Long time no blog... I've been back in town since Thanksgiving, but before that I was in Pete, near Jozani for about 3 weeks straight. Pete was great and the family I stayed with was wonderful. I ate delicious food, with lots and lots of fresh fruit (about 4 servings per meal!!) Pete has great mangoes - my favorite fruit, and I've never tasted such ripe perfect ones. There was no running water at the house so it was bucket showers for 3 weeks but that was fine. Most of the time there was power, and Ali even had a bike and a laptop that he let me use! That was great because for one thing I had nothing to do and for another I could work on my ISP during my field observations! I got pretty much the whole thing done while I was there, and I just finished it today!
2 of my friends and I are going to Paje today to spend a few days at the beach after we print our ISPs. Our academic director has some hookup for this great huge house where no one lives, so we can stay there for 8000 shillings a night each(about 7 bucks!) without food, no matter how many people are there. Paje is a somewhat touristy place on the east coast with a beautiful beach - I'm looking forward to a little relaxation.
The monkeys were great though! I spent 6 hours a day observing their behavior, and got to know pretty well where to find them and how to recognize their behaviors. The Jozani guides were great too, and really friendly - they're used to having researchers around. They, and my family, were pretty much the only human contact I had for the three weeks so I was grateful for the company! At the house I had a LOT of time to myself - I read 9 books in 3 weeks, did about 70 sudokus, played Solitaire on the laptop, and had time to write most of my paper. I also had no phone service in Pete so couldn't even talk on the phone! I didn't get too bored though - lots of entertaining myself!
Now we have less than 2 weeks left of the program! I can't believe how fast that snuck up on me. I will be really sad to leave the people here. I love most of the people on our program and we have a good time together. On Thanksgiving we even had an American feast! Every single person on our program cooked a dish, even the boys... so we had 15 things, including traditional Thanksgiving foods like pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, and stuffing, as well as some Zanzibari additions like nutella-custard-fruit pie, and my papaya/condensed milk custard with mango and banana. We invited Zanzibar friends and even gave a little speech about the origins of Thanksgiving (which our academic director translated into Swahili). There were 30 people there! It was quite the event, and a really nice way to enjoy the holiday, even in Tanzania!
The last couple of days have been pretty relaxed. I haven't been doing much since I was mostly done with ISP, but we've just been hanging out and doing work and have gone out a couple nights. On Friday we went to Livingstone's, the bar on the beach, and then to Dharma Lounge, where the 6 Americans or so in the house got a little too excited when they played Living on a Prayer and Summer of '69 - seemingly odd music choices for a club in Zanzibar? Last night we went to the reggae party that's every Saturday at another place in town. I'm trying to soak up all the Zanzibar-only opportunities I have before I go home!
One little recent Zanzibar lost in translation bit:
on the dessert menu at a restaurant in town, one of the most appealing items:
Ice cream with Leeches!
Yummy!! I think it was supposed to be lychee...
Almost as good as "All dishes served with rice or fresh flies"
I'm going to miss this place and all its ridiculousness.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Monday, November 3, 2008
We leave in two days for ISP! Ahh. It's so weird to think that after two months of spending all day every day with the same 14 people, we're all about to split up for a whole month. Hopefully it won't be that long, and we'll be able to get together for the end of ISP on the beach.
We've been in Stone Town for the last few days, just doing lots of school work. We celebrated Halloween, which was lots of fun. For being in Zanzibar, I think we did a pretty good job scrounging up costumes. We trick or treated around the hotel with weird Swahili candy and drinks, etc, then went to Livingstone's, a bar on the beach with a live band. After that we went to Bawani, the crazy club with bad American music and strobe lights.
