Seaside projects in Tanzania

COUNTRY: Tanzania
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Building, renovation & conservation
WRITTEN BY: Sophie Trigger

We have now been in Africa for almost three weeks, and to our surprise, we have found ourselves in Kenya much earlier than expected! After landing in Moshi, our first challenge was to brave the nine hour bus trip on the hot African road - but once we arrived at the beautiful seaside Camp Tanga, we instantly fell in love with our surroundings, as well Camp leaders Eliphas and Anderson. We were also thrilled to meet the twelve other volunteers we are travelling with (nine Brits, two girls from Bahrain and a hilarious Dutchie), and have now all become great friends.

Our first week in Tanzania can be best described as messy - both through the long hot hours of project work (sweeping and plastering out the inner walls of the village trust house), and through our first African clubbing experience on Saturday Night. It was also marked by our first encounters with cold showers, African creepy crawlies (namely the ten inch long centipedes) and of course the gorgeous grinning children of the village.

We felt as though we had only just settled in at Camp Tanga, when it was time to relocate to Kenya, and our new home for the next two weeks, Camp Tsavo. After two days on the bumpy road, endless paperwork for visas, and exchanging of money, we were relieved to reach the remote and rustic new camp, in the heart of Tsavo National Park. Our week in Kenya has certainly been eventful - in between sightings of zebras, giraffes, baboons and buffalo, we have had many projects to keep us occupied. We have spent two days cementing the floor of a classroom in Sasenyi Primary School, a morning learning to make Elephant Dung Paper and an afternoon of bead-work with the local Women's Group (an activity most enjoyed by the two boys) just to name a few.

We are looking forward to the upcoming week in Kenya, but are also missing our friends and village in Tanzania.
Missing everyone at home, and we will try to blog again when we can!

From Sophie, Larissa, Abi, Beth and Hannah