Looking back to Moshi-the Last Week

John and the boys at Greg's house + Scotch

Though this was the night before we left Moshi, John and his "boyfriends" had a Scotch tasting night.  For John, this was interesting but he is not a scotch drinker and was happy to taste but not drink...he is all for the next one to be a Gin tasting.  We will be able to top it with some of our local Durham brews.While he was required to be home at a reasonable time to avoid D..I...V...O...R...C..E, so that any things that he wanted to be packed were at the bags, he had a great time with our good friends  and I was glad that I had the packing excuse not to be bitter about it being a "men only" evening.  I do understand that some of the guys spent the night at Greg's.  I think our Johnny Walker Green was selected as the best Blend.

Quite a lot happened our last week in Moshi and all were amazing.  First, I was given our housekeeper's daughter's grades (Anjela) whom we have supported in school since she was in Kindergarten.  She is at a very challenging Secondary School now going to second year.   But here are her grades.

Look at 48th in a class of 149!

Anjela-- look 31 out of 156!

When you think of where Anjela came from, this is amazing.  I want a shout out to Terrie Emmanuel who helped Anjela with Math, and it was tough, and then to her mom for supporting her and seeking the best for her, and being willing to give her up to boarding school, and a good one as well.

I am always intrigued with our animals in our yard.  We have had a bit of rain in Moshi and the chickens and Ducks are thrilled with a bit of freedom.  I just love to watch them.  I am very partial to Charlie, but you have to admit that Redneck and his sort of modest buddy are  quite handsome and interesting...and that the Duck..don't know...Hob Knob or something are fascinating.   I could actually watch them all day.

Charlie

Hob Knob

Red Neck and Pauli's normal rooster

 So, here we are and you see this crazy rooster.. her he is, Mr. Redneck.

But there have been some amazing changes in the law and one of them was that all students who had taken out student loans, in just one day had them changed from payback of 5% to 15%.  I fear that wll significantly reduce the number of Medical Students that we have.  If they cannot get jobs, maybe it is the right thing???? I don't know.

So I also spent a day with my friend Sylvie in Machame and here is a letter from her father about the East African Malaria Institute and it is so interesting.  Try to read it if you can.

So, then we had a last hash, which followed the marathon.  It was an amazing day...beautiful, and then pouring rain and then beautiful and then pouring rain.  The marathon runners drank beer while those of us did not, we paid the price by being soaked and cold and dragging through the mud.  Wild but the beer tasted mighty fine at the end.

It was a beautiful hash.
So, I have shout outs----

Hollo helped me throughout the Marathon sign up for the youth cab with a smile and a helping hand.  She helped to call people who signed and didn't show, and she  tried, sadly albeit in vain to keep us in the line at the registration.  She is a lovely woman and this year ran 5 instead of 21.  But she could definitely have done either.

So as we were ready to leave Moshi, we had drama in our Nyambani.... the "menace" that has been killing all Pauli's ducks.  I have seen this Mongoose running with baby ducks in its mouth.  They call it a kicheche, but the kicheche is actually a chervil cat, but here is the trap that Pauli set and the face of this mongoose.

I think about Riki Tiki Tavi, and his help, and yet I have seen this mongoose  grabbing baby ducks and running across the yard with the helpless babies in their mouths. I have to let it go.

So here is my new wet suit.  I will totally ready for swimming in Moshi.  I have to admit, it is heavy and big, but it will work for sure!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A WEEK OF SO MUCH: BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCES SYMPOSIUM AND THE KILIMNJARO MARATHON 2017

Sorry for the long blog.

This week was one for only the “crazies”.  

It started with a lovely dinner with one of John’s “more mature” (aka—older) students Bernard, who is working on his Phd at the University of Capetown.  He and his wife treated us to a great dinner at Indo-Italiano, which has (no surprise for Moshi) both Indian and Italian food!  We got there early and ordered before anyone came so we would not be stuck for hours, but we were smart and had a lovely time.

Our whole project was excited about presenting their research at the Sociobehavioral Forum, and thus when we had no water, and then no power, at first we hardly noticed.  But, after a trip to the bore hole to get buckets of water filled and the night dark is dark (no street lights, nothing but flashlights flickering, it was not easy. 

Fortunately our Internet is not dependent on power.  I have solar camping lights and battery operated fans, so we were able to see in the house and to sleep with the white noise, but it was hard to get ready for the Forum.

