Ramblings about my new site

I’m just gonna pick up where I left off….so my new site’s not too shabby. The village is definitely bigger than my last one which is cool cause it means I can buy more things in the vill instead of having to haul them in from town. It’s definitely still got that village feel though, in that everyone knows everyone else, feeds each other’s kids, and gossips on a scale that would make American high schools look like nunneries.

The area is really pretty. I’m right at the base of Mt Hanang, which is Tanzania’s third highest peak and a (hopefully) dormant volcano. And the village is situated right next to a saltwater lake and some wetland-esque areas that I still haven’t properly explored yet. Bado kidogo. People tell me that you can’t swim in the lake with the rational ironically being that it’s too muddy that you’ll sink. This is usually accompanied by some wide-eyes and very serious head shaking. But I’ll probably still try once the weather warms up (its rainy season right now – more on that later). So yes, lake very scenic. And it means that getting water is no longer a huge problem like it was in Singida, in fact there’s a bomba (essentially a spicket like you’d have at a campsite) right on my school campus. Unfortunately the water is salty and not very fun to drink, but the locals swear I’ll get used to it. I’m skeptical about that one, but we’ll see.
Anyways, I’ve got a front porch from where I can see Mt Hanang in one direction (well, when it’s not trying to be all mysterious and hiding behind clouds, that is), the lake and wetlands in the opposite direction, and then nothing but lush green rolling hills everywhere else. Spoiled, no?

The people here are mainly from either the Barabaig or Iraqw tribes. Both still pretty much keep to their traditional lifestyle and the cultures are very….how can I describe it…colorful, to say the least. They’re pastoralists, so they raise livestock and are always herding them around in search of greener pastures, so to speak. I don’t think I’ve ever once travelled the 15km or so journey from my village to Katesh without having to wait for a herd of cattle or goats or sheep or donkeys to get out of the road. But hey there’s no rush when you’re on African time (did I mention those 15 km takes over an hour?). So yes, the people are pretty traditional, and because of this, it means a lot of them haven’t travelled very far from the village. And since I’m the first Peace Corps volunteer here, they pretty much have no idea what to make of me. I’ve got plenty of work ahead of me in terms of integrating into this community.

All in all, while I miss my old village and the people there, I find that there’s something irresistibly exciting about discovering a new place. Here goes nothing.
OH, I recently received two AMAZING packages! A huge thanks to my Uncle Carlo and Aunt Sandy and to my Dad for thinking of me and sending me lots of goodies.


“Everyone is just a stranger, but that’s the danger, in going my own way….Guess it’s the price I have to pay”

Ramblings about my lack of Rambling

My it has been forever since I’ve updated this thing. Pole sana! (Very sorry in Swahili). I hope everyone had a happy holiday season! So much has happened since I last wrote that it’s a bit overwhelming, and I’ll prob have to catch y’all up over several entries. So let’s dive in shall we?

Soo I think the first big piece of news is that I moved! Now usually I’m all about embracing new things, but I’ll admit that I was less than thrilled to receive the news that I’d be transferring sites. The reasons for this are (in true Tanzanian style) anything but simple, and could easily eat up all of my precious time at the internet café. The short version is that a new headmaster came to my school and he needed my house for himself and his family. The longer version involves some factors that have become known since Peace Corps placed me that make them (and me too if I force myself to think about it with my head and not my heart) want to keep me out of the situation. That’s not to say I didn’t kick and scream (in a mature and culturally appropriate way, of course) at the decision. Most of you know what a pain in the ass I can be. But it’s amazing how attached I’d become to my school and village after only two and a half months there.

So where am I now? It’s a village outside of Katesh, which is a teeny tiny town that’s only about an hour and a half drive north-east of Singida town. In the scheme of things, it’s really not that far. But a new village, a new set of students, a new local language, a new banking town, a new set of routines and norms to learn… it might as well be the other side of the country.
So it goes.


“I’m getting tired of starting again, somewhere new.”