School!

So, my dad gave me the idea to blog about what school is like here in Tanzania. It is VERY different from school at home. Here are a few questions my dad asked me, and my answers. Enjoy!

-- Do you do a lot of oral exercises? What are they like? I am assuming you don't have much in the line of books and paper.

A typical class period usually consists of the teacher (me or whoever) giving direct instruction. AKA: the teacher will talk and write on the chalkboard while the students take notes. For some reason the students love taking notes. (My guess is that a lot of that has to do with the fact that all instruction is in English, and it’s easier to understand when you are able to see it written down).

Personally, I like to actually make my students physically do something during the lesson (along with the taking notes part). For example: standing up to demonstrate something, or working together on an activity in groups. Today I made my students act out a sentence from the book we are reading. (I made this poor student stand up and demonstrate “She started cultivating the land. Her hoe went up and down, up and down, up and down”) Haha!

There really aren’t many “school supplies” that are available in the classroom. There are chairs, desks and a chalkboard … that’s it. The students have notebooks for each subject, and pens. If a teacher wants to read a book for class, there usually aren’t enough copies for everyone. For example, right now we’re reading a simple, 6-chapter book called “Mabala the Farmer” in my Form II classes. There are only 11 copies for the entire class (about 25-30 students) – so, they have to share.

-- What kind of things are you studying? Is it basic grammar like tenses and pronouns, or maybe everyday conversion like hello and how are you? Or maybe topics like colors or numbers? Current events? Books like A Prayer for Owen Meany?

Because I’m teaching the younger students (Form I and Form II), they started off with the introduction stuff (hello … how are you), and are studying mostly grammar … tenses, pronouns, articles, etc. My job is to focus on “spoken English” with my students … so we try to work on our speaking skills using the grammar they’re learning.
Because I haven’t done anything with English grammar since high school, I’m learning probably just as much as the students are! Haha … ok maybe not … but a lot of the “grammar” stuff I’ve forgotten, so it’s nice to get a little refresher.

-- How well do the kids know English already? Do most speak at a 5 year old level or high school level or at a PhD level like dear old Dad? Are they very varied in their abilities?

The ability of my student’s English really varies. Some speak English really well, and understand a lot. Some, however, don’t understand anything and really struggle. I’d say on average they speak better than a 5 year old … maybe 10 ish? I’m not sure, it’s hard to gage because it varies so much from person to person.

-- What do you do for fun in the class? Do you teach outside or play games or sing English songs?

Like I said, most of the teachers just give direct instruction in the class, but I’d rather have the students do something. I haven’t taught outside (but I’ve thought of it)! I haven’t sung songs (yet), but James has! I have played games, though!
One of my first lessons we played Simon Says with the basic classroom instructions we learned that day. (i.e., Simon Says sit down, Simon Says close the door, Simon Says write this down … etc). The students LOVED this game once they got the hang of it. It was a little difficult communicating instructions in my horrible Swahili, but the caught on. Not all my lessons have been that fun, though. Haha, we don’t play Simon says every day.

-- Do you ever explain things to them in Swahili?

Yes. I usually start explaining something in English, and then just to make sure they understand it try to say it in Swahili as well. Most of the students are still shocked when I start saying something in Swahili, or using the Swahili word instead of the English word. Haha, so that’s fun.

-- Is there homework? Report cards?

Homework and grades are very different here. Yes, the students have homework. For example, sometimes they might be required to write a paragraph, or memorize a passage, but most of the time they are just supposed to study what they learn in class. Teachers often collect the student’s notebooks to go through and mark them, making sure they are taking notes and doing their assignments.

To be honest, I haven’t quite gotten used to the grading here. There are National tests at the end of the school year for Form II and Form IV students. These tests are really difficult, and many students struggle. Because of this (I believe), the grading here is very hard (to prepare them for the hard National tests). On average, only one or 2 students per grade get “A’s” on the tests, a handful get “B’s”, and most get “C’s” or “D’s.” I’ve kind of had to switch my thinking to the idea that getting a B for most students is an accomplishment.

