Kwaheri (Goodbye) Tanzania

Wow so it has been a month since my last blog post, pole sana (very sorry)! And can you believe it, but I leave Africa this week! What a whirlwind adventure this has been. I’ve learned a lot here in Tanzania and am happy with what I’ve accomplished. Leaving will be very sad, but going home will be nice!

Since October, Laura and I have been very busy with Positive Love! We hosted a Christmas Campaign, opening up an online shop for Positive Love products for the month of October. We sold to people all over the world and have raised over $2,000! All of the money raised will be going to the ladies for their hard work, and they are putting some aside for an emergency fund and for start-up loans so they can eventually open up their own small businesses. We were so happy to be able to help the women of Positive Love share their products with our friends and family and handing them the money was such a wonderful experience!

(Laura with the Ladies!)

Asante sana (Thank you) to everyone who helped and donated!

We also have a shop! Hooray! We constructed, painted, furnished, and decorated an old building, turning it into a beautiful place for people to come and shop. This beautiful blue building was something the women have wanted for a while, so being able to help turn this into a reality has been great! As a long term volunteer, Laura and I wanted to make some positive changes, and I think we have! I know the women are happy with our hard work, and I sure feel a sense of accomplishment from working with these amazing ladies. Leaving them will be the hardest thing about leaving Tanzania for me! I hope to be able to come back one day and see how Positive Love has grown and changed!

(The wonderful furniture!)

Asante sana to our wonderful donors, especially Sloanes General Store and the Inn at Alcova, for your generous donation!

Since our Zanzibar adventure, Laura and I have been to the capital of Tanzania, Dodoma, where we celebrated Laura’s and Alpha’s birthdays. Alpha is Laura’s oldest sponsor child with Compassion, and sharing their birthday and sponsor visit was amazing! We also went to Mwanza, and visited Laura’s child, Veronica. We also hiked around Lake Victoria and hung around, relaxing in the north. Now, we are packing up and tying up loose ends.

(Lake Victoria!)

We’ve been to Cape Town, hiked Kilimanjaro, done a safari, volunteered at an amazing organization, survived in the chaos of Arusha, and through it all, Laura and I have remained best friends! Now that is the real accomplishment! Who knew 4 months could go by so fast!

We’ve finished strong here in Africa and I’m so happy with the experience I’ve had. It’s been real and it’s been fun. One could say that it has been real fun!

(My best friend and I!)

The Minefields of Zanzibar

The island life really is the life for me!

So making the decision to venture to Zanzibar for a long weekend vacation for Laura’s birthday was pretty easy. All I did was say “Heck Yes!” I forgot how much I loved island vacations and exploring, and was super happy to be back in the humid, salt-smelling, relaxing environment I’ve missed and love.

(Such unique art and style!)

We arrived in Stone Town on Thursday in the evening, and didn’t have a whole lot of down time before we were rushing off to make our dinner reservation at the Emerson on Hurumzi Tea Room. Having just arrived, we were unfamiliar with the layout of the city and were quickly lost in the winding, twisting corridors that serve as streets. Eventually we found our way and were seated on cushions to enjoy our three-course, traditional Swahili dinner. Boy was it good! We started out with pita and tahini and beetroot hummus, followed by goat massaman curry, and finished with fruit samosa and coffee flavored meringue. Paired with a hibiscus cocktail, this was a meal for the books! It was so delicious, the atmosphere was phenomenal, and the service was super! It was a great birthday dinner for Laura!

http://www.emersonspice.com/

On Friday, we spent the morning getting lost in Stone Town. We did have a guide leading us through the maze of streets and pointing out the highlights. This city has a super interesting history. It was a major port area for the slave trade in to and out of Africa and was governed by the Portuguese, Indians, and Arabs throughout history. Hundreds of thousands of African people were enslaved and sold in Zanzibar, shipped to other nations near and far, and died due to horrible living conditions. We visited some slave chambers in which 50-70 people were crammed into a low ceilinged room that wasn’t much larger than my bedroom (a tiny square) and where men wore shackles around their necks and were forced to remain squished together in lines. Because of a lack of ventilation in these underground chambers, and the tight quarters, many people died and disease ran rampant. The same goes for the ships the slaves were placed on. A huge Anglican church was constructed on top of the remains of the slave chambers and now serves as a stopping point for many to learn about the history of Zanzibar.

