So I was finally here - pinching myself to check it's real and it so was. My first night in the apartment and I slept like a baby. The rooms are on the Moshono campus and there are around 30 or so volunteers who live here (maybe less). Some live off site as they have local Tanzanian partners and choose to live with them as we cannot have anyone stay on campus with us.
To accomodate for the volunteers and visitors who stay at the school we have 3 or so kitchens - I managed to get lost on day one on my way to breakfast. Thanks to the generosity of many visitors and donors who as what we need, we appear to have an endless supply of Vegemite, so all us Aussies are well cared for in the home sickness department :)
The majority of the volunteers are from Australia - we have one American and an Irish guy. Most people are between 23 right up to 50 something. We have a husband and wife from Australia who have been living here for 2.5 years and working at the school. Gemma the school founder also lives on campus with a residence for her and her family (Hubbie & 2 kids).
My building overlooks the playground, so 7.45am becomes a mass noise of screaming kids on swings and playing football - but I love coming out my room and watching them play from the balcony. Every morning they make me smile and remind me why I am here and I smile because I'm so happy that these children have a bright future ahead of them.
My week day in the office and I already have a pc set-up and some jobs to photograph teachers in their classes, student profile shots for the sponsor updates, bus photos of kids going home on the buses and me hopping off to capture them as they get off and run home.
This is so far my favourite part of this job - I get the bus from the Moshono campus to the Usa campus at 2pm (45min drive) along the way at random points we pick up and drop of local Tanzanian staff who are either finishing or starting work for the day. I'm befriended by one of the older "mamma's" who oversee's the night boarding at Usa campus. She starts giving me Kiswahili lessons and I start practising with everyone who gets on:
"Mambo"
"Poa"
"Viipi"
"Safi"
"Habari"
"Mizuri"
Once I arrive at the Usa campus I wait until the students finish school and board one of the many buses leaving at 3.30pm, we then head off along the bumpy, dusty, dirt roads towards their villages for the various drop off's. One area that there are lots of children and teachers living is call Ugali Limited and it's quiet poor. I'm shocked at first when I see just how poor - they are true slums and as I will later learn - most people dont have electricity in their homes and use neighbourhood taps (about 80cents for a large bucket of water). The scene before me is mud homes or old rotting timber, dust, dust and more dust - little kids running around everywhere - along with the chickens and goats that always seem to be everywhere also!
Endless fields of maize (their corn) and if its not in fields then its drying on massive sheets in the sun. Loads of banana plantations, which explains why most meals incorporate banana as though it was potatoe! I see the most dense jungle with beautiful creeks and mini waterfalls running under bridges - I see families doing their washing in the river, kids bathing and the most beautiful towering tall trees I've ever seen lining the road up a hill with the most perfect sunset trying to cut through the dust trail left behind the truck that just overtook our bus and is overloaded with workers standing in the back.
Everytime I do these drives I find myself mesmerised by the jungle scene with the river and in particular these tall trees. Something really draws me.
I have one photo I posted on facebook of one of these scenes and I mention how everytime I see them I think of the trillion African war books I've read and can see the scenes of the refugees walking these roads out of places like Congo, Rawanda and Burundi to get to the borders of safety. I recall stories of the Rawandan genocide and how children were hiding in banana plantations and the thick forest to hide from the rebel armies capturing young boys as new recruits. These are mobid thoughts, but then I look infront of me and I see this beautiful land and wonder what things these tree's have seen - there is something special along these roads and I cant place it, but every single time I'm on the bus and we pass those 2 (jungle rivers & lines of towering trees) I smile and feel at peace, like I belong here, like I'm so humbled to be here alongside them.
I dont know much compared to some about African history, but I do know that I am sensitive about the whole white vs black people here. What I'm saying is I often see congregations of white's and make a point to attempt to fit in with the locals -if I could only speak their language life would be so much easier. One Irish volunteer that just left was a Kiswahili language teacher back home, so we would go out somewhere and I would sit fascinated as she's joking with the locals and having fluent conversations. I can see the respect they have for her as a white woman who really is embracing her surroundings. I've gone and bought the traditional "Kanga" material that is worn as a sarong by the women here over long black pants - I wore this for the first time the other day and I noticed straight away the gratitude and respect they showed me for my interest and respect in their culture.