So, there ya have it! Obviously I’m not an expert on these things (I’ve only been here 5 months), but those are just my opinions on what I’ve noticed/picked up on during my time here. There are some things I will miss about school here, but overall it’ll be nice to get back to teaching in America where I understand everything completely!

Back in Sumba

Last Saturday I was reminded yet again why I am here in Tanzania. The past few weeks, since my parents and Allison have been here, I have been feeling more and more ready to go home and be with family and friends again. Having my parents and Allison here made me realize how much I miss home. Part of me wanted to jump on a plane and be back with everyone again. On Saturday, however, God once again reminded me that I am exactly where I am supposed to be, and it’s not my time to leave yet.

On our way from my place to his place, James and I stopped outside the girl’s hostel to say hello to some of the students. Beth, Adrophina, Maggie, and Kaboga were all there. We sat outside on the grass in the sunshine for over an hour, just enjoying each other’s company and enjoying life. While we were sitting there, and I was looking at James and Adrophina, I got that feeling again that “life is so good here.” Then I started to think about leaving, and saying goodbye to the students. I am really going to miss some of the students, and I am going to miss being a part of their lives.

Saturday, when Maggie saw me, she came running around the fence and hugged me, not letting go for a long time. She was just longing for that love and attention you feel from someone you can look up to. I was happy to give it to her. So many of the students here (especially the girls) have a small support system, if any at all. Many girls are lacking the positive, strong, confident female role model that they can confide in a really open up to and trust. I am going to miss trying to be that friend for them.
I got that sad feeling again when I was looking at Adrophina. She is so beautiful and strong, and so intelligent. When she comes up to me and hugs me for a long time, I wonder if she gets the attention and encouragement and praise she deserves. I try to tell her and all the girls “umependeza” as often as I can (which basically means “you look beautiful”). They look at me (and Allison when she was here), and play with my hair, and say it to me all the time. I hope they realize that they are beautiful, strong women as well. It will be really sad and hard to leave some of these students.

In other news, it’s good to be back here in Sumbawanga. After pretty much being on the go for the last 5 weeks, it’s nice to feel settled again. Tomorrow I’ll start teaching again. They moved me from Form I to Form II (I don’t know why). I will only be teaching a few periods a week because the students are preparing for national exams. I only have about 2-3 weeks left before the end of the term, so I am sure it’s going to go by fast.
Hope things are going well at home!

Here's a picture of me and Adrophina taken a few weeks ago!

Glogging for Sarah

WHAT'S UP SARAH'S BLOG SPOT... THIS IS A GLOG (Guest-blog) brought to you by Allison Wenino and James Slagle.

You may be asking yourselves, why would Sarah post a glog today? The answer...She is taking a day off for birthday tidings and we have the honors of glogging for her. So, without further adooooo, enjoy the glog!

We left Sumbawanga a week ago in tears and fear of lions because we knew that Al was leaving Sumbawangan soil for good and we were about to encounter the kings of the jungle. To Mikumi National Park we went, bouncing along by way of a bus that unbenownest to us was broken (HEY O). We parked in a small village and some people got to fixin' her "real quick" (aka, not quick at all). 7 hours later we were back on the road...but not for long.

SCREAMING CHILDREN AND ADULTS EVERYWHERE ALONG THE ROAD!!!! "Oh no," thought Sarah as tears welled up in her eyes. "Oh snap," thought James as he saw all the crying onlookers. "Is it a riot?" questioned Allison as we rolled up to the site of a rolled over school bus. "ALL the men get off the bus to help the injured," shouted the bus conductor. James rolled up his sleeves, took off his watch and prepared himself for the worst. Little did he know that this was just a group of overdramatic people and there was not one scratch or bruise in sight. The bus did bring the students to the nearest hospital and we all did appreciate the help that people were instantly ready to give the people involved in the accident.

