Christmas in North Carolina

Christmas this year was marked by the death of a great lady. John's mom died after several years of declining health, years that were very hard for this once active, smart, determined and energetic lady. The whole family assembled in Washington and celebrated her life with a post Christmas funeral. All the grandchildren were present and had some part in the service. It seems wrong that the deceased person is not present for the kind words spoken, the beautiful music sung, and the memories bandied around. My mother-in-law would have had many comments about them all. So, though the recollection of Christmas 2011 will always be, "when Nancy/mom/Nana died" the other traditional things created their own memories.

Brother/Uncle/Grandpa Jim Watson's annual Christmas concert at the Cave was once again a highlight. Kids drove all night to get to the concert in time. This year, someone decided to tape it, and unbeknownst to Jim, to video tape it. Though the equipment was odd, and problems with the microphone continued as the breeze blew from the one little window to give any breath of fresh air and apparently distorted said mic, the concert was as good as it always is. Jim's voice doesn't seem to change much from year to year, and the amazing thing is that you look forward to your favorite songs, and have just a little anxiety as he works his way through his list and you haven't heard "your song" yet. The Cave is so packed that you can barely push your way to the bar. Somehow you do, but for better or worse for the Cave, alcohol isn't a requirement of this evening, and even young kids have been permitted to attend, my own starting at a very young age.

This year my godson Geof joined Chrissy and Katrina. It was great to see him and they had a good time catching up.

Not satisfiied with taking pictures of others, Chrissy and Katrina chose to take pictures of themselves!

Annual Christmas Cookie baking consumed the next morning. I as official mother had made only four batches of cookies this year, but it still took 3.5 hours to decorate, cut, and bake all of them. Ella found that it was most fun to dump partial jars of sprinkles on one cookie and to smear frosting. Not surprising. She even joined me in rolling out the dough, though the look of the dough had a distinctive quality to it once her dirty little hands wrapped themselves around the dough balls, and her wild curly hair draped into the rolling pin, and the amount of flour she generously sprinkled on the dough caused great crumbles.

Christmas Day was replete with gift giving, and carrying on about winning gifts, strangest gifts, most creative gifts, and a bit of Grandma Bartlett's eggnog.

The required family picture brought groans, but goodnatured assembly of what I think is a beautiful group. I cannot be prouder!

Christmas night brings a hoard of family, food, and other such delicious items. It is nice to be near family, and best for John and me is that we were able to buy my parents house, so it is sort of by default the gathering place. Makes me very happy.

Kids are still kids

Who knows what I was running my mouth about?

John and "the brothers".

Kitty ever vigilant under the tree.

Isaiah hugging his cousins

Katrina teaching Ella what it means to wear KF pumps

Ella may be spinning at the end of a long evening

As it turns out, cigars have become a new tradition (go Cuba!)

After a hard night kitty and ngiri settle down

Now we are off again to the land of Kilimanjaro. Seems impossible that another Christmas has passed. Sigh

Lawi's work

 
 
 
 

The artist Lawi Moshi lives in Mamba near Marangu. He searches the forest for fallen wood and has some type of vision that allows him to see things in the pieces of wood that he finds. It is most remarkable. Currently, the family has purchased an amazing Makonde carving of Adam and Eve, a beautiful large warthog (ngiri), an amazing ostrich (mboni), two madonna and child statues, a heron, a guitar (to be strung and tuned in January), a marimba, a face of a man, a little bird breaking out of the egg. This man once had a place in a gallery and for one reason or another, as things tend to go, this place did not work out. His studio is his home, a simple place in Mamba, and he asks for nothing but for his work to be appreciated. We do! Amazing findings in the Kilimanjaro region do not fail to astound and touch me.

Moshi November 2011

Chrissy Come and Gone!

