Blog Entry1st April, 2008
Well is it now Tuesday, and we still have no water – but it turns out that it isn’t the area that is out, it is our place and that of our landlord, who lives next door. It seems that the water has been cut off!! – The bill was paid (so they say) but late and the water company are having a purge on late payers or non payers, and so they cut the supply fairly quickly and are not too speedy in reconnecting. Seems Samaritans are having the same problem – I understand that Moshye is quite a bit in arrears and he is down at the water company office on a daily basis at the moment trying to persuade them not to cut his supply off – either that or he will be tapping Donald for some more money today!
Meanwhile, our landlord didn’t tell us about the water, nor supply us with any in the drums which we have around (seems that every household has lots of these 10 litre drums around – a necessary piece of equipment for every home here). However, whenever our wonderful Violet comes, she seems to be able to fill all our drums, and containers with water, so we have been managingoHHoH
- even did some washing today. It had been piling up as just had to do some of it. Fun doing a washing machine load by hand when you have to boil the water to get it hot, and shlep (a nice Yiddish word) the water from drums into a bowl in the sink – however, we can then use that water to flush the loo’s – so its all good stuff, moving water around the place.
So hopefully we will be reconnected today, and actually we have been away and out a bit so it really isn’t too bad.
Talking of which, must tell you about Donald’s birthday weekend surprise. Jen and Joey had arranged to take us to Wag Hill (I thought it was an Island on the Lake but isn’t.) Wag Hill is a resort/lodge on a peninsular which juts into Lake Victoria. You can get there by road, but most go there by boat. So on Saturday, we met up with J&J and had a brunch with them, and then went to the lakeside to meet up with Bill and Robyn – he is a Rhodesian and has been here in Mwanza for some 20 years, and she (Robyn) is an Aussie who has been here some 5 years. They married last year. He used to be in the mining business and now has a security business here. He bought some land a good few years ago and has by hand and by his design now developed it into a wonderful secret hideout. It has four bungalows, a big lodge central area a bar and a swimming pool. It is on quite a hill and each bungalow has the most amazing views. They take you and are part of the party – the rates are all inclusive, and that means anything you want. The bar is open for you to use freely and it is well stocked. The food was lovely, prepared by Robyn before we left. You arrive by boat and so feel it is an island feel. The bird life there was just amazing. Our bungalow was called Fish Eagle Nest view – so thought we would see the fish eagles nest, but alas no (tho did see lots of fish eagles) however, the Sacred Ibis’s nest was next door to the fish eagle and boy do they have a call/cry. At 6.30 they started, and it felt like they were in the room with us, never mind next door – soooo loud!
We had a really wonderful weekend (24hrs) there. Sat by the lake watching the boys fish for tilapia, fished for Nile Perch on the way over and back, sat by a campfire watching the sun go down over the lake, swam and had a walk over the land which is next for development. Think they want to build their own home there eventually – it is a perfect retreat, a wonderful place. Hopefully I will get some photo’s up for you to see.
So back home on Sunday and off to work again on Monday morning. This is our last week with our placements, tho Donald may do a couple of days with Moshye next week too. Donald walked into town yesterday to meet me for lunch, and he went to the bank on the way. Got done over (robbed not beaten) by a couple of lads who had obviously been trailing him for a bit. He has a backpack which he uses, and each time he stopped, these guys loosened the zip of the back pack a bit, until they felt that they could get their hands in to pull out his money bag. They’d seen him use it at the tailors where he had been trying on wedding suits with Joey. However, he felt the tug and zapped around with his elbow out, knocked one of the guys quite hard and they both ran off. He yelled and he said that all of a sudden about half a dozen guys started to give chase – two minutes later, someone comes back to him, with his money bag, and an apology. He asked if Donald wanted to deal with the boys, but he declined. Luckily, nothing was in the bag, as he had his wallet elsewhere, and so there was nothing taken, but not a nice feeling. However, everyone in the street who saw what went on was most apologetic to Donald, and were obviously angry that these guys give Tanzania a bad name. But all ok and nothing taken – phew!
So the noise – There is, as I have already mentioned a few time, a constant cacophony of sound here. If not animals, then people walking, talking, cars tooting, etc etc. There is also the music – which is everywhere. Car radios blaring out, Dala Dala’s music pouring out of windows. The guys who walk the streets selling their wares from hand carts also have load speakers which carry the music advertising the fact that they are around. They could be selling, ice cream, music, or anything else. When at a bar or restaurant there is always music playing and competing is the TV which is left on quite loud regardless of the fact that probably no one is watching it or interested in it. This morning, I was woken by music blaring out from lord knows where. I think it may have been from a school bus which was going along the road collecting kids – it was 7 am, and it seemed to hang around for ages. It was better than the bus tooting for the kids I have to say, but it was so loud!
Tonight we are going for a meal with Jen & Joey at the Priests. The initial plans were that they were going to be married by him in Moshi. However the church in Moshi wouldn’t allow him to do the ceremony at all, and it also wouldn’t allow them to marry outside the church – J & J wanted to have the ceremony in the hotel. However, when they were on plan a - they had to have some pre marriage lessons/counselling/chats with him, and they carried on with these even when the plans changed. The wedding is now happening in three stages. Stage one is the formal legal bit which is being carried out in a registry office (just immediate family - parents and siblings - there for that), then on the Thursday, the Registrar will come to the hotel and be present when they exchange their vows, and that is what they will recognise as their wedding day. Then on the Saturday the Chagga celebration will be held. Anyway, back to the priest - they obviously got on quite well with him, tho Jenny nearly bolted at the first session – and he has asked us all for dinner tonight, so that should be fun.
OK – It is now 8.30 and I really need to get myself together – so I will sign off and be back with you again soon.
Lots of love
J
PS – the wedding dress is, as I type, on its way back here from India !!! En shalla!!!
Monday, 31 March 2008
Saturday, 29 March 2008
Taxi journey's and greetings
29th March, 2008
I have talked lots about the Dala Dala rides (and every journey has its story!) but let me tell you about the taxi drives home, about Deo, Mathew, Tito and Dula, and the life on the side of the roads at night.
Part of the information pack we were given on arrival as volunteers here was a sim card for our phones and a list of useful numbers. Joey had gathered together some known taxi drivers who knew where our place was, who spoke some English and who were trustworthy. He also managed to fix a price for the journey – or so he thought!
We only seem to use taxi’s now only coming home from town, or if we are going out in the evening from Milestone House. Deo tends to be our favourite – he is a huge bulk of a guy. Big in voice, gesture and build and with a lovely laugh – a very loud one. You hear his taxi coming before he arrives because the music is blaring out, and he is usually greeting people with load comments from his open window. He seems to know everyone in Mwanza and is always yelling out of his window, waving or tooting his personally stylised horn. Despite his bulk, he is obviously a really gentle giant and is a caring chap. He carries shopping into the car and out of it etc.
As far as the charging goes, Deo is the most expensive. He and Donald have a running discussion about the price of oil. Of course when the price goes up, so does the cab fare, well his anyway. The taxi’s mainly run on fumes – like the Dala Dala’s. They only fill up, and by fill up I mean put in a litre or two at a time, when they need it and nearly always roll into the garage on empty. The charge started to be Tsh 5,000 (£2.50) one way either to or from town. The others still charge that because that is what they agreed with Joey – but Deo now charges Tsh 7,000. However, he is really reliable and you do feel safe with him.
When we need a taxi, and quite often it’s me calling him from the shop (U Turn – Spar like store) Donald does a lot more walking. I call him and sometimes the phone rings out and he then phones back on another phone. I tell him where I am and where I want to go – occasionally via the bank as all transactions here are by cash – and he says “ OK – nakuja!” (OK – I am coming!) Invariably he isn’t – coming that is, as we have heard him say that often. Usually when he is taking us out of town to home – so nakuja is a very flexible term. However, he does come and if he can’t come soon he does tell us.
He drives, like all drivers here, with one hand permanently on the horn. This is particularly useful at night. I believe there are quite a few deaths on the roads, especially at night, as there are loads of people out and about in the dark. Don’t forget that it gets dark here at 7ish. Life is lived very much outside here – I think I have already mentioned that the huts/houses seem to be used for shelter and sleeping only – most stuff, cooking/washing/etc, is carried out outside the home. Once it gets dark, most people are either at home or on their way home. There is the food to buy for the evening meal, I assume most food is cooked fresh (ie little fresh food is stored as there is probably no electricity and therefore no fridge etc). A lot of road side stalls appear in twilight – literally roadside, actually on the curb, with little candles or paraffin lights illuminating the (possibly) one product that that person is selling. There are women, and sometimes children, fanning small charcoal burners that are cooking maize or cassava (don’t know what that translates to – sorry, buts it’s a root which is bbq’d and served with a chilli sauce) – much healthier than crisps and nuts! Lots of activity going on, people milling around, either buying, selling or just walking home. As long as it isn’t raining (and we are in the rainy season at the moment!) the bustle continues till late on. When it does get later, you have the occasional (very occasional) drunk guy staggering on the road – but that really doesn’t happen too often, however, there are always, always people walking. Black guys wearing dark clothing probably and no torches, or road lights – and so driving at night is somewhat scary (in as much as you could run someone down very easily!) hence the use of the horn.
So drives home at night are really interesting.
It is now Saturday, (Donald’s birthday) and we are going off for the day with Jen and Joey to an island in the Lake to stay there overnight. There is a new resort there being run by friends of theirs from Mwanza. It is still being built, but I believe, there are two/three bungalows there, it is eco friendly (ie no electricity – so what’s new!!!), we have to get there by boat – obvious I suppose as it is an island, but romantic eh, and I understand that it is known for its fishing, so Donald and Joey can do the man thing and go to catch our meal! I will let you know more on our return.
Talking of no electricity – well we do have electricity at the moment, but have had no water since Thursday!! Luckily it is the rainy season, and so the water buts are regularly full, and we have been out a bit in the evenings. Jen went to Arusha on Tuesday for a conference, and so on Thursday we asked Joey if he wanted to come to have a meal with us. I had been shopping and a chicken was to be cooked. Texted him to ask, and he said he would love to – then our electricity went off and so did the water. Texted him again to ask if he was sure as we were powerless and waterless, he came anyway, and we had a lovely candlelight meal – luckily we do cook by gas. A two ring burner – which is actually very good if not restricted in as much as you can only heat two pans at a time, but then I only have four pans and a wok. But hey I am adaptable, and it seems to work OK. So it is Saturday and still no water – so we are eco friendly too all of a sudden.
I know that Donald has already mentioned the greetings thing here, but thought I would put my two pence worth in too. Greetings take time, each one has its own response, and there are many different ones. Ones used casually, like Hu Jambo have the response of Si Jambo, Ham Jambo (How are you - plural) has the response Hatu Jambo (we are fine), Hodi (used on entering a house) always gets the reply Karibo (you are welcome) or Kariboni (plural). It is very prescriptive. There is one used to us often which is a greeting given by younger people to older ones, a respectful greeting – it is Shikamoo (I hold your feet! – I only just learnt that that is what it means) – and the response to that is Marahaba (I am delighted). Then there are the good mornings, loads of those, and they usually start with habari za (how are you) asubui, leo, mchama (this morning, today, this afternoon etc) and so it goes on. The response to these is usually Mzuri Sana (fine thank you). All of this is very important to get right – it doesn’t help when I freeze (still) sometimes on hearing a particular greeting, as I know I have to get the correct response and there are so many to chose from – but only one is correct! I often get a smile from who ever I am greeting, and I know that I have it wrong, but she tried sort of thing.
So greetings take time, along with this is the hand shaking. It is the two way hand shaking, ie shaking hands then changing position to hold thumb and back again. The hand holding goes on for as long as you are still greeting – so it can be quite prolonged. It is, as I said, very formal, prescriptive and predictive – as long as you get the right response for the initial query!
However the farewells seem, by comparison, to be very short and often not at all. Eh is a word/sound used a lot here – and although Kwa Heri means Goodbye, eh is often the last thing you hear as someone leaves, and that’s it – I will leave you with that thought and catch up again later on our return from our Island break.
Love to all
J
I have talked lots about the Dala Dala rides (and every journey has its story!) but let me tell you about the taxi drives home, about Deo, Mathew, Tito and Dula, and the life on the side of the roads at night.
Part of the information pack we were given on arrival as volunteers here was a sim card for our phones and a list of useful numbers. Joey had gathered together some known taxi drivers who knew where our place was, who spoke some English and who were trustworthy. He also managed to fix a price for the journey – or so he thought!
We only seem to use taxi’s now only coming home from town, or if we are going out in the evening from Milestone House. Deo tends to be our favourite – he is a huge bulk of a guy. Big in voice, gesture and build and with a lovely laugh – a very loud one. You hear his taxi coming before he arrives because the music is blaring out, and he is usually greeting people with load comments from his open window. He seems to know everyone in Mwanza and is always yelling out of his window, waving or tooting his personally stylised horn. Despite his bulk, he is obviously a really gentle giant and is a caring chap. He carries shopping into the car and out of it etc.
As far as the charging goes, Deo is the most expensive. He and Donald have a running discussion about the price of oil. Of course when the price goes up, so does the cab fare, well his anyway. The taxi’s mainly run on fumes – like the Dala Dala’s. They only fill up, and by fill up I mean put in a litre or two at a time, when they need it and nearly always roll into the garage on empty. The charge started to be Tsh 5,000 (£2.50) one way either to or from town. The others still charge that because that is what they agreed with Joey – but Deo now charges Tsh 7,000. However, he is really reliable and you do feel safe with him.
When we need a taxi, and quite often it’s me calling him from the shop (U Turn – Spar like store) Donald does a lot more walking. I call him and sometimes the phone rings out and he then phones back on another phone. I tell him where I am and where I want to go – occasionally via the bank as all transactions here are by cash – and he says “ OK – nakuja!” (OK – I am coming!) Invariably he isn’t – coming that is, as we have heard him say that often. Usually when he is taking us out of town to home – so nakuja is a very flexible term. However, he does come and if he can’t come soon he does tell us.
He drives, like all drivers here, with one hand permanently on the horn. This is particularly useful at night. I believe there are quite a few deaths on the roads, especially at night, as there are loads of people out and about in the dark. Don’t forget that it gets dark here at 7ish. Life is lived very much outside here – I think I have already mentioned that the huts/houses seem to be used for shelter and sleeping only – most stuff, cooking/washing/etc, is carried out outside the home. Once it gets dark, most people are either at home or on their way home. There is the food to buy for the evening meal, I assume most food is cooked fresh (ie little fresh food is stored as there is probably no electricity and therefore no fridge etc). A lot of road side stalls appear in twilight – literally roadside, actually on the curb, with little candles or paraffin lights illuminating the (possibly) one product that that person is selling. There are women, and sometimes children, fanning small charcoal burners that are cooking maize or cassava (don’t know what that translates to – sorry, buts it’s a root which is bbq’d and served with a chilli sauce) – much healthier than crisps and nuts! Lots of activity going on, people milling around, either buying, selling or just walking home. As long as it isn’t raining (and we are in the rainy season at the moment!) the bustle continues till late on. When it does get later, you have the occasional (very occasional) drunk guy staggering on the road – but that really doesn’t happen too often, however, there are always, always people walking. Black guys wearing dark clothing probably and no torches, or road lights – and so driving at night is somewhat scary (in as much as you could run someone down very easily!) hence the use of the horn.
So drives home at night are really interesting.
It is now Saturday, (Donald’s birthday) and we are going off for the day with Jen and Joey to an island in the Lake to stay there overnight. There is a new resort there being run by friends of theirs from Mwanza. It is still being built, but I believe, there are two/three bungalows there, it is eco friendly (ie no electricity – so what’s new!!!), we have to get there by boat – obvious I suppose as it is an island, but romantic eh, and I understand that it is known for its fishing, so Donald and Joey can do the man thing and go to catch our meal! I will let you know more on our return.
Talking of no electricity – well we do have electricity at the moment, but have had no water since Thursday!! Luckily it is the rainy season, and so the water buts are regularly full, and we have been out a bit in the evenings. Jen went to Arusha on Tuesday for a conference, and so on Thursday we asked Joey if he wanted to come to have a meal with us. I had been shopping and a chicken was to be cooked. Texted him to ask, and he said he would love to – then our electricity went off and so did the water. Texted him again to ask if he was sure as we were powerless and waterless, he came anyway, and we had a lovely candlelight meal – luckily we do cook by gas. A two ring burner – which is actually very good if not restricted in as much as you can only heat two pans at a time, but then I only have four pans and a wok. But hey I am adaptable, and it seems to work OK. So it is Saturday and still no water – so we are eco friendly too all of a sudden.
I know that Donald has already mentioned the greetings thing here, but thought I would put my two pence worth in too. Greetings take time, each one has its own response, and there are many different ones. Ones used casually, like Hu Jambo have the response of Si Jambo, Ham Jambo (How are you - plural) has the response Hatu Jambo (we are fine), Hodi (used on entering a house) always gets the reply Karibo (you are welcome) or Kariboni (plural). It is very prescriptive. There is one used to us often which is a greeting given by younger people to older ones, a respectful greeting – it is Shikamoo (I hold your feet! – I only just learnt that that is what it means) – and the response to that is Marahaba (I am delighted). Then there are the good mornings, loads of those, and they usually start with habari za (how are you) asubui, leo, mchama (this morning, today, this afternoon etc) and so it goes on. The response to these is usually Mzuri Sana (fine thank you). All of this is very important to get right – it doesn’t help when I freeze (still) sometimes on hearing a particular greeting, as I know I have to get the correct response and there are so many to chose from – but only one is correct! I often get a smile from who ever I am greeting, and I know that I have it wrong, but she tried sort of thing.
So greetings take time, along with this is the hand shaking. It is the two way hand shaking, ie shaking hands then changing position to hold thumb and back again. The hand holding goes on for as long as you are still greeting – so it can be quite prolonged. It is, as I said, very formal, prescriptive and predictive – as long as you get the right response for the initial query!
However the farewells seem, by comparison, to be very short and often not at all. Eh is a word/sound used a lot here – and although Kwa Heri means Goodbye, eh is often the last thing you hear as someone leaves, and that’s it – I will leave you with that thought and catch up again later on our return from our Island break.
Love to all
J
Thursday, 27 March 2008
Update from Milestone House - email connected. At Last!!
Thursday 27th March, 2008
Well we seem to be coming to the end of our volunteering – officially we have two more weeks to go. Both of us feel that we have peaked and are now on the slide downwards (volunteering wise!) Both organisations have had the money we put into the Community Trust – and both now really have to get on with life on their own. They managed before we came and will certainly still continue after we have gone, hopefully tho we have left something behind – even if it is the cash (or computer in my case).
