Today we went on a visit around Dar es Salaam. We were able
to avoid most of the chaos since today is a Sunday, so I actually felt really
comfortable wandering with the group. The crowded bus and the look of the
buildings reminded me a lot of being in Southern Italy. The saying here is that
on a daladala (bus) there’s always room for one more. Fortunately I was pressed tightly against
people I knew, so it wasn’t quite as uncomfortable as it will normally end up
being. What was more bizarre for me personally was watching people drive on the
opposite side of the road (British style). I was pleasantly surprised that we
got our kangas (a kind of wrap around skirt) for only 6,000 shillings.
Converting things here is interesting. In American terms, everything is
extremely cheap. Unfortunately we are living on a Tanzanian salary, so we have
to think about purchases in those terms. I think the Peace Corps will encourage
my own frugalness.
I did see some big differences from Italy, however, such as
people carrying baskets of bottled water and sodas on their heads. Many of them
could do it without using their hands to support the weight, which was pretty impressive.
A lot of people trying to sell beverages and things on the street would make a
sort of kissing noise or shake coins to get peoples’ attention. For lunch I
tried the main staple dish of Tanzania, ugali, which is a mixture of corn and
water. The consistency is kind of like sticky mashed potatoes. I had it with a
tomato sauce, but had a hard time remembering to eat with my right hand. I’m
really bad at using forks with my left hand, so I looked pretty awesome eating
chicken off the bone. Not quite as awesome as I did when I ate chicken wings
one-handed last summer, but close.
Last night we tried getting a box of white wine from the
hostel bar here. The wine had turned to vinegar and was pretty much brown when
we poured it out. They gave us a replacement box of red, but that wasn’t very
tasty either. I think it was also on its way out. If I go out drinking in the
future, I plan to get the packets of hard alcohol they sell instead. We don’t
have that option here at the hostel, but apparently that’s how they sell it at
bars and clubs. Drinking in bars isn’t very acceptable for single women to do
here, so I probably will only go out when meeting up with fellow volunteers in
the banking town closest to my site (wherever that may be). I’d rather remain
professional when staying in my village.
Plugging my computer in here makes me very nervous. I’m
using a surge converter, plus my charger has a built-in surge protector, but my
computer will still majorly zap me if I touch it when it’s charging. I’m
curious to see if my host family has electricity. I will be staying with them
in a village called Majengo Mapya for 9 weeks starting on the 12th of June.
Apparently I am going to have three host-sisters, all secondary school aged or
older, so hopefully I’ll pick up some tips on how to teach kids that age while
I’m there. We’re dropping one of our
bags off at the Peace Corps office tomorrow, so I’m going to finish packing up
and try to get some rest. Hopefully the clothes I washed with my new bar of
laundry soap will dry. My fan doesn’t work and the humidity is making
everything mildew pretty quickly.
Usiku mwema! (Good night!)
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