Before Stone Town we were in Pemba. We flew there in two tiny planes (maybe 10 seats total), which was exciting and a great way to see the island. It was a bit scary being able to see everything the pilot was doing and seeing during the landing, but definitely worth it for the excitement. Pemba is sometimes called the "Green Island" because it's rural and undeveloped. It's a beautiful place with a more varied landscape than that of Unguja. Apparently, it's also referred to as the "Dark Island," which I now understand after spending a week there without power. The island is powered by a single giant generator, unline Unguja which is powered by a cable from Dar es Salaam. Apparently, someone "forgot" to order fuel for the generator, so there was no power! The boat operators were on strike, so there was no guarantee that the fuel would be coming over on the boat anytime soon. At the end of our stay in Chake Chake, the most happening town in Pemba, power finally came back. It wouldn't be so bad without power if it wasn't so HOT! It was unseasonably hot while we were there, causing even the locals to complain. My house also didn't have running water (although there were taps?) so I could only do bucket showers, which just don't work as well for cooling down. Either way, it was quite the experience.
During our week in Chake Chake we saw a bunch of cool stuff, like the Pemba Health Lab, where we saw their TB lab and they also showed us slides of malaria and other parasites like those that cause elephantitis. We also went to the Pemba Essential Oil Distillery and saw kilos and kilos of cloves being prepared for the distillation process. Pemba's biggest cash crop is cloves, so the whole island smells like cloves. We also went to Misali Island, where green turtles nest and there are also cool caves and coral reefs around the island. Also salt farms, a cool idea but not carried out terribly profitably in Pemba.
After homestays in Chake Chake we went to Wete, Pemba, where we visited some local farms and went to Ngezi forest. Some people in our group saw a Mozambique spitting cobra there, and also a dead bushbaby and a tree that bleeds (!). On our last day in Pemba, we visited Kidike, the site of a conservation project of Pemba Flying Foxes, a species endemic to the island. They're pretty much huge bats that roost all over the place in Kidike.
So now ISP in two days! Back to Jozani to study monkeys. Should be cool. Send me emails!
We've been in Stone Town for the last few days, just doing lots of school work. We celebrated Halloween, which was lots of fun. For being in Zanzibar, I think we did a pretty good job scrounging up costumes. We trick or treated around the hotel with weird Swahili candy and drinks, etc, then went to Livingstone's, a bar on the beach with a live band. After that we went to Bawani, the crazy club with bad American music and strobe lights.
Before Stone Town we were in Pemba. We flew there in two tiny planes (maybe 10 seats total), which was exciting and a great way to see the island. It was a bit scary being able to see everything the pilot was doing and seeing during the landing, but definitely worth it for the excitement. Pemba is sometimes called the "Green Island" because it's rural and undeveloped. It's a beautiful place with a more varied landscape than that of Unguja. Apparently, it's also referred to as the "Dark Island," which I now understand after spending a week there without power. The island is powered by a single giant generator, unline Unguja which is powered by a cable from Dar es Salaam. Apparently, someone "forgot" to order fuel for the generator, so there was no power! The boat operators were on strike, so there was no guarantee that the fuel would be coming over on the boat anytime soon. At the end of our stay in Chake Chake, the most happening town in Pemba, power finally came back. It wouldn't be so bad without power if it wasn't so HOT! It was unseasonably hot while we were there, causing even the locals to complain. My house also didn't have running water (although there were taps?) so I could only do bucket showers, which just don't work as well for cooling down. Either way, it was quite the experience.
During our week in Chake Chake we saw a bunch of cool stuff, like the Pemba Health Lab, where we saw their TB lab and they also showed us slides of malaria and other parasites like those that cause elephantitis. We also went to the Pemba Essential Oil Distillery and saw kilos and kilos of cloves being prepared for the distillation process. Pemba's biggest cash crop is cloves, so the whole island smells like cloves. We also went to Misali Island, where green turtles nest and there are also cool caves and coral reefs around the island. Also salt farms, a cool idea but not carried out terribly profitably in Pemba.
After homestays in Chake Chake we went to Wete, Pemba, where we visited some local farms and went to Ngezi forest. Some people in our group saw a Mozambique spitting cobra there, and also a dead bushbaby and a tree that bleeds (!). On our last day in Pemba, we visited Kidike, the site of a conservation project of Pemba Flying Foxes, a species endemic to the island. They're pretty much huge bats that roost all over the place in Kidike.
So now ISP in two days! Back to Jozani to study monkeys. Should be cool. Send me emails!
