Tag Archives: rafikis

The Pink Ladies


 

8/19/2017
I met these lovely ladies when I was back on the mental health ward. They just welcomed me with open arms at Muhimbili. They’re second year nursing students about to go into their third year! The day I went to the methadone clinic they were there as well. We talked for hours and hours and they invited me over to their student hostel after placement.

They made me feel at home and introduced me to all of their friends. We had dance parties and they did my hair. They showed my their rooms and we talked about our family and just life in general. How Africa differs to America. The various tribes they’re in. Even though we come from two different parts of the world we’re still so similar. They made me dinner as well. They invited me back another time and waited for me to get off of work. They made me even more food like maandazi, pilau, and tambi na maharage. Different ladies would make me various things and bring everything together for me to eat. I really love trying Swahili feed and eating it like they do, with your hands. They even bought me sugar cane juice from their mini store downstairs that’s for students.

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This is Beatrice with dinner she made me in her room!

This dish in particular that Beatrice made was very interesting! It was sweet spaghetti noodles with beans.

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I definitely have gone out of my comfort zone so many times here when it comes to food! Luckily, I haven’t gotten sick or anything from things yet!

During our various conversations I learned that they had never had a burger nor pizza. They explained to me that very few people in Tanzania have actually had “white people food.” They said that if you eat “white people food” then you’re doing very good in life and you have a happy life. I tried to explain to them that in America you can get burgers for very cheap. Like on the Dollar Menu. However, they asked how much is $1 USD compared to Tanzanian shillings. $1 USD equated to 3,000 Tanzanian shillings. They said that they could eat three meals with that much money in one day. This kind of took me back and really opened my eyes. I insisted that they let me take them out for burgers, my treat. I just had to introduce them to their first burger experience!

We met up on a Saturday at Salt which is this Western restaurant near Oyster Bay and Coco Beach. It’s the only Western restaurant around and one of the few places that sells burgers. They were in awe at the restaurant! I have never really been put in the position where I’ve had to explain what everyday typical things are. For instance, they’d ask me questions about the menu like what ketchup was or what macaroni and cheese was. It was kind of funny because typically they’re the ones telling me what all of the different things in Tanzania are but now I was able to share a little bit of home with them even though we weren’t in America.

There’s a lot of different and unique types of burgers on the menu. Of course your regular beef burger, chicken burger, salmon burger, etc. They would ask me to explain what each one was and what everything on the menu meant. I ended up asking each of them what they like in Swahili food like if they prefer spicy over sweet, etc. and made my assumptions that way and based that off of how I ordered for them. It was such a fun meal!

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We made a toast for them almost being done with the semester. The school year is switched here. They’re about to have summer whereas in America summer is ending.

After lunch we went to Coco Beach and strolled along the shore and I took them to the cliffs. My friend there, who’s a lifeguard, walked with us to the cliffs. It was just so much fun relaxing with them. It was also nice having them there because they were able to translate what everyone was saying to me.

This is definitely an experience that made me very honored and humbled and a memory that I’ll always cherish.

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Rafiki Florida

September 3rd
I would love just to write a quick post about one of my rafikis, Florida. My first day on the Pediatric Oncology Unit she greeted me with open arms. She is also a nurse at Muhimbili. She’s shared her lunch with me countless times at work

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Ugali, fish, and cabbage

and she has taught me so many Swahili words. Labor Day weekend she invited me to her home. She lives in Kigamboni which you have to take a ferry from Dar to get there. She met me at Muhimbili where we took various buses to finally get to the ferry. It was so amazing to actually see how local people use transportation in Tanzania daily. She lives over an hour from the city but with traffic that can double even triple the commuting time. Public transportation costs about 600 Tanzanian shillings; however, if you were to use a taxi to take you to the island it could be around 25,000 Tanzanian shillings. I had been to Kigamboni before to go to Kipapayo beach in a taxi. But my experience was a lot different this time. I truly got to experience African culture.

