This past week has been a lot of work and non-stop adventure. It began on Tuesday when we went to Magombero Forest with a professor from the Sokoine University of Agriculture. We went traipsing through sugar cane fields and a then through a very dense forest to see examples of deforestation. I didn’t have much time to observe the deforestation because I was too busy dodging stinging nettles and sprinting through nests of biting fire ants. Those things are the most malicious bugs that I’ve ever encountered! They actually borrow through your clothes to get to your skin. It’s like they’re out for revenge for disturbing them. One of the guys on the trip got them all through his clothes and actually had to strip down in the middle of the forest to get them off of his skin! Welcome to the jungle.
Wednesday was spent working on my paper about how rural land use planning can aid biodiversity conservation…whew!…a definite challenge for a marketing major. Can’t say I’m not earning my science credits.
Thursday and Friday were spent surveying the village of Tundu. We took a tiny rickety bus called a Dola Dola 75 minutes each way over the rockiest dirt road I’ve ever seen. Oh, and the horn sounded just like a carnival ride theme song – not at all like the standard “Beep! Beep!” that we’re used to. The bus driver seemed to really enjoy the sound of the horn as he laid on it for minutes at a time (as though a bus full of white kids didn’t attract enough attention on its own)! At long last, we arrived at Tundu and got right to work surveying the town to help them create a map. Only a basic outline of the area exists, which makes planning for roads and other structures nearly impossible. We spent the entire day measure people’s homes and yards. It was a really cool way to see the culture. Tanzanians are so proud of their homes. One man took me by the hand and led me to a wooden crate in his back yard. He opened the lid and out jumped four or five rabbits! He really enjoyed my shock (an expression that translates in Swahili). Some of my favorite highlights from surveying were the witch doctor’s house, the school of children swarming us, and a mansion belonging to a woman who is a top five sugar cane grower in Tanzania. Rumor has it she kicked her husband to the curb because she was already rich and didn’t find any need for a man. In Tanzanian society, especially in rural areas, that almost NEVER happens. Women are very submissive and do intense manual labor for their husbands, so I got a big kick out of this female power house. We made a ton of friends simply by giving high fives when they would yell out “Obama!” It’s a good time to be an American in East Africa!
Today we saw a ton of performances from the elementary school kids for a national holiday known as World Environment Day. They performed traditional African dancing, drumming, singing, and even skits. It was a ton of fun to support them and all of the work they’ve put into this conservation education. They took to us as well. By the end of the day, I think 500 kids had pet my hair, help my hand, or danced with me. I couldn’t walk anywhere without a giant mob surrounding me – a very strange feeling. Tomorrow I leave for an African safari in Mikumi! It should be absolutely amazing. I met a tourist today who came straight from Mikumi and described it as the Garden of Eden. I’ll fill you in when I’m back!
Location: Mang'ula, Tanzania