A day in Usa

Last week I went to Usa River which is a town about 20 mins from Havilah. First, I went in the bus which they call the Dulle Dulle and boy was it exciting. While I was waiting for the Dulle Dulle, I meet this lady and her cousin and had a nice talk. The man was telling me how he believes that Tanzania isn’t progressing because the government is corrupt. He said that Tanzania people should be very rich because off all the minerals it has but that the government is corrupt and thus all the money stays with them and doesn’t reach the people. I asked him why he thought the government charged for education and he said that they are trying to keep as much money for themselves and because they are trying to keep the people ignorant. I had noticed how poor Tanzania is and that very few children are able to get an education, but what kind of leaders would purposely keep their people ignorant? I can see how it would benefit a government for the people to remain ignorant, but what kind of leaders would do that? Obviously I did not believe all this man said because I learned in college not to just rely on one source but to see look at many and see what they all have in common and to also use what you know. I know that this country has a social security and that says a lot. It shoes that the government does care. I am still not sure what the truth is because after all I have only been here for a month and well I haven’t done any research. But seeing all these kids not having an education is starting to put a passion in my heart. My parents have always told me how important education is and well seeing this lack of education because of lack of funds in my mind is ridiculous. Basic education shouldn’t have a price and this is something that the Tanzanian government should understand. How is a country supposed to prosper if the citizens are not educated? Still besides the fact that Tanzania is a poor country the people are so friendly. I will not walk past a person without them saying hi to me and welcoming to Tanzania. Its like they see this thorn bush but instead of focusing on the thorns they focus on the roses. There is a flower her in Tanzania that is beautiful but if you try to pick it, you will either get pocked or the flower falls apart. The people of Tanzania have ignored the sting that you feel and focus on caring for the flower. This is something that I will try to learn from these people.
Anyways, back to my day in Usa. I bought some phone credit from my friend Amani that has a convenient store and then waited for the Dulle Dulle. It arrived some 30 minutes later and then I was on my way. Dulle Dulles are the cheapest way to travel here in Usa, they cost less than 50 cents and even thought they cram you in there like sardines it is a fun ride. The reason that I decided to go to Usa is because I wanted to experience Tanzania. When I first got here, my boss said that if I really wanted to experience Tanzania, then I just had to get on the Dulle Dulla and just go and that is exactly what I did. I walked around Usa and bought some hair products and after I was done looking I started my trek back home. I saw so many things in Usa that were pretty. I saw a two creeks and gorgeous flowers and met some people. Here in Tanzania people stop me and just start asking me questions, like where I am from and what I am doing here. Usually, I would be cautious about all the questions and I still am because I never tell them where I live but I have come to see that they are just being friendly and trying to make me feel welcome. I have meet so many more people in the month that I have been here than a year in the states. The people are just so welcoming and kind. If you look lost or you are just standing alone they go out of their way to help you and welcome you. I love Tazania! Anyways, on the way back I decided to take a motorcycle taxi and boy was it fun! At least until the motorcycle got a flat tire. I told the man that I was going to give him 2,000 which is about $1USD and I ended up giving up all of it to him because I felt bad. He wasn’t going to be able to work for the rest of the day. I didn’t have any more with me or else I would have given it to him. But riding it was so much fun and even Mount Meru looked prettier. I had always wanted a motorcycle and now that I got to ride one I really want one! The guy looked really bummed that he had a flat but he said that if I went to down to Usa again that he would teach how to ride it and I was like “Yeah”. I’m totally going to go and learn. Motorcycles are so awesome and there seem to so many motorcycles here than cars. It cost 500 to go on the Dulle Dulle but the bikes are so much more fun!!

Ngurdoto Lodge

So this past Monday we took the kids to the Ngurdoto Lodge, a lodge right down the street from us, to go swimming. At this lodge there are two pools, a kiddie pool and the “big pool” as the kids call it. All the kids like going into the big pool even though most cannot swim. So what Mrs. Debbie, my boss, did was to make the kids take turns with one of the adults. I got the privilege of being one of the adults to take the kids into the “big pool”. It was so much fun watching the kids practice their strokes and hold them up as they swam on their backs. Some were even adventurous enough to go under water with me. They had so much fun and so did I. I was even able to squeeze in a few races with Maddy, Mrs. Debbie’s daughter. We all had so much fun at the pool, just relaxing and enjoying the sun. It was nice to feel the warm weather after all the cold weather we have had. It started getting cold again but hopefully it warms up. Right now we are supposed to be having the dry, hot season but it seems to be arriving late this year. Anyways, after about two hours of swimming we all went home and to the kids delight, had floats.
Most had not had a float and asked us so many questions about the floats. I did not think you could ask so many questions about floats but they had many. Of course, we did not mind answering their questions because it was so fun to see their excitement. I had never had a float with orange soda but it sure was good. It is my opinion that everything goes good with ice cream, especially soda. It was a fun day and the kids were so tired from their day out that they fell asleep almost immediately after worship. It was a good day.

