3/21
Today was our last non-program day in Tanzania. Breakfast was fantastic since the cook crew of the day had made cinnamon sugar pancakes, toast, and cinnamon twists!!! For activities a group went into Karatu, another to Mtu wa Mbu, and my group decided to take a hike. We left from camp and hiked with Erica and Paolo the back way to Karatu. Although we left camp at 10 the temperature was not too hot as we started off. Since it has been raining for the past three days (I have never see it so cloudy for so long here before now) the red clay ground has turned into a slick red slide that instantly coated the soles of our shoes so we were basically skiing on mud instead of walking. Despite this it was great to get into the country. We could not hear the sounds of the road, and the fields stretching away were gorgeous. Paolo and I had a very long chat ranging from termite organization to cultural farming practices as were wove our way through the cattle herds and planted fields. I was not alone at the front and we made a good group laughing and talking most of the way. We stop briefly at mid-day to have a snack and admire the view before pushing on toward Karatu. Eventually we did have to get back on the main road for a short way before climbing a very steep hill and a few kilometers of rolling ground before entering the Karatu market. I had brought my camera memory card so I could finally print my host family’s pictures but of course the photo shop had not electricity due to all the recent rain. As per usual a flock of rosta guys attached themselves to us as we wandered around Karatu trying to sell us stuff and translate for us. So we walked with our entourage slowly up the street chatting with the rosta guys and “window” shopping the stalls we pass. Our destination is Happy Days the tourist bar in town and it takes us about twenty mins to get there. I decided to splurge and ordered a bowl of spaghetti. It was really good and quite cheap if not very American. Living dangerously I also ordered a plate of fries (or chips here) which I split with our SAM Erica. After eating all this I was ready to curl up and take a nap or just enjoy the food coma. I was not alone and the group of us arranged to go back to camp. It was late afternoon by now so I just grabbed my ipad and read books til everyone else got back. After dinner two girls and I watched the Robert Downey Jr Sherlock Holmes movie while a thunderstorm raged outside. The flashes of lightening and boom of thunder added greatly to the effect of the movie. So now its off to bed with me…..long day and my feet hurt
3/22/11
I don’t have much to say today and even less to say that is positive. This morning after breakfast we filled out evaluations for each of our classes, professors, and the program in general. They were online and quickly finished leaving me ample time to do my laundry. Our grades were released at 10am. This is when the day went to hell, the shit hit the fan, name your cliché of choice…..it sucked. I’m not a perfect student and I’m certainly not a genius but these are the worse grades I have ever gotten including my Organic Chemistry grades. And I am not alone. Everyone did badly. Everyone. There are 29 intelligent American students all of who come for good schools and everyone did badly. I will not bore you with the emotions, tempers, and general tension that ruled everyone today. I put all my papers away and started packing for Kenya. We leave day after tomorrow and three people trying to pack in this small space will be difficult, so I started (and finished ) today. It sort of worked to control my anger and I eventually pulled out my papers again and met with a few professors-which was virtually useless. I have to give the kitchen staff credit. They made our favorite dinner and even brought ice cream all the way from Arusha to cheer us up, but we all were a sorry sight. This evening all the student, and just the students, met and talked for a long time about what we are going to do. The center director is here and is going to meet with us in the morning. Our meeting was over an hour long but we elected specific students to talk for us and hammered out our list of suggestions and areas for improvement for both professors and classes. I have no idea how much power the director has over our grades but we as the students are ready and will argue a very strong case tomorrow. Cross your fingers for us
3/23/11
The alarm went off at 5:30 and one of my bandamates and I quietly creep outside to meet the other students. We gathered an askari and one of the assistant camp managers and walked up Moyo Hill to watch the sunrise. It was a very cloudy sky so the walk was very dark which of course made the normal 20 mins to the top seem a bit longer. There were probably 15 of us in total so we were able to spread out comfortably when we reached the top. The clouds were moving very fast across the sky and in the valley below us yet the night was still very dark. As the clouds raced past the moon seemed to flicker as it was first hidden then reappeared high in the sky. The change in the skyline was very slow. First it was just a lightening of the darkness. The fog was so thick that we still could not see the valley floor or the boulders below us on the hill, just the area was lighter and we could begin to see each other clearly. It continued to get lighter until we could see the outline of a hill, then some of the valley, until finally there was only the thick band of clouds obscuring the horizon. The bright orange and pink rays were reflected off these clouds and the sky above them was a mix of perfect morning colors. We sat admiring the sky for a while before walking back down to camp. My group had cook crew this morning so I spent the remaining time until breakfast making buttered toast for everyone. After breakfast the half semester debrief began. The debrief covered everything from social life, facilities, academics, non-programs days and others. It was conducted by the center director and our SAM Erica with all staff and students present. It took nearly two hours but I think as students we made good suggestions and gave productive criticism. Once this was done we asked to meet privately with the center director to discuss what we had gone over the night before. This meeting was much less relaxed and jovial as the debrief. It was satisfying to see how genuinely surprised the director was by what we told him about professor behavior, unfair grading, and lack of clarity in assignments. The meeting lasted an hour and he listened closely to what we had to say. He collected all of our work for one class and met with all of the professors that we had spoken about. These are not our final grades (only 65%) and the director said he would do everything in his power to help us and resolve this problem.
I know the director is going to try and help, but we are all very worried that the help he is able to give us will not be enough to really improve our grades. While getting bad grades is personally very disappointing, it also taints my entire memory and experience here in Tanzania. I will remember that I love the parks and the country but right behind that will be how badly I did on exams. I am very glad to be switching to the Kenya site tomorrow. I can work with different professors and sort of have a fresh start along with opportunities to improve our grades. For the afternoon we went back to the primary school and had lunch that was made on the stove we helped to build. It was a simple (if very large portions) of rice and beans and of course we were stared at by all the kids. The rest of the afternoon was for packing and whatever activities we chose. I hung out with one of the staff members in the garage, packed a few more things, and watched a movie. Dinner was very good and there was a lot of people who stood up and said how much everyone is going to miss everyone else etc and lots of people were crying. My crew and I washed dishes and then all the students, Erica and Moses the assistant camp manager had a bonding/saying good bye session by the fire pit. I am as packed as I can be for the moment and in 5 short hours we will be up and loading the lorry and heading for Kenya!
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