Week 18

Monday, December 3rd, 2007
Meaghan and I started our morning with our blog reports, putting together an employment contract for the new translator, and the English lessons for the day. We called the Principle of the Secondary School in Buswelu to see if the cards sent with the WHE faculty were signed by the students yet. He dropped by but said that he would put them together for next week. We photocopied the English lessons and got ready to go into town.
We had to pick up the passport photos of the Mamas for the NGO application, use the internet and go grocery shopping before the English lessons at 3pm. We were able to accomplish everything with a bit of struggle, the internet has not been great over the last little while.
We went into Mabatini and had a good English lesson. We then went straight to yoga at Tunza and everyone was really tired or sick. For dinner, we had plans to go to a friend’s place to attempt to make sushi again. This time it worked out much better because they actually had all the proper ingredients, except for the raw fish which was substituted with canned spicy salmon and tuna.

Our Mamas making yogurt in the Mabatini Kitchen.

Tuesday, December 4th, 2007
This morning was a bit slower than usual because most of our projects are waiting on others to contact us for the next stage. But we were productive in using the internet and making the English lessons for tomorrow. Meaghan and Mama Joyce typed up some meeting minutes regarding the TASAF application to build a cow banda and supply dairy cows for the Mamas.
We went into town and tried to use the ‘fast’ internet but it was down and so we headed to the Regional Commissioner’s office to meet with Mr. Ndassa about our NGO application. We brought all the necessary documents with us for the application and Mr. Ndassa will review it and hopefully send it to Dar es Salaam. He was just newly appointed to this position and so is unclear on certain steps but he is getting advice from Mr. Kiamba (the former NGO director).
After visiting the Regional Commissioner’s office we stopped by the internet café shortly before going to our Swahili lesson. Meg and I went home after our lessons and got ready to go out and treat ourselves to a dinner at Tilapia.

Wednesday, December 5th, 2007
Meaghan and I got up early this morning to attend a meeting at City Council with Mr. Luanda. He took us and Mama Elizabeth to see 4 possible plots in Nyamongoro for the Mamas to purchase. We were only interested in 2 of the 4 because they were closer to the main road. The pieces of land are quite large (over 4,000m2) but will be good for the future if the project needs to expand or rent out shops for extra profit.
We dropped by Mr. Ngowi’s office to hand in some TASAF meeting minutes and to inform him about the new WHE intern, Stephanie Irvine, who will be taking over the Tuwamuane project in January.
We stopped by the internet café and then came home to rest a little before going to Mabatini for the Mama’s English lessons. Most of the Mamas are getting much better with their English (some still struggle with basics because they do not have much schooling, even in Swahili) but I think they could use more oral lessons. It is difficult to implement this because only a few Mamas are at the Kitchen when we are there and so handout sheets of homework are more practical.
In the evening, Meaghan and I were invited to a family gathering of the bride and groom’s relatives. The wedding is on Sunday and most of the relatives have arrived from the UK, Kenya and India. It was amazing to see all the traditional Indian attire with all the vibrant colors. Everyone was singing and dancing, it was such an amazing atmosphere.

Left to right: Jodi, Anya, me, and 'Uncle'.

Thursday, December 6th, 2007
Happy Sinter Klaas!
Both Ruben and Meaghan celebrate the Dutch Christmas and so I was lucky enough to get my shoe filled with goodies this morning.
We started the morning with project work at home and using the ‘slow’ internet downstairs. We made the English test for tomorrow and followed up with meetings scheduled for next week.
We went into town and ran a few errands before going to our second last Swahili lesson. We had a very good lesson and then made our way to Tunza for yoga lessons. Today’s class went much better than on Monday and I felt much more energetic. I made a quick visit to a local tailor nearby to check up on some items and then came back to Tunza for dinner with a group of friends.

Friday, December 7th, 2007
One week until my mother comes to visit!
The electricity was out for most of the morning which made project work at home a bit difficult. We were not able to print or photocopy the English lessons and my computer’s battery life is really bad. I did manage to do some work on my internship and orphanage report.
We were able to print the English test but were unsuccessful in getting them copied so we just went to Mabatini and gave the Mamas some Shillings to print it themselves. When we got to the Kitchen we saw Mr. Ndassa there making corrections onto the Tukwamuane Women’s constitution. I was a bit frustrated but also grateful that he had some insight to writing the constitution better. I was frustrated because we had gone to his office 2 times with the constitution and he said it was fine, so we made 5 copies of the 34 pages and had it bound (costing ~20,000 Tsh) and now there were errors in all the copies. However, it is better to have it done the correct way than to have it sent back from Dar and having to re-due it afterwards.
We then picked up yogurt for the Forever Angels orphanage and spent some time with the toddlers. They were a bit grumpy today because they had their naps much earlier than usual and were getting very tired by the time Meg and I came by, but they were still so cute.
We came home and rested a bit before getting ready to go to the henna party. Many of the guests to the wedding are invited to get henna done. It was a great experience and I was really impressed by how quickly and beautifully the ladies apply the henna. The evening included an amazing buffet and dancing for the evening.

The henna party at Tilapia.

Getting my henna done.

Kiran's intricate henna on her arms and legs.

Saturday, December 8th, 2007
Meaghan and I were able to sleep in today but we felt very badly for Ruben because his flight was delayed. I woke up and wrote in my journal and had breakfast before going to the internet café. We then headed into town to pick up some souvenirs for when we go home to Toronto.
We then came back to the apartment and watched a very festive movie, ‘Elf’, before getting ready to go to our friend Riian’s birthday party. Ruben arrived just before we left and had bad news that his luggage was left behind in Dar. Despite his unfortunate situation and being extremely tired from his travel delays, he decided to join us at the birthday party. We didn’t stay out late because we knew tomorrow would be a very busy and full day of weddings.

