The week of Rain in Moshi

Shamba near our House

Our muddy Road

Because it has not rained in many weeks in Moshi, this week and the rain every day has been greeted with cheers and delight.   People are out with hoes trudging around in the mud and finding every available spot to drop a few seeds.  In only a few days the weather has changed drastically.  Instead of Hot dry weather, we now have very muggy, hot in the day and very cool at night weather. From the times when we were running in the morning through the shambas  (planting spaces/small farms) and being covered with dust, we are now covered with mud and have to be extraordinarily careful about where we step or even if we go in the shambas at all.  One missed step and you are down.  The mud is unforgiving.  On the other hand, it does help you grow tall and for me that is always a sort of fun thing. 

Shoes after kicking off excess mud

Happy little girl and mud!

Despite the terrific mud, the fields are full of people calling out “Shikamoo Mama” and “Mazoezi nzuri” (I kiss your feet (literally) Mama, and Exercise Good!) I call back, “Marahaba Dada au Kaka” (Don’t bother {to kiss my feet} sister or brother) and “ Asante sana, mimi ni mzee sana” (thanks very much I am very old)  We carry on happy conversations from there and by the time I get back covered in mud to the compound gate I have a whole group of new friends. 

The rains have brought little shoots of corn up, and have also brought down trees and power lines.  The rains have created terrific potholes in the shoddy tarmac roads where corners are cut and corruption is evident in the terrible materials used to pave our roads. 

The rains brought a little frog into the toilet. Heart attack!

Only one example of power lines and trees and branches down

Cute little corn among the dirt

Rain catchers in the road!

Pretty Road to KCMC becomes an obstacle course with potholes everywhere

John and I celebrated our 21^st anniversary, and I tried to teach our waitress how to push down the button on the camera. We had a fabulous lunch in Sanya Juu with our friends the Mlays who coincidently are involved with the Duke Divinity School. (Chrissy eat your heart out with the plantains!).

Wilfred and John in Sanya Juu

At the table with Faith and Wilfred in Sanya Juu

Pretty curios

Anniversary dinner and me focusing on teaching the waitress to push the button DOWN!

Wilfred and delicious plantains

We celebrated Palm Sunday and I played my second alto recorder solo in a row.  Obviously not complicated music but just the same, alone!  And, this afternoon I walked under the avocado tree and reveled in the bounty.  

Avocados loading down the tree

Sadly, we won’t be here when they start to fall, but hopefully all the A-5 residents (Chrissy?) through the rest of the spring and summer will eat to their hearts content with everything.

The week will be busy with Easter coming up on Sunday, and only 3 more days in Moshi after that.  Hard to think about….

Moshi Week 8

Moshi Week 8 -What is a Hash?

The week has been interesting hot and as usual with ups and downs.  The downs:  John had to return to the US for a 6-day adventure with two meetings.  Fortunately, the meetings went well, and he was able to stay in one hotel in Washington in an area that we love, and also to see his brother, sister and family.  Really nice, even though he had just come back from a week in Atlanta and was “all done in” as we say in the South.  It will be wonderful to see him shortly as he has just texted that he has landed in Kilimanjaro and is on his way home.

 

That being said, I had a great week with the lovely Malcolm and Lyn, and said a fond farewell to Peyton (or an until we meet again).  Peyton was a trusted companion while John was traveling everywhere and a true gentleman in helping in any way he could during this time.  Malcolm and Lyn were great fun, and all of us enjoyed the Daily news article about the Tanzanian twins who traveled to Mars, returned and shortly after performed 8 surgeries in one day at an Arusha hospital and the very same day moved on to Moshi to perform one 8 hour brain Neurosurgery at KCMC, and then traveled to meet with the President of Tanzania to discuss their impending trip to the USA to study at Harvard.  We have been waiting with bated breath for pictures and a follow-up, which they reported was top secret but an update would happen after the meeting with President Kikwete. Sad to say, no news at this time, but will report back when I find anything.  Of course, if it is printed in a newspaper, it must be true. Right?

