Have you ever ridden in a small, 15-seat bus packed with 20 people down a bumpy dirt road? That was the most exciting part of my day today. They’re called “dala-dalas” and they’re the public transport here in Tanzania that we’ll be using to go to and from the hospital every day. We spent the morning in a welcome orientation and then explored Arusha and got acquainted with some of the spots we’ll be using the most while we’re here – the hospital, the bank, the bus stop, the Maasai market. It wasn’t too exciting of a day, so I won’t bore you with all the details. Instead, here are some fun little tidbits (or “nuggets” as I like to call them) from the trip so far. Not long enough to have a chunk of a blog post, but worth mentioning. One thing you should know is that in the next 5 weeks, I’ll be learning a lot about two very different cultures – Tanzanian and European, primarily England. So far, it’s fascinating to say the least!

 

Here’s what I’ve got:

• The most frequently used adjective I’ve heard so far is “brilliant”. Ex. Did you see those trousers in the market? They were brilliant! I kind of love it and I’m trying to work it into my vocabulary.
• Instead of breakfast, lunch, and dinner, they call it breakfast, dinner, and tea. So when they ask you “What did you have for tea?” and you tell them you chose the masala tea, they will laugh at you… and then graciously correct you.
• Last night, we accidentally used the wrong pan to make popcorn. Instead of hearing the pleasant ‘pop’ sound of the kernels, we heard one BIG ‘pop’ and found the bottom of the pan caved up like a big bubble. Turns out we ruined one of Witness’s pans, so the next day she came back from the store with microwave popcorn. Whoops!
• When you’re the only American living with 28 other people, 25 of whom all have accents, it’s very hard not to want to talk in an accent with them. Side note: one day I want to ask them whether or not this is offensive. Stay tuned for an update.
• UPDATE! I asked them. They laughed when I said people in America LOVE trying to imitate British accents, and they said it was the same for American accents in their countries but for them it’s much harder to imitate. Get excited for my perfected British accent when I get home!
• 3 girls here don’t have their luggage yet. 2 who came through Heathrow Airport from Canada said that the main luggage belt at the airport broke down that day and 200 people on their flight alone didn’t receive their bags in Nairobi – 18,000 bags never made it on the right aircraft. YIKES.
• Mom and Dad, try not to read this one – apparently 2 of the terrorists behind a bombing in Arusha towards the end of May are patients at Mt. Meru Hospital. One of them is waiting to get an artificial leg! My protective side is skeptical but my medical side thinks this is so cool and is hoping to sneak around and find them one day.
• In England, their “public” schools are the same as our “private” schools and vice versa. Why? I have no idea. Confusing? Yes.
• They can also start specialty schools like med school and physical therapy school when they’re 18. For them, that’s university. One of the girls will be a doctor when she’s 24! Dang. For all my pre-med friends – I recommend moving to England stat.
• The streets of Arusha are full of people trying to sell you things. When you let just one of them talk to you and if they go so far as to convince you to buy something, you are the new target for all of the nearby sellers. Prepare to be swarmed! Luckily, I came home today without a single purchase outside of a cheap phone and SIM card. I call that a win.
• Canada Day is tomorrow, July 1^st! Two of my roomies are from outside of Toronto. Get out those flags and celebrate, Canadians.

Those are all my nuggets for today. Get excited for future posts full of interesting cultural facts and funny tidbits… or just my random list of notes. I’ve embarrassed myself enough already trying to get integrated into two different cultures, I’m sure this isn’t the end of it! Wish me luck 🙂

Lots of love from Arusha!

 

– Allie