Sunday, December 9th, 2007
We got up early to get dressed for the wedding ceremony. We were lucky enough to borrow some Indian clothing to not stand out too much. The temple was beautiful and the gowns were even better. The bright colors are amazing to see all together and are tailored with so many beads and sequins. The bride, Kiran, had an amazing skirt and top on with colorful beading everywhere. The ceremony was different than anything I’ve experienced before and it was lovely. We had a quick lunch reception and went home to rest before the dinner reception in the evening.

Showing off my henna.

The wedding dress.

In the temple.

The bride walking into the temple.

The after-wedding gifts.

Meg, Claire and I got our hair curled at the saloon below the apartment and it turned out very well. Meaghan, Claire and I all wore dressed made by local tailors and they turned out very well. The evening was very nice but a lot of the relatives were completely exhausted from all the partying in the previous week leading up to the wedding, including the bride and groom.

Week 17

Monday, November 26th, 2007
Meaghan and I spent the morning working on our blog, writing up the English lessons for the afternoon and finishing Stephanie’s VISA letter. Stephanie is the next WHE intern that will be coming in January, 2008. I was still not feeling very well and so I went into town to go to a small clinic and get checked for Malaria. Thankfully I do not have Malaria again and am wondering if I had it the first 2 times because I had very similar symptoms as the last times.
I met up with Meg at the Pizzeria and had a quick snack before going to NIMR for our meeting with Mr. Temu and his staff. Mr. Temu is the director of the microbiology lab and is in charge of preparing the probiotics to go into our milk. We had a very productive meeting sorting out the days of the week that all the deliveries, culturing and pick-ups will happen. Unfortunately, one of our mamas was late coming to the meeting but she came in time to speak with Mr. Temu to clarify what day and at what time she is supposed to come to pick up the milk at NIMR.
We then went to Mabatini to give the Mamas their English lesson, to get the Tukwamuane Mama’s constitution and to get Mama Paskwalina to sign Steph’s VISA letter. At the Kitchen, the Mamas invited us to eat ugali with dagaa (small dried fish). It was very good but very filling too. We decided not to go to yoga today and stayed in with a movie.

Tuesday, November 27th, 2007
Meg and I started our morning getting our meetings for the day in order. We then headed into town to use the internet before our meetings. I was able to post my blog and pictures and read my very full inbox before going to our meeting with the Vice President of the Tanzanian Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Batenga (former Chairman). We had a few questions about distribution of yogurt products in Mwanza to send to Ivan LeMintier from Danone.
We stopped by World Link to inquire about flights for Stephanie afterwards, then headed to City Counsel to meet with Mr. Luanda. Mr. Luanda is the replacement for Mr. Tukay while he is away on business trips. We were informed that the new piece of land in Nyamongoro is allowed to have 4-5 non-grazing cows on site. This was very good news to hear because we will be able to build the cow banda that TASAF will support on our new plot of land. Mr. Luanda told us he would have quotes, sizes and location of the new plots ready for next week and that we would complete the purchase of it within one month. We left his office and went straight to see Mr. Ngowi (TASAF coordinator) to give him the good news. We found out that our TASAF application would have to be pushed back until January because it requires us to own the plot of land first before getting our application approved. This will mean that if it is accepted construction will begin in early March.
We then went to our Swahili class for 2 hours. The evening was spent at our friend’s house, Tini, because it was her birthday. We brought some Champaign and flower for her. She cooked an amazing dinner of pea soup, tomato pasta, zucchini pasta, risotto, and ice cream with a mango puree.

Tini's birthday dinner.

Wednesday, November 28th, 2007
I am very excited because my mother is leaving to come visit Africa in 2 weeks today. The morning was spent organizing our expenses and making the English lesson for the day. We made plans to meet with Mr. Kiamba (director for NGO application) for the afternoon.
We went into town and booked Steph’s flight from Dar to Mwanza for January 4th, 2007, which means that I will have about a day to show Steph around Mwanza before I leave to start my journey home. We went to the internet café for a little while to send out update reports home. We had a quick bite to eat then headed to the Regional Commissioner’s office to meet with Mr. Kiamba. We were informed that he no longer was in charge of that department and so we were brought to Mr. Ndassa. He went through our Constitution and it seemed in order and we only had a few things to complete before we could apply for the Tukwamuane Women to become an NGO.
We then went to Mabatini for the English lessons and to pick up yogurt for our friends and us. We then went to Isamilo for a swim because we had missed our normal swim yesterday. We made a very good noodle stir fry at Claire’s before going home.

Half an hour of heavy rain.

Thursday, November 29th, 2007
This morning we made the English test for tomorrow and set up a meeting with a potential translator this morning, Gracie. I spent a while photocopying and binding the Mama’s Constitution for their NGO application and required 5 copies of a 34 page booklet. Meaghan sent some email home at the internet café near our apartment. Gracie came over just as Meg and I were both finishing up and we had an interview with her. She is a very qualified individual and speaks English very well. She has just recently moved to Mwanza because her husband got a job here, actually working with a close friend of ours in the agricultural department, and is currently unemployed. Meg and I will draft a contract up for her and hopefully she will be able to help Stephanie out with translations with the Mamas especially because she is coming by herself.
We had to also refill our gas tank this morning which turned out to be more difficult than we expected because all the stores have now changed the canisters for the gas and our current one is too old. So Meg and I had to run around town trying to find the best price and also having to take out money to pay 110,000 Tsh (~$100) for a new tank and gas. We were finally successful and came home with our new tank. We had lunch at home before heading back to World Link, to pay for Steph’s flight, and for our Swahili Lessons. We went to Tunza afterwards for our Yoga class and stayed for dinner.

