(More!) Devaishers in Dar!

Negligence? Dereliction of duty? Call it what you will...I am blog-deficient. Obviously, the earmark for my blogging time in that bloated bill of a budget in Congress got cut somehow.

The truth is, a lot of what I write in my journal isn't fit to post here. Rambling thoughts that may depress you. Hurt feelings not appropriate to share. Those of you who know and love me even though, you are patient, amazing people. Those of you who don't know me that well yet, give it time.... ;)

I've posted some on the dailiness of life here (as opposed to the weekliness or monthliness) and would like to share some more photos and thoughts with you about that.

Above is a long-shot of our area, taken from a friend's house who lives near Ruby's school. Our roof is just to the left of the grey and white apartment buildings with red roofs. I like this shot because it shows the ocean, and then the peninsula and even a little of city center in the background.

Below is a very typical roadside shot, with the blue plastic chairs of a local restaurant and random vehicles in the background. Some of you will recognize the roadside carpenter's handiwork near the school. These beds are model 01 and model 02, and I noticed this week they have added a model 03 since this photo was taken.

Henry and I spend a lot of time together since Ruby started Kindergarten this fall. He recently requested that I cut his hair, so we occupied most of a morning moving around the house, getting the job done in several locations.

 Henry also loves to help in almost any way he can, and the kitchen is no exception. We recently made some gluten-free goodies for one of Ruby's school events:

Henry loves riding in the bajaj! Here I am on the way to help out with swim lessons at Ruby's school. Having one vehicle has forced us to communicate better and use alternate transportation when necessary, both of these are good!

And chilling out on our new bench and cushions!

 Ruby recently had International Day at her school. Eleven countries were represented in Kindergarten alone!

A millipede we encountered recently...Len's finger for scale. These black and red ones are harmless, but there is a blue/grey variety that is just as big and has a nasty stinger you don't want to encounter.

This is a funny wine box warning Len's dad found recently at a restaurant. Looking down our road, I can see where the wildly careening bajaj could be a problem for the person who drinks and walks on the road.

And as a parting gift, here is a shot of a Zanzibar fish market. One of the ways I know I've lived here awhile is that when I pass a table of fish like this, I check to see what they have. Once a week or so, I'll buy something if it looks nice and fresh. :)

Photos in this post by Ron Devaisher.

SalaSala Ministry

On Thursday afternoons our pastor and his family, and some friends, drive out to a field near a stone quarry in an area called SalaSala. Located just behind the HOPAC school Ruby attends, it is one of the many poverty-stricken areas of Dar es Salaam.

For an hour or so, local children come and play, talk and be social. Soccer and rugby pitches are set up for older kids and blocks and toys, jump ropes and hula hoops await younger children. Many of the young girls around Ruby's age come with babies on their hips and backs; they spend many hours a day caring for younger relatives. Kids Club is a rare chance for them to be children themselves.

Henry and friend James enjoy playing with the younger boys

For the last couple of weeks, some donated toy cars have been a big hit with the younger boys.

Soccer is a huge hit with the older boys. Driving through almost any populated part of Africa, you see soccer matches going on with makeshift balls and pitches. Having real soccer balls is a big draw at SalaSala.

Most weeks, we have some music and a puppet show for the younger set, presented by volunteers' children. This week, we spent the first half hour playing and talking with kids, then surprised them with a giveaway day - England soccer jerseys (generously donated by an Elim church in England) and mosquito nets!

Some of the younger girls helped size jerseys to kids. With over 100 children present, it was a little chaotic but everyone was well-behaved...

...and very thankful for the gifts!

Ruby and Henry love this place. They usually see it as a big playdate - they don't see the poverty or dirt or disease. They don't know the bigger picture yet - that we hope to provide more services to the families here, that most of these children will never finish school and some will never start, that it is about so much more than playing together - yet in many ways, they know more than we do. Loving people where they are, for who they are and treating them with respect and dignity is a beautiful thing. May we be able to see life through the eyes of a child!