Agnes after being selected to represent the Clinical Scientific Subcommittee

I had a wonderful time meeting with some of our Moshi CAB members who have traveled, and we have had a time to talk about what they have learned and what they hope to learn.  Sweet Agnes M. is so excited about her trip to the US and about becoming involved in the “women’s health initiative”.  She is really pumped up and excited. I love her enthusiasm.  And she left shortly after the marathon and just jumped into Atlanta.  YEA Moshi CAB.

I wanted to put some pictures about today’s hash, because I handed my camera over to a great friend Elsa.  Now, Elsa is someone who has been really around the world. (Meaning from one side (Aussie) to US to Africa) and has many stories to tell and lessons to share.  She is one of those people who is incredibly fit, has been in really awful situations and made the best of them, and always seems to have a smile on her face and a “charge on” mentality”. My goodness, thank you for that Elsa! And no picture, but I will make sure that the next week will have one! So…the nice thing about walking is that you can carry a camera, and you can take random pictures.  I was thinking about walking just so I could take some, but then my desire to get my exercise got away from me and over went my camera.

A short thought about running or walking

Chat with friends before hash

just about to set off!

For those who have not “hashed”: This involves a “hare”. This hare of course volunteers not only to set the “hash” but to provide bites and beer (and sodas as well in our case) at the end of the road.   

Bob, the penultimate hare, figures he has set 16 hashes at least.

We all pay Tsh 5000 for all we can eat bites and as many beers as we feel we can safely manage and drive down dirt, turny roads onto treacherous Tanzanian highways nearly after dark or just after dark, and not have to stop to pee.  That is the hash in a nutshell.  The nuts and bolds however include the “hair” setting a path with flour. 

Flour on the Machame trail

 Luckily for us, these are usually in beautiful areas of hills and valleys around Kilimanjaro (the mountain).  You set it with four, dots here and there until you decide to frustrate everyone with a big flour X.   

At that point, everyone (or the runners) fan out and look for more flour.  This is approximately 50 meters. Sometimes if you are wicked, you set false trails, which means that you pick up a trail after a cross, follow it and come to a big F.  Then you have to turn around and go back to the cross and then start looking for flour again!  You almost always have water to cross, either on rickety bridges, or in water or on stones.  My own stone hopping is no longer safe and unless they are very close, I am an “in water crosser”. 

Stone leaping or in water crossing?  I am in, so was my friend Jean

Significant hashes get their numbers.  We are now at 265!

You also frequently go up and down incredible hills and valleys, mostly hanging on to what ever you can find, and even sometimes resorting to sitting down and sliding.  There are many running pants I own that have been torn out by just sitting and sliding when the steep was too great.

A welcome to Machame, and buy your Zantel internet stick

Young hasher

Beautiful flower

Rickety bridge crossing

Beautiful Deadly Nightshade blooms all around water

walking hashers

oops a chicken hashing

what you see hashing, interesting houses

Old Lutheran lodges, no longer used(or ever?)

A big UP

A southern US ex-pat with a sense of humor

The down must happen

Eventually you find your way to the end.  That is unless you become hopelessly lost, your Kiswahili isn’t good enough to find the path, and/or the local wonderful folks think this is a big joke and give you the wrong directions.  Thank goodness I have never been in that group, but it is a bit scary as the sun sets in this beautiful area.

I started “running” hashes not quite 2 years ago, and I find that though I don’t take pictures, I much prefer it.  It is really hard and scary. I still climb up and skate down holding on.  No running, and no running on rocks, through water…but on the paths and the more or less level ground, it is so much fun.  Boys and girls start laughing at this old lady and running with me shouting “pole Pole (slowly slowly) , mamas shout (to my Pole or Poleni (sorry sorry to you all) Na we we pia and oh mama, unachoka sana (you are very tired {because I am very red} and we all laugh. Some of us fairer mzungu (white) women turn red within 5 minutes and that is that.

At the end is beer, wonderful chats, and the feeling that you belong.  So, welcome back John, Nearly 21 years of marriage! Happy Birthday Isaiah, Ella and Lexton, and Go Blue Devils (hang in there after the loss).  

At the end, good company beer, chips and chatting.

