6 Days of Enlightenment and Adventure.

Well let me tell ya...bear with me, its been awhile. 

So a few fun and exciting things done over the weekend...some friends and I have made up this new term called Forodhani Fridays, where we go to the Forodhani Gardens for dinner. Let me tell ya, there is so much food and all of it is good. I had a chicken "Zanzibar pizza," which is a concoction of vegetables, chicken meat, mayo, and other things wrapped in this  chapati/tortilla-like thing. It was so good! 

There we also had the opportunity to speak to the mpishi (the chef) named Muhammad (pretty original muslim name, but his American name is Mr. Chocolate) in Swahili about who we were and what we were doing in Zanzibar. We got to joke around with him and learn about him. I told him I had a Zanzibar name that I actually received from these women Muslim shopkeepers who like me to come in every once in awhile to talk and say hello in Swahili. They gave me my African name "Jamila," which I learned later from my host mom, comes from the root word jamili. Jamili in English is literally translated to attractive, nice, and kind... I felt like I had just typed my name into urban dictionary, so that was a surprise.  My friends also received their Zanzibar names like Sharifa, Shamila, etc. 

I also tried octopus (not super awesome but it is kind of like calamari...calamari is better), a banana chocolate syrup pizza, and shawarma. Now let me tell you about my relationship with shawarma. I have no idea what it is, or what they put in it. It is meat with these amazing sauces and similar to a burrito that is the best burrito you have ever had. (This is a terrible example) At first, it's like walking into a dark room you have never been in before. Everything is uncertain, but then once you take a bite, it's like the light turns on and everything makes sense. It is soooooo good. 

In other news, some friends and I went to a rooftop bar place, and I got Classic Coke in a bottle. However, it was a very nice time hanging out, conversing with friends and looking out over the bright blue ocean. Of course, a night like that in America looks like people walking in short, tight, glamorous dresses with 6-inch heels and a lot of rich alcohol racing down their throats, maybe throwing in that extra act of recklessness such as drinking too much, swinging on chandeliers, dancing on tables, getting into a fight, or kissing someone you just met. In Zanzibar, a night like that consists of being covered head toe in loose fitted clothing, with the skin of your feet hands and face showing, minus any acts of recklessness...no, no swimming naked with dolphins, and absolutely NO vandalizing.... Yes, to some a Zanzibar night wouldn't be as eventful, but it was also a lot of people's kind of night to relax and talk and drink Coke on the rocks...or for those Big Bang Theory fans...a grasshopper. On a side note, I actually got to watch a movie called Good Will Hunting. Really good by the way!! 

Anglican Church - 

Then, on Sunday we went to an Anglican church. Now, keep in mind that I have never attended an Anglican church, I have just learned about it. They had an English service first, and there I sat next to this engineer from Scotland who was working with the church to rebuild it. Of course, I had to tell him I am half Irish even though the two are not the same, and to this day that slight subtle tension lies between the east and the west of Ireland and Scotland. 

A little history about the church is that it was built by Edward Steele in 1993. It has a huge steeple, but a very small sanctuary where the pews are made of wood and look as if more than 5 people sat on them the wood would snap in half. The church, in Swahili, is called "kanisa na mnara kwa nara" which literally tanslates to "the church with one tower." For those history buffs, at the top of this church there is a wooden cross made from the tree of where the heart of David Livingston, a dedicated scientist/missionary, was buried. Yes, his heart is buried in Zambia, Africa, while his body lies at rest in England. He was one of few explorers that traveled into the treacherous depths of the interior of Africa in the 1800's and died of disease in search of the source of the Nile. 

Memorial for the slaves

The service was very traditional, but very orderly. I think it gave a lot of people peace to hear a sermon that was in English... me, well I was busy stressing over the communion, because, of course, it had more nasty wine...I am kidding, but the wine is not very good. The church is built on top of the place where the slaves from the interior and the Congo were traded off to go to India, so next to the church you have a museum for the slave market, and where the slaves were kept and sold. Quite depressing really... 

I also met and talked with a couple from Switzerland who have been there since the 1980's. The woman taught at this blind school in Arusha for a long time, and then moved to Zanzibar, opened up a jewelry shop called "Shangalia".... don't know if there's any connection to "shanga shangaa"... but she also hires blind people to help her with her store. Her husband was shy, but very kind. 

Millipedes

That night, I got to hang out and make my new Scottish/British friend, Hannah. I knew her through Alex, but together the three of us went to the market, and I just got to listen to them speak Swahili. I joined in a few times, but dear lord, they are so good at it. They have been here for almost 6 months, but it is quite fascinating their skill in Swahili. So the story is Hannah wanted to cook dinner, but not just any dinner. She wanted to cook samaki papa (I love this word), but it means shark. Unfortunately, there was no shark, but we got changu instead which are small white meat fish. We took the ingredients back to her house... I was not involved in anyway with cooking because they had a lot of hands in the pot and so few knives, but it was an adventure. It turned out to be a very good dinner. 