Voices in the Night

It took several minutes to discern that I was awake and not dreaming. A man's hushed voice was speaking in Swahili to another man who answered in one-word increments. Not familiar with the house we were watching for friends, I tried to remember how far the gate was from our bedroom. It was three in the morning. Should I be hearing voices if they are walking by on the road? Is the night guard inside the gate or outside? I really could not remember.

I tried to stay calm as I evaluated the situation. Trying to understand the hushed voices speaking a language in which my vocabulary is maybe at a toddler level. Realizing that two voices were now many.

The men were rattling the gate, attempting to open it. I grabbed for my headlamp and thought of possible weapons in the house. The house wasn't as secure as ours; the windows here were plentiful and paned; the security bars and windows were one. Even the doors would be little work for anyone with a metal bar.

I decided to try scaring them off. Others have told me that people here who break into houses don't want confrontations, they want stuff they can sell. The power was off but I turned on my headlamp and shone it outside, losing my night vision in the process as the light reflected back at me from the windowpanes. I told Len, who may be the world's deepest sleeper, to get up. He didn't move. I heard the gate opening and footsteps all around the house suddenly, someone trying the front door, footsteps outside the window. I jumped in the bed and shook Len awake, telling him people were outside everywhere. He woke up quickly.

We decided to take the fight outside to them, and when we stepped outside there were four men standing along the front of the yard, all dressed in black, with one or two more men over to my side.

Either we looked scary or scared, and they were trying to come up with the English words to explain to us what was happening. From what we understood, they were from the security company and had been summoned by the panic button at the house. There is one button inside that I knew we had not pushed, and the guard said he didn't push the one on the outside. Whatever caused them to come, I was glad no blood was shed and we all got to have a little excitement that first night in Arusha.

I suspect the night guard accidentally pushed the red panic button as he attempted to switch the power supply over to generator from the non-existent Tanesco source. (the power was out most of the time we were there, which is not really that unusual to us anymore)

Road Trip - Arusha!

We packed up the truck and went to Beverly...well, Tanzanian...Hills. Wanting to take advantage of Ruby's school break to see more of Africa, we decided to go visit friends in Arusha. The kids are expert travellers and the travel went well!

There were plenty of reminders of those whose journey didn't go so well though; we saw at least four wrecked and/or burned out trucks. I took this photo on the way home; when we had passed a few days earlier there were about two dozen people with tin cans trying to scoop up oil that had leaked from this tanker, and others were sorting through the engine for parts.

The road pictured above is the major north-south highway out of Dar es Salaam. It isn't jam-packed, but the lack of passing lanes and the hilly terrain make for some really slow trucks going up hills and around curves. Then there are the buses...passenger buses regularly flew past us, not even slowing down for oncoming traffic. They are huge and pretty much own the road.



I hope they trust in God...they just flew past us
at well over 130 kph on a hilly, narrow road!



So, day one was driving. We arrived in Arusha at sunset, got settled in and ate dinner at a little country-club type place that could have passed for any country club in the U.S. It was close to the place we were staying and we went right to bed after we ate.

Our friends whose house we were staying in had actually just been in our house the night before - they received great news that their 2-year old adoption wait was FINALLY coming to an end, and were on their way to meet their baby for the first time! So we were staying in their house without them, but took the opportunity to pray for them every day and look forward to returning after they settle back in.

Arusha reminded me of what normal air feels like. I had almost forgotten, under the weight of the heat and humidity that is increasing daily in Dar. The Arusha air was light and breathable, and mostly, cool. Eating breakfast outdoors at our friends' house, overlooking Mt. Meru, it was easy to imagine I was in Manitou Springs. There was also an abundance of fresh strawberries, raspberries and lettuce of all kinds, which are not available in Dar.

At one such meal outside, Ruby asked Len, “Daddy, have you ever seen a black hamburger, black like your hair or cow spots?” and another time, “You are the only one in our family with black hair, Daddy. How do you feel about that?” Fortunately, Len is pretty secure in who he is.

