Girls Conference and Other stuff..

I haven't posted much about our girls empowerment conference which happened at my institute from June 14th-20th. It went well with 63 girls coming from over 7 schools. We taught them about HIV/AIDS, computers, income generation, goal setting, confidence building, etc. Nothing went horribly wrong though there were some major challenges along the way. And some of the volunteers made the national news (TV and newspaper). All in all it was a success! :)

In July I travelled around TZed because I had to attend some meetings for Peace Corps, so I got to see my host mama in Morogoro again and that was great. Also spent a few days in Dar- still don't know it well but had some amazing experiences along Kisutu St (Hindu Temple Street).

Msimba

Just went to a funeral this past week for a worker from the institute. He was one of those who always teased me in a joking way about the way I pronounce certain words in Kis. So it was sad that as I pass the halls I will no longer hear his voice. Apparently he died of heart failure but there is rumors that he was also HIV positive. Funerals in Tanzania are attended by all, man and woman are seperate for the procession and before the procession. Before the procession women gather in a room crying and singing and men gather seperately doing what I don't know as I am not a man. Men wear normal clothes but women cover their lower body by wrapping around a kanga or kitenge(a piece of cloth) over their clothes (whether they are wearing pants or skirts underneath). Wrapping it like a sarong of sorts. And some also cover their heads. There is no wearing of black clothing- that is a Western tradition. On another note HIV positive men in TZ tend to be (but not always) those with money as they can afford to obtain certain things certain ways- which saddens me as some of these wealthy men prey on innocent girls who can't afford school fees (these men are known as Fataki). It is the opposite of the US- those with education and power here tend to get the disease. Which strengthens my stance on the girls conference coming up in a few weeks.

Love is in the Air

Spring is a time for love and same with summer..but alas it is not spring nor summer here but almost winter. How I forget that! It is funny when talking with Tanzanians I reference June, July and August as summer and they look at me strange, then I realize my mistake..ha ha. :) It is winter here! It is getting cold!! And coming home to the States in December I will be missing a part of summer here and heading to winter again. :(
On a brighter note...the girls conference planning is going well..we just got our conference uniforms..periwinkle blue! :)
I just started teaching a short course to fellow teachers about basic applications hoping to get them to start grading their final grades using an Excel spreadsheet. And of course creating webpages, creating lectures using PowerPoint, learning Matlab, and typing faster. :)
And I realize how much the sound of our voice is due to the language we speak..the tone the inflection..I try to sound Tanzanian..but I still sound American. :)

Curriculum Review and BarCamp Mbeya

Last weekend I participated in a Curriculum Review at the institute..it is interesting to see where the institute is trying to reach in order to be competitive in the global world. I had to present current curriculum changes to the group and then a bunch of us got together to talk about a new curriculum for ICT. It is also great to see that teachers here are into research..one of them is interested in tele-medicine. And great to network with different groups around Mbeya. Doing this sort of networking opened up our eyes and we plan on hosting a BarCamp Mbeya August 22nd at the Mbeya Institute of Science and Technology. Karibu MIST!

Mei Mosi

Labour Day was fun! It was great to be part of a celebration and interesting to exchange the fact that in America Labor Day is celebrated in September. They were surprised that not everyone celebrates Labour Day on May 1st. I saw my first fire truck demo and first fire truck for that matter that day. It was from China which prompted me to ask about an emergency 911 type system..they apparently have it but no one knows the number. And that day I was Tanzanian. And even now more and more of my community accepts me as one of theirs. It is funny once a stranger called me mzungu (foreigner) and a fellow TZ said she's not a mzungu she is my friend, or some will say daughter. Nice huh?

Right now we are marking exams, which I tend to get done faster but I think it is because English is my first language so I can read the student's exams quicker and thus mark quicker. And I have started to offer short courses to teach fellow teachers such skills as PowerPoint, Excel and even creating Websites so they can use these tools in their jobs. Some know it already but not well so they are open to the fact to learn these tools and it is the best time for such training as the only students left are bachelor's students and they are very few. Also I invited some students to my house for pizza, most Tanzanians don't like cheese so I put very little on their side of the pizza but that is ok because I like it alot. :) And the nice thing is my previous students that are going for summer internships have been dropping by my home or even texting me to say goodbye..makes me feel loved..as a teacher of course. :) And no I am not an easy teacher..I prefer to be tough..but I think I do put alot of effort into learning and I think the students like that. I hope to see some of them in the States one they..I hope they can get there..it would be awesome!

Currently I am busy planning the Girls conference..a month left to go! Hope it goes well..many women in my community are interested in helping out..hopefully they mean it.

Bachelor's Degree

It feels good to be teaching bachelor degree students. They are definitely more motivated and interested in the topic and I like it alot! I am teaching them C programming right now, and will be teaching them C++ or Java in September. Other than that, this week consisted of trying to get the Windows NT Server to act as a router and then also helping out with some JavaScript menus on the institute's website (it is definitely going to be a change compared to the old one).

Next week is May Moisi festival (TZ's Labour Day on May 1st)and will be celebrated at a local stadium in Mbeya mjini (town/city), so we are busy at the institute preparing for that. And we are going to plan more on the girl's conference this coming weekend. I plan to climb Kilimanjaro the end of September and beginning of October using the Lemosho route using Duma Explorer as the tourguide (reaching the summit during a full moon). Hope to make it to the top..we'll see. And I have formally submitted my vacation for Zambia so I am definitely going in the beginning of August.

I am currently looking at my future after I get back..some possible choices: becoming a teacher (getting a teaching certificate), getting a PhD in Engineering and Public Policy, or getting an MBA. I want to focus on international development in regards to education or engineering. Or using engineering to help educate..something along those lines..of course doing this by using computers. I realize that I like the academic environment because I have always loved learning something new, when I am in this type of environment I feel excited. Anyways..that is just what is in my head for now. I don't think it will change too much.

Heri ya Pasaka!

Happy Easter to those who celebrate it. This past week was spent marking exams and also deciding on whether or not I am teaching bachelor degree classes. Also this coming week is the last week of lecture and next week finals! Though I am teaching bachelor degree classes starting next week, which means no real big break this year except for a week in August (where I plan on going to Victoria Falls in Zambia but have not finalized that yet) and a few weeks in December (where I may climb Kilimanjaro). The Saturday before Easter I visited Matema Beach for the day. It was an interesting trip up where I rode in an ambulance Land Rover (they had room). Along the way the driver stopped to show cocoa pods and palmero (a type of grapefruit). Cocoa pods once you open them up have a sweet, slimy candy like lining around the beans. So I sucked on a few and spitted out the bean. The bean is bitter and did not smell like chocolate. The water was warm, but unfortunately not clear enough for snorkelling though they say during the dry season (from June-Oct) and January/February timeframe has clear water and warm weather. If you ever do stay in Matema I recommend you stay at the Luthern Beach Center (it seemed cheap though cold showers I am told). I had a nice latte and some pizza at the Beach Center. It was great to have real coffee again. To go to Matema take a dala from Mbeya to Kyela and if you arrive before noon you can take a bus from Kyela straight to Matema about 7500 TZ shillings at most one way. The nice thing is that it is possible for me to head to the beach and back in a day or weekend! :)