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Mambo! We're back in Stone Town, but leaving again tomorrow. The mainland was cool, but it felt good coming home to Zanzibar. Dar es Salaam is a crazy place. It's poverty mixed with Western things like fast food restaurants and a mall! The city is a mess due to lack of planning and rapid population growth, but it was cool to see. We spent a week going to lectures at the University of Dar, which was a lot like a university in the States, except with gross bathrooms. They fed us so much food - three course meals every day for lunch! We spent two days getting the "real Dar experience" staying in a hotel that was more in the city but that was kind of a flop since we were totally disoriented and it isn't all that safe to go trekking around the city at night looking for restaurants. We went snorkeling for two days with the fabulous Matt Richmond, author of our textbook and all-around badass. We got to manta-tow, which is the coolest experience ever. A boat drives along and you basically just hold on to a board on a rope attached to the boat and use it to dive underwater. It was like gillyweed in Harry Potter - you just fly along underwater checking out all the cool stuff. So much fun. We also saw some awesome creatures - lots of eels, fish, sea urchins, jellyfish (we all got stung), a sting ray, puffer fish, sea cucumbers (some of which ejaculate when you shake them, producing a weird really sticky white substance which is fun to play with), and even an octopus. Sweet life. Also, during our 17-question "quiz" at the end of our time with Matt Richmond, he bought us all beers. Coolest professor ever/best test ever (on the beach, with a beer, reggae music in the background - jealous?)
Then safari!! So cool. That may be my favorite part of the trip so far. We stayed in a pretty nice tourist lodge in our own little houses right in the park, and the restaurant was right next to a watering hole. During our first meal buffalo and zebras were drinking less than 100 feet from us. We went on four game drives and saw giraffes, baboons, zebras, impala, elephants, buffalo, birds, hippos, crocodiles, a jackal, and a lion! He was sleeping under a tree right next to the road and we woke him up and got to see him shake his mane around and walk away. At night some people woke up to the sound of lions roaring. I could have stayed a lot longer there.
While we were staying in Dar we also got to do yoga! There is a man near the city who came here as a spiritual missionary, opened an orphanage and a school and teaches yoga classes! He greeted us in orange outfits that looked very monk-ish. The yoga session was a much needed relaxation time, and everyone did it including the boys and our academic director.
Back in Stone Town, we've mostly been taking it easy. Last night we went out to a club that played a Soulja Boy song! We danced a ton with the crazy strobe lights and mix of weird choices of American music (move bitch by Ludacris and California Love?) and Swahili music. Tonight we're going to a Swahili music concert at the Old Fort in town.
Tomorrow we leave for Pemba! Pemba is Zanzibar's sister island and is supposed to be much more rural. Some huge portion of the world's cloves were produced there not too long ago, and the island is also well known for its essential oil production. We're going straight into homestays, which should be a little rougher than those in town. I'm excited about it. Anyway, more later, send me emails!
Then safari!! So cool. That may be my favorite part of the trip so far. We stayed in a pretty nice tourist lodge in our own little houses right in the park, and the restaurant was right next to a watering hole. During our first meal buffalo and zebras were drinking less than 100 feet from us. We went on four game drives and saw giraffes, baboons, zebras, impala, elephants, buffalo, birds, hippos, crocodiles, a jackal, and a lion! He was sleeping under a tree right next to the road and we woke him up and got to see him shake his mane around and walk away. At night some people woke up to the sound of lions roaring. I could have stayed a lot longer there.
While we were staying in Dar we also got to do yoga! There is a man near the city who came here as a spiritual missionary, opened an orphanage and a school and teaches yoga classes! He greeted us in orange outfits that looked very monk-ish. The yoga session was a much needed relaxation time, and everyone did it including the boys and our academic director.
Back in Stone Town, we've mostly been taking it easy. Last night we went out to a club that played a Soulja Boy song! We danced a ton with the crazy strobe lights and mix of weird choices of American music (move bitch by Ludacris and California Love?) and Swahili music. Tonight we're going to a Swahili music concert at the Old Fort in town.
