-Lots of people here know it's Christmas, and when I went out grocery shopping, I got asked a lot how my day was going and if I had any special plans. Even kids in town who usually shout "Mzungu!" as I go by instead were shouting "Christmas!" It's said in the same impersonal tone, but I'll take it.
-I had a hot chocolate epiphany! A week ago I got some gourmet hot chocolate mix in the mail from Katie. Somehow moisture had gotten into the packet, so it was a sticky paste instead of powder, and when I mixed it with hot milk it wouldn't dissolve, and thus would not release it's chocolate-hazelnut deliciousness. Oh noes! But this morning I had an idea! I mixed in the paste and then boiled my milk, and voila! It all dissolved and I had delicious hot chocolate with breakfast! The weather here is way too hot to warrant warm drinks, so I was sweating buckets by the end of the second mug, but totally worth it! I then took a cold shower and felt amazing.
-Katie also sent me Candy Canes. Delicious! Enjoying one right now....
-A lot of kids bug me for money and gifts around town. They are especially persistent at the end of Ramadhan, when all the adults are giving out little gifts and candy. But today I turned the tables on them! "Today's Christmas; your turn to give me a gift. Give me money! Give me candy!" Predictably, they had nothing for me, but they stopped pestering me for the day. I wish everyday was Christmas- I could pull this all the time....
-I've got the Christmas music going:
Brass albums by The Canadian Brass and The London Brass
The Grinch Soundtrack (see title of post). Even without the video, this makes me really happy and reminds me of being a kid. "And what happened then? Well in Who-ville they say that the Grinch's small heart grew 3 sizes that day. And then the true meaning of Christmas came through, and the Grinch found the strength of 10 Grinches, plus 2!"
Trans-Siberian Orchestra (over-the-top rock and roll adaptations Christmas standards, sent to me on a flash drive from Katie!)
And of course Handel's "Messiah." Duh! We all listen to that one right? Right???? Ok maybe not everyone....
-I got the following text from one of the guys in my English club:
"Happy birth day Ooh! Sorry...! Velentine day.... Shit! Good morning, no,no,no,no...! Oh yes, i want to say.....happy christmas."
-Last but not least I found 20,000 shillings I didn't know I had (about $12). Woot! Merry Christmas to me!
Christmas cheer abounds! One of my best gifts was last night's sunset at the port:
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| Port buildings from the pier |
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| Boats in the channel between Pemba and Fundo, a small island to the west |
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| Men finishing up their day's work |
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| Ahhhhhh..... |
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| Sundown on Christmas Eve |
Hi Dave,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your life and times in Tanzania. We get busy in our lives, and don't contact you, but please know we don't forget you. All seems fine and normal on Stanford Avenue. Weather has been like warm spring the last couple of days, don't know how much longer it will last though. Your Dad helped me a little while ago with a little project. He not only has a ton of tools, he knows how to use them well!! What a treasure of a person he is.
Your Mom looks very well also, and I see her fairly often outside to say hello. Heard good and interesting things about Neil from your folks. Milo is almost done with the last bits of applying to colleges. What a lot of work! We had no idea, it is so different from when we applied to schools. Seems like the same number of seats as when we went, and 100 times as many people applying for them. Oh well, it is now a waiting game until the Spring when he gets his replies from the schools he applied to. In case you are curious, he has applied to: Stanford, USC, UC Berkeley, UCLA, UCSC, Santa Clara, Pomona, Pitzer, Yale, and Swarthmore. His interests are Japanese Language, History (especially European), and Music (violin, would like to be in an ensemble).
Well, I need to go now. Take care of yourself, have fun, and stay well.
Steven, Bonnie & Milo