Hey Everyone,
I'm sorry that I haven't been keeping up on my blogs lately, but getting to the internet the past few weeks has been challenging. I'm officially done with my internship now, and I've left Mwanza too. Now I'm in Dar es Salaam waiting for my flight tomorrow morning. In the meantime, I thought I'd just do a fun little list of facts about Tanzania that you may or may not already know...here it goes:
1.) Tanzania is home to the Serengeti, Mount Kilimanjaro, and the "spice island" of Zanzibar.
2.) There are over 175 tribes/ethnic groups in the country and most of them have their own language. That means that people are learning their mother tongue, Swahili, and English if they make it all the way through secondary school.
3.) The average wedding dowry usually consists of cows or money and is given by the groom's family to the bride's family.
4.) The Maasai people believe that every cow in the world belongs to them. In fact, they oftentimes steal cows from other people.
5.) It is common for two people of the same sex to hold hands in public, but it is frowned upon if there is public affection between the opposite sex.
6.) When twins are born, the first one is always named Kulwa and the second is always named Dotto.
7.) If a thief is caught stealing in public, he/she is beaten horribly by everyone around (before police come) and sometimes even beaten to death.
8.) There is a small albino population in Tanzania, and they are oftentimes discriminated against and even killed. Some traditional medicine doctors pay big money to get the body parts of albinos.
9.) Tanzania only gained independence in 1961 after being colonized first by the Germans and then by the British.
10.) Swahili time is different than the clock/time we're used to. It coincides with the sunrises and sunsets (i.e. 1:00 is when the sun comes up)
Monday, July 27, 2009
Saturday, July 11, 2009
saba saba
Hamjambo wote,
Just a short blog today, not a whole lot of time! This past Tuesday was a national holiday here (Saba Saba--seven seven), so I didn't have to work. It was nice to have the short week, and the days continue to fly by. It's hard to believe that I only have two weeks until I come home! Work is still going well. I'm beginning to wrap everything up by writing some final reports and the like. I'll try and write a longer blog next weekend, but until then...take care!
-Ben
Just a short blog today, not a whole lot of time! This past Tuesday was a national holiday here (Saba Saba--seven seven), so I didn't have to work. It was nice to have the short week, and the days continue to fly by. It's hard to believe that I only have two weeks until I come home! Work is still going well. I'm beginning to wrap everything up by writing some final reports and the like. I'll try and write a longer blog next weekend, but until then...take care!
-Ben
Saturday, July 4, 2009
4th of July
Happy 4th of July to everyone back home (or abroad)!
I won't be going to any parades or watching any fireworks. In fact I won't even be able to have a nice BBQ outside, but I am going to hang out with the few American students that are here. I work with one student from Maryland, and there are two other students here from Atlanta staying at the same hostel as me. We're all going to go out to lunch or something, so at least we'll get to celebrate a little bit :).
Work's been going well. The grant is finished and now we sit back and wait for the decision. However, it could take up to 10 weeks for the foundation to decide, so I'm not counting on knowing the result any time soon. It's just nice to have it completed and give me a chance to work more with the health education services of my organization. Sadly, I find that many of the youth enrolled in Shaloom's youth center programs know little about HIV. I feel that lack of education is one of the biggest factors contributing to the epidemic here in TZ. Only 5% of girls complete secondary school in Tanzania, and boys are not much better at 7%. Furthermore, the teachers who are supposed to teach about HIV in school are oftentimes shy when it comes to discussing the subject. Many students tell me that their teachers just skip talking about HIV. Also, some of the ones that do try to teach it are giving the wrong information. People still believe many myths about HIV and that's just adding to the stigma.
Gender inequality is another big factor contributing to the problem. Women are lower on the social hierarchy and are left with fewer rights than men. There is little negotiation for sex, condom usage, or the decision to get tested for HIV. What makes it worse is that most women are economically dependent on men to provide for them and their families. If the women has something she doesn't like about what the man is doing or wants to leave him, that just isn't a possibility. What will she have if she leaves him? Women are still largely left out of the workforce and they depend on their husbands to make the money. Also, many women are beaten by their husbands and they fear that consequence as well when considering questioning their authority. There really needs to be a cultural change that puts women on more of an equal level to men. It starts with education, because if more girls can finish school then more could potentially join the workforce and start to gain respect and independence.
Lastly, there is poverty. More than half of Tanzania's population lives on less than $1 per day, and there is also a very high unemployment rate. The fact is that HIV/AIDS is much lower on the list of important things when you are just struggling to keep food, shelter, and water. Plus, many people here are still dying from other diseases such as diarrhea, parasites, and malaria. Many Tanzanians are just not putting HIV in the forefront of their minds. And how can you blame them?
Nevertheless, 1 in 14 Tanzanian adults has HIV and there is still not enough awareness. Because of the stigma associated with the disease, many people don't even acknowledge that someone has died from AIDS. They explain many AIDS related deaths with other explanations and deny that it was what killed them. But it all comes back to education. If education was improved, women could begin to achieve more rights, unemployment could decrease, and more people could be aware of HIV. However, the government does make secondary school free to students. Primary school is free but secondary school involves fees that many students can't afford. The government claims to not have enough money to make it free and there is little hope for it changing any time soon. CCM is the dominant political party and no other party is even close to rivalling it in attaining a parliamentary majority or a presidential bid. In the meantime, all of these discussed factors must be addressed. As they say here, "pole pole" (slowly) things will progress.