When we were in the waiting area to get on the ferry there was honestly probably 700 people. Imagine being in a big enclosed room with no room to move because there isn’t any extra space to move. I had bodies up against me on all sides. I had never been so claustrophobic in my life. There was no AC (which is typical in Dar) but it just made me feel very anxious. Moreover, there were beggars just lying on the ground all around. It was very heartbreaking. A lot of them didn’t have limbs and couldn’t walk. With everyone crammed together you have to be very careful because you can very easily get things stolen. I had my backpack wrapped around the front of me and I was carrying my phone and money in my bra. Once the ferry arrived everyone pushed one another so they could get a good spot on the ferry and not have to stand. It looked like a stampede of ants dispersing everywhere. For such a little lady Florida sure can go fast. I’m like twice the size of her but she is so determined and fierce. Luckily we were able to get a seat on the ferry.
Once we arrived on land we went to the local market and got some onions, tomatoes, and rice. She had already gotten fresh fish before we met up. She wanted us to have lunch before we went to the beach since it’s cheaper to make food at home compared to buying it at the beach. When I asked her how much it was at the beach she said 10,000. Which is about $5 US dollars for food. From the market we had to take another bus to her village. That was about 30 minutes. It was a pleasant walk from her bus stop to her home and all of her neighbors were so kind and friendly.

It’s always so different when people see you here. You literally feel like either you’re a celebrity or you look really funny. Everyone just stares. The children who are brave will come up to you while others may cry because they’ve never seen a mzungu before. Florida had a very comfortable place to live in. Her home was made out of concrete compared to her neighbors who had homes made out of dirt. She didn’t have any electricity or running water. She has two sons, one is 15 and the other is 9, and when they’re back in town from boarding school they stay at her parents. They don’t like staying at her home because they can’t play their video games there since there’s no electricity and they don’t like how dark it gets at night. However, she bought her home a few years ago and she’s saving up for electricity. She said it’s about a million dollars which is around $500 US dollars. She made food for me and it was so eye opening watching her make it. She had a little stove she used that was on the ground.

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This was her stove and the big circular device on the ground was how she went about picking up the pan and taking it off the stove. The big blue container on the right is what she had her clean water in. It wasn’t clean to drink but she cooked and bathed with it.

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You have to mix the rice in here and take out any dirt that does not belong

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The fish that she cooked over the stove

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Meal time!

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We ate rice, fresh fish she got that day, tomatoes, and onions. I told her I would eat like a Tanzanian. They eat with their hands. It was very good! And she made it so fast so we could go to the beach. After we ate we got on another dala dala and then on a piky piky which means motorcycle. They’re a big type of transportation in Tanzania. I was TERRIFIED. I asked her if there was anything else we could use but she said no. I have seen SO many horrific accidents in the ED at Muhimbili that involved motorcycle accidents. I kept having flashbacks of all of those patients. I was in a dress too! So I put the helmet on, plopped my other leg on the opposite side, and grabbed onto the guy in front of me. Just burying my head against his back with tears filling my eyes. I was so scared because there aren’t speed limit laws. However, he didn’t go too fast. I told him to go pole pole which means slow but it’s still fast compared to America. The motorcycles took us to the beach!