Tomorrow we leave for Pemba! Pemba is Zanzibar's sister island and is supposed to be much more rural. Some huge portion of the world's cloves were produced there not too long ago, and the island is also well known for its essential oil production. We're going straight into homestays, which should be a little rougher than those in town. I'm excited about it. Anyway, more later, send me emails!
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Happy Siku kuu! Eid is here... finally. On the dala dala back from Zala Park today I saw kids eating lollipops on the street, people eating and drinking from water bottles. What a relief. The most exciting thing was music playing everywhere. It's all very refreshing after a month of going without. I couldn't wait to ditch the headscarf.
I spent yesterday in Zala Park, just outside of Jozani forest. I got a one-on-one explanation of the animals with my now-bff, Ramadhan. He let me hold all the snakes and lizards and turtles (including one terrapin- yay Maryland), and told me about their diet and habitats and how they come to have them at the park. They put me up in a small guesthouse with no electricity and fed me lunch (rice and chuzi - a fish dish with tomato sauce and potatoes), dinner ("pancakes," chai, and chuzi), and breakfast (bread, cake, cookies, chai and chuzi). This morning when I didn't want fish for breakfast, Ramadhan proclaimed "You eat so little! Does chuzi hurt your stomach?"
Ramadhan hung out with me in the house for most of the day when we weren't checking out the animals or going on a nature walk. He asked me whether I like to vote, and he wanted to talk American politics. It's interesting that here in Zanibar, far away from the US, many people know more about the American election and candidates than many Americans do. Most Zanzibaris are Obama supporters, and are eager to talk about him with Americans.
The dala dala ride back to Stone Town was interesting. I got to sit in the front, which makes for a much more comfortable ride than in the back. We got stopped at some police checkpoint and the driver of the dala dala was arguing with the policeman for a while. I thought they were arguing about the number of people on the dala dala, but then the driver opened my seat, got out some tools, and made some adjustments on the vehicle for about 15 minutes. It took about 2 hours for me to get back to Stone Town, a distance that would probably normally take about 40 minutes by car.
I know everyone says this when they come to Africa, but it really is true. People here run on a different schedule - aka Africa time. Everyone is late, and people say that what they are doing is much more important than what you will be doing later. Punctuality is not a valued trait here. It's kind of refreshing, but at other times I feel like I'm never going to get anything done because everything moves pole pole (slowly slowly).
I spent yesterday in Zala Park, just outside of Jozani forest. I got a one-on-one explanation of the animals with my now-bff, Ramadhan. He let me hold all the snakes and lizards and turtles (including one terrapin- yay Maryland), and told me about their diet and habitats and how they come to have them at the park. They put me up in a small guesthouse with no electricity and fed me lunch (rice and chuzi - a fish dish with tomato sauce and potatoes), dinner ("pancakes," chai, and chuzi), and breakfast (bread, cake, cookies, chai and chuzi). This morning when I didn't want fish for breakfast, Ramadhan proclaimed "You eat so little! Does chuzi hurt your stomach?"
Ramadhan hung out with me in the house for most of the day when we weren't checking out the animals or going on a nature walk. He asked me whether I like to vote, and he wanted to talk American politics. It's interesting that here in Zanibar, far away from the US, many people know more about the American election and candidates than many Americans do. Most Zanzibaris are Obama supporters, and are eager to talk about him with Americans.
The dala dala ride back to Stone Town was interesting. I got to sit in the front, which makes for a much more comfortable ride than in the back. We got stopped at some police checkpoint and the driver of the dala dala was arguing with the policeman for a while. I thought they were arguing about the number of people on the dala dala, but then the driver opened my seat, got out some tools, and made some adjustments on the vehicle for about 15 minutes. It took about 2 hours for me to get back to Stone Town, a distance that would probably normally take about 40 minutes by car.
I know everyone says this when they come to Africa, but it really is true. People here run on a different schedule - aka Africa time. Everyone is late, and people say that what they are doing is much more important than what you will be doing later. Punctuality is not a valued trait here. It's kind of refreshing, but at other times I feel like I'm never going to get anything done because everything moves pole pole (slowly slowly).
