Hamjambo!

Hi everyone,

I've arrived in Moshi Tanzania. Besides a killer tube ride to Heathrow Airport it was relatively easy to travel here. The layover in Ethiopia was really interesting.

I flew into Addis Ababa Airport. It was really different; first of all it was my first time stepping onto African soil, and secondly the language uses a lot of characters. The airport had about 5 gates and complete with prayer room for men and a separate one for women. After wandering around looking at what looked like a bad strip mall from 1982, I was back on the plane to Mt. Kili.
Jenny, an old friend from 'back east', met me at the airport. She has been here in Moshi for almost a year working with street kids. I've been hanging with her all day today at the centre and meeting the kids. I just sat in on an HIV/AIDS education class with about 15 15 year old boys. They were asking about HIV transmission and how you can wear a condom, but you might still get "fluids" on your balls.
This weekend was fantastic, almost dream like. We went out on Friday night; her favorite taxi driver picked us up and we were heading to this bar called the watering hole. We are driving down a dirt road with two huge walls on either side. This is all looking ominous but interesting. We arrive at this so called bar with a guard out front. He is looking for us on the "list" or if Jenny's name is on one of the plastic id cards in the stack. Kinda humorous. We went in and it was a gorgeous spot right on a flowing river with a beautiful bar worked into the rocks and a many big decks and all. A few of Jenny's friends met us out and we had some drinks. It was fantastic. I've tried a few of the Tanzanian beers and they might not compare to London's, but the Tusker is really great.
I'm impressed with this town. It is one of the richest in Tanzania. There are a few tourists here that climb Kili and start safaris from here. But the people have been so friendly and welcoming. I am trying my hardest to learn some Kiswahili. I had a moment today when I was walking down the street to Jen's house and I said the few greetings I knew to a woman who was walking past. She tried to continue to talk to me and we both just laughed as those few phrases were all that I knew. It will take some time, but I'm trying.
Also, In comparison to my only other experience in a developing country; the medical work I did in Honduras, this place is much more advanced. The kids know how to read and write and some speak some English. When I worked with Shoulder to Shoulder in Santa Lucia in Honduras, it was a stretch to get food and water, let alone education.
I also love the blending of cultures here. This morning I woke up at 5am to a man singing over a loudspeaker possibly from a mosque. It sounded like prayer. Jenny tells me there really aren't any mosques close enough to her house, but in town there are numerous places of worship, church, mosque and temples.
I got to see a beautiful view of Kili yesterday from the rooftop of a hotel. It was amazing. I will have to come back here to climb it one day. We also went out for IndoItalian. Good pizza. Ha, I'd have to say it was better than San Francisco. The big joke though is how much everyone would love to have a burrito place in town. It seems that there is everything but.
Next week we are going on Safari and seeing some big game. I'm totally stoked. I'm also really excited to go to Zanzibar and work with Nanette at another clinic there.
Everything is wonderful. This has been an beautiful experience so far, and is only going to get better. I will try to post some photos, but it might be hard.