Returning to Moshi is generally easier than returning to the United States, and this time was no exception. What was different however was that I returned with my daughter (who has lived here for a total of 7 months previously) and two MEPI instructors. Thus, every day became packed! Our first Sunday included St. Margaret’s and a hash in Machame. It was as usual beautiful and confusing but allowed Chrissy a chance to catch up with old friends as well as to run in that beautiful countryside.
Our guests for MEPI Jane and Ed
Machame Hash
We did all “the needful” things like buying and registering sim cards, loading our voda sticks and making sure that the MEPI instructors got to the education building. We shopped for groceries and had the chance to have Chrissy see the good old reliable shop-keepers. We hauled clothes to KIWAKKUKI and the mamas and dadas danced and sang (thank you Sara) and we had the opportunity to walk around town to find needed things. We are now the proud owners of a fabulous ladder (ngazi) with which Pauli hung the new solar lights and cut down two trees that were hanging dangerously over the house and running their roots into the septic system.
Chrissy and Faradhja
The whole family
Nice Njuici in yard!
We had another trip to Arusha National Park, my recommendation for when you need any therapy. Carol rented a fabulous vehicle and all of us, Jane, Ed, Chrissy and I had a terrific day.
Carol Trish Jane Chrissy Ed
Zebra at Arusha
Giraffe
colobus monkeys
One of the most fun things that I did last year was to hunt out summer placements for Duke undergraduates. That hunting and visiting has led to some wonderful relationships with organizations about which I previously knew nothing. The new Visa fee may put a damper on students’ ability to come to Tanzania, but hopefully some students will want to try such groups as SUF in Shimbwe, Pamoja Tunaweza in Rau, Rafiki near Machame, and Mildmay in Moshi.
We definitely have a group coming to Mwika Uuo and their acceptance into the Duke Global Health Summer Projects allowed me to travel with Vera and Carol to Mwika Uuo again to meet with the house “Mama” Nancy, the chair of the board of directors for the dispensary and the school, and the Assistant Medical Officer in charge of Mwika Uuo Dispensary, Dr. Lymo. I definitely want the students to know how excited everyone is about their arrival. I think that they were a bit disappointed that they won’t be coming until June, as the school, mentor clubs and the dispensary staff are all excited about “Duke” students returning. We have an excellent reputation in this part of the countryside, which is actually heartwarming to me.
Mwika Market Day
Loliondo Sarari sign
There are many good stories that this two weeks has brought, but one of them definitely is the Loliondo story. I so wanted a picture of bus stand where cars or buses take people to Loliondo to get the magic cure (a cup of water boiled with the roots of the Maharagia Tree, given with a blessing by the “Baba” or Pastor Bob). Though this trek is less popular than it was before over 600 people had died there, a substantial number of people still make the long safari to Loliondo to be cured of whatever ails them. Carol stopped right in front of the sign and we asked 3 gentlemen to move so I could take the picture (piga picha). This request led to great excitement. One gentleman ran to the side of the car and began to talk very very fast. He explained that though this “Baba” did have a good potion for curing illnesses, that in fact, he also was a “Baba” doctor and he had an even better cure, especially for malaria and AIDS. In addition, he only lived around the corner so we could come right away to get the cure. Apparently he assumed that I (the “mzungu” -crazy white person) was in need of magic potion and planned to take the safari to Loliondo. In addition, we were in the project car, and he had been trying unsuccessfully to gain an audience at KCMC. Perhaps, if I just took his cure, that demonstration would put his potion on the books. I, of course, understood only a small amount of his eager discussion and actually thought that he was saying that either he had been cured of Malaria by the Baba, or that he currently had Malaria or TB and wanted a ride so that he wouldn’t have to wait. Carol, bless his heart, gave this gentleman his number in order that he could call to check on his appointment with the leadership of KCMC. As he walked away, both Carol and Vera burst into laughter and agreed that this was one of the funniest conversations they had ever heard or been a part of. I asked Carol what he intended to do when the new Baba called, and of course ever the gentleman himself, he answered that he would explain that KCMC was not yet involved in herbal medicine for cures and that perhaps he could find another hospital that would appreciate his cure (for everything). I felt quite enriched that just for a picture, we had this conversation.
Thanks to a wonderful member of our choir, I managed to find a carver in Marangu who does exquisite work with fallen wood that he finds in the National Forest. Our guests, Carol, Chrissy and I were completely entranced by Lawi, and spent one afternoon looking in his workshop, talking to his lovely family. We bought some very unique carvings, went to the Marangu Hotel for a snack, and had an amazing afternoon.
Lawi and his family with carvings

John returned to Moshi, and we prepared for Thanksgiving. The bittersweet time of a wonderful Thanksgiving was that our friend and colleague and his beautiful family, John, Jen and the boys, left for New Zealand after 9 years in Moshi and the project. They will be missed at the hospital and all over Moshi for nearly everyone in one way or another felt their presence.
JC walking home by way of the compound
Thanksgiving was amazing with old-fashioned turkey and many side dishes. Rose and Pauli cooked right alongside Chrissy and I and helped with the dinner, serving and clean-up. It was a fabulous night, which was closely followed by the Shira Hash on Saturday.
Freezing cold and wet and we had just started!

