Tanzania, East Africa 2008...

10:48:32 PM EDT
Feeling Disappointed

That was weird...I just check this blog and 1/2 my entry was missing along with photos...Strange.  So I will add what I thought I wrote...

 

So what is next...There is still so much work to be done.  I am in the process of raising money for the shipment of a container.  Once all funds have been raised, I will be hosting a container loading party...all are welcome and how exciting to be part of it!  Now that I have been home for a few days...I look back on my time in Tanzania with renewed hope.  I have learned that most people have a good heart and not to let those that don't spoil it for you, anything is possible as long as you give it your best and life is limitless.  So to those reading this...go and do something big...and experience first hand the wonders of it all...It is a wonderful world.

I will keep this blog open and post new photos as they come.  I miss the people I met and I know they miss us too...As much as I am looking forward to going back for the opening ceremony...I recognize that it may be my last time in Tanzania and that saddens me. 

A special thank you to Ursuline Academy...without their approval this interim trip would never have taken place.  Thank you to Samantha who put up with me for three weeks!

Once time frame is received the pilgramage details will follow...

Thank you for coming along to Tanzania with us, I will miss you too!...I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did.

Chris

 

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9:59:36 AM EDT

So...we are now back in America.  How bitter sweet it is.  We can now enjoy the comforts of the west along with the hectic, crazy pace in which we live.  Since I have been home for 4 days life has been in full gear.  Work, Sam's prom, retirement party for a very dear friend at GS, a farewell party for Br. McDonald at CM tonight, baccalaureate mass tomorrow and Sam's graduation on Sunday!  During all this busy-ness I have had some time to reflect on the past three weeks...They were remarkable.  In every sense.

I have learned the meaning of hospitality, welcome and love.  I will always hold the people I met in Tanzania - more importantly Loruvani close to my heart.  They are truly special people. 

When I left late on Sunday night there were tears in my eyes.  We were treated like royalty while there...now that we are back in the US we are just the average person.  Something that takes getting used to...I think I prefer the royalty.  I am trying to put it all together...The entire Loruvani parish was so grateful for everything I have done...they wanted to thank me in their own way...they gave me their time and talents in apprecaition.  The thing is, I really don't feel like I have done that much.  To them, I have been an angel and a gift....to me, well...I'm just being me and I have already received so many blessings along this journey.  I have met some incredible people who have been my angels...they keep me going, for that I was already grateful.  What I am trying to say I suppose is that 'Pay it Forward'!  Good deeds are followed by good deeds...keep the momentum.

Now to Thank some folks in Tanzania:

To Gipson who supplied us with a driver, car, gas and luxury accomodations while on safari - Thank you!!  To: Thomas, Theresa, Mama Olle, Mama Marrie, Macrine, and others -thank you for welcoming us to your homes for dinner for welcoming us into your hearts.  To the choirs - thank you for the music.  To Mama Carolina (sp) - Thank you for the clothes!  To: Mama Mary for the Masai wedding outfits!  Sr. Agnes, Sr. Meater, Sr. Gosha, Sr. Harriot, Sr. Akeza, Sr. Anna Maria, Sr. Lucy, Sr. Vicky, Sr. Linah, Sr. Renata...Thank you for opening your home and heart to us for three weeks!  For the meals, the prayers and the kindness.  You will forever be in our hearts.  THANK YOU to Fr. Honoratus...you shared your parish family with us...your time, your attention and your heart.  You are a special person and the entire Loruvani Parish is lucky to have you has their priest.

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3:44:49 PM EDT Twice in one day...

Just when I thought it couldn't get better...
We had a wonderful, wonderful last supper with the sisters....this place will always hold a piece of my heart..

It is a very special place...filled with admiration and genuine love.  You must come next year on this pilgramage...it will be unforgettable.  All one needs is an open mind and an open heart and the wonders will amaze you.

One more day...tomorrow at this time we will be getting ready for our flight to Amsterdam.

I will miss it here.
Peace,
Chris

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5:06:32 AM EDT

Hi All,

We are going home tomorrow night! Boy time flies.  We have had a wonderful time.  We arrived back at the convent late last night...we came into town this morning to get last minute things and stopped at the internet cafe.  We have been busy.  When we get back we have to arrange all of our purchases in our luggage...that will be a task.

Tomorrow we have a lot to do before leaving.  Some parishioners have a few surprises for us...then off to the church building project for one last time.  I love going there.

