5/3 Saturday
G's son Rody were meant to pick me up this morning at 10 am. He didnt turn up until 11. I dont think he was very happy to leave his TV and laptop back home and start his new job as my translator. Because of that, I found it very hard communicating with him. Anyway...we took a few buses to an old city called Bagamoya. I was told the trip would take abt 45 min. It took close to 2.5 hours. My first bus experience were chaotic. Mini busses (daladalas) are running everywhere and people are squeezing into them. You are lucky if you get a seat.
'
People are starring at me all the time and are screaming Mzungu (means white person). Must say I HATE the attention. Yday, two kids were poining at me, laughing and screeming Chineese, she is even wearing chineese shoes! Haha, as if Birkenstock is chineese.
'
Anyway, while in Bagamoya, we started out on an old museum. In there, Rody found us a 'guide'....he totally sucked. He was only pointing at buildings mumbling what year they were built. I think he made most of it up. After that, we went to an old church....I dont know how old, cause I cant remember..... We also passed a hospital, which tome looked more like ruins. Today was also the first time I spotted the beach =))) Fishingmen were all around and they were drying their fish in the ruins of a building which previously served as a pison for ethiopian slaves waiting to get transferred to zanzibar. It smelled pretty bad...
Nextm, we went to the ruins of an old moske. I had to pay 1000 Tsh just in order to use my camera. (Ofcourse I also had to pay the entrance fees for both Rody and the guide). Its pretty annoying how everybody equals white with rich. EVERYONE expects you to pay for EVERYTHING.
Anyway, the ruins of the mosk were more or less like a grave yard. At the time, the whole village had died in malaria, except one couple who had died in an accident. There were even a massgrave for kids.
After that, the weekend journy kind of ended since I ran out of cash....
'
'
Later at night,. Fatuma, a friend of Salome came over to keep me company since S had to go away for a few days since her uncle died. Fatuma actually speaks english so its lovely to have her over! She is totally anmazing and I learned so much by just talking to her. Its almost like she confirmed everything I learned in school. However its one thing reading it in a text book. And its totally different to hear it in the real life.
'
Fatuma is 32. She has 2 sons. One is 4 yrs old and one just a few months. She also used yto have a bfriend and they were meant to get married. However before marriage, they decided to take an HIV test. Or she did, cause he didnt do it. She turned out to be positive, and so he left her, although the possibility he gave it to her is pretty high. She had to quit her job with the consequenses that she no longer could take care of her children, so she had to leave them to her mum who lives many hours away from here. Despite all this, she is still happy. She told me how many peoples life just stops after getting the diagnosis, but she means its important to stay happy cause otherwise no medication will help. She is hoping that maybe next time she takes the test, it will be negative. What in the world do you reply to that?!!Do you just crash someones dreams and hopes bu telling them it wont happen. Or do you just pretend that it might...She is also very worried her kids might have got it, they havent had a test yet. She decided not to breastfeed her youngest baby since the transmittion rate mother-to-child is very high. However this was a very tough desicion for her and normally HIV positive women in Africa get the advice to continue breastfeeding due to stigma and the economic situation. In the western world, a HIV positive woman who breastfeed her child is breaking the law. Fatuma spend all her money to buy formulas for her kid and she told me he has grown well. However many people do not have a choice. Or the education not to breastfeed. While she was pregnant with her youngest, she also had malaria, which in turn increases the risk.
'
Like I said, despite all this, she is still happy and she says she might have yet another 20 years to live. The only thing she is sad abt is that she is allergic to dust...
'
People are starring at me all the time and are screaming Mzungu (means white person). Must say I HATE the attention. Yday, two kids were poining at me, laughing and screeming Chineese, she is even wearing chineese shoes! Haha, as if Birkenstock is chineese.
'
Anyway, while in Bagamoya, we started out on an old museum. In there, Rody found us a 'guide'....he totally sucked. He was only pointing at buildings mumbling what year they were built. I think he made most of it up. After that, we went to an old church....I dont know how old, cause I cant remember..... We also passed a hospital, which tome looked more like ruins. Today was also the first time I spotted the beach =))) Fishingmen were all around and they were drying their fish in the ruins of a building which previously served as a pison for ethiopian slaves waiting to get transferred to zanzibar. It smelled pretty bad...
Nextm, we went to the ruins of an old moske. I had to pay 1000 Tsh just in order to use my camera. (Ofcourse I also had to pay the entrance fees for both Rody and the guide). Its pretty annoying how everybody equals white with rich. EVERYONE expects you to pay for EVERYTHING.
Anyway, the ruins of the mosk were more or less like a grave yard. At the time, the whole village had died in malaria, except one couple who had died in an accident. There were even a massgrave for kids.
After that, the weekend journy kind of ended since I ran out of cash....
'
'
Later at night,. Fatuma, a friend of Salome came over to keep me company since S had to go away for a few days since her uncle died. Fatuma actually speaks english so its lovely to have her over! She is totally anmazing and I learned so much by just talking to her. Its almost like she confirmed everything I learned in school. However its one thing reading it in a text book. And its totally different to hear it in the real life.
'
Fatuma is 32. She has 2 sons. One is 4 yrs old and one just a few months. She also used yto have a bfriend and they were meant to get married. However before marriage, they decided to take an HIV test. Or she did, cause he didnt do it. She turned out to be positive, and so he left her, although the possibility he gave it to her is pretty high. She had to quit her job with the consequenses that she no longer could take care of her children, so she had to leave them to her mum who lives many hours away from here. Despite all this, she is still happy. She told me how many peoples life just stops after getting the diagnosis, but she means its important to stay happy cause otherwise no medication will help. She is hoping that maybe next time she takes the test, it will be negative. What in the world do you reply to that?!!Do you just crash someones dreams and hopes bu telling them it wont happen. Or do you just pretend that it might...She is also very worried her kids might have got it, they havent had a test yet. She decided not to breastfeed her youngest baby since the transmittion rate mother-to-child is very high. However this was a very tough desicion for her and normally HIV positive women in Africa get the advice to continue breastfeeding due to stigma and the economic situation. In the western world, a HIV positive woman who breastfeed her child is breaking the law. Fatuma spend all her money to buy formulas for her kid and she told me he has grown well. However many people do not have a choice. Or the education not to breastfeed. While she was pregnant with her youngest, she also had malaria, which in turn increases the risk.
'
Like I said, despite all this, she is still happy and she says she might have yet another 20 years to live. The only thing she is sad abt is that she is allergic to dust...
