A couple days of nothing, and a day of awkward...

Wednesday, August (?!) 1, 2012

This day was just a work day for a poster project, which I more-or-less had finished after a couple of hours. A lot of slacking off this day. In the afternoon, we did some community service at the camp, which consisted of putting dirt into bags so they can plant tree seedlings in them later. It was… tedious. But that’s all right, it was a mostly restful day if nothing else.

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Yesterday we visited a Hadzabe (bushmen) clan that has opened up their “village” to tourists to raise income. Or that’s the story we were told, anyway. And it’s true, it’s just really pretty awkward. I’m pretty sure a lot of what they showed us (a dance, their clothing, etc.) is not a big part of their real lives, but just something showy for the tourists. For instance, most of the men/boys were wearing baboon pelts, which they supposedly only wear for hunting and at the time they were not hunting... Oh and there was also a (GRAPHIC CONTENT:) dead baboon, pretty much intact except that it was cut in half, hanging from one of the trees. Super pleasant. Also there was lots of smoking of a… particular herb. So. That was awkward. 

Yeah. I just don’t know how I feel about it. And it actually got more awkward, when our teacher decided we were going to talk about whether or not they should modernize to cattle-raising and farming right in front of them (who don’t speak English or much Swahili but still) and the guide (who speaks some of their language, Swahili, and English). And it got worse when the teacher basically said they would die out if they didn’t modernize (they’re hunter-gatherers right now) and most of the class disagreed and said it was their decision to make. And yes, I can see valid arguments for both sides, especially when you consider the environmental issues… but we shouldn’t have been talking about it RIGHT THERE and we should have been given more than 15 minutes to debate such a significant topic. So summary: AWKWARD DAY.

Oh and I guess after that we stopped at a tourist lodge that supposedly practices sustainable tourism, but the owner wasn’t free to give us a tour anymore. So all I learned was that they farm their own fish instead of harvesting from the nearby lake. Which is good. Then we decided to walk to the lake, but we think it might have actually just been a mirage because the more we walked, the farther away it looked. Plus the wind was going about 80 miles per hour. Yeah. Yesterday was weird.

Today!

Our final exam is tomorrow (which is kind of silly) so today is a “study” day. I’m pretty sure that no one is studying right now. The exam sounds like it’s going to be pretty straightforward and about the biggest topics we’ve covered, and the Session 1 kids say that their exam a month ago was pretty easy too. No one’s really concerned. So we’re all just hanging out.

But the reason our exam is so early in the program is because on Sunday we’re leaving for a FIVE DAY CAMPING TRIP IN THE SERENGETI. It’s going to be amazing. But also don’t expect any updates until probably next Saturday. But after that, it’s only a few days until home! And pictures!! I’ve taken over 1,000 pictures so far!!!

Anyway, wish me luck on my exam and thanks for still reading!

Exam = Mtihani