Update #3

On Wednesday, I took the bus to Moshi to spend the weekend in Bagamoyo on the coast with Anna, another volunteer from Hamburg. The Karibu Music Festival was taking place there, and we had a ride from Moshi. Since it is an 8-10 hour drive, we wanted to leave on Thursday morning. Unfortunately, on Wednesday evening, the driver canceled on us, and everything fell through. However, I still had a nice evening and Thursday in Moshi. Among other things, we visited a market that feels like a whole neighborhood! The fruits and especially the vegetables are covered, and once you find your way into the labyrinth, everything is so dark, cramped, and narrow that it creates a somehow calm and magical atmosphere. Hopefully, I will share some photos soon. In the late afternoon, I returned to Sanya and arrived home just before dark.

On Friday, I was at the orphanage until noon and now I spend a lot of time with little Akram, one of the new children. He looks like an angel but can be quite a troublemaker. When he gets bored, things really get lively. But now he follows me everywhere I go.

At home, almost everything was ready for the celebration. Baba Hope's sister, the choir, and other people were supposed to arrive from Moshi between 2 and 3 pm.

As it is here, they ended up arriving at 4:45. The guests who were already there went to the street, the women holding leaves and flowers in their hands, to welcome the sister. She had been living in Moshi since July and has now completed her studies and returned home. With singing and other unique sounds, she was accompanied to the house. Everyone sat down and sang two songs. Then the pastor said several prayers, and she herself (unfortunately, I still don't know her name 🙈) gave a short speech. After that, gifts were presented (money, clothes, household appliances?!) and there was food: rice with beef, fried bananas with chicken, noodles, coleslaw, cucumbers and tomatoes, watermelon, and soda & other drinks. Of course, we ate everything. Some people used their fingers, but luckily, there were spoons too 😅.

After the meal, many people had already left, and by nightfall, only the immediate neighbors were still there. That was actually different from the plan, but due to the late arrival, everything was delayed. I was invited into the house and sat there feeling rather awkward and not understanding anything. But it was important for them, and also very nice. At some point, I said Nimechoka sana and went back to our place. I really enjoyed this celebration because I always get to know different customs of the Chagga people, which is the tribe of my host family. It's a shame that the actual celebration ended up being so short. But there will definitely be more in the future. At the latest, at Christmas!

On Saturday morning, I returned to Moshi and spent the afternoon at Pamoja's, a local café/bar with WiFi. With the help of Maja, I finally managed to start the fundraising website!

In addition, I met Trev, an Englishman from Newcastle who has been coming to Tanzania for 10 years and has built a kindergarten, and his friend Enoch, a Maasai who is a porter for Kilimanjaro tours. Trev has done all of this through fundraising events (bike marathon in Maasai attire, 24-hour singing in a pub) back home and his own donations, and he comes here twice a year. He's a funny and cool guy!

In the afternoon, I went to the market and bought fruits and vegetables to cook at the Soweto House tonight. Tomorrow, I will explore the city a bit more and do some shopping. Everything is very relaxed, and in the afternoon, I will return home again!