By good luck and some creative planning today is the day we’ve squeezed in a visit to Ayalabe Primary School, supported by fund-raising from my new friend Jane Moore and her friends under the auspice of Friends-of-Tanzanian-Communities (FOTC). We are collected from the Well Share office by cab and driven just a few miles (maybe 20 minutes) along a red dirt road, past a pretty productive looking brick making factory to the school.

We are greeted by the headmaster Mr Mmbaga who is accompanied by another Mzungu (i.e. a white foreigner – a term of endearment apparently). Together we get an intro to the school and discuss the challenges an opportunities for educating the mix of children from the Yraq (farming) and Maasai (Cattle-herding) tribes that have now settled here.

We see the 2 classrooms already constructed with the support of FOTC and we have the opportunity to distribute some early-learning reading books donated by my 7-year old Niece to the youngest of the pupils, the Kindergarten class. Some have clearly never had the opportuntiy to open a picture book before. After initial shyness at having 3 Mzungu in their class we enjoy a few moments showing them how to turn the pages and describing some of the pictures to them in our broken Kiswahili. Their smiles and giggles as well as their wide eyes say it all.

Not wanting to take too much of the head teachers time, we depart for lunch at an unusually located art gallery at the edge of town. I can’t help but wonder how my friend Elizabeth would react to all these bold African colors. We take some lunch and await collection by our Well Share hosts who have kindly arranged for us to hire a pretty reasonably priced mini-van to take us back into Arusha. On route to town, the driver askes if we could stop to collect his friend. Of course we say yes (there are only 2 of us in a 12 seater minibus) and we pull over to pick up a man, his bag of rice and a huge bunch of bananas. It must weigh 70 lbs. What a treat to share some time – and a couple of freshly picked bananas – with a complete stranger just trying to get home from market.

Arusha finds us staying overnight at the RAC Hotel, a budget hotel more for locals than tourists where I enjoy a long hot shower followed by a plate of chips (fries) and a beer in the bar downstairs before an early nights sleep. Tomorrow is the beginning of yet another very special journey for me into the heart of Maasai culture, staying and working at a secondary school for predominantly Maasai families. A school that due to the harsh environment struggles to provide even the most rudimentary of services to its students: a healthy environment in which learning is the priority. I am both eager to begin and anxious. I’ve seen just how difficult the conditions are for teachers and students alike. I truly hope I’ll live up to my hosts expectations: teachers who have so little, who will give up so much to give me a chance to live in their world for more than a week.

After a quick breakfast and a welcome cup of tea we jump into 2 vehicles accompanied by Jolene, her staff and some med-student volunteers from Canada. We are off to find Dr Frank (another Nor Cal medical expert) who runs a mobile clinic that is currently stationed at Laqangareri, some 50 kms off the tarmac road in Karatu District. Remembering that we are in dry season and this is a particulary arid area I have my bandana that doubles up as a face mask ready. Thank goodness. The truck is soon full of dust coming in from every small opening. We are bouncing along, ducking and diving between pot-holes and boulders; traversing seemingly ancient dry river beds and generally just trying to keep moving forwards along the broken track that passes as a dry-season-only road. We stop for a breather (and to drop off some staff heading to another project) about 30kms in. Then its back to more of the same. By now I want it to be over. And then I remember we have to come back this way tonight. Urgh!!

I couldn’t do this commute very often but every bone-jarring bump and every mouthful of dust was worth it. At the clinic maybe 100+ people are lined up to see the “Daktari”. Its probably their only chance in the year to see a medical professional and we watch as each is interviewed, meets with the Dr and then undergoes whatever tests were recommended including blood and stool testing. I decide not to take photos today out of respect for those seeking treatment. Dr Roger gets down to work almost immediately helping draw blood. Rochan, a registered nurse who we spent time with in Arusha has been here almost a week now and is a pro at stool-testing! Thank goodness for people like Rochan, Roger and Frank. Saving lives and providing preventative medical care is their business and their passion.

By the end of the day over 120 people received advice and medicine, some of which could be life saving given their ailments and the limited access they have to medical treatments. Ingeniously enough, while they are waiting quietly for the doctor they and others in the communtiy receive advice about the problems of drinking unclean (un-boiled) water and measures that they can take to help prevent the spread of communicable diseases including HIV/Aids. Their children are also treated to a puppet show with a health message wrapped inside.

