Power problems

One of the challenges of living in Tanzania is dealing with regular power issues.  It's one of the main topics of conversation here - around town and even in the Tanzanian parliament!  Conversation centres around when the power has been on and off, which areas of town have been worst hit by power cuts, who's fridge has completely defrosted etc.  It's a bit like the way the British talk about the weather.

We happen to live in a pretty good part of town, so are only getting about 4-5 power cuts per week.  Incredibly I think the power has been on for the last 48 hours without a break - a first since we arrived here.
A couple of weeks ago we had an evening power cut (as usual) and thought nothing of it.  Waking the next morning, we found the pole holding an electricity line had been knocked over just outside our house.  The electric cables were hanging about 3 feet from the ground.

Imrpessively, Tanesco (Tanzania's electricity company arrived within a couple of days to dig a hole and erect a new post).  One willing volunteer helped dig the hole - probably keep to make the area a little safer as soon as possible.

The pictures tell the story far better than words.  Enjoy.

 

Mwanza shopping

Last week we went on a little shopping trip, in need of some cutlery.
The walk into town from our house takes about 20 minutes and on the way we pass tin roof huts with a view over the lake.  Closer into town is  U turn - the largest of the Mwanza 'supermarkets' selling lots of tinned imported goods, at a significantly marked up price.

The city centre is a busy place.  Lots of street sellers and market stalls, people everywhere, lots of noise, hustle and bustle.  We finally found what we were looking for just outside the main market .  Here's Isaac proudly displaying one of our purchases.

We are really blessed to be in Mwanza.  One of our good friends from Bristol sent us a card when we arrived in Mwanza with verses from Deuteronomy 28

"If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth.  All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the LORD your God:


You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.


The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock - the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.


Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed.


You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out."

We believe these words are as true today as when God first gave them thousands of years ago, and we know that we are here with God's blessing and his presence.

Dental Screening at Mavuno Village

 

Before Ian headed back to the UK, we spent a day at Mavuno village screening the children and workers for dental problems.  Mavuno village is a revolutionary orphanage project which aims to have 30 large houses in a self contained village, with a family and 10 orphans in each house.  The family based approach helps to stop the children becoming institutionalised, and the aim is that they are able to function well in Tanzanian society when they grow up.  It's an ambitious project currently in it's infancy.  Have a look at http://www.mavunovillage.org/index.shtml   for more details.

We set up two dental screening tables on the verandah of one of the houses overlooking lake victoria.  Definitely the best view from a dental surgery that I have ever worked in.  While waiting for their teeth to be looked at, lots of the workers and children sat making bead necklaces.  Isaac enjoyed joining in playing with the beads.  We only had a few problems to deal with, and Paul got on with removing two teeth from one of the workers who had toothache.

After the screening, Beth gave a dental health education talk to the group with the help of two willing volunteers!!

Moving in

On June 24th we moved into "Isaac's Tanzania House" (as he likes to call it) - a great place to be just 15 minutes walk from the centre of Mwanza.  So began the process of unpacking and settling in.  We're really grateful to Ian and Andie Wilson for all the things they left for us (some of which we still haven't had a chance to look through), and Jo Topley for filling our fridge and getting it all organised.

Our Street (house just left of centre with white gates)

It was good fun opening some of the bags and packages we sent across months ago - including some IKEA Poang chairs (had a tip from some good friends of ours about getting them on a plane as luggage), and some of the house at least is beginning to look like home.  Isaac takes after his daddy and is naturally gifted at putting IKEA furniture together :)

Isaac has enjoyed meeting our local wildlife which includes two cats that live in the garden.  They are working cats helping to keen the place free of undesirable vermin and snakes. We also have a couple of dogs, some chickens and there is a family of mongooses (mongeese?) that visit the garden from time to time.