Jessie's Little Jambo: 25% Complete

Some things I've really learned in the past month...

1. Food isn't bad just because it is different
Over the past month, and really the past week, I have come to realize that good food depends on how it is prepared and accepted. Oh of the yummiest things I have had is a banana soup, that has bananas in it, but has the broth of something else. It may be hard to explain, but boy how good it is. However, I have reaffirmed my stance that I do not like salt in my fried eggs, but even that adds to the experience.So, although I do have cravings some time for a good ol' fashion American dish, I am excited and eager to eat all that this experiences offers. I mean, how hard is it to each fresh mangos every meal!?

2. Style isn't oppressive just because it is different
      In Tanzania it is highly offensive for a woman to show her knees. This has open up a whole new adventure on the way of a kanga. A kanga is pretty much a piece of fabric with a saying on it (kitangas don't have saying) that you can tie around your waste and presto! Knees are covered! At first this was hard to get used to, but now I am realizing that it is the style that is apart of the culture here. It isn't wrong just a different way at looking at things.

3. Nature is pretty fantastic everywhere.
   Today we walked over coral in a forest that had monkeys in it! There are plants there that are not for humans, but worked perfectly to sustain the animals living on the branches. There were vegetarian crabs feasting on lime green leaves, big fat juicy ants that are probably satisfying to the elephant shrews that suck them up their noses, and people from all over the world looking at them. How cool is that!?!

4. Assumptions are downfallers.
    Right before I came here, I wrote down assumptions of Africa on a piece of paper, folded it up and stuck it in a box to be packed and forgotten for four month.Oh how thankful I am for doing so. I have been able to adjust and appreciate the culture far more than others on the group because I don't view it first through American glasses. The trickiest thing is still time, but I feel so comfortable working on African time that I am not sure how it is going to be to adjust back to fast paced American time. Some assumptions I have seen knocked down: everyone here has cell phones, there are red clay mud huts, but there are also six story apartment buildings, I have yet to see anyone eat insects, a high majority of the people speak English and there are not that many beggars on the streets.

5. Religion is a part of life.
    99.8% of Zanzibar is Muslim. Seven times every day I hear prayers echoing off speakers. Next door to us is a place where children come and sing prayers. Men, women, girls and boys all dress the proper way. On Sunday was a parade for Phrophet Mohammad's birthday. Religion is what you make of it. On Sunday I went to a Swahili speaking Catholic church. The other night when Ashley was out, I had my own little Hosanna time with music, Bible, and prayer. Oh how great it is to be free to worship God anywhere. It may be dominately Muslim here, but that doesn't mean the people are bad. People here are so nice and have yet to ask what religion I am. It's interesting how religion is honored throughout different parts of the world.

6. It really isn't that big of world.
    For most of my life I have been living 11 hours previous to where I currently am and thinking that is where it is at. How awesome it has been to realize that there are people all over the world still awake and working and at different parts of the day. I have also seen how America and other countries have influenced this small island. When that is realized it is easy to see that we really do live on a small world and we need to be aware of it. There is a lot more to just the here and now wherever you may be.

Well, that is just some of what I've learned. Here are some pictures of what I've experienced in the last week of so.