We went to South Beach which is a public beach; meaning that I was the only white person there. I purposefully didn’t bring my bathing suit because it brings a lot of unwanted attention. I brought shorts to put on underneath my dress and I was just going to tie my dress with a knot at my hips and go in the water like that. However, Florida insisted I put her bathing suit on. I kept saying it was okay and I wanted to go like this but she insisted I just wear my bra. I had a lace bralette on underneath my dress. She just took the dress off and said go like that. In her mind it was completely normal! A lot of people at the beach will go in their bras rather than a proper bathing suit and the guys will wear their skin tight underwear.
I        was        m o r t i f i e d.
I put my hair down immediately and got in the water as fast as I could so I was covered. It was so funny to me how natural she thought it was and how I practicality felt indecent on the beach even though a bra is practically the same thing as a bathing suit. We swam and swam in the ocean and it was so much fun.
Florida doesn’t know how to swim and I promised her I would teach her. She was doing really well for being a beginner! I was really proud of her. In addition, I’ve finally learned what to say to the guys here! If you tell them hapana which means no, I have a boyfriend, they don’t care. However, if you tell them you have an mchumba (fiancé) or that you’re married they’ll say congratulations and typically leave you alone. So any guy that would come up I would say that. I just kept having to say it over and and over again and eventually they’d swim away. We stayed in the water until the sun went down and Florida asked if I was okay with spending the night with her. My initial gut feeling was that it would be safe and I just thought, when would you ever get to have an authentic experience like this again? So I agreed.
We ended up taking two more piky piky’s and we actually went to her parents home. I got to meet her two sisters and her nephews and nieces, her parents, her son, her grandmother, her mom’s sisters, and family friends. It was absolutely amazing. They welcomed me to dinner and made me a plate. It was rice with potatoes on top. It’s so nice to see how close families are here. Even if you’re not family here you’re still family. I can’t tell you the number of times people call me sister or dada (when means sister in Swahili). People will refer to boys as kakas (which means brother). Countless times at the hospital I’ve seen nurses and doctors call patients mama (mom) or baba (dad). Even on the dala dala people will get up to let an elderly person sit and will say, Mama, and help them to the seat. I asked why they do this and it’s because they have the same respect for one another like a sister, brother, mother, or father. It’s quite lovely and really makes you feel safe for some reason. Tanzanian people are truly loving.
After I got to bond with her family we then took a dala dala to her home which was 30 minutes away. I had never been out that late on a dala dala. It was almost 9 at night. We got dropped off near a market and she insisted on buying me panties and a tooth brush for the night. It was so thoughtful and sweet. After buying it we then took a piky piky to her home. It was pitch black in her home and almost 10 at night. We used our phones for flashlights. She said we need to take a shower since we had salt water on us so she warmed up a bucket of water for me on the stove. She didn’t have a shower but in the bathroom there was a toilet in the ground. I poured the water on myself over the toilet hole in the ground. She let me use a kanga to dry off with and let me use one of her pajamas top.
This experience was so funny and different. I literally slept beside this woman with her pajama top on and the panties she got me. She said a night time prayer in Swahili and prayed how Catholics do. Even though I couldn’t understand everything she was saying it truly touched me. After that she said how even though she didn’t have electricity we could use her phone as a radio. She turned on her little flip phone to the local radio station and put it between us. It was Swahili singing and there was some static. H
owever, she began snoring within 10 minutes and I just laid there w i d e awake. I kept thinking, I’m in the middle of a village right now sleeping next to a lady I’ve known for a week in Africa. Life is too funny. When would that ever happen in America? I was in and out of sleep all throughout the night. We got up at 5:30am on Labor Day so we could head to the hospital. When we brushed our teeth we brushed them outside on her front porch. She also just threw her trash and spoiled food out her front porch. It was a very different way of living and was very eye opening to see. We then took the local transportation to Muhimbili. SO many people use public transportation to commute. It was mind blowing to me! Hundreds of people waiting in line to get on the ferry. There weren’t even enough seats so, so many people just stood by the cars on the ground level.

 

September 9th
Yesterday Florida and I went to Bongoyo! I promised her I would teach her how to swim more. It’s very sad how a lot of the native people in Dar have hardly been to the really nice places of Dar because it’s too expensive. I’ve been to Bongoyo once and it’s such a nice little island but she has never been and she’s lived here her whole life for 40 years! It costs 46,000 (almost $25) for me since I’m not a local and 26,000 ($15) for her. I told her it would be my treat for the day since she treated me last week! It was honestly so much fun! I couldn’t get in the water and swim because of my armpit but it was still very relaxing and fun. I loved just walking the shoreline listening to the seashells role down the sand as the waves came and went. While we were on the boat ride to get to the ferry we met a gentleman who was Portuguese. He was also 22 like me and was there working. He’s doing an internship for his masters program. He’s majoring in economics for undeveloped countries. Which is something that really intrigues me! He spent the whole day with us and it was honestly so much fun!

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Pedro!

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Honestly one of the best meals I have ever had. Florida ate the brain and eyes for me though, haha.

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Such a communal meal. An American, Portugal, and Tanzanian all at one table who hardly know one another. Great conversation.

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Mzuri sana Florida!


Him and Florida talked about football and he helped practice with her swimming since I couldn’t. We had a delicious lunch on the island. Florida taught me how the brain and eyes are one of the best parts of the fish. I trusted her opinion but couldn’t make myself try it. After the beach we got ice cream which was the perfect ending to my last full Saturday in Dar.

It’s just so amazing how God places so many amazing people in your life right when you need them. Florida made my experience in Oncology amazing and I am so blessed to be able to call her a friend. She’s such a strong and sweet woman.

What a Journey so Far!

WOW. WOW. WOW.

