like a midget in a slam dunk contest

I'm out-- I'll be traveling for the next couple weeks with my brother who's come to town.

For now, here are some more photos from the past couple weeks from around the school:

puzzle

tire-swing

juma

connect 4 in the evening





issa laughs





watching




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the keymaker

This is Bakari Hamisi Mpili, the town keymaker of Kizwiani. The other day I went with Dickson to get some keys made in Kizwiani, the market area near Mbagala, and I met Mr. Mpili , who has had his shop there for 20 years and counting. He and his shop completely fascinated me, and he was kind enough to let me take some photos, which I now share with you.

Mr. Mpili's shop




Mr. Selemani, one of the keymaker's customers

His furnace for welding




Fundi means "craftsman" in Swahili

At his work



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Lost in Translation

So, as you might guess, Swahili-to-English often is not a direct translation. For example, the word piki piki {pron: pee-kee pee-kee} encompasses both mopeds and motorcycles, so its hard to distinguish between the two.

My latest endeavors have been to try and uncover the mysteries of the word mboga {pron: m-boh-gah}. In all dictionaries, the word translates as "vegetable," but I had been told that the real translation is actually "anything that goes with ugali" (ugali being the staple food here, a congealed mix of flour and water that's dipped in various things).

One particularly lucid conversation I had in Swahili went as such:


Me: "So mboga means 'vegetable?'

Dickson: "Yeah."

"But it also means 'anything that goes with ugali'?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, but what about meat? Meat goes with ugali. Is meat a vegetable?"

"Yep."

"What?!? Really? Alright, but doesn't everything go with ugali? Does that make everything a vegetable?"

"No."

"Okay so whats not a vegetable?"

"Corn."

"Seriously?"

"Yes, why Brian?"

"Nevermind."

Back in the High Life Again

Remember that Steve Winwood song? I love that song, it reminds me of being little.

So anyways, I'm back (in the high life) again here in Dar, and things are going great. Paul and I have moved to a different apartment in a different part of town, away from the management troubles of Lamada Hotel and Apartments and into the management troubles of Raphael Chacha (I kid you not, that is our landlord's name). We also have a new roommate, Alex, who is a Dartmouth '10 spending his off term here working mainly in the school. A great guy with a ridiculous amount of enthusiasm and unwavering high-spirits.

The Bibi Jann's School, where I work most of the week, is expanding rapidly, having added a new grade, allowing us to teach nursurey through 3rd grade, and keeping in line with the school's aim to expand by a grade a year until it is a full primary school.

SALAMA: Tanzania is looking at a variety of projects for the school, and its progress towards becoming a fully-independent 501-c3 is well on the way.

So things are looking pretty up. I fully intend to start posting more regularly, but for now, here are some pictures from the last couple weeks that can hopefully give you a bit of a feel of the vibe of our school. Click on them to make them full-size.

warm sun, new day

a teacher deep in thought

jenga!

Selemani and Leila, two new 1st-graders

peeling bananas

ever-bright


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not dead...

but the second closest thing: limited internet access. We're still working on getting a more consistent connection, but for the next few days its gonna be slim pickins-- I should be posting late next week.

In the mean time, for any Tennesseans reading (or Kentuckians, for that matter), I saw a "Bowling Green FOOTBALL" tshirt the other day. Then yesterday, I saw a "Knoxville Saber Cats" shirt. Home is always right around the corner.

Dubai-bai America

Hey so I'm in Dubai right now on my way back to Dar, and I have some bad news. I'm not sure if I'm going to make it. I'm sitting on a bench in this hallway with a couple of boarding gates to my left, and beautiful girl after beautiful girl keeps passing by me to get on some other plane. Seriously, 90% of the attractive women in this airport are heading to one of two unknown locations to my left. I mean, I didn't sign up for this for the ladies, but if I mistakenly disappear before I arrive in Tanzania, don't worry: I'm sure I'll resurface from the southern coast of France or wherever in a couple weeks.