2 Hangas and an Eddie

This weekend it was our distinct honor to represent the Benedictine Volunteer Corps at the 2010 Peace Corps Songeafest. Let me just say that this experience was exactly what I was in need of. You see, the monastery is great, but we were really needing a feeling of a little bit of independence, and we totally got that by getting on the dolla dolla (packed, small bus that costs 1 USD) from Hanga to Songea alone on Sat morning, stayed there overnight, and rode back on our brand new bikes (to be explained later). After 3 full weeks in Hanga, I was also in need of a little bit of a physical reminder that the culture I’m used to still exists. Spending a large part of the weekend with 40 Americans definitely did the trick. I am so thankful for this experience, in fact, that I will now attempt to share it with all of you fine people in blog form:
We started by catching Saturday’s earliest dolla dolla, and the trip went off without a hitch (no bus trouble!) As we arrived in Songea we talked to our Peace Corps contact and were pointed in the direction of the temporary Peace Corps headquarters- the OK Hotel. It sure was. After getting some breakfast, we walked with some PCV’s (Peace Corps Volunteers) to Songea Girls’ Secondary School, aka the venue for the 3-on-3 basketball tournament. We were told that we would be on a team with Eddie, and we were promised he was “fierce”.
Arriving at the courts, I was salivating. When we play basketball with the students, it’s great. However, they play defense like its soccer, we use a ball that’s as light as a volleyball, and the hoops leave quite a bit to be desired. Here I stood, watching Americans shoot around like they knew what they were doing on a court that looked pretty nice, with a Spalding basketball. Yep, exactly what I needed.
No one really knew who we were, and plenty of jokes were made about us getting disqualified for not being a PCV. They were all actually really great about letting us join their gathering, and it turned out Eddie would be a game changer in more ways than 1. First of all, he was definitely that clever, cool, nice guy that everyone loved. Second, he was great at basketball. Third…I’m not there yet, but he definitely came in clutch.
Fast forward through three decently hard-fought games in the hot sun and team “2 Hangas and an Eddie” defeat “2 Guys, a Girl, and a Hoop Dream” in the championship! No big deal…just sayin…
We then had down time until the dinner/talent show at 6 that night, so we wandered around Songea with Eddie and a guy from Minnesota (we met three Minnesotans!). We happened to mention that we were in the market for some bikes, and Eddie stepped up big time. He used his combination of bike knowledge and Swahili knowledge to help us scope out the best deal and then bargain it down to a better deal. Thanks to our dear Eddie, I am now the proud owner of a used, bright green Peugeot (yeah, that car company!) mountain bike! He is a beut (named him Jack- see below for reasoning), and there will be pictures. This is the best fitting bike I've had since junior high. The brakes are okay, but the cool thing is they make the same loud and obnoxious noise that the bus horns do! For Brian Regan fans out there, let's just say I have a lot of "BOB! It's Okay!" moments. Oh yeah, and possibly the best part of the negotiations was when they offered to drop the price and take off the kickstand. Yep, I literally watched the owner ride my bike to a shop down the street so he could have the kickstand removed, and I watched him ride back, kickstand in hand. I knew I had made a solid purchase.
Mike and I talked to some more PCV’s and walked around Hanga for a bit, getting random errands done. We ended up back at the OK Hotel a little before 6, in part because that’s where the festivities would pick up again and in part because we still didn’t know where we were sleeping (trying to really get into this Tanzanian way of life).
Before dinner (which was great as it involved curry flavoring), we got more time just to sit and chat with different PCV’s. Here’s a list of some of the things I was reminded of in all our interactions with this bunch:
*What I’m doing right now is crazy tough for me, but it’s got nothing on what these people are doing (much more isolated, much less amenities).
*America and the reality I’m used to still exists.
*Basketball is still what I remember.
*There is a world where I can understand all conversations around me, I can tell jokes, and perfect English doesn’t need to be used in order to attempt to convey meaning.
All of these things may seem simple, but this was a pretty huge experience, as I said, just to get a chance to remove myself a little from everything for a bit.
The talent show ranged from funny to touching to talented to what in the world just happened. Mike and I were there as spectators only (no idea what I would have done). My personal favorite act was done by a man named Jack. Jack is your stereotypical PCV- slightly disheveled, free spirited, and, it turns out, hilarious and the life of the party. Anyway, he played guitar and sang “You Can Call Me Al”! Naturally, I loved the song choice, but it got better. He introduced that verse one would be sung as 1960’s Bob Dylan, verse 2 would be sung as 1970’s Bob Dylan, and the last verse would sound awful and painful (current Bob Dylan). Indeed, he delivered!
The final part of the programming was the part of American culture that has the ability to make me feel about as out of my comfort zone as being in Tanzania does- a dance party. It was a slow start, but I eventually busted out the old arm wave (“Fahja Molding”) dance. I have to say, it got me through (it was relative hit during the song “Wavin’ Flag”, which was luckily played 3 times).
We ended up staying at the OK in rooms with the PCV’s, got up, had our free breakfast, and get ready to start our pedaling adventure. 3 hours later, we had triumphantly arrived in Hanga (a 40km trek). The ride was marvelous! It felt so freeing, and we were on the move, so we didn’t have to worry about Swahili conversations that would go into more depth than the greetings we know. I can’t tell you how cool the mental snapshots are that I have of us giving a slightly crooked thumbs up (a huge hit here) to a table full of men shooting the breeze and seeing them all get huge smiles as they returned the sign in unison. As we got close, people were literally just excitedly yelling “Hanga!” It was so cool!
Our adventure has left me feeling refreshed and inspired. Hearing the Swahili of the old PCV’s made me really want to keep working on mine, because it was awesome to see the joyful reaction of the locals when they realized they could hold conversations and joke around. Also, as our talent show MC reminded us last night, the choice we have made to be here is allowing us to “live a life that doesn’t say what if”. I fully intend to keep plugging away and take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to try to do as much good as I can while I grow, and that will begin with my first day of teaching (more classes than even expected- more to come later) tomorrow!