Tutaonana tena Tanzania

Thank you all for all your support during our Africa experience.  As we all settle back into our American lives, I know Tanzania is still vivid in our minds.  We learned so much, experienced so much, and grew so much.  It's difficult to sum up what we learned, or our favorite memory, but know that it was an irreplaceable, wonderful month!  We ended our time there with the breathtaking beauty of Zanzibar.  Everyone returned home safely, and Aaron is continuing to work with Mchungaji and Luka (he's got a blog also aaronschutte.blogspot.com, for continued reading).  I know most, if not all, of us would go back in heartbeat.  What we learned has undoubtedly changed my outlook and I hope it continues to shape my perspective.  Thank you for reading.

Bwana asifiwe

We've heard about the current situation in the Senate and the seven senators that want to alter the PEPFAR bill. Our class wrote this letter to the editor of the Washington Post (also look for it in local newspapers) in response to the situation.

Dear Editor-

The U.S. Senate is currently addressing reauthorization of funding for the Presidential Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). Seven of our country’s Senators are stipulating a quota of PEPFAR’s funding solely toward HIV/AIDS medication, thus weakening the effectiveness of the bill. As a group of students who have spent the last semester studying the global pandemic of HIV/AIDS and the last month living in Tanzania, Africa, we have come to understand the many dimensions of this crisis. After a discussion with the directors of a Home-based Care Organization for people living with HIV/AIDS, regular visits to an orphanage, and complete cultural immersion, we advocate for the allocation of funding for a holistic approach toward combating the HIV/AIDS crisis. To be most effective, HIV/AIDS relief must include preventative education, income generation activities, counseling, care, and coping support, in addition to equitable access to medical treatment. Medication puts a band-aid on the problem of HIV/AIDS, but it does nothing to prevent infection. This pandemic has surpassed the need for a band-aid. On behalf of the people we met in Tanzania and for the sake of millions of people whose stories are yet untold, we urge our Senators and fellow citizens take an active stance toward ending HIV/AIDS. We must provide an entire first-aid kit when confronting this epidemic through federal funding. Please respond by insisting for the unstipulated reauthorization of the PEPFAR Bill.

̶ Wartburg College Students, Tanzanian May Term 2008

We walked to Luka's house today and started painting the walls. He started building in 2003 and it will be really nice when it's all finished. Tomorrow we're leaving early for a four hour drive to a village on the outskirts of the diosese. We're packing tonight for Zanzibar!

It's incredible to think that these are the last hours we'll spend in Morogoro. What used to be exotic has now become familier, and the seminary has become like a home. In addition to our letter to the editor we're sending in letters to each of our state senators. We've seen the tears in the eyes of the underpaid leaders of Faraja; we've seen the 14 & 15 year old girls that weighed less than 50 pounds. The children who have grabbed our hands and the men and women who offer so much hospitality to us. We've walked with the people here, or tried to the best we can, and have learned so much. Describing our experiences will not (and is not) easy. We can describe what we've done, but we can't describe what we've experienced. It's been challenging; it's been joyful; it's been a blessing.

Culture Immersion

A few days ago we saw a Maasai cattle market. Maasai people come from all over to sell and buy cattle and to pick up supplies. What we've experienced here is so irreplaceable. It is authentic and hasn't been contructed for tourists to "experience the culture." We are truly guests of people and they welcome us into their way of life without question.

On Monday we went to Faraja (meaning Hope), a program in Morogoro that provides helps adults and children with HIV/AIDS, victims of abuse, and children living on the streets instead of going to school. The director spoke with such passion. It was so powerful to see the effects of AIDS and poverty first hand.

Today is a work day and the group will get to spend the day painting or visiting a nearby kindergarten. Yesterday we chose our agenda-- half of us went to a village with Pastor Hafermann and half of us stayed and observed classes at the language school and went to the orphanage. At the village some of the girls picked up a few more marriage proposals. Fifty head of cattle to the girls' families-- fair trade? It was exciting to watch a (Maasai) woman bludgeon a poisonous snake that crept in the church.

The school here is excellent. Students have to pass tests to get in, and the level of education is very high. The kindergarten consists of 3-6 year olds and is a mix of Tanzanians and the children of Norwegian, Swiss, and American missionaries staying here. There is a Montessori classroom for the youngest ones. We also sat in on a physics class (where we struggled to describe fiber glass), Divinity II, a chemistry lab, and the Form 6 choir (the highest age level). After the classes we got a chance to talk to some students and ask questions about their plans and their life. They were full of curiosity about American high schools and universities, gender roles in the United States, the cost of living and the unwarranted dissatisfaction that comes with privilege.

It’s also been interesting interacting with all the other missionary families that stay here. There are families from Norway, Sweden, Ohio, Korea, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania. Most people speak English, and most all of us share a common bond with our fragmented Swahili. On Tuesday nights we play volleyball games with everyone from the language school and with Tanzanian students. We’re hearing a speaker tonight and are leading the Eucharist service.

Tembo, Twiga, Simba!

So many exciting things happening around here! Today we visited another village. There were many children and we all played games where they called out names and they could laugh at us trying to dance in the middle of the circle. Everyone is so very hospitable. We were privileged to present some books and supplies (and a soccer ball-- or football to the rest of the world). There was a ceremony to make the school in that village "official" so now it is recognized by the government. For dinner they even gave us Pepsi and orange soda from glass bottles. When we left we had two dozen kids trying to pile in the back of the SUV with us.


