MIA

Hi friends.. sorry, I feel like I have been MIA lately and quiet on the blog front…. Pole!

I figured I’ll fill you in on all the Moshi happenings before it becomes Dar es Salaam happenings next week!

So, yeah, next week I head to Dar for 10 weeks! Yes, I know, it will be a long time to be away from “home”, but it is a great opportunity to help lead a Pediatric oncology Nurse Certification Course.  I have been dubbed the “International Coordinator” of all of this, and boy, has it kept me busy! Basically I will be working with the wonderful Pediatric Oncology team at Muhimbili National Hospital, putting on a short certification course for  6 of the Pediatric oncology nurses.  Most of the nurses there have been working on the ward for 4+years but they have never received any formal training on pediatric oncology care.  So, myself, and about 10 other international faculty, (nurses, doctors, pharmacists) coming during various weeks, will be teaching, and percepting the nurses as we focus on various pediatric oncology topics.  I’ve learned here that you can only “plan” for so much, and then just be open and flexible to making things work. So, I have the weeks planned out, the topics set, and how I think the schedule will work… but, ask me in 2 weeks how it is all working out, and what things I had to change to adapt to the setting!! It will be fun though, a great learning experience for me, and chance to get back to the kids (I’ve missed working directly with them!)

One other bonus for me.. I managed to talk one of my Denver nursing friends, Alyssa, to join me for one of the weeks, so she will be coming end of August to help teach! I’ll be so excited to have a familiar face here with me, and someone that feels like home.. aannnnddd, someone to enjoy Zanzibar with for a weekend! 🙂

Living in Dar will be a big change compared to little Moshi! One of my friends recently  asked me, “Is Dar bigger than Moshi?” Haha.. yeah.. 180,000 population in Moshi vs 4.3 million in Dar!! Haha.  Just a tad bigger!!  I’m sure it will take a little while to get my bearings, but I’ve already searched Instagram to find all the cool stores, restaurants and places to see!! I’ll keep you posted on what I find there!!

That’s probably the biggest news around here… overall, its been life as normal here in Moshi.  The weather has been much cooler than I’ve expected… as I sit here writing in my rain boots, sweater and scarf, ha!  Everyone says this is pretty abnormal, as the rainy season should be over by now, but yet again, I woke up today to grey (think dreary Ohio in February!) skies and rain clouds.  Even Kili has been hiding for most of the past few months.  I realized I didn’t pack enough long sleeve tops.. so, note to self on my next trip back to the states..pack up the winter clothes!!

Speaking of back to the states.. it looks like I will be booking a flight for December! Yay!! It will be Christmas with the Danik fam and a wedding celebration for one of my besties, Maggie and her (now!) fiancé!  Hongera Sana to them! (Congratulations!). Maggie is one of my oldest college friends.. meeting when we were just young, bright-eyed 19 year olds in Gaming, Austria for our semester abroad.  We became fast friends and from that point on, lived together in the projects of Steubenville to (many) apartments in Denver.  She basically became my common-law wife, we lived together for so many years! Haha!! But now she’s back in Cleveland, Ohio and planning a big ole wedding end of December!! Her and I are the last of our 1425 group to get married and we have had our share of ups and downs with men in the past, so it makes me SO happy to see her with a good man who treats her well, loves her unconditionally and makes her laugh like no one else can.  I wouldn’t miss her wedding for the world.. she’s worth the 30hour flight back to the US 😉

What else.. what else…. let’s see..  I’ve been trying my hand, AND thumb out in some building projects (with Joel’s assistance, of course!), and gardening!  Joel and I built 2 garden planters out of pallets, and planted some fruits, veggies and herbs in them.  I have successfully grown 4 red, ripe strawberries, the beginnings of lettuce, tomatoes and spinach, and mint that is slowly taking over!! It’s been so fun, and I can’t wait to expand our little garden! I’ve also done some pallet projects with the scraps.. see pics of the finished products below!

It hasn’t been all work here.. there has been plenty of play time too, especially with three of the cutest little ladies!! Joel’s nieces and I have been having Auntie Liz days where we’ve been able to explore Moshi, and TRY to find all the fun kid activities.  We’ve found some fun playgrounds, ate ice cream and got face painting done at Kili Fair, baked cakes and cupcakes at A18, stood close to giraffes at Arusha National Park and celebrated 4th of July, American style, together!  It’s been so fun, and these girls keep me on my toes, and always laughing!

And of course…still enjoying all the time with my love.  We’ve actually been able to find some new restaurants we haven’t been to in Moshi (it’s the little things here!), so we’ve bundled up for a few date night dinners in the cold!!

I think that about sums up life in Moshi over the last few months…. stay tuned for Life in Dar in the coming weeks!

Miss and love you all!

xo, Liz