The computer lessons haven’t really materialised as I imagined. The first day, after the abortive first day, got there and no one else was there – they had a meeting, and there was no credit for the phone and so internet wasn’t possible. Anyway, I set up the computer with folders and put in the work I had done on my comp at home – the history or the organisation and its profile etc. I put on letter heading, and put in a budget which they needed. So all set for the off the next day.
The next day, it was looking good, had credit (Its pay as you go and I had put Tsh 1,000 in – you just go to the local corner shop and buy credit - like scratch cards), all were there and it wasn’t raining so we had electricity – I thought I’d start by showing them basic Word and then showing them how to save stuff into the right place (something Jen said her people just don’t seem to understand the need for) – but everyone had other ideas. They wanted to check on their emails!!!!
The two charities who were there each have their own email addresses which obviously aren’t checked too often. TACOPE had 83 unopened emails! There wasn’t one that was relevant – all, bar 3, were Spam, or dating sites advertising, or inducements to have your penis enlarged. The three potentially relevant ones were informing all charities of a conference in April in Chicago, USA. So that took up 45 minutes and all the credit.
Then it was decided that they needed and wanted to know was how to trawl the web for potential donors. So more credit was purchased (not by me) and off we went into Google world. It was an interesting exercise and one which followed on well from my workshop with them on proposal writing – because you can get really excited about a web site and then find out that you are not eligible because of various clauses they have in their criteria. Anyway, by the time we ran out of credit again, we had three potential addresses to write to – and so we were off and running.
Think that this will be the way I will spend the last week or so with them, as this is what they really need to do – find out where donors are and then they can put together proposals.
Meanwhile, Donald (I will keep you up to date as he seems to have withdrawn from blog writing) was with Samaritans – the room for the computer classes has been painted (badly, but it is now painted out)
and they are waiting for the tables, which are being made by two fundi’s (one a metal worker and the other a carpenter) Getting them to work together seems to be a bit tricky. The tables and chairs were supposed to be ready today – but the metal frames for the tables haven’t turned up yet, so the wood fundi can’t cut the wood up to the correct size. Donald had to go into town with Moshe on Tuesday to buy the wood – and as they were going into town they took with them a computer which needed fixing. They went in on a Dala Dala!!!! Got the wood transported back by hiring (for some Tsh 10,000) a dala dala truck – I didn’t know they had those. The computer however had to come back with us later in a taxi. Meanwhile, the water seems to have been cut off at the Samaritans and not sure that the rent has been paid for a year – so they lurch from one crisis to another almost on a daily basis. Donald has I know already put in more than the Community Trust money, as when the water is cut off what else can you do.
I think we may be being seen as cash cows (in the nicest possible way) but then as Donald as already mentioned in his entries – that is what us msungu’s seem to be here for, or seen as. Well we knew that we weren’t going to change the world here – but lets hope we have made a bit of difference.
Must update you on my latest Dala Dala rides – It really is quite an experience. Today’s Dala Dala stank of fuel when I got in, and I realised why later on in the journey. There were two x 1 gallon plastic bottles of fuel wedged between rows 3 and 4. One of them had fallen over and was obviously leaking. !!!! When I got on I was quite relieved that it wasn’t a hugely crowded one – but obviously the conductor wasn’t too pleased as he hung around waiting, and waiting, till it was full. We sat at the end of our road for almost 10 minutes. I think if we had just gotten out of our front gate and waved, he would have waited for us to walk up the road – takes us about 5-7 minutes, as it was think he was waiting for someone to get out of bed! Anyway, by the time we got on the move again, we were full – well I say full, in as much as all the seats were taken. They managed to get another four in before anyone got off! This one was particularly uncomfortable, as the extra row of seats which had been put in meant that there was not enough room to sit with your knees together straight in front of you, but you still have to get four on a row – at least!
The conductor today was particularly moody and almost surly. Most of the conductors never give you eye contact, they don’t speak, just rattle coins near your face instead of asking for money, bang heavily on the sides of the vehicle when they think someone might be thinking of wanting a ride, and all have to bend down to enable them to hang out of the vehicle at the right angle so as to get as many passengers in as possible. Wonder which course they have to take to get these attributes. Oh the joys of taking a Dala Dala!
Just in case you think I have forgotten that we have a wedding to go to at the end of April – I had better give you an update on that. Dress making is just happening. I took a dress out for Jen with me, which she ordered here when she was home in September, but (as all brides and mothers of brides know) the dress does need to be altered to fit properly. Jen has this wonderful Asian lady (Famida) who she has decided will be able to a) alter and fit the dress I bought over with me, b) make a dress for me (which traditionally is paid for by the groom) and c) make up another wedding dress for the second day of celebrations. Jen had discussed all this with Famida before she came home in September, and all was looking good. Famida was going to India in February she said and she would be able to get everything she needed then. However the trip ‘home’ was delayed and delayed and she has just – last Monday – come back from two weeks away. Wedding is in 5 weeks!!! Nothing has yet been done about any of the dresses!!!! Jen and I have been having dreams (or nightmares) about wedding dresses but Famida is calm and says don’t worry – “everything will be alright” and then she says encouragingly “En Shalla!” (God willing - with apologies for the probable miss spelling). The material for both mine and Jen’s outfits has been purchased, mine has been embroidered and Jen’s is still in India being embroidered (there is more on hers than mine) and “En Shalla” it will be shipped out airfreight and be with us on Monday. (4 weeks to go! BUT – we leave Mwanza on the 11th and 13th April – so only TWO WEEKS TO GO!) - I will keep you updated.
Donald and I sneaked off yesterday – it was a hot hot day, rains seem to be holding off for a day or two – and we escaped to the hotel The Talapia and sat around the pool for the afternoon, lovely. Whilst there, had to call into the hairdressers to book my next hair cut, and I just had to have a massage as I was there, it is one of life’s luxuries here – really good (and so cheap comparatively).
Good news is that we now (at last) have email at home – still pay as you go, etc, but means that I won’t have to keep making my daily calls into the internet café – think they will miss me. As with everything, it took a lot longer to get sorted, but, eventually, we have it here – hurrah. So, off to post this now and check my emails.
Love to all
J
Well we seem to be coming to the end of our volunteering – officially we have two more weeks to go. Both of us feel that we have peaked and are now on the slide downwards (volunteering wise!) Both organisations have had the money we put into the Community Trust – and both now really have to get on with life on their own. They managed before we came and will certainly still continue after we have gone, hopefully tho we have left something behind – even if it is the cash (or computer in my case).
The computer lessons haven’t really materialised as I imagined. The first day, after the abortive first day, got there and no one else was there – they had a meeting, and there was no credit for the phone and so internet wasn’t possible. Anyway, I set up the computer with folders and put in the work I had done on my comp at home – the history or the organisation and its profile etc. I put on letter heading, and put in a budget which they needed. So all set for the off the next day.
The next day, it was looking good, had credit (Its pay as you go and I had put Tsh 1,000 in – you just go to the local corner shop and buy credit - like scratch cards), all were there and it wasn’t raining so we had electricity – I thought I’d start by showing them basic Word and then showing them how to save stuff into the right place (something Jen said her people just don’t seem to understand the need for) – but everyone had other ideas. They wanted to check on their emails!!!!
The two charities who were there each have their own email addresses which obviously aren’t checked too often. TACOPE had 83 unopened emails! There wasn’t one that was relevant – all, bar 3, were Spam, or dating sites advertising, or inducements to have your penis enlarged. The three potentially relevant ones were informing all charities of a conference in April in Chicago, USA. So that took up 45 minutes and all the credit.
Then it was decided that they needed and wanted to know was how to trawl the web for potential donors. So more credit was purchased (not by me) and off we went into Google world. It was an interesting exercise and one which followed on well from my workshop with them on proposal writing – because you can get really excited about a web site and then find out that you are not eligible because of various clauses they have in their criteria. Anyway, by the time we ran out of credit again, we had three potential addresses to write to – and so we were off and running.
Think that this will be the way I will spend the last week or so with them, as this is what they really need to do – find out where donors are and then they can put together proposals.
Meanwhile, Donald (I will keep you up to date as he seems to have withdrawn from blog writing) was with Samaritans – the room for the computer classes has been painted (badly, but it is now painted out)
and they are waiting for the tables, which are being made by two fundi’s (one a metal worker and the other a carpenter) Getting them to work together seems to be a bit tricky. The tables and chairs were supposed to be ready today – but the metal frames for the tables haven’t turned up yet, so the wood fundi can’t cut the wood up to the correct size. Donald had to go into town with Moshe on Tuesday to buy the wood – and as they were going into town they took with them a computer which needed fixing. They went in on a Dala Dala!!!! Got the wood transported back by hiring (for some Tsh 10,000) a dala dala truck – I didn’t know they had those. The computer however had to come back with us later in a taxi. Meanwhile, the water seems to have been cut off at the Samaritans and not sure that the rent has been paid for a year – so they lurch from one crisis to another almost on a daily basis. Donald has I know already put in more than the Community Trust money, as when the water is cut off what else can you do.
I think we may be being seen as cash cows (in the nicest possible way) but then as Donald as already mentioned in his entries – that is what us msungu’s seem to be here for, or seen as. Well we knew that we weren’t going to change the world here – but lets hope we have made a bit of difference.
Must update you on my latest Dala Dala rides – It really is quite an experience. Today’s Dala Dala stank of fuel when I got in, and I realised why later on in the journey. There were two x 1 gallon plastic bottles of fuel wedged between rows 3 and 4. One of them had fallen over and was obviously leaking. !!!! When I got on I was quite relieved that it wasn’t a hugely crowded one – but obviously the conductor wasn’t too pleased as he hung around waiting, and waiting, till it was full. We sat at the end of our road for almost 10 minutes. I think if we had just gotten out of our front gate and waved, he would have waited for us to walk up the road – takes us about 5-7 minutes, as it was think he was waiting for someone to get out of bed! Anyway, by the time we got on the move again, we were full – well I say full, in as much as all the seats were taken. They managed to get another four in before anyone got off! This one was particularly uncomfortable, as the extra row of seats which had been put in meant that there was not enough room to sit with your knees together straight in front of you, but you still have to get four on a row – at least!
The conductor today was particularly moody and almost surly. Most of the conductors never give you eye contact, they don’t speak, just rattle coins near your face instead of asking for money, bang heavily on the sides of the vehicle when they think someone might be thinking of wanting a ride, and all have to bend down to enable them to hang out of the vehicle at the right angle so as to get as many passengers in as possible. Wonder which course they have to take to get these attributes. Oh the joys of taking a Dala Dala!
Just in case you think I have forgotten that we have a wedding to go to at the end of April – I had better give you an update on that. Dress making is just happening. I took a dress out for Jen with me, which she ordered here when she was home in September, but (as all brides and mothers of brides know) the dress does need to be altered to fit properly. Jen has this wonderful Asian lady (Famida) who she has decided will be able to a) alter and fit the dress I bought over with me, b) make a dress for me (which traditionally is paid for by the groom) and c) make up another wedding dress for the second day of celebrations. Jen had discussed all this with Famida before she came home in September, and all was looking good. Famida was going to India in February she said and she would be able to get everything she needed then. However the trip ‘home’ was delayed and delayed and she has just – last Monday – come back from two weeks away. Wedding is in 5 weeks!!! Nothing has yet been done about any of the dresses!!!! Jen and I have been having dreams (or nightmares) about wedding dresses but Famida is calm and says don’t worry – “everything will be alright” and then she says encouragingly “En Shalla!” (God willing - with apologies for the probable miss spelling). The material for both mine and Jen’s outfits has been purchased, mine has been embroidered and Jen’s is still in India being embroidered (there is more on hers than mine) and “En Shalla” it will be shipped out airfreight and be with us on Monday. (4 weeks to go! BUT – we leave Mwanza on the 11th and 13th April – so only TWO WEEKS TO GO!) - I will keep you updated.
Donald and I sneaked off yesterday – it was a hot hot day, rains seem to be holding off for a day or two – and we escaped to the hotel The Talapia and sat around the pool for the afternoon, lovely. Whilst there, had to call into the hairdressers to book my next hair cut, and I just had to have a massage as I was there, it is one of life’s luxuries here – really good (and so cheap comparatively).
Good news is that we now (at last) have email at home – still pay as you go, etc, but means that I won’t have to keep making my daily calls into the internet café – think they will miss me. As with everything, it took a lot longer to get sorted, but, eventually, we have it here – hurrah. So, off to post this now and check my emails.
Love to all
J
Wednesday, 26 March 2008
Sorry about the delay
Hia all - sorry that there haven't been any recent up dates (but made up for it today with 4!!) but Easter got in the way - got very excited as thought I had email at home - but no - things just take a bit longer here - maybe kesho (tomorrow!!)
Anyway - seems that Donald has given up on writing any more - unless the inspiration occurs - so its over to me to keep you up to date.
Hopefully will be able to update the next entry from Milestone House, tho I have gotten quite used to my local Internet Cafe - speak soon
Lots of love
J
Anyway - seems that Donald has given up on writing any more - unless the inspiration occurs - so its over to me to keep you up to date.
Hopefully will be able to update the next entry from Milestone House, tho I have gotten quite used to my local Internet Cafe - speak soon
Lots of love
J
Computer Lessons
19-March-08 -
Today was the day that I was going in to start teaching the chaps how to use a computer!!! Last night was the night that we had THE STORM – at home we had electricity (but no water) so thought town would be OK. Wrong! Got there early, four were waiting and looking expectantly at me (again!) but no power. So just sat and chatted hoping it would come on soon – it didn’t. After three hours decided I would go, no point in waiting any longer. I had used the time to go through what we had covered since I had been working with them, and quite surprisingly (to me anyway) we do seem to have covered what they wanted and expected. We had also discussed the internet. (Me!!) I explained (in very layman’s language) how (I think) it works and how they could use it – it reminds me of the bad English teacher here who taught all the children to say “give me MY money” Lord knows what these guys will pass on to others. Anyway, we plan to continue, or start, the lessons tomorrow.
Met Donald in town as he had decided he needed a haircut – and we thought we would try somewhere different for lunch. Went into this place called ‘Sizzlers’, had heard it was OK so thought we’d give it a try. It looked a bit dark and dismal but then there was no electricity so thought nothing of that. Sat down, and a guy came over to ask what we wanted. Ordered water and fish (fried Talapia – v good) and sat and had a look around us. There were 6 or 7 other tables each with a few folk on them, but I realised no one was eating. Then looked further, and could see no access to a kitchen or even hear any sounds of cooking. Wondered what we had let ourselves into. However, eventually, we noticed there was a hatch in the wall, which occasionally opened and a plate of food was put through it. Plates came one at a time, and were handed out accordingly. Think that the food was actually cooked in the alley at the side of the restaurant, but decided not to investigate too closely – the food was v. tasty, and hot, (and so far so good) and we may try it again, (or may not!)
We decided that we needed to get some food it to the house, as it is Easter Weekend coming up and I understand that Mwanza closes from Friday till Monday. Can’t face the big market really, its just such a frantic hassle, cheap and good (ish) quality, but frantic. So we now go to the local Spa type shop, its run by an Asian family and Jen & Joey are quite friendly with them – most of the Masungu’s go there. Opposite them on the corner are two fresh food stalls, they sell fruit and veg,– quite aggressively. The goods probably come from the big market, and they then pack it into plastic bags, (so it gets quite sweaty) and charge more, plus you still get hassle, but not quite as much. So got a bit of food in for the weekend and hope that the electricity stays on so that we don’t waste it.
Next day I headed into town on the Dala Dala again – this time I got a front seat, just me and the driver (well for a few ‘stops’ anyway) thought this was great, comfort and space – thought the smell was a bit heavy tho. Smelt decidedly fishy, and a few more stops down the road I realised why, when 3 women got out and gathered with them their washing up bowls full of small (whitebait) type of fish. They had obviously been at the lake (near where we walked last weekend probably) further up the bus route, and were bringing their catches to market. These fish (I have yet to try them, tho Jen keeps saying she will cook them for us) are caught fresh and then dried on the rocks and sold in the market. Apparently they are really good with pasta…. Anyway, the drive continued – the conductor of this one was a bit surly and ended up almost having a fight with the conductor from another Dala Dala because he felt they were taking his trade, lots of shouting and gestures but luckily that was as far as it went.
So got into town, and walked to work and yes there was electricity, so we started with the computer lessons. Just three there, one never having touched a computer before in his life, tho he had typed, another had emailed and so had some concept, and Terry, my co-volunteer, who knew a bit. We were getting on OK, but then the power surged and things started to blink and turn off, so, decided that we did need the power surge protector (at a cost of Tsh 110,000 (£55). This was purchased and fitted – remarkably quickly considering where we are – but needed charging up, and so the lesson came to an end. But we did get started.
Today is the Thursday before Good Friday, and it is a public holiday here as well, as it is a Muslim festival, and there is a definite air of festivity around the place. Some shops closed, the owners being Muslim perhaps, and others busy and the markets very busy – not sure what actually closes and what doesn’t, but think the churches will be full tomorrow. No work till Tuesday. As I write this, at Milestone House at 6ish in the evening, there is obviously something going on up the road. Loads of cars and people heading up there and someone (dare I say) ranting, into a microphone – could be sport, religion or whatever, but its getting some responses. Sound does seem to carry here, perhaps no motorway, airport noise, but it still does have to compete with the chickens, crows, birds and people.
We went around to J & J’s for a meal in the evening, which was lovely – they managed to cook besides the fact that they ran out of gas (calor) and the electricity went off for sometime – but had a smashing meal and a nice evening. They had to take us back as couldn’t raise a taxi.
On Good Friday, we were again woken by a huge storm - we have obviously come into the rainy season. It has rained every day (tho usually at night) and each storm is accompanied by rolling thunder and constant lightening flashes. Usually the water goes off after a storm, not the electricity funnily enough. The night rain seems to last longer, but that may be because I’m laying in bed wondering whether there will be any real damage, but the day rain is often over in an hour or so, and then after another hour it is sunny and dry again. All this means that the roads are not as dry and dusty, but it also means the ruts and crevices in the roads are getting bigger and deeper. The road near J & J’s is horrendous, huge fractures and splits in the non tarmac roads (marum roads), its almost like a fair ground ride going around there.
