Faces

There are signs Everywhere. Running down the middle of the three main streets in Dodoma there are huge photos of the Tanzanian president every 50 meters. The signs are attached to street lamps. When the holes in the middle of the streets were being dug about a month ago, we figured it was the same old activity: right before parliament comes to town—look busy.
Make it look like tax money is being spent on something useful in this, the “capital” city.
But to the shock and surprise of all of us, street lights went up—real ones! That actually work!
And then came the signs—first some CellTel and Vodacom signs (mobile companies) and then Kikwete. He isn’t at all a bad looking guy. He even looks good in bright yellow and bright green—the colors of CCM; the forever ruling party of Tanzania.
Some have argued with me that there are numerous other political parties in the country. But have they ever had any power or influence? I think not.
Although as an International Affairs major who basically studied, “what the US has done wrong in foreign and domestic politics,” I cannot say we are doing too much better.
But then again…
We would never have Massively large signs of Bush’s face posted up in three of four places around in a town the size of 3 Supersize Wal-Marts (including the parking lots).
It just seems they could have paved 3 new roads in town with the money spent on those signs. Even at the English service at the Cathedral Sunday morning, (yes, father I went to church…) during the prayers of the people the man prayed that “the government’s resources will be spent wisely and used in a manner that benefits the people of this nation.”

Even my youngest students laugh at the corruption of the government here, (which by many standards is actually quite low.) I didn’t even learn what corruption meant until I went to university. It’s just a different world, growing up on the African continent. But I don’t have to say that again…
Back when I was in highschool if you asked me if there had recently been a huge flood in Bangladesh, or how Zimbabwe’s economy was doing—I would have barely recognized on a map the location of those countries.
But these kids, they know. They may not understand all the details and politics behind certain news stories—but they just seem to be way more aware of the world around them then the average kid in the US.
Or maybe I just spent too much time hiding behind bushes and rolling in the dirt.

The dirt is wet. The sky has rained.
Just two days ago Dodoma got its first real rains since the end of the rainy season early this year. It was a wonderful feeling.
It’s as if the whole region of Dodoma breaths a sigh of relief with each drop that falls.

Early Saturday morning I headed to town for vegetables. I put on a long skirt—only my feet in my black Chacos could be seen. I also put on a thin long-sleeve shirt and a white scarf to cover my head and shoulders from the sun—only my hands and toes are showing. And yet I was not hot. It isn’t really the Heat of this place area that is too much, it is the sun. It is so intense, so close, so burning.
But we get the opposite advantage as well—the sky and the stars at night feel so near to the earth, they are so bright. One could just sit there for hours, looking at the sky. there are no clouds, and no pollution blocking the view. The Southern Cross is one constellation that can only be seen in the Southern Hemisphere. The world is awesome like that.

Back in the Northern Hemisphere an old friend wrote me an email. He listed the “famous sites” of Tanzania to make sure I’ve visited them all before I leave the country. Of course not—the major game parks were all too expensive for me to visit—and other places I have wanted to go have just not worked out in the schedule. I did come here to work after all. Not that I really feel like it is work. For me it is just another challenge, another learning experience. I mean I have deadlines and daily tasks and often get tired of typing or waiting for an email to send, and sitting on the third floor of a hot hot turquoise office with no curtains and dust everywhere…But even in those moments I am enjoying myself. I easily laugh at my situation here—and how I chose this; I chose to work in a small under-resourced, hot, sometimes chaotic office where everyone is forever sweating; and yet always have the energy to smile and ask you how you are.
Wonderful people.
This country has wonderful people.