(Entrance to Kilimanjaro National Park from West Kilimanjaro)
West Kilimanjaro
Shira Plateau Hash for the Kilimanjaro “Hash House Harriers”, was a great hash, beautiful country side, and crowned with a freezing rain end. For veteran hashers, this is the best way to end a hash. For most of the rest of us, it was incredibly freezing and every 5 minutes the roads became worse and worse.
Greg pointing where we are going
(hashers) (Freezing & wet Chrissy and Jan, while freezing and wet Steven laughs)
John drove Greg and Terrie’s truck as if he had just left Rochester NY. We literally slid all the way down the road to the gate after we were done. Our usual beer and snacks didn’t happen until we re-located to the “Simba Farm”. The day was surreal because of all of the above- mentioned things. Good friends together, beautiful terrain, hard to follow flour spots and lots and lots of checks.
(Chrissy and cows at Simba Farm for bites)
(Children watching the cow train go by)
It also was Chrissy’s next to last day and tonight she leaves. This is hard for me because we have such a good time together, and I don’t see my girls as often as I would like. Africa does also seem to be in her blood; thus, I think it is a hard leaving for her. So, I hope that we will all have more opportunities to be together on this side of the world, but know that I will cherish these two weeks for a very long time to come.
(sad little African chickens all dolled up with no place to go!)

Where did the time go?

(chairperson and Board of KIWAKKUKI)
Wow time passes
Maybe the biggest thing is the KIWAKKUKI Annual General Meeting where I was the official photographer (thank goodness I had my SLR canon.) Amazing. There were over 400 people there and each one represented 10 persons in their home districts. What a testimonial to a great group.
(the MC, Aginatha, a long time KIWAKKUKI member who now runs her own women's NGO)
My favorite rock, Margaret. She said, "I started with KIWAKKUKI and I will die with KIWAKKUKI". what a lady You should see her dancing, and "Paka Chini" which means loosely to dance to the floor.
Dancing KIWAKKUKI staff
The Mwanga ladies are crazy about KIWAKKUKI
These singers and dancers from Moshi Urban were fabulous

