Dala dala bill, yo

Today was the biggest adventure yet. This morning Christina, Jan and I woke up early, had breakfast, and then set out for Moshi, a city nearby. To begin, we walked a couple of blocks to the dala dala stop. Dala dalas are the public transportation system in Arusha and are basically vans that hold as many people as can physically fit inside. We took the dala dala to the bus station in Arusha where we got on a minibus to Moshi. The dala dala cost a whopping 250 tSh (about $.20) and the minibus cost 2500 tSh (about $2.00). No one sat on top of us on the minibus, which was relieving since it was about a two-hour drive and we were all but expecting to be sat on.

When we got to Moshi we met up with Ibrah, Christina’s friend from when she volunteered here last year. We went to a tailor to get skirts/dresses made out of kangas, went to coffee with him, and then had lunch at his house. Ibrah was great. He has worked for years with volunteers in the area and is an expert at teaching about Tanzanian culture. It takes a lot of skill to be able to step back and actually analyze your own culture and teach it to others, but he offered some very interesting insights. We hung out in Moshi until about four when we re-boarded the minibus. It was smooth sailing until we got a flat tire about an hour into the trip. Luckily it was still light and we were in a small town when we pulled over. After about four people examined it, it appears that someone patched it, and we were on our way again.

Now we are safely back in our hotel after a delicious dinner. I can’t believe we’ve only been here for a little more than a week. Everyday I become more comfortable here and with every new adventure I feel like I’m getting more out of my time here. It feels like I’ve been here months already, so I can’t imagine what it will feel like when four months are actually over.

Tomorrow will be devoted to studying Swahili and probably some grocery shopping.

Sorry to those of you who don't understand the title...