A Brief Update (Really!)

Over the past week, when I spoke to family and friends back in the US, they each asked me something to the effect of "So, how's life in Tanzania?"  Shocking, I know.  But for some reason, it's a question I've had trouble answering with more than a simple "good."

You see, being in Tanzania hasn't been like being in any of the other places I've visited on this trip, for the simple reason that I am living here, not simply being a tourist.  As such, I haven't been having the types of single, stand-out experiences that I had in other countries, because even the things that are new to me, like driving in a major city on mostly on unpaved roads or having men from the Masai tribe in their traditional colorful but shirtless garb directing traffic outside every restaurant, have quickly become the norm.  Pulling out a camera and taking photos has definitely felt unacceptable.

As of today, I finally have the official documentation I need to do my volunteer work (not that that's prevented me from already starting).  All it took was five hours at the immigration office today on my eighth trip there, plus re-completing one of the six forms I had filled out previously because they had lost my entire file (why they needed the other five forms before, I don't know), in order to get a visa allowing me to volunteer for an organization that helps small scale farmers lift themselves out of poverty.  Oh, and by the way: since June, the Tanzania government has supposedly been operating under the policy of "Kilimo Kwanza," "Agriculture First."  Sadly, my volunteer visa challenge is one of the lesser ways the government has failed to facilitate the efforts of those genuinely committed to assisting with this goal, but I won't dwell on that here.

Overall, I've been having a wonderful and relaxing time in Tanzania.  Tomorrow morning, I'm catching a bus to Morogoro, a region about two to three hours from Dar Dodoma, the capital of Tanzania, to accompany one of KickStart's regional sales officers on some meetings with dealers and distributors that sell their irrigation pumps, and hopefully get to interact with some of the farmers who are actually using them.  I'll be out in the field for 10 days and I promise that when I get back, you'll all get a much more significant update.