I love Kilimanjaro. It has been very shiny lately
This post is going to be a mixture of one I intended to do on Sept 11th and today. My brain and too busy! It is now September 23rd instead of Sept. 11, and we are languishing in the Detroit airport after our travel agent screwed up our flight reservations yet again, and we were unable to get out on the earlier afternoon flight home. No luggage anyway, but exhausted in the airport. So, I reflect back on the blog that was never posted and try to decide—should I?
Neha and family before hiking the mountain. Neha and Katya did an awesome job in Mwika. Duke is lucky to have such great undergraduates. And yea-Mwika can have students next year!
It is September 11, and several weeks have passed, leaving us with just 10 days before we leave for Durham. It seems nearly impossible. The time has been productive and fun. Work has been hard but by and large good. We currently have 4 guests here that is work but always interesting.
Sandy, Tom and Colleen from Duke NUS and Duke University, Durham.
Dan and sweet Lucy. I think Dan had fun this time around!
The medical students have finished their exams and are waiting for their grades and when the new medical students arrive, they will find their schooling quite different from the previous years. (Oh and their will be about 20 more students without any additional faculty). Hopefully, the MEPI transition will ease this problem, and make a difference. The last year of training faculty, bringing the fast internet to the campus, and developing programs and small grant possibilities for the project has flown, and now the education time begins. You can feel the excitement amongst the “MEPI” staff. I think that for John and I, the most exciting part of this grant so far is the sense of team building between the Duke faculty and the KCMC faculty and the resulting camaraderie. We always felt welcomed by the Tanzanians and faculty here at KCMC, but the sense of a team, other than the Duke-KCMC project in HIV research was not very present. Now, here we are as persons with common purpose. We are learning so much, and hopefully they are as well.
weird caterpillar on our craziest cactus (portender for the bizarre weeks before we left)
For me, life downtown has been frustrating, interesting and lots of work. I have decided that there are reasons that Tanzania is going to have to find some new solutions to old problems, and I have no idea what that is going to be for I don’t see the changes in place, nor the real desire to move into the 21st century now. I am working on getting my driver’s license, and what should be quite simple, is a complete nightmare. The process requires a minimum of one day, with the potential of two or three looming. Currently, the system has failed, so not only can I not even begin the process of running back and forth to the police department and the bank, but have to arrive each morning at the Tanzanian Revenue Authority, only to wait for 45 minutes to be told that the system has failed. This has been going on for over a week, and what a first seemed like a sort of game, has become drudgery. It is almost too much to bear. But there we are. Tomorrow I will drive back down and race upstairs and wait, hopefully with the next steps ahead…fingers and head logged in, filling out some more papers, running to the police station, racing back, getting more stamps running back to the police, then back to TRA to get a receipt to take to the bank, paying the fee, bringing the receipt back, and then waiting for two or three days for my license. (note to anyone who can bear to read this far, I finally got my license exactly 10 days after I started the process. I am proud to say that I didn’t bribe anyone (this is what most people do), and had a near miss when I went to the police department the second time where I was to take the tests (???) and found that the police officer just asked me what I thought of Obama. Did I think he was a Kenyan?, Did I think he WAS born in the US? Was I sure? And inevitably…did I like him? To all these questions, I answered honestly and proudly-to be an American with Obama as my president. Low and behold, he said that I had passed the driving test.! You explain this to me).
Though this experience was extremely frustrating and time consuming, it was sort of a social experiment. And, at the end of the day I had a. been saved by a sweet young woman who collects parking every day. She saw that one of the days I had left my window partially open with my computer bag conspicuously in the front seat. She stood by my car for hours until I returned to it. Whew! And b. the Director of Accounting at TRA was so disturbed by my coming back and forward that he called me the day I finally got everything through to make sure that I actually had gotten it without any problems. I can hardly call my issues problems because they are the order of the day. But, you do wonder if Tz will ever approach the 21th century.
Somehow I have been so busy that I have not done many of the things I usually do, and the time is now coming to a close. I have however, reviewed one paper, two project reports, visited the Palliative Care Centre, and provided feed back to KIWAKKUKI program leaders. We have gone on two additional hashes in Mac
hame and up the side of the mountain to Mweka. They were really hard but beautiful.
(Our fab pastor Adrian and his wife Ruth (enjoy your grandchild's birth and time in UK, but please come back!)
Mountain Club president Marc and his adorable baby. His wife Sim is I think the fastest person on our side of town.

The mountain has graced us with her presence about once a week, and amazingly, we have had three rainstorms and the rains aren’t really scheduled to begin until November, so this is good news indeed.
Our little Moshi singing group had the opportunity to sing a farewell performance of a few songs bidding Anthony goodbye. Here is a guy who has been in Moshi for about 10 years. Anthony is truly wonderful eye doc who for little compensation rode his bike day after day and truly made a difference here. As well, we had fun. Our little rag tag band did Godspell (thank you Chrissy) a Gilbert and Sullivan medley, and we pulled a little Cole Porter “Friendship” off. The last tribute to Anthony was a little teary, and a little weird as I did the “needful” and sang tenor.

Trish doing "the needful"
Here is to the wonderful Bill who adopted this sweet, determined orphan who is supporting his family and trying to finish his schooling at the local college. Bill, wherever you are...you are a saint!
(I wrote this on September 11) I recall September 11 in 2001 when Katrina was a freshman at NYU. I believe that I was more frightened than any other time I can remember. A great deal of the fear was because I didn’t have Katrina near me, and I couldn’t do very much to stem her own fear that was fed by rumors that flew around NYC. It was also perhaps one of the most devastating losses she had had, as all the Engine 10 Firemen of whom about 30% died that day, were her security guards on their days off in the dorm, and she was fond of them all. I hope that their lives are remembered around the world today.

So cheers to all, and for friends in Durham, NYC, Boston, and DC, will talk soon.