Orientation week

What a great service orientation week has been. We have been introduced to some basic swahili: greetings, numbers, days of the week, simple conversation, how to ask for things, how much something costs and time. In Tanzania the day begins at 6:00am so 7:00am is really the first hour of the day, or 1:00 in the morning, 10 in the morning our time is really 4:00 in the morning Tanzania time. I think their time makes more sense than ours.

Learning a bit about some of the local tribes was amazing. The Maasai people have managed to hold onto their culture better than most. You can easily distinguish a person from the Maasai by their dress. The men literally wear 2 or 3 light blankets, draped over their body. The colours are red and purple and there is another colour but I can't remember what it is. The Maasai are a nomadic cattle herding people. Their sandals are made of old tires. I stopped in town the other day and watched a man as he was making some.

We went to a couple of different places this week. We climbed around the base of Kilimanjaro where we saw 3 waterfalls (I jumped from the top of a small one into the pool below. It was scary, but fun), a Chagga museum, a Chagga village and a Chagga cave. Chaggas are another tribe that live at the base of Kilimanjaro.

The Chagga would keep their cattle in their huts, so the Maasai wouldn't steal them. The only time the cattle came out of the hut was when they were slaughtered for food. The Chagga and the Maasai used to be at war and the Chagge built caves in which to hide from the Maasai.

We also went out into the grasslands where we stopped at a hotsprings. It is so dry here as there has been a drought for the past two years. The hotsprings is really an oasis in the semi-arid desert. We swam in the hotsprings and it was amazing. Someone had a mask and snorkel which we used to see under the water. Wow!!

The children when they see us are excited and apprehensive at the same time. They know that wazungu (white people) give them attention and candy. We did see three little children that showed no excitement, fear, apprehension or actually any emotions. Sarah (a pre-med student volunteer) said she believes that they are probably suffering from severe malaria. She said that just 4 pills would most likely cure the malaria, but families are so poor and don't have access to what they need. It was sad to see those little children with no responses.

Last sunday I went to a Jesus Power Convention here in Moshi. The convention is on for the next month. It was under a huge tent. I have never seen a tent so big. The guest speaker was a prophet from South Africa. He spoke his message in english - God knows what you need, when you need it and then provides. He is awesome!! I am looking forward to going to church tomorrow.

Five other volunteers arrived last sunday. Two are Jewish, one says she doesn't really believe or have a religion right now and the other two are Christians. The host in the house where we are staying are all staying are Christians as well. All the volunteers have asked if they can go to church with us on sunday. Praise the Lord!! Amen!

I am very excited and looking forward to starting my volunteer project in the orphanage. It begins on monday. I think the children are all under 5, but that is just heresay from another volunteer that will start the same time as me.

Prayers:
For adults and children suffering from preventable and curable diseases.

For my host mother - Hannah had the make an emergency trip back to Nairobi, Kenya as the caregiver for their children has left them in their home and not come back. The do have their grandmother living in the home with them, but apparently she is very old and cannot care for them properly.

For the other volunteers - that God work his miracles in their lives and that those that don't know our Lord Jesus Christ - meet him.

For myself - that I be a good ambassador for our Lord and that it is His will I do and not my own.