I have attached some photos...most of my photos on safari were with my old fashion 35m camera with the telephoto lens...Sam took lots of video.  I will share some of them with you when we get home.  This has been a wonderful three weeks...I will always look back fondly at the memories with my daughter and these humble people of Africa.

It will take 21 hours by air to get home...We will be tired and excited to be home.  I go back to work on Tuesday...and have a busy week with something to do every evening of the week...it is busy.  Sam graduates next Sunday!  I hope to see you all soon...

For those interested - While here I have been arranging a good package for the church opening...Not 100% sure when it will be.  Some time around January. It will be an experience of a life time...3 nights in Arusha visiting Masai villages, church opening celebration and a 7 day safari...stay tuned.  Karibu!  From everyone here.

I gave some of the sisters gifts this morning.  I can tell it will be a tearful goodbye.  It has been surreal.  I have friends all over this earth and for that I am forever grateful...and they now have a friend in America.

Well...I tried to upload 35 photos...but time has run out.  Enjoy the ones that are uploaded.

Thanks for coming along.  I will update one last time from home.

Peace,

Chris

 

 

 

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2:06:01 AM EDT From the Plains of Serengeti

Good Thursday morning to you!  What a beautiful day it is and will be.

We are now on our safari...yesterday was a spectacular day!  We spent the morning driving from Karatu to Serengeti.  We spent Tuesday in Lake MAnyara National Park, where we saw lots of different animals.  It was a cold and cloudy day.  Yesterday morning since we were in high altitute it was cold and rainy as we drove along the Ngorongoro crater.  As we proceeded down the to the Seregenti plains the sun was shining in its full glory...
It is low season...so what a wonderful expereince to be the only car on the road.  As we entered the plains we saw: Grant and Thompson gazelle's, Ostritich, Zebra, Wildebeast. The further along we went the more spectacular the viewing was.  There were leopards in trees, elephants, giraffes and the best was the lioness with her freshly killed wilderbeasts...two side by side dead on the ground...the lioness stood watch over them while all the other lioness started coming...6 in total. All waiting patiently for the male to arrive.  The lioness who killed them starts mauling her kill by eating the genitles of her kill...then waits for the male to come and gut the rest of it. As she eats many other animals come near waiting for their share.  50 vultures wait for the lions pride to be done with the kill so they can share the banquet...hyenea's gather to chew the bones, which they can devour with their strong jaws and sharp teeth.  Elephants come to chase them away....we sat their watching this for hours...until it was almost sunset and we had to pass a gate by 6pm...we just make it and go to our camp for the night.

What a wonderful place!!!  Sam and I are in this full service campsite...our tent is beautiful with a bathroon, electricity, shower etc...we ate the best meal of the trip thus far...and some of us adults stayed up late telling tales and listening the animals in the distance...It was wonderful.  It turns out that Gibson the parishioner who complimented us two free nights, owns the place!  So now I know the owner and if anyone would ever want to come on Safari to Tanzania just let me know and I can get you a very good rate!..

We have to go now...Joseph our driver is waiting...only a few days left here in Africa....

Thanks for reading!

Chris

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1:54:49 PM EDT

Greetings!

How does one teach in a classroom with 20 three and four year old children when the same language isn't spoken?
Impossible!!!
We started with high hopes.  We arrived at 7:30, unlocked the classrooms, set up the play area, the shoe racks and had an agenda planned...
The children started arriving as soon as we did.  For the first hour they settled in and played with some toys.  During this time all the children came up to us with a toy, doll or animal and started asking questions and talking to us about their toy.  We responded with an answer to what we thought was their question in English. This goes on for one hour and the kids are laughing at us.  We try to laugh too, but it doesn't feel right.             
8:30 they clean up their toys and get in line for their morning prayers and songs...this they do in English and what a pleasure it was!
They start with the marching song as they march outside with the other two classes singing in unison.  Ok, we thought it wouldn't be too bad...by 9:00am the children are back in the classroom...this is when the fun begins...we try to play some games, we do the 'Hookie Pookie' + other silly things.....that didn't work...one by one they asked if they can go out (to the bathroom) we said one at a time...this led to some having to wait a few minutes...We soon learned they couldn't or didn't want to wait, so they wet themselves.  We open the windows because the room started to stink...we tried the alphabet song, that was ok.  We tried writing letters...they colored them in.  We tried to use the black board, they weren't paying attention.  Before we knew it, they were all crying, fighting, or laughing.  It was as though we were invisible.  Sam and I wanted to scream instead we shrugged our shoulders and prayed that the next few hours would come to end!                
10:00 the cook comes in and quiets them down and brings them their porridge.  Ok, we think peace at last.  The cook leaves and chaos erupts once again!  Only this time there is porridge everywhere!!!  More children want to go out, more children wet themselves!!!