After a few hours of observing and talking with staff Barbara and I say goodbye to Roger who will stay an extra day and we head off with Jolene to visit a couple of “Survive and Thrive” single-mum cooperatives funded by Well Share. After meeting with a sewing group and some women at a rural tea-shop, we finally bump our way back to Karatu town center (it’s pretty much a single main-street but it does have tarmac). We rest a short while and then head out to a “pub” that serves the best cheesie-mac on the planet….or am I just exhausted and craving carbs? Back to the guest house, a quick shower and I’m asleep before my head hits my pillow.

Today is an easy start with a drive out to Tarangire National Park to see elephants and many other plants and animals including the famous Balboa (upsidedown) tree. I counted at least 15 types of African animals including Elephants, Impala, Wart-hogs, an Ostrich and a family of Mongouse crossing the road (little critters a bit like goffers….very entertaining to watch).

It’s a short half-day visit for those of us heading on to Karatu to visit Well-Share, a resident NGO (originating from Minnesota) that supports health care and health education in Karatu District. Barbara wants to see their operation in action, Dr Roger (from Sonoma County, CA) is along to provide some medical assistance and to experience the challenges of providing high quality medical care when clean water and electricity are a luxury that can’t always be counted on. I’m just a tag-along today on my way to visit a primary school in the same town the day after tomorrow.

After some delays on route we finally roll into town and our host, Jolene, a delightful American lady now resdient in Karatu welcomes us into her home that doubles as a guest house where we quickly get settled anticipating a long, dry and dusty day tomorrow.

Today’s visit was my 4th opportunity to meet with the people of Olgagai. Having met with school and village leaders and been introduced to the community water committee we were invited to inspect the first 3 phases of the Engor Engeriti water project started 3 years ago. Water now flows out of a forest spring and into a 2.5km pipe line laid by the villagers in ditches up to 16 ft deep. An estimated 1,000 villages now receive clean water within 400m (~1500ft) of their homes. Anyone who has carried a 5 gallon bucket of water more than 20 ft will appreciate the significance of this project to the women and children who typically have to fetch it…EVERY day.

After a lunch in the forest we head to Kijimo Cooperative Society, a group of women making an income from selling the cheese that they make from the local cows milk they buy. Of course, we are invited to taste their produce and we note that it is their yogurt, cheese and butter that we have been eating all week at the Moivaro Lodge. With a small investment in equipment and a room to make the cheese these women now have a good business generating an annual profit, allowing them to invest in their childrens education. Success!

As some of our travelers attend church I enjoy a big breakfast and a stroll around the perimeter of the lodge grounds. Reading and resting all day, the evening finds us with a new guest and some of his family from Loliondo. Timo represents PWC, the Pastoral Womens Council and shares his experince working with the Maasai women who now live in their own boma and own their own herd of cattle – almost unheard of in Maasai culture. The biggest challenge appears to be the 80% illiteracy of the Maasai in the PWC region. Some programs are now in place to bring education to as many as possible but it also requires a change in cultural thinking to see the long term value of education as more critical than the shorter term benefit of children herding cattle – a cow or bull being the most valuable asset of the Maasai. With over one million people living the pastural life in Tanzania this is no small task.

A relaxing late start to this Saturday with a mid-morning trip to the Arusha Central market (wow, what variety of fruits, vegetables and spices) then we’re off to learn from Engorika women how to cook traditional Tanzanian food.

We prepare, cook and then consume Ugali (Maize flour and water), Loshoro (a cold yogurt-like mix of maize and sour milk), Ndizi (green bananas, beef, coconut milk and vegetables), Kachumbari (tomatoes, onions, carrots and salt and lemon) and my personal favorite pilau rice (onions, ginger, garlic, veggies, rice and spices). All washed down with Chai Tangawezi (Ginger tea). Truly scrumpcious – apart from Loshoro. And after that….of course I needed a nap and some time to reflect.

Time to catch up on a few work related e-mails and to catch a little rest while my travel companions visit a Maasai village on Mti Moja (One Tree) to see some of the improvements afforded by Global Partners’ donors such as rain water harvesting systems. Attempts to send photographs by e-mail failed miserably so I caught up on my writing instead.

Tanzania Day 8

Our first stop today is at Oldonyosambu, a secondary school where Global Partners and its donors have supported the building of dormitories for housing girls on the school premises, including rain water harvesting systems and scholarships for some of the most vulnerable and impoverished girls.

“O’sambu” is very arid being on the dry side of Mount Meru. The dust blowing across the Maasai low-lands as we turn onto the dirt road to the school emphasizes just how harsh an environment this is to thrive and prosper. We see scattered homesteads, with a few goats and chickens, two small churches as well as women and children carrying water from a water pipe by a cattle trough.

On arrival we hear that the investments in the school have reduced school-girl pregnancies, improved academic achievement, enhanced interactions and understanding between students from different regional tribes, increased access to remedial classes for those students who may have only recently been able to access the educational system, including some of the parents who now have a better appreciation of the benefits that can come from educating their children.