The kids loved the yard and gardens, and cool bamboo poles creating a screen of sorts on one side of the porch.

Another place we visited was Shah Industries, which was just as it was pictured online: a dark, long building stuffed full of leather and wooden miscellany and assorted bone, metal and stone trinkets, from pretty jewelry to keychains and coasters. Lamps made from animal skin and bone, chairs of leather and wood, every sort of wall adornment imaginable. In business for over 50 years, almost all of their employees are living with polio or other disabling diseases. But here they learn trade skills and have steady employment. They also had a little garden with all kinds of wood carvings and asian goldfish in a huge tank.

Henry isn't so sure about sitting on the carved chair

Another place we visited was Shanga, a local project that employs deaf and blind men and women to create beautiful beads and items from recycled glass, and also they create metal, paper and wood items from found materials. Len bought me a cool bracelet recycled from old trucks.

Shanga jewelry/sewing shop

Heating glass bottles to create beads. The walls of the workshop are made of glass bottles, and the oven pictured is lined on the outside with beer can metal.

I am in love with Shanga and the work they do! :)

One other stop of note was to one of the many coffee plantations in the area. Len was happy to support their efforts and, while I thought the place was neat, I still find coffee really, really gross.

It did make a pretty picture, though

We were blessed to be able to go to church, share meals, and stay one night with our dear friends Alexis and Jackie Kwamy, who are loving Jesus and kids as well as anyone could, all over Arusha.

A few funny moments from the trip: wild monkeys and baboons running across the road on the way home. Also, roadkill we saw included a small crocodile-like reptile, a huge snake, and some kind of foxy-looking mammal. Roadkill we almost made included two donkeys, which were walking across the road but appeared to have stopped on the other side, but then lurched and ran suddenly right into our path; without smashing the brakes and running into the red dirt along the road, I would have squashed both of them. Thank goodness they were unmanned.

Not the actual donkey I almost hit.

The drive time was about 12 hours each way for us; I am told that it takes most people 10 hours with stops. Maybe we aren’t the fastest drivers here? The police seemed to think we are. We were stopped six times on the way there and three on the way back. Only once were we charged with anything (speeding), while Len was driving.

It was in a little town and the police officer had a radar gun he showed us that said we were going 63 in a 30. I wasn’t sure about that, as we hadn’t seen any speed limit signs, we didn’t see him clock us, and the numbers on the radar appeared to be stuck onto a digital screen, but we paid the 40,000 tsh ticket and went on. I later found out that since we didn’t get a receipt, the money likely went into the man’s pocket.

On the way home we stopped at a rest stop (one of 2 on the 10-hour drive between cities) that is known for its chicken and chips (French fries). We had also stopped at this place on the way there, but had to eat beef as they were out of chicken. So on the way home, we were pleased to get there in time for chicken.


Henry’s eating habits are like many 3 year old boys; he likes starch and sweets. We don’t allow him to overindulge on either, and were delighted when he said he wanted chicken. I tore off a couple of juicy pieces, but he wanted a ‘big’ piece like Len. So, we gave him a thigh and he went at it. We were kind of distracted with Ruby and the business of the place, and didn’t notice Henry again until he was holding a small piece of bone…he had eaten the rest of the thigh, small bones and all! He said he liked the ‘crunchy chicken’.



See the Sea Turtles (aka fish food)

 One Friday night, some friends emailed us with news that they were going to a local beach south of the city to see the sea turtles hatching. Now, before you get too impressed (or angered for you conservationist friends), this was a very controlled event. From the top-secret nesting area, rangers transport selected eggs and hatchlings in coolers, along with part of their nest, and charge a fee for the pleasure of watching these odd-looking little orbs paddle frantically through the sand on their way to the ocean, where something like 90% of them will immediately become fish food. 

Len was working late, so I loaded up the kids and some friends and joined a rather long caravan through the city down to the pier, across a narrow channel on a car ferry, and about 45 minutes further down the beach.

