Hey everyone!
it is sunday evening and i am currently sitting in a hot, stinky internet cafe in Dar es Salaam, TANZANIA! It is still hard to believe that i am in Africa. It is been 11 days since i left home i think, and we are just about half way done our trip! we have already done so many things, it's hard to remember when we did what. i have lost track of days and the date, and dont even know what the schedule is like - just go with the flow and do what people ask me to do.
I want to upload some pictures for you all to see, but i cant really do that from here - you'll have to wait until i get home! so far i have taken about 2000 photos. this place is increadle! we spent the last week in Mikumi, about 5 hours away from Dar, at VETA (the school we went to) VETA is a college we were working at. I had a chance to hang out with some of the guiding students one morning. I went to class with them and showed them how to set up a tent - it was weird to me that they had never done that before (they go camping, but without tents?) the school just got 10 of them so they can go on a trip next week. they are spending 5 days in a national park, climbing and hanging out. it would be so cool to do that with them! maybe next time i come...
we stayed right at the school in Mikumi. the students in the housekeeping program run a hotel, and the food and beverage students run a restaurant (just like we run a restaurant at school at home). it was so nice. we all had our own rooms, and they even did laundry for us (by hand of course). i have never seen my whites so white! i wish i got their secret!
last night we stayed at Genesis Snake park. its a hotel that has a snake room... but we were late getting back from the safari last night, and this morning, so we didnt have a chance to check it out. oh well... photographing lions, elephants, baboons, garaffes and zebras (among other animals) is better anyways.
it is really hard to pick a highlight of the trip so far - everything has been so amazing! the first day we arrived at VETA Mikumi, the tour guiding students took us on a walking tour of the village. it was great to connect with them, and have them show us what life is like outside of the campus (their homes). they all spoke pretty good english, as school is done in english every year. That was really neat to see them be so excited to meet us, and accept us into their communities. it was hard to say goodbye, as we had build relationships with many of them over the 5 days we were there. Mr. Saronga (the tour guiding teacher, who is coming to nova scotia in june) took us on a bike tour around another village and school. we watched the sun set behind the mountains as we came back onto the road (right before we stopped for a Serengeti Beer at the bar). on the last night at VETA we had a disco in one of the classrooms. there were about 300 people at the dance (and only 400 people go to the school). they were all staring and laughing at us "white girls" dance. it was so much fun. at the end of it the guding students presented us with gifts.. little wooden scluptures. it was really sweet! hanging out with students and getting a feel for their education system was cool... but what beats taking pictures of garaffes and lions and elephants.. who are just a few feet away!? just breathtaking.
tomorrow morning we are going to Zanzibar for a few days. we will be going to stone town, the old slave trade market, we are going on a spice tour, and spending 1 morning at the beach! i am so excited to relax for a little bit on the beautiful beach! we have been so busy every day i havent even had time to process what i am doing. good thing i am keeping up on my journal so i can look at it when i get home... im only 2 days behind on that right now.. ill catch up! hahah
anyways, i have to run for dinner. we are meeting at the hotel at 8, and i still need to get changed and go to the bank! I am doing well, and having fun. i've got a bunch of bug bites, am not burnt (hardly even tanned at all really - we spend a lot of time in the shade, its so hot!). I am sick of rice and have been craving a big plate of nachos, with extra cheese, peppers and black olives for about 4 days... **mom - make sure there is some cheddar cheese, nachos, peppers, and black olives in the fridge when i get home. thanks:) I don't have malaria yet, so that medication is working - but that nasty stuff i took for travelers diarreah, not so much.
Miss you all - i'll post again when we get back from Zanzibar before we leave for Switzerland.
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