Orientation to Work and Life in Arusha

Side view of our house and vehicle

I am trying to figure out the climate here. It is vaguely familiar, but I have only just remembered where I have experienced it before-- Colorado. We are near 5000 ft. here and this month the place has the thin dry-aired feel of the mountains. It is hard to figure out what to wear, the sun beats down, but the moment one steps into the shade it is quite chilly--like the sun does not really warm the air. I have found long sleeves more comfortable than short and usually carry a fleece jacket with me.

We joined a pool this week. It is at a club called Gymkhana, which like some places in Bujumbura (Entente Sportif or Cercle Hippique) has the feel of a once elite colonial men's club, complete with golf, tennis, squash and snooker. It still has some of the vestiges of its legacy including a placard listing all former Presidents of the club dating back to 1940s (Major Nigel Carruthers and the like). Now it is considerably more run down, but maintains some of it charm. The members are almost entirely Tanzanian from what I can tell. We were attracted to the pool, one of the few 25 meter pools in town, and probably the only one accessible to us. We were also amazed at our good fortune at finding its 5 lanes completely empty when we visited twice. Once we paid our dues, Rebecca and I were anxious to try it out. We did so this past Thursday and realized why it is not crowded almost immediately-- the water is colder than anything I have swum in since high-school (in the Himalayas.) Swimming 50 laps qualifies as a religious experience! Still, I don't mind having a lane to myself after 3 years at the YMCA in Maryland.

Kids were back at school most of the week except Friday which was a holiday. Despite bitter complaining, they did get their uniforms on and we were out of the house each day by about 6:50. We tried out the shuttle service (school bus) but they left home at 6:15 and arrived home at 5 pm. To have the kids commute nearly 2 hours per day each way seemed inhuman. We are dropping them off before we go to the pool for the time being. The commute takes about 40 minutes with the kids and we listen to audiobooks while we drive. Currently we are finishing "The One and Only Ivan" about an artistic gorilla who speaks like he is channelling Ernest Hemingway.

We have been at the office every day this week doing orientation. This has included setting up language lessons, reading up on projects and partners and going over MCC policy with Sharon. Thursday we visited the Arusha Cultural Heritage Center which was quite impressive--a gigantic art gallery in a building shaped like a drum. It is close to the kids' school and we took them to it on the way home. Here are few photos from it.

On Friday we had a team meeting at Sharon's house. It was a combination meeting and social gathering. I am including a picture of our team with our 3 national staff, and 4 International staff. David and Oren were off from school because of some holiday which was announced only a day in advance (I think it was a Muslim holiday.) They enjoyed quite a bit of screen time while we talked. Afterward we went to Gymkhana and introduced them to the ice cold pool.

L to R: Sharon, Oren, Rebecca, David, Chrispin, Zoe, Lucia, Paul, Neema

On Saturday, the kids had a special international day event at the school. They were there most of the day doing cooking, dancing, and singing from other cultures. David was not very keen on going as he can entertain himself quite easily at home, but Oren seemed to like going and hanging out with classmates he knew. The event ended with a performance for the parents.

Sunday we returned to the International Lutheran church we tried last week. It was fine, although the kids were not enthralled by the Sunday school. We will see what we can do to help them. David did enjoy catching salamanders outside the church after it was over.

Tomorrow (Monday), I will take my first trip upcountry with Sharon, Chrispin, and Zoe (our one year SALT volunteer). We will be dropping her off to meet the partner she is seconded to and set her up with her host family. I will be visiting the partner as well: they implement a health project related to preventing FGM among Maasai girls (FGM is female genital mutilation, or female circumcision.) The practice is fairly common in certain regions of TZ despite being illegal. The partner provides a camp experience with room and board for girls between 6th and 7th grade to educate them on their rights and to give them an alternative to going home during the semester break when many circumcisions take place. They also educate community elders on the dangers of the practice and encourage them to find alternative rites of passage for girls.

I am interested to learn more about this first hand. The partner is located in Longido, about an hour and a half outside of Arusha. Rebeca will be responsible for watching the kids and getting them from school alone as I will be gone all day. I think her task is more stressful than mine: driving around town can be intimidating. Traffic is bad, and police often stop us to check documentation.

Evenings and weekends do allow for some free time. David likes to look for chameleons, Rebecca likes to bird watch. I like to wander around the compound where we live--definitely built in the spirit and era of the pioneer missionary. Things are well built, but seem to deteriorate rapidly. Nothing is wasted. I find it amusing how many houses have been built of containers that are cut apart and stuck together. Many interesting agriculture and water projects on the base as well. The neighbors are very friendly and hail from all over the world--Uganda to New Zealand. We like the place but it is really on the outskirts of the town and feels somewhat remote.

I'll stop there and pick up on this next week.