Project Tanzania

Signing up to go away for 4 weeks during your summer holiday isn’t an easy choice to make, even when you aren’t living in an area where the standard of living isn’t too great.  Every year the project takes a group of students from our school to a school in rural Tanzania, where we teach Maths, Science, English, IT and Primary School.  A lot of effort and planning is required to carry out the task each year, but I did however agree to help  (partially because of the 1 week safari), and it was more than I expected.

Throughout the course of 11th grade, our group held various fundraising activities in order to raise money for the project.  This money was needed to buy the school teaching utensils (such as pens, paper and folders), clothes and to help pay for activities that we do with the students in Tanzania to help them explore their country.  These fundraising activities, I’ll have to admit, weren’t the most efficient use of our time (namely running a Cafe at our fields), but we managed to raise over 18,000 euros, which I don’t think is too bad.

After raising this money our project coordinator, Mrs. O’brien, bought the materials we need to bring, assigned us all 8kg each of the stuff (taking our 22kg luggage restriction to 14kg), and allowed us to return home, 3 days before our flight, to pack.

The week before we left was stressful.  We had left the packing and preparing for the trip a bit late, such that we had to go out shopping several times during the course of my exam week.   Leaving on Saturday the 22nd of June, and my exams ending on Thursday the 19th of June, I had a lot of work to do.  Giving me one day off, which was Friday,  I used it to pack all my things together, we went out one last time to shop, and I was ready to go by 10 p.m., only to get up 5 hours later at 3 a.m.  I said goodnight and goodbye to both my mom and my brother, and headed off to bed at around 11 p.m.

Waking up at 3 a.m, wasn’t too tough (I figured this was because it was effectively a power nap).  I showered, enjoying the last warm shower I’d have for a long time, got dressed, ate breakfast, and my dad and I were out the door by 3:30 a.m.

We arrived at the airport at 4 a.m, as instructed, to find a few people already there.  I put on the red jacket that we were given by the project, as I had forgotten to do so beforehand, and had my name checked off the list of people to come.   We waited at this spot for about 30 minutes with our parents before the last person arrived, at which point, we were anxious to go.

Flying to Tanzania entailed two fights.  One flight from Dusseldorf Airport to Amsterdam, and then a transfer to a different flight from Amsterdam to Kilimanjaro Airport.  These flights were 1 hour and 8 hours respectively.  During the latter I sat by myself, which I didn’t find too bad as I had plenty of TV and Films to watch and I could avoid the distractions of the other students in order to get some sleep.

After spending the whole day travelling, we arrived in Tanzania at 10 p.m, (GMT +2).  We went through immigration and after collecting our luggage, were welcomed by a group of employees from the school we were going to.  We were all instantly shocked by the enthusiasm with which they greeted us.  Every one from our group was given a flower and a handshake.  After a few minutes, we headed over to our bus (which we got to know very well), loaded our bags onto the roof, and drove to Alrusha where we spent the night in a hostel.  I slept surprisingly well considering I had 3 other boys in my room.

Waking up the next morning, I took a “shower” (barely running water), got dressed, and my room headed off for breakfast.  We were given; information about what we were going to do that day, breakfast (consisting of Scrambled Eggs on Toast, Mango Juice and Fruit), and a Malaria pill.  We had to take the pill every day, starting 2 days before we left and ending one week after we came back.

After breakfast we headed into Alrusha (a busy city) where we exchanged an amount of Euros (for me it was 200) into Tanzanian Shillings at an exchange rate of 2100 per euro.  We then headed back to the hostel, got back into the bus, and headed off to buy some things.  Our first stop was to buy Mosquito Nets and Pillows (for us), and our second was to visit a ShopRite, the only SuperMarket we saw throughout the trip, where we bought snacks, water, toilet roll, soap and deodorant.  After buying all of this, we headed back to the hostel, loaded our bags back onto the truck, and made way to the school.

We arrived at the school shortly before lunch.  We drove up the bumpy road leading to the school grounds, and parked outside the administration block, where the students had patiently been waiting with huge welcome signs.  As we saw the students, all of our faces lit up with excitement.  We got off the bus, walked down a line shaking each one of their hands and exchanging names, and made our way inside the Administration Block where their headmaster and our coordinator introduced both parties.

After the welcome speeches we went back out to the bus, where we sorted out our luggage, mosquito nets, and pillows, and carried them with the students to our dorm.  As we walked across the grounds, I began to realize how much space the school actually had.  It took us 5 minutes to walk from the Administration Block to our dorm, consisting of crossing the bumpy road, into a field where football goals were posted, and into our dorm.  At that point in time, us 8 boys were split into two rooms (each consisting of about 14 beds).  Daniel, Harry, Erik and I in one, and Will, Hideaki, Sebastian and Evan in the other.  We quickly found a space for our luggage, chose a bed and set up our mosquito nets.  Although the beds aren’t of the best quality, I could tell that they would be fine for the 3 weeks that we were sleeping in them.