Michael joined us later, and I got to talk with Hannah's apartment-mate who is a French retired flight attendant who is about 40 years old. I got to hear all about his life as a flight attendant. I told him how I wanted to backpack Europe, and he told me how expensive it was, but to try to stay with people I knew. He seemed like he didn't love his Paris home because he was in Zanzibar with no plan. Haha, he literally will go to Dar es Salaam, get a motorcycle and ride it to Mozambique to live there for a little while, and then from there it is a whole new adventure, just traveling from place to place living off of the land, with a limited budget. We also learned Hannah plays ukelele and plays in a small band back home that hasn't gone big yet, but it will. I know it. :)

Paje where they farm seaweed

At last, we also got to listen to a lecture about the marine biology here in Tanzania. I was happy to finally get to hear about science. Never thought I would say that, but science is more a part of me than I know. We got to view the Dar es Salaam University campus, and they have a graduate program for biologists if anyone is interested. We got to view their tiny, but cute, aquarium where we saw our first African sea turtle and barracuda. 

Amongst hanging with friends and learning about the people in my group, I have been attending the local yoga and Zumba (yes Zumba in Zanzibar) classes and the music academy. It is like the African version of ladies community fitness. You have your average Muslim ladies dress down in their black gowns and head wraps, and then you have local tourists or students like me. It's an interesting yet enlightening experience. Our Zumba instructor is this young American white woman whose husband plays at the music academy with pizzaz. She has so much energy, but what dance instructor doesn't, right? Then our yoga instructor is this small, local woman who has a more quiet passion for yoga that shows in the hard work and flexibility she has put into being good at it. Yet, for her it isn't just for health. It is for harmony, and she does her best to share that with her students. Keep it on the down low, but none of these people are certified, but it is only donation to do these classes. They are great!

It also takes its toll on the soul. Zumba is meant to be fun, regardless if you can dance or not. Let yourself have fun. I know it doesn't make sense to make our bodies sweat even more than we need to, but it's diving into a different party for sure. I had a Muslim lady dancing next to me, but she danced without a care in the world. In yoga, I meet so many laid back people. They are quiet, but you can tell they carry a peace with them wherever they go because they always have that hint of a smile.

Me and my friend, Ruthie.

Now, Chelsea and I always had a hard time doing yoga together, but I know when you are in a pit in your life, you need routine, you want strength, you need to let go, or you are desperate for peace, things become serious, uplifting, and spiritual real fast. No, I haven't had any encounters with God. My soul hasn't traveled to a new world and back or anything like that, but in a different country, where you are doing yoga looking out over the calm sea water, you learn to forget about everything else for a short while. Heck, I even forgot Valentine's Day is coming up (all I can say about that is...well...crap). Slowly, with routine, you can begin to learn that you can carry that peace wherever you go in the world. It just takes a little practice. 

Quran

As for my studies, well, I would much rather say I study the people more than I study everything else. The other day I asked my mama about prayer (because I may or may not have accidentally peeked on her praying). For those of you who don't know, Muslims pray five times a day, always facing east toward Mecca. So I asked my mama about her prayers. This is what she told me in a lot of Swahili. Prayer is not spiritual, uplifting, or emotional. It is routine. It is something that brings order to Muslim life and culture. Sure it is very conservative, but it makes the world make sense. There is something about uncertainty that certainly scares the human race. Even the prayer is structured. They recite the Quran, which I saw the whole thing in microscopic letters in the museum of the old Omanis sultans palace, and it is HECKA long. Then, they pray to God about their wishes, and then they go into peace and bow before God lifting them up to him knowing God has heard them. 

To an outsider, Muslim culture has a hard time making sense. However, there are things it can teach us. Religion sometimes isn't a thing for everyone, but happiness is. That is why people do the things they do, because certainty is the first real step to contentment. There are many things to try, learn, and accept the facts about the culture. Disagree or agree, we all have happiness in common. However, for everyone, the journey is different. 

On a more simple note, my mama, I learned, is 29, but she is so funny! She literally makes me laugh all the time because she is the first sarcastic Muslim I have found. The sense of humor in Zanzibar is very different. You have to make a lot of fiancee jokes. Which I have received quite a lot of proposals lately. I had this long spiel from this guy about why I should be his fiancee, but our Swahili teacher says that is just how they do things in Africa. 

I would recommend to people to keep an open mind. Some doors in life don't seem likely, but maybe it is the door a Supreme Being is pointing you toward. Every door has something little to offer, but it also offers understanding to the uncertain things. It offers peace. If you are at war with whatever in life, work, stress, marriage, depression, or small things like cooking, or working out, do whatever it takes to find peace in your life.

Sending love from the Muslim Capital of Africa (kidding), 

Jax