Twenty six weeks in Tanzania: Getting settled

Mambo!

One of the many greetings I learned today when I started my kiswahili class. Greetings are very important here and you can potentially greet someone for a good 5-10 minutes before you move onto a conversation. Goodbyes on the other hand are brief and much less awkward than in english. In general people here are very friendly and helpful, if you make the effort to greet someone you generally have made a friend. The driving is chaotic, people are on top of each others bumpers, cutting in and out of a row of cars to get ahead and constantly honking. Haggling is a necessity for anything bought outside of a store which includes some rides. But it is often cheaper and supports the local population so we're getting into it. I've had two tanzanian meals so far: Ugali samaki, a flour paste with fish and beans, and of course the expected classic, rice and beans. They were very good but like most of the meals here the focus was on carbs.

The weekend was fairly relaxed with breakfast on the balcony (pictured below) and excursions in the afternoon. It sounds like we're spoiled (maybe a little) but everything here is relaxed, if you show up on time for something you're early. Saturday was a brief tour of the area and transportation system so that we could get groceries and money. Yesterday was another lazy morning followed by an afternoon on the beach. We went to Kipepeo beach which is waaaaaaaaaaaay on the other end of the city so it took 2 daladalas (which are like buses), a short walk, a ferry ride and a bajaji (like a small open taxi) to the beach. Why not go to the beach just behind my house you ask? Well as it turns out this beach is not very safe because its near some gated communities so there are a lot of muggings. That and since it's a public area, the beach is not very well maintained and is usually covered in trash. We did walk along it during the day to get a beer at a beach bar, but it was in the opposite direction the risky areas so that's probably all that we'll do there. There are also closer more expensive beaches but we were in the mood for some adventure and a chance to see more of the city. I do have a few pictures below of the beach and the city from the ferry but so far I haven't taken many because you usually don't want to look like a tourist and you need permission to take pictures of individuals.

Today was my first class followed by an introduction to the work that we'll be doing as well as the JGI employees and volunteers in this area. Even though we won't be working with them for very long we'll all try to stay in touch to plan projects and events and support each other. As for Bugs, he decided that my suitcase was by far the best new place in the house to sleep. So of course I did what I do best and diagnosed him with tapeworms from all the eggs he's shedding on my bag :/. So now I've scared my housemates into thinking we're all going to get them, oh well, off to the vet with him! He still likes my suitcase best but I covered it with a towel and it keeps him off my bed!