Visiting The US Embassy

The US embassy is an interesting place. We first went through security before taking a short walk to the embassy. There were small fountains and beautiful brick buildings lining the walkway. Once in the building we saw a soldier standing guard and another metal detector. The building has a library along with the offices for the many foreign service workers working in Tanzania. We went to the library first and indulged our minds with books, reliable internet, free printing, and wifi. We were overwhelmed by the novels and other various books. The librarian also informed us that we could get library cards and borrow the books. Most of us plan to get library cards soon. Soon after we explored the library we were able to move into a question answer room with 3 few foreign service workers from the US and a Tanzanian. We came prepared with our questions and were able to get all of them answered. We learned about President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, becoming a foreign service worker, Young African Leaders Initiative and much more. Some fun facts is that US Foreign Service workers receive black passports covers and people who travel internationally for the white house receives red passport covers. Also, a term for a foreign service worker is 2 years in Tanzania and their families can come with them. We learned a lot and a few of us is considering the foreign service as a career choice. We were glad to visit the embassy and learn about what the US is doing for Tanzanians and US citizens in Tanzania.

A Beautiful Day at Mbudya beach

We had a wonderful time on the beach and was amazed at its beauty. Mbudya beach is on a small island off of the coast of Dar es Salaam so we had to take a boat. The boat was long and wooden with a small motor to push us along. While we were on the boat it began to rain. We were getting sad because we thought our beach day was going to be cold and wet. As we arrived on the beach were observed the pine trees, foliage and white sands. It was amazing to see the diversity of greenery on the island. Since it was raining we found a small hut and huddled under it. We stacked our bags on a small table and pulled chairs in to sit. While we were sitting it began to storm. We had little hope that the rain would clear but Professor Quaye thought that it would clear soon. After 30 or so minutes all of the rain cleared up and the sun came out. It was beautiful. We all swam around or sat on the shore enjoying the sun. Soon after the sun came out it was lunch time; we ate fresh fish that still had the head attached, it was delicious. After lunch, we explored and saw crabs, coral, and other great things. We collected a few sea shells and had a few sodas. To end our beach day was over we took the boat back to shore and had an ice cream cone. It was awesomeJQnHj

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First Week full week in Dar es Salaam

The last few days have been filled with introductions, school work, and internships. The beginning of the week began with meeting our host parents. We all sat  anxiously waiting on Sunday to meet our host parents. We met them one by one and they are all amazing people! The fathers are all professors at the University of Dar Es Salaam and the mothers work. They are also all friends and live very close to each other. We love the food, it is delicious! There hospitality is excellent too. We have been enjoying their cooking and conversations the entire week.

Monday was our first official day of class but we only went to East African Culture before we had orientation and a tour of the University of Dar Es Salaam. Several people talked to us including a person from international relations, the campus police, the health center and a culture specialist.. The people were very informative and told us a lot of good information especially the person who talked about culture. We all know useful information about relationships, dating, washing, and much more. After a brief lunch , we had a campus tour that allowed us to see all of the various buildings. The campus is large and beautiful. We enjoyed asking questions and gaining a better understanding of the campus and the resources they offer.

We all went to our internships and experienced working in a foreign country. We all are placed in internships that match our interest. Some of the internship locations are “The House of Culture”, ” The Tanzanian Youth Alliance”, ” The Tanzanian Women Lawyer Association”. We are still getting acquainted with the various places and learning what we will do. It has been exciting thus far.

Our first full day of classes were on wednesday. After we walked 45 minutes to get to class we sat down a few minutes before class started. Class starts at 8:30 every morning. We sat through East African Culture,   Women and the Environment, Swahili, and African Medical Systems. We were done around 5 and walked back home.

It has been a great first week and we can not wait to explore. Tomorrow we will go to beach on a small island. We are very excited.