Sunday, August 26, 2012

August 26, Back at Site


So, I finally managed to get my Internet dongle to work. It’s been a battle lately, even though I was in places/hostels with electricity. Currently I’m sitting on my cement floor at site in the one spot that has enough cell-signal to go online. 

In any case, the past week has been pretty intense. I don’t feel like it’s appropriate for me to explain the details of it because of the importance of medical confidentiality. But, needless to say, my trip to Dar es Salaam was not for fun reasons. The person I am closest to here/the guy I’m dating has to go back to America for some medical stuff, and it’s still unclear whether or not he will be able to return. It’s been a rough set of days, but I’m keeping my hopes up that everything will work out. Fortunately I have a good set of PCVs surrounding me, so I have been getting a lot of positive support. I’m really bummed, but also very, very hopeful. And I have great friends, so that’s nice.

Speaking of great friends, Hannah actually came with me to site. I had a ton of stuff to take back to my house since I did a lot of shopping in Lushoto. I bought a mattress, kitchen supplies, buckets etc. My mkuu is out of town, so her two nieces and one of her friends (Angelina the Evangelist) helped me carry stuff back. Well, didn’t just help, but kind of took over taking all my bags back. The people here are way too sweet and hospitable. I felt bad because one girl carried my mattress on her head and still tried to insist on carrying another bag on her shoulder. These girls are crazy strong! I was also really happy to see my neighbor’s kid, Papa, who came over and shook my hand at dinner. I couldn’t eat much because I was still full from lunch. There is this AMAZING place in Lushoto we go for chipsi mayai. It costs $1 for a hefty plate of chipsi that has onions, peppers, and carrots mixed into the eggs. Plus he often tops it with avocados, cucumbers, and tomatoes. Add chili sauce and it is ridiculously good for a ridiculously cheap price. We brought him candles and chili sauce as a thank you since he tends to give us tons of extra food for free/is already giving us a ton of food for a really low price. I love that bwana, he makes being in Lushoto the best. We also had some GREAT salad at Lawns. So good. I’ve been eating really well lately…but I did confirm in Dar that I’ve lost weight here. So that’s’ encouraging!

I have big plans for my house, but my kitchen is a construction zone right now. The gate is still unfinished, but there’s a mysterious big black pipe running through my yard now. Hoping it means I’ll have a water tap at my house, but that may be wishful thinking.

In any case, Hannah and I are re-writing songs to fit our Tanzanian experience. It’s pretty fun. I will try to post again soon if I’m able to conserve battery life. I hate not having electricity primarily because it makes communicating with the outside world difficult. Things are fine here, though, for the most part. Just hoping for the best for now!!! 

No comments:

Post a Comment