the dispensary was unable to give blood transfusions which the patient needed, so they were referred to another clinic about 3 hours walk away. The next morning, we heard that the patient passed away at the other clinic just as the family was arranging a car to take them to Iringa Hospital (the other clinic did not have the facilities to give the patient a transfusion). The patient, a 16 year old mother who had just given birth 2 weeks prior has died because she could not get a blood transfusion. The families and friends grieved and sang for 4 days and 4 nights. All we could do was to visit the family, pray and grieve with them.

On a Tuesday night, a mother was giving birth to twins. The first child was delivered successfully, but the second child was in the wrong position (his arm came out, but not the head). The mother was in excruciating pain. She was screaming and crying as the doctor and nurses waited for the baby to turn position. However, it was a premature birth, the mother started labor 2 months earlier than expected. After an hour of screaming, the doctor thought it is an emergency to take her in the dispensary vehicle to Iringa Hospital for a Caesarian Section. When we finally drove off, within 5 minutes, the baby came out, dead. The firstborn who was still alive was to be taken to the hospital to an incubator, but he also died within 40 minutes of the drive. The mother had lost all hope and gave up on the child when the child was still alive.

It is sad to think that both deaths could have been prevented anywhere else, but this is “real” everyday life in the village. Life is so precious yet so fragile. We laugh and we grieve, but with God’s grace, we live on, we continue breathing and living, we go on.

Description of Usolanga

After completing one month of Swahili language training in the town of Iringa, Sacha and I are sent to our placement site in the village of Usolanga.
Usolanga (also called Mboli Boli) is a remote village in the Pawaga region of the Iringa District, approximately 75km from Iringa town. Iringa is situated 1500m above sea levels while Pawaga is North East of Iringa at the bottom of the famous Rift Valley (A valley running from Israel to Tanzania). There is only one road that leads to Pawaga. Traveling to Pawaga is a steep descend that passes many mud hut villages and a large forest. During dry season, the scenery is a flat, yellow desert with dry tree frames. With the hot sun, the temperature can rise to an average 35°C in mid-day. Once the rainy season comes (it only lasts for 3-4 months), everything blossoms and a lush green landscape emerge.
The village of Usolanga has approximately 3000 villagers, 50 percent of which are children under the age of 15. It is therefore a “young” and “growing” village. The major tribes in the village are Gogo, Hehe, Masaai and Sukuma tribes and Swahili is the main spoken language. There is currently no electricity and running water. Water is scarce and the only source of water comes from a river 5-6 km away. The villagers either collect water at the only pump in the village or order river water delivered by donkey carts. Neither gives clean drinking water.
The village consists of mud huts, one central market, a Catholic church, an Anglican church, a primary school and St. Luke’s Dispensary. The dispensary was established by the Anglican Church and it is there that Sacha and I work as primary health care worker and community nutrition worker, St. Luke’s is the only health care centre serving the villagers and other nearby villages with vaccines, wound dressing, and medicines for simple treatments of the common diseases such as malaria, dysentery, diarrhea, etc. Some patients come from hours away by foot to see a doctor. Adjacent to the dispensary is the Reproductive Child Health Center (RCH) that provides services such as family planning, midwifery and monitoring of child growth. An average of 10 mothers give birth at the dispensary per month. The staffs include one doctor (Dr. Mheta), two nurses (Atu and Stella), an administrator (Simon), a janitor (Maria) and a night-guard (Yohanna or Marecani – he has 2 names). We work alongside the staffs to teach mothers about nutrition and health and aid the doctor and nurses in their work.

Baba B

November 17th, 2007

Our everyday view - the desert-like dry-season with its sands and perfectly blue sky.

Working at the clinic, I have gotten to know some of the patients who return for check-ups regularly. The only long-term in-patient at the St. Luke’s Dispensary is Baba B. He had a serious bicycle accident a while ago and started treatment in a large hospital in Iringa. However, the family considered costs in the hospital too high and without notice, took Baba B and settled him at our clinic, some 5-6 hours bus ride from Iringa (it only takes 2 hours by car). I’ve become acquainted with Mama B and some of their adult children who have come from different cities and towns to take care of him. I’ve understood that the B family is from the HeHe tribe and they have taught me some HeHe greetings. It is clear that Mama B is a HeHe by the line markings carved on her face. Baba B is quite fortunate to have such a close family around. However, big and caring family seems to be the case in Tanzania anyways. There is always someone available to take care of another family member when they are in need, such as fostering related orphans, nursing sick family members and housing homeless relatives.

