Just one week to go in the first half term, how time flies. All of the kids are into exams early next week. All of the students from prep aged 5 do exams every 7 weeks. Pretty full on but that is the way they teach over here. It is all about rote learning and your ability to regurgitate information. A few of the older teacher vollies have the job of getting the local teachers to move away from rote learning, is a tough job.
Am organizing an Athletics carnival for the last day before mid term break. Should be quite funny as most of them, despite doing Athletics in PE this term, have little idea of what is going on. A break from class where they are worked so hard all of the time will be good for them though. They have never had one before here so it remains to be seen weather it will be a success or not.
On Sunday a week ago a few of us went out to a Church service that several of the teachers invited us to. I was quite happy with the invitation as I had heard a visit to the crazy church was an experience. It is a Pentecostal Church which has a congregation of around 5000 that cram into a massive open air shack. As we were the only five white people there we were shown to the VIP seats and they sat us separately with people who could translate throughout the service. It was not too different to other church services I have been to here, which involve a lot of singing and dancing. That is until we got to the sermon. The ‘Prophet’ started to quote form exodus and various other passages describing how they must destroy witchcraft etc. The ‘prophet’ instructed everyone to write down anyone they thought were possessed by demons or had been involved in which craft, horoscopes etc. All 5000 people then walked up the front and put their list of names into a big bin. One person beside me had two A4 pages of names to put in the bin. A ceremonial burning of the names then took place on stage while the ‘Prophet’ addressed the demons who were possessed the names who were burning. A lady then dropped to the ground about 5m from me, started yelling, speaking in tongues and rolling around on the ground. She knocked a few chairs over including mine when others just picked her up and dropped her in the aisle and continued on singing and echoing the prophet. There was maybe 30 others (all Women) who did this. People carried them to the stage where the ‘Prophets’ cronies held them as he cast the demons from their body amidst great cheers, chants and singing competently supported by the resident reggae band. Despite the grim depiction the whole service was really a joyous event. Quite bizarre but so interesting. It reminded me of an episode from John Safran v God but classically African style.
Tomorrow being Monday has been a public holiday (only yesterday mind you) due to George W. Bush’s landing in Tanzania last night. I went over to watch the FA Cup at the bar and all of these Tanzanian’s who cannot usually be draw away from the football were all watching his landing in Dar live. He is coming to Arusha tomorrow and he will be staying literally across the road from the new campus at Usa River. Am still not sure if the Public Holiday is to honor him or is as a result of the extensive security measures which means that all tar roads in Arusha will be closed (the is only like 5).
Good to see the Waratahs are off to a flyer. I caught two bussess and walked 3km to go and watch the game, that’s commitment. There is a bar that shows every game there and it does really take that long to get there. Although most of the guys who play rugby all follow the Sharks (as there are a lot of South African expats) so they did not care to much for the early morning Aussie games so I was watching it by myself. Breakfast and two games of rugby on a Saturday morning, I could see it becoming a ritual.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Snow Capped Meru
After a two a two week dry spell which I am told is a long time, it has been raining for 48hrs. Solid spurts at a time anyway. The kind where you find your self up to your knees in water one minute then twenty minutes later it has all disappeared. The great part of the rain was that it gave Meru a snow cap which has looked ‘Alp’ like for the last couple of days.
The president dissolved Tanzanian government a few days ago. As I hear very little local news I only learned that this morning. I understand he was funneling money out of the country in the Billions and now the government owe an NGO a large sum of money. A few of the vollies are worried that it might turn into Kenya but given that the ruling party has an approval rate of 98% I think we should be ok.
I had my first Tanzanian engagement party on the weekend. An American guy who works at St Jude is marrying a local massai girl. The ceremony was at her house where they put on goat and of course coke cola. The ceremony it’s self was quite funy. He had to stand up in front of everybody and state his ‘business’ to her father. Then he played a game of African modified hide and seek where he had to find Mary (Bride) who was hiding. The highlight for me was when the MC was telling Rob (Groom) that ‘You have been like a cheetah or a lion on a kill and now you have got your fresh meat’. It was completely wrong on so many levels. Good fun and that was just the engagement party.
