In The Swing of Things...............

Left: Godfrey on his birthday when he visited me in Dar.
Middle: The crew at the beach...
Right: Two of my favorite people, Godfrey and Callie!


Hey Everyone!

I suppose that it is blog time. I have gotten some grief from people about not blogging enough, so I will try to do it more frequently! I really have no excuse considering that I have internet in my home, and I finish work each day at 1:10. Sounds like a pretty tough life, huh?

Things at school are excellent. The International School scene creates a rewarding teaching environment, especially compared to other teaching situations I have been in prior to here. The diversity amongst the staff and students leads to a really different feel around the school. Specifically, I have 4 students that I pull out of class M,T,TH for 40 or 80 minute periods. I have 3 grade 10 students: one girl from Croatia, a boy from Lebanon and a boy who is half Tanzanian and half Italian. My grade 7 boy is Indian, but was adopted by an Italian family. He is adorable, and I am already obsessed with him!!!! Listening to a child, who looks Indian, speak English with an Italian accent is so funny! He is quite well known in the school, and I feel lucky to have him on my caseload!!!! The rest of my day is spent going into the classes to serve my less severe students, who might need some extra support with the general curriculum. I have to say that Special Ed. outside America is SOOOOOOO nice. There is no paperwork, politics, lawyers, or rules and regulations. After this, I am not sure I would ever be able to return to the states to teach..........but that is no surprise to all of you!

Right now, school is not too time consuming, so I have had a lot of free time! I just returned from by debut roadtrip to Moshi to visit Light in Africa. My love for that city, the kids at LIA, and the obsession I have with Kilimanjaro are confirmed each time I return. My friend Callie (who is currently volunteering at the orphanage) had been staying with me here in Dar for a week and needed to get back to Moshi. So instead of making her take to public bus, we kindly offered our personal shuttle services...and it was a great excuse to get to Moshi for the weekend. Any excuse to travel!!!!! Natalie and Tamara (other teachers) joined Callie and me on a very interesting road trip. What was supposed to take 7 hours ended up taking 10 hours after the car overheated several times. I guess radiator coolant is necessary in one of the hottest countries in the world!!! Hindsight......................... So, we arrived Moshi at midnight, went out on the town, and then crashed in a hotel in the town center. We spent all day Saturday at Pilgrim, the boys house at Light in Africa. As usual, the boys greeted me with huge hugs, followed shortly thereafter with, "Can I go Moshi?" and "Can you buy me a radio?" I think they know I have a softspot for them and have trouble saying no to those sweet faces!!! I am getting better though. We ended up taking a few of them...Godfrey included, of course........to lunch to get pizza. After our marvelous day at the orphanage, we went out again in Moshi to get a drink.....or ten! The next morning came too early, we sadly said goodbye to Moshi and our friends there, and set out for Dar. The trip back was much better, it only took 7 hours! However, we did get stopped and were told we were speeding. How they knew we were speeding still has me puzzled. Unless machine guns now have a built-in radar gun, it would have been impossible for the police to know we were going 83 in a 50 zone. Consequently, we had to pay a bribe to get out of it. It was either the ticket price, which we honestly didn't have, or a $3 bribe. I hate contributing to corruption, but here in Tanzania, it is hard to avoid.

I have no big plans for the weekend as of yet. Just time to relax, eat some good food, drink a few beers at the beach and chill. I might attend the goat races this Saturday if I feel in the mood. I imagine goat races would be quite entertaining!!! Hope everyone is doing well. Have a great weekend and keep in touch. Love you!

Jen