So, with all the zeal of Civil War re-enactors, they emerged from the sand, very dirty at first,

Swimming over and through the sand with amazing speed (they are about the size of the palm of my small-ish hand), they instinctively know which way the water is. Once in a while one would be moving the wrong way but they always seemed to know how to get to the water. I love that they all seem to be optimistic, believing that they are each in the small percentage which will live to adulthood. Dry humor aside, I really was impressed with their determination. :)

Go, little wader!

 I wish I had a picture of my children watching in wonder at the mystery of these tiny marvels, but in between trying to keep Henry from stomping them (they are quite soft) and taking Ruby for a little cooling off period after she found out she didn't get to swim with the sea turtles, I felt fortunate to get the few photos here.

After this event, and further photographing of an amazing moonglow by those not beseiged by preschoolers (this was right before Ruby started K), we decided to eat at the hotel restaurant near the beach. One thing about dining out here is that you need to be VERY patient in waiting for the food; everything is prepared totally from scratch, and I suspect in some cases that people are sent out to purchase ingredients after you order a dish.

Anyway, there is time involved, and it was already after dinner time when we ordered. The kids (there were several families with playmates for Ruby and Henry) were all very patient for the most part, and for that we were all thankful.

When dinner did arrive, it was one plate at a time, and this was my friend Erin's entree, looking at me from across the table:

Notice the cute overbite

This is a pretty normal presentation for fish here (and they are almost always delicious!), although I have never had a fish with so many teeth served to me. I wonder how many baby sea turtles this guy ate before Erin ate him? Very tasty. Circle of life...circle of life.



School Begins!

Ruby beside the huge baobab tree outside her classroom.

Ruby sporting her P.E. uniform before leaving for school.

Over a month ago, when school actually started here, I intended to post a 'first day' type of entry, then it was 'first week', and now I am surprised at the time lapse between my last post and now. So even as I listen to Rubygirl in the next room with Henry, threatening to put his egg in warning (the behavior motivation system used in her K class), we will do our best to give you the picture of this corner of our lives.

The night before Kindergarten, I was a mess. Couldn't sleep, trying to be cheerful and not anxious, maybe doing a decent job on the outside, but failing on the inside. We had visited the classroom that Sunday, as it is also the kids' Sunday school room. Ruby's too-large desk, ready to swallow her up on contact, stood in a small cluster of desks pushed in to each other near Mrs. Graham's modest desk. The names on the other desks made me smile: "Happiness, Timothy, Malik, Ge Gyung". Across the aisle, nearest of the next cluster of desks, was "Asia".

Some of the names were already familiar as well, from the playgroup we have attended weekly almost since we arrived six months ago. Some of the long-time mothers in the group pointed out how just a couple of years ago, there weren't many preschool-age expat children around the area; now we are many strong! Just one of the many provisions I am thankful for as we continue to settle in here. :)

So, back to that first day, we were two among many parents walking their Kindergartners up to class that day. As soon as we entered the room, Henry broke down sobbing. However, realizing that he has much more mommy time than ever, he has quickly recovered from his grief.

Henry with pals at playgroup

Ruby has done very well adjusting to school. She has gotten a good behavior sticker on her chart every day, and loves the daily 'extras' like swimming, P.E., Swahili, music, drama, computers and art. HOPAC's library has also been a huge blessing as Ruby is quickly learning to read and loves to read Barbie and princess books to us at bedtime.

These days, we sometimes walk Ruby up to her classroom, but sometimes we say goodbye at the sidewalk from the parking lot. Our girl is growing up!

One final story for this post - Ruby had her first school-friend playdate last week. It woud have been the week before, but that time Ruby asked her friend (Happiness) for a certain day, they had it all coordinated, told the teacher and their other friends...but didn't tell me. So after a review of playdate protocol, we tried it again Friday. It was precious to see Ruby and Happiness (who is Tanzanian) dressed up as princess fairies, drawing, reading and ordering the universe in their sparkly pink glory.

