The Death of Three Alarm Clocks

I'll start by saying that of the three alarm clocks purchased for this trip, none of them have survived. The one that I got in America before I left stopped working in the airport, the one I got during my Amsterdam layover broke within the first week and a half and the most recent alarm clock purchased in Arusha in Tanzania fell on the floor and shattered to a point I could not fix.

I would not mind so much if I didn't feel as though I had to wake up at 5:00a.m. with my homestay mother to manage the cows and clean. Nevertheless, I have decided to use the option that makes the most sense, and use my pay-as-you-go-phone as an alarm.

Today is my fourth day of homestay. It goes well. I have a homestay Mama, a 20 year old sister Jackline, a 15 year old sister Susan, and a 11 year old brother Emmanuel. There is another teenager that was living with us, her name was Aisha, but Aisha and Jackline left this morning for Nairobi. There are also a number of other children from the area that hang around and many other mamas and their babies that come around during the day.

One thing I was not expecting was that our house has electricity, although it turns on and off throughout the day, and during rainstorms (which happen frequently in Bangata, where we are staying). Although it is not very reliable, there is a TV and my first afternoon, I watched a lot of Tanzanian music videos. I have my own room, the others share the other two rooms. There is a bathroom hut, which has dirt floors and a hole, and when I looked to closely I noticed the walls were lined with moth-like flies. So I have stopped looking, and although it sounds bad, it really isn't the worse thing in the world.

As mentioned before, I get up early in the morning to try and help out the family with cleaning and do cow business. I tried milking the cow yesterday but I was quickly shooed out of the way for my failed attempt. We eat Tanzanian cuisine such as chapati and rice and beans and ugali (eaten with your hands) and I have not gone hungry yet. Although breakfast is just tea.

Jackline speaks a little English but rarely understand me when I speak. I do a lot of motioning with my hands. Although we have Swahili classes everyday, and my Swahili is improving, there is definitely still miscommunication. I've made friends with a few of the local kids because they love to play frisbee with my custom-made one from Illinois Wesleyan. My walk to school is about twenty minutes uphill and I get easily lost (no road signs), if my homestay brother can't walk with me, these other kids will help me get there.

Interestingly enough, this family has had SIT students before, they have a lot to teach me and I believe I can still teach them a few things about American culture or at least about myself. I feel as though I'm actually spending times with Tanzanians because on Safari we are surrounded by other American kids and our camp crew that speaks English.My family is warm and welcoming and I believe the next three weeks will go smoothly. I will try and update this the next time I get to Arusha!