Baba B, in my opinion, is paralyzed and has little ability to respond. Sometimes he speaks a bit, but never to me yet, even though I have visited him everyday when I am at the clinic. He has extremely harsh bedsores on his back and sides. Some sores are healing, but the average size is about 10 cm in diameter. One of the sore is open, infected and almost deep enough to see his bone. Atu, the head nurse dresses his sores every morning. The bed sores, are however really preventable, by moving the patient’s sleeping position often, and the family was advised to do so. After assisting Atu one morning, Atu monitored me in dressing Baba B’s wounds first with hydrogen peroxide, then his medicine the next morning. As I was cleaning his wounds, I understand how hard it is to be a nurse. Emotionally, I knew that Baba B was in excruciating pain, yet I have to keep myself from crying while applying the medicines, pressing on his wounds. Imagine a regular nurse, who sees much more horrible things than this, how to keep oneself sane, caring and professional at the same time?

Baba B reminds me of my grandfather in his last days, very weak and waiting either for a miracle or for just the day that he’d breathe his last. Please pray for Baba B and his family, for encouragement and hope in their time of suffering.

Happy 23!

November 5th, 2007

One of the best birthdays I’ve had is in Africa. Well, I could call it the best birthday I’ve ever had in Africa, my first one. So on November 5^th, a lovely Monday, I turned 23 years old in a land as far away from family as possible, but as warm and welcoming as being at home. I had the day free and made some errands in town by myself, enjoying my time of happiness, chatting to different townspeople as I ran about my business. Little did I know of all the quiet planning and strategizing that went behind my back during that time by the rest of the EI staff. After a peaceful day, I was invited to a birthday dinner at Andrew and Miriam’s place. I have asked for eggplant, rice and potato for dinner. That was what I got, because my favorite vegetable is eggplant and favorite food is rice. Yes, come to think of it, I’m a pretty cheap person to treat.

I was given Tangawizi (Tanzanian ginger ale) because it was my birthday. Previous days, everytime I ordered Tangawizi, it was out, so Sacha suggested getting Tangawizi for me. I was made very special that day. After the meal, Sacha and Miriam glanced at each other dubiously and ran into the kitchen. Within minutes, they brought out a beautiful strawberry shortcake with candles on top. I later found out that Sacha slaved away half a day making it. It was so delicious and just melts in my mouth! By this time, I was already extremely blessed and felt very special, thankful for the love and consideration lavished on me by these people that I have only gotten to know. Then, after finishing the fab cake, again, the same quite suspicious look came across again. Suddenly, out came the presents, all wrapped in shinny purple. As I opened each gift, I was surprised as each gift had a special meaning to me. A notebook from Neema Crafts, a Christian Swahili CD which I was planning on buying, and a Mr. Bean’s Complete Series DVD (as we all know that Jen loves Mr. Bean’s). I was laughing so much that tears rolled down my eyes. That was how happy I was. It wasn’t over yet as the funniest expression rolled over everyone and Joe, Paul (a friend who works at Neema Crafts), Sacha, Andrew and Miriam all rushed into the kitchen. In a line, they came, dancing up this round thing wrapped in excessive purple wrapping paper. As I received it, I knew exactly what was in it. Since my first week, I have spotted the most hideous thing in the world that it was even rejectedk from Value Village. It was a costume, suitable for children, of Miss Piggy with a huge head and purple sequins. However, the head fits right under Miss Piggy’s head which looked like one is being eaten by her. The doll was hanging right on the toy stand in the market. Ever since I saw it, I have shown it to everyone who would pass by the toy stand with me because I thought that it was the ugliest and funniest thing in the world. It would seriously give some children nightmares. So, everytime I passed by, I’d anticipate seeing it. It was moved to different spots, but I’d still always be happy to search for it. So, whenever I walked by, the sellers would pull out the doll for me to look at. When I opened the purple wrapping paper, I laughed hysterically. It was sweet of the staff in buying me Miss Piggy and I was very touched for their consideration. The hideous doll no longer seemed so ugly and was almost adorable because of what went in behind it to get it into my arms. So, it is now mine......

My goal for the upcoming year is to bribe a child to take Miss Piggy out of my possession. However, I don’t believe anyone can appreciate this gift more than me.

Happy Birthday! But Ben's the "real" star!