The last few days we spent on safari. When we were asked to describe our experience later words like "phenominal" and "WOW" were echoed throughout the group. At the beginning we were excited to see giraffes in the distant trees. By the end of the night we had seen zebras and elephants feet from our bus, crossing the road and next to our vehicle. We spotted lions (Luka found them first) nestled in grass and driving by later we saw two of them lounging in a tree with a cub trying to climb and join the others. Pastor Hafermann says that since he's lived in Tanzania, in the mid-1960's, he has never seen lions in the trees. They too sauntered across the road just a few feet away from us. Later we ate a nice dinner and watched the huge sky of stars while impala grazed right outside of our thatched roof patios.


The next morning we weren't sure what else we could see after such good luck the first afternoon. We got even closer to giraffes though, and found hippos, waterbuffalo, birds, jackels, and a leopard. A leopard! They're hard to find since they're mostly solitary but we watched one wake up from a nap in a tree and climb down. Luka lives in Tanzania and travels with Pastor Hafermann often and this was only his second time ever seeing a leopard.


Everyone is acclimating nicely. The first day we arrived we were shocked when we saw the students here wearing bright blue sweaters for their school uniforms. Now we stand around for midmorning tea drinking hot beverages and wearing long sleeves. Returning from trips it's like coming "home" when we reach the seminary.


Saturday we're spending visiting a youth prison and the Maasai Cattle market.

Yesterday we packed into a couple of SUVs and drove through bumpy roads to Lubaya village. People were gathering for a mixed church service-- both the Maasai people and the Swahili people from the surrounding villages. We played with the children and chatted with the adults as we were waiting for church to start. When we asked what time the service started people would reply, "eh, whenever." We taught the children singing games like "Going on a Bear Hunt" and The Hippopotamus Song and they taught us Simama, kaa, luka! (Stand up, sit down, jump!). It was interesting to watch the Maasai and Swahili children interact because the traditions of the Maasai were just as unfamiliar to the Swahili as they were to us. A blending of cultures.

The Maasai choir marched in singing in a line. All the women are dressed in blue, purple, or red and wore long, long silver earrings and necklaces. They danced in a circle and invited us to join them until we all (girls and boys) were trying to mimic their rhythmic movements. The women removed their necklaces and draped them around all the girls' necks and we led the entire group into the church where the service started. The service was entirely in Swahili and Pastor Hafermann performed 14 baptisms and 2 confirmations. Many Muslim women had their daughters baptized Christians. There were representatives from the Catholic church and the Muslim church that came to welcome us and partake in the service. Many backgrounds but one service. During communion, a woman started convulsing from a demon possession and some men had to remove her from the church. We were told it can be common during the sacraments. We're starting to recognize some of the Swahili hymns.

After the service everyone in the whole church shakes hands with everyone else in the whole church. We had an auction and donated items like caps and soda and sugar cane were bid on (the profits go to the church). Supper followed and we ate meat, rice, and beans from large pots.

Stars seem extra bright when days are mostly governed by natural light. On our drive back we watched the upside-down Big Dipper from the back of the truck.

We played Yan Koloba just for Mwalimu Strickert and Mama Monica tonight.

Morale is high!

We climbed Uluguru Mountain today. Our guide kept us at a quick pace (a really quick pace) and we took a different path than normal so we climbed a lot of extreme vertical jungle through hill side corn fields. We marked our path a few times so we'd know where we had been on the way down. A lot of slipping through the mud and clinging to trees. One group of us got to one of the peaks that looked out over Morogoro and got some good glimpses of some waterfalls, and another group of us took at little more time to savor the journey. At least half of our group walked home with wet, muddy pants from some pitfalls. We were weary by the end of our hike, but it was an exciting adventure!

Tomorrow we're visiting a village. We've been practicing some songs to sing as a "choir" and will be accompanied by two maracas and a guitar. We will sound really good.

As of now, we're all malaria free. Good news!

Siku Tano (Day Five)

We’re on break right now between lunch and our afternoon Swahili lessons. People are sitting on the porch outside our rooms studying, guitar is playing, and some are walking and taking photographs. Yesterday morning’s lessons started out pretty smoothly but quickly we moved from everyday greetings to verb tenses and classes of nouns. Our teachers are very patient.

Yesterday after four o’clock tea we walked to an orphanage nearby. The children attending are generally under the age of six and have lost their mothers. Fathers can drop the children off if they promise to come back once they get more established. They are raised by nuns.

We were not prepared for the walk that took us to the orphanage. The beauty of what surrounded us was overwhelming. It was nearing dusk and had just rained, so clouds quilted the sky and the light streamed through onto the vibrant green everywhere. The mountain had clouds on its peaks, we came around a bend and it opened to a valley with countless coconut trees shooting up to the sky. We were surprised at how many people populated the area; it seemed so pristine and untouched, but people were busy outside of mud and brick houses. A group of children ran laughing and waving toward the path shouting “Habari gani, habari gani!” The road right before the orphanage was lined with trees with such character it felt like we had stepped into a storybook.

The bubbles Chellie brought with us to the orphanage were a huge hit, with children climbing all over us and reaching for the bubble wand shouting “Mimi, mimi!” or just standing wide eyed from the floor. Our trip ended much too soon, but we’re going back today and some next week.