We were showed around the dorm by the students during this time.  Our toilet was effectively a hole in the ground which you had to flush yourself with a bucket of water, and showers were taken by filling a bucket with water, carrying it to a cubicle, and then pouring it over your head.  Due to the fact that we found the cold water a bit unpleasant, we settled on showering every other day.  Washing our clothes was also done using water, buckets and powder detergents and hanging them on the line seen in the picture above after ringing them out.

The rest of the school grounds consisted of several classrooms, a girls and boys dorm (capable of housing 600 students), a small shop, a teachers dorm, a library/study hall, a football field, and a basketball court (which no one used).  Between lunch and dinner we would spend most of our time outside playing football, or cards in the dormitory.  The shop sold a few items such as water, biscuits, and other sweet food products.

Anyway, after sorting out our rooms and exploring, we headed straight off for lunch in the dining hall.  In the next 3 weeks, we had all of our meals in this room.  Every morning, for breakfast, we would alternate between Porridge and Sandwiches.  For lunch and dinner, our meals varied from rice to chips, with a variety of sauces and fruits.   Although the food was very simple, it was definitely healthier than what we normally eat in Europe.  After lunch, we spent the rest of the day organizing our things, ready to start teaching the next morning.

Waking up each morning seemed to consist of waking up at 7 A.M, staying in bed until 7:40 while the students cleaned their shoes and got ready for lessons, and then finally getting up to get ready for breakfast at 8 A.M.  For teaching, we were required to wear a shirt, long trousers and smart shoes in order to be accepted as a teacher.  Every morning, we would dress accordingly and head off for breakfast in our smart clothes.  At breakfast we would have our porridge or our self-made sandwiches (choice of Peanut Butter, Jam, and Butter to use), and were given our Malaria Pill for the day.

After breakfast, all the students would go to their class.  The students were split into two groups, A and B, where they would have different lessons at different times.  After Breakfast, both groups would spend an hour in English or Science, and then switch for the second hour, ending at 10:30 for break, which consisted of Peanuts, Tea and Water.   During these two hours, I would quite often read my book or play Uno with the IT and Maths teachers from our school.  At 11:00 A.M, it would be the turn for the students to head to IT or Maths.  At 10:45, I would leave break early each day to setup the classroom, along with Will, Hideaki and Sebastian.  After teaching at 1 P.M, we would have a Swahili lesson for 30 minutes before having lunch.  After lunch we would have various activities from cooking, sport, washing or cleaning until 7 P.M at which we would have dinner.  At 8 P.M every week day, we would have a 2 hour study period with the students where we would help them complete the homework we had set during our lessons.  I would also open up the computer room to allow them to come in to have more practice with computers.

Secondary School Teaching Assignments

The Computer room was surprisingly large considering the condition of most other areas.  In total we had around 24 functional Windows computers, and 1 Linux computer allowing 10 users at once.  Of the 25 computers only 5 had internet access until I reconfigured the network to add another 10.  Although the computers aren’t that fast, they got the job done.

When the students arrived in the classroom we would start off by telling them what they were going to learn that day and going over anything that we learnt the day before that we think may not be clear to everyone.  When they first stepped into the classroom 90% had never used a computer before.  Accounting for this, we spent the first week teaching them how to turn on/off a computer, how to sign in, use the mouse/keyboard, and a quick introduction to Microsoft Word.  In the second week we got them to write their own CV and two Letters of Inquiry, as well as setting each one of them up with a GMail account.  In the last week we gave them each an introduction to Excel, Publisher and PowerPoint and running a competition on who could make the best Publisher/PowerPoint document.  Some days I would do an extra introduction to a topic about computers such as explaining inside a computer, how the internet works and how to stay safe on the internet.

We gave the students a knowledge-based test during our first lesson and the same one at the end of the 3 weeks to see how much of the things on the test we had managed to teach.  The average increase in percentage score was 46% of the total points.  Some people went from scoring 30% on the first test and 100% on the last test.  This made our computer team feel great about what we had achieved.

Throughout our time at Moringue Sokoine Secondary School, we would have various activities in the afternoon.  These weren’t always the most entertaining activities and were most of the time, cleaning or cooking.  I feel after cooking lots of meals for 3 weeks and just seeing how much work it is, I’ve gained more respect for my mom who cooks for us almost every night.