Awesome company for my birthday in Tanzania (from left to right): Jen, Andrew, Ben, Miriam, Sacha and Paul - Joe's taking the picture

mm.... yum..strawberry shortcake

The first present, a very good quality notebook made by Neema Crafts (a craft shop for disabled craftsmen)

Miss Piggy!!

Week One in Usolanga

November 11th, 2007

On Tuesday, Andrew brought Sacha and I officially back to our placement village, Usolanga. After two hours of driving, we’ve made it to our little house behind the dispensary. At this point, the house was still under construction and the workers are working in our courtyard where our kitchen, storeroom and bathroom are. After Andrew has returned to town, Sacha and I continued painting our rooms in the house and cleaning. During the summer, the time where no interns were in the village, the house was empty. A horde of bats invaded the clinic as their morning homes. As they were chased away, the only empty house nearby was ours! So for a length of time, our humble abode was home to 100 bats. The workers were successful to build a ceiling board to prevent bats from entering and living on the roof of the house. However, there were still bat remains and some who sneaks in through the cracks. Andrew and myself each killed one live one. The bat feces is considered really good fertilization for gardening which I will soon start.

Sacha and I, then cooked dinner on a charcoal stove (first time for me) and had a wonderful meal in the dark. The nights in Usolanga are most rewarding as on a clear night, the sky is lit up by millions of stars, so brightly shinning that you’d need to be out in the country to see in Canada. It was speechless and with the breeze of night, we prayed together for our 8 months in the village, for our work here that God would prepare our hearts to serve Him. We prayed for the mothers, the children, the men and women we will meet in our days here, for love and for a sensitivity to the needs of the people, to understand and help each other.

The next morning was the first Wednesday of the month which meant it was Clinic Day at the RCH (Reproductive Child Health) building, an extension of the clinic. Every first and third Wednesday of the month, the mothers of the area bring their under-five years old children to be weighed. During that time, we will be able to teach about health and nutrition and help to weigh and produce the child’s growth chart. This procedure is done so mothers can understand if their children are underweight and unhealthy or needs improvement in their diets. Approximately 200 mothers come to Clinic Day once a month which amounts to 400 mothers in total. According to surveys, there are actually 800 mothers in the region. This means that the clinic is only reaching half of the children in the area. The doctor of the clinic, Dr. Muheta is hoping to have outreaches to make our services available to all the mothers, especially those who live in farther areas.

As we were waiting for the sessions to start, Sacha and I sat in the courtyard of the clinic as a large of mothers waited with their toddlers. The mothers and children alike were interested in us and why we were there. Once in awhile, a mother will forcefully drag her child near us and the child would start wailing upon seeing us. They were scared of us, but everyone else just laughed about that event. The poor child is not yet accustomed to our presence and is terrified by mzungus. Fortunately, there were less than 5 of those children. Along with the health officers, Asha and Musa, we weighed the children and recorded their status. We introduced ourselves and about what we will be doing at the clinic. Upon meeting Asha and Musa, they expected us to teach a full lesson the first time. However, we explained that for the first time, we will help and observe. So, 250 cute, crying babies and their mothers was how we filled half our day.

Thursday, Sacha shadowed Dr. Muheta while I followed Stella, the nurse in the morning. The clinic was bustling with on-going patients. We were dispensing medicines (mostly for malaria), giving injections for malaria and family planning (to prevent pregnancies) and doing antenatal checkups for pregnant mothers. Many first time mothers are around 18 years old while women in their early twenties may be a mother of 3 already. There was a Maasai woman who was very lean and one could not tell that she was pregnant unless they were told. She was 30 weeks pregnant and have had 4 children in the past. Another woman who was severely disabled and deaf was brought by a relative to the clinic. She had 4 previous miscarriages and suspects to be pregnant, however as Stella checked her physically, she has edema (swelling caused by excessive internal water) in her abdominal area. She was sent to be take a urine test for pregnancy for further assessment. However, her case is actually more complicated and needs to be referred to a larger hospital. As I was filling in the hospital cards for the new patients, many information were missing. Many patients do not know their age or the age of their spouse, their profession, etc.