Monday, September 29, 2008
Today we have a little down time in Stone Town, which is nice. Yesterday we went to Chumbe Island, which is pretty much a little piece of heaven. The coral reef is a marine protected area, and it is one of the few in Zanzibar where public access is totally restricted. The snorkeling was by far the best we've done so far - we actually saw big fish because they've had time to develop without being threatened by fishermen. The colors of the fish were incredible - beautiful greens, purples, and blues. The coral too is vibrantly colored and healthy. We snorkeled for a couple of hours there and explored the rest of the island. The marine park is funded by an ecotourism project on the island, which is basically 7 eco-bungalows. The bungalows don't have windows or doors, even on the bathroom. The little power comes from solar panels, and the water for the shower and sink is rain water collected under the bungalow. The toilet doesn't flush, but is a compost toilet which turns human waste into fertilizer using compost from biodegradable food waste from the island. It's a great project, and they also provide free environmental education classes for local children, who have no other exposure to such topics. They take them snorkeling but almost none of the kids can swim, and the girls are completely covered from head to toe, which makes for restricted swimming.
Over the next couple of days we'll be working on our mini ISP, a two day project in which we get familiar with what we'll be doing for the month at the end of the program, including the living on 16 dollars a day. It should be interesting - I'm hoping to go back to Zala Park, which we visited earlier in the semester and has reptiles and other cool stuff.
Over the next couple of days we'll be working on our mini ISP, a two day project in which we get familiar with what we'll be doing for the month at the end of the program, including the living on 16 dollars a day. It should be interesting - I'm hoping to go back to Zala Park, which we visited earlier in the semester and has reptiles and other cool stuff.
Friday, September 26, 2008
So we're back from Jozani and it was pretty much the sweetest part of the trip so far. The forest was made a national park not too long ago and is part red mahogany ground water forest and part coral rag/mangrove area. Walking into one part of the forest feels like being in Jurassic Park, and other parts of the protected area feel like Lion King bushland/savannah. When we got to the forest the first day around 9 AM, there were a huge group of monkeys hanging out right next to our "classroom" feeding. So crazy, and they don't seem to be bothered by human presence at all. Last night before dinner there were about 15 monkeys just hanging outside our house playing and eating. Awesome.
We had a few lectures while there which were pretty frustrating because they were slow, dense, and classrooms in Zanzibar get hot and sleepy real quick. The instructors were really knowledgeable and had tons of experience with monkeys, birds, and even testing whether hyenas will eat gravel mixed with blood, an experiment the chief park warden carried out himself. Apparently blue monkeys are easily confused with sex monkeys (actual name: Syke's monkeys, we discovered after thinking the lecturer was joking and giggling like schoolgirls for 20 minutes).
Yesterday, a few of us went out on a special ride during free time with Salim, one of the park rangers. We rode on the back of a pickup truck out to the forest, and we rode through a part of dense forest which probably hasnt been driven through in several years. While ducking under and getting whacked in the face by branches sitting next to a park ranger in the back of a wild pickup truck driving through the forest with guides clearing the bush with machetes, it really struck me what a crazy/awesome experience I'm having right now in Z-bar.
Also in Jozani, we faked a guy's birthday so we could get cake and ice cream... we honestly thought our academic director wasnt taking us seriously that it was his birthday, until she showed up from Stone Town with cake and a card. It was sweet. The only bad part of the forest was getting supa sick the first afternoon/night. Puking and the works. I had to go back to Stone Town to see a doctor, and then get back to the forest by myself on a dala dala. It was cool but also something I would have liked more when I wasn't sick. I was the only female on the bus, but a friendly guy chatted with me about religion and then asked me where my husband was and laughed hysterically when I replied by saying I was too young.
Also, hilarious factoid to remember: The Kiswahili word tembo has two meanings: one is elephant, and the other is vagina.
On that note...
