ArT Camp and Saba Saba

So, this weekend was crazy! We had an art camp for little kids in the community and it was unbelievable. A bunch of supporters of Global Alliance popped in on Friday and then they put together their art camp. It was phenomenal how it all just sort of happened. They all flew in from Chicago, were here for the weekend, and then they were gone. It was amazing how they pulled it off, as nearly none of them spoke Swahili.

Luckily, I knew the simple phrases like “unaitwa nani?” “unamiaka mingapi?” so I could gather children names and ages. I was responsible for making and giving the appropriate nametags to the kids. Names that struck me were Witness, Light, Six, Shine, just to name a few. And the phenomenal part was that most of these kids showed up with no parents. There were even really young kids carrying their baby siblings. They just walked in from the streets. There were so many kids, and we had a big parade in celebration of our art camp.



It was a new experience being here as someone who has lived in Tanzania for nearly three weeks now because it was like I was seeing a mirror of my visit to Tanzania last January. We showcased a bunch of technologies, but many of us didn’t speak English. And just as they did, we came and we went. From this, I realized how much it meant for me to stay for a longer period of time. The students and staff of the Global Alliance for Africa Vijana Centre were family. I, like them, had no idea what was going on, but just did exactly as told. And at the end of the day, it was crazy to realize that I was now more similar to the students and staff of Global Alliance for Africa Vijana Centre than I was to the visiting representatives from Global Alliance for Africa. I didn’t eat PB&J; I ate the wali marage [rice and beans]. I didn’t use spoon and fork; I used my hands. I didn’t travel by car; I walked.

And then today was Saba Saba (7/7), so it was a holiday. Early in the morning, I ended up going for a run with a few runners (one was a professional marathon runner and the other a mountain guide). I knew it would be difficult as they were extremely fit, but I was only running their warm-up miles...so that was good. The only problem was that I wasn't prepared to run two miles UPHILL! It was ridiculous (I must confess I had to walk a bit), but once we started descending, it was a breeze. I had a painless fall and nearly got hit by a biker, but otherwise, it was fantastic. Tanzania is just beautiful. I absolutely love it. I hope the tourism never destroys its natural beauty.