Party ndogo

Well, yesterday was the party, but since my neighbors and I were working so hard we really didn't even realize it was a party until it was over. So today, they prepared the guts of the second goat with more bananas in a stew and we had it for lunch. I wouldn't reccommend it after my dawa from yesterday. In fact, I wouldn't reccommend it even for a stomach of steel. After lunch, they came to my house and we looked at pictures from the party and then we had our own little photo shoot. I realized that one downfall of not having another student to train in is that I didn't have a designated photographer and therefore don't have a lot of pictures of me with my friends. So, here are a few of my favorite people on the ranch. This is Kassoni and my cat. Actually, I only posted it because it is such a good picture of the cat. Lucky! This is Kassoni and me: Here is me, Maxi, and the cat: And me and Maxi who has looked out for me the most out of anyone here: In fact, he seems to be personally hurt when the elephants don't show up at the waterhole and I am not getting data. He has been a great friend providing hours of company and many cups of chai. He taught me how to make uji so that I could feed myself on Sunday when Rose has the day off. Every time I make uji I will always think of him. In fact, most of my memories of Tanzania will be about Maxi and the laughs we have had together.

Kwaheri Bekah.

My going away party was yesterday. People were invited to come at 2:30, but many people came right after work got out at 12:30. Rose, one of the participants in my study, and my neighbors Max, and Kassoni started cooking at 8:30. Well, if cooking includes killing the meal. I still can't believe I actually paid for a goat to be killed. Here in Tanzania, a party isn't a party without killing something. After the first goat was deceased and cut up, Rose arrived and said it wasn't going to be enough to have nyama choma (my favorite part) so someone went off to find another poor soul to sacrifice. On the menu was banana and stomach soup (it is a stinky endeavor and not really my favorite), pilau (rice and meat), cooked cabbage, nyama choma (roasted meat), beer and soda. The five of us were so busy the entire time I didn't really get a chance to see who all showed up, but those that were attending the party said everyone enjoyed. Due to my small fear of large groups paying attention to me, I had some wine set aside for me. Rose told me later that a few people asked what was in my water bottle and she told them it was dawa (medicine) for me only because I was so sad to be leaving. Actually, it was my liquid courage :). These guys are dancing and eating. Looks like they too had some liquid courage.I had an outfit made for the party, but unfortunately, didn't get a picture of just me in my outfit, but here is a picture of me and my pikipiki driver, Samuel. I am pretty sure if model recruiting occurred in Tanzania, he would be in GQ by now. Near sunset, the music was turned off and I was dragged out of the kitchen to face everyone. The mzee of the group announced to everyone that if anyone had any problems with me or if I had any problems with anyone there, it was time to tell them. Oh, and safari njema (safe journey). Then some ladies that work at the office came forward and presented me with some beautiful material. I am glad everyone had fun, but my favorite part of the day was talking about it with Rose when it was over. Here we are with the gardener who works at my house.It felt a little like working at a restaurant must feel before and during the dinner rush. I realized that only two people actually pulled me aside to say kwaheri. But that didn't bother me. I don't like saying kwaheri anyways and it is always awkward because I really don't know if I will see these people again. They could quit their jobs or I could not get a chance to come back for a visit for a long time. Enough about that. The point is, everyone enjoyed themselves and my emotions were dumbed down enough that nothing was really bothering me about having so many people in my "territory."

Thanksgiving in Tanzania

I went to the tourist camp for Thanksgiving dinner. It was such a treat and it almost makes my rather repetitive diet worth it to have the enjoyment of eating something different. There actually was turkey. I was very impressed. It was juicy and fat and yummy. There were about ten guests in camp and then the group of students, teachers, and camp staff which was a group of about 27. So, on the menu was turkey, spiced eggplant, salad with a very yummy dressing, green beans and carrots, cooked cabbage, and of course the staple rice and sauce. And of course the essential "this-is-a-treat-drink," Stoney Tangawizi (ginger beer). Here is my plate. It was my plan to take a picture of the yummy food before I chowed down, but I was distracted by the scrumptiousness awaiting me, and therefore, here is a picture about a quarter into the meal. I went back for seconds and I can honestly say it was the first time I have gorged myself in 7 months. I actually forgot what a 'I'm full' tummyache felt like. The ambiance at camp was very nice too. This is the chandelier and here is the bar. After dinner, we just sat and digested for a bit, much as people do in America. I was sitting near the edge of the deck-like hut and I was lucky enough to have a genet walk up and sit by my feet. Apparently they feed it at the camp. I was excited to see one so up close, as I am sure the rest of the guests have been. However, it wasn't so tame because as soon as it realized I was a person sitting, he scrambled back into the bush. They sure are cute though.