Friday, November 30th, 2007
I cannot believe that it is already the end of November and our time in Mwanza is closely coming to an end. I am sad to be leaving but feel proud that Meg and I have put in progress so many big steps to start expanding the Mama’s project.
We made plans for Mama Elizabeth, Paskwalina and Joyce to meet at our apartment for 9:30am this morning, but as usual they were a bit late. We had plans to walk through town and distribute yogurt order packages at various restaurants and hotels, get their photos taken for the NGO application and look for various fridges to purchase for the Kitchen because they are running out of space to hold the yogurt. We accomplished it all before the afternoon and went with the Mamas to the Kitchen in Mabatini afterwards. We picked up 6L of yogurt to bring to the Forever Angels Orphanage. We spent a few hours volunteering at the orphanage and then had to come home to cook a huge dinner for Pendo, her mother and her 8 children. It turned out that she had 11 children come (not all hers) and they had a great time with the coloring books that Meaghan had brought with her from Canada. Meaghan, Pendo and I made cooking bananas in a tomato sauce, rice, and fish. It was a great meal and a great way to thank Pendo for all her hard work and for inviting us to her mother’s place for dinner last month. We were very tired after they all left and stayed in for the night.

Meaghan cutting cooking bananas.

The children having a great time with the coloring books.

Our delicious dinner.

Group 'timer' photo, which I clearly missed.

Saturday, December 1st, 2007
Today is ‘World’s Aids Day’ and our Mamas are joining with Kivulini at the CCM Kyrumba Stadium to sell yogurt and celebrate the festivities there. We will join them later in the day.
We started our morning supporting our friend Jenny for a soccer tournament that she organized for students at various schools. There were 6 teams in total, 4 boys and 2 girls. The spectator stands were full and everyone was having a great time watching and dancing to the music being played.
We had a quick lunch and then headed to the Stadium to visit our Mamas. Unfortunately by the time we got there they were just packing up but it was still great to see all the HIV testing stands and live performances. Meg and I then took a dala-dala to Tunza to relax a bit on the beach. We went to Yun Long Restaurant for dinner and then stayed in to watch a movie.

Jenny and her girls soccer team.

World Aids Day.

Sunday, December 2nd, 2007
We woke up early again today to go to church in Mabatini with Mama Paskwalina. The church is always very crowded but it is a very lovely service. We went home after dropping by the Kitchen and having chai with the Mamas and packed our things to go to Tunza for the day.
I went for a run at Tunza and then got to work painting the entrance wall for the bulletin board. Meaghan helped paint but it was difficult because they had just put in some plants in front of the wall and we were trampling around them to paint. It turned out very well and we had a nice afternoon there. We decided to go home for dinner and a movie so we would have an early night before our week began. Ruben left this evening to go to Dar to get his residence permit and will be gone until Friday if all goes well.

Week 16

Monday, November 19th, 2007
Meaghan and I spent the morning writing our blogs, putting together pictures to post and making the English Lesson for the mamas. We then headed into town to the internet café and we were able to accomplish all our tasks in 1 hr. We then had a quick lunch before going to City Council for our meeting with Mr. Tukay, the City planner, for 2pm. We waited until 3pm before he showed up and then he took us to see the Director to explain our project. Mr. Tukay had some meetings to attend before going with us to Mabatini to look at the Kitchen, so Meg and I waited patiently. Little did we know he would make us wait until 5pm just sitting on couches not knowing when he would show up. So, we finally went to Mabatini and then to an area called Nyamongoro with Mama Paskwalina where there is potential land that the project could purchase to expand the project. The area is about 7 km from Mabatini, but is along the main road that the dala-dala travels. We headed back to Mabatini and spoke with the Mamas about their thoughts of the location and they agreed that it would not be too far to travel, about 500 Tsh (<$0.50) each way. This to me seems like a lot to spend on transportation when they only make $1 per day from the project. Meg and I left the Kitchen and went home to get ready to go to Jenny’s place for dinner. We had missed Yoga but were able to join the group for a really amazing dinner with fried rice, shrimp, egg drop soup, pineapple, salsa and chips, vegetable stir fry, cassava chips, guacamole, and the best part was chocolate cake with cookies and cream ice cream. We had a lovely evening and watched ‘A Beautiful Life’ on a projector.

Tuesday, November 20th, 2007


Meg and I spent the morning arranging meetings with Kivulini about EDFO, Moishi, CV letters, the Mama’s constitution, and contractors in Nyamongoro. We were able to get a CV template and a name of a woman who does architectural designs. We then headed into town to get some groceries for the house. We dropped off our groceries and then headed back into town. I had to meet a friend to book our safari trip together in December. We then had to go to our Swahili lessons for 3pm. We went swimming after class and then to Claire’s place for dinner. We made a very interesting meal of a sweet potato stew. We had an early night because Meg and I were both feeling very tired all day.

Internet lessons.

Wednesday, November 21st, 2007


Today was a busy but extremely successful day! We got up early this morning and made arrangements to meet with Mr. Ngowi, TASAF coordinator for 9:30am. We picked up Mama Paskwalina in Mabatini on the way to City Counsel. She finally had all the applications, street leader meeting minutes, and signatures put together to give to Mr. Ngowi. Mr. Ngowi had been waiting, as we were too, for the meeting to happen and he had been busy putting together an action plan, diagrams, and a budget for our application. We were requesting dairy cows and all the equipment and tools to run a cow shed. Mr. Ngowi had broken down all the expenses from spades to training and cows to labor costs. It was extremely well organized and we were to receive 4 dairy cows and 1 bull if the application was accepted. Mr. Ngowi was extremely supportive and positive that the grant would go through. We left his office with his assistant and driver to pick up Mr. Moishi, an agricultural surveyor, to see if there was an appropriate place to have the cow Banda. Unfortunately the abandoned cow shed on Mama Paskwalina’s land was too small for what the project was proposing and we would have to find another place to build upon.

Mama Paskwalina (the chairperson)

The abandoned cow shed.

We came home and Mama Paskwalina, Omar (from Kivulini), and I went to Nyakahoja to speak with Mama Sofia about drawing some drafts of our new Kitchen that we are hoping to start construction soon after getting our new piece of land. We waited while Mama Sofia was in a meeting and decided to reschedule for another day when she was less busy.