(View from the top of the city)

In addition to learning all about he history, we also learned about the architecture. For examples, there are over 200 carved wooden doors in Stone Town and they are all very unique. But there are two distinct styles- an Indian styled with curved tops and have spikes on the doors (for keeping the elephants from breaking down the doors in India, but of course just serves as decoration on an island), and an Arab door, which is square shaped and has an prayer written in Arabic along the top of the frame. These doors sometimes also have chains decorating the sides to show who were slave owners or traders. The doors were beautifully crafted and when Laura and I were walking around, it was neat to note the differences in the doors. Also, fun fact about Stone Town- it is so named because the buildings are all made out of coral and then covered with plaster. And if a house needs to be rebuilt, it has to be constructed in the same exact way, as it previously was so as not to ruin the “look” of the area. Only natural materials can be used and the same colors have to be used for painting.

(Arab style door)

(Indian style door)

Besides learning about all of the aesthetics of Stone Town, we ventured into shops, selling all sorts of curios and souvenirs, markets full of fruits, fish, and spices, and toured the many hidden gems of Stone town. Having a guide was really nice because it made getting around much easier and helped Laura and I to figure out our way around the city. After the tour we ate at The House of Spices and sampled some of the local foods. After that, we caught a taxi to our beach hotel for the next three nights!

We stayed at the Zanzibar Retreat Hotel on Matamwe Beach, and at the end of our stay we didn’t want to leave! One of the owners, Karen greeted us and warmly welcomed us. She showed us around, chatted with us, made sure we had everything we needed, and was just all around there for us! She was so kind and helpful and we felt more like family than customers. Also the staff was there for our every need and made a point to get to know us. Two full days of lounging around a pool and beach did us good! It was nice to have no responsibilities and to just not worry about anything.

http://www.zanzibarretreat.com/

(Such a cozy environment!)

Saturday morning we woke up and went to breakfast, and it looked like the water was gone! It disappeared! In reality, the tide was so low that you could walk out for what seemed like a mile to the reef that lined our beach. This walk was just as good as snorkeling because we saw coral reefs, starfish, all kids of fish, and A TON of sea urchins! We had to leap around, carefully step through and navigate a minefield of sea urchins. It was beautiful and was a really nice way to start our day. Afterwards, we relaxed in the sun and thoroughly burnt the crap out of ourselves! But I’ll take a few sunburns!

(Beach > Everything else)

We ate, drank, and lounged for two and a half days and I couldn’t have asked for a better vacation! The only downside is that on the flight back to Arusha, TSA confiscated my beach sand! Anyone who knows me knows that I collect sand from all my beach visits and my mom and I display them at home. So sorry mom, no Zanzibar sand! Sad face.

(Photo Credit: Laura Powers)

Nai-ROB-i

So I finally got to experience what most long-term travelers do- a border run! Somehow it always worked out that I never needed to do a border run in Thailand, so I was a bit excited to finally experience hopping over the border to get a silly little stamp, allowing me to stay longer in Tanzania. Since I only have a 90 day visa for Tanzania, I only have to do one border run, but it also sucks cause I’m only in Tanzania for like 105 days or something around there, so it not like I’m overstaying my visa that long. But whatever, it’s said and done now! So Laura and I caught the 8 am shuttle to the safari capital of Africa, the urban and bustling city of Nairobi, Kenya.

After being on the bus for about an hour, we are going through a list of things we needed to have for our eminent border crossing. Passport? Check. Debit card? Yellow Fever card? Oh shit. Yes, in typical Briana fashion, I forget my Yellow fever card that is needed to get me into Kenya and then back into Tanzania. Obviously I pissed off Laura in the first hour of our trip because I spaced on grabbing this important little yellow card. So fingers crossed, can’t do anything about it now. Laura and I had it all worked out, she would pass me hers if we just had to flash them, but if someone actually checks then I’m SOL. I figured that if they wouldn’t let me cross, then I would just go back to Arusha and figure it out from there. Thankfully getting into Kenya was a breeze and I didn’t need to show it at all! First hurdle down!