After a short rest, we headed to the primary school and set up a time with the headmaster to come and teach at the school. We will be starting an introductory class on November 22^nd and 23^rd and will be observing classes for the next two weeks. Beginning in January, after the Christmas break, we will be teaching about health and nutrition in Kiswahili. We need to plan our modules as previous interns has already taught a lot of different health topics to the students. The school has around 750 students from grades standard 1 to 7 with only 5 full-time teachers, however they seem to be doing well. We’ve been told that they need help and we are glad to be able to teach there. We roamed around the village trying to find the market but ended up at the pastor’s house. The pastor’s wife (Mama mchungaji) offered us a lunch of groundnuts and cowpeas while we conversed. The children were beautiful and we all sat together. Then, Jason, the second child who is 14 years old took us to the market. He later dropped by our house to learn English and had a nice pasta dinner with us.

On Friday, the clinic had few patients and the day was slow. I followed the doctor and we spoke much about everything from understanding the clinic, the villagers’ illnesses to gardening and keeping chickens. Throughout the week, we had many visitors just dropping in our house and sitting awhile to chat with us. Sometimes, we have a great conversation and sometimes, we just sit around each other, enjoying our days in silence and appreciation. One afternoon, the workers and a Masaai man who dropped in our courtyard on their break, we had an hour of conversation in Kiswahili about the language itself which then evolved to Masaai foods and the role and man and woman in the kitchen in Tanzania. Another night, we spoke to Simon, the clinic administrator who was very good in English and from Dar Es Salaam. All in all, it was a productive week for us in village. We pray for God’s guidance in the days ahead.

Our everyday view - the desert-like dry-season with its sands and perfectly blue sky.

Eating breakfast in our courtyard

Cooking rice on charcoal

Our courtyard consists of: charcoal and kerosene stoves, a large rain-water collecting tank and a table for the kitchen

Sacha's bread that in rising on top of the stove - Sacha's breads are one of the best in the world (my opinion)

A rainbow after the rain right above our courtyard - a sign for a good beginning

Hello Animals! : Ruaha National Park

November 4th, 2007

Our everyday view - the desert-like dry-season with its sands and perfectly blue sky.

What comes to mind first when a non-African thinks about Africa? Maybe it is the wild safaris of animals roaming in freedom and unafraid across the vast, untamed land of tall grasses, mountains and acacia trees. If Lion King comes to mind, then you’re on the right track. On Saturday and Sunday, eight of us, 3 Canadians (I am Chinese Canadian), 1 Spanish, 2 British, 1 German and 1 American went on a safari to the Ruaha National Park, one of the less visited game parks in Tanzania that is only 3 hours away from Iringa by car. We went on a tour with a driver and tour guide, riding in a small bus that had a flip-open roof. Although not as high concentration of animals as in Ngorogonro Park or Serengeti Park, Ruaha’s landscape was incredible and in the dry season, it was clear to spot out all the animals. We saw all the animals that lived in the park from crocodiles, hippos, giraffes, impalas, elephants, zebras, kudus, warthogs, lions to various birds and 200 buffalos (the list is actually much longer). The highlights were numerous, but each time there was a spotting of any animal, there was something surprising. We spotted a lion with a zebra kill from far away and decided to drive up to it. We were literally 5 meters from the lion in the late afternoon. The lion was guarding her zebra and panting in the heat under a tree. Within 20 minutes another lion appeared, and actually switched duties in guarding their food. As we returned to the same spot, 3 lions were resting near the zebra. One was vigorously feasting on this zebra carcass. Another major encounter was the spotting of a LEOPARD! Most people have gone to 3 or 4 safaris without ever seeing a leopard. We were extremely fortunate to see one, thank God! We watched him for an hour as he sneaked slowly and craftily, trailing after an impala as prey. The leopard, upon noticing our presence, hid under the tall grass and quickly escaped our glances. We later saw him at a much farther distance. It was an incredible experience to be part of this “natural” and beautiful world where humans and animals, animals and animals live in harmony (unless you are on the menu!).

Landscape in Ruaha National Park

Crocodiles galore and hippos hidden deep in the water. Hippos come up to breath once in awhile, it is fascinating to hear them breath.

Our traveling gang

Jen

Impala family, following after the father

Lion and zebra kill

Time to switch the guard

Zebras

Elephants

Baobab tree - the most intriguing looking tree, looks like a tree in "Nightmare Before Christmas"

Giraffe portrait

I love seeing the giraffes in action, running fast on their long legs

Spot the leopard - we only had far away pictures

200-300 buffalos

Warthog jaw - reminded me of my dentist friend who practiced on pig jaws, the molars are so clear.