Maintaining Momentum in Moshi

The past 10 days have been packed with activity in Moshi and at A-5.  John flew to the US for two meetings in Atlanta the night of the marathon.  It was pretty crazy and would have been horrible except that the manager at the airport managed to get him a comfort economy seat amidst the crowded plane, and he was upgraded flying over the ocean to Atlanta.  He returned for exactly 36 hours. His luggage did not arrive until the morning he was flying back to the US, and his dirty clothes had to be washed, dried and ironed before he left.  Sadly, the power went out and remained out until just before he left!  So solemnly I carried the ironing board and the clothes up 4 long flights of stairs to the Mepi office to iron them and get them packed while he was connected to conference calls right up to the moment he left.

I carried the ironing board all the way to the top

Charlie on his perch

The rainy season seems to have arrived with rain for the last 3 days.  This makes running interesting, and very muggy.  My rooster, Charlie seems to have found the way to deal with the wet and mugginess but learning to fly to the top of the coup.  The first time he did it, we all cheered, and now he loves to look down from his new little perch and revel in his girls.  

We got a new carving from Lawi, the Rasta lady who guards our house.  She is fierce!

Peyton, Malcolm, Lyn & John after one gin & tonic

We have had our friend Peyton who has been with us for the past month.  Sadly, he leaves tonight and will leave a big hole in the OB/GYN training program.  We look forward to his return soon.  We also added another great couple to the A-5 crowd, Malcolm and his wife Lyn.  They are tons of fun and the time has not been dull here in Moshi.  Malcolm and John trained together so it was a happy reunion.

The post-marathon party apparently went on and on and Jan and Alex who celebrated their birthdays at the party, were jolly before John had to extract Jan to fly to the states.  

Tobias (our KCMC PT director) Tina (fellow choir member)

Jan and Alex celebrate birthdays

Andrew...always enjoys Moshi!

Nikoli ran the half marathon

Jan's askari and his new taxi!

Now we find the time flying as we prepare ourselves for the next weeks ahead.  Hopefully John’s trip to the states will be filled with adventure and praise for our project, and we can move forward to the next project at hand.  So Mama Mzungu is holding house and hearth together.

Trish at Mama Mzungu Bar

Marathon Weekend! All continent time

The night before marathon. Double Rainbow...good omen

This week is the week of weeks.  The Kilimanjaro Marathon has occurred for the past 11 years.  It is an all continents marathon so those insane people who love to run marathons, come here to complete the continent tour.  It is probably helpful to the Kenyans that we are so close, as they always win.  The Marathon is an amazing weekend.  People are arriving in our small town by Friday, and wandering around, mostly confused, but when you are in a small town, confusion is not so bad, because everyone is willing to help for a few shillings.  For those of us who are living here, we stay out of town as much as possible.  But, we register, and we love it.

This year's marathon was great because John was feeling his fitness, and thankfully his knees held up.  Our sweet neighbors turned out, and Matt who is one or two or 20 years younger than John ran as well and they had been training together.  He ran half marathon race in 1 hr. 26 min (I think)  very fast for sure.  His adorable children and wife were there to cheer him on.  John ran in 2 hr. 2 minutes (2nd best for him) and I ran the 5K in 30 min.  We were all happy.  You have to understand that these races involve a lot of uphill /up mountain runs.  For the half marathoners, they run the first 10.5 entirely up the Kilimanjaro mountain on the Mweka side.  It is so bad that almost all of them declare in the first 1 Km that they cannot do it.  What makes them consider to keep going is unknown to me since the 5 K route is mostly just prevent a trample from the other 3,000 of your best friends.

We finish with the beautiful Kilimanjaro mountain behind us

John waiting for his time

ACTG, beware....John and Agnes rock!!!

Greg, John Jan Trish Bob Matt and a few kids

Mat, Jess and their very cute kids!

5 K end and some Moshi CAB folks...yea

Double rainbow was really last night but who cares!

Showing my fitness at the end!  Ha ha.  but it felt great.

So the good times were indeed great! Another year past.  I mostly was so proud of my 19 CAB members who did the 5K.  Most of them had not thought about this before and yet they all did it.  I have this picture of some of them.  What a wonderful weekend. 

All 19 participated, but I could only find 11 to get together (my fault!)