Best,
Ben
I won't be going to any parades or watching any fireworks. In fact I won't even be able to have a nice BBQ outside, but I am going to hang out with the few American students that are here. I work with one student from Maryland, and there are two other students here from Atlanta staying at the same hostel as me. We're all going to go out to lunch or something, so at least we'll get to celebrate a little bit :).
Work's been going well. The grant is finished and now we sit back and wait for the decision. However, it could take up to 10 weeks for the foundation to decide, so I'm not counting on knowing the result any time soon. It's just nice to have it completed and give me a chance to work more with the health education services of my organization. Sadly, I find that many of the youth enrolled in Shaloom's youth center programs know little about HIV. I feel that lack of education is one of the biggest factors contributing to the epidemic here in TZ. Only 5% of girls complete secondary school in Tanzania, and boys are not much better at 7%. Furthermore, the teachers who are supposed to teach about HIV in school are oftentimes shy when it comes to discussing the subject. Many students tell me that their teachers just skip talking about HIV. Also, some of the ones that do try to teach it are giving the wrong information. People still believe many myths about HIV and that's just adding to the stigma.
Gender inequality is another big factor contributing to the problem. Women are lower on the social hierarchy and are left with fewer rights than men. There is little negotiation for sex, condom usage, or the decision to get tested for HIV. What makes it worse is that most women are economically dependent on men to provide for them and their families. If the women has something she doesn't like about what the man is doing or wants to leave him, that just isn't a possibility. What will she have if she leaves him? Women are still largely left out of the workforce and they depend on their husbands to make the money. Also, many women are beaten by their husbands and they fear that consequence as well when considering questioning their authority. There really needs to be a cultural change that puts women on more of an equal level to men. It starts with education, because if more girls can finish school then more could potentially join the workforce and start to gain respect and independence.
Lastly, there is poverty. More than half of Tanzania's population lives on less than $1 per day, and there is also a very high unemployment rate. The fact is that HIV/AIDS is much lower on the list of important things when you are just struggling to keep food, shelter, and water. Plus, many people here are still dying from other diseases such as diarrhea, parasites, and malaria. Many Tanzanians are just not putting HIV in the forefront of their minds. And how can you blame them?
Nevertheless, 1 in 14 Tanzanian adults has HIV and there is still not enough awareness. Because of the stigma associated with the disease, many people don't even acknowledge that someone has died from AIDS. They explain many AIDS related deaths with other explanations and deny that it was what killed them. But it all comes back to education. If education was improved, women could begin to achieve more rights, unemployment could decrease, and more people could be aware of HIV. However, the government does make secondary school free to students. Primary school is free but secondary school involves fees that many students can't afford. The government claims to not have enough money to make it free and there is little hope for it changing any time soon. CCM is the dominant political party and no other party is even close to rivalling it in attaining a parliamentary majority or a presidential bid. In the meantime, all of these discussed factors must be addressed. As they say here, "pole pole" (slowly) things will progress.
Best,
Ben
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Religion in Tanzania
The country is pretty diverse when it comes to religion. It is roughly split half and half into Christian and Muslim, but there are also people still practicing their traditional religions from before colonialism. Most of the Muslim population is found along the Indian Ocean coastline and in major cities. The mosques play the call to prayer everyday over loud speakers so you can always hear them no matter where you are in the city.
For Christians, there are several denominations here, but Roman Catholic is the dominant one. People are very involved with church, and in some cases it's amazing how closely their lives are tied to the church community. And on Sundays they sing and dance very enthusiastically!
In Mwanza the religious diversity is even more noticeable due to the Hindu population. Ever since the time when the railroads were built here, Indians have moved to Mwanza and made it their home. Today there are a few Hindu temples mixed in with the many mosques and churches here in Mwanza. This mix of religion gives the city sort of an oriental feel at times, however it's cool how well they all get along with one another. They seem to coexist peacefully together, and they try to keep their religious differences out of their day to day dealings with one another.
For Christians, there are several denominations here, but Roman Catholic is the dominant one. People are very involved with church, and in some cases it's amazing how closely their lives are tied to the church community. And on Sundays they sing and dance very enthusiastically!
In Mwanza the religious diversity is even more noticeable due to the Hindu population. Ever since the time when the railroads were built here, Indians have moved to Mwanza and made it their home. Today there are a few Hindu temples mixed in with the many mosques and churches here in Mwanza. This mix of religion gives the city sort of an oriental feel at times, however it's cool how well they all get along with one another. They seem to coexist peacefully together, and they try to keep their religious differences out of their day to day dealings with one another.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Another Home Visit
Greetings blog followers!
This past week at work I've been trying to finish up my grant proposal, but we went two days without power this week so that made it difficult. Next week I should have it completed and submitted for certain.
But I also got the opportunity to tag along on another Home-Based Care visit this week. This time we walked to some houses clear up in the hills of Mwanza. Mwanza is a very rocky and hilly city, and the families that live up in the hills are usually the poorest of the lot. There are no roads to these houses, no electricity, no running water, and no privacy from your neighbors. Furthermore, when I say "houses" I am actually referring to mud shacks. These buildings are small, with patchy roofing and lacking all the luxurious amenities that we're used to back home like stoves, refrigerators, etc. Imagine your entire family living and sleeping in the same one room house all the time! Also, to get water they must walk all the way down and then back up the hills with buckets of water from Lake Victoria. Needless to say, their lives are already tough.