After a brief jaunt in Mbeya, we made it to Mikumi National Park for a little animal gazing. We left early in the morning with our guide Benson and spent the entire day driving around the park and seeing all that the Tanzanian National Park had to offer. Some of the highlights were; giraffes intermingling with zebras, elephants charging our car, lions attempting to reproduce, and a pride of lions enjoying a impala feast. All in all it was quite the safari and we enjoyed the animals, God's creation, and the time spent together. After the safari we checked in to a new, 5000 shilling a night hotel ($3.20) and attempted to get some sleep in the waterless, ant infested, holey mosquito net room. It really wasn't that bad, but it was bad.

ON TO ZANZIBAR...yes that is a real place and an awfully fun and relaxing island to travel to for a couple of days. We started with a rainy spice tour and ended on the sunny north beaches. There are two parts of our Zanzibar trip that should be noted. First, our time spent in Stone Town, the southern port city of Zanzibar that is home to quite a large amount of Arabic influence, history and spices. We went on a tour of a spice farm jungle, wandered around the windy streets of the town and slept restfully in a brand new hotel with an amiable owner. We scooted up north to the beaches of Kendwa, Zanzibar on the third day. After James negotiated prices at four different hotels (and at the hospital the night before) we picked a bungalow at White Sands Beach Hotel ("it was the cutest thing ever," says Allison). A little rain for the first couple of hours was the only thing over the course of the next 2 days that could keep us away from the white sands and turquoise water of the Indian Ocean. We were incredibly blessed by the weather and spent most of each day sitting at the beach, swimming around, and hammocking (tough life, huh?). It was quite the relaxing adventure and, once again, the time spent together was a major highlight!

Now, we are here...it is us...do you see us? We're back in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania and enjoying Sarah's birthday at the Dar Es Salaam Guest House. We woke up, ate breakfast, spent an hour shopping for touristy gifts, took a nap, ate lunch, went back for a relaxing lounge time, and are preparing for dinner. Oh, what a day! Happy Birthday Sarah, we love you. Mwalela!

Keep it real all of you back home and around the world. We're peacin' out.

Al and James

Quick Update

Hello everyone!! Sorry it’s been a long time since I’ve written. I’ve been very busy these last few weeks visitors, so I haven’t spent much time at the internet lately. I’ll do a quick update on life since my parents left.

My friend Allison (from St. Ben’s) is here! She arrived a few days after my parents left, so it was perfect timing. Allison, James and I have been having an absolute blast so far. We have gone on 2 hikes to the top of mountains, went to have dinner with some of the girl students at James’s school, walked around town quite a bit, and now we are at Mvimwa Abbey. Mwimwa Abbey is the Benediction Monastery about 2 hours away from Sumbawanga. It is located in the middle of nowhere (literally), and is surrounded by plains and mountains in the background. This morning Allison, James and I went on a 4 hour hike to the top of the mountain. It was a steep climb, but once we got to the top it felt like we were literally on top of the world.

So exciting news: ALLSION is staying here for an extra week! She changed her flight because she is having such a great time (and because of the giant ash cloud over Europe right now).

We will hang out in this area until this weekend. Then, we will go on our safari through Mikumi National Park. Then next week we will spend the entire week in Zanzibar (the island off the cost of Tanzania). Zanzibar activites on the list so far are:
-take a spice tour, where we get to go to farms and taste different spices
-relax on the beaches (with the turquoise-blue water and the straw huts)
-possibly go snorkeling
-possibly swim with DOLPHINS!! (Apparently you can hire a boat to take you out a ways from shore where there are a ton of dolphins … hopefully we’ll be able to figure this one out)!

So, needless to say, I’ve got a busy (but amazing) few weeks ahead of me! Sorry if I don’t communicate with everyone as well these next few weeks … but I should be back to Sumbawanga on May 5th, and I’m guessing life will return back to “normal” then.