It was late when it was time to go home, but I wanted to look for an aardvark one more time, so after the students left in the cars, I took off on foot with my super mag-lite. Hamna muhanga. It was nice to have a walk in the dark after such a big dinner and in fact I remembered going on walks with my extended family after dinner when we used to all get together for Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving guests

Some students arrived on Tuesday to camp in my backyard for two weeks! They are a study abroad group from Earlham College in Indiana. You can tell from the picture that the months spent alone have made me awfully aprehensive of approaching a crowd. I never liked it much before anyway. Luckily, I had met the teachers of this group back in July so they came over to say hi before I had to approach them. It has been nice to have people to talk to once again, but it is a little sad to think that I will not be alone again until I leave. They invited me to Thanksgiving dinner at the tourist camp in exchange for a lecture. I have never eaten there and always rushed when passing by because I feel out of place due to my grungy researcher appearance tainting the polished look of the camp.

Curious monkeys

I was sitting at the tree house one day this week when I though I heard people coming up the stairs. I have been pretty good at picking up on vibrations from people approaching my “territory.” I think I looked carefully three times before I saw a fuzzy little man sitting on the railing of the treehouse. I was surprised at how close they got to me without really being habituated. Its strange that this is the first time they have visited so up close and personal. Perhaps they have finally gotten used to my presence in their “territory.” Of course, now I am leaving in 7 days. Here's one of his more colorful side. *wink*

Beetle juice

The ranch is under siege by beetles at the moment. Beetles of all kinds. The first night I noticed was when Rose was cooking and all of a sudden I heard a helicopter fly by my right ear. Seriously, it was that loud. This clumsy beetle flew right in the window, past my ear and smack into the wall with a loud pop. That night after Rose had left and the house was locked up, I was eating dinner listening to ting ting ting. The beetles were trying to break down my window to get to the light inside. There were plenty trapped inside too which made the cat go crazy. He has gotten to be quite the hunter specializing in wadudu... and shadows... but that's another story. The peanut beetles really brought back memories of Kenya. Stephen really enjoys catching them as they fly through the air and then throwing them into a wall to hear their poor little bodies pop. When I tried to show my neighbors here that trick, they weren't very impressed. Mostly because I couldn't throw them hard enough to make the pop sound. When I went to bed that first night I was accompanied by many beetles flying through the air, sounding like a muted war zone with helicopters flying around and the occasional casualty as one flies full force into a wall. When I was trying to sleep I kept feeling the strange sensation that only beetle feet can cause on my skin. Almost pinching, but without hurting. I really just got annoyed and after unsuccessfully throwing many to the ground for the cat to hunt, I started smashing them before dropping them on the ground. It was then that I realized that real beetle juice smells very bad. In addition to the anti-itch cream I keep under my pillow, I added some hand sanitizer so that after every kill, I could make my hands smell like something else.

However, beetles of all kinds are plentiful, and one of my fondest memories from my first trip to Kenya in 2001 is my discovery of dung beetles. I took a philosophical approach to my understanding of dung beetles, which I appreciate even more now. When there was no rain at all, there were very few dung beetles, and the dung piled up. Now that it has rained, there are plenty of dung beetles and therefore a lot less dung. It just reminds me that every single living thing has a purpose. My world is suddenly much cleaner with green grass and only the remnants of fresh poop.

Masai alikimbia

Just a little story to share with everyone: Ever since I started running, it has been met with strange reactions from people. Most popular is that people think something is wrong, because in rural Africa, when someone is running, they are either being chased or running for help. One day when I went for a run, my neighbor Bariki was home for lunch. He must have looked out of his house and saw me run by. He rushed over to my house where Rose was washing clothes and asked her what was wrong. She had to explain that I was just running for the fun of it. Crazy mazungu.

If I were to peg a strange reaction to running on one tribe, it would definitely be the Masai. Not only, do they laugh a lot when I ask if they saw me running, but more than one have asked what time I run so that they can watch. I don’t get it… or maybe its just they don’t get it. The guy in charge of the herds here on the ranch is often on my end where he won’t be spotted by paying guests, and therefore he has had the honor of me running by with a brief wave of my hand. One day, as I was heading out for a run, he said he wanted to race me. I designated a destination- a tree about 100 meters away and we took off. Not to brag, but I blew him away. At the tree, some of my neighbors materialized and I told them I just beat the guy. They all said it was because he chews tobacco. Okay. I can accept that.

