One Less Red Colobus

My time in Africa is winding down. Ruth and I are doing some tree surveys and other non-routine work for the last few days. Two weeks ago Aloyce watched a leopard attack and eat one of the red colobus monkeys so we’ve been looking over our shoulder quite a bit in the forest. I can tell you that my naps in the hammock have not been quite as restful. Other exciting but not so happy news, Ruth and Aloyce saw some poachers kill a duiker with dogs and spears last week. Alan and I were following the other colobus group at the time. Ruth called her contacts at the National Park and was able to give the names of each of the poachers as they were recognized by Aloyce and are from Alan’s village. We haven’t heard what happened to them yet, and while we hope that the warden raided their house that night and caught them with the duiker, this is dubious. Around the homestead, Wadudu’s puppy is getting bigger and Ruth can’t stop picking her up even though I try to warn her about the fleas, ticks, hookworms, roundworms and other nefarious creatures that infest dirty puppy blankets.



The bugs have been out of control lately. If we’re not being bitten by mosquitoes we’re being attacked by tsetse flies or sweat flies. I was definitely surprised though when one day I was swarmed by butterflies! I think that they were drawn in by the mustache magnet.



We had a short day in the forest last week so we took the opportunity to visit Magombera village and Aloyce’s home for the first time. Along the way, we spotted some lucky kids and taught them how to throw the Frisbee that Angela sent us.



Aloyce’s father is renowned for his knowledge of the local trees. He knows which wild forest trees and fruits are edible, which are used as medicines and which are poisonous. He taught Aloyce and his other sons everything that they know. So we have him to thank for all of the guidance and information about the forest that Aloyce has given Ruth. Without Aloyce, Ruth’s research really might not be possible. People come from all over the area to consult with Aloyce’s father. Even Arafat, the director of the Udzungwa Ecological Monitoring Center has gone to him for forest medicines. We were really happy to finally get to meet him! And we brought beers which made our visit that much better! Aloyce’s father likes to spend his days sitting under the shade tree in their yard watching his grandchildren. He doesn’t go into the forest the way he used to and has earned his rest. Apparently he was once bitten by a Black Mamba and survived.

Angela mailed Ruth some Barbie toys that Aloyce shows his daughter Escola how to use, while grandpa relaxes watching from his favorite spot.


Aloyce’s house was set up nicely. He shares a well with his father, his home is secluded and surrounded by his fields and a large variety of shade and fruit trees and he built a separate small house for his kids. He also had lots of chickens and ducks which roamed the grounds eating all the bad bugs and providing fresh eggs, although many of these died recently from the intense heat. Most of the structures in Katarukila and Magombera are built out of this red brick which is readily available. Aloyce built his own house, by himself, in just a few days.

Aloyce’s farm


Kid’s house!


Well, we had a few things to give away while we were in Magombera. Sister Sarah my good friend sent us two soccer balls, and we still had one left from Ruth’s aunt Carolyn’s last package. Thank you SO much, friends, for all of the neat stuff that you sent us. Receiving these care packages was a great treat for Ruth and I. One of the soccer balls went to Magombera village c/o Aloyce who holds the ball that everyone in the village comes by to borrow. We gave him one a few months ago that has already been played out.



The other two we brought to the Magombera primary school. Once again we were swamped by happy curious kids, many of whom have never seen a wazungu before.





We had to sit in the principles office for a while



But were soon let out to enjoy the day and watch a handball game by the girls and a regular soccer game by the boys- using the new soccer balls from America.



This Bug Of The Day is a doozie. It buzzed my head this morning while I was brushing my teeth. It was definitely trying to get out of the house as you can see by the last photo, but I was able to capture a few images before it sawed through the bars with its forelegs and escaped.

Town

Better late than never- here are some pictures from around our town. We go in from time to time to buy food and other supplies, to pick up mail or to fill up the car with gas. It’s only a ½ mile from our house so we sometimes walk there. Along the way is a troop of baboons who live on the side of road and are always foraging for grains that fall off the passing trucks or scurrying back and forth between the farms and the forest with stolen sugar cane in their mouths. Occasionally, you might see a group of red colobus or sykes monkeys or hear an elephant! Once you get there, this is what you find:





