Ron Hale: His Work in Tanzania: Day 7 & 8

5:00 AM
The internet was down at the camp all night so I missed reporting on my fun here in Africa. I am writing this before my class starts.

Started my second class yesterday, again a good group but they really struggle to understand (eilaywa) they are teaching me some Swahili (I hope that's the was it's spelled). The power did stay on all day which was great! I fear when the power drops off my projector bulb will burn out due no cooling (I don't have a spare). I made a CD for one of the students in the first class on the manuals and course content. Today I have copied about 12 CDs for them so far, but no one has a computer to use the CDs. I guess they feel some day they may have one. No manuals yet, still in customs in Dar (going on the 4th week) so I have to draw lots of circuits and items on the white board which eats up a lot of time. Very hot on the trucks yesterday. I had 5 students in the cab at once checking out the monitor. The cab has room for only two comfortablely. I told them to go in two at a time and I will show each of them in order. Before I knew it all 5 students were in the cab, wanting to know what was going on. In the states you tell the troops to wait in order they all disappear.

7:00 PM
Had a good session in the classroom with class #2 today. I feel that 3 of the 5 are starting to understand (eilaywa). In the afternoon the students asked if they could leave early, I said no we need to work on the trucks, so please be at the site after lunch. I asked why they need to be off the reply was "Sunday we do our laundry, the water is turned on". Later on I was told the city water lines are pressurized for a few hours on Sunday. I felt bad, I should have said to go. Got to the site and the truck we were to train on was not ready and we could not have it. I called them and said go home for the rest of the day. "Thank you BA-boo, thank you very much"

Nicole tell your friend I may not be able to send a post card, but I will try. Around 2:30 PM Guy who has the car we drive back and forward said we will take the rest of the day and go into town for a drink. So, five of us went into town. I got some great video of the area, great photos, and good conversations with the people. We went into a store I was looking for a postcard, but the were none around and the clerk has never even heard of postcards. Went to a bar and asked for a diet Coke, got a regular one. The temperature was around 90 and so was the coke. The same so was the beer the others got. Talked to some Masa warriors that come to town to shop. The town (about 10,000 population) has dirt roads, raw sewage running in ditches on the side of the road and garbage all over. Went to another bar and met a man from Australia (Steward) who was contracting building houses for the future supervisor at the mine and had a great conversation with him. He had with him some of his local workers. One of his men (Jerry) was an electrician had lots of things to talk to him about. He asked were I was from and I told him America, "I have meet many people from other countries you are the first American. He asked me many question about the U.S. and the most common question I am asked "I love George Bush, will you ask him to let me come to America and work? My wife and two small boys would love you always". We had to leave the town to get back to camp where there is a curfew that starts at 7:00 PM. Going to dinner will send the pictures when I get back.

Love you all and I am OK