We clean up the porridge and class time begins...we listen to the music I have on my ipod.  That was good for about 15 seconds...before we knew it some children we dancing on the desks, some got into the crayons and were writing on the walls, floor, and desks...one girl was sucking a magic marker...her mouth was black!!

We did not know wether to laugh or cry...  Mama Sabina comes into our classroom to quiet the children down...we feel like failures...she leaves and there is still one hour left.

The choas continued... was the longest 5 hours of my life.  It wasn't so much Tylenol I needed after that...a martini would have been better.  Instead we had neither and went into town to visit a parishioner who is a tailor...we were having clothes made for us...they were delivered today!  You will see me sporting them from time to time!

The three mornings of nursery school: Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were similar...Friday was a little better because the three classes merged as well as the teachers...even though there were 3x as many children there were teachers who spoke Swahili...It isn't over, we still have to teach on Monday!

It is raining today for the first time since we have been here.  We are doing chores around here and heading into town to meet our safari guide...Fr. Honoratus has arranged a fabulous trip at a reduced rate - we are paying approximately 30% of what westerners would normally be charged...we are even being complimented two free nights in the luxury tents in Serengiti!  The tour guide is another parishioner, who is taking good care of us!!!

While we were in town we learned that Theresa's husband (the first family we had dinner with) had a stroke last night...we went to the hospital to visit.  He really needs to be moved to Nairobi where there is better medical treatment.  It is inconclusive as to what happened to him...one night we are having dinner at their house and the next week he is in a coma...life is full of the unknowns...

When we came back around 5...I went to a wedding at the parish...Fr. H. was 2 hours late...the ceremony was to begin at 3!!!  What a ceremony it was!  I think I have covered most of the sacraments first hand while here...
This has been an incredible journey...We have been accomodated, welcomed andtreated like royalty since wearrived...

One more thing before I siign off...last time in the internet cafe...I met a NBC journalist...he also does documentaries and wants to do one on me and this entire project!!!  He is from Houston Texas...

Life is good...keep the faith and pray that Monday morning in the pre school will be better than last week...Unlikely but hopeful.
                  
Be Well,

Chris

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9:01:03 AM EDT The wonders of Africa

As I lay in bed in the early morning hours I am wondering what it is about this place that sets it apart from everywhere else.  What is it?.  Not everyone would understand, however when living in a village with the people and sharing their life distinctions abound.
First...
The smell of Africa... a slight breeze from the east may awaken your sense of smell...not necessarily a sweet fragrence, but a fragrence none the less.  Then the wind shifts west...or maybe north or south.  The smell of Africa is constant and always different.  You know when you are here just by breathing.  It makes you realize you are alive.
Second...
There are the sounds of Africa... children laughing, people singing, roosters crowing, cows mooing, dogs barking, cats meowing, people talking and rivers flowing.  The children's laughter amazes me the most.
Third.           
The sights of Africa...the poverty mixed with hope. The wealthy helping the poor...A community in which the gift of life and death is shared.  People walking...people selling their crops, people jumping in the back of a pick up truck of a sranger for a ride anywhere...The mountains and the plains, the Masai trying to hold on to their past, while carrying cell phones in their robes.  Women trying to have a voice...and of course sickness: AIDS, Cholera, Malaria plus many more...
As beautiful as it is...it is a place that I could enjoy because of the many opportunites I have in the west.  I try to put myself in these peoples shoes, but I can't...I try but I can't...

So instead I choose to see the beauty of this land because of its differences... I am grateful.

            
Peace to you,
Chris

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6:42:53 AM EDT
Feeling Frustrated
Hearing the greatest love of all

 

Here I am at the internet cafe...2 hours with awful connections.  This is my third post...I hope I am able to save this one as well as upload some photos.  Samantha went back to the convent with Alex our driver for the day.  We spent the morning working with the sisters and went into Arusha for the afternoon.  Exhanged some money and went shopping, or should I say we went haggling.  I am getting good at that!  We shopped like westerners at the Masai market.

