Friday, September 2

Today’s adventure is what the travel company calls “A Day in the Life,” far off the typical tourist’s path and into the heart of a real village to spend some time with real people.  It’s also a chance to see how some of our travel money is spent, as a portion of our fees go to support schools, clinics and communities in the areas of our travels.

We spent the morning in and around Karatu, a small town in the Ngorongoro Highlands.    In the past, this area was of great important to the German colonialists, who liked the cool climate, the fertile green hills and the beautiful views.  Today, most of the people here depend on agriculture and livestock-keeping; others are employed in tourist lodges, campsites and small shops.

Most of the people here are Iraqw, an ethnic group who resemble the Ethiopians or early Egyptians in appearance. They speak a Cushitic language, very different from the Maasai and other tribes in the area.  It is thought that the Iraqw arrived in this region around 9,000 BC, migrating from the middle-east (Iraq) to Ethiopia and then into northern Tanzania.

Our first stop is the Bashay Primary School (K-7 grades, ages 5-14), which serves 850 students taught by 20 teachers.  The school property is almost an oasis in this dusty village; it’s an attractive group of buildings surrounded by trees and other greenery not so common in these parts.  We were soon to learn that this school has undergone much change since it was founded in 1961 by the Lutheran Church.

We first met the head teacher, Mr. Justine Basso.  He gave us an overview of the national education system:

      - Primary school is compulsory for seven years, ages 7 through 14.  Students must pass a national exam to advance to the next level.

      - Secondary school has two parts – four years of “ordinary” level and two years of “advanced” level.  Both require national exams to pass.

      - University may require 3 to 8 years, depending on the degree sought.

Sounds like a plan, but …the only government support for local schools is to provide the teachers’ salary – no buildings, no maintenance, no supplies, no nothing.  Fifteen years ago at Bashay Primary School, only four percent of seventh grade students were passing their final exams – and the condition of the facility was a reflection of the students’ record of achievement – poor. 

With a little help from Grand Circle Foundation, things have changed dramatically.  Buildings have been renovated, repaired, latrines and a water tank have been built, new classrooms have been added, a kitchen has been built and a dining room is under construction.     Bicycles have been purchased for teachers and for students who live too far away to walk to school (some walk over 6 miles). New desks, chairs, textbooks, laptops and other supplies have been purchased, and fruit trees, flowers and vegetables have been planted.   Does it matter?  Apparently it does - last year, 76% of seventh graders passed their final exam.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

Due to the historic lack of kids passing the 7^th grade final exam, there was no secondary school in the area.  Again, the Foundation (with help from Willy Chambulo) stepped in – a new secondary school was built nearby.  The government provides the teachers and there are currently 600 kids attending. 

The Bashay Primary school now includes kindergarten and provides adult education.  There are about 450 people enrolled in the adult education program, with classes offered in communities (about 20 people per class).

Pretty impressive improvements, but what’s it like NOW?  On a typical day, the teachers arrive at 7:15 to prepare for the day.  Students arrive at 8:00 to water plants and clean the classrooms.  The school day ends at 4:30 in the afternoon.

The curriculum is established at the national level and includes 12 subjects: English, Swahili, French, Geography, History, Science, Mathematics, Agriculture, Sports, Music, Religion, and Technology.  Here at the Bashay School, French is not taught because there is no teacher available and technology is not taught because there is no electricity. All classes are taught in Swahili, although many kids arrive speaking only their tribal language.  Uniforms are required and must be purchased by the student/family.

School supplies are still a major problem.  Nearly half the school supply budget is spent for chalk and paper.  Maps and globes are rare, as are rulers and protractors; pens and pencils are prized possessions.  We knew in advance that we’d be visiting this school, so most of our group had packed our luggage with all manner of school supplies and goodies for the kids.

After visiting with the principal, we spent some time with a class of fifth graders.  They sang a couple of songs for us and requested that we return the favor.  They asked us all sorts of questions, some of which we couldn’t begin to answer.  Others seemed simple at first – how far did you travel to get here?  Easy to say 8,000 miles, only to realize that we needed to convert to kilometers … time for a little math exercise!  Then it was our turn to ask them questions, but before long we needed to let them get back to work.   Note that the teacher’s desk is even smaller than the kids’ desks.

We happened to be on campus on the day of a special program for seventh graders preparing to take their final exams.  The local minister was on hand with words of encouragement and prayers for the kids to do well on their exams.  He was speaking Swahili, so it’s hard to be more specific.  We were amazed at how well-behaved these kids were, standing in one place for so long, and sad to see them trying to share the one available songbook.  At the end of the program, they sang the national anthem – a portion of that is on the video below.