However, the families we visited have even more daily hardships to endure as they are all HIV clients of ours at Shaloom and must adhere to specific ARV drug regimens. One family in particular stood out to me...It was a mother, two sons, and a daughter living together. All of them have HIV. One son is very young, but the other son and the daughter are older. The daughter though, is paralyzed on the whole right side of her body. She suffered a stroke and was left unable to move her right side. Apparently she's making good progress, because she can now feed herself and stand up on her own--things that she was previously unable to do without help. She can't speak anymore, but she can understand everything people tell her and is able to acknowledge them with noises and gestures. I was struck by her cheery demeanor and determination. As we entered the house, we waited for her to enter the room. She insisted on getting into the room on her own power, so we waited as she slid on the ground, pushing her body along with her left arm. Finally, she made it into the room and lifted herself onto a chair. She was so happy to do it on her own and also pleased to see that we'd come to visit her.
This woman will never be able to leave her house unless someone carries her down the hill, because no vehicles can make the journey, she can no longer speak or walk, and all she has is her family. But she still finds joy in the little things of life, and that was refreshing to see. What you begin to realize here is that most of the problems we have back home pale in comparison to the challenges many Tanzanians face every day. Too often we worry about the silly trials of life, and we fail to be truly thankful for all we have. I will surely think of families like these whenever I am stressed or upset in the future.
This past week at work I've been trying to finish up my grant proposal, but we went two days without power this week so that made it difficult. Next week I should have it completed and submitted for certain.
But I also got the opportunity to tag along on another Home-Based Care visit this week. This time we walked to some houses clear up in the hills of Mwanza. Mwanza is a very rocky and hilly city, and the families that live up in the hills are usually the poorest of the lot. There are no roads to these houses, no electricity, no running water, and no privacy from your neighbors. Furthermore, when I say "houses" I am actually referring to mud shacks. These buildings are small, with patchy roofing and lacking all the luxurious amenities that we're used to back home like stoves, refrigerators, etc. Imagine your entire family living and sleeping in the same one room house all the time! Also, to get water they must walk all the way down and then back up the hills with buckets of water from Lake Victoria. Needless to say, their lives are already tough.
However, the families we visited have even more daily hardships to endure as they are all HIV clients of ours at Shaloom and must adhere to specific ARV drug regimens. One family in particular stood out to me...It was a mother, two sons, and a daughter living together. All of them have HIV. One son is very young, but the other son and the daughter are older. The daughter though, is paralyzed on the whole right side of her body. She suffered a stroke and was left unable to move her right side. Apparently she's making good progress, because she can now feed herself and stand up on her own--things that she was previously unable to do without help. She can't speak anymore, but she can understand everything people tell her and is able to acknowledge them with noises and gestures. I was struck by her cheery demeanor and determination. As we entered the house, we waited for her to enter the room. She insisted on getting into the room on her own power, so we waited as she slid on the ground, pushing her body along with her left arm. Finally, she made it into the room and lifted herself onto a chair. She was so happy to do it on her own and also pleased to see that we'd come to visit her.
This woman will never be able to leave her house unless someone carries her down the hill, because no vehicles can make the journey, she can no longer speak or walk, and all she has is her family. But she still finds joy in the little things of life, and that was refreshing to see. What you begin to realize here is that most of the problems we have back home pale in comparison to the challenges many Tanzanians face every day. Too often we worry about the silly trials of life, and we fail to be truly thankful for all we have. I will surely think of families like these whenever I am stressed or upset in the future.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Talent Show
Mambo vipi? (how's it going, what's up?)
This week Shaloom put on a talent show for the youth registered in our program. The goal was to let the children have a good time and also to raise a little money. It was pretty hectic getting it all organized this week, but it all came together in time for the show on Friday afternoon. The kids did a great job with the acts. Two of them acted as MCs and some of the actual acts included: singing groups, a theater group, and discussion panel, and traditional dancing with drums. The theater group and discussion panel both talked about HIV/AIDS education, and I was particularly happy with the discussion panel. That group took one of the brochures that I made and integrated the information into the act. They also promoted the brochure and we distributed them to guests on their way out.
I also got to play a little role in the show, as they appointed me "prop/stage manager" at the last second before the show started. It was pretty fun, I just took the props on and off the stage whenever they needed me to. Also, I was able to recruit a young boy to be my assistant, but he was special because he was one of the children that Carol and I taught English to the last time we were in Mwanza in 2007. It was great to see him again, and he turned out to be a big help during the show!
The fundraising part went reasonably well too. Our coordinator did a power point presentation that served as an overview of our organization and many guests responded positively and dontated generously. We were also blessed with a very pretigious guest of honor, The Regional Commissionor of Mwanza. I didn't know who he was before the event, but apparently his duties are similar to a mayor's. Regardless, people were very excited to have him there, and he was nice enough to make a speech asking the audience to donate money or make a pledge.
So all in all it was a success. Even though it was stressful to run and a little unorganized, we still raised some money. And even more importantly, the youth had a ton of fun!
However, as on most days here there are happy stories and sad stories to tell. As I was walking to work on Wednesday morning I saw a horrible accident. A young boy no more than 8 or 9 was hit and run over by a mini-bus only about 30 yards away from me. A crowd of people surrounded the accident as the boy was stuck underneath the bus. Eventually they were able to pull him out, but I didn't see him moving. They just picked him up and put him in the bus that hit him, then they were off to the hospital.
