Monday, May 21, 2007

Piki-pikis, Bucket Baths, and Squatty Potties

This is seriously the slowest internet connection ever - but I'm thankful we have internet at all. Since it took five minutes to load, and I think it will take five minutes to load the blog again, I'll write this point form.

* Arrived safely in Entebbe early Saturday morning, took a bus with a CRAZY bus driver for 6 hours to Bukoba. Had to stop at the immigration/customs, get out, show passports, walk to the Tanzania immigration office, wait for the bus. Guys with guns. Long fences. Scary.

* Were met in bus parking lot two hours after arrival by Pastor Cleo. All 8 of us squished into two taxis, including luggage.

* Bob and I are staying with Mama Sweya and Bwana Swaya, a very wealthy Tanzanian couple. Initial greeting difficult, as Mama Sweya speaks mostly Swahili.

* Accomodations:
- Cement floors
- red tile roofs
- Roosters VERY LOUD in the morning
- Frogs and crickets VERY LOUd in the evening. We haven't been fed crickets yet. That's to come.
- Toilets are squatty potties. For those of you who don't know, that means they are holes in the floor, and you stand on either side and crouch over them to relieve yourself. Quite the experience.
- Bathing, in the "cho" (bathroom) is in a cement room (again, with the squatty), with buckets and a small cup. We are lucky to have hot water in our home - but sometimes it's so hot we have to refill it with cold so we can use it. You squat beside the drain hole and pour buckets of water over you. Difficult to wash long hair (Caryn, I understand the braids).
- the man of the house is most respected. We have to hold our elbow with our left hand when shaking his hand.

* Church on Sunday: after church, you walk past a line of people, shaking their hands, and then take your place at the end of the line so everyone else can walk past you and shake your hand.
* At market today someone asked me to be his lover. I was very thankful to have a wedding band and a cute husband nearby!

* Meals: rice (whyli), fish, beef, chicken, and ugali

I gave Mama Sweya a book today called "Prairie Fire" (thank you very much, young Mr. Cook). She loved it! Is practicing her reading with me.

Whole team feeling healthy and fit so far. Language study begins on Thursday.

By the way, picture Bukoba: hills, lush green vegetation (coffee and banana trees), the beautiful Lake Victoria, and lots and lots of RED DIRT.

3 minutes left. Let's see how quickly this loads!

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