Now that our trip to visit Sarah is done we wanted to share some our top memories so we decide to make a Letterman-like top 10. The initial list we made got quite long and it was fun trying to decide which ones to write about. Before getting into the top 10 I want to make sure you realize that not everything was great or easy in Tanzania. But even the challenging parts often had a very positive side. Here are some examples.
**So remote – Getting to Sarah’s area was arduous – a 12 hour bus ride followed by a 10 hour ride on very bad dirt roads (think of the worst potholes you’ve ever seen and imagine a road filled with a “million” of these potholes). But being so remote did have its positive sides. There were no other tourists at all. We felt like we were seeing the real Africa. If they someday pave a road out to Sumbawanga it will change the way the region feels. I am glad Sarah got to live there before that happens.

Our bus

Our bathroom break!!!

Video on the dirt road...
**Car problems – The bad roads had lots of rocks in addition all of the potholes. I saw more flat tires in 2 weeks than I have seen in the last 30 years in Minnesota. We had one too. But our blow out happened near a village we were going to stop at anyway. After tea with the priest we had some extra time waiting for the tire to be repaired. So we got an unplanned tour of their hospital. (After setting up churches Catholic missions still focus on health care and education). It was fascinating. We saw the operating area, the lab, a few of the wards and got to talk to nurses and doctors. Nikki, Andy and June – you would have loved this part.

Flat tire!
**Getting sick – We didn’t have anything too bad but you expect a little sickness on a trip like this. Karen got a touch of something. She was feeling her worst when we were visiting a convent in a village way at the end of the road – almost to the Congo. One of the 4 nuns there starting asking Karen a lot of very intelligent and detailed questions. Turns out in addition to being a nun she is also an MD. She had set up practice and runs a dispensary there. She gave Karen some medication that she was sure would be better than what Karen had brought. And it worked just like she said it would.

**No electricity – Most of the homes and most of the stores don’t have electricity. But this had positive sides too. At night the stars were spectacular – we could see the whole Milky Way directly overhead. The stoves were wood burning – not gas or electric. We were served a lot of wood roasted (oven baked) chicken. Clothes were pressed with non-electric irons that had a compartment for wood embers.

**Needs and hardships for Tanzanians were overwhelming - The average life span in Tanzania is 65. Malaria, amoeba, other illnesses and lack of health care make everyday life very difficult - but in spite of that the people are mostly happy and never seem to complain (certainly puts things in perspective).


Happy Tanzanians!
So – here are the TOP TEN....
#10 The markets – They had a market in Sarah’s small town that was about one square block but just a maze of small shops and skinny streets. They sold lots of stuff including food and clothing. The market in the capital city was huge and very crowded. And everything was incredibly cheap. Sarah mostly wore skirts and dresses she had bought at these markets.


Sumbawanga market

Dar es Salem market
#9 Beautiful weather and scenery – The 50 miles next to the ocean is oppressively hot and humid. But the rest of the country was beautiful. The temps were about 75-80 every day all year round. And it was not too humid. There are small mountains and lots of high plains. Lake Tanganyika was huge and had no cabins. Because the rainy season is over all the fields and hills were green. This is virgin land without much development.


Sumbawanga scenery

Lake Tanganyika
#8 Great men/women of God – Tanzania is a very religious county. Although Dar es Salem is 50% Muslem, the area where Sarah lives is mostly Christian. Throughout the trip we were surrounded by clergy. Two of the most impressive (besides the monks in #3) were the parish priest in Chala and the Bishop of Sumbawanga. We stayed at the parish house in Chala for 3 days. We ate all our meals with the priest there. He was so friendly. He loved to talk and had a great sense of humor. And all this was on the 3 busiest days of the year for him – Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday. We met Bishop Kyaruzi twice. Sarah eats most of her meals with him. He definitely had a presence about him. He was very friendly, knowledgeable and happy.


