“Rain, rain, go away…”

We definitely can use rain but why does it have to rain both times I go to Katesh to meet district officials? There was so much rain that the road was flooded in parts and the dala basically forded a stream crossing the road as we slowly made our way. Our first order of business was breakfast and we watched CNN because one of the Tz channels carries the show produced in Asia. We learned that there was a shooting in an Arizona courtroom and a little girl dies. Eventually we got to talking about school shootings and I learned that one of Uma’s friends from high school was a victim during the shootings at Virginia Tech. So sorry Uma.

For our official business in Katesh, Uma and I were introduced to all of the top brass of Hanang District, including the District Commissioner. After the official business, Uma and I were free to do our personal business. First stop, the post office. I had received a call from the PO lady telling me I had a package and had authorized the PC office in Dar to take money out of my living allowance to forward a box from my mom. I was really excited…and then really disappointed to receive the box I had left at the PC office when we swore-in because I didn’t want to carry the items (mostly books & rocks) and wouldn’t need them until training anyway. Somehow I wasn’t clear enough over the phone to the Tanzanian in charge of sending PC mail. I tried to be clear that I had left a box at the office and if there was another box from America to please send the 2^nd box. Ok, I can kind of understand her not being able to figure out the box wasn’t from America. Yet there was only one box for me at the office, not 2! Clearly, that box must have been the one I left. What also gets me is that I had written my name and site on the box. There was no Peace Corps address on it to indicate it was sent there and the Tanzanian who forwarded it to me only added Hanang (name of my district) and my cell phone number – not even my school’s address. Sure it got to me but it seems it should have gotten to me before and not been at the PC office of it had been mailed from America. This is why we need to teach critical thinking.

Good news is that I did get an envelope from my mom and Uma got 3 packages from family/friends. She was really surprised and excited so I felt better because she at least made out at the post office.

I’ve been looking for matembele (sweet potato leaves) to plant in my garden but the people I’ve asked don’t know what it is. However, Uma’s mkuu (headmaster) knows what it is and told me to ask the mamas at the soko (market). The mamas didn’t have any but pointed somewhere and said to try behind there. We couldn’t quite figure out “behind where” because we didn’t really see any shops or anything where we thought we were supposed to look. Before we got back on the dala, I asked the guys running the farmish looking shop in the front of where I was supposed to look “behind”. Took awhile to explain what I wanted and for them to understand but eventually one guy disappeared around the corner of the building and came back with a matembele leaf cutting for me to plant. Sometimes persistence does pay off.

We were happy it stopped raining while we were in Katesh because we didn’t have to ford any rivers on the way back (only slight hyperbole there).