It’s not like going to the market in the US! There are no coffee shops, no movie theaters and no grocery stores and only maybe one or two other cars. It’s like a migrant town from the old west. Sort of like Deadwood without Al Swearingen, gold or horses. Not many white people either so of course all the kids stop and yell wazungu and everybody stares openly. Some parents go and get there kids and point out the wazungu to them like we’re some kind of strange animal. There’s one old man in the village that is usually drunk off his ass and is a major impediment to getting shopping done. He always opens a conversation with talk about Obama, but then inevitably dives into darker topics like blaming all of his troubles on white colonialism which of course can only be cured if I give him $ or if I buy one of the village girls, happening to walk by, from him. The worst is when he spots us as we pull up to fill up on gas since it takes 10 or 15 minutes to transfer the gas from the oil drum to the tank using a 5 liter milk pitcher. You know you have to just sit there and bear it for the duration. I think this guy provides entertainment for everybody else since he is never even restrained or discouraged by the business people who he interferes with when he gets between them and a paying wazungu customer. Everybody just chuckles and so we take it in stride as well and even if we have to completely ignore him or physically hold him back from getting in the car with us like when Carolyn and Caitlin were here there are no smiles turned upside down.

We buy most of our produce in the farmer market which can be reached through narrow little alleyways between the stores lining the road. We had trouble finding it the first time and were confused as we seemed to be passing through peoples’ yards to get there but sure enough within this warren of buildings there was a secret magical tunnel lined with fresh produce. This is where we get our food.




Finally, we had a chance to give away some more of those awesome soccer balls that Josh and Carolyn sent. Leonardi, who works at the monitoring center, and Ruth and I gave Josh’s old ball to the Mang’ula primary school. I really didn’t know what to expect, but when we told one of the teachers that we wanted to donate a ball, he rang the big school bell and hundreds of students poured out of their classrooms and ran to the assembly yard.



Then, he told us that he would like for us to give our gift in front of all the children and that they would sing us a song. At this point, while I was walking up to the assembly with the teachers, I began to have flashbacks.

It can’t be…. not again-


Flashbacks from the time that Maura, Bill, Julie and I visited a primary school in Fiji and at just the same type of assembly, after the one hundred or so children sang their school song and their National Anthem, WE were asked to sing the American National Anthem in return. It was considered polite, as we four were visitors, to sing a song in return for our hosts who had so honored us. So, as the whole school waited breathlessly for the Americans to display their pride and patriotism we huddled together and whispered in panic and realized that none of us knew the words beyond a few phrases like ‘this land of liberty….fields of grain….from sea to shining sea…’. We didn’t even know how to begin. It was pretty much the single worst moment of my life. There was no way to bullshit it. We couldn’t even hum it. We were complete losers. You could see contempt in the kids’ eyes. The music teacher caught on eventually to our dumbfounded looks and to add salt to our wounds, the Fijian children led us in our own National Anthem which they sang out loudly and clearly for us to follow. ‘Surely though, you can find one song that you know to sing in return?’ the teacher then asked us. Another panicked huddle ensued and we came up with ‘old macdonald had a farm…E..I…E..I..O..and on this farm he had a ------…’ sinking to the depths of our shame from which I never quite recovered. So what went through my head at this moment was….CRAP….I STILL haven’t learned the damn words to the National Anthem and lightening can’t strike twice can it?

The band was ready


The stage was set


And the kids sang out their welcoming songs beautifully (click to play the video)-



And just at the moment where GOD was going to strike me down hard for the comments I made two posts ago, my karma was instantly reversed by handing over Josh’s soccer ball to the head teacher and BUDDHA rescued me. I was asked only to say a few words- which I boldly enunciated in toddler Swahili, and the children cheered. Whew!

At the second school that we visited, Mlimani Primary, I made sure that Ruth was carrying the soccer balls! Maybe she knows the words to the song? Maybe she’s a better American? Just kidding, it was her turn anyway.



They called another enormous school assembly and the kids and teachers were super excited and grateful and no songs were sung and we were all very happy. One of these balls is from Carolyn and one is also from Josh.

Teacher accepts the balls from Ruthie-


Smiling on the inside-


One went to the girls and one for the boys-


This teacher looked mean but was really very nice and Ruth hugged her-


The kids cheered and Leonardi whipped them into a frenzy and gave a shout out to the Udzungwa Mountains Ecological Monitoring Center- Whoooop! Whooop! (click to play the video):



There’s one more ball from Carolyn to give away to Katarukila. Forgot last time, but here’s the Wadudu of the day. Thanks for discovering it Ruth!