5/24/14 - 5/30/14

5/24/14

woke up and ate a big breakfast at the christmas tree. then packed up and booked it on over to hotel tilapia. i say by the late this time… away from my normal post on the top deck. it was very windy and actually a bit chilly but very nice. i interneted and then played the gameboy for a little before going to charge my laptop. i got a missi roti or something like that and it was good. 

then i left for the airport and it was official. i was heading out. traveling was very uneventful today, which i take as a great thing. they were fine with my bags and my backpack was the perfect weight (just under 20 kg). I went to dar and then kilimanjaro. both of the flights showed up and they were even early! go fastjet! from the airport, i took a shuttle to moshi town for only 10,000tsh versus at least $45 for a taxi. i got to moshi by 10pm and then took a short little taxi to my hostel, the twiga home. i walked in, they handed me the key, and i walked straight to my room and went to bed. they didn't ask my name or how long i would stay or anything. i quickly packed my bag for my kilimanjaro day trek tomorrow before i went to sleep. 

5/25/14 

the silence that i found last night only lasted so long. some kind of construction began at 5:30 and that just compounded the effect of the roosters and dogs. i went out to meet ambrose, the owner of materuni tours, and he took me to the office to pay for my trips. there, i met my guide and then we headed out. just the two of us with a driver, heading to the marangu gate. it took about 45 minutes to get there but then we got out, grabbed our stuff, registered for the permit, and were off. 

i was really surprised at how green this area was. the whole base of kilimanjaro is a rainforest. it was incredibly lush, moist, and varied. lots of moss on the trees. ferns and ivy. monkeys playing in the tree (black and white colobus monkeys and blue? monkeys). it took 2 and 1/2 hours to get to the mandara hut at 9000 ft, about 8 km. It was actually cool when we first got there but i had quite the sweat going as i was hiking. however, when i stopped to eat lunch at the madara hut, i got cold. i enjoyed lunch. something different and i was starving. as soon as we finished lunch, we walked about 20 minutes further to the maundi crater, which is really a caldera and not a crater). unfortunately, it was a cloudy day (well actually, it was cloudy every single day i was there because it was the rainy season). however, from the maundi crater on a clear day you can see both peaks of kilimanjaro and also a good bit into kenya. anyways, we walked around the crater and spotted the famous protea flower and then headed back. it took a little over 2 hours to get back. overall, gone from 10 - 4:15. my body held up really well too. i was very happy with it. on the way back, i had them stop at a supermarket for me and i got some water and cereal (which was awful). took a much needed shower when i made it back to taiga and then just messed around for the night. 

526/14 

i woke up at 2340 this morning and i was starving. like starving. so naturally  i crawled back in bed with my jar of peanut butter and then went back to bed. fortunately, construction was much quitter this morning and i was able to sleep in more. i ‘got up’ at 8 and read in bed until about 11. then i decided to take on my adventure for the day. i walked into town and just explored around. there really wasn't much to see out of the ordinary. i just bought some food that i wanted (fruit, roasted corn, roasted banana) and then walked on back. it was really jet an adventure to get out of the hostel and to see the city. and to buy any souvenirs if i saw any that were worth it. i was also really annoyed with people today so it was a great thing that i wasn't doing much. its also why i made it a short, fast trip into town. 

still feeling good today after the long walk yesterday so thats a big plus. only just a tiny bit sore but no pains. 

read when i got back then i go on the computer to talk to katie and mom then i did the all important journalling. i had neglected it for too long and have to finish strong. all the while, i have been spending a lot of time today on the couch which couldn't be more fun and relaxing. watched how to train your dragon this evening and enjoyed that. lastly, packed for the waterfall for hitting the sack. 