Anyway – went over to J&J’s on Friday to help them get ready for the charity Easter Bonanza they were organising. They were trying to raise funds for two organisations in Mwanza, one of which is an orphanage just out by the Serengeti gate, and the other is in town, and is a similar organisation to the one Donald is working with, it helps get kids into secondary school, either by paying for them, or by assisting them with their English prior to entry. Jen had the idea that we (read their I) make an easter egg shaped cake as a prize. You may have seen a photo of our kitchen here at Milestone House, well Jen’s is a bit better, but not much. Pretty basic. And the oven is, shall we say, interesting and has its own quirks. Like the grill has to be on inside the oven when the oven is on, and the door to the oven has to be cranked open by holding down the top of the cooker. But she had confidence in me (more than I had) and had been given all the necessary stuff by the local Spa type shop as their donation. Actually, we cheated in as much as we bought ready mix stuff, which just needed eggs added. Unfortunately one was strawberry flavour and one vanilla (you could get high on the colouring smell alone!) Somehow, Jen seemed to have two baking tins, (Lord knows from where as she certainly didn’t buy them), one was a swiss roll tin and another a 7” round Victoria sandwich tin. How would you make an egg shaped cake out of that!! So made the cakes – which were more grilled than baked – and then made up loads of chocolate butter icing. Cut up the cakes and proceeded to build, what started as an egg shape, but ended up like a mountain – iced it, threw 100’s and 1000’s over it and called it a Kilimanjaro Easter Cake, and quickly shoved it in the fridge so that it didn’t collapse. HH H
It actually went down really well. It was given as a prize for the easter egg hunt. The winner was a member of a local girls football team, who had been brought along by girl who works here for a Catholic NGO. They were thrilled and really loved it and ate it there and then. Think I have a photo to print to show you.
The charity do was on the Saturday, and it was being held at The Talapia hotel, which is just on the shores of Lake Victoria. Wonderful setting, and nice hotel too really. The kids came along, with parents, from four and J&J (and friends) had organised games, egg painting, face painting, etc etc, plus some races, egg and spoon and three legged race, and it all went down really well. At 8ish the guys (Joey and friends) started to play their guitars and sing, and we sold raffle tickets all day – had three draws and some amazing prizes had been donated by the good folk of Mwanza. It was really an “ex pat” type of do, but they raised more than they hoped and it was good to see their efforts rewarded and their mates supporting them. So that was the Saturday. (which started off really really wet, but by the time the do started, we had a really lovely hot (English hot) summers day – so worked out well)
Sunday, woke to rain, which actually hasn’t stopped yet – had planned a walk, but just hanging on in here and reading, lazy day I think. Might even put a fleece on….
Lots of love
J
Today was the day that I was going in to start teaching the chaps how to use a computer!!! Last night was the night that we had THE STORM – at home we had electricity (but no water) so thought town would be OK. Wrong! Got there early, four were waiting and looking expectantly at me (again!) but no power. So just sat and chatted hoping it would come on soon – it didn’t. After three hours decided I would go, no point in waiting any longer. I had used the time to go through what we had covered since I had been working with them, and quite surprisingly (to me anyway) we do seem to have covered what they wanted and expected. We had also discussed the internet. (Me!!) I explained (in very layman’s language) how (I think) it works and how they could use it – it reminds me of the bad English teacher here who taught all the children to say “give me MY money” Lord knows what these guys will pass on to others. Anyway, we plan to continue, or start, the lessons tomorrow.
Met Donald in town as he had decided he needed a haircut – and we thought we would try somewhere different for lunch. Went into this place called ‘Sizzlers’, had heard it was OK so thought we’d give it a try. It looked a bit dark and dismal but then there was no electricity so thought nothing of that. Sat down, and a guy came over to ask what we wanted. Ordered water and fish (fried Talapia – v good) and sat and had a look around us. There were 6 or 7 other tables each with a few folk on them, but I realised no one was eating. Then looked further, and could see no access to a kitchen or even hear any sounds of cooking. Wondered what we had let ourselves into. However, eventually, we noticed there was a hatch in the wall, which occasionally opened and a plate of food was put through it. Plates came one at a time, and were handed out accordingly. Think that the food was actually cooked in the alley at the side of the restaurant, but decided not to investigate too closely – the food was v. tasty, and hot, (and so far so good) and we may try it again, (or may not!)
We decided that we needed to get some food it to the house, as it is Easter Weekend coming up and I understand that Mwanza closes from Friday till Monday. Can’t face the big market really, its just such a frantic hassle, cheap and good (ish) quality, but frantic. So we now go to the local Spa type shop, its run by an Asian family and Jen & Joey are quite friendly with them – most of the Masungu’s go there. Opposite them on the corner are two fresh food stalls, they sell fruit and veg,– quite aggressively. The goods probably come from the big market, and they then pack it into plastic bags, (so it gets quite sweaty) and charge more, plus you still get hassle, but not quite as much. So got a bit of food in for the weekend and hope that the electricity stays on so that we don’t waste it.
Next day I headed into town on the Dala Dala again – this time I got a front seat, just me and the driver (well for a few ‘stops’ anyway) thought this was great, comfort and space – thought the smell was a bit heavy tho. Smelt decidedly fishy, and a few more stops down the road I realised why, when 3 women got out and gathered with them their washing up bowls full of small (whitebait) type of fish. They had obviously been at the lake (near where we walked last weekend probably) further up the bus route, and were bringing their catches to market. These fish (I have yet to try them, tho Jen keeps saying she will cook them for us) are caught fresh and then dried on the rocks and sold in the market. Apparently they are really good with pasta…. Anyway, the drive continued – the conductor of this one was a bit surly and ended up almost having a fight with the conductor from another Dala Dala because he felt they were taking his trade, lots of shouting and gestures but luckily that was as far as it went.
So got into town, and walked to work and yes there was electricity, so we started with the computer lessons. Just three there, one never having touched a computer before in his life, tho he had typed, another had emailed and so had some concept, and Terry, my co-volunteer, who knew a bit. We were getting on OK, but then the power surged and things started to blink and turn off, so, decided that we did need the power surge protector (at a cost of Tsh 110,000 (£55). This was purchased and fitted – remarkably quickly considering where we are – but needed charging up, and so the lesson came to an end. But we did get started.
Today is the Thursday before Good Friday, and it is a public holiday here as well, as it is a Muslim festival, and there is a definite air of festivity around the place. Some shops closed, the owners being Muslim perhaps, and others busy and the markets very busy – not sure what actually closes and what doesn’t, but think the churches will be full tomorrow. No work till Tuesday. As I write this, at Milestone House at 6ish in the evening, there is obviously something going on up the road. Loads of cars and people heading up there and someone (dare I say) ranting, into a microphone – could be sport, religion or whatever, but its getting some responses. Sound does seem to carry here, perhaps no motorway, airport noise, but it still does have to compete with the chickens, crows, birds and people.
We went around to J & J’s for a meal in the evening, which was lovely – they managed to cook besides the fact that they ran out of gas (calor) and the electricity went off for sometime – but had a smashing meal and a nice evening. They had to take us back as couldn’t raise a taxi.
On Good Friday, we were again woken by a huge storm - we have obviously come into the rainy season. It has rained every day (tho usually at night) and each storm is accompanied by rolling thunder and constant lightening flashes. Usually the water goes off after a storm, not the electricity funnily enough. The night rain seems to last longer, but that may be because I’m laying in bed wondering whether there will be any real damage, but the day rain is often over in an hour or so, and then after another hour it is sunny and dry again. All this means that the roads are not as dry and dusty, but it also means the ruts and crevices in the roads are getting bigger and deeper. The road near J & J’s is horrendous, huge fractures and splits in the non tarmac roads (marum roads), its almost like a fair ground ride going around there.
Anyway – went over to J&J’s on Friday to help them get ready for the charity Easter Bonanza they were organising. They were trying to raise funds for two organisations in Mwanza, one of which is an orphanage just out by the Serengeti gate, and the other is in town, and is a similar organisation to the one Donald is working with, it helps get kids into secondary school, either by paying for them, or by assisting them with their English prior to entry. Jen had the idea that we (read their I) make an easter egg shaped cake as a prize. You may have seen a photo of our kitchen here at Milestone House, well Jen’s is a bit better, but not much. Pretty basic. And the oven is, shall we say, interesting and has its own quirks. Like the grill has to be on inside the oven when the oven is on, and the door to the oven has to be cranked open by holding down the top of the cooker. But she had confidence in me (more than I had) and had been given all the necessary stuff by the local Spa type shop as their donation. Actually, we cheated in as much as we bought ready mix stuff, which just needed eggs added. Unfortunately one was strawberry flavour and one vanilla (you could get high on the colouring smell alone!) Somehow, Jen seemed to have two baking tins, (Lord knows from where as she certainly didn’t buy them), one was a swiss roll tin and another a 7” round Victoria sandwich tin. How would you make an egg shaped cake out of that!! So made the cakes – which were more grilled than baked – and then made up loads of chocolate butter icing. Cut up the cakes and proceeded to build, what started as an egg shape, but ended up like a mountain – iced it, threw 100’s and 1000’s over it and called it a Kilimanjaro Easter Cake, and quickly shoved it in the fridge so that it didn’t collapse. HH H
It actually went down really well. It was given as a prize for the easter egg hunt. The winner was a member of a local girls football team, who had been brought along by girl who works here for a Catholic NGO. They were thrilled and really loved it and ate it there and then. Think I have a photo to print to show you.
The charity do was on the Saturday, and it was being held at The Talapia hotel, which is just on the shores of Lake Victoria. Wonderful setting, and nice hotel too really. The kids came along, with parents, from four and J&J (and friends) had organised games, egg painting, face painting, etc etc, plus some races, egg and spoon and three legged race, and it all went down really well. At 8ish the guys (Joey and friends) started to play their guitars and sing, and we sold raffle tickets all day – had three draws and some amazing prizes had been donated by the good folk of Mwanza. It was really an “ex pat” type of do, but they raised more than they hoped and it was good to see their efforts rewarded and their mates supporting them. So that was the Saturday. (which started off really really wet, but by the time the do started, we had a really lovely hot (English hot) summers day – so worked out well)
Sunday, woke to rain, which actually hasn’t stopped yet – had planned a walk, but just hanging on in here and reading, lazy day I think. Might even put a fleece on….
Lots of love
J
Letter from Mwanza - No 14
So what’s it like in Africa?
I think I have covered most of my economic and political thoughts about this patch of Africa – in somewhat of a superficial and subjective way, so unless something grabs my attention this will be my last blog. I will leave the description of the rest of time here in the very capable hands of Jane who is faster and better at it.
I have completed the Report on MSA. I say completed but I am struggling to get my memory stick to carry information from the MSA computer to any other one!! I therefore had a plan to print it off and then take and get it copied downtown. Unfortunately at this very moment the ink in the printer decided it had had enough, and thus the next project is to find the right cartridge for the printer. Essentially the hope is by opening up computer tuition classes enough income can be generated to keep the show on the road. This week is important as hopefully the report can also be used to persuade the landlord not to take any drastic action that could jeopardize the continued use of the building. MSA has been unable to pay anything this year. So I really hope the fellow will give Moshye time, and some income starts to come in from the new computer centre and education tuition classes, which should get going again in May. I also really hope the ventures we have agreed on take off, but the hard reality is it is up to him. He is a good person, who wants to help others. He deserves to succeed.
So what’s it like in Africa, or more to the point what are my impressions now? I should clarify that this question is more specifically related to this particular part of Tanzania, and I make no claim to it being the same or similar to other parts of Africa. I am just reading a book by Tim Butcher called ‘Blood River’ describing his journey through Congo in 2004, and I see no comparison between ‘peaceful’ Tanzania, and ‘chaotic and cruel’ Congo. Back to the question…………. It is a hard one, and whatever the answer it can’t be answered by making European / Western comparisons. If we were to ask ourselves what Britain was like we would probably talk about GNP per head, state of the health service, roads, education, and then compare them with say France, Germany or the USA. We would then say we are better or worse depending on our own personal experiences, or economic analysis. We may then talk about the effectiveness or otherwise of our politicians and their parties to improve things or make them worse.
If the same comparisons are done here every one would be hugely gloomy. Both national GNP and GNP per head are abysmally low, the health service by any European standard would be crisis/meltdown, the roads – well there are some, and education has all sorts of problems such as the one where pupils have to pay for the use of a desk and chair at many Secondary Schools. I could go on, but you get the drift! Ok so what is it like? I can’t make any objective and substantiated claims, only give some personal observations after my 6 or so weeks here.
In physical terms it can be seen there are some very smart and expensive buildings, and there are many many more that are no more than huts. There is electricity and water, but they don’t cover a large percentage of the population, and even where they do seem to be sporadic and unreliable. There are vehicles, some are swanky new 4x4s, but most are beaten up cast offs from the Middle or Far East. There are shops, hotels, cafes, banks, offices and all the names we can associate with. Few can be compared to their image we have of them at home, except perhaps the banks. What is it about banks that make them to be so annoyingly luxurious and uninviting? The 2 or 3 ‘supermarkets’ in Mwanza could all fit into a reasonably sized Spar or Co-op. Many of the shops are little changed from the 1930 to 1950s as the names of the owners and dates testify. Many were owned by Asian families, and many still are. As I have implied the roads cannot be described as good or even adequate. Yes there is a structure of tarmac roads, but it is limited and very soon you find yourself on different quality dust roads or tracks. The degree to which the road is rutted depends to a great extent on the rainfall. So a steep road often shares itself with a river for a short time, and then when the water has rushed away taking with it some of the surface it leave new crevices and canyons for future navigation.
So in man-made physical terms Mwanza could not be described as modern, luxurious, efficient, or anything we have learnt to expect living in Europe. Nature, however, has endowed this part of Africa with a special beauty. Its warm climate, vivid brick red earth, goliath rocks ‘thrown’ randomly onto the landscape in a spectacular fashion, and there is the blueness. Blue of the sky contrasting with the blue of the lake. A lake that seems more like a sea with its waves and size. Then there is the verdant green which together with the red and blue forms a jigsaw-like flag. In the middle of all this is humanity - a humanity that seems more noisy, colourful, smiling and interacts closely with itself. Forced together by walking at the side of roads, cycling, pushing all sorts of things, stuffed into Daladalas, huddled under trees talking, or even in front of loudspeakers proclaiming religion or something, and then perhaps just hanging around together waiting for something.
So you decide which is best?
I am now looking forward to seeing family and friends who are able to come and celebrate Jenny’s wedding. It will be a great week and hopefully set Jenny and Joey up for their exciting time together. They both did a remarkable job this weekend by putting on a charity event at the Tilapia Hotel to raise money for two very worthwhile causes. They did it with style and professionalism, and it is lovely to see two people working so well together.
So unless something really captivates me I will sign off and look forward to seeing you all back in the UK.
Donald
I think I have covered most of my economic and political thoughts about this patch of Africa – in somewhat of a superficial and subjective way, so unless something grabs my attention this will be my last blog. I will leave the description of the rest of time here in the very capable hands of Jane who is faster and better at it.
I have completed the Report on MSA. I say completed but I am struggling to get my memory stick to carry information from the MSA computer to any other one!! I therefore had a plan to print it off and then take and get it copied downtown. Unfortunately at this very moment the ink in the printer decided it had had enough, and thus the next project is to find the right cartridge for the printer. Essentially the hope is by opening up computer tuition classes enough income can be generated to keep the show on the road. This week is important as hopefully the report can also be used to persuade the landlord not to take any drastic action that could jeopardize the continued use of the building. MSA has been unable to pay anything this year. So I really hope the fellow will give Moshye time, and some income starts to come in from the new computer centre and education tuition classes, which should get going again in May. I also really hope the ventures we have agreed on take off, but the hard reality is it is up to him. He is a good person, who wants to help others. He deserves to succeed.
So what’s it like in Africa, or more to the point what are my impressions now? I should clarify that this question is more specifically related to this particular part of Tanzania, and I make no claim to it being the same or similar to other parts of Africa. I am just reading a book by Tim Butcher called ‘Blood River’ describing his journey through Congo in 2004, and I see no comparison between ‘peaceful’ Tanzania, and ‘chaotic and cruel’ Congo. Back to the question…………. It is a hard one, and whatever the answer it can’t be answered by making European / Western comparisons. If we were to ask ourselves what Britain was like we would probably talk about GNP per head, state of the health service, roads, education, and then compare them with say France, Germany or the USA. We would then say we are better or worse depending on our own personal experiences, or economic analysis. We may then talk about the effectiveness or otherwise of our politicians and their parties to improve things or make them worse.
If the same comparisons are done here every one would be hugely gloomy. Both national GNP and GNP per head are abysmally low, the health service by any European standard would be crisis/meltdown, the roads – well there are some, and education has all sorts of problems such as the one where pupils have to pay for the use of a desk and chair at many Secondary Schools. I could go on, but you get the drift! Ok so what is it like? I can’t make any objective and substantiated claims, only give some personal observations after my 6 or so weeks here.
In physical terms it can be seen there are some very smart and expensive buildings, and there are many many more that are no more than huts. There is electricity and water, but they don’t cover a large percentage of the population, and even where they do seem to be sporadic and unreliable. There are vehicles, some are swanky new 4x4s, but most are beaten up cast offs from the Middle or Far East. There are shops, hotels, cafes, banks, offices and all the names we can associate with. Few can be compared to their image we have of them at home, except perhaps the banks. What is it about banks that make them to be so annoyingly luxurious and uninviting? The 2 or 3 ‘supermarkets’ in Mwanza could all fit into a reasonably sized Spar or Co-op. Many of the shops are little changed from the 1930 to 1950s as the names of the owners and dates testify. Many were owned by Asian families, and many still are. As I have implied the roads cannot be described as good or even adequate. Yes there is a structure of tarmac roads, but it is limited and very soon you find yourself on different quality dust roads or tracks. The degree to which the road is rutted depends to a great extent on the rainfall. So a steep road often shares itself with a river for a short time, and then when the water has rushed away taking with it some of the surface it leave new crevices and canyons for future navigation.
So in man-made physical terms Mwanza could not be described as modern, luxurious, efficient, or anything we have learnt to expect living in Europe. Nature, however, has endowed this part of Africa with a special beauty. Its warm climate, vivid brick red earth, goliath rocks ‘thrown’ randomly onto the landscape in a spectacular fashion, and there is the blueness. Blue of the sky contrasting with the blue of the lake. A lake that seems more like a sea with its waves and size. Then there is the verdant green which together with the red and blue forms a jigsaw-like flag. In the middle of all this is humanity - a humanity that seems more noisy, colourful, smiling and interacts closely with itself. Forced together by walking at the side of roads, cycling, pushing all sorts of things, stuffed into Daladalas, huddled under trees talking, or even in front of loudspeakers proclaiming religion or something, and then perhaps just hanging around together waiting for something.
So you decide which is best?