One Tanzanian Wedding

On our third Saturday in Tanzania, the E.I. staff had been invited to an authentic Tanzanian wedding. Thomas, the E.I. house guard was getting married and through Andrew and Miriam’s connections with him, the interns were guaranteed a part in this celebration. What a great opportunity to attend a “real” Tanzanian wedding in the first month!

On the morning of the wedding, Andrew was busy picking up the bride, Neema (Kiswahili for Grace), her bridal procession and such important characters. Miriam was left with the responsibility of taking the interns and giving another group of wedding attendants a lift to the wedding. As we neared the groups of family and friends waiting for our ride, it was visibly not a small group. We crammed in about 20 women and children in the LandCruiser, leaving the men behind to wait for the next round of pick-up. After getting everyone to the church for the wedding, the ceremony was finally starting. As the guests waited for the bride to enter, we all sang, sang and sang. Actually, we sang throughout the wedding whenever there was a gap of long waiting or silence, when there was confusion between the organizers about the program and just about anytime there was no one giving a speech.

With the groom and his best man in the front, in absolute solemnity, the bridal procession made their grand entrance. Leading the procession were four girls, in choreographed dancing, followed by the flower girl and bridesmaid. Then, as we all cheered loudly and the women yelling in high-pitched “lelele”s, an even gloomier bride joined the sad groom in the front of the church for prayer and a preaching on marriage. It is customary for the bride and groom to keep a straight, saddened face as a sign of respect for their parents as they are leaving their original family to start a new family. There was strictly no smiling while the rest of the guests laughed and screamed hysterically. It seriously takes some skill to keep a completely detached expression from all the happiness around. It was impossible to tempt the bride into anything close to a smile, while we caught glimpses of Thomas bursting the bubble and give a held-back smirk once in awhile. The bride and groom sat in chairs listening to the preaching while the best man and bridesmaid was closeby, always ready to do some kind of grooming job on the couple, either wiping their sweats or fiddling with the veil and dress throughout the day. After the vows were given, the papers signed and the couples blessed by the pastors and family and friends, the Christian ceremony ended and everyone made their way to a nearby house for the reception.

There was a large procession of dancing men and women leading the newlyweds to the reception place. After every guest settled down and took a seat, the program began. An extremely tall woman who spoke at a speed of 10 sentences per minute was the Master of Ceremony (M.C.). There were loud speakers playing Christian, upbeat, Kiswahili music in the background controlled by a D.J. It was very festive and everyone was in the mood to have some serious dancing, laughing and celebrating.

One of the highlights was the procession of gift givers. Different groups of guests were called to lavish their gifts to the couple by dancing up each gift in a throng. So the men and women, family and friends all lined up, dancing, moving to the rhythm of the music showing off their presents and surrounding the couple, blessing them. It was so lively and most enjoyable, with endless laughter. Previously, in preparation for the wedding, we went gift shopping, trying to pick out the most suitable gift. Trying to match our personal taste to the bright colored, motif-filled designs on the different kitchen accessories took us a long time to make the final decisions. After looking through many houseware shops, we settled for a light brown-colored thermos and a set of 6 brown mugs (our safest option). With previous warning, we knew that none of us could escape the dancing-the-gift-up part. As the mzungus (Andrew, Miriam and the interns) got ready for our turn at the wedding, not one Tanzanian at the party could keep their mouths from closing, gearing up for a hilarious sight – White people dancing! We took courage and wobbled to the front, giving the guests a real treat and the greatest, loudest laughs with our awkward dancing. (Later, a Tanzanian friend at the wedding informed me that I could dance well which was a great honor.)

From beginning to end, the music, the loud M.C., the 4 dancing girls and the laughter did not stop while the bride and groom looked upon this event through their sad expressions. Randomly, the guests would take up the microphone and either give a speech, dance or sing. The main pastor, whenever he gets a chance at the microphone would start another sermon. At the end, glorious food was served. Joe and I tried eating with our hands which was harder for us as we are accustomed to using utensils. However, food seems to taste better when we use our hands. The dinner was comprised of gigantic pots of rice, pilau, vegetarian dishes (cooked plaintain, potato, beans, etc.) and meat dishes. Everyone was full by the end of the day, we ate until our stomachs could stretch no more and were tired from the laughing. It was a happy day, and I sincerely wish Thomas and Neema the same happiness for their long road together even through the rough times.

Our everyday view - the desert-like dry-season with its sands and perfectly blue sky.

Wedding procession

Bride and groom before the pastor - notice they get chairs in this long ceremony (great idea!)

