I know this post should have been posted about a week ago,
though I needed to allow some time for me to settle and find the groove of a
normal routine. Now I feel much more prepared to break down the Zanzibar
situation for you all. Brace yourselves….
I’ll begin by sharing a description of my usual day to day
life now that I have settled in and the hectic has subsided:
4:15: Wake up to the call of prayer, as the mosque’s are
quite prevalent in every neighborhood and microphone the call of prayer five
times per day. Think to myself Ah, it
never stops sounding beautiful. Even this early. And yes! I still have over an
hour!
5:40 AM: Alarm goes off for the morning run. I wake up,
either brush my teeth in my room by using my trash can as a drain to avoid
being noisy in the bathroom, or decide to use the bathroom to brush anyway.
Leave the third floor apartment of my house around 5:50 and walk down the
narrow streets/dirt roads to Forodani Garden, a cobblestone park on the pier,
where I meet my friend, Halle, for our 30 minute run.
6:30 AM: DONE! Finish with the run, sweating like pig as I
am in long leggings, shorts on top, and a t-shirt. I am sure to cover up as
much as possible without nearly dying of heat exhaustion because one: I am
white, therefore a westerner and therefore an outsider so I want to show as
much respect as possible to the culture, and two: because it’s Ramadan so I
should take extra precaution to be respectful and three: the more drench, the
better, right?! I say goodbye to Halle and walk home to shower and get ready
for work.
7:15 AM: Leave the house to head to SUZA (State University
of Zanzibar) where I will bum some free internet from the Zanlink building just
behind the school to catch up on news, text messages, facebook and emails. During
my walk, I am asked/called things like, ‘Mzungu!’ and ‘Jambo!’ and ‘Asalama
lykum’ and ‘Taxi?’ and ‘Karibu!’ meaning (in order) ‘White tourist walking
around aimlessly as though drunk’ (translation found online), ‘Hello!’,
‘Another greeting for hello, this one more formal’, ‘Taxi?’, and ‘Welcome!’ I
do love being welcomed by people and spoken to as if I am a part of this
culture, except for being called Mzungu and asked if I want a taxi.
7:40 AM: Leave the school to board the dolla dolla, the
local bus system here. In American standards, the bus would be considered junk
yard material. Here, it is the cheapest way of getting around and thousands of
people ride everyday, just like the bus system in America. I am usually one of
the first to get on, so I take a seat and observe all the people. And awkwardly
accept all the stares from those surrounding me by avoiding eye contact at all
costs.
8:00 AM: Arrive at Zanzibar Legal Service Centre, where I
shuffle in to my office after greeting those that have already arrived and
signing in. I log in to my computer, check some emails and converse with my
office partners. Begin doing a research project or asking questions about cases
for clarification. Look like a deer in headlights as my coworkers try to engage
me in Kiswahili, and here I am learning how to use basic language again. Thank
them as they finally give up and speak in English. Listen in on client cases
(dumbfounded again) if available that day, and assist with office work such as
research, editing or reading cases.
1:00 PM: Leave internship and get on dala dala to travel
back to town for class at SUZA. Greet Mwalimu Omar (professor Omar) and
struggle through class for 2-3 hours.
3:00/4:00: “SCHOOL’S OUT FOR SUMMER!” But not really, just
for the day. Now I run some errands if necessary and go back home for some
R&R before ‘Futari’, which is the meal that breaks the fast. It is Ramadan
for the month of July, which means no eating until sun down. Admirable are the
Muslims here who can fast all day, with no food or water, and hold
concentration. I applaud them all. I also get to walk through these beautiful streets everyday:
Home Sweet Home:
6:30 PM: Travel down stairs to the first floor apartment of
Babu Marine (Grandpa Marine), where my family has laid out a wide assortment
of different dishes on the floor. We all sit and eat together. Everything tastes delicious. I mostly listen
while the family engages in conversation and try to chime in when possible. It
feels so good to eat! And each time I sit down, I appreciate the fact that I am
included in this family, that they allow me to take part in their Futari even
though I am an outside Mzungu.