I couldn't help but think about how they may have been doing more harm than good by picking him up the way they did. Spine/neck injuries can be worsened very quickly if you handle someone like that in the wrong way. The problem is that there is no 911 to call...no emergency vehicles to come to the scene of accients...only a volunteer crowd of onlookers who do their best to get the victim to the hospital as quickly as possible.
I know one thing for sure...I will be extra careful crossing the street here from now on. Pedestrians don't have the right of way here, and the traffic drives on the opposite side of the road, so it's sometimes difficult to gauge the traffic when you're used to the way the traffic flows back home.
Don't worry mom, I'll make sure to look both ways before I cross the road :)
Take care everyone! Enjoy the new iphone that i heard was just released in the states yesterday!
-Ben
This week Shaloom put on a talent show for the youth registered in our program. The goal was to let the children have a good time and also to raise a little money. It was pretty hectic getting it all organized this week, but it all came together in time for the show on Friday afternoon. The kids did a great job with the acts. Two of them acted as MCs and some of the actual acts included: singing groups, a theater group, and discussion panel, and traditional dancing with drums. The theater group and discussion panel both talked about HIV/AIDS education, and I was particularly happy with the discussion panel. That group took one of the brochures that I made and integrated the information into the act. They also promoted the brochure and we distributed them to guests on their way out.
I also got to play a little role in the show, as they appointed me "prop/stage manager" at the last second before the show started. It was pretty fun, I just took the props on and off the stage whenever they needed me to. Also, I was able to recruit a young boy to be my assistant, but he was special because he was one of the children that Carol and I taught English to the last time we were in Mwanza in 2007. It was great to see him again, and he turned out to be a big help during the show!
The fundraising part went reasonably well too. Our coordinator did a power point presentation that served as an overview of our organization and many guests responded positively and dontated generously. We were also blessed with a very pretigious guest of honor, The Regional Commissionor of Mwanza. I didn't know who he was before the event, but apparently his duties are similar to a mayor's. Regardless, people were very excited to have him there, and he was nice enough to make a speech asking the audience to donate money or make a pledge.
So all in all it was a success. Even though it was stressful to run and a little unorganized, we still raised some money. And even more importantly, the youth had a ton of fun!
However, as on most days here there are happy stories and sad stories to tell. As I was walking to work on Wednesday morning I saw a horrible accident. A young boy no more than 8 or 9 was hit and run over by a mini-bus only about 30 yards away from me. A crowd of people surrounded the accident as the boy was stuck underneath the bus. Eventually they were able to pull him out, but I didn't see him moving. They just picked him up and put him in the bus that hit him, then they were off to the hospital.
I couldn't help but think about how they may have been doing more harm than good by picking him up the way they did. Spine/neck injuries can be worsened very quickly if you handle someone like that in the wrong way. The problem is that there is no 911 to call...no emergency vehicles to come to the scene of accients...only a volunteer crowd of onlookers who do their best to get the victim to the hospital as quickly as possible.
I know one thing for sure...I will be extra careful crossing the street here from now on. Pedestrians don't have the right of way here, and the traffic drives on the opposite side of the road, so it's sometimes difficult to gauge the traffic when you're used to the way the traffic flows back home.
Don't worry mom, I'll make sure to look both ways before I cross the road :)
Take care everyone! Enjoy the new iphone that i heard was just released in the states yesterday!
-Ben
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Names
One last thing before I go...I thought I'd fill you in on how names work here.
My name is very funny to most people here, because your last name is supposed to be the first name of your father. They can't understand why Grace is my father's name and there are always laughs when I introduce myself. The concept of a surname/family name doesn't exist here, so it's difficult to explain.
If you're a mother, you are called Mama ____(whatever the first name of your first born is). So for example my mom's name would be Mama Ben. That's all everyone would have called her for the rest of her life after I was born. Fathers can be similar only using "Baba" instead of Mama.
Also, you can always just call someone kaka(brother), dada(sister), mama, baba, bibi(grandma), mzee(old man)--even if they are strangers.
For my name, Grace is funny but my first name is hard for them too. I'm not sure why, but many people don't understand Ben, so I oftentimes just say Benjamin. However, now many people just call be "Benja" haha. Oh well, as long as I know they're talking to me!
My name is very funny to most people here, because your last name is supposed to be the first name of your father. They can't understand why Grace is my father's name and there are always laughs when I introduce myself. The concept of a surname/family name doesn't exist here, so it's difficult to explain.
If you're a mother, you are called Mama ____(whatever the first name of your first born is). So for example my mom's name would be Mama Ben. That's all everyone would have called her for the rest of her life after I was born. Fathers can be similar only using "Baba" instead of Mama.
Also, you can always just call someone kaka(brother), dada(sister), mama, baba, bibi(grandma), mzee(old man)--even if they are strangers.
For my name, Grace is funny but my first name is hard for them too. I'm not sure why, but many people don't understand Ben, so I oftentimes just say Benjamin. However, now many people just call be "Benja" haha. Oh well, as long as I know they're talking to me!
Home Visit
Hello from TZ!
To begin I'd just like to assure you all that things have calmed down a bit at Shaloom this week. They're working on the money issues, and everyone is gearing up for our youth talent show next weekend. It will be a big fund raising event for the organization, as well as a chance for Shaloom's youth to display some of their talents and have fun.