A traditional Maasai celebration dance is followed by a chance to tour the classrooms, dormitory and a new solar powered computer lab recently installed by another NGO working in the region.

I’m very much looking forward to my chance next week to spend a week here living with the women teachers and getting to know more about the challenges and opportunities for education in rural regions of Tanzania.

We spend the afternoon with the women of the Engorika Savings & Credit Cooperative Society who share their stories of rising from impoverished conditions through the establishment of a revolving loan credit group. With Rose as their chairperson they have expanded from 15 women in 2007 to 46 today, directly impacting over 276 people in the community with indirect impact on many, many more. Through a program to empower women within a community, Global Partners continues to provide seed funding to programs such as this.

Our day is complete with a fire-pit discussion with Mr. Alais Morindat, a prominent member of a local Maasai community who explains in great detail some of the cultural struggles of the indigenous Maasai people within their own nations (of Kenya and Tanzania) and how people-to-people development support, as provided by Global Partners allows the Maasai to improve the conditions of their lives without having to give up the traditions of their ancient pastoralist culture. Here is a man who stands with a foot in both the traditional and modern life of Tanzania with whom I could spend an entire week, just trying to understand the complex challenges of his community.

We start the today with a good breakfast, followed by an introduction to our “Africa Partner” for Arusha Region, Mr Sulle. He provides some great background on the country, the region, the 120 tribes and the culture. He then takes us through a few Kiswahili words that might come in handy during our visits: Jambo (Hi), Asante sana (Thank you), Kwaheri (Goodbye) and Jina langu ni (My name is) which I butcher but finally get my tongue around.

Off then in 3 jeeps to our first project of the day: Oldadai Primary School. We meet the Headmistress Mrs Kissanga, the ward councilor Mr Riti, the Village Chairman Mr Ismail and the Ward Educational Coordinator Mr Laiser along with all the teachers and pupils.

It is a very big deal to this school and the surrounding community to be opening 2 new classrooms funded through Global Partners by the Buckley School.

With celebratory dancing complete, speaches given and ceremonial gift giving done its time to cut the ribbon on the newly constructed classrooms. Jill is clearly thrilled to be the representative of Buckley and we can all see the positive impact this is going to have, helping to reduce average class sizes (which are currently 80+ per class) and giving pupils a clean, safe environment in which to learn.  As is customary we complete the visit with sharing tea with some pupils, teachers and parents and have an opportunity to ask, and answer, questions about the way of life at school, both here in TZ and back in the USA.

It is remarkably similar with obvious challenges of teaching resources and maintaining the school buildings so that the teachers can concentrate on teaching.

After lots of “Asante sana”s in both directions, and with our “Kwaheri”s done we depart for the next project, Sasi Village Dispensary.

As with many GPFD project visits, our arrival is not a quiet one. Many women from the local community have come out to meet us at this day-clinic and they perfom a welcome dance which some of us eventually join in. What a wonderful way to connect with people you have never met before.

I think it should be the practice for all business and community meetings all over the world! Celebrate coming together and then get down to business….together.

Dancing and formal introductions done, Dr Murishi introduces herself and 2 of her 3 staff at the dispensay. Working with her is a mid-wife, a nursing assistant and a lady that visits the villagers to inspect family latrines (a government requirement for all homes in TZ). She also provides health and hygiene advice and refers those that she finds are sick to the clinic. Dr Murishi explains that the majority of their work consists of providing pre-natal support, maternal and infant health care, vaccinations againts measels, DPT, polio and TB . They also provide seminars and counceling to the community about HIV/Aids prevention and treatment as well as family planning advive and support.

Their biggest challenge: Men seldom come to the clinic for counseling or healthcare therefore perpetuate some of the life threatening conditions of the community. Also, the rate of respiratory illness is very high due in part to a limited understanding by the children and parents of the communication of germs from one to another and how to reduce that risk. Despite these challenges, the community is seeing significant reductions in HIV transmission and maternal mortality, two indicators that the clinic is having a positive impact across the villages it serves.

My day of rest, doing laundry, catching up on e-mail, checking in on facebook, and making arrangements with FOTC, an organization supporting the development of Ayalabe Primary School in Karatu, so that I and an associate from GPFD can visit next week. It’s a little off the normal beaten path for GPFD but will be a great opportunity to see how other organizations operate in TZ and can be couple with visits to other potential partners in the district.  The best part of the day: hanging out with, and catching up with some of the staff at the Moivaro hotel who make all the difference to us having a great stay