Dave in Tanzania: Jungle Life?

It's been raining buckets the last few weeks here, and although that makes running errands and getting around town difficult, I love sitting at home and listening to the wind and rain in my neighbors' banana grove. When I say "Jungle Life," I admit I'm exaggerating a bit, or maybe co-opting my friend Justin's experience. He lives in the counrtyside about 15 miles away, while I definitely live a town-life. It's a 30 minute walk to Justin's place from the main road. The rutted sandy road leading to his village winds through small farms and groves of coconut and mango trees. Coming from a town full of grey concrete buildings, I find all the lush greenery very refreshing. Sometimes I crave a more rural experience like his, but I also realize that after adjusting to our new homes, a lot of new volunteers start to feel some "grass-is-greener" site envy.

I've been at site for 7 weeks now. As one might expect, a lot of the novelty has begun to wear off; things that seemed strange and exotic are now pretty standard fare. But this is ok- it's fun to notice myself doing little things automatically that would have seemed very foreign when I got here. Islamic greetings are starting to roll off my tongue. Handshakes here can last anywhere between 15 seconds and two minutes, and I've come to prefer them that way. So prepare yourself- I may shake your hand for an uncomfortaby long time when I get home.

Last week I was riding one of the local truck-buses. As usual, passengers were packed hip-to-hip on the benches in the back. Children aren't as closely guarded by their parents in public as they are in the States; it's common for a woman to hand her baby to a stranger without comment while she boards the bus. Kids end up in laps of strangers all the time when it gets crowded, and tend to get moved around a lot to make space for adults. On this particular ride I found myself taking a little boy by the arm and pulling him tight against my side to make room for a new passenger to sit. It was weird to notice myself doing this so naturally, and I had to wonder how quickly I'd get smacked in the States for manhandling a stranger's kid on a bus.

In other news, I haven't worn shoes in almost a month. Gotta love the Muslim dress code here: a good pair of leather sandals is as good as any pair of dress shoes!

In other other news, I met my Evil Twin. His name is Dave. He lives here on Pemba. He's 6'4", is from California, went to UC Davis, and passes his spare time here playing Ukelele. Even we get ourselves confused.

Lastly, the other other other news. Teaching is going alright. I feel very settled in at my school. I've got some frustrations about the syllabus I'm teaching from- it doesn't line up with my students English learning needs, but I can't abandon it completely because they are going to have to pass a national exam based on the syllabus. So I have to pull off a balancing act as I lesson plan.

That's all for now! Here's some pictures for your viewing pleasure:

Dinner with Dave and Justin, two of my Pemba Peace Corps buddies. Having homemade cake with nutella for Justin's birthday. No kitchen table? No problem. We'll kick it on the floor like the locals do...