I am now looking forward to seeing family and friends who are able to come and celebrate Jenny’s wedding. It will be a great week and hopefully set Jenny and Joey up for their exciting time together. They both did a remarkable job this weekend by putting on a charity event at the Tilapia Hotel to raise money for two very worthwhile causes. They did it with style and professionalism, and it is lovely to see two people working so well together.
So unless something really captivates me I will sign off and look forward to seeing you all back in the UK.
Donald
Letter from Mwanza - No 13
I seem to be getting a little like Jonathan Ross on Saturday morning when he takes his inspiration from a paper. In his case it’s The Week, in mine it’s The Daily News. Two features drew my attention this week as I tried in vain to find football and rugby news. Firstly, a ‘sponsored message’ which takes up half of the page of the broadsheet, by a Mr M R J Sabodo of Dar es Salaam. He titles it STOP, it has a picture of a rather aggressive buffalo on one side and three lions on the other. Sort of cuddly looking, but we all know what they can do! It is addressed to ‘the Minister for Finance and Economy’ – The Hon Mkulo. He starts by saying “There is no doubt that you shocked by how much money has been taken from the External Payments Arrears Account”, whatever that is, and then goes on “I am sure you are shocked by the Richmond scandal (no relation Mark!), to which I wrote about in my early blog. He continues, “You are shocked too by the pittance we get from our mining operations – a mere 3% royalty!” He saves his biggest rant for the Mobile phones companies who after a detailed analysis claims collect a revenue of ‘exactly one third of our budget’, which sounds horrendous if not taxed appropriately. In true English Tanzanian style he finishes the article with a lovely sounding phrase somewhat difficult to translate – “Talk about this country being poor? I don’t know how God could have blessed us less more!” My suggestion would be for him to get in touch with the British Prime Minister, who I presume is still Gordon Brown, and ask advice how to quietly to extract substantial revenues from mobile phones companies and mining companies.
The other article is in some ways even more disturbing. It is written by Mike Sikawa, who could be a South African. At least he says he has spent quite ‘number of years in Johannesburg Central Business District’. In essence he is reflecting on his walk down Double Road in Moshi (the place of some future important event) how he was surprised that “there was not a single Tanzanian of Asian origin in the shops”. He was referring to the ownership. He does say in the article that he is not a racist as he knows what it is like to be “humiliated because one belongs to this or that colour”. He claims that now some 70% of the shops in Moshi are owned and run by who describes as ‘locals’, and on the entire 2 kilometres of Double Road there are about two or three Asian owned shops. He describes why this could be so with the economic liberalization of importing and exporting after the end of ‘Centralization’ (the “ruksa” policy of the Ali Hassan Mwinyi government), which gave more people the ability to compete successfully. Also the rather sad demise of the coffee industry in the 1980s and 1990s meant that many Asian people left the country to find better prospects overseas. All that is fine, but then he goes on to say about the problem of capital, which I referred to in my last blog. Although he says, …………“since banks have started opening up offices in Moshi, the locals will start getting loans. At the moment, however, it seems the loan system seems to be tilted in favour of the Indians”. I sense something rather sad and possibly unsavoury with this comment.
Kwa heri for now
Donald
March 20th 2008.
The other article is in some ways even more disturbing. It is written by Mike Sikawa, who could be a South African. At least he says he has spent quite ‘number of years in Johannesburg Central Business District’. In essence he is reflecting on his walk down Double Road in Moshi (the place of some future important event) how he was surprised that “there was not a single Tanzanian of Asian origin in the shops”. He was referring to the ownership. He does say in the article that he is not a racist as he knows what it is like to be “humiliated because one belongs to this or that colour”. He claims that now some 70% of the shops in Moshi are owned and run by who describes as ‘locals’, and on the entire 2 kilometres of Double Road there are about two or three Asian owned shops. He describes why this could be so with the economic liberalization of importing and exporting after the end of ‘Centralization’ (the “ruksa” policy of the Ali Hassan Mwinyi government), which gave more people the ability to compete successfully. Also the rather sad demise of the coffee industry in the 1980s and 1990s meant that many Asian people left the country to find better prospects overseas. All that is fine, but then he goes on to say about the problem of capital, which I referred to in my last blog. Although he says, …………“since banks have started opening up offices in Moshi, the locals will start getting loans. At the moment, however, it seems the loan system seems to be tilted in favour of the Indians”. I sense something rather sad and possibly unsavoury with this comment.
Kwa heri for now
Donald
March 20th 2008.
Thursday, 20 March 2008
Workshop and computer!!!
18th March, 2008
Well it was all planned for Monday morning. A workshop on Proposal Writing – not that I have ever written any proposals as such. I had some notes prepared and a programme ready, plus, I even had a handout to give each participant. I was expecting five people for the workshop. Went into the ‘office’ to find just Mr Messo and Terry (my co-volunteer). Others were there, but seemed busy or involved in other things.
I suggested that it really wasn’t worth doing a workshop for just two, as we needed to have input from others, and eventually (after Joey reiterated it) Mr Messo agreed that we would delay the workshop till the next day.
So we decided to use the time to go looking for computers. This time I went off walking into town with George and Konda. Both are TACOPE volunteers, Konda seems to be in the ‘office’ every day, and has the grand title of Second Secretary. He seems to know where everything is – whether its in a draw, cupboard or box, he seems to find it. George, I had not met before. He is also a volunteer, but does work, whenever he can get a job. He is an engineer, and studied in Dar Es Salaam, but he could only afford to complete the two year course, to Diploma level, and still wants to try to get his degree, which means another year studying, and finding the funding for this. George speaks English quite well, and Konda manages with English. Both have used computers before, but very little. So blind leading the blind really!!!
We went into town and they took me, thro markets and side streets, to a second hand computer shop, which was a room in an old single story building which had perhaps been some sort of school or police/city type of office in the colonial past. The rooms were around a yard – and all was quite dilapidated (as is Mwanza – except for the two new high rise very modern looking buildings which have just opened – first new build in many, many years I would think!). The room had two trestle tables in, which were cram packed with dusty old monitors and computer towers stacked one on top of another. We asked what was their best offer, and a particular tower was pointed out to us. We were told its attributes (can’t say I understood too much of what it all meant!) and asked its price – 550,000 Tsh (£275). It was then demonstrated that it worked and we agreed to have a think about it and come back.
Off we went to the other side of town – we had had a tremendous thunderstorm on Sunday, and so the streets were pretty wet and muddy – so picking our way through another lot of side streets and markets, we ended up in another ‘shop’. Again, two tables piled high with computers/monitors and keyboards. Another one was demonstrated to us, and we agreed to do a deal, - after we had bartered a bit, had a printer included, the memory increased and something else added. The deal was done at 500,000 (£250). It was agreed that Joey and I would go back in the morning, with the money (cash!) and we would then bring it to the office.
I then did some food shopping and took a taxi home. Jen then persuaded me to go to Yoga – and I am so glad I did. The yoga session was on the beach at Tunsa Lodge, which is a lovely place just near the airport, on the shore of the lake. So there I was, doing Yoga (first time in ages) but what a place to do it, on the shores of Lake Victoria – which is so vast that you do feel it is a sea, and in fact there were waves following the storm of Sunday. Just as we were doing our last relaxing session – the bit where you lay back and chill – it started to rain, just drops here and there – so cooling and relaxing, it was lovely.
So Tuesday – saw the second attempt at holding our workshop. However, first Joey and I went to pay for and collect the computer. This was not a quick job – no – everything here takes more time than you think. First we had to check it was the same computer, then change something for something else, etc. etc. Then the cash had to be counted – biggest note is 10,000 Tz shillings, - It took an age – however – eventually, got the thing in the car and went to the office.
This time, everyone was there – seven people. Each with a piece of paper and a pen in hand and looking at me very expectantly as I walked in. When they realised we had the computer with us, they all stood and clapped us in – great excitement. Then it had to be installed, and it was the usual thing, everyone wanted to help, everything had to be moved, didn’t have enough cables (the same as when we get any new electrical/computer type thing at home) Good start to the workshop I thought!
Did then start the workshop – (partially filmed by Joey for my video diary!) All the participants seems so keen to write down everything I said or wrote on the flip chart (yep we had flip charts up too) that they didn’t really participate as such – and – we had the chap from the computer shop come in (Twice!!) as we had had to call him in to ensure it worked. So it was fun! I do think that we did achieve something tho really – because at the end, when we had formally finished, we carried on chatting for a while, and think that they did appreciate what we did, and had learnt something too – maybe….. But then it does all come down to them finding donors – and to do that now, you either need to know what’s going on, or be able to use the internet – so then had to plan computer lessons. (CAB er’s will draw similarities to CASE training, as I think their knowledge of computers is pretty small, if at all) Just another little challenge.
After that exhausting session (it was a very hot and humid day) I bailed out and met Donald at a decent hotel, where we sat by the pool and relaxed. Ended up staying there to eat in the evening, sitting at (another) edge of the lake watching the sun go down and the birds (kingfishers, Egrets and kites, plus others whose names either escape me or I have never known) hovering and diving and calling – a perfect setting for a lovely evening. We then taxied home.
Did I tell you that often when we are in on our own in the evening, we tend to watch DVD’s and box sets of TV series. Well we are just at the end of series 5 of 24 - Jack Bauer et al. So it is all very exciting!!!
Went to bed and at about 12 ish the lightening started, the thunder was rolling in the distance and it began to rain. We had the most frightening and humendous thunder storm – it went on for almost a couple of hours. The lightening and thunder coming at the same time, very loud and very close, and the storm just didn’t seem to move from over our heads. The rain was POUNDING off the tin roof and being blown in through the windows. Pretty scary – but we survived! This meant however that the towns streets were muddier and the drains fuller than ever the next day. Tho it does dry out fairly quickly.
Must just add another note about my Dala Dala ride in this morning (Wed). Usual thing, crowded and almost full before I get in, however, there was one space which I grabbed – it did entail my knee’s being quite close to a young chaps groin. He had one leg each side of my two knees, and, at one point, another guy had his head almost resting on my shoulder – they got 23 in today!!!!! Think the novelty is wearing off a bit.
Anyway – tonight is the last episode of 24, so got to get on with that – we have water back (didn’t have any for 16 hrs or so) so that’s great, and will tell you more about the computer lessons at my next blog.
Lots of love to all
Love J
Well it was all planned for Monday morning. A workshop on Proposal Writing – not that I have ever written any proposals as such. I had some notes prepared and a programme ready, plus, I even had a handout to give each participant. I was expecting five people for the workshop. Went into the ‘office’ to find just Mr Messo and Terry (my co-volunteer). Others were there, but seemed busy or involved in other things.
I suggested that it really wasn’t worth doing a workshop for just two, as we needed to have input from others, and eventually (after Joey reiterated it) Mr Messo agreed that we would delay the workshop till the next day.
So we decided to use the time to go looking for computers. This time I went off walking into town with George and Konda. Both are TACOPE volunteers, Konda seems to be in the ‘office’ every day, and has the grand title of Second Secretary. He seems to know where everything is – whether its in a draw, cupboard or box, he seems to find it. George, I had not met before. He is also a volunteer, but does work, whenever he can get a job. He is an engineer, and studied in Dar Es Salaam, but he could only afford to complete the two year course, to Diploma level, and still wants to try to get his degree, which means another year studying, and finding the funding for this. George speaks English quite well, and Konda manages with English. Both have used computers before, but very little. So blind leading the blind really!!!
We went into town and they took me, thro markets and side streets, to a second hand computer shop, which was a room in an old single story building which had perhaps been some sort of school or police/city type of office in the colonial past. The rooms were around a yard – and all was quite dilapidated (as is Mwanza – except for the two new high rise very modern looking buildings which have just opened – first new build in many, many years I would think!). The room had two trestle tables in, which were cram packed with dusty old monitors and computer towers stacked one on top of another. We asked what was their best offer, and a particular tower was pointed out to us. We were told its attributes (can’t say I understood too much of what it all meant!) and asked its price – 550,000 Tsh (£275). It was then demonstrated that it worked and we agreed to have a think about it and come back.
Off we went to the other side of town – we had had a tremendous thunderstorm on Sunday, and so the streets were pretty wet and muddy – so picking our way through another lot of side streets and markets, we ended up in another ‘shop’. Again, two tables piled high with computers/monitors and keyboards. Another one was demonstrated to us, and we agreed to do a deal, - after we had bartered a bit, had a printer included, the memory increased and something else added. The deal was done at 500,000 (£250). It was agreed that Joey and I would go back in the morning, with the money (cash!) and we would then bring it to the office.
I then did some food shopping and took a taxi home. Jen then persuaded me to go to Yoga – and I am so glad I did. The yoga session was on the beach at Tunsa Lodge, which is a lovely place just near the airport, on the shore of the lake. So there I was, doing Yoga (first time in ages) but what a place to do it, on the shores of Lake Victoria – which is so vast that you do feel it is a sea, and in fact there were waves following the storm of Sunday. Just as we were doing our last relaxing session – the bit where you lay back and chill – it started to rain, just drops here and there – so cooling and relaxing, it was lovely.
So Tuesday – saw the second attempt at holding our workshop. However, first Joey and I went to pay for and collect the computer. This was not a quick job – no – everything here takes more time than you think. First we had to check it was the same computer, then change something for something else, etc. etc. Then the cash had to be counted – biggest note is 10,000 Tz shillings, - It took an age – however – eventually, got the thing in the car and went to the office.
This time, everyone was there – seven people. Each with a piece of paper and a pen in hand and looking at me very expectantly as I walked in. When they realised we had the computer with us, they all stood and clapped us in – great excitement. Then it had to be installed, and it was the usual thing, everyone wanted to help, everything had to be moved, didn’t have enough cables (the same as when we get any new electrical/computer type thing at home) Good start to the workshop I thought!
Did then start the workshop – (partially filmed by Joey for my video diary!) All the participants seems so keen to write down everything I said or wrote on the flip chart (yep we had flip charts up too) that they didn’t really participate as such – and – we had the chap from the computer shop come in (Twice!!) as we had had to call him in to ensure it worked. So it was fun! I do think that we did achieve something tho really – because at the end, when we had formally finished, we carried on chatting for a while, and think that they did appreciate what we did, and had learnt something too – maybe….. But then it does all come down to them finding donors – and to do that now, you either need to know what’s going on, or be able to use the internet – so then had to plan computer lessons. (CAB er’s will draw similarities to CASE training, as I think their knowledge of computers is pretty small, if at all) Just another little challenge.
After that exhausting session (it was a very hot and humid day) I bailed out and met Donald at a decent hotel, where we sat by the pool and relaxed. Ended up staying there to eat in the evening, sitting at (another) edge of the lake watching the sun go down and the birds (kingfishers, Egrets and kites, plus others whose names either escape me or I have never known) hovering and diving and calling – a perfect setting for a lovely evening. We then taxied home.
Did I tell you that often when we are in on our own in the evening, we tend to watch DVD’s and box sets of TV series. Well we are just at the end of series 5 of 24 - Jack Bauer et al. So it is all very exciting!!!
Went to bed and at about 12 ish the lightening started, the thunder was rolling in the distance and it began to rain. We had the most frightening and humendous thunder storm – it went on for almost a couple of hours. The lightening and thunder coming at the same time, very loud and very close, and the storm just didn’t seem to move from over our heads. The rain was POUNDING off the tin roof and being blown in through the windows. Pretty scary – but we survived! This meant however that the towns streets were muddier and the drains fuller than ever the next day. Tho it does dry out fairly quickly.
Must just add another note about my Dala Dala ride in this morning (Wed). Usual thing, crowded and almost full before I get in, however, there was one space which I grabbed – it did entail my knee’s being quite close to a young chaps groin. He had one leg each side of my two knees, and, at one point, another guy had his head almost resting on my shoulder – they got 23 in today!!!!! Think the novelty is wearing off a bit.
Anyway – tonight is the last episode of 24, so got to get on with that – we have water back (didn’t have any for 16 hrs or so) so that’s great, and will tell you more about the computer lessons at my next blog.
Lots of love to all
Love J
Letter from Mwanza - No 12
The Big Difficult Question!!
I thought I would try and return to the sentiments expressed by the fellow who thought not much had changed despite all the aid, expertise and wazungu involvement. What is really needed to bring so many needy people up to a level of basic decency? The supply of fresh water, enough food, relevant medical help, satisfactory housing and an education programme that gets this young population in a position to look after itself and in time look after the older one, are some of the things which are really needed.
I make absolutely no claim to be expert enough to make a comprehensive or detailed answer, but drawing on my faded memory of Lipsey and Samuelson at ‘A’ level economics, I would like to try by dividing the problem and possible solution into a macro and micro one:
On the macro level, I see no alternative to a long, sustained and corruption-free economic growth strategy. This seems to be a rather glib and easy thing to say; but I really do believe that the ‘western’ economies will need to move in the opposite direction with negative growth if our attempts to combat global warming are to be successful. The challenge in the social/liberal capitalist economies is how to square declining national produce with increasing public happiness. That however is another story!
So what seems to be required in much of sub-Saharan Africa is many years of double-digit growth where increasing GDP will deliver increasing wealth over and above that needed to provide for the increasing population. It is also vital that the proceeds of this increasing wealth get widely and fairly distributed in a targeted manner. Good governance, relevant economic strategies and a new sort of relationship with the wider world are all major parts needed. I’ll leave the first two for future consideration; but would like to make a couple of observations based on being an interested viewer of Africa for some 35 years. The chap I spoke with was right, when he said that all those white 4 x 4 vehicles with ‘experts’ in them coming to ‘help’ have made only marginal differences over many years. If we are honest with ourselves why should they? Africa was not colonised for the benefit of Africa, and post- colonial involvement has been because external countries need something from Africa, not the other way around. Yes money, goods and services do get donated, but never without some sort of strings attached. From a Euro centric point of view, we will say, “well of course there have to be strings attached; because we want to make sure our money is spent properly”. I think this is where change has to occur. If the wealthy countries want to help then they need to either give money to governments transparently and then let the government spend as they think fit. If they don’t want to do this for any reason then they should say no. Yes money will get poorly spent, but hey what’s so new about that. The important fact is that responsibility for the countries development should reside with the country. If they have bad government they have choices, not always easy ones, but they do have them.
I do sense a wind of change in government policies – it’s more of a breeze than a wind, but centralised top down government often out of touch and corrupt is coming under pressure. Initiatives like the ‘wise men’ of Africa group deciding an award for the President with the best record, greater public awareness of scandals and younger people demanding more for themselves, will all contribute to future change.