The day was not over yet for Meg and I because we had a meeting planned to meet with representatives from the German Embassy about another possible grant that would go towards building our new Kitchen. A friend, Tini, who has build a preschool and will be the principle of the school has been supported by the German Embassy and was asked to show them several other ‘grass root’ level organizations who could benefit from their support and she thought of us. We gave the two gentlemen a tour of our kitchen and gave them some background information of the Tukwamuane Women and what the grant would be used for. The meeting went well and we will now spend the next month filling out the application and finding a suitable piece of land to build on.

Our evening was spent at the Kivulini Kitchen celebrating a friend who had finished his contract in Mwanza and it was also his birthday.



Thursday, November 22nd, 2007

We had another busy day today and went to Mabatini first thing to pick-up Mama Paskwalina to take a dala-dala into Nyakato to meet with Father Nico. We then went all together to Mahina to get the CD4 data from the HIV+ population. As we expected, only 3 individuals of the entire group had come with their information. So, we would have to reschedule to get all the stats of the participants. We got dropped off in Nyakato to meet with Dr. Sokombi at Heifer International. He gave us some useful information to send to Mr. Ivan from Danone. We stayed for an hour or so and then went back to Mabatini on a dala-dala to pick-up yogurt from the Kitchen and to help them with their English lessons from the previous day.

We came home to gather some things for the rest of the afternoon and then headed into town to use the internet and for our meeting with Dr. Temu, Director of the Microbiology lab, at NIMR. NIMR takes approximately 30 minutes to walk to from our apartment, so it was very disappointing and frustrating to hear that Dr. Temu had not arranged a meeting with the appropriate parties and would reschedule for next week. We had our Swahili lessons later on and then went to Tunza for yoga. Meaghan and I came home right after and had a very nice and relaxing night in and watched a movie.



Friday, November 23rd, 2007

We had a meeting with Maimuna, the director of Kivulini, this morning and informed her of our progress for the week and had some questions answer. We made the English test for the day and headed to Mabatini to distribute them and also pick-up yogurt for the Forever Angels Orphanage. The children at the orphanage were so cute and were singing ‘Happy Birthday’ for one of the volunteers there. They had cake and played with balloons. We had to come home a bit earlier than normal because I had a meeting with Mama Sofia at 4pm. I called up Mama Elizabeth and Paskwalina and went with Omar to help translate the meeting. Her office is just behind our apartment and so it is very convenient for me to go and visit her when need be. We explained what we wanted the Kitchen to consist of and drew a very rough draft of an example of what the Kitchen could look like. Mama Sofia would put together 3-4 drafts for the Mamas and WHE staff to look at and give feedback about them for Thursday. In the evening Meg and I went to Jenny’s place again for dinner and a movie. We had pasta and banana splits and watched ‘Catch and Release’.

Yunice in her kitenge.

Playing with the balloons.

Michael with his balloon.

Saturday, November 24th, 2007
I was not feeling very well this morning when I woke up and decided not to join Meaghan for camping at Kijereshi. I stayed home and had a very restful morning. I managed to get myself out to walk to the market and pick-up some groceries for dinner tonight. I came home pretty tired and watched a movie. I went back out later on and met up with Ruben at NIMR. He gave me a ride home on the back of his bicycle and it was quite fun. We relaxed for a while then started making dinner. I had bought a fresh Tilapia for dinner and filleted it to be pan fried. We had it with a tomato sauce, rice and a cucumber salad. After dinner we watched ‘Ocean’s 13’ and had an early night.

Sunday, November 25th, 2007
I went with Ruben, on his bike again, to the New Mwanza Hotel for the church service that he usually goes to. The service was very passionate and full of energy. I was not used to that kind of service but was a pleasant change. It was not in a church at all, but rather in a room next to the restaurant and only had about 25 people present.
I had a tea at the Pizzeria before heading home. I spent a little time on the internet then got some things together to go to Tunza. I walked out to Airport Road and then took a dala-dala to the Tunza entrance then walked another 20 minutes to the lodge. A trip by taxi costs at least 7,000 Tsh (~$7) and I did it for 250 Tsh (~$0.25), but it took about an hour to get there. When I got there I relaxed for half an hour before getting to work and repainting some of the Tunza entrance wall. I still have a project to paint the other wall and the reception area, but that will be for another weekend.
I came home after having dinner at Tunza, just after Meg got home from her camping trip. She said it had been raining a lot but had a great time. I went to bed early again and hope that I will be feeling better soon.

Painting the Tunza wall.

Week 15

Monday, November 12th, 2007
Meaghan and I began our morning writing up our blogs and sorting out pictures from the week before. When we were done we headed into town to post them on the internet. The internet was surprisingly good and we were able to post all the text and pictures, and check our email. We then went to the post office so I could send some letters home. We had a quick lunch before heading home to pick up the English lessons and went straight to Mabatini. We were running a bit late and so decided to skip yoga in the evening and spend more time at the Kitchen. The English lesson went well and we were invited for dinner of rice and beans. We then took Mama Cesilia and Mama Asha to the internet café near our apartment and taught them how to use the internet and access their gmail account that Meaghan set up for them. Cesilia and Asha are two of the younger members and they are also very bright. They were able to learn all the steps very easily despite never using a computer before. In the evening, Meaghan and I stayed in and watched some DVDs that Meaghan was sent from home. It was a very quiet and nice evening in.

Tuesday, November 13th, 2007
We began the morning with project work and calls out to make appointments with various groups that can aid with our project. We had a productive meeting with Maimuna (Director of Kivulini) about meeting with the landlord, our utility bills, TASAF, EDFO, Moishi and charity groups who we have been in contact with. Maimuna is a wonderful woman and is well respected in Mwanza. She was a great help to us and arranged a meeting with our landlord and give us some contacts and great advice about certain interests. We also got in contact with another organization who were interested in supporting a charity group and were looking to the Tukwamuane group as a possible candidate.
We made other plans to meet with the Principle Planning Officer, Mr. Kiamba, about registering the Tukwamuane group as an NGO. There are several steps that we must take to complete this process and we hope to get a good start on the application before we have to go back to Canada. The next interns to come will have to carry on the projects that have been started by us and I know they are very capable of doing a great job. One of the difficulties with the internship position is that we are only here for a short period of time and many things, such as grant proposals and expansion of the project, can take many months and sometimes year to implicate.
We then went to the Pizzeria for lunch and then to the internet café until our Swahili lessons began. In class we learn the connective words for ‘of’ and the various meanings of ‘kwa’. We went for a swim after class at the international pool and then to dinner at the Yacht Club.