I visited an orphanage which is located right next to the Arusha tip about 30min drive from the school. There are 31 kids there with two sisters looking after them. 9 of the kids come to st judes the rest attend local schools. They range in age from 4 – 17. The st judes kids who live out there are so happy in and out of school and really enjoyed showing us around explaining how they cook and clean them selves etc. They are all from varying circumstances from being abandoned by their parents to both parents dying form what ever illness or disease they obtained. There are many kids from orphanages at the school but I would never be able to pick which ones.
I went to my first rugby training on Thursday and then again last night. The field is almost on the exact opposite side of Arusha from me. I got a Dulla Dulla in to town where a Dutch guy who plays picks me up to go out there. The field is part of this sporting country club complex owned by an American which is amazing. Good bunch of blokes of a varying back ground. A few Tanzanians, a lot of long term expats, some 2nd generation Tanzanians and some blow in’s like my self. Is good fun to go out and have some male company and get out of st judes. Moshi have pulled out this year so there is only two teams in Tanzania Dar es Salam and Arusha. That is a bigger bus trip than Moree to Qurindi or Bathurst to Naramine.
The African Cup of Nations Semis have been played and it is an Egypt Cameroon Final which was disappointing as I would have like it to be Ghana Ivory Coast. I don’t think any wants to see Egypt win again.
Only have half a day today and then we are sending kids home at lunch to write exams. Then they are taking all of the Moshono (my campus) staff over to the brand new campus at Usa River for drinks and a meal. I am looking forward to the staff football game which apparently always gets very competitive, not to unlike the kids really.
Until next time.
The president dissolved Tanzanian government a few days ago. As I hear very little local news I only learned that this morning. I understand he was funneling money out of the country in the Billions and now the government owe an NGO a large sum of money. A few of the vollies are worried that it might turn into Kenya but given that the ruling party has an approval rate of 98% I think we should be ok.
I had my first Tanzanian engagement party on the weekend. An American guy who works at St Jude is marrying a local massai girl. The ceremony was at her house where they put on goat and of course coke cola. The ceremony it’s self was quite funy. He had to stand up in front of everybody and state his ‘business’ to her father. Then he played a game of African modified hide and seek where he had to find Mary (Bride) who was hiding. The highlight for me was when the MC was telling Rob (Groom) that ‘You have been like a cheetah or a lion on a kill and now you have got your fresh meat’. It was completely wrong on so many levels. Good fun and that was just the engagement party.
I visited an orphanage which is located right next to the Arusha tip about 30min drive from the school. There are 31 kids there with two sisters looking after them. 9 of the kids come to st judes the rest attend local schools. They range in age from 4 – 17. The st judes kids who live out there are so happy in and out of school and really enjoyed showing us around explaining how they cook and clean them selves etc. They are all from varying circumstances from being abandoned by their parents to both parents dying form what ever illness or disease they obtained. There are many kids from orphanages at the school but I would never be able to pick which ones.
I went to my first rugby training on Thursday and then again last night. The field is almost on the exact opposite side of Arusha from me. I got a Dulla Dulla in to town where a Dutch guy who plays picks me up to go out there. The field is part of this sporting country club complex owned by an American which is amazing. Good bunch of blokes of a varying back ground. A few Tanzanians, a lot of long term expats, some 2nd generation Tanzanians and some blow in’s like my self. Is good fun to go out and have some male company and get out of st judes. Moshi have pulled out this year so there is only two teams in Tanzania Dar es Salam and Arusha. That is a bigger bus trip than Moree to Qurindi or Bathurst to Naramine.
The African Cup of Nations Semis have been played and it is an Egypt Cameroon Final which was disappointing as I would have like it to be Ghana Ivory Coast. I don’t think any wants to see Egypt win again.
Only have half a day today and then we are sending kids home at lunch to write exams. Then they are taking all of the Moshono (my campus) staff over to the brand new campus at Usa River for drinks and a meal. I am looking forward to the staff football game which apparently always gets very competitive, not to unlike the kids really.
Until next time.
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