This week I received an email that said (and I quote) "Blog more dammit!". My apologies for not posting, but my computer access is fairly limited these days.
Here are a few things I have been thinking about, experiencing, etc. Today I am feeling like a list format will be best.
1. Jambo! When I walk down the street I am greeting in one of two ways generally: "How are you?", which is said really fast and sounds like "Hawayuu?" or "Jambo". Some Kenyans say jambo (swahili for hello) to one another, but not many. BUT when I am walking down the street, lots of people say "Jambo" because they know it is typically the only phrase white folks know (that and "Hakuna Matata"). I have mixed feelings about this. On one hand I do know it and it is a perfectly fine way of saying hello, but I know all the other greetings. There are a wide range of other salutations like "Mambo" and "Sema" which are typical among younger people and "Habari yako" or "Salama lekum" to adults. And I want to use the Swahili that I know. The other thing that I find slightly irritating about jambo (and "hawayuu") is that people often say it in this sort of high pitched voice. It is hilarious! Just now a man who must have been in his seventies was slowly walking down the road. He saw me coming and in a voice that sounded like the way you might talk to a 4 month old baby said "Jambo Mzungu!". It often feels slightly patronizing, so I generally respond in the same high pitched voice and that seems to crack people up.
2. Last weekend I went to a small island called Wasini with my friend Lily and her friends from her Rotoract (Rotary for 18-30 year olds). We spent the day on a large boat (dhow) and went to the marine park there. First we snorkeled around the coral reefs. It was amazing to see all of the kinds of fish, sponges, coral and urchins hanging out there AND I didn't get attacked by jellyfish, sharks or other marine predator. I was pretty excited about that. It was fun to just sit and watch how the fish interacted with one another too. Lily tried chasing a few, but she didn't get any. Then we got back in the boat and ended up seeing a school of about 12 dolphins. It was so amazing! I was like a kid at the zoo, talking to them like they could actually hear me. "Where did you go, I want you to jump again, please jump!". It took me back to the days when I was about 6 and wanted to be a dolphin trainer. After that, we sailed to a small island where we had lunch. That leg of the journey was really rough and involved several of us getting sea sick at once, which was hilarious in retrospect.After lunch we took a tour of a water project they have there. It is a small island and they have no access to fresh water. So they set up the roofs to collect rain water. There were all of these low long corrugated metal roofs which collect the rain water which then runs into one of several big holding tanks. As we walked around the small island most houses seemed to have the rain collection system set up with the pipes to carry water which reminded me of Marble Works (the toy we played with when I was little).
The rest of the weekend was spent playing jenga (Jenga is Swahili for building, which i thought was interesting), eating freshly caught fish, touring Wasini, dancing and talking.
3. So I continue to be Suleiman's tutor. Ok so I make him do his homework. At first it was kind of cute, because he would get so excited to have me help him. But now that my "new mzungu" appeal is gone and he is used to me, it is not as cute. There have been crying tantrums on a few occasions, he dawdles and finds ways to procrastinate (last night he had to pee three times within the half hour we did his homework). So anyway, sometimes i will give him a little incentive for completing his homework. Last week, he was whining, and not doing his work when I told him I would give him a small present if he finished without complaining and without making too many mistakes. He wanted one of the 10 old water bottles I had in my room which I was more than happy to give him. Then a few days later we were again doing his homework and he was getting cranky the conversation went like this:
Me: please finish your homework
S: You give me sweet and i finish
Me: No. write
S: you give me a cell phone and I finish
He had me laughing for quite some time with that one. He has also just started walking into my room and demanding my possessions. For instance, I have a small statue of the Virgin Mary that I keep on my desk. The other day he walks in, looks at it for a minute and then demands that I give it to him. He has done this with my flashlight, pencil sharpener, shampoo, deodorant and sunscreen. I have yet to give into his demands.
Generally life here is good. I am in the process of trying to figure out what to do after my internship is over in December. There are a few opportunities around Mombasa which would be realy fun. One of the options involves organizing a conference for a friend who is starting up a new NGO. It would enable me to continue working with MIMA which would be good. I am in love with this city so it would be great to stick around for a bit. There is also a technical vocational school in Tanzania where I might be able to do some art classes. Or there is a language school in Tanzania where I could get really good at Swahili. We will see. I have also been getting some inquiries regarding my return date. It will be in March or April, depending on how many people want to come visit and how long I can make my savings last. Miss you all lots!~Mary
The rest of the weekend was spent playing jenga (Jenga is Swahili for building, which i thought was interesting), eating freshly caught fish, touring Wasini, dancing and talking.
3. So I continue to be Suleiman's tutor. Ok so I make him do his homework. At first it was kind of cute, because he would get so excited to have me help him. But now that my "new mzungu" appeal is gone and he is used to me, it is not as cute. There have been crying tantrums on a few occasions, he dawdles and finds ways to procrastinate (last night he had to pee three times within the half hour we did his homework). So anyway, sometimes i will give him a little incentive for completing his homework. Last week, he was whining, and not doing his work when I told him I would give him a small present if he finished without complaining and without making too many mistakes. He wanted one of the 10 old water bottles I had in my room which I was more than happy to give him. Then a few days later we were again doing his homework and he was getting cranky the conversation went like this:
Me: please finish your homework
S: You give me sweet and i finish
Me: No. write
S: you give me a cell phone and I finish
He had me laughing for quite some time with that one. He has also just started walking into my room and demanding my possessions. For instance, I have a small statue of the Virgin Mary that I keep on my desk. The other day he walks in, looks at it for a minute and then demands that I give it to him. He has done this with my flashlight, pencil sharpener, shampoo, deodorant and sunscreen. I have yet to give into his demands.
Generally life here is good. I am in the process of trying to figure out what to do after my internship is over in December. There are a few opportunities around Mombasa which would be realy fun. One of the options involves organizing a conference for a friend who is starting up a new NGO. It would enable me to continue working with MIMA which would be good. I am in love with this city so it would be great to stick around for a bit. There is also a technical vocational school in Tanzania where I might be able to do some art classes. Or there is a language school in Tanzania where I could get really good at Swahili. We will see. I have also been getting some inquiries regarding my return date. It will be in March or April, depending on how many people want to come visit and how long I can make my savings last. Miss you all lots!~Mary
