Hey everyone it’s the coolest kids on the block Mads and
Morgs, surprised we’re together?! Ya.. me neither. This morning was like
yesterday with an early wake up at 6 which for some seemed way worse than
others since a group of 12 of us decided it would be a good idea to stay up
until 2:30 a.m., but hey its all about the experience right?;)McMorrow happened
to choose the coolest kids to blog because today we got to experience something
that no one else has done yet on this trip. The two of us were the “teacha” for
63 nursery kids ages 5 & under at St. Louis Primary School. The minute we
walked into this classroom we were politely greeted with the children standing up,
putting their hands to their foreheads and saying “good morning teacha, how are
you?”. The discipline and respect of these children was absolutely phenomenal!
It was just amazing to be a part of. First, we got the instructions to teach
them all 3 letter English words. We would simply say the letter and they would
repeat us. Then we went around to each and every one of the children and
personally told them what we wanted them to write down. When they were all
finished they would run up to us and say “teacha” and we would correct it.
Next, the fun came when we danced and sang very loudly. Getting to watch the
kids faces light up with the brightest smiles was absolutely heart warming. We
went right outside for porridge after that, and when I say right out side that
means at a very slow pace because we had 20 kids hanging on you trying to touch
you as much as they can We felt so important and loved! The feeling isn’t
really something easy to put into words but it was absolutely amazing. Our
cathedral group is definitely something they look forward to seeing. It will be
our pleasure to go back to school and put a smile on their face. They soon had
lunch and it was our time to walk back to the lodge where we met the rest of
the group. Our lunch was delicious as usual! We headed up to Jessica’s house,
the leader of the woman’s group. They formally introduced themselves, and we
did our best to introduce ourselves in Swahili. We also got to learn distinct
details about their past and present lives leading up to this group. They asked
many questions to Tammie and Mary Lou about their lives in America. They were
extremely shocked that the husbands actually do chores around the house because
it’s an unwritten rule that women do all the housework. Jessica ended our
introduction session with showing us her items for sale that we will be able to
buy later this week like pants, purses, shoes, etc. We thanked the women for
the time they took out of their busy schedules to spend quality time with us.
After that, we crammed back into the dolla dolla which really shouldn’t fit 23
people, but we made it a new record. Back at the lodge we, once again, had an
amazing dinner and closed the night with our informational meeting. We found
out we’re in for an exciting weekend. That means we should probably get some
sleep, but once again, looks like we’re in for a long interesting night bonding!
J Stay tuned for the
rest of the fun!
Morgan- Hakuna Matata.. no worries is the best way to
describe Tanzania! Although it may seem cliché, it feels so much like a 2nd
home here because of how welcoming everyone is. Wherever we go the Tanzanians
aren’t afraid to welcome us with a pleasant “mambo” or a simple thumbs up.
Every room we enter they always say “ we welcome you. ” It hasn’t even been a
week yet and I never want to leave! It’s weird to think that we’ve only had 2
full days here. The days get long and tiring, but at the same time this whole
trip is already flying by. To the friends and family I talk to daily I probably
miss you but I wont admit to it because quite frankly I don’t miss the U.S.
what so ever. Mom and dad, you should be proud of me… I have eaten every single
meal here and LOVED them.. shocked? Me too.
Also Saturday and Sunday you should probably watch my account because we
are going to town!! This trip has been quite the experience so far and I think
a huge part of the experience is the group we are with. Tonight I was out in
front of the lodge playing hakisack with a few friends and I got bored waiting
for Noah to pick it up so I started spinning around myself on one leg. It
looked pretty graceful and was super fun to do fast so I decided to try my left
leg. I pushed off with a ton of power to whip around as many times as I could
and the next second I was laying flat on my face. I was so embarrassed that our
Tanzanian workers were all staring at it happen so I just laid there for a good
while stood up and was dirty and cut head to toe. Thank you mama Jenny for
disinfecting it and giving me beautiful Dora band aids to make me feel better. J We all have seemed to
grow a stronger bond with each other even those you wouldn’t ever expect. An
exception with these friendships growing closer together would be when the lack
of sleep just slaps us straight in the face. Tonight was a low point for me and
my very crabby mood so I apologize to those affected #cheka :D
Maddie- Sooo considering I got 4 hours of sleep last night,
this may or may not make sense. That seems to be a trend this trip…not getting
sleep. This has caused crankiness but
also laugh attacks which have turned into crying in public (3 times and
counting). Anywho, from the time I got
out of the airport, I have been amazed at everything I see or experience!
Today, especially, was really a great eye-opener! I never knew how cool we were
until everyone on the streets would stare at us, the kids hang on us, and
people even take pictures of us just walking on the road! I can’t wait to see
what the rest of the trip has in store because for now, we’re off to a
fantastic start! I can’t say I’ve ever missed my phone probably because we stay
pretty busy, and it is a great group of people! Speaking of which, I better get
back to bonding with them! I have a feeling I won’t be catching up on sleep
because we have too much fun talking and hanging out at night!
To our Dance Team: we hope everything is going okay and
please listen to the junior cappys we love you all but don’t miss you ;)
To our parents: were still living and smiling so no need to
miss us! We love you. See you soon.
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