Telephoto Tuesday 2-for-1 Day

It's Tuesday again, mulling over bigger thoughts that will eventually make it into another post, but here is the story today. As an added bonus, I am giving you tomorrow's story for free. No guarantees what will happen, though.

First, I want to give Ruby an award for going to sleep by herself and sleeping all night in her own bed. While our kids don't get kicked out of our bed, we have been trying to keep everyone under a mosquito net all night, and Ruby claimed her prize of five jelly beans this morning. She promptly gave them to Henry, which was very sweet as she really likes them.

Living with one truck here has been challenging at times but great overall. We are saving money, communicating better and it has brought us closer together as a family. Except when we both need the truck at the same time. Then it brings us closer to needing marriage counseling.

Most days, we provide Len's transportation to and from work. He works by the ocean about 2K away from our house and it's a good excuse to go to the beach once a week or so when we pick him up. Today we dropped him off and came right home because we were taking Zena, a lady who works in our house a few days a week, to a new employer. She and her husband were both employed by a family who just moved away, and I am really just making things up for her to do most of the time because I can't stand the thought of firing her when the $18 or so she makes here a week (and that is with us paying her far higher than average wages) is all her family is living on right now.

So, as new families have been moving in all summer, I've been telling them about Zena. She has worked for mzungu (white expat) families for over seven years and she and her husband Elvis have a sweet little toddler, Janet. Most of the time I've struck out, since people often pass their house family on to the new tenant. But I found someone who needed help in the kitchen a few days a week, and Zena is very good in the kitchen! In fact, one of the things I invented for Zena to do to pass the time at our house is to spend one day per week with a trained Tanzanian chef, learning how to cook for mzungu.

Driving down our road behind a very small truck with a very big load

Taking Zena to the new friend's house was like a new challenge level on the video game that driving in Tanzania is. Narrow, unmarked dirt roads are the norm here, and many of them seem to be going somewhere until they suddenly disappear completely. I'm sure the locals who saw me doubling back from dead end to dead end had quite a chuckle.

The kids had a friend coming over to play, and Henry wanted to wait for him outside our gate. This has been a new favorite place for Henry as he discovered a lot of dirt and rocks out there. I have to admit it is a nice change of scenery from our own walls, despite the gorgeous flowering plants.

Whoopin' it up in the guardhouse

After little guy arrived, the kids were self-contained for quite a while. We read some books, ate lunch, cleaned a little bit, and I washed diapers.

LOVE drying everything on the line!

We went outside to check on the tomato and cilantro plants:

Nice little crop this week

 Ruby took a moment to look online for Toy Story 3 toys (we saw it a couple of weeks ago here - in 3D!) We get movies about two months after they come out in the US. There are three mainstream screens I know of here, and one Bollywood screen.)

The rest of the day was delightful...boys taking naps, girls playing games and reading, and except for me leaving the parking brake on when I went to get Len (panicky sweating as I thought I had a flat tire!) it was a great day.

Wednesday was Ruby's last day at preschool.

She starts Kindergarten Monday!! We picked up her uniform shirts this week (and swimsuit and P.E. uniform and hat....) so she is physically ready, at least. Praying that God helps us both be emotionally ready!

A local friend is building some tables for our bare living room. Catherine is a furniture designer with an architect's eye, and is also amazingly kind.

After solving many of the world's problems with another friend over lunch, it was pick-up time at preschool, and I enjoyed chatting with the teachers while letting Ruby have a few last minutes playing there. Then home, dinner and SLEEP. Something about living here makes us very tired at the end of the day. But that's another post.

Telephoto Tuesday

Welcome to the first 'day in the life' post on here. It may happen each Tuesday, it may happen at random intervals. It may never happen again. But we're here, and today's the day.

Today should have been a completely boring day. Really, I was home all day with the kids, had no transportation, no agenda and no guests. But as a dear friend used to say, only boring people get bored.