8:00 PM: Done with dinner, go upstairs to rest, follow up on
homework, write postcards and emails, journal, etc. I say goodnight to my
family and joke around with my dada, Nadiya, who I find to be absolutely
wonderful. She is so welcoming, jokes around with me constantly, and makes me
feel as if I have known her for years. It’s truly a luxury to have someone like
her when I often feel a sense of unfamiliarity being an Mzungu here. She is pictured below:
9:00 PM: If friends from Indiana are gathering at 6 Degrees
South or another Mzungu bar, I may meet them there. I either walk with people,
have my baba’s brother take me, or grab a nearby taxi. I would probably be fine
walking alone, but I know not to risk it!
10:00/11:00 PM: Time for bed. I fall asleep by playing
Solitaire on my iPhone. I am happy for my own bed, a wonderful family and the
ability to be back in this culture that I love.
Upon arrival, things were pretty hectic. My host father,
Saeed, picked me up from the airport and we came to the house to meet Nadiya,
the house girl (I call her my dada for sister), Saeed’s dad, and his two
brothers (Saeed’s wife was in Dubai on a business trip). The next morning I
went to SUZA and was told that I should probably take a Swahili class for an
update on the language. This was a blessing in disguise, but at the time was
overwhelming because one, the class is $800 and two, I had to figure out how I
would have enough internship hours. Luckily, it all turned out fine. I also had
to submit a ton of paperwork when I arrived (thanks to Iliff! Gotta love
internship agreements!). It’s a little difficult because the culture is so laid
back and trying to rush or be assertive comes off pretty conceited. But
everything turned out okay.
Saeed at his basketball tournament last week:
Saeed at his basketball tournament last week:
Many things are done differently here, and I find myself
having to check the standards I've been influenced to believe at the door. I am in a constant
process of learning, growing, adapting and observing here. It’s overwhelming,
so making sure to use critical thinking skills and self-care is essential, and
thanks to Iliff for teaching me how to fully utilize these resources.
One observation I made upon arrival is how I’ve been
influenced by America on the state of nations in Africa, even though I have
studied here before. In America, we do research projects on health devastation
in Africa. We see commercials of children standing on a dirt road, which in
western standards, appears to be poverty, and we read news stories about the
wars, atrocities and corruption in Africa. All these things, plus many more,
fail to recognize that Africa is not only surviving, it is THRIVING. And it
feels good to feel like an outsider and feel intimidated; to not know. The
following section of a journal entry I wrote within the first week here will
help with clarification:
The culture is beautiful. I feel so lost and so unknowing,
even though I’ve been here before. There is still so much to know, to study, to
observe, to feel. I am constantly observing. I am constantly immersed. We get
the impression in the west that this civilization is not complex or justified
or even developed. What has shocked me so much thus far is the remembrance (and
the realization) that I simply do not know. This is a beautiful tension to live in because I now am the learner, not the knower, which has come as an abrupt challenge considering my upbringing in a society that is very focused on being the best and know-all. But this culture is developed, and I still have so much to
learn about it. This culture fends for itself. They buy and sell, they have a
market, they have living standards and daily obligations. The have basketball
teams and chocolate candy and nice bed frames and bottled water. They have
movies and washing machines and pretty curtains and rooftop restaurants. They
have taxis and trash cans and stoves and a functioning government. But we don’t
see these images. We see the stereotypical ‘Africa’. What we're missing are the parts of the culture that aren't visualized in many images in America.
Here are a few more pictures from my trip last weekend to Nungwi, which is on the very north of the island:
"Good life never comes like a dream."
There are a lot of challenges, and it’s a constant cycle of
ups and downs, but I feel so
content here. My soul is happy to be here. And this month, I get to enjoy
Ramadan, which is where Muslims fast all day and eat when the sun goes down. I
also am able to enjoy more calls of prayer at night, which sound like an Arabic
song. Until next time, tutuonana! (see you later)
Syd
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