So yesterday, I was trudging along the road back to my house with my two backpacks and a 10 liter bottle of water when I met the guy again. He wanted a rematch. I tried to explain that I was not ready to run after a long day in the village and then at the tree house, pulling double duty. He didn’t like that answer and began counting as I did the first time we raced. I dropped the jug of water and we took off. Mind you, I still had my 2 backpacks with research equipment in them. Well, he kept running and I just stopped when I thought of the long walk home and my big load. I yelled out, “Nimechoka!” (I am tired!) and he just laughed and laughed and laughed. He did come back to get the jug of water for me and express his sympathy, but still- I think I made his day.

Picha apendeza

Here is a picture of a rainbow from last Friday. It was near sunset so the shadows were cast over the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro. It looked like a painting you would find in a hotel- but SO gorgeous. I wish I could make the picture bigger... but even though it does not do the scene justice.

Kijani na mpya

Just one more shot of how rain has changed the scenery around here. I have seriously considered joining the ungulates as they graze on the fresh new grass. It looks so luscious and yummy... especially after 5 months of brown dusty poop-ridden ground. The first week after the rain I was a bit worried, as I spent a cumulative 28 hours at the waterhole without seeing ANY mammals except one vervet monkey. However, three elephants decided to make an appearance last Thursday. It was the first time I had seen elephants at the waterhole since September 16- more than 2 months ago. They spent the entire afternoon feeding on the new growth and causing more tree damage... for the next student to measure.

Stickers.

My going-away party is next week. I have been trying my best to keep it small, but realized that it would only cause problems if it was invitation only. Therefore, I posted this invitation at the ranch's office. I was told to prepare for 50 employees from the ranch! One thing is for sure, without Rose, there would be no party. I wouldn't know where to start. But, I have planned for a "mbuzi kubwa" (big goat) to be slaughtered that morning to feed the masses. Yesterday I went to Moshi and carried 10 kilograms of rice on my back the way the local women carry their children. It is harder than they make it look! I am not a big fan of being the center of attention, and also not a big fan of saying goodbye, so yesterday I also picked up the bottle of wine that will secretly be stashed for me only... so that I can make it through the day. The rest of the guests will get bottled beer. I didn't plan far enough in advance to make the rice wine students have prepared in the past for their parties. Oh well, beer will suffice. So, preparations are being made. I was told that people are thinking this is going to be a great party merely because the poster-invitation has stickers on it. Only in Tanzania. By the way, thanks mom for the cute stickers you sent with me on the plane. They are causing more talk than you ever would have imagined!

The house...

There is a good reason I haven't posted many pictures of the house I am living. There really isn't much to take pictures of. It has walls and a roof, and really not much inside. But, here is a little tour. From the outside: (with a rainbow!) Note the green grass that could be a golf green, but is actually completely natural and never touched with anything but straight up cow and goat poop: the result of having animals graze in your yard.This is where I eat: This is where I watch Rose cook for me :) and tell her "stories" about my day. She is making chapatis. And this is what happens nearly every night when my neighbor Maxi comes to flirt with Rose. His crush is one-sided, as you can see, but it is all in good fun.

The Tree House

Now that I have 12 more days left on the ranch, thought it may be about time to give you all a tour. This is the tree house where I have spent many hours and know most of the frequent mammalian visitors.

Here is the first floor which offers an up close look at the animals, as long as they aren't behind a tree.

The second floor is where I spend my time because of the great visibility. When I am desperate to see anything, there is a precarious perch to get up another 8 feet. I wouldn't reccommend it for tree house novices.

Mwezi moja tu!

In one month I will get to meet Stephen in Nairobi. Every time I think about it I smile and my heart starts beating harder. I may as well say that I would not recommend putting an ocean between newlyweds. It has been harder than I ever would have imagined, although I am sure the reunion will be fantastic.

Rose and I have started to plan my going-away party. Seems such an obscure thought as it really feels like I haven’t been here long enough to say goodbye, but nonetheless, this party will be a good way to say thank you to everyone who made my research and my stay here go smoothly.

Bali sana

One day as I was walking in circles searching for trees, my GPS batteries died. I was about six kilometers from my house and I realized that I had plenty of spare AAA batteries, but managed to carry no AA. Rather than wasting the dry weather, I decided to climb the fourth hill of my stint on the ranch. It was a challenge. I use this hill as a landmark in my notations of elephant locations and I can see it no matter where I am. From my house, from the treehouse, from the office, from the village, from the next village over- it is a landmark indeed particularly because of its unique pointy-ness. All the hills on the ranch are actually inactive volcanic vents and when I climbed the pointy hill it was not hard to tell it served more of a purpose than a landmark at one time. There was actually a crater on top and I could imagine it spouting with lava back in the day. Here is a picture from the top. It was starting to drizzle and really you can't tell anything except it is a long way up. I get tired just looking at this picture.
As I breathlessly reached the top, I turned around to look down and noticed these 3 zebra on the first ridge. I can only conclude that they know an easier route up, as I really could not understand the purpose of them exerting themselves. Maybe they wanted to see the view as well.