And we, friends, are not boring.

It's the middle of winter here, and that means 80+ degrees and sunny almost every day. There have been nice breezes coming over our front wall most days lately, and we spend a lot of time playing outdoors.

The first thing I did this morning was decide to give Henry a potty training boot camp. This may have been because I didn't want to wash diapers today. Never mind that. He is over three years old and needs to use the toilet eventually. Might as well practice.

He was sure I was trying to ruin his life. Without pants most of the day, we had several puddles. Yet another great reason to go outside. Don't have to clean up puddles in the grass.

While I have spared you those photos, we will include a few that feature Henry in his big boy underwear he got to wear on the bike.

Circus animal performing

Henry has just started riding his bike in the last week. He enjoys going 'fasterest'.

Today the bicycles were horses, and Ruby and Henry were circus ringmasters. Or performers. Everything and everyone became their subjects, including me. Lizards became fierce crocodiles. The lines in the brick pavers in the drive were tightropes, and the seeds and flowers in the crevices were tiny people and animals down below.

As the day progressed, Ruby and Henry moved to taming snakes made of long flowers from a plant in our yard. This takes a lot of concentration, by the intensity displayed above.

Ruby's snake then morphed into the Tickle Monster, a frequent guest at our playdates. Here it is coming to get me. Every Tickle Monster sighting has the same result - I turn into the Tickle Monster.

Fortunately, bicycles make for a quick getaway.

Beaches

Ruby and friends enjoying our South Beach getaway

Another South Beach moment. It's free and close...who wouldn't visit the beach?

Well, we've had several people comment that it looks like we're living on permanent vacation here. And it's true that we live in a tropical paradise setting. With the beach less than a mile from our house, and no Children's Museum, Chik-Fil-A, Connor Prairie, park or playground anywhere nearby, the beach does get at least one visit per week from our family.

We weren't really beach-goers before moving here. I guess lake beaches count, but we didn't live within walking distance of one of those, and the most recent visits to what I would consider real beaches were in Wisconsin on the shore of Lake Michigan, and in February it was a little chilly to really enjoy it. However, we are quickly learning to love the beach. The ocean and all its mystery - life, death, infinity - has always been magical to me. Being close and fun and free makes it an obvious choice for playdates, fellowship and family excursions here.

In fact, we're coming to appreciate the unique features of each beach here. Kunduchi, site of today's playdate, features a nice sandbar at low tide that allows you to walk over a quarter-mile out into the ocean. The beach is clean with fine, white sand (the clean ones are painstakingly kept nice by the hotels) and is also free on weekdays. The Kunduchi Beach Hotel is a majestic place with expansive beaches and was recently on some list of the 100 best beaches in the world. It is a gorgeous place, with great planning and a variety of ways to enjoy it - from outdoor restaurants to shaded lounges to the naked beach that is kept free of debris all day long.

And if Kunduchi is one of the best beaches in the world, South Beach, where we took a getaway weekend recently, is a few notches above it. Unbelievable. Every imaginable water feature from waterfalls to waves crashing on exposed reef at low tide to tidal pools that made our personal marine observation windows and soaking pools was present in our deserted stretch of beach. We saw maybe a dozen other humans on the beach the entire weekend, most of them locals fishing with just line. The tidal pools in the reef at low tide were akin to snorkeling without need for equipment...everything was just right there for the looking.

Of course, our dear Mbezi Beach is the closest place to see God's amazing hydrocreation. Depending on where you have beach access here, the beach varies from clean white sandy beach to kind of a brownish tan sand with seaweed and sea debris on shore. On the peninsula, there is the Yacht Club, which we only have access to through the invitations of members. But the beach is pretty swanky and clean, with good amenities and seating.

The kids absolutely love going to the beach, and it's a good thing. It's what we have. Sand castles, sand cities, looking for sea life and shells, and playing in the surf are all good ways to unwind from challenges we find here. And it's impossible for me to sit by the sea and not marvel at God's greatness and creativity.