This really brings us on to what should or could happen at the micro level to enable a surge in economic activity sufficient to deliver significant growth. Last night, we went with Jenny, Joey and another couple of their friends to a Kiti Moto place. For our Jewish and Muslim friends, this is not a location to go, especially on a Friday night!! One of their friends (David or Doude as he is known) talked about his aspiration to be a national politician, and so I asked him what he thinks should be done. We agreed that education and health were crucial issues, but he felt the ability of people to be able to borrow money at reasonable rates of interest was vital. Bank borrowing costs some 20 – 25% pa. I said I sensed that Africans seems to be risk adverse and unwilling, compared for example to many of the Asian community, to re-invest back in their business. I realise I am making a huge generalisation here. Therefore whatever rate of interest you could borrow at most Africans would not partake significantly in any major wealth creation. Whilst agreeing, he felt change was gradually happening. It seems to me absolutely crucial that a more enterprising culture is rapidly developed, and again education will play an important part as will the economic environment set by the government. He also felt that some of the companies were unwilling to take on permanent staff favouring using people on a daily rate so if they are not needed there is no cost. 1930’s Europe and Dockers waiting outside the gates to know whether they have work in the 1650’s and 60’s come to mind. This just can’t be acceptable today.
Tanzania is fortunate in that land issues, such an emotional subject in many parts of Africa, are not contentious here. All the land is state owned, and sold on long leases. So at least if people want to invest long term in a business they should be confident that at least their land tenure is secure. I would also think this should be beneficial for the development on lending as land/buildings as collateral is a good starting point.
So, there we have it – some gems, of a questionably quality, thrown into the pot for African development. Aid given by willing countries without any strings attached, transparent and non corruptible government, a policy of double digit economic growth, targeted government expenditure with priority given to education and health, establishing and developing an effective and cheap method of bank lending, the encouragement of an enterprise culture and the establishment of work practices that lead to increasing productivity both in the manufacturing and service sectors.
So the big question really is “Are the governments and people of both African and the wealthy countries really up for the challenge?”
Kwa heri for now.
Donald
16th March 08
I thought I would try and return to the sentiments expressed by the fellow who thought not much had changed despite all the aid, expertise and wazungu involvement. What is really needed to bring so many needy people up to a level of basic decency? The supply of fresh water, enough food, relevant medical help, satisfactory housing and an education programme that gets this young population in a position to look after itself and in time look after the older one, are some of the things which are really needed.
I make absolutely no claim to be expert enough to make a comprehensive or detailed answer, but drawing on my faded memory of Lipsey and Samuelson at ‘A’ level economics, I would like to try by dividing the problem and possible solution into a macro and micro one:
On the macro level, I see no alternative to a long, sustained and corruption-free economic growth strategy. This seems to be a rather glib and easy thing to say; but I really do believe that the ‘western’ economies will need to move in the opposite direction with negative growth if our attempts to combat global warming are to be successful. The challenge in the social/liberal capitalist economies is how to square declining national produce with increasing public happiness. That however is another story!
So what seems to be required in much of sub-Saharan Africa is many years of double-digit growth where increasing GDP will deliver increasing wealth over and above that needed to provide for the increasing population. It is also vital that the proceeds of this increasing wealth get widely and fairly distributed in a targeted manner. Good governance, relevant economic strategies and a new sort of relationship with the wider world are all major parts needed. I’ll leave the first two for future consideration; but would like to make a couple of observations based on being an interested viewer of Africa for some 35 years. The chap I spoke with was right, when he said that all those white 4 x 4 vehicles with ‘experts’ in them coming to ‘help’ have made only marginal differences over many years. If we are honest with ourselves why should they? Africa was not colonised for the benefit of Africa, and post- colonial involvement has been because external countries need something from Africa, not the other way around. Yes money, goods and services do get donated, but never without some sort of strings attached. From a Euro centric point of view, we will say, “well of course there have to be strings attached; because we want to make sure our money is spent properly”. I think this is where change has to occur. If the wealthy countries want to help then they need to either give money to governments transparently and then let the government spend as they think fit. If they don’t want to do this for any reason then they should say no. Yes money will get poorly spent, but hey what’s so new about that. The important fact is that responsibility for the countries development should reside with the country. If they have bad government they have choices, not always easy ones, but they do have them.
I do sense a wind of change in government policies – it’s more of a breeze than a wind, but centralised top down government often out of touch and corrupt is coming under pressure. Initiatives like the ‘wise men’ of Africa group deciding an award for the President with the best record, greater public awareness of scandals and younger people demanding more for themselves, will all contribute to future change.
This really brings us on to what should or could happen at the micro level to enable a surge in economic activity sufficient to deliver significant growth. Last night, we went with Jenny, Joey and another couple of their friends to a Kiti Moto place. For our Jewish and Muslim friends, this is not a location to go, especially on a Friday night!! One of their friends (David or Doude as he is known) talked about his aspiration to be a national politician, and so I asked him what he thinks should be done. We agreed that education and health were crucial issues, but he felt the ability of people to be able to borrow money at reasonable rates of interest was vital. Bank borrowing costs some 20 – 25% pa. I said I sensed that Africans seems to be risk adverse and unwilling, compared for example to many of the Asian community, to re-invest back in their business. I realise I am making a huge generalisation here. Therefore whatever rate of interest you could borrow at most Africans would not partake significantly in any major wealth creation. Whilst agreeing, he felt change was gradually happening. It seems to me absolutely crucial that a more enterprising culture is rapidly developed, and again education will play an important part as will the economic environment set by the government. He also felt that some of the companies were unwilling to take on permanent staff favouring using people on a daily rate so if they are not needed there is no cost. 1930’s Europe and Dockers waiting outside the gates to know whether they have work in the 1650’s and 60’s come to mind. This just can’t be acceptable today.
Tanzania is fortunate in that land issues, such an emotional subject in many parts of Africa, are not contentious here. All the land is state owned, and sold on long leases. So at least if people want to invest long term in a business they should be confident that at least their land tenure is secure. I would also think this should be beneficial for the development on lending as land/buildings as collateral is a good starting point.
So, there we have it – some gems, of a questionably quality, thrown into the pot for African development. Aid given by willing countries without any strings attached, transparent and non corruptible government, a policy of double digit economic growth, targeted government expenditure with priority given to education and health, establishing and developing an effective and cheap method of bank lending, the encouragement of an enterprise culture and the establishment of work practices that lead to increasing productivity both in the manufacturing and service sectors.
So the big question really is “Are the governments and people of both African and the wealthy countries really up for the challenge?”
Kwa heri for now.
Donald
16th March 08
Monday, 17 March 2008
Kiti Moto and more observations
On Thursday, I went into to the TACOPE office, with various things I had put together for them. I’d worked on a booklet, which shows the history of the organisation as well as putting their profile, which I had streamlined, together. I had typed out letters, which they were going to send off asking a few of the bigger companies if they would consider supporting this group, and I’d also typed out their 2008 budget. So a fair bit had been completed, and the idea is that, when they get a computer, I will be able to leave them with these things, which they can then use as and when they want.
Have I mentioned about the computer? Think I have, but a quick recap – they do have a computer in the ‘office’, but it doesn’t work. They paid Tsh 280,000 for it and had a further balance due to pay of Tsh 120,000 – but the hard drive is broken and the memory is insufficient. Basically it’s useless. They haven’t been able to track the guy down who ‘sold’ it to them, and it seems that the Tsh 280,000 (£140) could be lost!! Part of the money we paid to do our volunteering goes to the charity we work with – this is called Community Trust, and as I said at the beginning of my time here, I felt somehow that was what the group were looking forward to receiving. In fact the budget shows income from foreign volunteers! The spend is supposed to be discussed with the volunteer, the charity and SAIDIA – but it looks like my contribution to TACOPE will be the purchase of a computer. Add to this the fact that I will have to help them set it up, show them how to use it and put some useful items on it so that they have templates, etc for future use. I said to Joey that as we only have three weeks working left, I felt it was time to go ahead and get the computer.
So on Friday I decided to work from home – I’d been asked by the TACOPE guys to assist them with the proposals they put to donors, and we thought it a good idea to have a workshop, so needed to do some preparation for that, and, thought I could go with Joey to look into buying the computer. Had a good morning at home and got some good stuff together (lets see how this works in a workshop tho!) and then Joey came to take me into town. I needed to go to a bank to make a payment to a lodge we are staying at during our trip/safari prior to the wedding, wanted to get some photo’s printed and to look for the computer. Well, managed to succeed with just one of those tasks. The bank was successful – the rest wasn’t. It was Friday afternoon, and a lot of the Muslim shops were closed, there were crowds of people moving in and out of the mosques (of which there are many here) and no joy in finding the computer or anywhere open that would print photo’s off a memory card. So will try again next week. Shopping is strange here – there don’t seem to be shops as such (or as we know them). There are rooms, like shop fronts, but they don’t seem to hold stock – you just go to someone who knows something or someone and then move onto another ‘shop’. There is lots of chat and “sawa sawa” (okay) and it all takes ages, but that’s how it works here. I may be more informed later when we actually manage to buy a computer – who knows!
Whilst at the office on Thursday, just as I was leaving, a lady came in and filled the place with her charisma. Her name is, Tabu Kakwaya - Tabu she told me with great pride means ‘trouble’. Her English was just a bit better than my Swahili, but between us and Mr Messo interpreting, I understood that she is the Home Care visitor. She is the one who goes around to people’s homes when they find out they are infected with HIV/Aids. She is a volunteer – and visits 100’s of people. She talks them through how to take their drugs, what they can do and can’t do, the fact that the drugs have to be taken at specific times EVERY day, and have to be taken with food, which sometimes is not available! She supports them and their families, and comes over as an amazing lady. She was an absolute bubble, full of smiles and talk and was really something else.
She left twice and each time came back with more to say and laugh about. She dragged one of her ‘clients’ in who had just been to the hospital for his drugs – they are issued free every other month, and she wanted me to see them. She then told us, me, that she is having a party on Sunday. They are planning to kill one cow and two goats for it – so it’s a big one, and she invited me to come with Donald, and Jen & Joey. She knows Joey and had been trying to meet Jen, (or they had been trying to meet up with her). She was most insistent – so I said that I would try to come, depending on what the others had planned. J&J thought it sounded a possible, so we will see – but Joey said that if we do go, we will be treated like honoured guests – so??
Last night went out with J&J and another couple of their friends, and we had the local delicacy (not sure if it is at all delicate!) Kiti Moto – which literally means hot chair! It is what is also called “a pile of pork”. There are a few local restaurants (I say that in the loosest term) which specialise in this, and when a pig is killed word gets around which kiti moto to go to, because you only want to go when the meat is fresh (obviously!) Actually it is really tasty. There are two forms you can have – one is dry cooked and the other is with sauce. Basically like Chinese spare ribs. It comes with ugali (maize made into a thick past – like stodgy mashed potatoes) which you roll into a ball (with your right hand!) and then dip it into a sauce. The platter is a communal one (tho we had three) and you just dig in. It was a really good night out, and the food was great. (and this is being written the next day, so no after effects)
Today (Saturday) Donald and I went for a walk around our neighbourhood. We hadn’t explored really, and so we set off with our suntan cream plastered on, hats on, camera and phone in pocket and bottles of water in Donalds back pack and walked. We went up to the top of our road and turned right, we’d never done that before, always been left. Walking! – there are always loads of people walking here. The sound of the feet/shoes shuffling along the road is a constant. So we weren’t alone, but we were just walking for the sake of it, not as a means to an end. Whilst we were walking on the main, and tarmaced road, we past clusters of shacks interspersed with bigger houses which were enclosed with big walls and big metal gates. Whenever a car comes up to their gate, they don’t get out to open it – no way – they sit in the car and toot the horn. If the gate isn’t opened quickly enough they toot again, with more impatience, until the houseboy or gate man, clatters the bolts and opens the gates so the car can enter its compound. Meanwhile, life in the smaller houses is very much open for all to see. A lot is done outside the house – washing, eating, cooking, etc. Think the shelter of the house is only used when it rains and for sleeping at night. By the looks of them there is not much inside them anyway. But we got lots of smiles and waves along the way – the usual cry’s of ‘Muzungo’, ‘How are you?’ etc.
We meandered along the road for some time, till it came to an end, well the tarmac did. The road continued and we followed and then veered off on to pathways until we came to the Lake, which is what we were hoping we would do. The lake itself seems to be everywhere, or maybe Mwanza just hugs the side of it. As we walked towards the lake we were aware that there were a lot of young lads walking either in the same direction or coming back. A lot of them carried buckets, and they just sauntered along singly or in groups. We pasted a couple of schools, big secondary ones, along the way, and when we got to the lake we realised what was happening. Obviously Saturday morning is clothes washing day for the boy’s school. There were loads of guys at the waters edge, washing their clothes, and themselves. The lake by the way is known to be the cause of Bilharzias (spelt incorrectly I’m sure!) which is a nasty parasite which has very bad effects of those who contract it, not even sure if it is fatal – but maybe they are immune.
The scenery on the way was fabulous – I think I have mentioned before that Mwanza is known as Rock City, and the rocks are just amazing. Huge smooth odd shaped boulders precariously balancing on each other – I’ll try to put some photo’s of them on the blog to show you what I mean. They are amazingly powerful to look at!
Having mentioned shops to you - I should also mention the mobile shops. These are basically stuff carried by guys who just walk along the road, trying to attact sales by calling you as you drive or walk past, or even knocking on gates as they go. The goods are carried either on heads, on a long pole which holds hangers or just now I saw a guy walking on the road with about 50 ties losely around his neck - a Tie shop!
OK – think I’ve done enough for now, will continue with my ramblings again soon, lots of love J
Have I mentioned about the computer? Think I have, but a quick recap – they do have a computer in the ‘office’, but it doesn’t work. They paid Tsh 280,000 for it and had a further balance due to pay of Tsh 120,000 – but the hard drive is broken and the memory is insufficient. Basically it’s useless. They haven’t been able to track the guy down who ‘sold’ it to them, and it seems that the Tsh 280,000 (£140) could be lost!! Part of the money we paid to do our volunteering goes to the charity we work with – this is called Community Trust, and as I said at the beginning of my time here, I felt somehow that was what the group were looking forward to receiving. In fact the budget shows income from foreign volunteers! The spend is supposed to be discussed with the volunteer, the charity and SAIDIA – but it looks like my contribution to TACOPE will be the purchase of a computer. Add to this the fact that I will have to help them set it up, show them how to use it and put some useful items on it so that they have templates, etc for future use. I said to Joey that as we only have three weeks working left, I felt it was time to go ahead and get the computer.
So on Friday I decided to work from home – I’d been asked by the TACOPE guys to assist them with the proposals they put to donors, and we thought it a good idea to have a workshop, so needed to do some preparation for that, and, thought I could go with Joey to look into buying the computer. Had a good morning at home and got some good stuff together (lets see how this works in a workshop tho!) and then Joey came to take me into town. I needed to go to a bank to make a payment to a lodge we are staying at during our trip/safari prior to the wedding, wanted to get some photo’s printed and to look for the computer. Well, managed to succeed with just one of those tasks. The bank was successful – the rest wasn’t. It was Friday afternoon, and a lot of the Muslim shops were closed, there were crowds of people moving in and out of the mosques (of which there are many here) and no joy in finding the computer or anywhere open that would print photo’s off a memory card. So will try again next week. Shopping is strange here – there don’t seem to be shops as such (or as we know them). There are rooms, like shop fronts, but they don’t seem to hold stock – you just go to someone who knows something or someone and then move onto another ‘shop’. There is lots of chat and “sawa sawa” (okay) and it all takes ages, but that’s how it works here. I may be more informed later when we actually manage to buy a computer – who knows!
Whilst at the office on Thursday, just as I was leaving, a lady came in and filled the place with her charisma. Her name is, Tabu Kakwaya - Tabu she told me with great pride means ‘trouble’. Her English was just a bit better than my Swahili, but between us and Mr Messo interpreting, I understood that she is the Home Care visitor. She is the one who goes around to people’s homes when they find out they are infected with HIV/Aids. She is a volunteer – and visits 100’s of people. She talks them through how to take their drugs, what they can do and can’t do, the fact that the drugs have to be taken at specific times EVERY day, and have to be taken with food, which sometimes is not available! She supports them and their families, and comes over as an amazing lady. She was an absolute bubble, full of smiles and talk and was really something else.
She left twice and each time came back with more to say and laugh about. She dragged one of her ‘clients’ in who had just been to the hospital for his drugs – they are issued free every other month, and she wanted me to see them. She then told us, me, that she is having a party on Sunday. They are planning to kill one cow and two goats for it – so it’s a big one, and she invited me to come with Donald, and Jen & Joey. She knows Joey and had been trying to meet Jen, (or they had been trying to meet up with her). She was most insistent – so I said that I would try to come, depending on what the others had planned. J&J thought it sounded a possible, so we will see – but Joey said that if we do go, we will be treated like honoured guests – so??
Last night went out with J&J and another couple of their friends, and we had the local delicacy (not sure if it is at all delicate!) Kiti Moto – which literally means hot chair! It is what is also called “a pile of pork”. There are a few local restaurants (I say that in the loosest term) which specialise in this, and when a pig is killed word gets around which kiti moto to go to, because you only want to go when the meat is fresh (obviously!) Actually it is really tasty. There are two forms you can have – one is dry cooked and the other is with sauce. Basically like Chinese spare ribs. It comes with ugali (maize made into a thick past – like stodgy mashed potatoes) which you roll into a ball (with your right hand!) and then dip it into a sauce. The platter is a communal one (tho we had three) and you just dig in. It was a really good night out, and the food was great. (and this is being written the next day, so no after effects)
Today (Saturday) Donald and I went for a walk around our neighbourhood. We hadn’t explored really, and so we set off with our suntan cream plastered on, hats on, camera and phone in pocket and bottles of water in Donalds back pack and walked. We went up to the top of our road and turned right, we’d never done that before, always been left. Walking! – there are always loads of people walking here. The sound of the feet/shoes shuffling along the road is a constant. So we weren’t alone, but we were just walking for the sake of it, not as a means to an end. Whilst we were walking on the main, and tarmaced road, we past clusters of shacks interspersed with bigger houses which were enclosed with big walls and big metal gates. Whenever a car comes up to their gate, they don’t get out to open it – no way – they sit in the car and toot the horn. If the gate isn’t opened quickly enough they toot again, with more impatience, until the houseboy or gate man, clatters the bolts and opens the gates so the car can enter its compound. Meanwhile, life in the smaller houses is very much open for all to see. A lot is done outside the house – washing, eating, cooking, etc. Think the shelter of the house is only used when it rains and for sleeping at night. By the looks of them there is not much inside them anyway. But we got lots of smiles and waves along the way – the usual cry’s of ‘Muzungo’, ‘How are you?’ etc.