Sarah and the Bishop

Bishop's dining room where Sarah eats
#7 Making visitors feel welcome – Tanzanians believe it is a great blessing to have guests. We were always made to feel welcome, like we were doing them a favor by visiting them. When we went to our host priest’s mother’s houses they slaughtered a goat just for the occasion. This was a very poor family so this had to have been a big sacrifice. We have pictures with the goat when we first got there. We ate “goat bitings” on the road the next day.


The goat!!!
#6 Impromtu "talks" to teenagers at retreat - Sarah had been asked a couple of times to talk to some kids who were gathering for a conference/retreat. It was during our visit so she said "No" she couldn't because of our visit. Well, that didn't stop them from bringing the 3 of us to the kids so we each could "impart some words of wisdom". As we entered the room where they were gathered, they all stood and greeted us with songs and clapping. Then, we each said a few words....

Interested audience
"Joe speech"
#5 Unexpected parish visit turns into wonderful experience - On the way back from the trip to Lake Tangayika, we stopped to visit a local parish. The priest served us refreshments and "bites". We heard singing and asked what was going on. The priest said they were practicing for Easter. I told him I would like to see and take pictures. He said "Sure" and took us over to where they were practicing. There were adults and kids singing and dancing so I took video and pictures. Pretty soon a bunch of kids gathered and we took pictues and showed them to the kids....they loved it. What fun!!

Refreshments and "bites"
Choir practicing for Easter

Video of choir singing and dancing
Kids practicing for Easter
Sarah and the kids
Karen and the kids#4 Music and Dancing on Easter – We attended all the Holy Week services but the Mass on Easter morning may have been the best. As usual it lasted 2-3 hours. There were 1500 people packed into the Church. The choir filled the first 8 rows on one side. At every song they were dancing as they sang. They led every procession (and there were a lot of them), dancing as they walked. There were a dozen girls on the altar who danced whenever there was music. Sarah got introduced during the sermon and stood up and greeted the crowd in Swahili.

3 videos of Easter singing and dancing


#3 Meeting the monks - When Sarah got malaria there were 15 over-protective monks who took care of her. We wanted to meet them to thank them. Twice we got to have dinner with them. I have never met a group that seems so happy, friendly, fun loving and generous. They are my new role models. I want to be like them. Those were 2 great nights. They had some “mini” fire works on the first night during a toast for us. They gave us African shirts on the last night.


"Video of mini fireworks toast"

Our favorite monks!
More of our favorite monks! #2 Going on a Safari – We drove through a large (20 mile by 20 mile) game reserve. Since we are so remote we only saw 1 other car while we were in the park. We got a guide and headed off-road. We went thought paths in the grass lands, on the edges of watering holes and into the forests. We got within 10 yards of giraffes, hippos and cape buffalos and were able to just stop and watch them for a while. The zebras and antelopes and monkeys were more skittish but certainly saw a lot of them, too.


Hippo!!
Zebras!!
Video of us almost running into a giraffe!

#1 Seeing Sarah – This was the reason we made the trip in the first place. Sarah is doing great and having the adventure of a lifetime. She is happy. She has made lasting friendships with the other volunteers. She also has connected positively with many of the Tanzanians – from the workers on the bishop’s center where she is living to the other teachers in the school to the kids at the school to the owners of the small shops she visits to oodles of priest and nuns. She just kept running into people who called her by name and were happy to see her. Her language skills got us through any situation we encountered. She seemed strong and confident. None of the challenges seemed to get to her too much….her ‘laid-back’ personality is a definite plus in Tanzania. Along with teaching, she is looking forward to snorkeling and swimming with dolphins in Zanzibar, going to Victoria Falls and having a good friend from St. Ben's visit. When she gets home in July she is looking forward to seeing everyone and eating all of her favorite foods (the food in Tanzania is the same every day– bread for breakfast and for lunch and dinner ….rice, maybe beans, maybe a little meat or chicken, spinach if you are lucky).


Sarah's school
Sarah's classroom
Easter morning

Sarah MaMa guest blogger

Sarah MaMa here:

Just to clarify....Joe wrote the last blogpost, not me.

