I thought I would start by describing where we are. We are in a village called Rau, which is about a 40 minute walk from downtown Moshi. The first thing that strikes you about Rau is how green everything is. There is a lot of farming in the area - people grow much of what they eat and sell the rest at the local market. Rau is a series of maize fields cut by worn footpaths that take you where you need to go. There are bumpy and dusty dirt roads, and a few businesses scattered about - shops, banana stands, a bar, and several others. There are small homes with corrugated metal roofs, filled clotheslines, and (often) livestock in the yard near the house. In the wee hours of the morning, the dogs start barking, bushbabies make crazy sounds, and the roosters start cockadoodle-dooing… they seem to have no concept for time. The rainy season ended recently so the fields are lush green and smell alive. Everywhere there are children running out to greet the “Mzungus” (White people), by calling out “Mambo”, to which you respond “Poa”. When you pass by people older than you, you call out “Shikamoo”, to show respect - it literally means “I kiss your feet”… they respond by saying “Marahaba”. The CCS compound is a fair sized walled area with three “houses” of dorm rooms (4 to a room with a bathroom attached), and a central gathering and eating area that is basically a thatched roof with patio tables and chairs. The rooms are basic but comfortable. Clothes washing facilities are a hose and bucket on the lawn or a local lady that will wash all but underwear for a small charge. When clothes dry on the line, you must iron them before wearing them as mango flies are known to lay tiny eggs in damp clothing… ick. Things are fairly damp and cool here, but when the sun shines, it gets hot and muggy quickly. For the most part it has been overcast/sunny/overcast/sunny - the weather changes quickly. We got our first glimpse (from the ground) of Kilimanjaro today. It is usually covered in cloud. Great to see the snows of Kili from a distance.
It has been a good week, a bad week, a sad week, and any number of other descriptors. Two days into our placements I felt really overwhelmed by the sadness that you can’t avoid. Some of the placements, in particular the orphanage placements, just break your heart. We have visited two orphanages and you just want to find a way to fit them all in your backpack and take them with you. Hearing stories from other volunteers about their placements makes it pretty clear that there is a fine line between positive and negative, happy and sad in all of the jobs that we have.
I am lucky to be in a placement that feels very positive. When you see these kids and how eager they are to learn, it is inspiring. They voluntarily choose to attend and walk long distances to a school where their hard work will not be recognized formally. They will not be given credit for this education as it is an “informal school” meaning that they will have no access to secondary school or university. The volunteers that have been in the placement for approx 8 weeks now are working with the community to try to understand if it could be sustainable for the school to be given the status of community school. If the school is deemed a “Community School” it will remain free for children from very poor families, and their efforts will be recognized for entry into higher education. In order for it to change in status, the current one classroom would have to be expanded to three “rooms”, there would have to be toilets installed, and an accredited teacher/s would have to be hired. The volunteers are willing to go home and fundraise for the expenses of building the school, as well as go through the red tape, however unless the community is able to sustain paying a teacher in the years to come, the fundraising and effort would be useless. The annual cost for the teacher would be about $600 USD. Considering the reason that their children are in this school in the first place, this is a huge stumbling block. The community provides food (1 cup of porridge a day) to each student at the school, and maintains the garden and grounds around the school - they are supportive of the activities of the school but it still isn’t known if the “Community School” can happen or not. We take so much for granted. The adults of the community meet with the volunteers on Thursdays to discuss different ideas for the sustainment of the school, for income generation, and other matters. It is clear that they are worried for their kids, and their own futures. Many of them come to Kilimehewa from 4-6 Monday to Thursday for English lessons as well.
We went to a concert last night at “Juvie” - the Juvenile Detention Centre in Moshi. The CCS volunteers were fundraising money to buy new mattresses and plastic mattress covers for the centre. There is a big problem with bedbugs, scabies and lice, so the mattresses will do a lot to improve the health of the kids at the centre, as well as the staff. They were able to raise enough money to cover the cost of the mattresses ($450) and will continue to find ways to raise the rest. There are about 15 boys and one girl at the centre. The stories of why certain kids are there would blow your mind - small, petty, sad stories… it wouldn’t be legal to lock away a 9 year old in Canada for the “offences” that we have heard about. Anyhow, the concert was a series of dances, acrobatics, etc. set to Sean Paul, Michael Jackson and others. These kids have not had that much attention or praise in a very long time and they were glowing. It was awesome. See what I mean about happy/sad? It was great to see, but when you think below the surface, so sad.
That is the update for now. Nothing else to add, so for now I’ll say “Lala Fofofo” or “Sleep like a log”.
Kwaheri
Paula
Paula you should be a writer or a news reporter, your stories are the best. How sad that we all want so much and some people have so little. Keep up the good work .
Vida
July 28th, 2007