Hafsa and I have been settling into our office within the offices of the Islamic Networks Group for a few days. The Faiths Act Fellowship officially launched last Thursday, the first day of work for the Fellows. It’s an odd feeling to know that Hafsa and I aren’t only working by ourselves; in cities across [...]
Posts Tagged ‘tanzania’
The sheikh is my best friend
September 1st, 2009
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“The sheikh is my best friend,” shotus Father Mpinge. My site-partner Hafsa and I smile, too. The sheikh-in-question is actually the imam of the largest mosque in town. Mpinge is the parish priest of St. Francis, the largest Catholic congregation. We didn’t expect such a statement from him. As it turns out, the priest and [...]
Zanzibar is a real place
August 30th, 2009
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Note: This is my first post using QuickPress! YAY! For years I’ve heard of this mythical island out on the Indian Ocean off the coast of Tanzania. It’s called ZANZIBAR, and it’s quite nearly as awesome as I thought it would be. Zanzibar is 99% Muslim, which is a bit of a departure from the [...]
Bed net + mosquito = malaria?
August 24th, 2009
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Asma is sitting in front of me on a hospital bed holding her son Abdalla’s hand. He’s lying down, semi-conscious, with a chloroquine drip in his arm. She’s wearing a black abaya with gold feather trim at the sleeves. She’s absolutely beautiful. Abdalla was sick – vomiting and in pain – so she took him [...]
Leprosy and “Kingdom work”
August 22nd, 2009
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For the last two weeks, one particular session for the Tanzanian portion of our training program had been in the back of my mind, waiting. The itineraries we received in London listed a “Visit to leprosarium,” and we were informed that it was, indeed, a home for those affected by leprosy. I know what you’re [...]
Making Small Talk
August 21st, 2009
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If I could choose a superpower to have whilst traveling, it would be the ability to speak fluently the major language(s) of the area that I’m visiting, and to have a solid grip on all the various cultural practices of its people. I’m skilled with languages as it is, but absorbing them takes time that [...]
Mosquito Poop
August 21st, 2009
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I am looking at a small village. It’s about 70 feet on a side, complete with a variety of mud and brick homes, trees, grasses, and dozens of mosquitoes. And a technician with a slew of interesting gadgets. Oh, and no people. This “village” is actually a mock-up; a to-scale version inside a greenhouse (itself a massive [...]
Interfaith Livin’
August 20th, 2009
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I was called upon by our team boss to lead the group during today’s “early morning interfaith spiritual reflection”. Since we’re all young people of faith, I suppose it’s only natural that we learn a bit from each other by sharing something from our own tradition. To be honest, it took a lot of thought [...]
Ours is a brand new game
August 17th, 2009
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Our team rolled out of Ifakara town this afternoon heading…some direction – I’m not sure where – and drove more than a few kilometers out. We headed down another very bumpy road to a small village hidden in something approximating a small forest. The homes were very scattered, and almost all were underneath very tall [...]
On the Kilombero River
August 15th, 2009
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After a quick breakfast, our team headed out this morning to the Kilombero River, the body of water that separates Kilombero District from its neighbor. One of our friends from the Tanzanian Training Centre for International Health came along to find some river guides; we made a deal and climbed into two massive dugout canoes. [...]