The tall M.C. lady

Thomas and Neema sharing cake

The women dancing up the gifts and blessing the bride and groom

The meal: beans, rice, pilau, plaintain, potato, meat.....

The four dancing girls

Iringa

Picture of Iringa in dry season and the beautiful blue sky.

The Jacaranda trees in full bloom.

Betty's blue house

Our open-air classroom where we spend most our days in Iringa.

Betty and meMe, Joe and Sacha studying hard in Kiswahili

October 08, 2007

Receiving all your emails and comments on my blog has been an encouragement. I am very happy to hear from you, though my replies may be slow, I will try my best to respond. It is also exciting to know what is going on in Canada, in China, in the US and other parts of the world (Tobago and France?).

Three weeks have passed like a flash of lighting since I have first arrived. Each day, however, has been filled with exciting and new experiences beyond my imagination. I have accumulated so many stories to tell and hope to recount them as accurate as possible.

Iringa Days

It is dry season now in Iringa and it is a full desert here. However, it is not quite all sand and dry heat, but numerous trees, cacti, flowers still in bloom. The purple flowers of the Jacaranda trees are in their prime, filling the streets of Iringa with their beauty and fragrance. The nights and mornings are breezy that a long-sleeve is worn. Mid-day gets to a hot 25C-30C with the naked sun baking our backs. To my amazement, Tanzanians sometimes wear a full-fledged down jacket out in the sun.

Every weekday morning at 8:00 for the first month, the interns have Swahili lessons at our teacher, Betty’s house about 25 minutes walk from home. The morning in Iringa makes our walk very enjoyable. Picking up our backpacks and walking to school reminds me of my elementary school days. All the students are also making their way to school. As our route passes many primary schools and kindergardens, first the 4 year olds in their blue sweaters and gray pants or skirts squirming past us, then the older primary school children, the secondary school students and young people playing basketball. As we (foreigners) are still a rare sight in Iringa, some children would slow down or come our way on purpose just to catch a funny Tanzanian greeting from us. They would smile and wave even when we were meters away and laugh happily. There are, at least I haven’t met any yet, no ugly Tanzanian children. They are all good looking, cute and full of energy with their bright eyes and even wider smiles. Apart from some greetings when our eyes meet a Tanzanian coming our direction, children has been the most unabashed, unafraid, bold ones greeting us with all their English. When we greet in Swahili, many are shocked that we can speak the same language, that sometimes we get no reply but a shocked, shy face staring back.

As we neared our teacher’s blue house, the primary school next door welcomes our presence with their morning drumming and singing that is sounding our ears. Our classroom, a wooden, windy hut in the teacher’s backyard has become a place close to us in our time here. We have 4 hours of lessons in the morning and about an hour of homework each night. Our teacher, Betty is from Moshi, a city near mount Kilimanjaro (the highest mountain in Africa) and is an open-minded person who can share with us the details about her culture and share long laughs as we learned together. I love my teacher, she has taught us much, not only of the language, but about life in Africa. Thank God for having her in our lives. Every morning, we each take turn to do devotion, an explanation of a Bible verse and a hymn all in Swahili. Then, we are off to the lessons.

Thank God that in two weeks of intense Swahili lessons, we can slowly communicate with Tanzanians. Some days, we understand and speak better than others. We try our best to be exposed to more Swahili by speaking to the staff in our houses, and the people we meet in the street. Tanzanians are very welcoming and graceful with our poor speaking skills that they’d listen and reply, repeating themselves many times.

The main attraction in Iringa is the immense, bustling market place. The market stretches for about ten blocks selling from tourist gifts, to vegetables and meat, to hardware, cement, textiles and second hand clothes. As we frequented the market, we have formed friends there like Richard, the shoeshinner by the post office or Mr. Mango, Miriam’s friend who sells us salt, toilet paper and oranges. The market is always a place where you bump into friends and become amazed by the variety of goods they sell. There are always discoveries to be made any day. As foreigners it is evident that we would have double the price to start with. However, bargaining is still allowed. I remember our first time buying a soda, we had to pay double because we didn’t know the market price. Now, we know better, yet still experiencing higher prices than locals. (I always laugh at this fact since in China, the price is higher for foreigners and being Chinese, I had a fair price…. Now it is my turn to be swindled.) At the market, there are also some street kids who beg for money or food. They know the names of practically every mzungu (white person) and call us as we pass by. Some days, we have food to give, but some days, we have to say “pole, hapana leo” (sorry, not today) that always gives me a negative feeling.