Hasara ya miti

I was in quite a rush to finish my last stint as surveyor of tree damage on the ranch. There are 40 transects of about 30 trees apiece that are tagged so that the students can monitor the tree damage occurring over the years. I am sure the end result will be very interesting, as the elephants are definitely having an impact on the vegetation in this safe haven of theirs. However, when it comes down to the actual task of locating these hundreds of trees using a GPS, it is a bit tedious and involves a lot of walking in circles. My plan was to save this task as my last on the ranch before leaving for Kenya, but plans changed as I waited for the crops to grow. Now I am feeling very proud of myself for completing this nit gritty work as not only was it very difficult to trudge through black cotton mud the one day I had the unlucky encounter with a downpour, but as the grass grows, the tick population will exponentially increase.

Poachers of bugs

Nyeusi and Baba Ndogo are growing quickly. They now have all their shots and love the outdoors. During the first couple rains, they termite eyelets emerged to start their new colonies and the cats went wild. My neighbors called them 'wajangili wa wadudu,' or 'poachers of bugs.' Of course, getting good action shots of cats is a difficult task, as any cat owner can tell you, so forgive the not so great pictures. Oops, didn't mean to get such a nice picture of the flower!

Here are the eyelets flying off to colonize (oh, and of course the gorgeous sunset).

RAIN!

It rained on Obama Day. Is that a sign? After 6 months and 6 days here, I finally experienced the thirst quenching rain we have been waiting for. I had some neighbors over to watch a movie in honor of Obama Day and it began during the movie- and didn't stop until noon the next day! The initial drenching was fantastic, but I like the days that have followed more. It seems they have been more typical of the 'short rains'- this season we are in. I am still able to get a significant amount of work done outside although sometimes I find myself hunched over my backpack in my yellow slicker with an umbrella protecting my equipment from the rain. Inevitably throughout the day I will find myself in this situation. The dilemma persists in my head- is it going to stop? Do I give up?... and then it stops and the sun comes out and I swear I hear sizzling as I dry off. The mud is probably the biggest problem, well, second only to the fact that there is no longer dry firewood and so I have reverted back to bucket showers... not nearly as pleasant as 'hot rain,' as one of my friends called my shower. Oh, and the bugs are pretty bad. But I don't really mind. It is so nice to watch the grass grow in what was beginning to look like a desolate wasteland. I have also come to appreciate the purpose of all the poop that has been accumulating. As the rain washes the stench away and spreads it out, it is surely acting as a 'booster' (that's what Rose calls fertilizer) for the seedlings.

It's like spring... except not.

Punda milia mpya

Here is a brand new baby zebra I saw at the waterhole. A couple weeks back it looked like the majority of the females were going to pop out babies and I saw one having contractions. I should have know rain was really just around the corner.

Jikoni badaay sokoni

I have heard from a few people wanting me to post pictures of my house here. Well, I still haven't taken pictures of everywhere, but last time Rose went to market, I just had to get a picture of my food shelf. Its full! And there are so many different things. I gave Rose a wad of cash and asked her to get anything different because I was tired of the same food all the time. She came back with pineapple, papaya, ndizi roasti (bananas that are not sweet- she roasts them and makes a sort of salsa to dip them in), and passion fruit! Yay for something different.

Oh, and that is Kassoni, my askari, formerly known as 'rafiki ya Max' (I finally learned his name). He is indeed gluing his shoe back together... a common practice in my house since I apparently have the only glue on the ranch.

Happy Obama day

I got to hear the election results from my husband yesterday morning. I was at the treehouse to listen to the BBC, but they were covering the party in Kenya. Today is Obama Day in Kenya- a national holiday. I just heard in Nigeria there are 5 days of Obama holiday. I find it rather funny that the country is shutting down because a president was elected in another country. Two days ago I was at the treehouse and some French tourists were talking about Obama with their guide. I don't speak French, so I just know what the guide was telling the askari in Swahili. He was basically saying that if Obama becomes president, perhaps Kenya will be the 51st state. He also mentioned the possibility of GM setting up a production plant in Kenya and that all Kenyan citizens would have free visas to America. As for me, I hope Obama starts to focus on America a little more than GW has. And yes... I am very happy about it. :) Just by coincidence, Rose happened to bake a chocolate cake yesterday which will probably be my first and only here at the ranch. It was nice to have a way to celebrate. Yay for change.