We had a few lectures while there which were pretty frustrating because they were slow, dense, and classrooms in Zanzibar get hot and sleepy real quick. The instructors were really knowledgeable and had tons of experience with monkeys, birds, and even testing whether hyenas will eat gravel mixed with blood, an experiment the chief park warden carried out himself. Apparently blue monkeys are easily confused with sex monkeys (actual name: Syke's monkeys, we discovered after thinking the lecturer was joking and giggling like schoolgirls for 20 minutes).
Yesterday, a few of us went out on a special ride during free time with Salim, one of the park rangers. We rode on the back of a pickup truck out to the forest, and we rode through a part of dense forest which probably hasnt been driven through in several years. While ducking under and getting whacked in the face by branches sitting next to a park ranger in the back of a wild pickup truck driving through the forest with guides clearing the bush with machetes, it really struck me what a crazy/awesome experience I'm having right now in Z-bar.
Also in Jozani, we faked a guy's birthday so we could get cake and ice cream... we honestly thought our academic director wasnt taking us seriously that it was his birthday, until she showed up from Stone Town with cake and a card. It was sweet. The only bad part of the forest was getting supa sick the first afternoon/night. Puking and the works. I had to go back to Stone Town to see a doctor, and then get back to the forest by myself on a dala dala. It was cool but also something I would have liked more when I wasn't sick. I was the only female on the bus, but a friendly guy chatted with me about religion and then asked me where my husband was and laughed hysterically when I replied by saying I was too young.
Also, hilarious factoid to remember: The Kiswahili word tembo has two meanings: one is elephant, and the other is vagina.
On that note...
Sunday, September 21, 2008
So today is my last day/night with my homestay family. It's been a really interesting experience staying with them. Tonight we have a farewell party with our families, and one person in our group will give a farewell speech (in Swahili!) Since it's in Swahili, we're keeping it simple - something along the lines of "Thanks a lot for the food and for letting us stay with you. See you soon!" My homestay mom has been especially nice to me about not eating meat - she cooks a small version of some things for me with fish instead of meat and then says "Amalya! Your food!" One night we went to my aunt's house for dinner, and she even brought a long a little container of Amalya-friendly food for me.
More when we get back from Jozani forest!
More when we get back from Jozani forest!
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Blog!
Okay, so I'm still in Stone Town (Mji Mkongwe in Swahili) and we leave in two days for Jozani forest. We're wrapping up our 2 weeks with homestay families, and some things I've learned are:
Things that are rude in Zanzibar but OK at home:
- touching food with your left hand (used instead of toilet paper)
- pointing at people
- licking your fingers
Things that are rude at home but okay in Z-bar:
- loud burping
- changing the TV channel while someone else is watching
It's been great staying with the fam, but I'm excited to head into the forest. After that we're back in Stone Town for a week ish including Eid al Fitr (YAY for the end of Ramadan), and then we leave for Dar Es Salaam (mainland woot!)
My academic director told me one of my skirts is too short which is lame, but I can wear it when we get to Dar for a whole two weeks!! I'm pretty stoked to see what the mainland is like and also eat in public during the day. We're going on safari while we're there which is also fun.
Okaay time to go so i can hit up facebook for a few mins before my time at the internet cafe runs out.
L8a,
Amalya (my Swahili name)
Okay, so I'm still in Stone Town (Mji Mkongwe in Swahili) and we leave in two days for Jozani forest. We're wrapping up our 2 weeks with homestay families, and some things I've learned are:
Things that are rude in Zanzibar but OK at home:
- touching food with your left hand (used instead of toilet paper)
- pointing at people
- licking your fingers
Things that are rude at home but okay in Z-bar:
- loud burping
- changing the TV channel while someone else is watching
It's been great staying with the fam, but I'm excited to head into the forest. After that we're back in Stone Town for a week ish including Eid al Fitr (YAY for the end of Ramadan), and then we leave for Dar Es Salaam (mainland woot!)
My academic director told me one of my skirts is too short which is lame, but I can wear it when we get to Dar for a whole two weeks!! I'm pretty stoked to see what the mainland is like and also eat in public during the day. We're going on safari while we're there which is also fun.
Okaay time to go so i can hit up facebook for a few mins before my time at the internet cafe runs out.
L8a,
Amalya (my Swahili name)
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