This past week I tagged along on my first home visit. Shaloom does home visits sometimes when a client is unable to travel to see us either due to financial or medical issues. The purpose of the visit is to check in with the client and make sure they are coming along okay with their day-to-day lives. So I went with some of the staff to a house (it was actually a hut) that was a good distance away on Tuesday. The client was the father of the house, but there was also a wife and seven children. When they interviewed the man, I learned about his case history and it was really quite sad. He found out that he had HIV about two years ago after he had been sleeping with a mistress. He then proceeded to transmit the virus to his wife, who in turn gave it to their youngest child during pregnancy. She's also pregnant again right now, but is taking the drugs that help to prevent mother to child transmission.
It's very common for men to cheat on their wives here, but the difference from back home is that they rarely ever separate as a result. I'm finding out that women and children especially are not treated very well here. In talking with school children and teachers I have learned that children are still beaten horribly in school. Not just with hands mind you, but with sticks or belts. They can be beaten for being late to class, distrupting class, or even failing an exam. The children were shocked when they asked me and found out that children are not beaten in school in the U.S. However, that wasn't the saddest thing that the children were shocked to learn about our culture. They couldn't believe that men could go to prison for beating women or raping them. This happens here, and most people can't imagine it being against the law. Coming from a different culture and hearing this makes you sad and angry, but there's not a lot that anyone like me can do about it. I just hope that over time this improves. Fortunately, women are making some strides in areas like employment, where more and more women are getting jobs instead of working at home all the time.
But please don't think that all Tanzanians do these things. It would be completely wrong to stereotype the whole culture and imagine that they are always raping or beating each other. Many husbands and wives still have loving relationships, and teachers and parents still love their children. It's just that things like that tend to stick out in your mind, because it is such a culture clash. In fact, in many ways their family ties are much stronger than those in other countries. Each household is a very tight group with many extended family members living under one rough or on the same street. It is very common for parents, children, aunts/uncles, cousins, and grandparents to all live together and share responsiblities. The concept of the "immediate family" doesn't really exist, because they envision all of their extended family members to be apart of their so-called immediate family. They share money, food, shelter, and company every day. Here, the families and neighbors look out for one another day in and day out.
Therefore, I guess I'm learning that there are some ideas that can be borrowed from this culture, and things I'd like to change. But it's still a learning experience every day for me, and I'm continuing to understand a little more all the time.
-Ben
To begin I'd just like to assure you all that things have calmed down a bit at Shaloom this week. They're working on the money issues, and everyone is gearing up for our youth talent show next weekend. It will be a big fund raising event for the organization, as well as a chance for Shaloom's youth to display some of their talents and have fun.
This past week I tagged along on my first home visit. Shaloom does home visits sometimes when a client is unable to travel to see us either due to financial or medical issues. The purpose of the visit is to check in with the client and make sure they are coming along okay with their day-to-day lives. So I went with some of the staff to a house (it was actually a hut) that was a good distance away on Tuesday. The client was the father of the house, but there was also a wife and seven children. When they interviewed the man, I learned about his case history and it was really quite sad. He found out that he had HIV about two years ago after he had been sleeping with a mistress. He then proceeded to transmit the virus to his wife, who in turn gave it to their youngest child during pregnancy. She's also pregnant again right now, but is taking the drugs that help to prevent mother to child transmission.
It's very common for men to cheat on their wives here, but the difference from back home is that they rarely ever separate as a result. I'm finding out that women and children especially are not treated very well here. In talking with school children and teachers I have learned that children are still beaten horribly in school. Not just with hands mind you, but with sticks or belts. They can be beaten for being late to class, distrupting class, or even failing an exam. The children were shocked when they asked me and found out that children are not beaten in school in the U.S. However, that wasn't the saddest thing that the children were shocked to learn about our culture. They couldn't believe that men could go to prison for beating women or raping them. This happens here, and most people can't imagine it being against the law. Coming from a different culture and hearing this makes you sad and angry, but there's not a lot that anyone like me can do about it. I just hope that over time this improves. Fortunately, women are making some strides in areas like employment, where more and more women are getting jobs instead of working at home all the time.
But please don't think that all Tanzanians do these things. It would be completely wrong to stereotype the whole culture and imagine that they are always raping or beating each other. Many husbands and wives still have loving relationships, and teachers and parents still love their children. It's just that things like that tend to stick out in your mind, because it is such a culture clash. In fact, in many ways their family ties are much stronger than those in other countries. Each household is a very tight group with many extended family members living under one rough or on the same street. It is very common for parents, children, aunts/uncles, cousins, and grandparents to all live together and share responsiblities. The concept of the "immediate family" doesn't really exist, because they envision all of their extended family members to be apart of their so-called immediate family. They share money, food, shelter, and company every day. Here, the families and neighbors look out for one another day in and day out.
Therefore, I guess I'm learning that there are some ideas that can be borrowed from this culture, and things I'd like to change. But it's still a learning experience every day for me, and I'm continuing to understand a little more all the time.