The large and disguisting birds at Saba Saba.

Wednesday, November 14th, 2007
This morning we scheduled a meeting for the afternoon with Dr. Sokombi from the Heifer institute to obtain more information for Ivan Le Mintier from Danone. We made the English lesson for the day and did some printing of documents. We went into town after to use the internet and get some prices for my trip with my mom in December. I will have to go back a few times in the next few weeks to sort out all the details. I met Meaghan at home and she was busy trying to get a taxi, who knew how to take us, to the Heifer institute. We headed off and when we got there Meg called Dr. Sokombi and he regretted to tell us that he was not at the building but driving somewhere and would not be back for another hour and a half. So Meg and I took the dala-dala to the Mama’s Kitchen and rescheduled our meeting for another day. At the Kitchen we had our English lesson and picked up yogurt for us and our friends.
We came home and finished up some photocopies of Yogurt brochures while waiting for Mama Asha and Cesilia to meet us for another internet lesson. We visited the tailoring shop that is just down our street to see if our dresses were ready. We have found a tailor who makes very nice, modern designs for a very reasonable price. Meaghan’s Charity Ball dress was made by this lady. We came home to find Ruben starting dinner and he decided on a ‘sweet’ dinner of chapattis and baked bananas with chocolate sauce. We managed to convince Ruben to save the bananas for dessert and let us make a vegetable medley for the main course. We had another quiet night in and watched ‘About a Boy’ before going to bed fairly early.

Thursday, November 15th, 2007
We spent the morning running around trying to get information and contacts for various projects Meaghan and I are taking on. We were able to meet with our landlord and Maimuna helped to mediate the conversation because she could not speak English. We were able to renew our contract with her for another year which is great news because our apartment is a perfect location between the Kitchen in Mabatini and the city. Meaghan and I tried to set up meetings this morning but were for the most part unsuccessful in confirming anything. Amongst the many things we are taking on we are trying to organize packaging and labels for the yogurt, delivery and culturing of the probiotic milk, getting a plot of land near Mabatini, organizing grants to pay for the construction of the new building, getting information from Heifer, applying Tukwamuane as an NGO and a business, sending out yogurt order forms and information to larger companies, getting our product certified by TBO and TFDA, organizing a delivery system with the Chairman, and many other smaller projects.
We then headed into town to use the internet and so I could go to the bank to take out shillings to pay for some of the flights my mom and I will be going on. I had to go to 2 different flight agencies because they book different flights. We had lunch at the Pizzeria again, but the prices are so reasonable and the profit goes to charity that it would not make sense to walk 15 minutes to go home and then another 15 minutes to come back into town for our Swahili lessons.
After our Swahili lesson we went to Tunza with Claire for yoga and to deliver the yogurt to our friends. We stayed for dinner afterwards but headed home right after for an early night’s rest.

Friday, November 16th, 2007
We left this morning at 9:30am to go to Mabatini to drop off the English tests and to pick up 20L of yogurt! Six liters is going to the Forever Angels orphanage and 14L we are donating to the Charity Ball dinner tomorrow evening. We got a taxi to take us and our 20L to Andie Wilson’s home, member of the Charity Ball committee, to drop off the 14L of yogurt and then to City Council so that we could meet with the Mayor about getting a plot of land for the Mamas. We had a short but pleasant meeting with the Mayor and he set us up with a meeting with the City Planner and he will come by Mabatini on Monday to survey the size needed and the general area that we are looking for.
After our City Council meeting we went to the orphanage to deliver the yogurt and see the babies and toddlers. There were a lot of women there interviewing for a day care position at the orphanage. We were told that it was a bit hectic at the home for the entire week because they have been having interviews and also got 3 new babies. There was a thunderstorm while we were there and so all the kids were moving indoors to play. Many of the rooms are being renovated and extended to prepare for more babies and toddlers to come to the home. They currently have about 20 but are hoping to double the number in the next few months. They were given yogurt for their snack again today and were so adorable.
We came home after a long day and had a nice evening in.

Haji making a big mess.

Gracie and her sippy cup of yogurt.

Saturday, November 17th, 2007
I slept in this morning and had a great day getting ready for the Charity Ball tonight. Meaghan, Claire and I went into town in the mid-day. Claire was looking for fabric and ribbon to make some clothing out of and so Meg accompanied her. I went to the bank and then to pay for the second flight and then to another travel agency to book my return tickets. Unfortunately the stores were all closing and I would have to do it another day. We met back up for lunch then came home to finish getting ready for the Ball.
Charity Ball was at the BOT (Bank of Tanzania) this year and they decorated it very nicely. It reminded me of a high school prom or semi-formal event. The ticket included a beverage and a very good buffet. We spent the beginning of the evening helping sell raffle tickets for the draw later in the evening. After dinner, there were auctions and raffle draws with an intermission of dancing and then some more draws. The ‘Tanzanites’ played live music and were very good. The evening was very nice and the dancing was especially fun.

Ruben, Claire, Meaghan and I all dressed up.

At Charity Ball with our friends.

Sunday, November 18th, 2007
I woke up late this morning after a long night, but had promised Mama Asha to go to her home to visit her family. Her sister came by the apartment at 11am and we walked together to their home. We looked at some pictures of her family and past interns that visited her home and she gave us some chai tea and some fruits and bread. We took some pictures together and I was really surprised when they ‘attacked’ me and put dark make-up on my eyebrows. They did the same to Meaghan and then proceeded to paint our nails. It was very unexpected but hilarious at the same time.

