- A welcome site on the way back to Dodoma last week. -
I’ve been back in Dodoma for three weeks now and despite the fact that we’re nearing the end of the calendar year, things show no sign of slowing down. We’ve had distributions every weekend and we’ve just decided to implement the program in 3 more villages despite the fact that the rainy season should soon be upon us. I believe we’ll be all finished with distributions by 19 December. Of course, I thought we’d be all finished with distributions by 28 November, so who knows? The exciting thing about the additional distributions is that it means we’ll finish the year with 99 DCT parishes linked and 5,725 children in school!
- Here's John Joseph just as he was heading off to do photos and mesurements in one of the parishes that is farthest away from Dodoma (about 3 hours by Cruiser). John was traveling by motorcycle and decided to be prepared in case it rained on the way. -
In the last three weeks I’ve been on 5 distributions: Hombolo Bwawani, Mahoma Nyika, Mkonze, Makanda and Mchito. I’d been to all of the parishes before except Mahoma Nyika and Mkonze, which are new parishes linked with the Cathedral of St. Phillip in Atlanta, and it was wonderful to go back and see the kids again. They are all doing well and were happy to get their new uniforms, shoes, school supplies, socks and soap.
We had an unexpected delay at Mahoma Nyika. After we finished the distribution, we were invited to lunch at the priest’s house so Pastor Noah decided to move the Cruiser so we didn’t have to walk back to the church after lunch. Well, you know what they say about good intentions…The recent rains had created a rather foul-smelling mud pit and unfortunately the Cruiser got stuck in it. It took over an hour and, at one point, about 15 people from Mahoma Nyika, plus Pastor Noah and Willy to get the Cruiser free, but they managed. Talk about team work! Magi, Margaret (a visitor) and I had been directed to stay out of the way and a bench had been brought from the church so we could sit and watch. Apparently people decided that we wouldn’t really be that much help…fair enough.
Mini-Golf
Magi Griffin (Bp. Mhogolo’s Partnership and Project Advisor) and Martin McCann (Head of DCT Pathology Lab), both appointed missionaries from Atlanta, organized a combination welcome back for me/farewell to Callum, Laura, Scott and Nikki on Saturday, 14 November. It was held at Leone L’Africano which is the pizzeria/mini-golf course here in Dodoma – a favorite place of many of our visitors this year. The course consists of 12 holes which are actually a bit challenging because of the fact that they are made of concrete and the ground is not really flat, so something that you think should be simple is not actually all that simple (especially if you are mini-golf challenged, as I apparently am). Anyway, it was fun to get everyone together in a relaxed environment and have a mini-farewell party for our four Kiwis. Scott and Josh had finally taken their much-talked-about motorcycle trip together and made it back from Kigoma to arrive literally just in time for pizza on Saturday evening. That wasn’t their original plan, but I think they were both pleased with how it turned out!
- Callum gets ready to swing, cheered on by Nikki and Laura. He went on to win the tournament. -
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving dinner this year was quite different from last year when Sarah, Magi and I had Chinese food at the Dodoma Hotel. This year Magi, Peter, Jane, Linda, and I had dinner together at Peter’s house. Jane and Linda, who are from Australia and England respectively, decided that they had been invited so they could learn more about the holiday, though Linda, who is a history teacher, gave a far more detailed description of Thanksgiving that I think I could have. We had chicken instead of turkey because turkey is a bit pricy here and despite a lack of pumpkin pie, it was pretty much like a lot of Thanksgiving dinners I’ve attended in the past. There was one major difference, though: Magi’s ugali turkey! Ugali is a staple of the Tanzanian diet. It’s made from corn flour and when fully cooked kind of looks like a combination of mashed potatoes and homemade playdough and has about the same consistency. Magi said she thinks that she’s found her medium. Ugali. You can see from the pictures below that the finished product was nothing short of a masterpiece and it was really a shame that the unfortunate 'ugalurkey' had to meet its end.
- The great unveiling of the mystery guest. -
- Magi, Peter, and the ugalurkey. -
- The ugalurkey in all its glory! -
Just for fun: All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, but Jack obviously doesn't work for The Carpenter's Kids!
- All Callum needs now is a white shirt and a backpack! -
- Willy thought that a blanket left over from one of the pilgrimages made a good outfit. Why? Why not? -
- Scott and Callum take five. -
- John Joseph and Willy decided to get in on the photo opp fun, but Scott was too tired to smile. -