Death is literally on my doorstep

July 4, 2010



Happy We Get To Live In The Greatest Country Ever Day, American friends. :) Now go read a copy of the Constitution and remember why!



Our neighbor died last night. We didn't know him; he had been ill for some time. Apparently, most of Dar es Salaam did know him though. Large trucks carrying tents, tables and chairs woke us up throughout the night, unloading and building a small grandstand between our wall and theirs (they live across the street from us).



We live about a half mile down a dirt road, at a T-intersection with a smaller dirt road. One side of the T is now jammed with chairs, tents for shade, and cars. In fact, throughout the day, cars jammed almost every road in our neighborhood. We were fortunate to get out for church before the bigger crowd showed up; we tried to get home three times in the day but had to park far away and walk in the gate to put a purchased chicken in the refrigerator. They had laid the casket out right in front of our gate, with rows and rows of chairs backed right up to the gate...I had to ask people to get up just to access the pedestrian gate. Felt really bad about that. It would have been nice if they had asked before they blocked us out, but hey, they were having a much worse day than us.



I was so, so sad for this family who lost someone so obviously important in their lives. Even through the cultural fog, that is obvious. A parade of people dressed in fine clothes brought gifts for days. I put on a long skirt and sleeved shirt and carried a card over. I hope they received it in the spirit it was given. Barnabas helped me with the wording...he advised me not to go in their gate, or I would be exposing myself to many strangers asking for money or favors. I trusted him on this one. Even at the local church one Sunday, two people asked me for a job during worship...not cool, but a reminder of how desperately people here need work.



So, this man's body lay at our door for the entire Independence Day, and we finally got in the gate well after dark when they moved him in a hearse. Another sign he was someone of high standing: hearses are very uncommon here; it is the first one I have seen.



Thank God for friends we could spend the day with. We ordered pizza and felt very American for one insulated day at another friend's house.

Zanzibar!

Amanda, our guest, thought it would be fun to go to Zanzibar, so I did what any adoring hostess would do...I booked a trip. We had Ruby and Henry in tow, so decided to keep it to one night with two days on the big island. The ferry was recommended by several friends, so we took the fast ferry. Ninety minutes rather than up to 4 hours on the slow ferries.

After barely making it to the port on time due to traffic, we pushed our way through a throng of porters and fake porters (called fleas here) to the boat. I had expected to be on one of the larger ferries, with two or three stories of cabins and decks, but instead we were in a smaller speedboat, like the ones you can ride in Chicago or other port cities. Seating about 30-40, it was a nice if sometimes choppy ride northeast to Zanzibar. Once past Mbudja Island off of Mbezi Beach, the water got pretty big at times, but was always deep sapphire blue, with bright aqua (the exact color of most pool bottoms in the US) reef areas around the little islands dotting the coast of Tanzania.

On the ferry ride, I sat next to a nice Muslim couple from Madagascar. The wife was removing her long covering as we sat down, revealing stylish capris and a slim-fitting t-shirt underneath. They explained that she only has to wear the traditional garmets when with her family, whom they had been visiting in Dar. It was kind of funny to see them using the pieces of her dark gown as sunshades and pillows on the ferry ride. Within the first 30 minutes, Henry and my new neighbors were sleeping, and the final hour of the trip went quickly.

We approached Zanzibar from the south, passing by the fingerlike southern peninsula and Prison Island, and finally saw Stone Town for the first time. By the time we came into port, we were definitely ready to be on land. Little did we know how luxurious that boat ride would seem later!

Once on the dock, we collected our bags and went through 'customs', then walked out to the dozens of taxis all trying to convince us they were there for us. However, none of them knew our name or contact, so we waited several minutes until a small van pulled up, with a man who knew our names.

The short ride through Stone Town to our hotel just north of there was interesting. Zanzibar seemed more vibrant, maybe because almost every view is set against the glittering Indian Ocean. One big difference we noticed is that the hand carts present everywhere in Tanzania were usually pulled by donkeys or cows on Zanzibar; they are always pulled by men in Dar. Nobody could give me a reason why.