We meandered along the road for some time, till it came to an end, well the tarmac did. The road continued and we followed and then veered off on to pathways until we came to the Lake, which is what we were hoping we would do. The lake itself seems to be everywhere, or maybe Mwanza just hugs the side of it. As we walked towards the lake we were aware that there were a lot of young lads walking either in the same direction or coming back. A lot of them carried buckets, and they just sauntered along singly or in groups. We pasted a couple of schools, big secondary ones, along the way, and when we got to the lake we realised what was happening. Obviously Saturday morning is clothes washing day for the boy’s school. There were loads of guys at the waters edge, washing their clothes, and themselves. The lake by the way is known to be the cause of Bilharzias (spelt incorrectly I’m sure!) which is a nasty parasite which has very bad effects of those who contract it, not even sure if it is fatal – but maybe they are immune.
The scenery on the way was fabulous – I think I have mentioned before that Mwanza is known as Rock City, and the rocks are just amazing. Huge smooth odd shaped boulders precariously balancing on each other – I’ll try to put some photo’s of them on the blog to show you what I mean. They are amazingly powerful to look at!
Having mentioned shops to you - I should also mention the mobile shops. These are basically stuff carried by guys who just walk along the road, trying to attact sales by calling you as you drive or walk past, or even knocking on gates as they go. The goods are carried either on heads, on a long pole which holds hangers or just now I saw a guy walking on the road with about 50 ties losely around his neck - a Tie shop!
OK – think I’ve done enough for now, will continue with my ramblings again soon, lots of love J
Letter from Mwanza - No 11
“Off and running at MSA.”
With an 18-month plan mapped out, some £100 food now purchased, and priorities set we have now crossed the starting line. We have identified the room where the Computer Education Centre will be housed. It’s good as it is right at the front of the building, and hopefully with a bit of good signage should be very visible from the main road. It was a bit of a shock when we first opened the doors. Seemingly a few cats have made the room a sort of temporary home and have left evidence both in physical form and pervading aroma of their residence, but with a bit of cleaning we have now marked out where tables, electrics, fans etc need to be located.
Moshye went into town to cost out the various items, and then met up with
Joey at his favourite lunchtime haunt. You climb some very steep steps and
enter what really is like a large corridor with tables on both sides occupying
over 80% of the floor space. You sit anywhere and can be joined if you
table is not full. There is no menu; the juice is included in the price (and jolly
good too), and everyone seems to know what to order. Joey always seems to
have the same thing – some sort of liver and kidneys with rice and
vegetables. His is what they call a ‘special’. I order nearly my usual, but
instead of having samaki / fish with wali / rice I go for matoki (cooked green
bananas very popular in Uganda). Anyway we polished all this up using just
our right hands, washed them, and paid about £1 each for a very good
meal. The lunch had a conclusion with Joey feeling we could get chairs and
tables cheaper, so we arranged to go to a couple of Fundi the following day.
The metal bashing one is going to make a frame so we can sit some large
wooden table tops on them, and a carpenter is going to make the
chairs. In the meantime Moshye has had a chap from Vodacom into the
centre, and they have promised to do all the wiring / electrics for
nothing. When Joey and returned from the Fundi we gave the project the go
ahead, and there was a chap floating around with a tape measure. Somehow
he now seems to be employed to scrape off the old paintwork, paint the
ceiling, and generally get the room in a decent shape so that Joey and I can
put the final touches of white gloss paint on the walls. Moshye has been
tasked with designing, organising and establishing the computer course. He
will also need a teacher, but he seems to have some-one in mind.
Hopefully this will be up and running by the beginning of May, but when I say
this to Moshye he looks at me disdainfully believing it should be done quicker.
Great, but ‘this is Africa you know!’
Kwa heri for now
Donald
With an 18-month plan mapped out, some £100 food now purchased, and priorities set we have now crossed the starting line. We have identified the room where the Computer Education Centre will be housed. It’s good as it is right at the front of the building, and hopefully with a bit of good signage should be very visible from the main road. It was a bit of a shock when we first opened the doors. Seemingly a few cats have made the room a sort of temporary home and have left evidence both in physical form and pervading aroma of their residence, but with a bit of cleaning we have now marked out where tables, electrics, fans etc need to be located.
Moshye went into town to cost out the various items, and then met up with
Joey at his favourite lunchtime haunt. You climb some very steep steps and
enter what really is like a large corridor with tables on both sides occupying
over 80% of the floor space. You sit anywhere and can be joined if you
table is not full. There is no menu; the juice is included in the price (and jolly
good too), and everyone seems to know what to order. Joey always seems to
have the same thing – some sort of liver and kidneys with rice and
vegetables. His is what they call a ‘special’. I order nearly my usual, but
instead of having samaki / fish with wali / rice I go for matoki (cooked green
bananas very popular in Uganda). Anyway we polished all this up using just
our right hands, washed them, and paid about £1 each for a very good
meal. The lunch had a conclusion with Joey feeling we could get chairs and
tables cheaper, so we arranged to go to a couple of Fundi the following day.
The metal bashing one is going to make a frame so we can sit some large
wooden table tops on them, and a carpenter is going to make the
chairs. In the meantime Moshye has had a chap from Vodacom into the
centre, and they have promised to do all the wiring / electrics for
nothing. When Joey and returned from the Fundi we gave the project the go
ahead, and there was a chap floating around with a tape measure. Somehow
he now seems to be employed to scrape off the old paintwork, paint the
ceiling, and generally get the room in a decent shape so that Joey and I can
put the final touches of white gloss paint on the walls. Moshye has been
tasked with designing, organising and establishing the computer course. He
will also need a teacher, but he seems to have some-one in mind.
Hopefully this will be up and running by the beginning of May, but when I say
this to Moshye he looks at me disdainfully believing it should be done quicker.
Great, but ‘this is Africa you know!’
Kwa heri for now
Donald
Letter from Mwanza - No 10
12th March, 2008
“Dawn Chorus”
I seem to be rising earlier these days, and it is now just after 6am. The dawn is breaking and in Swahili time this is the start of the day. Perhaps some sort of recorder would be more appropriate to give an impression of the sounds, but here goes:-
Of course, the cocks are crowing, birds tweeting in random order and intensity, cows mooing, and the dogs! When they start its like war has broken out, before long the growling goes into yelps, howling and gnashing. Certainly you wouldn’t want to be in their midst – sort of Hounds of the Baskervilles, but not just one, many of them.
This background noise mixes with the sound of people starting to move, coughing, greeting each other, children’s laughter and talking in animated voices. In our house, we are next to a murran road, which by Mwanza standards is quite flat. Although we haven’t yet identified where they go, several rather clapped out old lorries bounce along the road kicking up clouds of dust and making a hell of a noise. They drown out the sound of the shuffling feet of people walking and these people then have to move out of the way of these vehicles throwing up loads of dust. These lorries often carry loads of stones, so it might be some building/construction company.
Earlier than this the gentle and quite melodic sounds of the call to prayer at a small mosque can just be heard depending on the wind direction, and usually just about now, a taxi pulls up close to us and hoots. This could be just one hot, or several, depending on whether his complement of passengers turns up in time.
Putting all the sounds together creates a magical and not unpleasant sound. Certainly a change from the M3’s one dimensional noise and consistent drone.
The area where we live (Bwiru) is about 3-4 miles out of town, and is an up and coming area. There are some fine houses being built, and gradually the small huts, shambas and grazing land is being beaten back into a more manicured residential area. Gardens and lawns are being tendered, and security gates and alarms proclaim the emergence of the middle class. So big white fenced houses now sit rather uncomfortably besides sort of shanty buildings and huts. It might be interesting to find out what the neighbours felt about each other?
Kwa heri for now
Donald
“Dawn Chorus”
I seem to be rising earlier these days, and it is now just after 6am. The dawn is breaking and in Swahili time this is the start of the day. Perhaps some sort of recorder would be more appropriate to give an impression of the sounds, but here goes:-
Of course, the cocks are crowing, birds tweeting in random order and intensity, cows mooing, and the dogs! When they start its like war has broken out, before long the growling goes into yelps, howling and gnashing. Certainly you wouldn’t want to be in their midst – sort of Hounds of the Baskervilles, but not just one, many of them.
This background noise mixes with the sound of people starting to move, coughing, greeting each other, children’s laughter and talking in animated voices. In our house, we are next to a murran road, which by Mwanza standards is quite flat. Although we haven’t yet identified where they go, several rather clapped out old lorries bounce along the road kicking up clouds of dust and making a hell of a noise. They drown out the sound of the shuffling feet of people walking and these people then have to move out of the way of these vehicles throwing up loads of dust. These lorries often carry loads of stones, so it might be some building/construction company.
Earlier than this the gentle and quite melodic sounds of the call to prayer at a small mosque can just be heard depending on the wind direction, and usually just about now, a taxi pulls up close to us and hoots. This could be just one hot, or several, depending on whether his complement of passengers turns up in time.
Putting all the sounds together creates a magical and not unpleasant sound. Certainly a change from the M3’s one dimensional noise and consistent drone.
The area where we live (Bwiru) is about 3-4 miles out of town, and is an up and coming area. There are some fine houses being built, and gradually the small huts, shambas and grazing land is being beaten back into a more manicured residential area. Gardens and lawns are being tendered, and security gates and alarms proclaim the emergence of the middle class. So big white fenced houses now sit rather uncomfortably besides sort of shanty buildings and huts. It might be interesting to find out what the neighbours felt about each other?
Kwa heri for now
Donald
Letter from Mwanza - No 9
11th March, 2008
“A good day”
Today has been a good day. I had a pleasant brisk walk up to Samaritans (about 30 minutes) and in fact walked back as well. During this walk I managed to keep up with, and in fact, overtake, a youngish Masai chap. So either I’m walking faster or I managed to take on a particularly slow Masai in the heat of the day. (Having written this on Monday, on Thursday I was walking back at a fairly steady pace and a different Masai fellow cruised past me without any effort. Perhaps my initial thought concerning my speed/fitness are somewhat premature!!)
Also seemed to have made progress at Samaritans by putting together a course of action for Moshye to go for this year, and possibly next. We so desperately need to get in extra funds that some of the community fund money ($600) which Joey wanted to go towards a project which leads to sustainability, has gone to buy food for the orphans. It is hard not just to say “here have a bit more money”, but it really isn’t the answer to any long term situation. The ‘aid/donor’ culture is now deeply embedded, and I really do feel that somehow a real break has to be made from this dependency. Perhaps I will be able to comment on this in a later blog. So now the 30 or so orphans will have some food, but then a chap from the security company came in today demanding his 3 months back payments. His English was fluent, and he was not a happy man. I think there are also some issues with the rent; but now we must crack on and get something going.
So, tomorrow, we start on establishing a computer education centre where some of the donated computers stacked up in their boxes can be used to earn some income. Moshye and I are off to Vodcom (I think a subsidiary of Vodaphone) to see if they can provide help with wiring some four computers in, giving us another printer, providing a fan and putting up a lovely sign outside proclaiming that MSA is now also a computer education centre. I shall also go off with Joey to sort out some tables and chairs, and then clean up and paint a room. Hopefully we can be up and running by the beginning of May.
English language newspapers, business reports and general correspondence seem to be in such a ‘flowery’ English that it is difficult to understand its meaning. For example, the front page in the Market & Economy section of the Business Times (a weekly business paper published here) had a headline “Chine, India growth see surge in demand for African goods”. So far so good. A few paragraphs down we get, “ Impartial research on the impacts of trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) postulates that methodology must take into account both finds and data availability” OK, but then “In this framework, policies emerge out of a process initiating from policy preferences to methods of aggregation of those preferences and hence to policy as mediated by the structure of political competition” …….. Ian Duckels, you really do need to help me with this!!
Moshye, in his Annual Report 2007, at the end of his introduction about what they have done, goes on to explain that “after that we will meet celebrations. This is an exploration of what is a big achievement that the organisation has achieved, so in other words we may call it success over successes. Then you will know if there are any challenges” …..mmm. He lists his challenges as lack of reliable workers and funds, unreliable sources of income, inability to pay house rent and cover running costs, lack of enough staff, low staff morale, unreliable electricity and lack of office equipment – I think I know what he means, but bless him, he concludes, “The year 2007 has been a good year for Mwanza Samaritans, since it is within this year that MSA has changed face from low key to somehow high implementation of its plans and activities….”
I’m not sure whether it’s the words or just plain good hearted optimism; but it reminds me of the Morecambe and Wise sketch when Eric was showing Andre Previn how to play the piano. He got all the right notes, but not necessarily in the right order!!
Kwa heri for now
Donald
“A good day”
Today has been a good day. I had a pleasant brisk walk up to Samaritans (about 30 minutes) and in fact walked back as well. During this walk I managed to keep up with, and in fact, overtake, a youngish Masai chap. So either I’m walking faster or I managed to take on a particularly slow Masai in the heat of the day. (Having written this on Monday, on Thursday I was walking back at a fairly steady pace and a different Masai fellow cruised past me without any effort. Perhaps my initial thought concerning my speed/fitness are somewhat premature!!)
Also seemed to have made progress at Samaritans by putting together a course of action for Moshye to go for this year, and possibly next. We so desperately need to get in extra funds that some of the community fund money ($600) which Joey wanted to go towards a project which leads to sustainability, has gone to buy food for the orphans. It is hard not just to say “here have a bit more money”, but it really isn’t the answer to any long term situation. The ‘aid/donor’ culture is now deeply embedded, and I really do feel that somehow a real break has to be made from this dependency. Perhaps I will be able to comment on this in a later blog. So now the 30 or so orphans will have some food, but then a chap from the security company came in today demanding his 3 months back payments. His English was fluent, and he was not a happy man. I think there are also some issues with the rent; but now we must crack on and get something going.
So, tomorrow, we start on establishing a computer education centre where some of the donated computers stacked up in their boxes can be used to earn some income. Moshye and I are off to Vodcom (I think a subsidiary of Vodaphone) to see if they can provide help with wiring some four computers in, giving us another printer, providing a fan and putting up a lovely sign outside proclaiming that MSA is now also a computer education centre. I shall also go off with Joey to sort out some tables and chairs, and then clean up and paint a room. Hopefully we can be up and running by the beginning of May.
English language newspapers, business reports and general correspondence seem to be in such a ‘flowery’ English that it is difficult to understand its meaning. For example, the front page in the Market & Economy section of the Business Times (a weekly business paper published here) had a headline “Chine, India growth see surge in demand for African goods”. So far so good. A few paragraphs down we get, “ Impartial research on the impacts of trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) postulates that methodology must take into account both finds and data availability” OK, but then “In this framework, policies emerge out of a process initiating from policy preferences to methods of aggregation of those preferences and hence to policy as mediated by the structure of political competition” …….. Ian Duckels, you really do need to help me with this!!
Moshye, in his Annual Report 2007, at the end of his introduction about what they have done, goes on to explain that “after that we will meet celebrations. This is an exploration of what is a big achievement that the organisation has achieved, so in other words we may call it success over successes. Then you will know if there are any challenges” …..mmm. He lists his challenges as lack of reliable workers and funds, unreliable sources of income, inability to pay house rent and cover running costs, lack of enough staff, low staff morale, unreliable electricity and lack of office equipment – I think I know what he means, but bless him, he concludes, “The year 2007 has been a good year for Mwanza Samaritans, since it is within this year that MSA has changed face from low key to somehow high implementation of its plans and activities….”
I’m not sure whether it’s the words or just plain good hearted optimism; but it reminds me of the Morecambe and Wise sketch when Eric was showing Andre Previn how to play the piano. He got all the right notes, but not necessarily in the right order!!
Kwa heri for now
Donald
Thursday, 13 March 2008
"How are YOU!" and Dala Dalla to work !!
13th March, 2008
I have started using the Dala Dalla to go into work, on my own now too. Donald walks, although he would have preferred to cycle – however the bike he was promised hasn’t materialised (can’t say I’m upset about that as I am not certain about the life expectancy of cyclists over here!) Anyway, he sets off with his back pack with his lunch in it and I walk up to the top of our road and wait for the D.D. The walk up the road is only a short one, but it is a dusty one for all that, especially when it hasn’t rained for a bit and the big trucks shoot past at some great (and unnecessary) speed.
There are always lots of people walking along what ever road you are on, and they often want to say hello, to show their command of English, and also because they are very friendly people. The children, especially the younger ones, are great though. They obviously know only a little English, as primary teaching is carried out in Swahili – its only when they get to secondary school, if they get to secondary school, that they have their lessons in English (see Donald’s blog). So, they like to practise. Often they call out “good morning” in beautifully clipped English – it doesn’t matter if it is morning or afternoon, it is always “good morning”. They have obviously also learnt “How are YOU!” The emphasis is on the you, and this is great because you can reply, “I am fine, how are you!” and so it goes on. But the best one is “Give me my money!” Obviously some rogue, and not very good, teacher taught some kids this, and it has gone around the town. It’s the “my” money that is odd – Joey always calls back to them “I haven’t got your money” but its sad, but I suppose expected, that this phrase is only used on Masungo’s!
Anyway, back to the ride to work – I wait at the top of the road till the old, battered and possibly unroadworthy Dala Dalla shoots around the bend. As I said in another blog, the first time Donald and I did this route, the guy who was in the front seat got out to let us sit there – that courtesy hasn’t happened to me since. In fact I seem to have to prise my way into the back seat, squeezing past others who are desperately hanging on to their two inches of space. So, I clamber in, and hold on. I have decided to use this form of transport on the way into town as there are usually seats available, but really don’t fancy using it on the way back home, as each and every vehicle is jam packed full on leaving the ‘bus station’. So there is a driver and a conductor. He hangs out of the window looking for customers. If anyone is even looking remotely as if they might want a ride, he bangs on the side and the driver stops. We then wait to see if the person does in fact want to get in, and wait for however long it takes them to get to it. They don’t rush!
It seems that these vehicles (and I will try to get a photo of one to put on the blog) are owned by guys who then rent them out to the driver and conductor. They charge them a fixed rate per day. Any money they get over that rate is split between the driver and conductor. So it is to their advantage to get as many customers as possible. It also seems that we Masungo’s pay more than the locals. (now there’s a surprise!) We only found this out yesterday when Donald went into town with Moshye (his Samaritans chap) and found out what he paid. We seem to pay 500 Tsh (25p) and they pay 250 Tsh! So I’m not going to argue – wouldn’t be able to either as my Swahili just isn’t good enough!