Finally we said our goodbyes and headed to another part of the village, this time to visit a family of brick makers.  Our host is a man named Paul, who is the head of one of the fifty local families involved in making bricks in and around a huge clay pit.

Paul is wearing the traditional clothing of the Iraqw, known as ‘Mgorori’.  This is a big piece of cloth, about 9-10 feet long that is worn over the usual clothing, more or less like a cloak. Normally, an Iraqw man will carry a stick.  This tribal stick is distinct from the herding stick and is also a weapon.

 Paul walked us around the brickyard and described the various back-breaking stages in the brick-making process.  First, clay is dug from the ground and pounded (with a stick) into fine particles.  The clay is then mixed with water and mashed into wooden mold.  The wet bricks are laid out on ground to dry in the sun.

Once dry, the bricks are carried to the kiln to be fired.  In brick-making, as in everything else, the women do the heavy lifting and carrying – on their heads.  We watched in wonderment as young women placed as many as seven bricks on their heads and carried them uphill to the kilns.  (Each unfired brick weights about 8 pounds.)

The kilns are constructed by piling the fresh bricks in an intricate design with air vents throughout and leaving spaces at the bottom for firewood.  Old and broken bricks are piled around and over the fresh bricks to create an outer shell.  Firewood is hauled (sometimes at great expense from great distances) to build fires which are burned for 3 full days and nights.

The bricks are cooled for 7 days and then stacked for sale.  Heck of a way to make a living, but Paul and his neighbors are plenty proud of their work.

 As we finished up our walking tour, we met one of the village elders, a man named Daqhro.  He was so amused by our efforts to pronounce his name that he took us over to his house to meet his wife and family.  He’s 76; she’s 62.  They have not had an easy life.

Paul then invited us to his home to meet his wife and family, so off we trooped through the red dust.  Along the way, we passed other homes and curious kids.

And here is Paul’s house, with Ringo sitting out front awaiting our arrival.  It’s a pretty fine structure compared to some others, but still dirt floors and no glass in the windows.  He did have access to a generator for electricity, but it was provided by the Grand Circle Foundation to assist with food preparation for these visits.

We were greeted by Paul’s wife and daughter, to whom we presented some gifts brought from home.  They had prepared a snack for the group – the dish called “makande” – red beans, corn, onions and tomatoes in chicken stock.  Pretty tasty.

Then it was time for a little entertainment.  Paul played a traditional stringed instrument made from a gourd; his son play the drum; his wife and daughter danced and sang. 

And of course, there must be audience participation.  Paul started into “Old McDonald” and dragged members of our group up front to help.  Here’s Margaret singing about cows … 

To wrap up the visit, it was our turn to do some giving.  David brought in the three clay water filters that our group had purchased back in Arusha Town.  David explained how to use them, and Paul and his wife seemed most appreciate of the gift.   

 We said our goodbyes to Paul and his family – and the assorted neighbors and kids who appear wherever we go somewhere. 

On the way back to our lodge, we stopped a few minutes in ‘downtown’ Karatu for one of our travelers to get some cash from the ATM.  Very interesting to watch the Maasai warrior whip out his debit card …

The ATM happened to be near one of the town’s finest shopping areas for tourists.  Folks around here really like Barrack Obama and at least one favors Hillary Clinton. 

It was quite a morning – an education and an opportunity to reflect on what we have and what really matters.   We came back to Tloma Lodge for lunch and finally had some time to walk around the grounds here.  Starting at the main gate … there’s always a line of folks to get water from the well open to community use.  

Inside, it’s green and lush, with flowers blooming everywhere.  The entire hillside below our room is a vegetable garden – here they grow everything we’ve been eating.  Women (of course) pick the veggies and carry them back to the main lodge.  

There’s also a large coffee plantation and it was nice to wander around and watch – no organized tour, just the workers themselves attempting to communicate and make us welcome.   Women picked the coffee fruit and deposited the berries in a big pile under some shade trees.  








Now the men get into the act.  They put the fruit through a grinder that pops most of the coffee beans free of the skin and pulp.  The output is cleaned over and then carted away to be dried. 

   

The beans are spread out in the sunshine to dry over several days.  Some are roasted here for local use and others are sold elsewhere.

Tonight is our final night together as a group (we’re not counting the overnight flight to Amsterdam), so it’s time for the farewell dinner.  Lots of toasts, lots of good food, good stories and good memories.  One last picture of our crew and our guides.