Another slight difference between Dar and the island is that the island is over 90% Muslim. Almost all women wear full burkas or at least the full covering (head to feet, but not faces), often in black. One of our guides told us the black is only for women traveling out of their village. We did see one woman in a brightly tie-dyed garmet, and I felt she was a kindred spirit.

Imani Villa Hotel sits in the middle of a fishing village, next to a school of the Koran. A lovely spot with a small beach, tree house bar and restaurant, I loved it immediately. Simon and Kristen, the owners, do a great job making the few rooms lovely and comfortable. Each is unique and filled with useful, gorgeous antiques from eclectic Zanzibar. The food there was exceptional (I had barracuda with coconut sauce that I am still thinking about today) and the atmosphere sets it apart from more tourist-y places.

We toured Stone Town, went in several shops, didn't take as many pictures as I hoped due to managing two tired children, and returned to the villa for some food and rest. The sunset over the ocean was a real treat, something we don't get living on Tanzania's eastern seaboard.

Tuesday morning our goal was to see some of the wild monkeys living at the forest in the southern part of Zanzibar. The guide picked us up and drove about an hour through villages and past some swanky estates that he said were wealthy government officals' homes. Reaching the forest ranger station, we paid a small fee, read some literature about wildlife there, and went with our guide down a path toward the main forest.

After less than a half mile we saw several monkeys playing with a group of tourists. Apparently, these simians are quite used to humans and were a little too friendly at times when we followed our guide into the forest to see more. One adolescent kept trying to climb up my long skirt, reaching my back at one point. We left with good photos and a little creeped out.

After a few more hours on the hotel beach relaxing, we returned to the dock and breezed through paperwork and on to the bigger ferry. Deceptively comforted that this ride would be somehow better than the last one (which wasn't bad at all), we settled into our seats on the outside of the top deck.

Soon, the deck was filling up. Apparently they sold many more tickets than they had seats for, which I didn't think was supposed to happen on the first-class deck. However, people kept pouring in, and we held tight to our seats. There were dozens of people standing in aisles, sitting on every inch of deck, and as we left the dock, more came out of the air conditioned cabin to photograph Stone Town. I wanted these photos too, but knew that the second I stood up, two people would take my seat.

Sick bags were immediately distributed by a deck officer, and Amanda and I looked at each other gloomily. A child sitting in front of us on the floor vomited immediately into a clear plastic bag, and several people tried to get her father to put the clear bag into one of the opaque black sick bags...the sight of the vomit was making others feel ill. The girl and her father didn't speak swahili or english, but they finally got the message.

The ride proved as rough as the the bags had suggested. Throughout the first hour, more people than I can count threw up around us. Thankfully, everyone was very tidy about it. Amanda's greenness told me she was having as rough a time as I was. Choppy, big waves and wind gusts kept the boat rocking and bouncing the entire time, and finally, as I spotted the mainland, I joined the crowd of the seasick. That night, when Ruby talked with Len on the phone, she said, "Mommy threw up four times in her little black bag. Henry said, 'Hey!' (which he did, since I had to lean over him to hit the bag) and then we sang songs."

Indeed, we did sing a couple of Rich Mullins songs before and after my seasickness, and I'm glad Ruby remembered that part. And I did feel much better afterward. We left our little bag with its top firmly knotted shut among the dozens of other neat bags on deck when we left, collected our bags, and found our taxi driver to take us home (the 45 minute ride took over THREE hours with traffic!).

Another highlight of the trip was that I discovered that Zanzibar, aka Spice Islands, is home to many of the fresh spices I have been unable to find here on the mainland. How silly of me to not know that!

One last note...we are not on some huge vacation here. :) We just happen to live on the coast of an amazing country, where the free beach is one of the only places to take preschoolers! The photo above is the sunset over the Indian Ocean from Zanzibar...something we don't get to see living on the mainland.