5/27/14 

last adventure today@ got picked up again today by ambrose. went with ramen, the same guide again today. however, the big difference was that today i went cheap and african which meant i took the dala dala instead of the private taxi. so yeahhh that was not too fun. we walked to the bus stand and got on a bus. luckily, we did get to sit in the front so it wasn't that tight but still… we waited over an hour and 15 minutes for the bus to fill up. and by fill up, im talking tanzanian standards. then we rode on out to the materuni village which took at 45 minutes. the scenery was very beautiful as we drove. however, honestly, i was already over it. i think i was just done with this day trip, my adventures (for right now), and i was ready to ge going home. anywayssss, the landscape was very similar to my kilimanjaro hike but with a lot more banana trees. also very muddy and slippery roads. so we got out of the dala and we walked along the main road for a while until we got to a little path. we were seriously in the thick of things, but also in the middle of nowhere.some people lived way way far back there. the walk was really beautiful… if only i could lift my eyes for the ground that was so muddy and slippery. it was also much longer than i thought it would be and i just wasn't really feeling it. ramen stopped along the way and pointed out the crops and flowers: tobacco, beans, yams, coffee, bananas, mango, avocado, guave, passion fruit, etc. its a happening place. the village here has mainly people from the chagge tribe and banana is their main food (mostly cooked bananas) so there were lots and lots of banana trees. so eventually, we got to the waterfall and i do have to say that it was quite large and quite beautiful. we took a few pictures (maybe too many? ramen wanted to take some of me which i appreciate but i think the spray was to much). then i had some of my lunch box. there was a couple there from germany and they were nice. a lotta lotta people here always vote european over american for me, particularly, sweeden and germany. then i had the adventure of going to the bathroom out there. when we had our fill, we headed on back and the walk back went much better. we stopped at oscars house on the way back though to go through the whole process of making coffee. it isn't harvesting time but ramen still took me out to where they harvest the beans. then we took the shell off them, roasted them, ground them, then made some coffee. I actually drank about a half of a cup of the coffee. it wasn't too bad. when we made it back to the office, i told them that i want to go out to buy some souvenir shops because i noticed some right around the office. and i was quite successful. got some good stuff for a good price. then i went back to twiga, showered, and stuffed my face. i was so hungry from not eating much all day so it was a busy night. i also had to pack up all my bags to get ready to go to dar and then come home!!!!

5/28/14 

i woke up early this morning and just messed around until i had my taxi driver from the first night come get me and bring me to the fast jet office in moshi, which is where the shuttle leaves from. it was a decent ride to the airport which was pretty cool. they had a tree growing perfectly in there so that it served as a roof to one ‘room’. the only other issue was when i asked a worker if i could bring a water if i bought it here on the the plane and he said yes when the real answer was no. i journalled on the plane to dar and am excited to get there because that is officially my last stop before home. but i am also really excited to see the other volunteers. 

when i got into dar, i got busy on my errand running. the goal was to spend my money on anything i found that i wanted. i got a sweet potato for lunch and it completely wrecked my stomach again. oh well, one last time. i also worked on getting roasted corn later and peanut butter and banana. i chilled out at the y and waited for the other volunteers to get to the y. as soon as they got there, we got all the luggage up to the rooms (leigh was staying with me) and then we ran to subway. although my stomach was still feeling funky, i went for a panner tikka chicken sandwich because you cant every get that in america. it was quite tasty. then we went to the rooftop bar at the holiday inn right by the ywca. and the holiday inn is like the ritz of dar. it was such a great night and so fun to see and talk with all the girls. 