Mama Asha's family.Paintin my nails...

... and painting my eyebrows.

We walked home and rested a while before taking a taxi to Tunza. We got a ride with one of the regular drivers outside our apartment, Jane. (The next part of the day I will never forget for the rest of my life and am very thankful that no one was seriously injured). While driving down Airport Road there were, as usual, a group of people standing in the median trying to cross the road. I clearly remember a little boy, about 8 years old in a lime green t-shirt, hesitate to cross as our car was coming close and Jane slowing down but then picking up speed again after seeing the boy pull back. At the very last second the boy darted in front of the car without any time for Jane to stop and we hit him going about 40 Km/h. There was a brief second where he was out of sight and I was thinking the worst. But then he appeared crawling off the road and he did not seem to be seriously injured. He stood up, rubbed his head and then Jane got him into the car with an older relative of the boy. We took him to the hospital but he was only looked at briefly before being told to come back later for x-rays. Meg and I were dropped off at Tunza and Jane took the boy back to the hospital. I really hope there were no internal injuries and that he was well looked after. I could not believe how calm and unshaken the boy was. He did not shed one tear or complain, he only had a bump on the back of his head.
The reason we were going to Tunza in the first place was to celebrate Ross’ birthday and so we stayed for dinner and then went home shortly afterwards. We had a pleasant evening but I could not stop thinking about the little boy. Driving in Mwanza is pretty dangerous because the rules are not strongly enforced or made at all. You have to be very careful in a car or just being a pedestrian.

Week 14

Monday, November 5th, 2007
We got up early to have breakfast and finish packing to go back to Mwanza. While we were paying our bill we realized that they had forgotten to charge us for an entire day’s meal including both lunch and dinner for Meaghan and me. Lucky for us. The trip felt longer than it was and I was happy to come back and see the Mamas. The flights were pleasant, especially because I fell asleep on both of them. We had an unexpected 1.5 hour delay in Dar es Salaam but were given lunch vouchers for an Indian buffet. The food was amazing and we were hungry so the delay actually worked out to our benefit. We got into Mwanza around 6pm and just unpacked our things and relaxed for the rest of the night

Tuesday, November 6th, 2007
I was feeling quite tired this morning but I got myself up to start writing up my blog. Meg and I worked till noon then set out to the internet café to post and check emails. We ended up at a new café and it worked very well for me, but Meaghan was having a lot of difficulties with her computers. We had a quick lunch and walked to U-turn to pick up some groceries for dinner. We had our Swahili class from 3pm to 5pm and then went to the International School for a swim in their pool. We then went to Claire’s place and made a simple pasta with vegetables and tomato sauce.

Swahili lessons with Mr. Gaudence.

Wednesday, November 7th, 2007
Meaghan and I started our morning with WHE project work. She put together the brochure about the benefits of yogurt, specifically probiotic yogurt, and information about the Tukwamuane group with all the changes suggested by the WHE faculty. I prepared the English lesson for the Mamas today and made appointments for this week. We went back to the internet café to finish up some emails and to upload pictures onto our blogs. We had a nice lunch at the Pizzeria and then went to the supermarket to pick up groceries for the apartment. When we got home we did not have much time before going to Mabatini, but we were able to have a much needed short rest. I had been feeling really tired and the hot weather did not seem to help.
Meaghan and I had our arms full walking to the Yogurt Kitchen; 3 containers, 10 English lessons, a clock (to replace the one that broke), and 10 spice boats from Zanzibar. Before leaving for Zanzibar the Mamas requested gifts for us to bring them and I find it interesting how many local individuals think that Meg and I are here in Mwanza to bring money and gifts. The Mamas gave us a very warm welcome back and were extremely happy with their gifts from Zanzibar. We taught them the English lesson and stayed for some rice and beans before going home with 9L of yogurt between Meaghan and I (6L on my head). We got home feeling very exhausted and had a very quiet night in.

Thursday, November 8th, 2007
Meaghan and I woke up early this morning to meet with Dr. Changalucha about the delivery process of the milk and probiotics. Meg and I have been trying to schedule the 3 parties (delivery, culturing, pick-up) to complete their tasks on time so that it does not interfere with the next step. All of the individuals seem to understand yet it does not get done on a regular basis and so Meg and I set up this meeting with Changalucha to see if he could enforce our recommendations. We will get back with him after he has had a few meetings with the parties involved.
After going to NIMR we had planned to meet with Joseph Mlinzi from City Council, but he was not getting back to us. I had been feeling extremely tired and dizzy all morning and so I decided to drop by Nyakahoja clinic to get checked up just in case. I was diagnosed with Malaria again and so I was glad to have found out sooner than later. I purchased my medication and then we headed off to City Council to see if we could meet up with Mlinzi. We met up with him briefly because he had to rush off to another meeting, but we were able to get some information about registering as a business and getting help with our TASAF application which we will have to follow up with next week.
We went back to the internet café to try and print off the application forms to register the Tukwamuane women as a business but there were so many various applications depending on the level you are applying for that we weren’t sure which one our group belonged to. So we will go to the Regional Commissioner’s Office next week to speak with a knowledgeable party about this issue.
We went home for lunch and got our things together for the afternoon. We had to pay for our new set of Swahili lessons, bring our Swahili notebooks, the yogurt to distribute to the yoga crowd, and bring the gifts that Jackie and Missy sent for friends. Our Swahili lesson went well but I was still feeling very tired and was not feeling all there. The yoga lesson was the same, I did the movements but not full out. Jenny (the yoga instructor and Missionary) brought her girls soccer team (>10 girls) to yoga and so every mat was turned sideways and had 2 people using it. It was a nice change and quite a site.
We spent the evening at Claire’s place playing board games with Janine, Henk, Jenny, Meg, Claire and I and ate pizza.

Another amazing sunset at Tunza.

