Holidays update part 1: Leaving Pemba, old friends, AVC and being ill...
on Kev in Tanzania (Tanzania), 30/Dec/2009 08:00, 34 days ago
I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas, with lots of good food, family time and presents. I also hope you are looking forward to the New Year celebrations!Here is the update from leaving Pemba to being ill...Thursday 10th DecemberI was alone today as Liz had travelled to Dar early to meet her friend Maryanne. I went to college as usual to find there was no power (as usual for a Thursday...) The generator was switched on as there was some kind of ceremony taking place in the hall. I taught my class of outsiders how to format in Microsoft Word.On the way home I decided to buy my boat ticket for Saturday to Dar. The guy told me there were no boats to Dar on Saturday it was leaving tomorrow! So I got a ticket and changed my plans!There was power at home so I entertained myself with the laptop until 5pm when the power went off. I packed and tidied up the house before getting some chips for dinner and having an early night. It felt a little weird being alone on Pemba without Liz but I would be seeing her again soon.Friday 11th DecemberWoke up early just before 6am and secured the house before catching a dala at 6.30am. The dala did another trip back into town before leaving to fill up a bit more. I was lucky it was a minivan dala rather than a pick up truck and my bag was sheltered from the rain.I Chake I had to change dalas and my bag was put on the roof, luckily the rains eased off a little and it was not long before I reached the port. Had a little wait before boarding the boat. I was able to sit in the same seat that I sat in the first time I visited Liz (its a nice set of two seats and has it own TV!The trip was 6 hours but was fine, there was wildlife shows along with Raiders of the lost ark, King Solomons mines (RIP Swayze) and the river wild. There was also lightning striking the water near the boat which was the most entertaining!During the stop at Zanzibar Liz's boat came in and I went out on deck to see her and Maryanne.Arrived in Dar at around 6.30pm and went to check into the YMCA. After checking in I grabbed dinner at Chef's Pride and then went around to the protein bar with Marius and had many many beers. We also got locked in and then staggered home! It was nice being back in Dar!Saturday 12th DecemberMy good friend Matayo was coming today from Mpwapwa and in the morning I read Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz as I was waiting for him. I helped him fix his laptop and then in the evening we met up with Marius and Liz Rose in the protein bar before heading out to a nice Chinese restaurant near the Badminton institute.The food was fantastic and we had some good chats, it was nice catching up again after a few months. The place was lovely too and had a broad mix of customers. After eating Marius and I experimented with some Chinese shots, some were disgusting and some were lovely!Sunday 13th DecemberWent to Kariakoo Market with Matayo. I was able to register my phone and he bought some supplies for his market stall back in Mpwapwa.In the evening we went for a curry and on the way bumped into Liz Rose and Marius again. We went to the local curry house near the temple street and it was great!We had an early night as Matayo was going back to Mpwapwa in the morning.Monday 14th DecemberMatayo left at 5.30am to catch the Al-Saedy bus back to Mpwapwa. I moved my stuff over to Econolodge as VSO were now paying for me to stay in Dar as we have the annual volunteer conference (AVC) over the next 3 days.I went down to meet Liz at the port and then we went back to the room and then met up with Sandra, Jo and Andy. We went down to Patels for dinner and good catch up!Tuesday 15th December to Thursday 17th DecemberThis was the AVC. We went to the same hotel as last year (the beach comber) which is a lovely posh place and Liz and I were extra lucky as we got to swap rooms with Marius and Gordon and ended up with a suite which was awesome! We had a seperate living room and a huge bed!The conference was filled with activities and sessions and it was lovely to see some of the volunteers again, especially the ones from my intake, some that I have not seen for a year!The food was lovely and was served 3 times a day (sooo much rich goodness!) in the evenings the beer flowed and good times rolled, there were some very late nights!On the last day we watched a DVD called 'Hyena Square' about a rough slum in Dar. It was a true, heart breaking, moving story about a girl who left her village to work as a house girl, she was then raped by the head of the house and when she tried to report it to the police they wanted money, she had none so they beat her and then put her in prison for 3 months, when she was let out she had nowhere to go and ended up in Hyena Sqaure selling herself to get by. She then caught AIDS because the men dont use condoms but she was saved by an outreach program which gives the girls a place to rest and relax away from the pestering men.At the end of the film the girl came into the room! She was at our conference. It was remarkable to see how strong and determinded she was. I could not have been as strong as her after all that she had been through! Hyena Sqaure is on YouTube - I recommend watching it!Thursday 17th DecemberAfter AVC we went back to Econolodge. I had a upset tummy and was not felling good at all (too much good food?)We went out in the evening as it was one of the last nights with Jo and Andy (Jo was going home for Christmas and Andy is finishing his placement) I could not eat any food but sat and chatted with them.Went to sleep feeling rough...Friday 18th DecemberLiz and Maryanne left for their safari to the Serengeti. I was still ill and did not eat anything all day. Felt pretty low.Saturday 19th DecemberI was still ill and had not eaten. Sandra came to my room and gave me some crackers saying that I should eat something.I went out and bought my bus ticket for Mwanza where I would be meeting Liz and Maryanne.Sunday 20th DecemberStill ill, I went for a walk because being stuck in the hotel room was making me depressed and lonely. I bumped into Liz Rose which was great and we went for a hot chocolate at Steers. It was fun chatting and people watching.After Liz farewell I went for a wander to look at some of Dar's culture places but both the museums were shut...I got lunch at City Garden and had a nice spag bol. Just before dinner Jo, Andy and Nelson came up to the room and we played some monopoly card game.Went to the Red Onion for Jo and Andy's last meal, Jo was flying at 11.50pm after eating (and feeling ill but eating anyway) we caught a cab to the airport and had some emotional farewells.Monday 21st DecemberStill ill and I had had enough! I thought the bug would have passed by now, 4 days of being ill with a bad tummy was not much fun! I went to the IST clinic near VSO and they told me I might have Giardia (nice...) on the positive side they gave me some tablets and I was able to have lunch with having to go to the loo straight after!At Slipway I met up with Frouke and Rhona and we did some Christmas shopping at Mwenge craft markets and the big shopping mall Mlimani City. We caught a cab back and then I had a nice dinner at the Jambo Inn.Tuesday 22nd DecemberBetter! Good old medication! Tried getting money out of the bank but their network was down so I queued up and wasted 2 hours of my day for nothing (I hate NMB bank!!)I went to shoppers plaza and got lunch at a buffet (where I did not eat I could, did not want to risk it...) and afterwards I bought a Bill Bryson book top read on my travels.Had a subway for dinner and had an early night as in the morning was going on a 14+ hour trip to Mwanza to be reunited with Liz and Maryanne for Christmas!So that is update part 1 - I typed it a little rushed and the next part will follow soon!!Take care