This year’s Forum drew a sizeable crowd, and our own Community Advisory Board and our Youth stood out in asking questions and in a discussion of “Forced Sex”.  Other projects were about Disclosure, Stigma, Medical Adherence, Post Mortem, Social Autopsy, and others. People were engaged and interested.  We were very fortunate to have the Regional Health Commissioner and the Assistant Regional Health Commissioner attend the 2-day meeting.

Cheers to our Youth CAB who volunteered not only to present about this topic, but to make pictures of themselves depicting possible forced sex scenarios.

Some of the reasons for Forced Sex:

We had a really nice group for our symposium dinner.

Assistant Regional Director with Jan Esther Vera

Charles, Seleman, Ahazi ,and Vera laugh of course at Charles

Dr. Blandina kicks off the seminar

Almost Dr. Charles does not quite kick off seminar

One of my favorite projects Sauti Vijana (Shout out Youth)

Our power and water were still off, though the water had a few drips drips by Friday.

Buckets from how we get water

Solar lights

I will add no pictures because hell began on the next two days:

Friday afternoon after the end of the Forum, John and I went to Marathon ground zero. Because we had 46 Community Advisory Board members who planned to run the 5 K, I felt like I was being thrown into the jaws of hell.  John, our CAB member Hollo and I patiently filled out the forms, and then stood in line to have forms registered (by hand of course) get the numbers and pay.  The whole system is so inefficient that it is utter chaos.  First you have to battle your way to the front of the line and hold your ground especially as other people see that you have a handful of entries.  Then you have to beg your documentarist not to take her break because she, too sees the numbers of forms in your hands and wants to flee, then you speak to people who are trying to throw registrations at this person (they say, we are in a hurry, I respond, I am in a hurry, they say but you have so many, and I say, yes and I have waited in the same line that you are waiting in, and then they beg the woman…just take my 5…. And I say ABSOLUTELY NOT..YOU WILL MAKE HER CONFUSED AND I WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR MY ACTIONS. And on it goes).  I have a stance that I use when claustrophobia begins to settle in.  Hands on hips and winged out as far as they will go.  No bending no movement except to shove potential interlopers back with my elbows.  Finally, the registration is over, money paid, numbers given, records checked and one is missing.  You have to go through all the numbers to see which one it is, then locate the registration and hand it back so that they can copy the whole thing down on the ledger book, get the number and the safety pins.  But, it is not over yet, as you have to wait for T-shirts.  And my stance on these—take 46 of whatever you can get.  It does not necessarily make the CAB happy, but there is nothing to be done.  Even taking whatever they give you can take up to 20 more minutes.  So, after 3 hours and 15 minutes we were done.  No power at home.

Saturday, the day before the marathon is not relaxing for me.  No, I have to go down to the YMCA, hand out T-shirts, numbers and transportation money for 46 people for 4 hours.  Even then, 3 people had not come by the end of 4 hours and we ended up with poor Hollo having to take their shirts and transport money.  We, by the way, still had no power or water.  John dashed to the Y, said that the electric people were coming the water was back, and it looked hopeful.  But no.  Water came back, but no power.  John’s frustration was at a peak.

Sunday, day of the Marathon, dawns very early with our driver and friend Carol Francis arriving to pick us up.  Not easy to find ways to get to the stadium and I had to walk almost a mile from the car to go into the stadium to watch. My orthopedist, physical therapist, interventional radiologist, and primary care MD would be proud that I didn’t try to run. (the walking was enough)   The race was buzzing and many of our 5K friends and CAB members had finished by the time I got in.  I walked part of the way up the last hill with my Dada friend Lightness Kaale, and we had fun talking.  Then, lots of CAB folks and others called to me when I got inside.  I had a feeling that John would be later than usual because of his hamstring and didn’t actually start watching the finish for 21K until the first 42K Kenyans arrived.  From about 2 hours/5 minutes I watched and loved it when our friend Dr. Bob from Machame arrived at about 2:15, Jan at 2:17, and John at 2:23.  They looked pretty good considering the distance.  

Bob 1

Bob2

Jan always looks like this when he runs, and he kicked from John at the end.

John looking casual really!

Aisa and her 2 watoto and sister's watoto

Bob and Nebraska

some cab members....

