(written on the saturday evening 1.2.2014.)

 

That my english speaking friends wouldn't feel totally outsiders! I came to Northern Tanzania, Arusha region on last monday evening and been trying to learn the life here since then! I'm an exchange student in Tumaini University Makumira untill the end of the June. Tumaini means christian, so that is where the whole University gets it's identity. The chappel is in the middle of the campus and of course we have many christian choirs here. I went to sing in a choir called Kwaya ya Neema. It is practising four times a week plus singing every sunday in the service. But at the moment it feels good because I don't have too much other activities. 

 

I'm living in a dormitory where are mostly little bit older master students. I'm not excactly sure, but I think that the master programme is only awailable here in theology studies. Anyway it feels that atleast half of the students here are studying theology. Also all the other exchange students except me. I'm in the only University level music programme in whole Tanzania!

 

This dorm is actually formed by many small houses, where eight people are living in each, in four very small rooms! My roommate, Alice is typically a master student in theology. She is also a mother of two teenagers who live in the capital Dodoma with her husband, who is also a priest. Alice already invited me to visit her family! That was after we had known each other about half an hour. She is also taking lot's of care about me (well, she is a mother after all..) like leaving me warm tea water in thermos in mornings and boiling a drinking water to me also. Just a moment ago she said to me: ”Ulla, here is an mosquito inside, maybe you should go to put some poison to your skin, we don't want you to get any malaria!”.  This is how firendly people are in here! I love them already!

 

My school haven't officially started yet, in here it is an end of the first term at the moment. But I'm gladly just hanging around and learning about life. And swahili-language. It is hard, but atleast I know some of the greetings already! I'm also already joining in some lessons in music department just to follow and participate if it is possible. Thursdays are the greatest days here, then are the african ensembles, where we dance, sing and play traditional instruments! Also I have enjoyed the lessons of African music history. In one lesson the first year students had made small presentations about different types of tribe dances. They had selected one dane each and were showing all the rythms and drums played by in the dance (and we tried them all together which always became a cool polyrythmic pattern!). One boy was telling about an snake dance where the dancer is dancing with a python. Extremely dangerous, but life apparently needs to be exciting! 

 

Today I was hanging with some of the other exchange students, Anne and Janis from Germany and Thurs from Denmark. We walked quite a while, partly also travelled with the small busses, dala-dalas and saw some very green and beautiful landscapes. In the end we also found a place to eat and a small pool to swim! Janis have already been here almost and year, he is going home in the beginning of March. Thurs is staying only this semester, and going home already in a week. There are also two other girls whom I don't even know yet, and who are leaving soon. Only me and Anne are staying the next semester. Anne already said to me, that she is so glad I came! Imagining how it is to be the only european (and with a white skin of course) student in the whole big big University! I'm also very glad Anne will stay here when all the others are leaving. 

 

I'm really much enjoying my not very buzy life in here (all the others are buzy except me when the exams are coming..). Today I was thinking also to play some clarinet and kantele, but no, I didn't have time for that. Instead I was fighting with the bad internet connection to load some pictures. In the end I got six pictures in facebook, but not any of them in here the blog yet. The electricity went of four times during my loading time, and the computer always closed down. So it was hard and I didn't get much done. 

 

That is anyway the basic problem in the back of my mind. I should get more done. Why? Is that what measures the greatness of a person? For myself it seems that I have been extremely lazy during the almost an week what I have been here. And believe me, it feels much longer time! I try to forgive myself, I need to learn so much in this new life, I can't be just fast and great and effective immediately! What are the more important things in life and how to really appreciate those more than just trying to be effective? 

 

This is why I wanted to come to Africa again, to learn life!