I'm really frustrated by the language - I want to be fluent now! We have one guard here who walks around campus and we pass each other maybe 10-12 times in a day and each time all I can say is Mambo and each time he is saying something new to me and it's driving me nuts as I can see he's trying to teach me and have a conversation but I cant get past one word! There is talk that Kiswahili lessons will start in the next couple of weeks, which I'm obviously keen to attend.
As a first time visitor to the school everyone who attends the Thursday assembly in Usa or the Primary and Secondary assemblies in Moshono gets a traditonal welcome with living African drumming by the children, and you are to walk up on stage and introduce yourself. I had to do this at all 3 assemblies!!! The drumming is brilliant and the kids scream a huge "Welcome" after all the visitors have been introduce.
At the start of every assembly the children say a prayer to St Jude - the patron saint of the school, at the end of prayer all the children madly wave their arms around to get hold of the microphone to say who they would like to pray for! Some pray for their teachers and this morning one girl said "I would like to pray for myself" I nearly burst out laughing but then saw the serious look on the teachers faces and controlled myself. Then it's the Tanzanian national anthem which you must be still for (I've only learnt the chorus so far - but that's better than some Australian's knowing their own national anthem right?!) then it's onto the school song "The school of St Jude is a very beautiful school... the school of St Jude I love you so much" and of course there's a whole dance routine to go with it and all the staff do it too. Secondary school has their own school song and dance routine which the kids made up since its a fairly new campus.
I got a tour of the boarding rooms in both Usa and Moshono and WOW! There are usually 6-10 students of the same sex per room and you have never seen such tidy rooms! Every morning they make their own beds - and I need a lesson from them!!! Then they take great pride in decorating the room with cards and letters from their sponsors - both individual sponsors and sponsors of the actual boarding room they stay in. As many of the students live too far for the bus to pick them up each day they board Monday - Friday. We also have many students who live in orphanages, so they board with us during the week then go to the orphanage on the weekend. Friday afternoon is a major nightmare at 3.30pm as all boarders, students and teachers are going home, so the poor bus drivers loose their mind having to do drop off's that take even longer than usual.
The bus drivers are another invaluable resource to the school - most of them are just learning english and you will never see men who are better with kids than Africans. It's amazing - just like some women have a knack as a mother, it's like these guys were born to father lots of children - they are very gentle with the kids and the kids adore their bus drivers.
Everyday hot and nutricious meals are served to the students, teachers, admin staff, gardeners, bus drivers - everyone involved within the school. At Usa that is 400+ meals per lunch - so you can imagine the size of the huge pots they cook in and the number of kitchen staff! For many children and perhaps even staff, this is the healthiest or even only meal of the day that they get if they do not live on campus! Each day has a set meal - I'm still learning them all, but so far I can remember the following:
Mon - cant remember....
Tue - Pilau with mutton
Wed - Ugali (like white playdough), green spinach stuff and ocra
Thur - beans and rice (as Im at Usa campus every thur)
Fri - beans and rice (lucky me I get beans and rice 2 days in a row)
Many of the long term volunteers here are over eating the same meals, so you often see them in the kitchen making western food. Since India my diet and eating has changed so much that Im just happy to have a) a nutricious meal b)free meal c)dont have to cook!
Outside the main gate there is a bar called the "Waterhole" which backs onto a little "store" (a room with bars so you pay through a window) to get mobile phone credit or order "chipsey & omelette" - havent tried this yet but I'll get there. I watched a couple of world cup matches in the Waterhole with our guards - looking at a big old tv that is locked into a cage.
I've been obsessively taking photos at the assemblies and of students in class. I cant beleive they have a maths quiz in assembly every week and they are sooooo excited about it - not to mention that I sit there trying to answer the questions myself and I cant get even an idea of what the answer should be. Everytime I walk into their classrooms, everyone stands and in a robotic voice they yell out "Good afternoon visitor" and before I even get a chance to say hi and ask how they are, they are telling me "we are fine thank you visitor" I then tell them to sit down and keep listening to their teacher and they say "thank you visitor" it cracks me up everytime! Now they are recognising me and they get as far as "Good afternoon Miss....." then I say Katina and they want to start from the beginning!
I love the kids they really are gorgeous and I cant even imagine where the children, staff and teachers would be if it wasnt for the School of St Jude. I've supported alot of charities in my short life and this is the first one that I have seen actually put the donated money and items where it is supposed to go!
Next blog.... Weekend 1 and I'm on safari!!
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