Nairobi is the capital and largest city in Kenya and is known for its Safaris, despite having a bad rap for robberies, but we never had any issues and really enjoyed the exploring the city center! It is also a cultural melting pot with three main groups- Bantu, Cushitic, and Nilotic, in addition to many sub groups, languages, and traditions. I was pleasantly surprised to discover how developed Nairobi was, and it was so cool to see urban development right next to historical landmarks.

(The Sarova Stanley Hotel Courtyard)

The hotel Laura had found for us, the Sarova Stanley Hotel was the first hotel in Nairobi and many important events occurred here. During our stay, we were able to take a Heritage Tour of the hotel and it was so cool! We learned all about the founders and development of the hotel. It was home to the Exchange Bar and the Kenyan stock exchange for a while, many historical figures stayed here while in Africa, including; Theodore Roosevelt, Ernest Hemmingway, Robert Baden-Powell (Chief Scout of the World), and Princess Elizabeth before and right when she was crowned Queen! We were also lucky enough to get to see the suits! These rooms are so nice it’s ridiculous! But they were all themed and beautifully decorated, and if I had all the money in the world, I’d totally stay in one of these rooms just for kicks!

http://www.sarovahotels.com/stanley-nairobi/

(A photo showing one and possibly the most famous person to have visited- Princess, now Queen Elizabeth!)

Besides exploring the hotel, Laura and I used the gym, relaxed at the pool for hours, and had a fantastic dinner at Thai Chi, an amazing Thai restaurant in the hotel. The chefs are Thai, so it was authentic and the best food I’ve had since returning from Thailand. The concierge was wonderful and helped us set up a few excursions.  We wanted to go see the Elephant Orphanage and the Giraffe Center and having a taxi driver taking us and waiting was the way to go!

We started our Saturday by going to the elephant orphanage operated by the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust. This is the #1 thing to do in Nairobi, and for good reason! They are home to 26 baby elephants and 2 baby rhinos. All of the orphans were rescued from human abuse, environmental disasters, accidents, and abandonment, and all of them are on the mend and hopeful to return to the wild some day! After rescuing the baby elephants, the organization cares for them, feeding, bathing, playing with, and even sleeping with the orphans during their recovery and growth. The youngest elephant they have is 6 months, and the oldest is about 3 years old. And oh my gosh, they are the cutest things I have ever seen! So all the tourists just gather around this roped off area and BAM! Here come baby elephants running down the hill to get their bottles! If your heart doesn’t melt then and there, you are told about each of their history and as they walk around, you are allowed to feed and touch them! Just saying, baby elephants playing are the best things I’ve ever seen! They are so funny and ornery! And it gets better. YOU CAN ADOPT AN ELEPHANT! You’re allowed to choose which baby you want to adopt and for $50 a year, you are sent a monthly update on your elephant. And if you go to the orphanage, a foster parent is allowed to have one on one feeding and play time, and you can put your elephant to bed! My heart just exploded. How cute is that?!

https://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/

(Just look at how cute they are!)

Oh man, how could the day get any better? Well it’s about to! After the elephants, we went to the Giraffe Center: African Fund for Endangered Wildlife. After exiting the car, we turn around and see the giraffes right there! Just hanging out by the fence! After a brief informational talk about the Fund and about giraffe anatomy and lifestyles, we are given pellets to feed these magnificent creatures. It was really fun to kiss the giraffes- you put a pellet in your mouth and then give it to the giraffe, which usually means you get your face licked and end up all sorts of slobbery! But it was really neat to feed and pet these beautiful animals. I know I made my brother super jealous since his favorite animal is the giraffe, but I guess that means I’ll just have to come back with him some day! On the down side, I might be allergic to giraffes… I ended up breaking out in horrible hives right after hanging out with them and they lasted for like 2 days! It might’ve been a plant they rubbed up against, but man that was a downer on my experience!

http://giraffecenter.org/

(Getting kisses!)

(Feeding Giraffes is so fun!)