How do I explain the experience I have had so far with words. I am in love with the culture and people here. I can’t believe it has already been almost two weeks since I arrived! I will try to start from the beginning! I loved all of the people that I met on the flights. When I landed in Istanbul I was very nervous just with everything that I have heard going on in Turkey. However, I was greeted at the gate by two fellas that were both from Dar. Just seeing their bright, warm smiles put me at ease. The one thing that was so shocking to me was when I was flying over Africa. It was night time and it was pitch black outside. It looked as if we were flying over the ocean. No lights anywhere. Every now and then I would see a twinkle of light down below but the only light that really showed was the moon. Once I landed in Africa it was 2:30AM. All of my flights ended up getting messed up so I was about 5 hours late getting in. However, I was as excited and energetic as ever! I was a bit nervous with getting my Visa and Business Permit but it all worked out great. As I walked outside to meet the people picking me up from the organization no one was there. It was almost 4AM at this point and there were people everywhere. Taxi drivers were trying to get me to go with them.  People dressed in hijabs and everyone was speaking a different language. I backed up against a wall just so I was aware of my surroundings. After traveling over 24 hours and hardly sleeping on the plane all I wanted was a person that I knew to come pick me up. I was a little frightened with being in a foreign country at 4AM. I made a few phone calls and they were there in about 30 minutes. I was so happy to get to the house and take a shower. I was so excited to see what was in store for next few days!
This first picture really represents how it’s been in Tanzania so far.

Half way walking blinded because of the unknown but loving every step.

The people in Tanzania are absolutely amazing and so loving. My admiration and love for these people is abounding. Every day I am more and more astounded. The people here are so hardworking and gentle hearted. They reach out to you with open arms. These photos are from last week. A nurse that I had just worked with for 2 DAYS simply said to me,

“You’re coming home with me today, okay? I get off at 12:30PM.”

And buh-bam, she drove me all the way to her home from Dar. She has 3 beautiful daughters and 1 handsome baby boy who is the youngest. Just like my family. Her husband is a pastor and they welcomed me into their home.

I had dinner with them and got to play with their children!

and they took me to their church. They are Lutheran and that church service was absolutely unbelievable. I have never had to place myself in a situation where I was the minority and didn’t understand a language being spoken around me. Although I could not understand the words of the songs at church I was so touched. Everyone was so happy and dancing to the songs. I could understand what they were saying even though I didn’t know the words.
Then she drove me all the way home. Simply just because.

The nurses and doctors I have worked with over these last few days have been the ultimate kindest healthcare professionals I have ever worked with. On my first day one of the guys took the bus with me and walked me home because all of the other interns had left and I was worried about going home by myself. It was about an hour and a half of his time and he did it just because. A nurse bought me a Pepsi on my first day as well simply because I looked tired. There have been multiple times where people share their food with me during lunch. This was my first official meal in Africa:

and this is actually what I had for dinner this evening!

untitled  Octopus !!!

I have been very adventurous with the food and I try to eat everything I am offered!

Everyone has been so helpful with teaching my Swahili. The nurses love teaching you new words. I also have a Swahili teacher at the Work the World the House. His name is Jacob

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Swahili teacher He is such a sweet man!

One of the main words I hear ALL the time is:

MUZUNGU

This means white, foreign person. Everyone says it and will call you that. It is kind of funny. People will be talking in Swahili and all of a sudden you will hear “muzungu” and you know they are talking about you even if you don’t know what else they are saying. Whenever I walk by everyone stares. The children love playing with my hair. I am definitely the minority here and it is a very interesting perspective to be the minority. People will try to raise prices if you’re a muzungu. Whether at the market or on the tuk tuk which is a type of transportation kind of like Uber but very different at the same time. They call it the “Muzungu Price.” You have to bargain the prices so they don’t rip you off, haha. Another type of transportation that I take every day to and from the hospital is the Dala Dala which is kind of like the local bus. My first time walking to the bus stop (which is about a 10/15 minute walk) I had tears that just filled my eyes. There were people sitting next to garbage. So many of my senses were being affected: visual, sound, and smell. I was so glad I had sunglasses on because my eyes were very watery. However, I have gotten used to it now.

Susha mocho This is a view from inside the bus

view from the dala dala

This is the bust stop I get on in the mornings and off in the afternoon. It is called Mocho. In order to get off the bus you say,

“Susha Mocho”

Dala Dala time

This is a picture of us heading to the Dala Dala in the morning. At the hospitals they ask us to change into our scrubs once we get there and change back into our street clothes before we leave to limit the spread of germs.

Typically in the morning you will get a seat. However, in the afternoon after the hospital you have to stand. They cram everyone onto the bus and you literally feel like a can of sardens. I like to look at it like Dala Dala yoga. What pose can you get into? Sometimes I will have a persons face right next to mine or a mans armpit or three children right beside my face.  It costs 400 shillings for each ride. Tanzanian money is very cool. For every 10,000 Tanzanian Shillings it is a little less than $5.00 US dollars

tanzanian shilling

This is my favorite bill because it has an elephant on it.