-Ben
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Rough Week for Shaloom
My organization just had a bit of a hard week. It's nothing that's really affecting what I'm doing, but it's tough on the staff. The biggest overall problem continues to be lack of adequate financing. On Wednesday, it was time to distribute beans and soap to our HIV-positive clients for the month of June. Shaloom used to donate 4 kilos of beans and 1 bar of soap to each person. However, recent money problems have reduced that to 2 kilos of beans and only 1/2 a bar of soap. But this week was even worse because for some reason there was not even enough money to give soap. Therefore, people only received 2 kilos of beans for the entire month. It was sad to see how disappointed everyone was. In fact, some people were angry (only 2 people out of 250 said thank you when they got their beans). The other sad thing is that Shaloom has around 1000 clients but only 250 are enrolled in this beans/soap program. The finances are just not available, so hopefully this grant I'm writing will be accepted and they can start a more comprehensive nutrition program.
The money problems appear to date back several months--when there was a different care coordinator running the show. Since then, she's been fired and they now have a new coordinator and accountant. Nevertheless, they recently discovered that there was a $3000 withdrawl from the bank a few months ago and that money is still unaccounted for. Needless to say the benefactors from Europe are not pleased with this news and they want it resolved quickly. They've put a hold on the money they've donated until the whole thing is sorted out. In the meantime, it's hard on the staff at Shaloom. They were supposed to get their paychecks at the beginning of the month, but there's no money in the bank for that. Furthermore, there isn't even money to fill our vehicle up with gas, so some of the staff have to find other means of getting around. We're all hoping things get better soon, but in the meantime we're still carrying on as normal.
Other bits of bad news have to do with the health of some of my co-workers and their families. One staff member who works at our youth center had a bad week because his pregnant wife has been sick with malaria. She was three months pregnant and unfortunately lost the baby this week because of the malaria. Also, our care coordinator's roommate (who helped pick me up from the airport) fainted in his home early in the week. They're not sure what caused him to faint, but he hit his head really hard and had to be taken to the hospital. He's still not feeling better and they're not sure what's wrong. The doctors want to do a CT scan, but the one that they have in Mwanza is currently broken so now he needs to get to Dar es Salaam or Nairobi. It's definitely not easy being sick here.
But with all of that not-so-good news I can reassure you that I am doing just fine. I'm writing my grant and still helping out around Shaloom with whatever I can. Plus, I ventured over to the Chinese restaurant in town yesterday and had a really tasty lunch. Once again my stomach was happy to have something other than Tanzanian food. Tonight I'm going over to a Canadian couple's home for dinner, so I'll probably have another good meal today. :)
I'm wishing everyone is doing well back home! Take care!
-Ben
The money problems appear to date back several months--when there was a different care coordinator running the show. Since then, she's been fired and they now have a new coordinator and accountant. Nevertheless, they recently discovered that there was a $3000 withdrawl from the bank a few months ago and that money is still unaccounted for. Needless to say the benefactors from Europe are not pleased with this news and they want it resolved quickly. They've put a hold on the money they've donated until the whole thing is sorted out. In the meantime, it's hard on the staff at Shaloom. They were supposed to get their paychecks at the beginning of the month, but there's no money in the bank for that. Furthermore, there isn't even money to fill our vehicle up with gas, so some of the staff have to find other means of getting around. We're all hoping things get better soon, but in the meantime we're still carrying on as normal.
Other bits of bad news have to do with the health of some of my co-workers and their families. One staff member who works at our youth center had a bad week because his pregnant wife has been sick with malaria. She was three months pregnant and unfortunately lost the baby this week because of the malaria. Also, our care coordinator's roommate (who helped pick me up from the airport) fainted in his home early in the week. They're not sure what caused him to faint, but he hit his head really hard and had to be taken to the hospital. He's still not feeling better and they're not sure what's wrong. The doctors want to do a CT scan, but the one that they have in Mwanza is currently broken so now he needs to get to Dar es Salaam or Nairobi. It's definitely not easy being sick here.
But with all of that not-so-good news I can reassure you that I am doing just fine. I'm writing my grant and still helping out around Shaloom with whatever I can. Plus, I ventured over to the Chinese restaurant in town yesterday and had a really tasty lunch. Once again my stomach was happy to have something other than Tanzanian food. Tonight I'm going over to a Canadian couple's home for dinner, so I'll probably have another good meal today. :)
I'm wishing everyone is doing well back home! Take care!
-Ben
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Bongo Starsearch
I thought I'd share just a short story about this television show here called Bongo Starsearch. I saw part of it last week and it was really quite funny. The show is Tanzania's version of American Idol. The similarities are crazy...the format is the same with the judges traveling city to city looking for talent to come to the capital and compete against eachother. Even the judges themselves resemble the three judges from the American show. Two men, one woman, and they all have the same personalities as Randy, Paula, and Simon. The episode I saw was interesting because they were holding auditions here in Mwanza. There seemed to be a rather long line of people hoping to get a chance at trying out.
However, looking into it further, I asked some of my co-workers about the show and many of them said they didn't care for it. I guess the manner in which the judges behave towards the contestants is considered too impolite for most Tanzanians. They don't like seeing people be put-down by judges like that, and therefore the show isn't as popular as some might think.
And no, I didn't try out for the competition :)
However, looking into it further, I asked some of my co-workers about the show and many of them said they didn't care for it. I guess the manner in which the judges behave towards the contestants is considered too impolite for most Tanzanians. They don't like seeing people be put-down by judges like that, and therefore the show isn't as popular as some might think.