Hi from Sumbawanga Tanzania! I can't believe this is the last day before we start the LONG journey back home. Starting tomorrow early we take a 6 - 10 hour jeep ride over the most unbelievably bumpy dirt road I have ever been on. Then overnight in Mbeya and a 12 to 14 hour bus ride (some very interesting experiences included) to Dar es Salem and then overnight and (hopefully) a flight to Amsterdam and then (hopefully) and flight to Minneapolis!!!!

I will not post a real detailed blog today, because there isn't time. But, when we get home, Sarah BaBa (Joe) and I will post a more detailed blog with pictures of our adventure.

And, that is exactly what this has been.....an adventure!!

The best part of this journey (of course) is seeing Sarah!! She is doing great and seems very comfortable here and has many friends. Her Swahili is very good. She has the perfect LAID BACK personality for this country.

The area where she is living is VERY REMOTE and hard to get to, but VERY BEAUTIFUL. There are wonderful mountains (not real high)and everything is very green. We timed this perfect...it is the end of the rainy season, so everything is very green (evidently it turns all brown after the rains ends). The weather has been perfect every day....sunny, cool at night, warm in the sun, cool in the shade and not humid....my favorite weather! It would have been very hard to be in an area with weather similar to Dar es Salem, which is very hot and humid and uncomfortable.

The people here are very friendly, happy, lively, music loving people. In spite of the hardships and difficulties of ordinary life they never complain.

I am the only was who has a little bit of stomach issues (nothing terrible though) and, of course, I have been the most careful about what I eat and drink. One day when my stomach was giving me problems we were visiting a convent and one of the nuns was an MD. She gave me some pills that work to stop the diarrhea (1 pill works for 24 hours) so I am just using that when I travel.

Yesterday we sent to Katavi National Park to see the animals. MaMa Sarah had some meltdowns as I only had 2 hours of sleep the night before and we weren't seeing that many animals, there was an invasion of tse-tse flies (which cause sleeping sickness) and the traveling was getting to me and I'm a spoiled, rotten, selfish American :)

Anyway, we did get to an area in the park where we got up really close to a bunch of animals....so it all turned out OK.

We have met some really nice people - our favorites are Sarah's good friends the brothers she got to know really well when she was recovering from getting sick. The are so nice and so fun. We are going to their house for the second time for dinner tonight, so it will be really fun.

Well, time is up for this computer....so I have to go. But, we will post a more detailed account of our trip when we get home (complete with pictures!)

Kwa heri!! (Good bye)

Love,
MaMa Sarah

Visiting Sarah

Hi - This is Sarah's parents. We are in Tanzania visiting Sarah for 2 weeks. We asked if we could make an entry.
First of all we made it safely and mostly smoothly. We caught all the flights we wanted and are both healthy. Some bouts of tiredness but other than that we are doing great. Here are some impressions from the first week.
- We arrived in Dar Es Salaam. Its the Houston of TZ. Very hot,humid. On the coast. Fairly big town. Definitely Africa but the best was yet to come.
- The journey from Dar to Sumbawanga was rugged. 12 hours by bus this first day. 8 hours by car the second. The last 6 hours by car we on unpaved roads with way more pot holes than MN. But we did go through a game reserve and saw herds of giraffes, zebras, elephants and antelope. The trip was basically uphill and so the weather got more and more comfortable. The countryside is really beatiful. Nothing like what I expected.
- The culture is genuinely fascinating. Everything runs so slowly. If things are late which they always are no one minds. Everyone is patient, happy and talkative. No high BP here.
- The people are genuinely friendly. Lots of greeting. Everyone talks to everyone. I have never seen anger or frustration despite situations that would have caused riots in America.
- Sarah has made lots of friends. We run into people she know all the time. Her Swahili is very good.
- Very few cars. Tons of walkers. Everywhere. Very colorful dress.
Oops - out of time already. I could write for hours.