Daily Life

I can’t believe I’ve been in this beautiful country for a week already! What I’ve experienced in this short 7-day span has been extraordinary.  Sometimes I feel like laughing, and other times I feel like crying. There are over 70 kids here who need love, support, and guidance. These kids are SO lucky to be at RVCV.  That being said, life is totally different.  The most apparent differences to me are water, electricity, and the amount of “stuff” that people have. The scenery is amazing.  Every time I turn around I'm amazed at beauty! Since we're very close to the equator, there are exactly 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night. (6:30-6:30) The locals call this time of year winter. The nights and mornings are chilly (in the 50s). I'm usually bundled up until 10:30 or so, when I take off my hoodie and fleece vest. There are few hours in the afternoon when it's warm enough to take off my long sleeve.  We haven't had any rain.  This section of Tanzania is in the "dry" season, meaning it's typically cloudy/hazy in the morning, and sunny in the afternoon.

Outside view from RVCV

Monica and I are living in the Manyara House, which is house of girls.  There are 11 girls who live here full time.  There are a few other girls who come on weekends and holiday breaks.  The house has 4 bedrooms: one for the volunteers (I’ll get a new roomie after Monica leaves), one for the two Tanzania mommas, and two for the children.  There is also a student teacher living in the house.  This means that 6 kids share each child bedroom! There is a volunteer-only bathroom and 2 additional bathrooms for the mommas and children. We're actually somewhat spoiled here.  The Tanzania mommas do our laundry, make our bed, and clean.  There are cooks who prepare meals for the volunteers.  Here is a typical day at Rift Valley:

Momma Sophia

A momma doing laundry
(This is done every day.)

5:30-5:45 (depending on my energy level): Get up and get ready for the day.

6:00-6:45: We help prepare the girls’ breakfast. This is either egg and bread, or peanut butter and jelly on bread. The girls get up at 6:00 and get ready for school. After breakfast the girls do chores.

6:50: Walk the Standard 1-7 kids to school (This is comparable to 1^st-7^th grades.)

The girls LOVE Glee!

7:30 Volunteer breakfast

8:00-10:30 Class Time:  The kids who don’t go to school receive classroom instruction at RVCV.  The first few days I helped out in a few different rooms.  Now I’m running a preschool class.  Students have classes on Saturday morning in Tanzania.  There currently is not an Education Director at RVCV; so I was asked to “revamp” the preschool program. Preschool is SO important, and it makes a huge difference. Today’s project is to reorganize the room and get a rough schedule drafted.  I will start some curriculum mapping over the next 2 ½ weeks.  Fortunately, Leah (another volunteer) is helping with this project.  I will post pictures of the end result over the next few days. (If you’ve seen my current classroom, you’ll recognize some items.)

10:30-11:00: Uji-This is a snack for the kids that is similar to porridge.  The mommas set this up and the volunteers clean up from class time and take a breather.

11:00-12:30:  Play time!! J

12:30-2:30: Volunteer lunch and rest time. (The kids at school have lunch there, and the kids at RVCV have lunch and rest.)

2:30-4:30: Play time!! J (The kids from school get home about 4:00.)

4:30-5:15: Snack time.  Monica and I cut bread and prepare milk for the girls’ snacks.  Snack is eaten after showers, followed by chores.

At this point, volunteers are done with responsibilities.  I usually go for a walk with other volunteers, come back and shower, and then head to the volunteer dinner at 6:30.  I’m usually sound asleep by 9:00-9:30. The only exceptions to this are on Thursdays, when volunteers eat in their houses, on Saturdays—movie nights. I’ll post more later about these events.