Today I taught my first class. It could have been better, but I guess it could have been worse. They don't really understand English, nor did they seem to want to stay quiet when their fellow classmates were introducing themselves. Not all the students have notebooks, so that is going to be another obstacle. I didn't expect them to have any books, but universal notebook use would be nice for giving out assignments.
It is going to be interesting using non-physical punishments with students who are used to getting beaten. I am hoping tomorrow will go better and that I will feel better about things.
Most of my students are between 14 to 15 years old, though some are older. Most seemed to have around three siblings, but that also varied. Many like to play netball and football. Dancing was also popular amongst the group. Most of the girls wear white headscarves, but a couple just had on the maroon and white uniforms. I noticed many of their sweaters have holes in them, which is interesting because Tanzanians are big on keeping their clothing nice. I think my village has a lot of poverty problems. The students can't afford a graduation ceremony and many families do not contribute school dues. Lack of parental funding means less resources and no lunch for those students who don't pay. I am actually not sure if they are serving lunch this semester. I haven't scopped it out yet.
I ate stewed tomatoes and macadamia nuts for lunch. I wish I had more protein sources, especially since nuts are hard to come by and cost a lot. Meat tends to be fatty and overpriced, and without refrigeration I question how safe it really is to eat. I may have to just get over that, but eating steak that has been broiled to death just isn't my thing. I do like the chicken here so I may look into whether or not I can get individual pieces here in town. I admit fully that I haven't explored the meat options here, so I should probably do that. That, or just live off of eggs forever.
My students enjoyed the pictures I showed them of home. I wish I had more. Some also came to my house and asked for water. I didn't have any drinking water available aside from the stuff with my rehydration salts in it. They ended up just scooping some water out of one of my green big buckets. I have two large buckets I use to keep water in, but that water is in no way clean. I told them that, but they didn't care or seem to understand why I would suggest drinking water was different.
On that note I love my steripen and the filter it came with! Best gift ever.
I am not feeling well, but I am doing okay. I am hoping my headache and nausea will subside if I drink enough ORS (Oral rehydration salts) over the next couple days. I am having salad for dinner and trying to think of some good recipes that fit my diet. If you have suggestions please leave a comment or send me an email. I need recipes based around the following foods: cabbage, spinach, tomatoes, carrots, avocadoes, onions, cucumber, zucchini, and eggplant. Note that the recipes shouldn't involve using oil or butter. Raw oil is okay, but nothing can be cooked in oil or fried.
try making gazpacho - cold tomato soup! basically you are supposed to chop and then blend tomatoes, onions, cucumber, (other veggies if you want) until it's a soup-ish consistency. but you can probably chop into fine pieces and conserve tomato juice if you don't have a blender. mint leaves and/or watermelon are good additions to gazpacho! hope you feel better soon :)
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