I have learned a lot of street smarts here. For instance, you should never have your phone in your hand or even be talking on it while you’re on the bus. Someone will just reach into the window and take your phone. Even when at work you want to keep your phone and money on you at all times. Also, you never want to carry around a purse. If you do, then someone will come up behind you and cut off the string and run with it. I’ve also learned how to wash my own clothes by hand!

Washing clothes time This is Heather from Canada!

The last thing I will be talking about is my clinical experience over the last two weeks and a couple of places I have been to on the  weekends when I am not in the hospital. I have been in Ward 36 the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) and Ward 33 which is Antepartum and Postpartum. It is very fascinating to see what the babies here have compared to back home. A lot of babies are born with congenital defects as in hydrocephaly and encephaly. The other day I saw twins that were conjoined together because the mother didn’t get enough folic acid at the beginning of her pregnancy. A lot of the Mom’s suffer from pre-eclampsia. Most of the times it is caused from Malaria. All women are supposed to get a prophylaxis during their third trimester whether or not they have malaria just as a precautionary measure. However, not all mother’s get it. In addition, you hardly ever see father’s with the babies. Every three hours the mother’s come and breast feed the babies. It is very different compared to the US. The Mom’s will literally walk into the unit with their tanga’s down (which is a type of fabric they where) and they breasts just hanging out. At first it was a shock. I walked onto the unit and saw 100 + women half naked. And they breast feed right beside one another. During birth the father’s are not allowed to be in the room. It is just the mom and the nurse/midwife/doctor. Also, the Mom’s take full care of the baby. For instance, one day when I was helping weigh the babies I noticed that a diaper was soiled. I asked where a diaper was so I could change it and the nurse looked at me like I was crazy. He said that the mother takes care of it. And that she will be back in a while to do that. Very different compared to the US. If a mother came to the hospital where her baby was and found it in a soiled diaper that would not go over very well. More over,  in the NICU, the babies are so close together. Sometimes there will be 6 babies in one bassinette. Germs and infection is so crucial to be aware of in the NICU. It is very different compared to the US. Also! They have no IV pumps in the hospital! I hung a bag of blood that was being transfused but there was no IV pump to set it up with. You just have to estimate how fast you want it to drip. Moreover, there are quite a bit of orphan babies from their mother’s dying at child birth. The hospital is allowed to keep them for 3 months. During that time they wait for a family member to come and claim them. At first I thought that was CRAZY. Why wouldn’t the Dad come that instant to come and get their baby? However, the Dad has to work and would not be able to take care of the child. If he doesn’t work then the rest of the family will starve. Therefore, sometimes the Dad has to save up money over those three months so they can pay to have the baby taken care of in an orphanage. So, so sad. Lastly, it is very interesting being in a country where it is 1/2  Christian and 1/2 Muslim. Going into work on one side there is a mosque and on the other there is a temple.

Some of my fellow co-workers in Ward 36 NICU

Some of my fellow co-workers in Ward 36 NICU

Overall, I have had good nurses/mentors during my OB/GYN clinical rotation. The next two weeks I will be in Mental Health! I am very interested to see what I will learn there. Although I’ve seen such heartbreaking things with babies dying and seeing people suffering, my eyes have been opened up so much. It makes me so upset when I hear people call people from Africa “poor” or “unfortunate.” The people here are living life to the fullest  and are so rich in culture and tradition. Yes, they may have poverty and tragedy, but the people here are so kind hearted. What happened last week in Tanzania with the nurse inviting me to her home would have never happened back in America. We can learn a lot from the people in Africa. I feel that people back home have heard so many negative things and have a picture painted of what it’s like in Africa, but you simply need to see it with an open heart and mind. People are most scared of the unknown. Which is why I feel people in other parts of the world can become so frightened of places they have never been to.

 

 

Side Adventures:

So breathtaking!

Bongoyo Island! So breathtaking!

Bongoyo boat

 

Getting to go to a Graduate level Midwifery class for the evening after work!

Getting to go to a Graduate level Midwifery class for the evening after work!

Blessing came to visit me at work and we played Doctor!

Blessing came to visit me at work and we played Doctor!

Made a stop at Slip Way to play with crabs and get the best ice cream ever!

Made a stop at Slip Way to play with crabs and get the best ice cream ever!

Sunset Cruise

Sunset Cruise

Fishermen we met on the cruise. They greeted us with dancing and "Mambo!"

Fishermen we met on the cruise. They greeted us with dancing and “Mambo!”

My journey so far

I’ll write again sometime soon!