Thursday, July 20. Arusha, Tanzania
Wow. Who would have thought that I would be in Tanzania today? It was literally a last minute decision, but now I am in Arusha, a city in northern Tanzania. I'm staying at a hotel in my own room. So, how did I get here?
This morning, right after morning chapel (around 9AM), HaYoung called me over and asked me if I wanted go to Tanzania with her mom, and that she's leaving in 30 minutes. It was a double surprise because her mom (Mrs. Kim) wasn't going to go because she's been sick, and I had no idea I had the option to go. So apparently she decided to go, and she had asked me if I wanted to tag along. Since I didn't have much time to decide, I thought, "why not?" and decided to go.
Mrs. Kim has been planting a lot of flowers and trees at BCEA, and she's also in charge of plants at the new Bible College in Arusha. Also, she had to send some money there to pay for construction or something like that.
On the way to the border, I got to see a little bit of Masai Land, where I will be for the next month. People seemed to live literally among the bushes. There's really nothing but trees and grass. I also saw two giraffes eating from a tree right next to the road. I'd never seen a wild giraffe, so I doubted my eyes when I saw them. There was also a dead hyena on the road. We stopped at River Hotel in Namanga, a city bordering Kenya and Tanzania, for bathroom break and lunch. Then at the border I had to buy a 3-month visa to Tanzania for $50 (it was the same for Kenya).
We arrived at the new Bible College at around 3PM (about 5.5hr ride), and we planted some trees and bushes around campus. I got to see the painting job that London Team did when they were here last week. It was actually fun planting stuff and getting my hands dirty. I think there's something therapeutic about planting trees. I'm looking forward to seeing the plants (that I personally planted) again in a month, and see how they've grown. They are so small right now, but it's mind-boggling to think that they will be at least a waist high in a few weeks.
People here seem really friendly, or the kids at least. As we drove by villages, most of the kids that see me would smile and wave at me. It's probably because I'm a "musungu" (foreigner), but it's still interesting when the kids wave at me or give me a thumb-up.
After working at the college, we met up with a deaconess and went out to dinner. We ate at an Italian restaurant called Pepe. I didn't know they had such a nice restaurant in Tanzania. They had a real Italian chef, the food was excellent, and the portions were humongous. I'm telling you, I'm being so spoiled in Africa. But no worries, I'll have my share of "Africa" starting next week.
Mrs. Kim insists that I should climb Mt. Kilimanjaro since I'm here. Most likely I'll be going there after a month of "training" in Masai Land. I'll be walking around a lot while I'm there, so it'll be a god training. Apparently it takes 5 to 6 days to climb all the way to the top and come back down. So that's quite a challenge... And that's an understatement. I've climbed Mt. Fuji without difficulty, but that was when I was in high school, and I was more fit back then. Besides I wasn't carrying anything on my back, and it only took a few hours. I also climbed Half Dome in Yosemite two years ago, and that was pretty tough mainly because I was carrying a lot of water on the way up (8 hours climbing, 2 hours descending). It would be quite an accomplishment if I make it to the top of Kilimanjaro... It's also quite expensive. I'm not sure if I could afford it, but I'm willing to take up the challenge if I'm given the opportunity.
Mt. Kilimanjaro is usually hidden in the clouds, so I didn't get to see it today, but maybe tomorrow on the way back to Nairobi I'll get to see it.
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