 

We have been busy...another funeral yesterday...Since we are in the village we attend.  It is really quite the affair.  On Sunday evening the Sisters had a Mother's Day celebration for me with a parade, cake, ice cream and the works...that meant we had to celebrate Pentacost on Monday - we feasted on the roosters that were slaughtered last week along with wine.  The Sisters are terrific.  They are going to Dar for a conference tomorrow leaving Samantha and I in charge of the nursery school.  That should be interesting.  We will be in one classroom with the 3/4 year olds who don't speak english.  The Sisters tell us to have tylenol ready upon our return.  It will be interesting to say the least.  I am glad to have downloaded childrens songs on to my ipod for their enjoyment.  Stay tuned to see how that works.

We spent the late afternoon yesterday at the church building project.  They are making progress but have a lot of work ahead of them.  The masons will be camping at the site for the next month to avoid having to pack everything up every day.  They will work 7 days a week from sunrise to sunset.  They earn about $4.00 per day!!!

It is very humbling to live amongst these people. We distributed all of the childrens clothes at the church building site...there was a long line of children waiting and as I imagined, we didn't have enough for everyone...The next day, many of the children were wearing their new clothes and shoes.  We went to the local primary school and distributed the many school supplies...again, as much as we had; we didn't have enough.

At the last mass on Sunday, we distributed the musical instruments to the choir...oh to see the smiles on their face!  Then to listen to the music!  What a joy it was.

We are getting used to the life here.  I am so grateful for this opportunity.  Next week we will spend a few days on Safari...we will go to Serengeti and hopefully witness the largest mammel migration on earth!

I'll be in touch...

Thanks for checking up on us.

Peace,

Chris

 

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11:16:35 AM EDT Happy Mother's Day!

Warm greetings to all. 

We have been busy...Friday we went to a home for street children...all male facility housing 46 boys.  Aside from lack of funding the boys don't know how to take care of themselves...if it were a female facility the garden would be abundant, their would be a chicken farm, they would cook, sew, clean, fetch water, wood etc...but the males do not do anything in this country since it is classified as womens work...they won't do it!  This problem and many other problems are in this country.  I have learned that corruption is everywhere.. The classrooms have 130 children in primary school...only 50% go on to secondary school...and very few go to university.  So many young women have asked us to help in this endeavor...so I think perhaps the '10000 women' program can at least try to help one.

I met all three choirs on Friday.  They taught me some songs and some dance moves!  I shared with them some songs as well and they are going to sing them for us before we leave.  They have so much rythm and soul!  The sisters are reserecting the guitar for me this evening....

Yesterday we spent the day at Kigongo - that is where the church building project it taking place.  We helped with the spackling, sifting sand, going to the river to get water.  It reminded me of my time in Sri Lanka...very much the same method of building.  We were there all day.  At the site were many children, so we distributed all the clothes.  It was a great day.  The church is looking great!

Today...We went to three masses!
Everyone of them  in Swahili...and it was Pentacost so they were long!  Fr. H. wanted to introduce us and have us say a few words....
What I said was thank you for the warm welcome...I would like to share a tradition with you...today, the second sunday in May in the USA is  Mother's Day...so to all of you who still have your mothers on this earth please hug them and tell them you love them.  God bless you all.  Asante Sana". After mass everyone greeted us with the traditional hug and handshake.  Many of the people we knew since we went to their houses for dinner.  In Tanzania, people who have nothing are so hospitable, it is a nice change from the coldness you find in Boston.  I feel more at home here in some ways.  One can be kind and no one thinks twice about it.  Back  home, when one is outgoing or kind, people talk about you and assume you have a motive.  It is hard to describe but it is beautiful here.

I will take a nap now, we rest everyday.  It is a wonderful habit that I will miss when back.

To all you mothers...happy mother's day!!!

To my mother:  hope you have a wonderful day!  We'll celebrate this day amongst all the festivites at the end of the month.  Thank you for the gift of life! 

Blessings,
Christine

 

PS:  Photos to be uploaded soon...

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11:22:37 AM EDT
Feeling Happy

Jambo Rafiki's!

We had a wonderful day!  I am at an internet cafe and uploaded some photos to yesterdays entry...can't stay long...just wanted to let everyone know that I am having a wonderful time and getting the red carpet treatment from all.  Since we are staying at the convent...I am now Sr. Chris and Sam is Sr. Samantha...

The sisters are wonderful!!!  My swahili is coming along...

We went to a funeral today...it was the most special ceremony I have ever attended...the entire village came...the choir sang as we walked in unity to the burial...words can't describe it.  I have it on video and one of these visits to an internet cafe for a longer period of time I will get it uploaded to this blog...for now...my hour is up!

It is a wonderful world...

Love,

Christine

 

 

 

 

 

 

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