So the ride progresses – and we keep stopping to pick up more and more people. Each time the bus stops another over takes it and so there is the constant calling/shouting between the conductors who feel they are being cheated of customers. At one stop yesterday, we were already 17 people in a 14 seater bus (plus the driver and conductor who as I said stands hanging out of the window) when they stopped at a corner which always seems to have piles and piles of pineapples (which by the way are just fabulous here at the moment!) You smell them as you drive past, so sweet. However, this time we stopped and the back was opened and dozens of pineapples are loaded into the small space at the back. They are obviously well ripened and ready for eating, and so someone is taking them into town to try to sell them there. So the bus now smells of ripe and sweet pineapples and four more people pile in – one talking on the phone and another still having a conversation with someone outside the bus. Its sort of Ok when you are already sitting but no ones moves once they have a seat, so if someone gets off, that space is left vacant, and so the next person in has to try to get into that space, not easy, as they have to clamber over legs, bags, children etc and I feel for the women, as their bottoms are not the smallest and they sometimes just can’t fit through without a real struggle. Crazy system, but it seems to work. Oh yes and there are two things do work well on these ‘busses’ – the horns and the radio! You get such a mix of music, from bollywood, to good beat African to gospel – make the journey even more interesting.
Oh – another thing I was going to tell you was about the soda bottles. I think I have already mentioned that everything has to last a long time here – well so do soda bottles. As you may recall, I do enjoy a Gin and Tonic occasionally – and that’s cool here as it is a drink you can get quite easily. You have the choice of proper gin (sometimes) and the local gin (Konyagi). If you get Konyagi, then you are served either with a clear plastic pouch which holds two shots, a small or a large pear shaped bottle which has two flat sides. You can only open the bottles if you give its bottom a huge slap, something to do with releasing the pressure (I think) and the flat sides are so that you can lay the bottle down, (so no one knows you are drinking it I suppose!) It tastes OK, but you do need a slice or two of lemon in it, and that is not always available, and neither is the tonic.
The soda bottles are all taken back to shops when you want to buy new ones. They are then sent back to the bottling plant and refilled (again and again). So the bottles are well used and usually look it. The bottles are marked as soda water and the only way you can tell what is actually in the bottle is to look at the cap – if it’s a yellow one, then it’s tonic water inside the bottle, if not then it is soda water. Pretty good recycling but annoying when you pour soda in thinking it is tonic. The other thing about the Konyagi bottles, is that if you don’t finish them you take them away with you. I have never finished one in a bar yet, and so seem to have quite a collection at Milestone House. I will not take one into a bar with me, but Donald is getting quite used to walking out of a bar with one (bless him!) You will be unsurprised to hear that I have a decent bottle of Bombay Saffire at home to enjoy, so the Konyagi store is building.
Well we have just had a lovely downpour and the air is fresh and the dust has been dampened down, so I had better think about heading into town to work.
Had a lovely treat yesterday, it was very hot and sticky and I had spent a good couple of hours with my placement and then at the internet café, and as we were meeting J&J at the squash courts later, I pottered down to a decent hotel, next to the courts, and lazed by the pool and had a wonderful hour long massage, bliss!
OK – its off to work I go –Lots of love J
I have started using the Dala Dalla to go into work, on my own now too. Donald walks, although he would have preferred to cycle – however the bike he was promised hasn’t materialised (can’t say I’m upset about that as I am not certain about the life expectancy of cyclists over here!) Anyway, he sets off with his back pack with his lunch in it and I walk up to the top of our road and wait for the D.D. The walk up the road is only a short one, but it is a dusty one for all that, especially when it hasn’t rained for a bit and the big trucks shoot past at some great (and unnecessary) speed.
There are always lots of people walking along what ever road you are on, and they often want to say hello, to show their command of English, and also because they are very friendly people. The children, especially the younger ones, are great though. They obviously know only a little English, as primary teaching is carried out in Swahili – its only when they get to secondary school, if they get to secondary school, that they have their lessons in English (see Donald’s blog). So, they like to practise. Often they call out “good morning” in beautifully clipped English – it doesn’t matter if it is morning or afternoon, it is always “good morning”. They have obviously also learnt “How are YOU!” The emphasis is on the you, and this is great because you can reply, “I am fine, how are you!” and so it goes on. But the best one is “Give me my money!” Obviously some rogue, and not very good, teacher taught some kids this, and it has gone around the town. It’s the “my” money that is odd – Joey always calls back to them “I haven’t got your money” but its sad, but I suppose expected, that this phrase is only used on Masungo’s!
Anyway, back to the ride to work – I wait at the top of the road till the old, battered and possibly unroadworthy Dala Dalla shoots around the bend. As I said in another blog, the first time Donald and I did this route, the guy who was in the front seat got out to let us sit there – that courtesy hasn’t happened to me since. In fact I seem to have to prise my way into the back seat, squeezing past others who are desperately hanging on to their two inches of space. So, I clamber in, and hold on. I have decided to use this form of transport on the way into town as there are usually seats available, but really don’t fancy using it on the way back home, as each and every vehicle is jam packed full on leaving the ‘bus station’. So there is a driver and a conductor. He hangs out of the window looking for customers. If anyone is even looking remotely as if they might want a ride, he bangs on the side and the driver stops. We then wait to see if the person does in fact want to get in, and wait for however long it takes them to get to it. They don’t rush!
It seems that these vehicles (and I will try to get a photo of one to put on the blog) are owned by guys who then rent them out to the driver and conductor. They charge them a fixed rate per day. Any money they get over that rate is split between the driver and conductor. So it is to their advantage to get as many customers as possible. It also seems that we Masungo’s pay more than the locals. (now there’s a surprise!) We only found this out yesterday when Donald went into town with Moshye (his Samaritans chap) and found out what he paid. We seem to pay 500 Tsh (25p) and they pay 250 Tsh! So I’m not going to argue – wouldn’t be able to either as my Swahili just isn’t good enough!
So the ride progresses – and we keep stopping to pick up more and more people. Each time the bus stops another over takes it and so there is the constant calling/shouting between the conductors who feel they are being cheated of customers. At one stop yesterday, we were already 17 people in a 14 seater bus (plus the driver and conductor who as I said stands hanging out of the window) when they stopped at a corner which always seems to have piles and piles of pineapples (which by the way are just fabulous here at the moment!) You smell them as you drive past, so sweet. However, this time we stopped and the back was opened and dozens of pineapples are loaded into the small space at the back. They are obviously well ripened and ready for eating, and so someone is taking them into town to try to sell them there. So the bus now smells of ripe and sweet pineapples and four more people pile in – one talking on the phone and another still having a conversation with someone outside the bus. Its sort of Ok when you are already sitting but no ones moves once they have a seat, so if someone gets off, that space is left vacant, and so the next person in has to try to get into that space, not easy, as they have to clamber over legs, bags, children etc and I feel for the women, as their bottoms are not the smallest and they sometimes just can’t fit through without a real struggle. Crazy system, but it seems to work. Oh yes and there are two things do work well on these ‘busses’ – the horns and the radio! You get such a mix of music, from bollywood, to good beat African to gospel – make the journey even more interesting.
Oh – another thing I was going to tell you was about the soda bottles. I think I have already mentioned that everything has to last a long time here – well so do soda bottles. As you may recall, I do enjoy a Gin and Tonic occasionally – and that’s cool here as it is a drink you can get quite easily. You have the choice of proper gin (sometimes) and the local gin (Konyagi). If you get Konyagi, then you are served either with a clear plastic pouch which holds two shots, a small or a large pear shaped bottle which has two flat sides. You can only open the bottles if you give its bottom a huge slap, something to do with releasing the pressure (I think) and the flat sides are so that you can lay the bottle down, (so no one knows you are drinking it I suppose!) It tastes OK, but you do need a slice or two of lemon in it, and that is not always available, and neither is the tonic.
The soda bottles are all taken back to shops when you want to buy new ones. They are then sent back to the bottling plant and refilled (again and again). So the bottles are well used and usually look it. The bottles are marked as soda water and the only way you can tell what is actually in the bottle is to look at the cap – if it’s a yellow one, then it’s tonic water inside the bottle, if not then it is soda water. Pretty good recycling but annoying when you pour soda in thinking it is tonic. The other thing about the Konyagi bottles, is that if you don’t finish them you take them away with you. I have never finished one in a bar yet, and so seem to have quite a collection at Milestone House. I will not take one into a bar with me, but Donald is getting quite used to walking out of a bar with one (bless him!) You will be unsurprised to hear that I have a decent bottle of Bombay Saffire at home to enjoy, so the Konyagi store is building.
Well we have just had a lovely downpour and the air is fresh and the dust has been dampened down, so I had better think about heading into town to work.
Had a lovely treat yesterday, it was very hot and sticky and I had spent a good couple of hours with my placement and then at the internet café, and as we were meeting J&J at the squash courts later, I pottered down to a decent hotel, next to the courts, and lazed by the pool and had a wonderful hour long massage, bliss!
OK – its off to work I go –Lots of love J
Tuesday, 11 March 2008
A bit more about our life here
11th March, 2008
We have been really welcomed by everyone here, especially J & J’s friends, and we have been included in all of their invitations. They seem to have a busy social life, which entails a fair bit of sport. They swim often at the school pool, which we go to too, and play squash, which Donald has decided to start playing again – after 30 or so years!! and Frisbee, which we go to watch.
Frisbee is a mad game, but an up and coming one apparently. They have a team of 7 per side (I think) and the rules are sort of similar to netball. Ie, once you catch the Frisbee you must not move/run with it. The way to score is to be over the end line when you catch it. There seems to be a group of the guys out here who meet up on a Saturday at 5 pm and who ever is there plays. Sometimes they have two teams and sometimes 3. Its crazy to watch as because it is a ad hoc arrangement there are no distinguishing team colours, so I don’t understand how they know who is on their own team and therefore who to throw it to – but it looks a fun game. It seems there are some national championships coming up, early May, and Jen and Joey are furious that they will miss it because it is when they are on their honeymoon.
Squash is played hard and furiously by all. (but not me!!) The court is still set in the 50’s and little repair work has been done to it since. It is in the Yacht Club grounds – sounds swish doesn’t it, well it probably was way back then. Again there is a group of people who play and Wednesday night is squash night. It all got too much to miss as far as Donald is concerned and he just had to have a game, then another etc etc so he is now playing again, and seems he hasn’t lost much of his skill (much to Joey’s annoyance!)
On Saturday morning, Jen and I had appointments to have our hair (and feet) done. Such a joy to be able to do this with my daughter!! Must tell you about the hair salon tho – it must be the most beautifully placed hairdressers in the world! The actual salon isn’t much, one sink and two chairs in front of a mirror, but the view from the two windows on the opposite wall of the mirror is just fabulous. It overlooks Lave Victoria and the slopes of Mwanza. The lake is surrounded by rocky Mwanza – and these rocky slopes are dotted with houses, shacks, tree’s etc and huge rocks. The birds too are wonderful to watch, black and white kingfishers hovering and diving for fish, black kites swooping low, herons, egrets, fish eagles. The egrets sit on clumps of anemone’s and just float along bobbing away. Anyway, we sat there and had our hair done, and then had an hour long pedicure each. What a joy, and so much cheaper than home, tho brilliantly done, and so we go every other week (Di, still going for the bright colours you will be pleased to know!!). And hair cut was very successful too, so I was very pleased about that, in preparation for the wedding especially.
Whilst we were pampered this week, Donald and Joey played squash! We then had a quick lunch at the hotel where the salon was, well I say quick lunch, not so, (ordering food here always takes time) but we were sitting overlooking the lake so who cares how long it took.
We then had to go to the market to get some food to take along to a BBQ we were going to that night. Unfortunately, I had my phone pinched whilst I was there, which was so annoying, but happens, and luckily it was just my phone!! Then the guys played Frisbee and I swam and read and Donald crashed out at Jen’s place. The BBQ was a real big party put on by a couple who live just around the corner from J & J. She works in the same building as Jen, and he (Mike) is an architect who is out here to be with his girlfriend for a while. He is a fanatical sports player, and good too. It wasn’t a totally musungu (white) attendance but almost.
On Sunday, we left J & J to have a well earned, and long waited for, day on their own, and we decided to walk to our local market to buy in some food for the day. Set off early, well before it got too hot, and walked the 15 minutes to the next area were the market is held every day. We did well, we got what we wanted/needed either from the duka’s (shops) on the way or in the market. The shops are tiny kiosk type rooms, and all sell exactly the same as each other – so if there is no milk in one, there will be no milk in any. Anyway, we did OK with the bread and stuff we needed. The market is similar in as much as every stall (which is a covered table made up of basic raw wood – pallet type). The stall holders either sit on them or stand behind them, and each sells whatever they have available from their crops. So most sell tomatoes, some sell banana’s, pineapples (which are just fabulous at the moment) etc etc. We got a good selection of veg and then looked at the chickens, we had thought we would buy one, but they were still alive! I know that this is how you buy them here from the market, but I just couldn’t bring myself to say “that one” and then either watch it be killed or worse still have to take it home alive and sort it out here – so – nearly went veggie, but then Donald dragged me into a ‘butchers’. Now I wasn’t too sure about this, but he was insistent and so in we went. Tiny room with a leg of a cow hanging down (sorry if I am upsetting any vegetarians amongst you but …). So Donald negotiates to purchase a lump of meat which we thought we would BBQ – tho there was the possibility that we may have to stew it depending on what cut of meat it was.
Donald set to and marinated the meat and later set up the BBQ (we have only two gas rings and no oven, so the BBQ is needed) and I have to say that the steak, probably rump, was really good. Tender and tasty – so we had a lovely lazy late lunch.
Prior to cooking lunch we had walked up to our local, with the box of scrabble, and we sat in their grounds with a drink and played there for an hour or so. Whilst we were there, people were decorating the area ready for a wedding, I think. It looked so lovely when it was finished – think this is what will be happening for J & J in Moshi for their wedding.
Evenings, when we are in, seem to be taken up with series 5 of 24. J&J have lots of box sets of DVD’s which we can watch on the laptop. Hired a DVD from the video shop last night, and it was obviously pirated and kept slipping into Russian and any writing which should have helped explain the plot, was also in Russian. Also, someone kept coughing on the sound track – it was funny, but think will try to ensure that we have an original copy next time!
So, that was our weekend – seem to be taking the Dala Dala into town to work these days – it’s not bad going into town on them, as it is less crowded at the start of the journey. Tho when we went in yesterday, the guy in the front seat shot out and went into the back to enable Donald and I to sit in the front (better seats as not so crowded but potentially more dangerous if in a crash or sudden stop!!) We again felt a bit awkward “whites in the front” sort of thing, but think they guy was just being courteous, so we said thank you.
OK – that’s it for now – love to all
Love J
We have been really welcomed by everyone here, especially J & J’s friends, and we have been included in all of their invitations. They seem to have a busy social life, which entails a fair bit of sport. They swim often at the school pool, which we go to too, and play squash, which Donald has decided to start playing again – after 30 or so years!! and Frisbee, which we go to watch.
Frisbee is a mad game, but an up and coming one apparently. They have a team of 7 per side (I think) and the rules are sort of similar to netball. Ie, once you catch the Frisbee you must not move/run with it. The way to score is to be over the end line when you catch it. There seems to be a group of the guys out here who meet up on a Saturday at 5 pm and who ever is there plays. Sometimes they have two teams and sometimes 3. Its crazy to watch as because it is a ad hoc arrangement there are no distinguishing team colours, so I don’t understand how they know who is on their own team and therefore who to throw it to – but it looks a fun game. It seems there are some national championships coming up, early May, and Jen and Joey are furious that they will miss it because it is when they are on their honeymoon.
Squash is played hard and furiously by all. (but not me!!) The court is still set in the 50’s and little repair work has been done to it since. It is in the Yacht Club grounds – sounds swish doesn’t it, well it probably was way back then. Again there is a group of people who play and Wednesday night is squash night. It all got too much to miss as far as Donald is concerned and he just had to have a game, then another etc etc so he is now playing again, and seems he hasn’t lost much of his skill (much to Joey’s annoyance!)
On Saturday morning, Jen and I had appointments to have our hair (and feet) done. Such a joy to be able to do this with my daughter!! Must tell you about the hair salon tho – it must be the most beautifully placed hairdressers in the world! The actual salon isn’t much, one sink and two chairs in front of a mirror, but the view from the two windows on the opposite wall of the mirror is just fabulous. It overlooks Lave Victoria and the slopes of Mwanza. The lake is surrounded by rocky Mwanza – and these rocky slopes are dotted with houses, shacks, tree’s etc and huge rocks. The birds too are wonderful to watch, black and white kingfishers hovering and diving for fish, black kites swooping low, herons, egrets, fish eagles. The egrets sit on clumps of anemone’s and just float along bobbing away. Anyway, we sat there and had our hair done, and then had an hour long pedicure each. What a joy, and so much cheaper than home, tho brilliantly done, and so we go every other week (Di, still going for the bright colours you will be pleased to know!!). And hair cut was very successful too, so I was very pleased about that, in preparation for the wedding especially.
Whilst we were pampered this week, Donald and Joey played squash! We then had a quick lunch at the hotel where the salon was, well I say quick lunch, not so, (ordering food here always takes time) but we were sitting overlooking the lake so who cares how long it took.
We then had to go to the market to get some food to take along to a BBQ we were going to that night. Unfortunately, I had my phone pinched whilst I was there, which was so annoying, but happens, and luckily it was just my phone!! Then the guys played Frisbee and I swam and read and Donald crashed out at Jen’s place. The BBQ was a real big party put on by a couple who live just around the corner from J & J. She works in the same building as Jen, and he (Mike) is an architect who is out here to be with his girlfriend for a while. He is a fanatical sports player, and good too. It wasn’t a totally musungu (white) attendance but almost.
On Sunday, we left J & J to have a well earned, and long waited for, day on their own, and we decided to walk to our local market to buy in some food for the day. Set off early, well before it got too hot, and walked the 15 minutes to the next area were the market is held every day. We did well, we got what we wanted/needed either from the duka’s (shops) on the way or in the market. The shops are tiny kiosk type rooms, and all sell exactly the same as each other – so if there is no milk in one, there will be no milk in any. Anyway, we did OK with the bread and stuff we needed. The market is similar in as much as every stall (which is a covered table made up of basic raw wood – pallet type). The stall holders either sit on them or stand behind them, and each sells whatever they have available from their crops. So most sell tomatoes, some sell banana’s, pineapples (which are just fabulous at the moment) etc etc. We got a good selection of veg and then looked at the chickens, we had thought we would buy one, but they were still alive! I know that this is how you buy them here from the market, but I just couldn’t bring myself to say “that one” and then either watch it be killed or worse still have to take it home alive and sort it out here – so – nearly went veggie, but then Donald dragged me into a ‘butchers’. Now I wasn’t too sure about this, but he was insistent and so in we went. Tiny room with a leg of a cow hanging down (sorry if I am upsetting any vegetarians amongst you but …). So Donald negotiates to purchase a lump of meat which we thought we would BBQ – tho there was the possibility that we may have to stew it depending on what cut of meat it was.