Friday, November 9th, 2007
I was not feeling well this morning and so I slept in a bit. Meg made the English test for today and I started writing up some growth statistics for the children at the Forever Angels orphanage. Afterwards, Meg and I headed off to Mabatini to pick up the 6L of yogurt to bring to the orphanage. We spent a few hours with the children at Forever Angels and were finally able to see them eating yogurt and they were so cute. They really did enjoy it so much and had it with small pieces of fruit.
We left the orphanage to meet up with Mama Paskwalina and Father Nicholas to go to Mahina and meet with a group of PLWA (people living with AIDS). Nicholas was acting as a translator for us and he was a great help. We asked the group if we would be able to obtain some health statistics about their CD4 levels in order to send the anonymous information to Canada. We listened to some concerns that the group had and if there were any difficulties in obtaining the yogurt that they receive daily free-of-charge. Despite the donation of yogurt, the group was paying a small amount to make up for the transportation fee (dala-dala) and the time that the individual is away from their job. Some of the individuals did not receive yogurt daily because they could not afford the small cost.
We came home after a long day and made a simple dinner. A few friends were planning on going out for the night but I was not feeling up to it and so stayed home and went to bed very early.

Joseph enjoying a good cup of yogurt.

Mmm Mmm Good (Charlie)

Got 'Maziwa' Michael?

Charlie, Gracie and Michael.

Saturday, November 10th, 2007
I was able to sleep in a little and was feeling much better. I was glad to have stayed in the night before. I had a relaxing morning and took a walk through Mlango Mmoja to see if there was anything interesting there. I found 2 skirts that I wanted to use the fabric of and have tailored into a shirt and a dress. Meaghan and I got ready to head into town to look for material to make some clothing and went with Claire and Lauren. We had a good time in the market and got home in time for a quick lunch then to head over to Tunza for a relaxing evening and a South African dinner (Pojkie).

The 'Tunza Special'.

Sunday, November 11th, 2007 (Remembrance Day)
Again, I was able to sleep in today and spend some time writing in my journal and reading my book. Meaghan, Claire and I headed to Tunza for the day and stopped by Saba Saba on the way. The weather was grey and was about to storm at any second. We read our books and played scrabble for a bit then headed over to Major’s house to watch a movie while the weather got worse and worse. After the movie we went out to dinner at an Indian/Chinese restaurant called, ‘The Diner’ and the food was very good, but took a very long time to come. We were all very tired after our meal and went home to have an early night.

Week 13

Monday, October 29^th, 2007

It was Ruben’s birthday today and Meaghan and I both wished him a happy one before he left for the day to Sekou Toure. We would have dinner with him later in the evening. I was feeling very tired but had to catch up on my journal and blog writing for the last few days. Meaghan put together the English lesson before heading off to the immigration office to get our Visa’s extended. It was really hot outside today and we were sweating buckets just walking around town. We were given a bit of a hard time with the letter that we put together because it was not addressed to the particular address, but after explaining that we did not have time to get a new letter and have it signed by Mama Paskwalina they just wrote the address and it was fine. Most of the time it seems like people make up rules just to make things more difficult when it does not have to be. After getting the letter sorted out we still had to go back to pay the $100 USD even though we had it with us at the time, but they could not give us a receipt until the papers were reviewed. So we were told to come back tomorrow (Kesho).

We then walked to several internet cafes to find one that was working but had no luck. We went to the supermarket to pick up an instant cake mix for Ruben’s birthday, had a quick lunch and went to the travel agency to try and book a hotel in Zanzibar.

We then went to Mabatini to give the English lesson and pick up 7.5 L of yogurt to distribute to the Tunza crowd (Wazungu- foreigners or white people). We were invited to eat some rice and beans by the Mamas. We left Mabatini with our 7.5L of yogurt on my head and I carried almost all the way back to the apartment, ~10 min walk, with the bucket on my head. I really notice how weak my neck it because I can barely keep it steady while holding it with my hands while many of the locals can do it without holding the bucket at all. We had a bit of trouble finding a taxi, but we eventually did and headed to Tunza for our routinely Yoga lesson but found out it was Pilates instead. Before class I stored the yogurt in the kitchen fridge and asked if I could borrow the oven to make Ruben’s cake. It was a chocolate fudge cake and it turned out really well.

After our lesson we went to Isamilo Lodge for Ruben’s dinner and it was Claire, Major, Meaghan, Tini, Ruben and I. We had a nice meal and surprised Ruben with the cake. He was very happy and it was a great night.

Ruben's birthday wish

Meaghan, Ruben and me at Isamilo Lodge.

Tuesday, October 30^th, 2007

We finished up some project work this morning before heading off to town for the day. We went to several internet cafés but they were all down again. We grabbed a quick lunch and organized ourselves financially for our trip to Zanzibar. We stopped by the Post Office to send some letters home and then headed to Immigration again to pay the $100 USD and get our Passport stamped. We were able to pay and get a receipt, but it would take another day to get our Visa stamp, so ‘Kesho’. Meg and I decided to try the internet café at the Post Office and it was actually working, but very slowly. This is were I realized that I left my USB flash stick at Karibou Corner and went back to see if it was there, but it was gone, that’ll teach me.

We then went to our Swahili Lesson and picked up some produce on the way for our ladies’ dinner of Greek food. We paid a friend for our Charity Ball tickets for November 17^th and are going to be donating some yogurt to the dinner and are hoping that it will help persuade them to approve our application for the Tukwamuane Women (Yogurt Mamas). After the lessons we went for a nice swim at the International pool then to Claire’s home for dinner. Our Greek dinner was really tasty and a great change from the normal vegetable medley and tomato sauce.

Wednesday, October 31^st, 2007

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Meaghan and I woke up early to go with Mama Paskwalina to the SIDO office to meet with Damian Chang’a by the daladala. We spoke about many interesting steps for the project to take in the near and distant future. We discussed applications for registering as a business, TBS and TFDA approvals, health inspector visits, delivery service and packaging possibilities, and also expansion of the current Community Kitchen. While we were leaving SIDO a woman approached Mama Paskwalina and wanted her to bring 20 L of yogurt to them to sell in the area. This was really motivating to see because the word about the yogurt is there we just need now to make larger quantities, have correct packaging and safety approval and also delivery services to these areas farther away.