Happi Yea

Old friend visiting from New Zealand Jan

John, Jan, CAB

more Jan, john and cab

yea Lighty!

This should be baba an Lighty xmass picture

Melk is fine!!!!!

Rose...raise money from alumni

We all had agreed that it was not as hot as usual and only later learned that many people had collapsed because of the heat and dehydration.  One death for the first time!  But no one knew until yesterday.  So we left walked another mile to find Carol and he took me first to church to practice hymns (recorder) with our pastor, and John home.  Still, no power.

 

horrible

John got back about 20 minutes after church started because the roads were blocked off. And it took just as long to get back home.  But we thought it was a successful marathon. We had a lovely get together in the afternoon to “hash” walk, and while the runners stayed behind drinking beer, we silly walkers headed out to walk the coffee fields and the little back paths. Of course the rains came as they do at this time of year and we were soaked and full of mud. (we say matope nyingi sana).  It is very hard to remain upright in this mud as it is more slippery than ice. CRAZY days.

Home again, NO POWER!  Now our friend and colleague Ahaz was calling the power company about every hour.  Horrid.  Monday morning comes, no power and for me disaster occurs when our cook top ran out of propane.  I cannot describe the horrible cranky mood I was in when our gardener and friend Pauli arrived with a thermos of boiling hot water for my coffee.  Tears!  Suddenly Tanzania looks so much better. Finally, Monday at 8am the Power (Tanesco) man comes to the house and switches on the power.

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Sigh..now on on to the last week in Moshi.

Wow before the Marathon Life Goes on

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Another Week in Moshi Another day

It was Valentine's day in Moshi yesterday and the country was awash with cards at your fingertips.  If you are careful and buy your cards at the local shops, they cost about $.50, unless you buy the giant one that I found for John that was actually about $1.25.  They are almost all very loving and not suitable for friends, work mates or acquaintances...even children, but they are most flowery.  John and I had a lovely dinner (not great food) but nice to go out and share our cards and reminisce about all the Valentine's days we have spent here in Moshi.  Since 2006 I think.

After our week in Rwanda nothing can quite compare, but we had a lovely hash up at Bob's house in Machame, and while everyone was doing the hard walk, my dear friend Sylvie and I walked all around the neighborhood, "shaking" all the women who greeted us heartily and then asked for pesa (money).  It was fun and we enjoyed the talking and the beauty (with still no rain) of the day. 

I am afraid we probably gave away the last turn (the last big X) as we had just come up the road the way the flour turned.  But, we had a nice time and it was a really nice group of folks.  The beer was fabulous and Bob brought out his cigars.  But nothing can quite compare with our pastor Tony's fabulous hash outfit.

Tony in high fashion

Now in fairness to Tony, he is a Scotsman and each piece of clothing had some variation of some plaid, just all different ones.  He reported that he had gotten this fantastic outfit at Peace Park which is the local market for second hand clothes.  And he loves each article.  He was actually surprised to look down and see all the different color combinations.  And nothing like a Kibo Gold at the end of a hot day.  We chatted about my clan, the Campbells's and how wild and warlike they were...but how he lived in the midst of them.  No wonder I am hotheaded. We all love our Tony--a great pastor.  Anyone who missed his sermon las Sunday morning for the children, missed a great story, and I tell you, when he retires from pastoring he would be a great children's writer.

As I sat in Bob's backyard, it suddenly occurred to me why he has such great bird pictures.  The back yard is a haven for birds.  The weavers are not at their little homes right now, but the nests are fantastic, and the sounds of the birds were all around.  I watched sunbirds zipping to and fro and felt extraordinarily jealous.  (I am often jealous of Bob, but seeing these fantastic birds only increased the feeling.)

You can just barely see the young man taking a picture of the Kili sunset from our road, but he is there, and the sunset with no extra snow highlights the shrinking glaciers.  Even then, it was a lovely. sunset.

And here we are with Kili in the sunset full form.  Pole snow and ice.  It is nearly gone.  Who is the new US EPA appointee?  He should come to visit shouldn't he.

The rest of this week will be filled with visits to Machame with my dear friend Sylvie, Pizza and a movie at the mountain club, more fast swimming (as fast as possible) and hopefully a quiet weekend before the last 10 days of our trip.  Gracious.  The time has gone ever so fast.