Settling into Tanzania

I am taking a break from writing my final India post to capture the excitement I've been feeling since my arrival in Tanzania two days ago.  It is currently 6pm on Saturday and I am sitting on the veranda of Alfred, Hillary, and Bodie's large and beautiful new home (which they only moved into last week), overlooking the pool which will hopefully soon be clear enough of both algae and chemicals for us to swim in it.  To the side is an impressive variety of vegetation - cacti and short palms and an assortment of other trees, flowering blossoms of white, orange, red and pink.  Below them, Dexter and Cleo, the family's two enormous but friendly dogs, are playing.  The sky is overcast, and though the breeze threatens rain, together they keep me cool enough that I am able to sit outside without sweating, a feat I do not expect to repeat frequently over the next two months, which are typically Tanzania's hottest.

As I finished that last sentence, I was interrupted by Bodie, Alfred and Hillary's four-year-old son, an event I expect will be a very frequent occurrence over the next two months.  Bodie is energetic, inquisitive, and quick to befriend people of all ages.  Upon returning home with his nanny the afternoon of my arrival and finding me on the couch, he came right over to introduce himself and show off the BenTen watch his friend had loaned him.  Although I'm sure he can be a handful at times, right now I'm really enjoying spending time with him and feel all warm and fuzzy when he plops himself down in my lap to practice reading his analog watch, or asks to ride on my shoulders or have me read him a bedtime story.  Similarly, I love being in a home with dogs again, even though Cleo is clearly still a puppy (albeit an 80-odd-pound one) and creates puppy-headaches like chewing on all manner of inappropriate items, or, this morning, chasing and catching a chicken that had gotten outside the neighbor's fence.

As for Alfred and Hillary, they have done an incredible job of welcoming me into their home and helping me settle into life here in Tanzania.  I have my own room with a large bed and bathroom on the first floor, and Alfred has already begun surveying their friends--mostly married couples with NGO or government jobs and young children--for other 20-somethings in their organizations to introduce me to.  On an errand run today, we stopped briefly in KickStart's new office so Alfred could check on the progress the weekend workers were making on getting computers and desks set up, then did some shopping for necessities at Tanzania's only (and ridiculously expensive) mall.  I still need to visit one of the immigration offices on Monday to obtain the visa I need to legally volunteer at KickStart, but I'm looking forward to jumping into some projects and am feeling quite optimistic about my stay here.