On Tuesdays, we have a Bible study with other expats (foreigners) at Miriam and Andrew’s place. We are studying the book of Jonah, Amos and Joel. Twice a month, there is an English service on Sundays put on by the Iringa Christian Fellowship for the expat community. It is good to share with other mzungus about life in Tanzania and help each other out. On other Sundays, we have been attending Anglican church services in different parishes. The first Sunday, we attended service in Epigoro, a small town nearby. The second Sunday, we went to the big diocese cathedral in Iringa. Both times, we had to introduce ourselves in Swahili. What I enjoyed the most about Swahili services is their singing. Everyone in Tanzania can sing. They have voices that touch hearts. As soon as a song starts, the congregation automatically separates into sopranos, altos and bass. It is like a heavenly choir every single service or prayer meeting. God has blessed Africans with an amazing voice. At the end of each service, there is singing and a procession out of the church where everyone greets each other. It’s a real warm way to wrap up on Sundays.

There is much to write, but I will save those for other days. Thank you for taking part with me. I wish you can be here physically and feel, hear, taste, see Tanzania.

Snap of Usolanga and our day

The house in Usolanga before it is cemented

Some children in Usolanga who followed us all the way back from the village - everyone came and greeted us "shikamoo" (a respectful greeting for people who are older)

In the LandCruiser before the addition of the motorcycle and 2 men

From the right: Ali Kana (the carpenter), John Isaac and his wife, Chelerga and Jen

Hubert, the goat lying patiently in his basket

The LandCruiser, our hero of the day, nice and safe in the driveway

First Visit to Usolanga

September 28, 2007

Some days are as monotonous as other days, where one day does not have any apparent differences from another. Then, there are days when unexpected adventures comes your way sweeping you off your feet and turns you upside down with excitement at the end of it. The latter is my experience today and I hope my days here will be filled with numerous days like the latter rather than the former.

Today is Ijumaa (Friday) and it is a special one from the very start as it is the day Sacha and I visit Usolanga, the village where we will be working for our 9 months here. We will both work in the dispensary (clinic) that the Diocese of Ruaha (DR), our local Anglican church partner has set up in the village. It is the only health centre in the village and probably the only one for surrounding villages. Sacha will be a primary health worker who promotes and teaches about basic health such as sanitation, HIV/AIDS, common diseases such as malaria, diarrhea, etc. As for me, I will be working as a community nutrition worker. My focus will be on improving and educating locals on healthy eating, prenatal/antenatal/postnatal nutrition (nutrition for pregnant mothers), infant nutrition and dealing with endemic nutritional deficiencies. We will also be teaching a 4 weeks health module in the local primary school.

Before leaving Iringa town, many things needed to be done. The doctor at the dispensary has asked for us to pick up medicines for the clinic. Our house in Usolanga is also under renovations and so 10 sacks of cement powders were coming with us on the journey. After filling up our gas and picking up Tiny Freddy, a 17 year old boy who was visiting his relatives in Iringa, we were off, about an hour after we had left the house. So, in our LandCruiser (which is the best car to have here), we had Andrew at the wheels, Sacha in the front and Joe, Tiny Freddy and myself sitting right behind the cement. The distance was 70-80km from Iringa on a bumpy descent from the mountain as Usolanga is based in the valley. The road was actually pretty well done, although rocky. The scenery, however was astonishing. Vast fields of withered trees standing amidst yellow sand with the mountains in its backdrops. As we went up and down the road, different angles of the vastnesss revealed another treasure in itself. We passed by many Maasai tribesmen and women herding their goats or cows. Waiting for a large herd of cows crossing the road can be the same as waiting for a train in Canada. There were sometimes cows trailing one after another and we couldn’t see the end of them. We waited for 10 minutes until there was a gap between the cows to force our way through. About an hour or so into our trip, rural mud huts with thatched roofs sporadically appeared along the road. Literally every child would stop and wave because we were mzungus (white people). So, we’d just wave back. The ride was more than two hours and Tiny Freddy was teaching us some Kiswahili (language of Swahili).