After a wonderful weekend, it was time to go home, back to Arusha and work. The whole bus ride to the border, Laura and I were very nervous (remember because I forgot my yellow fever card). Going over different scenarios and what-ifs. We hoped that just flashing it would suffice but when we got there, we discovered that to get your immigration entry form into Tanzania, you HAD to show your card with your passport for verification. Oh man was I screwed. So it’s my turn, I hand him my passport and start blubbering about how silly I was to forget my yellow fever card. I’m then directed to a guy in an office and once again express my sincerest apologies and regrets at having forgotten my card and say it’ll NEVER happen again. He very kindly just nods and hands me my papers. So before anyone else can stop or question me, Laura and I book it out of there and get through immigration without another hitch! Not until we were on the bus again did we breath a sigh of relief! Thank god!

(A mini-vaca is always a good idea!)

So overall, Nairobi was so much fun and a much-needed get away from everything! I’d love to go back to do some more exploring, and this time I will be extra careful to make sure I have everything I need!

Neema Forahee

I feel happy.

One month already?! Holy cow, so I’ve been in Africa for 2 months and in Tanzania working at my placement for a month! Cape Town, and even Kilimanjaro seem so long ago and it’s hard to believe that all that stuff happened! I’ve been pretty bad at blogging on this adventure but it’s hard to think of new things to say. Every week, Positive Love is about the same- make some bracelets, teach English, clean some stuff, water the garden. I’m not saying its monotonous by any means, everyday is different and what happens is usually unique to that day, but the basic stuff we do is all the same.

(Me and Mama Welu, our senior most designer, sporting our positive love skirts and scarves!)

 

But I want to talk a bit about my adventures outside of placement this time around! Laura and I have been busy the past two weeks and have done some neat things! Two weekends ago, we took the bus back to Moshi, where we started our trek and met up with one of our amazing guides, Baraka! It was so fun to hang out with him! We went to lunch, walked through some markets, visited his house and met some of his friends. It was cool to be able to see him again and I think he was pretty happy to see us too! We were also able to see our lead guide, Richard here in Arusha! We met up with him expecting to go grab some lunch but instead he took us to his house and we met his wife and his 3-month-old baby! This kid was too cute! It was fun to chat with Richard and his family! The Powers, our guides, and I really formed a little family on the mountain and being able to keep in touch with them is really specials for all of us!

(Another hidden gem- The Arusha Peace Park, commemorating the completion of the UN Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.)

Then on Monday of last week, Laura had her first Compassion International sponsor visit. This was such a special experience to be able to share with my friend. After meeting our host, who is also the Director for the Tanzania office, we headed out to the outskirts of Moshi to meet Emmanuel, a 13 year old boy who Laura has been sponsoring since he was 5 years old. So for them to meet, it was wonderful! We arrive at the Compassion Center, which is also a school, and were greeted by the school band and handed flowers! It felt like we were royalty! After the initial meet up, we met with the school directors and pastor and learned all about Emmanuel and how he was doing in school and life. We then left and headed to meet his family at his grandmother’s home.

(Emmanuel, his mother, grandma, and Laura- hanging out at his house and exchanging gifts)

Being welcomed into their home was so cool and when Laura brought out the gifts for the family and for her sponsor kid, everyone’s eyes lit up! Being able to see how Laura has impacted this family was such a blessing and a treat! Compassion is a fantastic program that is making real changes in the lives of the families who benefit from the organization, and to be a part of it, not only for one kid, but for 6?! Laura is a real humanitarian. We have more Compassion visits coming up for her other sponsor kids and I am so excited to see how these ones go!

(Laura with Emmanuel and the very first picture she sent him when she started sponsoring him 7 years ago!)

Back at Positive Love for the week. The building is looking good! We just need to get it painted (which is happening this week) and then add the final things like windows and doors, and furnish the inside! A huge shout out to Sloanes General Store and the Inn at Alcova for their generous donation towards completing this building project! (Be sure to check out Sloanes website below!) Without their help, this would be a half assed project, so being able to have a welcoming shop for the women of Positive Love will be amazing!

http://www.sloanesinalcova.com/

(Building stage 1: Finish cementing the frames and walls)

(Building stage 2: Prepping the walls to be painted)

(Stage 3: Applying protectants to the walls and adding glass in the windows and door!)

In other news, we are ready to launch our Positive Love website and start selling the products the ladies make to all of you wonderful people back home! I will have the link on my Facebook, so you can check it out there!