We then went to the Yogurt Kitchen to hand out the English Lessons to the Mamas and to get the 6 L of yogurt for the Forever Angels orphanage. Meaghan and I just dropped off the yogurt because we had to get finish up a few tasks in town and get home to pack for our trip to Zanzibar tomorrow.

We first went to the internet café but it was down again so we went to NBC Bank to take out shillings for our trip and to convert it into USD. We spent a while at the bank trying to convert our money but it seemed to be more difficult than expected. Luckily, I had met a banker earlier in the week and he was able to help us find a place to change USD at a good exchange rate. Afterwards we went again to the Immigration Office to finally have our Visas stamped and we were successful. I am happy to not have to go back there for another 2 months. We walked by the supermarket, after attempting the internet again but not having much luck, and bought some snacks to bring to Zanzibar with us so that we could save a few shillings on the way. We came home and began packing while Ruben made dinner for us and his friend Tobius. It was very good and a nice way to spend an evening before going away.

Thursday, November 1^st, 2007

I was so excited for our trip and so paranoid that we would miss our flight that I kept waking up in the morning every 30 min from 5:30am and on. We grabbed a taxi to the airport and were extra early because we had the same flight time as Doug and his was moved up 1 hour earlier than expected and he almost missed his flight to Dar es Salaam. The flight was very smooth and we arrived on time in Dar. On the flight I sat next to a very nice man who worked for the Tanzanian Government as an Ambassador but was working from Belgium, Germany and was visiting his family in Mwanza. Coincidentally, he knew the Regional Administrator Secretary of Mwanza (whom I spent an entire day writing a letter for him to support) and he was also classmates with the late Minister of Gender and Children.

While at the Dar airport waiting for our next flight to Zanzibar, Meaghan and I were able to go to the internet café to check emails and post our blogs and pictures. We gave Missy a call to wish her a happy birthday and it almost made us miss our flight because we were distracted by the phone conversation and not listening to the announcement being made on the PA system. The flight to Zanzibar was only 20 minutes but much more comfortable than the ferry that we heard makes many people sick from the rockiness.

We got a taxi to take us to the same hotel that the former interns stayed at, Jambo Guesthouse and it was very clean and affordable. We settled in and then went for a walk to the Forodhani Gardens to check out the seafood kebabs and the nightlife there. It was very exciting and had an energy in the air like no other I’ve felt before. Everyone was trying to be your best friend and sell you the same ‘authentic’ souvenirs as the vendor next to them. The seafood was a bit disappointing for our expectations, but the experience was new and exciting.

At the Forodhani Gardens for a seafood kebab dinner

The narrow roads in Stone Town, Zanzibar.

Friday, November 2^nd, 2007

Meg and I got up early to shower and have breakfast before our spice tour. We took a 15 person van and it was full. Our tour was very interesting and it was fun to try all the various spices, fruits and vegetables on the way. Some of the things we saw included jackfruit, a curry plant, coriander, nutmeg, coco, a henna plant, vanilla bean, a pepper corn tree, a lipstick tree, lemon grass, and a cinnamon tree. We also went to see a Persian Sultan’s bathhouse and then had a nice lunch consisting of rice (with many spices), vegetables, and a fish curry. There was an extended part of the tour that took you to Bububu beach for an hour or so, but Meg and I opted out and took a daladala back into town. We walked around the market and then through the town and found some great shops that sold scarves and spices at a very reasonable price. We came back to the hotel to rest for a bit and put down all our purchases. We had some snacks and juice, which we brought with us, and then got ready to walk through the streets some more. We were more interested in looking at the architecture of the buildings, the narrow streets, and the beautifully designed doors. We did end up buying a few paintings and souvenirs to bring home as well. Meg and I went for a very nice dinner looking over the beach while the sun was setting.

Various fruits that we were able to taste on our spice tour.

Clove at various stages of maturation.

Saturday, November 3^rd, 2007

We set off for Kendwa Rocks this morning via the Daladala. The beach is in the Northern region of the island and is said to have the nicest beaches. It took approximately 1.5 hours to get to the area and another 20 minutes to walk in. It would not have been such a bad experience if it was not sweltering outside or if the road wasn’t as bumpy and rocky as it was. Pulling our suitcases was a bit of a challenge and it may not have been worth saving ourselves 5,000 Tsh or so, but it was an adventure needless to say. When we arrived Meg and I were both dripping with sweat and just wanted to jump into the Ocean to cool off.

Our very hot journey to Kendwa Rocks.

Our banda was small, just consisting of a double bed, a chair, and a table, but it was very lovely and adequate. We got into our bathing suits immediately and to the beach. The first sight was picture perfect, just like the post cards. It was a very nice beach with white, fine sand and water that was an incredible color. I spent most of the day floating in the salty Indian Ocean or laying on the beach. It was so relaxing and just what Meg and I needed.

Meaghan and I at Kendwa Beach.

Kendwa beach.

Sunday, November 4^th, 2007

Meg and I got up early to have a nice breakfast before our snorkeling session from 10am – 1pm. While driving out in the boat to the reef where we would snorkel we saw two pods of dolphins and it was amazing to see them so close. The snorkeling was just as good and I was fortunate enough to get a waterproof camera from my dad just before I left to come to Mwanza. I took many pictures but most of them did not turn out until I started to dive down closer to the fish to get a clear picture.

An angelfish

Meaghan and I snorkeling in the Indian Ocean.

We came back to the beach and had a pleasant day of swimming, tanning, walking to various other resorts and playing volleyball. The food was very good and not too expensive either. I got a henna design on my leg by some local ladies on the beach. We had a very relaxing evening with a French-Canadian group that we had met in Stone Town earlier in the trip.