Today marks the end of my first “official” week here in Arusha. It’s been quite busy. Since I had been out and about with the team from Scottsdale for the first week and a half, I had not really had a chance to get myself settled on in. So, I devoted this week to that specific task.
First thing to do: get a cell phone. Cell phones work very differently here in Tanzania. Instead of having a calling plan (with a specific carrier, say T-Mobile or Verizon), one purchases a SIM card from any vendor on the street. You then go ahead and load money onto the card so that you can make your phone calls. Since there are three main carriers here, all of which have different reception in different areas, most people have at least one phone number, some as many as three. Mission accomplished.
Second thing to do: get a 4 WD vehicle. Lots of prayer had gone into this task and as an answer to prayer, I was able to finalize my purchase of a stylish blue/grey 1991 Suzuki Escudo on Tuesday. I know, you are thinking 1991?! No, by the standards here, that is not old. It’s just getting worn in.
The big adventure in that was learning how to drive on the opposite side of the road, in the opposite side of the car, with crazy dalla-dalla (taxi) drives whipping past me. The first time was a bit nerve racking, but after that, I think I might now almost pass as a Tanzanian driver.
Third thing to do: sign up for language class. I’m set to embark to the eastern side of Tanzania to a town called Lesotho on Sunday for a week long immersion call. This will be the first in a series of classes that will help me learn the language here.
Overall, I think a very productive week. I realized that just getting these few tasks completed has really helped me to feel settled in. Speaking the language, driving on the roads and being able to connect to folks back in the US...all good stuff.
A wilderness hike in AZ
A typical load of passengers
Flying down to Kondoa
Modeling a bag
Some of the Mairowa Women
Me modeling jewelry
The Mighty Fred
I'm SO strong...
Busy with the shovel
Digging the foundation
The Car Incident
Let's pour some water on the engine!
2 comments:
Congratulations on your new vehicle! So when do we get to see a picture? I can see you now, cruising the streets of Mairowa calling in you order to the corner Starbucks with your new cell phone ;-) Good to hear that you are starting to get settled in and have some of the big things like language class and transportation taken care of. How are your funds holding out after all these expenses? Putting gas in the tank is getting hard for us here in the US, it must be crazy for you…
Hello!!! I am so very proud of you - I have goosebumps. So you think getting use to driving on the wrong side of the road on the wrong side of the car is hard... Wait till you get back to the states. It's even harder to remember which side you will drive on and oh, yes, you will catch yourself trying to get into the passenger side thinking that you are going to try and drive.. LOL
You sound great and it seems as if you are really brining a lot not only to those there but to us back here who take things such as a car, phone, internet for granted. What's the weather like there?
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