waaa

the internet is broken and doesn't really work.. and the IT guy that is supposed to fix it travels between the Kenya and Tanzania so it'll take a few more days until he comes and it's fully running again. luckily I found a spot right next to the internet box where it works.

so in the past few days a lot has happened! on tuesday I started running around the loop that circles the surrounding farms. It's a really beautiful trail that passes through the backs of houses, through open fields, and pastures. Along the way the local children run along side us and stop to shake our hands. Yesterday a little girl tried to steal my inhaler and kept calling it "pee-pee" which means candy in swahili. I told her "hapana pole" which means no sorry (I think) but she kept pulling my arm to try and steal it. I'm really grateful for the kids along the path because 1. they're adorable, friendly and give me the opportunity to practice my swahili, and 2. it gives me a a chance to stop and catch my breath before I start running again.

Also, yesterday in the morning I woke up at around 6:00 for the nature walk that a staff member, Yuda, gives almost every morning. We didn't see much, only a few signs of Guinea Fowl, a type of wild chicken, and a few birds that resembled doves. but it was still nice to get off of the campsite and explore some of the local area.

Today the weather really cooled off and it even sprinkled for a bit while we were playing volleyball. Normally (as in the past 3 days that I've been here) it's pretty hot, reaching the high 80s low 90s. But it's bearable because it's dry heat and there's usually a nice breeze.

We also started classes yesterday. I'm really in love with all of the courses that I'm taking here; swahili and local culture, wildlife ecology, wildlife management, and wildlife policy and socioeconomic values.

All of the classes are taught by local Tanzanians that really know what they're teaching and are very familiar with the surrounding area, except for the wildlife ecology teacher who is from Oklahoma. She is still very knowledgeable and has done extensive research on various ecological topics, including a chimp study with Jane Goodall!!?? so jealous

The workload is pretty tough, classes Monday through Saturday from morning till late afternoon, but it's what I'm interested in so it doesn't seem so bad. Except for a 50 page article that I had to read yesterday that detailed grazing habits of the different species of antelope.


Tomorrow is going to be a great day! we start early per usual with a class at 8:00, but later in the afternoon we're taking our first excursion to Lake Manyara National Park!!! We're going for our Wildlife Management class to observe the distribution of the various large mammals found in the park. I'm most excited to see the elephants and hippos. We again go back Saturday morning (the morning I have breakfast cook crew so I'll probably be up at 5) for our Wildlife Ecology class to study the behaviors of the different animals. I get the impression that we're being split up into groups and each group follows and observes either elephants, zebra, giraffe, or buffalo, and compiles a report up at the end.

And Sunday we get to go to Kuratu, the local town, to explore the giant market that they have!

super excited for the weekend!!! Will update with details of what I see and do, hopefully on Sunday night.