Donald set to and marinated the meat and later set up the BBQ (we have only two gas rings and no oven, so the BBQ is needed) and I have to say that the steak, probably rump, was really good. Tender and tasty – so we had a lovely lazy late lunch.
Prior to cooking lunch we had walked up to our local, with the box of scrabble, and we sat in their grounds with a drink and played there for an hour or so. Whilst we were there, people were decorating the area ready for a wedding, I think. It looked so lovely when it was finished – think this is what will be happening for J & J in Moshi for their wedding.
Evenings, when we are in, seem to be taken up with series 5 of 24. J&J have lots of box sets of DVD’s which we can watch on the laptop. Hired a DVD from the video shop last night, and it was obviously pirated and kept slipping into Russian and any writing which should have helped explain the plot, was also in Russian. Also, someone kept coughing on the sound track – it was funny, but think will try to ensure that we have an original copy next time!
So, that was our weekend – seem to be taking the Dala Dala into town to work these days – it’s not bad going into town on them, as it is less crowded at the start of the journey. Tho when we went in yesterday, the guy in the front seat shot out and went into the back to enable Donald and I to sit in the front (better seats as not so crowded but potentially more dangerous if in a crash or sudden stop!!) We again felt a bit awkward “whites in the front” sort of thing, but think they guy was just being courteous, so we said thank you.
OK – that’s it for now – love to all
Love J
Monday, 10 March 2008
Letter from Mwanza -no 8
“I’m fine”
Greetings are an important part of the culture here, and they are done regularly, often in a set format and most often with a wonderful smile. In general they fall into “How are you?” with the answer always “I’m fine”
We are fortunate in Milestone House to have a cleaner (Violet) who comes in three times a week. This week on Monday we did our Hujambo etc and of course got the reply “I’m fine” (mzuri sana). Violet speaks English beautifully but we have to go through the routine in Swahili so that we can practise. A few minutes later she was blowing her nose and coughing. I asked her again and this time she told me she hadn’t felt too good for a day or so, and on Wednesday she didn’t come in as she had a bout of malaria. She was however back in on Friday and did her usual great job in clearing the inevitable dust which settles everywhere in the house.
It seems, unlike the UK, where at the slightest asking people will tell you all the things that aren’t good, here everyone says they are fine. I had a chat with Moshye at Mwanza Samaritans and asked him about this. He says of course not everyone feels fine all the time, but if the culture wasn’t as it is, what would happen to those who said they were not good, who would they go to, who could give them the time to talk through and find answers to whatever problem was acute. I know in the UK we are short of psychiatrists, but here I think I read that in the whole of Tanzania only some 100 qualified psychiatrists practise. That’s for a country of some 40m people!
Is this another area for more synthesis between African and European culture? Perhaps we should spend more time greeting and saying we are fine, and here more effort should go into those who when the “I’m fine” layer is peeled off are just not feeling good.
Kwa heri for now
Donald
Greetings are an important part of the culture here, and they are done regularly, often in a set format and most often with a wonderful smile. In general they fall into “How are you?” with the answer always “I’m fine”
We are fortunate in Milestone House to have a cleaner (Violet) who comes in three times a week. This week on Monday we did our Hujambo etc and of course got the reply “I’m fine” (mzuri sana). Violet speaks English beautifully but we have to go through the routine in Swahili so that we can practise. A few minutes later she was blowing her nose and coughing. I asked her again and this time she told me she hadn’t felt too good for a day or so, and on Wednesday she didn’t come in as she had a bout of malaria. She was however back in on Friday and did her usual great job in clearing the inevitable dust which settles everywhere in the house.
It seems, unlike the UK, where at the slightest asking people will tell you all the things that aren’t good, here everyone says they are fine. I had a chat with Moshye at Mwanza Samaritans and asked him about this. He says of course not everyone feels fine all the time, but if the culture wasn’t as it is, what would happen to those who said they were not good, who would they go to, who could give them the time to talk through and find answers to whatever problem was acute. I know in the UK we are short of psychiatrists, but here I think I read that in the whole of Tanzania only some 100 qualified psychiatrists practise. That’s for a country of some 40m people!
Is this another area for more synthesis between African and European culture? Perhaps we should spend more time greeting and saying we are fine, and here more effort should go into those who when the “I’m fine” layer is peeled off are just not feeling good.
Kwa heri for now
Donald
Placement and chickens!
Well we are now ending our 4th week here (doesn’t time just go when you are happy!!) – however, this means that we are half way through our time with our projects. Donald seems to be going great guns with his – actions plans and budgets etc, but I still seem to be waiting to find out what they want from me.
I have made some achievements tho. My placement is with TACOPE (I have only just managed to remember how to say that – and now can’t remember what it stands for – hang on I’ll go to check my notes) – Okay, got it “Tanzania Community-based Option for Protection and Empowerment”. That’s another thing – Tanzanians love words. When a sentence of 6 – 8 words will do, they have 16+ and most of them are very long wordy words which are not needed.
I thought they were like a Voluntary Services organisation, one which worked with other voluntary groups and supported them. Not so – they are a group of very well meaning volunteers who wanted to help orphans and people with HIV/AIDS. It started, three years ago, with 15 people who formed a board, a constitution, became registered as an NGO and paid membership fee’s. (The constitution is such a heavy wordy document!!!) The office, in which I have been given a desk – one of the two there, is a small room just off a dusty dirt side street in town. Basically the few guys there (all volunteers) sit there all day, including Saturday, and talk to people who come in to see them. These could be local government officials, church people, or just folk who want to talk or need help. They put together proposals to donors/funders when they either hear they is some money available, or if they are asked to by a group who are looking for support.
They wanted me to help them streamline their organisation!!! Well, firstly I put together a history of what they had done. This was quite an eye opener, firstly I had to sit and get all the information from Mr Messo, who is a lovely chap, late 60’s, retired and the man at TACOPE. He has everything he knows about TACOPE either in his head or in his small black plastic briefcase which goes everywhere with him. He has dates, figures and everything either in his head or in the briefcase. He says its not worth keeping it in the office and things get lost amongst the papers – there is no system there – but it is all there, in his head. So that was a good couple of days, teasing it out, and encouraging him to tell me about it all. I also had to impress on him that the little things he thought weren’t worth a mention, needed to be in as they showed an achievement or success which TACOPE should recognise. (Familiar territory or what!). So that was good, got that done.
Next, I looked at their books – literally books!!!! They had four accounts books and try as I might I couldn’t understand them, nor see any system in them – and the addition was not correct and nothing seemed to balance. Well the figures at the bottom of each column were the same, but why?
So I set them up a system (me – accounts!!) and my SAIDIA partner, a young school leaver called Terry, was set to enter all the accounts into one book, which I bought. To start at year one, find bank statements and receipts and enter them month by month. This was a task in itself, as everything was there somewhere, either in the one locked cupboard or in drawers in ‘my’ desk, but where? Mr Messo was thrilled, thought the (very simple) system I set up was wonderful. So that took up some time, but it is now completed and does look good – not sure the addition is still correct, but hey, its better than it was and does ‘sort of’ balance!
Then we decided that I should look at their ‘Profile’ – well Mr Messo wanted me to do a Business Plan for them, but I felt we needed to understand the organisation first and to enable us to do that, the wordy document which was their profile, needed to be reworded. (You sometimes read through a paragraph of this sort of document, read the words, which all make sense individually, but after you have finished the paragraph you think “what was that all about” – it seems that Jen has this problem with her work too, wonder if this is because Swahili has a smaller vocab, it is more a concise language, and so when it is translated more words are added to make it look better) Anyway, got it down from 5 pages to 3, and think it has been improved – Mr Messo likes it anyway. Next need to work out what we do with it.
We had a review on Friday of how my placement was going. Mr Messo, Joey and I (with Terry and two others sitting in and listening) – think we decided that the way forward now was to try to get some funding in. So we are going to put some letters together, and make up a letter heading, so that we can approach local businesses and big wigs to see if we can get some support from them. Don’t think I’ll hold my breath on this one, but at least it will give the TACOPE guys an exercise in fund raising, and I can then leave them with some templates of letters etc. Well, I can only do that if we can get them a computer – there is one in the office, but it doesn’t work. They agreed to buy this from someone in Mwanza for Tsh 400,000 (£200) – they gave him Tsh 280,000 on account and he brought the computer to them. It didn’t work – so it was taken to a fundi (tradesman) who said “the hard disc is broken and there isn’t enough memory” – so pretty useless. Now we have said that if they get the money back, we are sure we could get them a new one from somewhere else for the same Tsh 280,000 – but the guy who sold it to them can’t be found. So frustrating. So we will see what happens with this. Watch this space, as they say.
Anyway on Thursday last week, Joey and I went along with three others from TACOPE to visit a couple of the projects they have been involved with. The first is a women’s co-operative. There are ten people (mainly women) who run this workshop. It is a dress makers, and TACOPE bought one of their sewing machines for them. The ‘business’ supports all those involved, (well supports may be too strong a word – maybe contributes to their income is better) and they still manage to give something to the orphans for their school uniforms and books. There is a tremendous sense of responsibility and support for the orphans, people with HIV/AIDS and widows. I believe this is a legacy from President Nyerere – and is a strong thread which runs through the country. Orphans are classed as such if they have only one parent, and HIV/AIDS does leave a lot of widows and single parent families, or children with no parents to support them.
So we sat in this shop/workshop, stopped work, and we chatted through what they do and how they manage. One of the guys then of course said what they are looking for are donors – to help them buy stock of fabrics etc. However, I felt that they had it pretty well organised. They had swatches of materials, so didn’t need to hold stock, and when they had an order, they went out to by the material they needed – seems to work to me. We had photo’s taken and then left them to carry on with their sewing.
We then went along to a chicken farm (bet you were wondering where the chickens came into this episode!) It was a small holding, actually just near where our house is. Again run by a group of about 14, mainly women. They have three cows, loads of chickens and a good patch of land on which they grow greens, veg, potatoes etc. Again they send a lot of their excess to an orphanage. The chickens and the cows were in really good condition. There were day old chicks, (1,000 +) week old chickens who would become layers, older ones who were laying and really old (3 yr old) ones who were coming to the end of their egg production time and due for the pot. They had a ready market for their eggs (myeye) and the whole place, whilst made of pallet type wood, bits of scrap and tied together with pieces of string, (Hillbilly style) was really well run. Didn’t smell bad at all. The chickens seemed to be in amazingly good condition, and having recently seen all the programmes in the UK on battery chickens v free range, I think they compared well with the better ones – ie the free range! Again tho they were asking for more support, but they seemed to have a success story here – a going concern which was sustainable, brilliant! (But quite noisy as it is just around the corner from where we live, and I can hear them now as I type!)
So I do feel I now know more about my placement – and I do have a few things still to do with them or for them. The computer is something we still have to resolve but we’ll see about that later.
Meanwhile, just to update you, went to the market in town with Jen & Joey on Saturday to busy fresh stuff and had my phone pinched from my bag!!! Luckily that was all, but it is so annoying – it was very cleverly done tho, the whole place is so crowded and pushy, and there was a pincer movement and I was squashed between a couple guys, felt a tuck at my bag, which was around my shoulder, but by the time I’d checked, they’d gone! So easy – tried to phone it straight away to ask for it back (well pay for it back) but the sim card had already probably been thrown. Anyway – luckily that is all that went and hopefully I will get my number back and another phone on Monday. Hey ho!
Lots of love Jane
I have made some achievements tho. My placement is with TACOPE (I have only just managed to remember how to say that – and now can’t remember what it stands for – hang on I’ll go to check my notes) – Okay, got it “Tanzania Community-based Option for Protection and Empowerment”. That’s another thing – Tanzanians love words. When a sentence of 6 – 8 words will do, they have 16+ and most of them are very long wordy words which are not needed.
I thought they were like a Voluntary Services organisation, one which worked with other voluntary groups and supported them. Not so – they are a group of very well meaning volunteers who wanted to help orphans and people with HIV/AIDS. It started, three years ago, with 15 people who formed a board, a constitution, became registered as an NGO and paid membership fee’s. (The constitution is such a heavy wordy document!!!) The office, in which I have been given a desk – one of the two there, is a small room just off a dusty dirt side street in town. Basically the few guys there (all volunteers) sit there all day, including Saturday, and talk to people who come in to see them. These could be local government officials, church people, or just folk who want to talk or need help. They put together proposals to donors/funders when they either hear they is some money available, or if they are asked to by a group who are looking for support.
They wanted me to help them streamline their organisation!!! Well, firstly I put together a history of what they had done. This was quite an eye opener, firstly I had to sit and get all the information from Mr Messo, who is a lovely chap, late 60’s, retired and the man at TACOPE. He has everything he knows about TACOPE either in his head or in his small black plastic briefcase which goes everywhere with him. He has dates, figures and everything either in his head or in the briefcase. He says its not worth keeping it in the office and things get lost amongst the papers – there is no system there – but it is all there, in his head. So that was a good couple of days, teasing it out, and encouraging him to tell me about it all. I also had to impress on him that the little things he thought weren’t worth a mention, needed to be in as they showed an achievement or success which TACOPE should recognise. (Familiar territory or what!). So that was good, got that done.
Next, I looked at their books – literally books!!!! They had four accounts books and try as I might I couldn’t understand them, nor see any system in them – and the addition was not correct and nothing seemed to balance. Well the figures at the bottom of each column were the same, but why?
So I set them up a system (me – accounts!!) and my SAIDIA partner, a young school leaver called Terry, was set to enter all the accounts into one book, which I bought. To start at year one, find bank statements and receipts and enter them month by month. This was a task in itself, as everything was there somewhere, either in the one locked cupboard or in drawers in ‘my’ desk, but where? Mr Messo was thrilled, thought the (very simple) system I set up was wonderful. So that took up some time, but it is now completed and does look good – not sure the addition is still correct, but hey, its better than it was and does ‘sort of’ balance!
Then we decided that I should look at their ‘Profile’ – well Mr Messo wanted me to do a Business Plan for them, but I felt we needed to understand the organisation first and to enable us to do that, the wordy document which was their profile, needed to be reworded. (You sometimes read through a paragraph of this sort of document, read the words, which all make sense individually, but after you have finished the paragraph you think “what was that all about” – it seems that Jen has this problem with her work too, wonder if this is because Swahili has a smaller vocab, it is more a concise language, and so when it is translated more words are added to make it look better) Anyway, got it down from 5 pages to 3, and think it has been improved – Mr Messo likes it anyway. Next need to work out what we do with it.
We had a review on Friday of how my placement was going. Mr Messo, Joey and I (with Terry and two others sitting in and listening) – think we decided that the way forward now was to try to get some funding in. So we are going to put some letters together, and make up a letter heading, so that we can approach local businesses and big wigs to see if we can get some support from them. Don’t think I’ll hold my breath on this one, but at least it will give the TACOPE guys an exercise in fund raising, and I can then leave them with some templates of letters etc. Well, I can only do that if we can get them a computer – there is one in the office, but it doesn’t work. They agreed to buy this from someone in Mwanza for Tsh 400,000 (£200) – they gave him Tsh 280,000 on account and he brought the computer to them. It didn’t work – so it was taken to a fundi (tradesman) who said “the hard disc is broken and there isn’t enough memory” – so pretty useless. Now we have said that if they get the money back, we are sure we could get them a new one from somewhere else for the same Tsh 280,000 – but the guy who sold it to them can’t be found. So frustrating. So we will see what happens with this. Watch this space, as they say.
Anyway on Thursday last week, Joey and I went along with three others from TACOPE to visit a couple of the projects they have been involved with. The first is a women’s co-operative. There are ten people (mainly women) who run this workshop. It is a dress makers, and TACOPE bought one of their sewing machines for them. The ‘business’ supports all those involved, (well supports may be too strong a word – maybe contributes to their income is better) and they still manage to give something to the orphans for their school uniforms and books. There is a tremendous sense of responsibility and support for the orphans, people with HIV/AIDS and widows. I believe this is a legacy from President Nyerere – and is a strong thread which runs through the country. Orphans are classed as such if they have only one parent, and HIV/AIDS does leave a lot of widows and single parent families, or children with no parents to support them.
So we sat in this shop/workshop, stopped work, and we chatted through what they do and how they manage. One of the guys then of course said what they are looking for are donors – to help them buy stock of fabrics etc. However, I felt that they had it pretty well organised. They had swatches of materials, so didn’t need to hold stock, and when they had an order, they went out to by the material they needed – seems to work to me. We had photo’s taken and then left them to carry on with their sewing.
We then went along to a chicken farm (bet you were wondering where the chickens came into this episode!) It was a small holding, actually just near where our house is. Again run by a group of about 14, mainly women. They have three cows, loads of chickens and a good patch of land on which they grow greens, veg, potatoes etc. Again they send a lot of their excess to an orphanage. The chickens and the cows were in really good condition. There were day old chicks, (1,000 +) week old chickens who would become layers, older ones who were laying and really old (3 yr old) ones who were coming to the end of their egg production time and due for the pot. They had a ready market for their eggs (myeye) and the whole place, whilst made of pallet type wood, bits of scrap and tied together with pieces of string, (Hillbilly style) was really well run. Didn’t smell bad at all. The chickens seemed to be in amazingly good condition, and having recently seen all the programmes in the UK on battery chickens v free range, I think they compared well with the better ones – ie the free range! Again tho they were asking for more support, but they seemed to have a success story here – a going concern which was sustainable, brilliant! (But quite noisy as it is just around the corner from where we live, and I can hear them now as I type!)
So I do feel I now know more about my placement – and I do have a few things still to do with them or for them. The computer is something we still have to resolve but we’ll see about that later.
Meanwhile, just to update you, went to the market in town with Jen & Joey on Saturday to busy fresh stuff and had my phone pinched from my bag!!! Luckily that was all, but it is so annoying – it was very cleverly done tho, the whole place is so crowded and pushy, and there was a pincer movement and I was squashed between a couple guys, felt a tuck at my bag, which was around my shoulder, but by the time I’d checked, they’d gone! So easy – tried to phone it straight away to ask for it back (well pay for it back) but the sim card had already probably been thrown. Anyway – luckily that is all that went and hopefully I will get my number back and another phone on Monday. Hey ho!
Lots of love Jane
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