And no, I didn't try out for the competition :)
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Freedom Day
Habari za wikendi? (how's your weekend going)
My internship is going well so far. It's fairly hectic getting used to how the organization operates, but I'm finding my place in it all. I'm still producing health education materials, but I'm also working on writing a grant now. We're applying for funding through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to pay for a proposed nutritional program for PLWHA (ppl living with HIV/AIDS). They receive free ARVs from Shaloom, but many of them are not getting good, nutritious food every day either because they can't afford it or it is not accessible. So we're trying to start a program that is similar to a soup kitchen model. It would help PLWHA get a free nutritious meal once a day M-F. I'll keep you updated on how that's going.
In other news, it was Freedom Day yesterday. It wasn't their independence day but the concept is similar. It is a showing of solidarity where many people come to celebrate and fight against things like corruption. They celebrate this by launching a long three month torch relay--it's just like the olympic torch relay only it's run throughout Tanzania. Yesterday, the torch was lit in Mwanza and started its journey. There was a huge gathering for this at the soccer stadium. There was singing, dancing, performing, ect., and I ended up being out in the sun for far too long (got a little sun burn for sure :) It was a good experience overall and a happy celebration.
Today, I'm happy because I bought a pizza for myself at a restaurant downtown. Since I've arrived here, I've only been eating Tanzanian food, and I've been getting tired of the same thing all the time. They normally eat the same thing everyday. Always rice, beans, or ugali (maize and cassava flour mixed with water into a porridge). Then they have cooked bananas put into a kind of stew with vegetables. They aren't plantains or the bananas you're used to, but similar to plantains more than anything. For meats, they somtimes have fried chicken, fish, beef, goat, and last night I had chicken livers. So after eating that same food twice a day, everyday for 2-3 weeks, I was very happy to have a pizza, yum.
That's about it for now. Hope everyone is enjoying their summers!
Until next time,
-Ben
My internship is going well so far. It's fairly hectic getting used to how the organization operates, but I'm finding my place in it all. I'm still producing health education materials, but I'm also working on writing a grant now. We're applying for funding through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to pay for a proposed nutritional program for PLWHA (ppl living with HIV/AIDS). They receive free ARVs from Shaloom, but many of them are not getting good, nutritious food every day either because they can't afford it or it is not accessible. So we're trying to start a program that is similar to a soup kitchen model. It would help PLWHA get a free nutritious meal once a day M-F. I'll keep you updated on how that's going.
In other news, it was Freedom Day yesterday. It wasn't their independence day but the concept is similar. It is a showing of solidarity where many people come to celebrate and fight against things like corruption. They celebrate this by launching a long three month torch relay--it's just like the olympic torch relay only it's run throughout Tanzania. Yesterday, the torch was lit in Mwanza and started its journey. There was a huge gathering for this at the soccer stadium. There was singing, dancing, performing, ect., and I ended up being out in the sun for far too long (got a little sun burn for sure :) It was a good experience overall and a happy celebration.
Today, I'm happy because I bought a pizza for myself at a restaurant downtown. Since I've arrived here, I've only been eating Tanzanian food, and I've been getting tired of the same thing all the time. They normally eat the same thing everyday. Always rice, beans, or ugali (maize and cassava flour mixed with water into a porridge). Then they have cooked bananas put into a kind of stew with vegetables. They aren't plantains or the bananas you're used to, but similar to plantains more than anything. For meats, they somtimes have fried chicken, fish, beef, goat, and last night I had chicken livers. So after eating that same food twice a day, everyday for 2-3 weeks, I was very happy to have a pizza, yum.
That's about it for now. Hope everyone is enjoying their summers!
Until next time,
-Ben
Friday, May 22, 2009
Karibu Mwanza! (welcome to mwanza)
Hey Hey Hey!
I finally made it back to the internet cafe. I'll probably only be able to post on the weekends, because the internet is too slow and frustrating for me to deal with it everyday. I guess I'm just too used to having high-speed back in the states. Anyhow, let me tell you a little bit about Mwanza...
Mwanza is in the NW region of Tanzania situated right on the shore of Lake Victoria (the world's 2nd largest freshwater lake). It's the country's second largest city with a population of at least 500,000 but it's really hard to get an accurate estimate. Some people think there could be well over 1 million people living in the area, and I'd believe them. Even since the last time I was here in 2007, Mwanza has grown rapidly. I can't believe the hoards of people everywhere and constant vehicle congestion. Most of the main roads in the city center are paved, but the majority of the side roads are your worst nightmare. I can't imagine trying to drive in the city here (plus they drive on the left side of the road...silly british).
I'm working at Shaloom Care House, which is run by the Archdiocese of Mwanza Health Dept. Shaloom is an organization for HIV/AIDS only--the rest of the health dept deals with other health areas. Shaloom provides free HIV tests, as well as a variety of other services for HIV-positive persons. They provide free ARV drugs to those who can't afford them, and there is a doctor that is at shaloom on tuesdays and fridays that many people line up to see (but only if they are registered HIV-positive by shaloom). They also have free counseling services and support groups to reduce the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS. For children who are orphans because of AIDS, shaloom will pay their school fees, purchase their school uniforms, and give them money for some food and supplies (beans and soap on a monthly basis).
However, when I arrived here I was surprised to learn that Shaloom has almost no prevention/education program for those in the community who are not HIV-positive. So, I've been making educational brochures with information regarding what HIV is and how it's transmitted. Also, I'm working on some materials dealing with common HIV myths and FAQs. Hopefully, we will hand these materials out to youth at our next community event--a talent show in June. I'll keep you posted with my progress at work, but so far my co-workers have been very nice to me. They're bearing with me as I struggle to pick up Swahili, and luckily some of them know a little bit of english.
