Rhotia Town and Local Interactions

Jambo!  This morning I decided to wake up a little early, at 6, and do yoga with some of the other students.  It was a really nice way to start the day and I was shocked at how quickly the sun rose.  When I got out of bed it was still very dark out but within 15 minutes it was like daytime.  At least it makes it easier to get out of bed so early...although with your mosquito netting tucked in around the entire bed it counteracts the light and discourages you from getting up.  Breakfast consisted of the usual:  oatmeal, scrambled eggs with vegetables, potatoes, buttered toast and plenty of fresh fruit.  After eating, we went straight to Wildlife Ecology and had an entire class dedicated to identifying animal tracks and dung.  It was pretty alarming when the professor carried around all different types of poop on a piece of paper and told us to pick one.  Luckily I didn’t have to touch it as it was going around the room and he brought several people their own larger types on separate pieces of paper, including me…how nice.  Then he informs us that tomorrow we’re going to Lake Manyara National Park to observe baboon behavior.  I’m excited! 

We had a short break between classes during which I went into Rhotia with some of the other students.  There wasn’t a whole lot of time but we managed to approach a young woman and her two children who were outside and attempted to speak with them in Swahili.  Using mostly hand motions, we were able to tell them our names and take a picture with them.  They laughed at our butchering of the Swahili language, watched us very intently as we conversed about how to say the most basic phrases such as “My name is…” and then gave us a friendly good-bye.  We then continued with Wildlife Management, which was broken up into three parts of at least an hour and spread throughout the rest of the day.  This class also has a field exercise component, where we will be recording all the different species of mammals that we see throughout our time in Tanzania.  Our professor told us he expects us to see at least 30 species.

After a break for lunch I went on a hike to the top of Moyo Hill, which our field station is at the base of, that took around 45 minutes to get up and back.  We ran into several kids on the way who literally sprint to catch up with us.  Yet when they do, they become very shy.  They’re all really curious and friendly, waving and yelling “Hello!”  It’s really cute!  Along the hiking trail we saw a bunch of random cows grazing, holes that animals had dug and cactus. At the top of the hill there was a really pretty view so we took a few group pictures.  We finished up classes for the day after the hike and then had more down time.  Everyone signed up for various committees so I had a meeting for the Reading Committee that I’m on, which goes into town on a regular basis and reads to the schoolchildren. 

I really like interacting with the people here because of the differences in culture.  For example, people will shake your hand and it will turn into an extended hand-hold.  They are truly glad to meet you and are really friendly.  Greetings are valued as extremely important so before you get to the point of the conversation you must be properly introduced and greeted.  Family is very tight-knit, despite polygamy being very common, and divorce is rare.  Even though poverty is widespread and the per capita income is only about $590 per year, the attitude that the people have is so happy. 

I’ll be posting pictures soooon!