Africa was probably the place that I personally have been
most looking forward to….. not just since starting this trip, but for years I
have been dreaming about this far off magical land that I never thought I would
make it to. It is also probably the
place I have been most anxious about since it actually started becoming a
reality. I would be lying if I said that there weren’t any sleepless nights in
the 2 weeks or so leading up to our flight to Mama Africa. As we really started
to do our research what we came across was fear mongering government advisories
and word of mouth horror stories, news reports of kidnappings, banditry,
pirates and shootings, with a couple
terrorist attacks and imminent threats thrown in for region of the world. It
really left us with ZERO idea what to expect.
In the end we decided to cancel our original flight to Kenya
given some of the recent attacks and threats in Nairobi and Mombasa and re-book
instead directly to Tanzania. All of
what we wanted to experience on our first voyage to Africa was also in Tanzania
anyways, and through a fellow traveller we met in India we found a great
volunteer spot at Good Hope Orphanage and School in rural Tanzania just outside
of the tourist enclave of Arusha.
So with arrangements made for pick up at the airport and for
our first few weeks to be spent volunteering at Good Hope we set off for
AFRICA! It was quite an expedition to get there. First off we spent 2 days in
Singapore, recharging and stocking up on what we needed for Africa. Basically
all we did in Singapore was eat and go to the malls (don’t even get me started
on how many malls there are in Singapore – it is RIDICULOUS).
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| Singapore Skyline at night |
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| Singapore view from the river |
Next up was a flight to Mumbai with an 8 hour
lay-over, thank god for the Star Alliance airport lounge. Then we had a quick
pit stop in Addis Abba, Ethiopia before our final leg to Dar Es Saleem,
Tanzania. We breezed through the Visa on
Arrival process, grabbed our bags and crossed our fingers that there would be
someone standing outside with our names on a sign.
SUCCESS! Our contact Lidya was there to retrieve us and help
us get oriented in Dar Es Saleem for the night. Within a few short hours she
had safely taken us to the bank, to get a SIM card, to book our bus tickets to
Arusha for the following day and got us to a budget hotel for the night…. all
before dark! The rest of the day and night was spent eating, sleeping and
recovering for our 8 hour bus ride (which actually took 12 hours) the next day.
On the bus we got our first view of the Africa countryside and
our first taste of the Tanzania people ……..and drivers! Both were wonderful,
and much lovelier than anticipated…… although we later discovered that as you
get off the big highway the roads get worse and the drivers get crazier – that
I did expect.
We finally arrived in Arusha a little before 7pm where we
met Bacari, a friend of the Good Hope director and local friend/volunteer for
the orphanage, who escorted us out to Good Hope. Once we arrived we were
greeted with open arms and warm hugs from all the kids, Aunties (local ladies
who live there full time and take care of the children) and other volunteers.
Within an instant we both began to fall in love with these kids, it’s
impossible not to. I can’t wait to spend
the next month getting to know this amazing crew of people!
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| View of Front of Good Hope School |
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| Kids playing in the yard with a view of Mt. Meru in the distance |
OOO_Talia and Jonny
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