5/29/14

end of service day! and the day that i can officially say that i am leaving tomorrow! overall it was such a nice way to go out. it was great to have a group of people together who truly understand what you experience, how it happened, how the little things bother you and the big things dont seem to matter as much. they just understand whereas i dont think other will every be able to not matter how much i talk and how much they want to. it was just a lot of reflection, discussion, comparison, closure, and laughter. we went to the national museum for lunch and then went back to the ministry of education for a little session about world teach business and about reverse culture shock. we talked about how to handle yourself and others when you return, to understand that a lot of stuff happened in our lives but that same is true of their lives while we were gone, adjustment, how to handle conversations with others, etc. we had a little bit of free time where i worked on my volunteer profile and also wrote a letter to myself that kim said she would mail to us in a year. then we walked to chefs pride for dinner. i enjoyed my vegetable curry. i have been loving me some indian food that for sure. anything with spice. we stopped at snoopy’s on the way back for ice cream and then went back to the y to chill before going to the holiday inn again for one last hurrah. we stayed there until about 1:30 when we said our goodbyes to laurel who was leaving that night and to night who was leaving the next morning for kilimanjaro. so it was a late night and a typical tanzanian morning (aka wake up 6ish). who needs sleep… 

5/30/14

nick and leigh left for the airport this morning. leigh went to pick up her brother from the airport. they are climbing kili together and then going to visit their sister who has been living and working in mongolia. katie also went to the airport last night to pick up her boyfriend. all kinds of excitement! and speaking of excitement… lets make sure that you know that i am coming home today!!! 

so coleen and ariel and i went to breakfast where kim joined up to get our last paperwork. i said my last goodbye and thank you to kim and then kept ticking away on my to do list before i left. this really just mean i needed to do some shopping. katie and her boyfriend were going to a hotel that was right beside a place that airel and i wanted to go shopping so we all shared a cab out there. ariel and i were quite successful. we went to slipway. it was far from a cheap place to go as the prices were much higher than other places but they had it all in one place and it was goof enough for me. so i got me last few things and spent most all of my money so that made me happy. we came back, starving, and went with colleen to subway again. got the sub of the day, sliced chicken, and at 6 inches then and saved 6 for later in the day. after that they were on a search for flats so we went to a few stores but came up pretty empty.i got back and pack up all my bags and just chilled with ariel, leigh, and coleen. i went out at some point to get the last few things for the supermarket. and i kinda hit me then that i was leaving. i was walking and thinking how comfortable i felt here. how normal it was to be doing what i was doing. it was a little odd but it felt so nice to know that i am so content with what i was doing and what i have done. I had to say my goodbyes to these guys, and then it was time to go! as soon as they left for dinner, i immediately got so excited and so happy. my heart started going. i grabbed my stuff and headed downstairs to meet steven. i grabbed a picture with erika, a lady at the y that is always so sweet. then steven and i journeyed on to the airport for the last time. traffic was nice to us and we made good time. steven helped me with my bags and then it was game time. my back pack was just under 20kg and my duffel was 10. i made it through all the check points fine. while waiting, i met a girl from marietta. she had been working with her methodist church to come volunteer in morogoro for a year. small world! 

the flight left at 10:55 pm so theoretically, i should shave been tired. but this body just doesn't do the whole sleeping on the plane thing. i really tried to make it work but it is what it is. we got a surprise meal at almost 1am and you bet i ate it! i also watch gravity towards the end of the flight. masterdom was pretty uneventful as well and i have been typing up this blog post on this last plane ride! my battery is almost dead but im almost done so its all good. as of right this minute, i will arrive in atlanta in 4 hours and 41 minutes. i am flying over greenland right now and you can see chunks of ice (im assuming) out the plan window. i have watched frozen and then life of pi and now i have captain phillips going. the movie choice are great on this flight. the first one… not so much. the plane is cold as always. i have my sweatpants on with the blanket they give you and i have a kikoy wrapped around my shoulders. nice and cozy, comfy. 

so how to wrap this thing up?? i know that i cannot even tell you how excited i am to see my friends and family so soon! this week is going to be exhilarating and exhausting. It may be a little while before i get back on here and wrap this thing up. ill wait for anything the resembles profound thoughts to strike me. but for now, all i can say is how glad i am that i did this. sure, there were plenty of times that were hard and trying but i am probably most thankful for them. this has been a journey of personal growth from begging to end and i am so thankful for everyone and everything that got me to this point. thank you for your support, regardless of what that support looked like! so thank you, thank you, thank you, and i cant wait to see you soon!