Sabbath

Have you ever seen those buses with kids chanting and singing songs? Well I was the adult in the bus trying to keep the kids quiet. : p On Sabbath we went to a church about 30 minutes from Havilah, the kids said it was out in the bush but it really was not but that did not kill their excitement. The kids were so excited that they were chanting and singing songs on the way there and back. I gave up trying to keep them quiet about halfway to the church. It was good for them to waste some of the energy they have, that way they would be quiet when we were in church. I had a good time in Church even though I did not understand, but it was exciting when I recognized some of the hymns they sang. I felt a swell of pride when they asked the kids to sing for the church. I didn’t teach them the songs that they sang but I felt so proud to see my kids singing in front of the church. I understood little of what the sermon was about but I did understand that it was a call to keep up on the outreach. It was a reminder of why I am here and what I came to do. What I really liked that this church does is that whenever the service ends they line up so they can say hi to each other. It was pretty cool and fun. But all good things to an end and thus sooner than later we time to go home and say goodbye to all the acquaintances we had meet. It was a typical Sabbath, we ate, the kids had their afternoon nap and then we went on a walk. I have to admit that I took a little cat nap, I felt so refreshed when I woke up. It was a good Sabbath, restful and calm.

The Trip to Havilah

The morning of August 18, 2010 was when my journey started. It began when I left my house early in the morning to drive to the Tulsa airport, about an hour and a half drive from my house. I boarded the plane at around 11 am and arrived past noon at Chicago. At Chicago was were my nerves were tried, I was supposed to unboard the airplane and board the other airplane in about 45 min. Needless to say I was not early, on the contrary I got to the gate after all of the other passengers had boarded. If it hadn’t been for a man that I meet while unboarding I probably would have missed my plane. The plane had

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

landed on one side of the airport and we boarded on the other side, I am not kidding. I was so relieved when I was on the plane and on my way to Washington. Thank God for the kind man that showed me the way to my gate. He was going to Addis Abba which were I was going to spend the night. I looked for him later but I never did see him after that. When I arrived to Washington I looked for Ethiopian Airlines. Keep in mind that I have never flown alone, so I know very little of how airports work. And add to that the fact that I always get lost. So I think I wandered around the Washington airport for about 30 minutes before I found someone who could help me find Ethiopian Airlines. You see the flights in the USA were through United Airlines but United was not going to take me to Africa. They only gave me the boarding tickets for my US flights. To get my International boarding tickets I had to find Ethiopian Airlines. It turned out that I had been walking in the opposite direction. Ethiopian Airlines was really close to the gate where I had dishoarded, I felt so sheepish. :l I spent the rest of my Wednesday afternoon there and I spent it frustrated because the airline charged me $60 because my carryon weighed more than 15 pounds. Who in the world weighs a carry-on? Apparently Ethiopian airlines does and they charge big bucks. Okay so maybe sixty dollars is not that much but for a Student Missionary who had a set amount that is supposed to last her for a whole year, it felt like a thousand bucks. I wish somebody would have told me I would have packed lighter. Besides charging me for my carry-on this airline was pretty cool. They feed me and gave me a blanket, socks, mask, and a tooth-brush which came in handy because I forgot my toothbrush in my carry-on. I woke up when the airplane landed and I thought we had arrived at Addis but it turned out that we had landed in Rome! I was so excited but the excitement faded away when I realized that we had to stay in the plane. So I can sadly say that all I have done in Rome is watch someone clean up and fuel an airplane. It was a long flight about 16 hours long. I think flight that long should be illegal I had a headache when I finally arrived to Addis. I arrived to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia the next day and boy was I confused. I got in the wrong line and when I was in the right line I understood very little of what went on. I finally understood that they were setting me up with a hotel. It was at Ethiopia where I got my first visa stamp. I was so excited! I slept very little that night, I asked for a wake-up call but I was so paranoid that maybe they didn’t know my room number or would forget me. Nothing like that happened. They feed us layover people dinner and breakfast and I discovered that I love Ethiopian food. It has a little spice to it which to a Mexican is delicious. So you know how I got kind of lost in the Washington airport well it was worse in Addis Abbaba, because I did not understand what people were saying and the signs were in their language. I found my way. We had a stop in Nairobi, Kenya but then we landed in Kilimanjaro Airport. By this time I was so relieved that all my airplane traveling was over. I was finally in Tanzania and I could not wait to meet my kids.

SM Class

Hi!!

So today we had another SM class and as always it was enriching. I learned a lot of how to practice safe measures and how to stay out of difficult situations. I think this kind of went along with our defense class that we had last week which by the way was awesome!! Even though I joined the class half way through, I have learned so much.
Some things I did not want to be reminded of, like how I am going to have to deal with homesickness. It is going to be difficult for me specially since now I depend so much on my family. I can call them up if I am ever feeling lonely or sad but when I go as an SM I will not be able to call them up or even email them that often. I think this will really teach me to depend entirely on God because he will be my only support while I am there.
I am really happy that Southern makes you take this class before you go because God knows I need it and that is why I thank my awesome SM coordinator Rebeca for all the hard work she does. She has been a true inspiration for me because she has truly made a difference in so many peoples lives. I remember the first time I met her and she kind of scolded me for not coming to talk to her sooner about going out as an SM but I needed to hear what she was going to say and I thank her so much for pushing me to do this. The worst sin is not to listen to the Holy Spirit and she just pushed me to answer to his call.
I still cannot believe that my parents are letting me go but this I believe is another sign that God wants me to go. They had said no before but I think God worked in their hearts and they saw that this was what God wanted me to do. I have to say that my uncles and aunts really pushed me to because just thinking about telling my parents made me want to quit. My Tia Judith really knew how to calm me and showed me that if this was really Gods will then he was going to work out the details. I know he will take care of everything and that is why I am not worried about all the other details like the 3 grand I have to raise.