Leaving was rough. I spent my last full day in Tanzania with Mama Omega from the peanut butter shop. Friday was her day to take all of the jarred pb to Moshi (the city at the base of Kilimanjaro) to sell them to a whole sale shop who then sold them out to the smaller shops. Apparently this happens once every two weeks and it is an all day affair.
I reached their house around 9:30 AM to find Rosie at the shop helping the bicycle taxi load the boxes of pb. I then went down to Victoria's house where Mama Omega and I had bananas, chai, and chapati. At 10 o'clock on the dot we headed down to the road where the bicycle taxi man had been dropping off the loads of pb (he took about 3 or 4 trips walking the bike down because it was too heavy then walking it back up because it was too steep). At the road with the boxes was Nye, we greeted her and then the bus came and we loaded everything up. The bus is basically a bigger daladala. It is set up to carry about 24 people--2 seats on the left and 1 seat on the right but because this is africa that isn't really how it worked. The jump seat that is in the middle of those which is made for a small bottom was used to seat two people so each row had 5 people then people also stood at the front when all the rows filled up.
About an hour and a half later we arrived in Moshi where we loaded all the boxes (16 boxes x 32 jars a box) into a taxi who took us to the whole store (which is just a little store like all the rest). We dropped them off then walked down the street and hopped on a daladala, I had no idea what the plan was at this point but I trusted whatever Mama Omega did (she saw me as her child and introduced me as her first born to the people we did business with). Next thing I know we are getting off and walking through corn fields. As we walk she explains that we are at her family's house for lunch as she points out who lives where. I met her brother (who is one of the tallest African's I have met) and her sister in law married to another brother. They fed me ugali and these tiny fish. Her brother was an educator for 30 years and was encouraging my future in education.
After lunch we got back on the daladala went back to the shop, picked up the money for the peanut butter, walked to the bus stop, and finally hopped on a bus to go back home. It was a long day full of swahili (no Engilsh) and learning new things while having the pride of walking around like a Tanzanian local would in the parts that aren't really the tourist areas. I blended in, as much as I could, considering I am a mzungu after all.
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| Our driver, Kessey, stopped by just to tell me goodbye! I am so glad I was able to see him again before I left. |
In Mombasa with Chris and Lisa Moore (REAL4Christ) I have made new friends with two other ladies who are here for medical missions as they are newly certified RN's! They are a blast and I am loving my time with them.
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| This poor guy, Lamech (age 3-4) got his leg all chomped up in the bicycle-- this is the week later and much healing has occurred picture |
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| Becky & Diana (she is her sponsor!) Diana was adorable when she found out Becky was her sponsor |
Tuesday was spent learning and donating as we were able to go to this amazingly nice and well funded hospital (built by money from Alicia Keys) which does a lot of work in the HIV/AIDS community. Their program gives free medical care and support to people with HIV/AIDS and do community outreach. If you want more info on it, google Bomu Medical Center or Hospital in Mombasa. We then went to a physical therapy clinic/hospital where patients live and are being treated and helped with different kinds of disabilities including mental health, rehab from surgery or injury, mis-grown body parts, etc. Adult and children's diapers were donated and given to this organization who was extremely grateful. The administrator could have cried she was so overwhelmed at how God had provided for her and how this was what she had been asking her funders to allow her to buy. We ended the day with a visit to the not so great Coast General Hospital (remember the story about the man who got hit with the machete). We wanted to bring the nurses to see what a government hospital was like and let me tell you, it was no better than the first time. By the way, the man who was attacked is now home and speaking a few words and walking but having a very hard time doing much else.
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| Bomu Hospital |
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| Their small shop at the hospital which went along with the theme of how important condoms are to prevent HIV because they were in EVERY room we went into |
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| At the physical therapy ward-- the little boy Becky is holding was one of the happiest children I have ever met and he didn't have half of a leg and had some major problems with the other along with a scar from his skull down his back from surgery. |
I am so happy to be back again to these people that I call family. These Kenyan's who I love and respect. A big praise is that Jackson, one of my favorite men here and very important person at Mbewau, is finally in the process of building his own house instead of sleeping on the floor in his brother's mud hut. Although his house will similarly be a mud home, it has a sheet metal roof and it's fairly large with three rooms. I am SO incredibly excited for him.
I will try to keep you updated as the weeks are dwindling. I'm really starting to crave Chick-Fil-A and Dr. Pepper so anyone who is reading this and eating it, I hope you stop eating and say a little thank you to the Big Guy Up there for that tasty food and then maybe save a bite for me :).
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| I'm ready for an adventure! |
Joyfully His,
Cathy
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