Trip to Musoma

Trip To Musoma

So- I know I promised a post about living arrangements but that has been all over the place lately. First we were living in what we nicknamed ‘the shack’ in the backyard of our bosses house. Then we moved to an apartment about 10 minutes up the road but this is all temporary housing until we are done with language school. All that to say- I think I will do a post about housing once we actually get where we are going (late march early April).

Getting where we are going means moving to a village called Kitanga about 150 kilometers east from a town called Musoma (we think). This is (most likely) where our mission site will be- at least until we integrate into the community and find other things we can aid there. We have heard so many people talk about Musoma and Kitanga- about the work that needs to be done, about the people, about the infrastructure (and the lack of it) and about the potential place we would live. So we thought it would be good to go see it for ourselves. 

Friday

This past weekend we made the drive from the big city of Mwanza (about the population of Chicago) to the smaller town of Musoma (about the size of Montgomery, AL). We arrived on Friday and first things first was business- we had to go to the diocese office to get some paperwork signed for our permanent residency permits. After that it was off to visit current mission sites. 

First we went to Rosemariam Dagg vocational training center. There they teach young women how to sew (its very good to have a hard skill around here and custom dresses are in very high demand). At Rosemariam Dagg they also (used to) have a pharmacy, a store where they sell the sewn items by the girls and a small cafe. Those shops are not open right now because they were given some bad business advice but they are looking to reopen soon, hopefully with some better guidance. 

Then we went to St. Justin’s home for disabled children. This is a place where disabled youth are welcomed and can live. Because life is so hard here, many times having a disabled child is more than a family can handle- it is not uncommon for them to be abandoned. St. Justins seeks out these children and tries to give them a safe place to come after school, eat dinner, and live if they need to. It usually costs the center 400USD per child for a year. Their fundraising strategies are not great so I would like to plan some things for that. But mostly what we did when we were there was took a tour of the campus- there is a boys dorm and a girls dorm, a couple classrooms for extra classes and homework time, and a ‘playroom’ its basically a pavilion with concrete floors and a tin roof. We also went to see the back of the property which is right on Lake Victoria- but the lake is rising so fast the government told them they have to move. They are in the process of building a new facility now. The main director told us that just 3 years ago the lake was 400 feet from their property line. It has already past it now. After the tour we went and played legos with the kids and, even though we don’t know the language that well yet, it was still lots of fun interacting with them!

After that we went back to Kevin and Marilyn’s house (the current missioners in Musoma- who we were staying with) for dinner. They made us fish, rice, and corn. It was Very Good! Then we stayed up talking about mission and the area until about 11pm. Then it was time to hit the hay because tomorrow was a big day!

Saturday- Kitanga 

School Cafeteria Building

We were supposed to meet the sisters in the church parking lot to head to Kitanga at 8:30. They rolled in about 8:45 (that’s usually how time works in TZ) and their driver says there is a small problem with the car… it is stuck in first gear. So first we need to head to the mechanics they said. So we go down there at about 10mph and the mechanic that they know and trust has taken the day off. So, we drive back to the church to take Kevin and Marilyn’s car instead and start to head north… but before we are out of town they pull over again and one of the sisters gets out and says ‘oh, I just have to stop at this fruit stand- you can’t go empty handed!’ (Keep in mind- this is another convent with sisters of the same order lol). So we finally roll out of Musoma around 10am. 

Kevin in the Mud Hut

We got to Kitanga around noon and first we were invited to tea in the motherhouse. They had prepared ginger tea, pineapple slices, and chapati (kind of like a greasy, fresh tortilla). Then we went and looked at another house where the ‘farmer’ sisters live. (They have three groups of sisters in Kitanga- farmers, teachers, and cleaners- I think that’s pretty self explanatory) The farmer sisters house was recently redone and they were exited to show it off. It's very nice and is better insulated now so its much cooler. They also have the only remaining mud hut on the property and they use it for a kitchen (to keep the heat outside). Then they took us to look at the fields. They are trying out coffee plants because they are the only region where they don’t need pesticides (organic coffee!). This is a cash crop for them and they will be able to harvest in three years and export the coffee. 

