School's Out

We finally have closed the school for a short two week break. Right now I'm in Dar es Salaam waiting to fly across the country to Kigoma to enjoy a couple days in Gombe National Park where we should be able to see some chimps in the wild. Josh and I were hoping to take the train, but it's booked solid for the next few weeks. Thanks to an infusion of funds from Stateside, we can afford the flight, though, so all's well. This week we've just been hanging around Dar trying not to spend too much money. Unfortunately good food and beer can be awfully tempting. We haven't broken the bank yet, so we should be alright.

Shortly after we get back Steve Veryser, a former volunteer and a buddy of mine, is getting married here in Dar, so I'll be attending that. He's marrying a Tanzanian girl he met his first year of service. He extended for a third year which he finished in December. He got a teaching job then and has been working her since, but they plan to both go to grad school in America before too long. It should be a fun wedding.

As usual, we've bumped into other Peace Corps people in Dar, so it's been a good time. It's hard to believe that we're coming up on two years being here. A lot of people are kind of in a malaise and are ready to finish, but as I mentioned before my feelings are a bit more mixed. Once I get back to school in a couple weeks, there will only be a little over three months of teaching for me, then exams. It's going to go by really fast.

It's the 4th of July. There's not to much going on in Dar about that, not too surprisingly. The one place where there is a celebration is at the American Embassy, but this year Peace Corps Volunteers aren't invited. It's a long story, but I do assure my loyal readers it's not this guy's fault. I'm sure we'll have an opportunity to have a drink in honor of America.

I did have an unpleasant experience the other day. Josh and I were at a bar near the hotel and some guy comes up to talk to us which happens all the time in such a social culture, especially if you stick out. So we greet this guy but it quickly becomes clear he's a barely coherent drunk so we try to ignore the guy. He then starts yelling at us accusing us of being racist because we don't want to talk to a black guy. It was the first time that'd happened to me here. Even if people are assuming your just a rich tourist they quite seldom resent your presence or say something unfriendly to you. It's the kind of thing that you should just ignore becaue it's just a belligerent drunk, but you almost feel like jumping up and yelling at the guy about how you're no tourist or some miner here to make a ton of money and you've been here living with the people as they do, etc., etc., and you want to say "my problem with you isn't your skin color, it's that you're a drunken ass!" Of course that wouldn't help things, so you just ignore the guy and complain about him later. Of course, like I said, this is an extremely rare thing, but it's irritating.

I may be able to post again soon with the ape report. I'm excited. Happy 4th.