When we reached our village, it was noon and the sun was its hottest. We were greeted by the construction workers who are fixing our house (they chased out bats from the house – It’s a whole other story, I’ll tell you later) and the doctor of the dispensary. The doctor kindly guided us on a tour of the dispensary that was not very busy at the time. There were only a Maasai family, a man and some women. The dispensary itself, which I hope to go into details about once I start working there, is actually quite nicely designed concerning what it could potentially be used for. However, we could see that each room was simple and very understocked. There was also a separate region just for Mother-Child Health, so concerning pregnancy and infant care. We also met Elnora and Atu, who are the nurses at the dispensary at the moment. Atu has a beautiful daughter who screams at us every time we look at her and runs away laughing. Sometimes, I just feel like I’m a really likeable monster to the children.

Andrew took us to do a little visit around the village. The village is a picture perfect of an African village on a postcard or a textbook. The land was flat and full of yellow sand. The houses in the village were closely situated mud huts with thatched roofs. Few houses have a tin roof. The biggest structure is the Catholic church which is quite grand, cemented and painted pink. I hope to visit the inside one day. As for our church, the Anglican parish in town, I love it so much because walking into this mud building with open windows was like seeing an artifact. The whole church was just one big room in grayish clay with rows of clay mounds for benches. The inside is nice and cool when outside would have been 35C that day. It is such an archeological finding! If you’ve ever set foot in it, you’d be convinced too.

Already, by this time, we have gathered a lot of attention. The interns from 2 years ago were the first foreigners working in the village. So, by now, there is still few exposure to mzungus. A band of children started following us as we made our way to visit the pastor’s family. The pastor is away to study in a university, probably in theology. His wife and five exceptionally beautiful children are still here and we paid our respect. As we left the house, we’ve noticed that more children has joined our faithful band of followers. They followed us nearly 20 minutes as we walked back, picking up more children along the way, making all kinds of noises, and repeating every Swahili word I said. By the end, we had almost 30 children behind us. Andrew made a speech about who we were, what we will be doing in the village and sent them home. Still a lot of children stayed with us, until we drove off.

It is again customary in Tanzania to bring people or things back with you to town as needed. So, we had a fair share today. Ali Kana, our carpenter was catching a ride with us and so were a villager, John Isaac, his wife and son, Cherlega. John Isaac is attending his younger brother’s wedding and brought a wonderful gift for them, which will also keep us company on the way back. He brought a big black and white goat, tied inside a basket. Poor goat, whom Joe decided to name Hubert cried, “Nyaaa!!” as strong as a baby with 2 lungs. Hubert didn’t bother much along the trip, just squirted loudly a few times to let us know that he was uncomfortable. So, 8 humans, one goat and a large battery started on our way to Iringa.

Halfway through the ride, we passed a motorcycle and two men who seemed to have some roadside trouble. Our passengers advised us to turn back and see what’s wrong. That’s what’s good about living in a collectivistic culture. Everyone stops to help. As we returned to them, all the men got off the car and were conversing, figuring out what to do for 20 minutes. The hind tires had a puncture but was completely broken, so duct tape wouldn’t work here! After lots of thinking, a plan was devised and I consider it the simplest one there is. Everyone, including motorcycle crams into the car! I hopped on the front with Sacha and Cherlega who is tiny for his age. He is 8 years old but is skinny and looks like a standard 5 year old in Canada. Holding him throughout the ride, I noticed he coughed a lot. I do hope it will not be anything serious in the future.

In the back were 6 other people all bended in different shapes around the motorcycle and the goat. It must have been quite uncomfortable, but everyone just seems to chat away like it’s nothing. Hamna shida (No problem)! You can do the math of how many people and things were in the LandCruiser that day. But it was fun and a great adventure to tell. We later found out that one of the man we had saved by the road was the mayor of Usolanga. One of those days isn’t it?

A 2 hour ride back to Iringa took nearly 4 hours and we were tired by the end of it. However, I realized that being with Andrew and Miriam, our country representative for EI, anywhere in Africa, will feel quite secure. They just have a sense that everything is just fine. I am glad to have them as our mentor, here in Tanzania.

The interns: Joe, me and Sacha when we first arrived at the bus station from the airport - notice the luggages!

The daladalas (small buses) in Dar Es Salaam - each daladala has a different name and saying on them

The bus we took to Iringa - Scandinavian Princess - It's a luxury bus where they served water and cookies

The steady mountain climb on the way to Iringa - the valleys were beautiful

Andrew, Benjamin and Miriam Wingfield with myself on the Gangilonga rock behind our house

The town of Iringa where around 100,000 inhabitants dwell - where I am having my Swahili lessons!