Thankful

Today is my last day in Africa before flying for Canada tonight.

I much prefer to travel in the developing world rather than the developed world. I think because it reminds me - makes me aware - how much I take for granted in my 'normal' life and to be thankful for everything that I have, and have access to, at home in Australia.

You don't need to wander far to be reminded of these things here in Tanzania. Even reading the newspaper is an exercise in humility. There have been many stories in the papers recently calling for the police to crackdown on the killing of albinos for witchcraft purposes here in Tanzania (WTF!) About the increase in sacrificial killing of children in Uganda by their parents who sell their dead child's head to rich businessman for a lot of money (WTF!). Or the increasing number of girls as young as 6 who are 'married' off to older, rich businessman; for some families, it is the best source of income they have. Or how female circumcision is on the rise in Uganda. Or how the numbers of girls attending (let alone completing) primary school is falling due to a combination of reasons - everything from it being considered a waste of money to the fact that the girls have so many household chores to complete (including walking for hours to get water) they are too tired, or too busy, to attend school.

And then there is the awareness which comes from leaving my cosy hotel & walking or driving through the streets. I have seen women queue to fill buckets with water from a single tap in a long, busy street in a major regional town full of tourist dollars. And I have watched rural women filling buckets from a muddy, dusty waterhole shared with animals; hoping to god or whoever that the water wasn't going to be used for cooking or drinking but knowing the reality of the situation. I think the event which has had the most impact on me was one of my porters on Kili. He proudly told me that he owned his own home & invited my husband & I to stay with him at his home on our next visit to Tanzania. He gave me detailed instructions as to where he lived & where to find him on our next visit. We happened to drive down his street during my safari trip the other day. I nearly cried; whether for him, his society or country or for mine, I'm not quite sure. The latter I think. This man was so proud of his home - yet it was what some in the west would consider nothing more than a shanty. Truly humbling.

I don't want to finish my posts on my visit to Tanzania on a sad note or leave anyone with a negative perception of Africa and Tanzania in particular. I have had the most amazing trip here in Tanzania. The people are wonderfully friendly & hospitable. Unlike many of its neighbours, it is politically stable & safe. I have been here for almost a month by myself. Never for a moment have I felt uncomfortable, let alone unsafe. If anyone is thinking of visiting this beautiful country, I urge you to come. You certainly won't regret, or forget, it. So a few lighthearted moments to end with a smile -

- the names of some of the shops etc here often brought a smile to my face - the International Charismatic Church, the Merry Makers Pub, the Perfect Pub, the No-One Restaurant, the Secret Pub to name a few

- resisting the urge to do a 'double-take' when I walked into the supermarket and saw a Masai man, fully dressed in his traditional clothing & carrying his spear !

- seeing a man riding a bicycle whose seat appeared to be made of metal wire & duct tape. Never again will I complain about any bike seat!

- paying in a combination of USD & Tanzanian shillings (tsh). Eg, if something is 20,000TSH, you can pay for it with a USD10 and 10,000TSH. The mathematical gymnastics associated with this still makes my head spin!

- seeing a man carrying a rooster by the legs down the 'main street' of Arusha

- my boarding pass from Arusha to Zanzibar. The name on it was "Miss Jennifer".

- the local buses. They are basically a 9 seater Urvan which 25+people squeeze into. But each of them has a name or saying across the windscreen. Some of my favourites included Insha'allah (god willing), In God We Trust and Pole Pole (slowly, slowly), all of which I thought were very appropriate given the vehicles they were on! Manchester, The Gunners and Rooney are also popular in this soccer-mad country. As are Hollywood City, Rocky and Instanbul

So tonight I fly from here in Dar es Salaam (the capital of Tanzania) to Winnipeg via ? - Zurich - Ottawa - Toronto. I said ? because the plane stops somewhere. I have no idea where. Maybe somewhere safe the Sudan again ;-) Some of the connections are very tight. Combined with the fact that its winter in Canada - ie its freakin' cold & snowing - means it could be an interesting journey. Matt tells me that yesterday is was -30 (without windchill) in Winnipeg and -46 (with windchill). Yes, that's minus 46. Fingers crossed that I even get there before Christmas - and don't freeze in the process !