Throughout the 3 weeks, mostly on the weekends, there would occasionally be special activities.  The first weekend was the busiest as we went to a Maasai wedding (where Harry, Daniel and I got a bit too drunk on the Honey Wine that they kept topping our glasses with), followed by a group safari with the students to a place known as Ngorongoro Crater.  This was a place where a volcano had collapsed in on itself and is now where animals live.  This was the first time most of the students had ever seen any of the animals that are native to their country.  It really showed how closed their life is and how hard it is for them to break out.  We spent the second weekend planting trees, cleaning the buildings and visiting an area known as Rift Valley.

The third weekend consisted of visiting one of the students homes, going to church and packing for the 1 week safari.  The home-visit was something that I was dreading but turned out to be one of the most insightful experiences throughout the whole trip.  It started off with travelling in a small bus from the school to Alrusha, where my student lived.  The bus was rammed full of people in order to maximize profits from a 50km journey lasting roughly one hour and only costing you the equivalent of 75 cents.   We arrived in Alrusha to walk around where he showed me more of the city, before heading to his home to meet his brother and sister-in-law (married on the 27th of July) with whom  he lived.  His mother had passed away when he was born, and his father lives on the other side of Tanzania.  His sister-in-law made us lunch during which I gave them gifts that I had brought with me.  Small things such as sugar, tea and metal tins that I gave to them overwhelmed them with joy.

The night before we left the school, we threw a party in the dining room.  There were speeches from both ISD students and Moringue Sokoine Secondary School students.  We sang a few songs, gave gifts to each other, and I helped set up the sound board with the speakers before creating a playlist for the night.  We danced with each other and started to say our goodbyes’.  The night in general went quite fast, there was lots of preparation for the party during the day and we were all knackered by the time we went to bed.

We left the school on Monday the 15th of July never to return during our stay.  We said goodbye to the students but we knew we were going to see them again on the day we fly back to Düsseldorf.  We said our goodbyes’, there were a few tears, and we left to head off to the Serengeti.

After 3 weeks of teaching and non-stop socializing, the safari was a well earned break.  The change from a room of 14 to a room of 3 in a hotel was nice but mainly the change back to running water that is warm.   The quality of the hotel, although by European standards wouldn’t be amazing, felt like heaven.  After eating mainly rice for the past 3 weeks, the 4 course meal at the hotel was a bit too much for my stomach.  Although the food was amazingly good, the passion-fruit yoghurt did come back up at 3 A.M.  Apart from that, I slept like a log.

The week safari was great fun.  The second hotel we stayed at had a swimming pool which was great, and the day trips in the middle of the Serengeti (translated as “Endless Plane”) were hot but amazing.  We saw countless numbers of animals including; Elephants, Giraffes, Leopards, Cheetahs, Lions, Wilde-beasts, Warthogs, Hyenas, Ostriches, Vultures, Hippos, Rhinos, Buffaloes, Gazelles, Antelopes, and Crocodiles.   Although I took many pictures, this one has to be my favourite.   It was taken right after the Leopard had failed to catch a Gazelle 20m away from our truck.

There’s not much else to say about the safari apart from show you the pictures that I have taken.  The pictures will be available to view by anyone that has me as a friend on Facebook by clicking the link at the end of this post.

On Friday the 19th of July, we drove back to Alrusha to stay in the hostel that we stayed in on the first night.  We arrived at the hostel at about 5 P.M, and we watched TV in our room for 2 hours before having dinner at 7 P.M.  We spent the last night in Tanzania playing cards in front of the TV before heading off to bed at 10 P.M.

When we woke up, the students arrived at the hostel while we were having breakfast.  We welcomed them warmly and set off into Alrusha as a group.  The first thing we did was exchange the remainder of our money before heading off to a crafts market where I bought a few remaining gifts.  We then went off to ShopRite to buy a few snacks for our journey before walking back to the hostel to get ready to drive to the airport.

We arrived at the airport and took lots of photos with each other. Several of us ended up crying.  Deep down, we were all ready to return home, but it wasn’t until we’d left the students for good that it really sank in.

The flight to Amsterdam went by really fast as it was an overnight flight, but we had to wait 5 hours in Amsterdam Airport because our flight was cancelled and rescheduled to a later time before we could fly back to Düsseldorf.  We arrived home in Düsseldorf at 2 P.M on Sunday the 21st of July.

In conclusion, the trip was a great experience.  I’ve learnt a lot about my self and about the others that came along, and I feel like I need a break from socializing for a while.  I’ve discovered that I don’t want to become a teacher, albeit being good at it, and that travelling to a country doesn’t impact your life unless you get an understanding of the culture.  Even though the standards of living weren’t great, I feel that they were certainly an experience.  Coming back to smooth roads, running hot/cold water, no dust and a better variety of food, was a welcome change and I think it made us all realize how lucky we are to be able to have all of these luxuries.  If there’s one thing I realized, it’s that although we live completely different lives, they are just the same as us and I cannot think of a reason as to why we deserve to have the things we have and they don’t.

Album Link!