So, until next time, take care!
-Ben
I finally made it back to the internet cafe. I'll probably only be able to post on the weekends, because the internet is too slow and frustrating for me to deal with it everyday. I guess I'm just too used to having high-speed back in the states. Anyhow, let me tell you a little bit about Mwanza...
Mwanza is in the NW region of Tanzania situated right on the shore of Lake Victoria (the world's 2nd largest freshwater lake). It's the country's second largest city with a population of at least 500,000 but it's really hard to get an accurate estimate. Some people think there could be well over 1 million people living in the area, and I'd believe them. Even since the last time I was here in 2007, Mwanza has grown rapidly. I can't believe the hoards of people everywhere and constant vehicle congestion. Most of the main roads in the city center are paved, but the majority of the side roads are your worst nightmare. I can't imagine trying to drive in the city here (plus they drive on the left side of the road...silly british).
I'm working at Shaloom Care House, which is run by the Archdiocese of Mwanza Health Dept. Shaloom is an organization for HIV/AIDS only--the rest of the health dept deals with other health areas. Shaloom provides free HIV tests, as well as a variety of other services for HIV-positive persons. They provide free ARV drugs to those who can't afford them, and there is a doctor that is at shaloom on tuesdays and fridays that many people line up to see (but only if they are registered HIV-positive by shaloom). They also have free counseling services and support groups to reduce the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS. For children who are orphans because of AIDS, shaloom will pay their school fees, purchase their school uniforms, and give them money for some food and supplies (beans and soap on a monthly basis).
However, when I arrived here I was surprised to learn that Shaloom has almost no prevention/education program for those in the community who are not HIV-positive. So, I've been making educational brochures with information regarding what HIV is and how it's transmitted. Also, I'm working on some materials dealing with common HIV myths and FAQs. Hopefully, we will hand these materials out to youth at our next community event--a talent show in June. I'll keep you posted with my progress at work, but so far my co-workers have been very nice to me. They're bearing with me as I struggle to pick up Swahili, and luckily some of them know a little bit of english.
So, until next time, take care!
-Ben
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Long Travels!
Hello from Tanzania!
After a long journey I am in Mwanza at last. I need to be brief because this computer is horrible and my internet time is already running out, but here's a quick rundown of everything so far...
Drove 5 hours to Chicago to fly out on Tuesday night, then had a 7 and 1/2 hour flight to London (which I got exit row leg room for!), then I had to wait in Heathrow for 10 hours before my flight out to Dar es Salaam. I would have done some shopping or something in Heathrow but I only saw high end stores like dior, gucchi, tiffany & co, dolce, etc. My flight to Dar was 9 and 1/2 hours long and again I was lucky becuase no one was sitting next to me. If you can actually imagine this, I layed down in the fetal position on my two seats...yes, that's all 6 foot 3 of me laying down on two airplane seats. Needless to say it wasn't very comfortable :).
Once in Dar, I took a taxi to the Kurasini Centre, a church run hostel, and rested until the next day. Then I flew out to Mwanza just yesterday and am finally overcoming my jet lag. I'm staying at St. Dominick's Pastoral Centre (which is just a long name for a hostel). It is an enclosed compound with gates and guards and my room is self-contained with a bathroom. They even prepare three meals a day here in the cafeteria and they only cost $2, so that's quite the deal because I don't even have to shop or cook! I'm just resting today and tomorrow, but on Monday I will begin working at Shaloom Care House, which is an organization dealing mostly with HIV/AIDS education for the community.
I wish I could tell you more, but I'm quickly running out of time on this stone age computer. I'll try and get back here to the internet cafe tomorrow and tell you all a little bit about Mwanza. Until then, take care! I miss you all!
-Ben
After a long journey I am in Mwanza at last. I need to be brief because this computer is horrible and my internet time is already running out, but here's a quick rundown of everything so far...
Drove 5 hours to Chicago to fly out on Tuesday night, then had a 7 and 1/2 hour flight to London (which I got exit row leg room for!), then I had to wait in Heathrow for 10 hours before my flight out to Dar es Salaam. I would have done some shopping or something in Heathrow but I only saw high end stores like dior, gucchi, tiffany & co, dolce, etc. My flight to Dar was 9 and 1/2 hours long and again I was lucky becuase no one was sitting next to me. If you can actually imagine this, I layed down in the fetal position on my two seats...yes, that's all 6 foot 3 of me laying down on two airplane seats. Needless to say it wasn't very comfortable :).
Once in Dar, I took a taxi to the Kurasini Centre, a church run hostel, and rested until the next day. Then I flew out to Mwanza just yesterday and am finally overcoming my jet lag. I'm staying at St. Dominick's Pastoral Centre (which is just a long name for a hostel). It is an enclosed compound with gates and guards and my room is self-contained with a bathroom. They even prepare three meals a day here in the cafeteria and they only cost $2, so that's quite the deal because I don't even have to shop or cook! I'm just resting today and tomorrow, but on Monday I will begin working at Shaloom Care House, which is an organization dealing mostly with HIV/AIDS education for the community.
I wish I could tell you more, but I'm quickly running out of time on this stone age computer. I'll try and get back here to the internet cafe tomorrow and tell you all a little bit about Mwanza. Until then, take care! I miss you all!
-Ben
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