Walking the field of Coffee Plants

After we walked the fields for a bit we went to see what became quickly known as the ‘prison house’. I wast totally clear on the story behind it but apparently some lady wanted to build it to bring like field trip groups out there so its basically built like a dorm- locker room style showers and bathrooms and each bedroom has closet space and a desk formed out of concrete attached to the walls. It was interesting to say the least. Then it was time for lunch!

For lunch we had chicken (possibly the toughest chicken I’ve ever tried to eat), rice, pasta, and this fried cabbage stuff that everybody seems to make and I can’t wait for someone to show me- its delicious! After lunch we toured the school. We looked at the science buildings, the library, and they are constructing a new admin building so we peeked around that for a bit too. The library was a really cool building but it was all textbooks- I’m hoping we can change that a bit! 

School Library

After that it was (finally) time to check out where we could potentially live. The house was nice- it would take some doing up but we can manage that. The only thing was that they talked it up so much (mostly about the number of things already in it- that it was basically fully furnished) that we were a little underwhelmed at first. But after taking it all in I think we could defiantly make it work! The house is basically divided into four corners. If you think of a grid- the entire left side is open floor plan, the top left is the living room space and the bottom left is the kitchen. The right side is cut down the middle with two mirrored bedrooms (both with on suites). It will be very nice to have not only our own rooms but also our own bathrooms. (If you remember I will be living another missioner- Jaclyn). 

Another thing we didn’t really realize is that there is no power out there (at least not enough to power anything more than your phone or laptop charger) so we would have to get a solar powered fridge and a gas oven and that’s it- no electric kettles or toasters or microwaves. 

Outside the house

        Kitchen inside.        

After we looked at our house it was time to head back to Musoma. The ride back was beautiful- there are a lot of mountains and a pretty major river called the Mara River (we are in the Mara Region). When we got back the driver had figured out what was wrong with the car… he was shifting wrong. We didn’t have much down time and it was time to go to the sisters house in Musoma for dinner. We had peanuts and popcorn for an appetizer, then rice, veggies, pumpkin soup, rolls, *something else I’m forgetting* and *I forget what kind of leaves they are but its basically like sautéed spinach and its really good and good for you* We mingled with the sisters and talked until- again about 11pm. They served baked pineapple with cinnamon on it (amazing!) And chocolate cake (pretty dry and no icing, but I’m never going to turn down cake!) Then it was finally time to head back.

Sunday

Sunday morning we went to church and it was my first Swahili Mass (we’ve been going to the English one in Mwanza because it is less crowded- covid. But that isn’t an option in Musoma) it was great and the choir was amazing! After mass we immediately went back to Rosemariam Dagg because there is another volunteer house there that we didn’t see on Friday. This house is a lot smaller but it would mostly be for if we had business in Musoma for a day or two//and to take some of the smaller furnishings out of it and bring to kitanga- like plates, hangers, a fan, ect. Basically this was just for us to see what was in it. We were also greeted by a student from the sewing program that gifted us purses. She asked us our favorite color on Friday when we were there and had them ready for us! I had said yellow but she said that would be too hard to find so I said blue. She ended up finding yellow and blue and now I have a purse for the St. Louis Blues! 

Overall

Overall, I know whatever happens and wherever I end up it is God’s plan for me. I would be kind of nervous being that remote but this is what I came to do. For right now I just have to keep an open mind, trust the process, focus on language school, and offer it up. I am more stressed here than I thought I would be. Some of the people I interact with on a daily basis are aids in that stress but I know it's all for a reason. But prayers are always much appreciated as I continue in this transition process. 

oh- ps, ‘the sisters’ are the Immaculate Heart of Africa Sisters (IHSA) they are all Tanzanian and were started by the Maryknoll sisters about 30 years ago. They are very traditional and hospitable and I cannot wait to work with them more! :)