Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Written by Tricia Gantz

Wednesday, January 14 was the first day of our service learning project at the school. We started out with a tour of the school which is actually at a private Lutheran school called Ailanga Lutheran Seminary. The school is a boarding school so the students live at the facility as well. A few years ago they were ranked 34 out of 944 schools in Tanzania and more recently ranked 110 out of 1450. So, it is a pretty good school but they still lack a lot of resources. It is really sad because they rank so high but their buildings and available supplies do not match to the same ranking schools in America. They are currently building a science lab which, as a student, I think is really sad because having hands on learning is really good and I wish they could have had it all along. In defense of the school however, it may not have had one because it was just built in 2003 (even though you can’t tell it’s new—the construction here is not the same as the US).

So, we started off with a quick tour and then they served us breakfast for the tea break, as they call it. Then we split up so we could view some of the classrooms. Another member of our group and I were supposed to be viewing a mathematics class, but somehow we just ended up in a study hall. It worked out fine because the kids just loved talking to us—and of course, us to them. They told me a little bit about their school but they were way more interested in hearing about America. What food do you eat? What animals do you have? What tribe are you from? (that was one of my favorites!) Why do you love Barrack Obama? What is Thanksgiving? All kinds of questions!!!!

After learning about the school we were able to play outside games with them. There was a game of soccer and a game of volleyball. First we had to help set up for the games. The fields needed to be lined, which the ambitious kids of the school did for us. Then, our group picked up large rocks, trash, and cut down the grass using native methods. For this we used a tool that kind of looked like a cross between a hockey stick and a golf club. It was all metal and you would swing at the ground almost like you were trying to hit a golf ball. This would cut the grass down. It was a lot of work. I was really bad at it because let’s face it, I’ve only cut grass with a lawn mower. A lot of people got blisters but it was totally worth it. Then we were ready to let the games begin!

I went to volleyball and it was really fun. It was very interesting though because not one girl wanted to play any games. Our volleyball game was Americans against Tanzanians and our team was all girls except for one, Matthew. It was interesting but really fun. I think the guys there thought it was pretty cool playing against girls. They play really weird though--or so I think. They don’t rotate after a sideout and they said it’s because not many of them know how to serve. So our side rotated while their side didn’t. Also, the never really tried to set up a bump set spike deal. They just sent it over the net if it came their way. Our side was pretty skilled and we set it up a few times. Finally, I think they caught on because on kid said he was going to block me (keep in mind he was like six feet tall and I am like five foot nothin’) and then of course he stuffed the crap out of me. It was really fun though. Everyone was like “OHHHHhhhh!” and I gave him a high five. I don’t think they play that way often so I think he had fun blocking me. All in all, it was so fun and we made some really good friends. I personally got close with three guys in particular; Jimson, the all time referee, Tino, my blocker, and Eban, the all time server.

It was really fun playing with them and getting to know everyone. I will say though, that it was really sad that their court sucked so much. The ground in Tanzania is really rocky and mountainous so it is difficult for them to keep it level. There was one time when I was all by myself but I fell over because it was so rocky. Then on the other side of the court I was on such a high hill I could actually reach the top of the net. It was also hard to run off the hill to get a ball. And forget about diving for saves because it was an automatic cut and bruise because of the weird ground. A few girls tried it and the aftermath didn’t look so pleasant. The students at the school don’t seem to complain though about the court, so I guess in a sense it is okay. I just know how nice it is to play on a court. Oh, some of them don’t have shoes so they play soccer and volleyball in sandals or no shoes at all. I even heard that they sometimes share cleats too—can you imagine that athlete’s foot?

Overall it was an amazing day. Everyone told good stories that night of meeting people in the classes, the interesting curriculum, or the sports later in the day. It seems everyone made some new friends so hopefully we will be able to stay in contact with these wonderful kids!