Moja mala Lucia

Lucija je navdusena pevka. Njena najljubsa pesem je Moja Mala Lucija od Gu Gu. Pojte z njo!

Handwerker

Wir haben ja bis jetzt die Lucia immer ins Autokindersitz gesteckt, wenn sie uns zuschauen wollte. Aber bei 35 Grad ist der ganz schön heiß! So hat der Papa was leichteres designed...

Die Handwerker am Arbeit

Der Endresultat: durchaus kuschelig und gemütlich, und es schaukelt so schön, es ist nur so schrecklich schwierig den Kopf im Balance zu halten - aber das kriegen wir schon hin :)

Aquarium lebt

Hektor und Gina erfreuen uns schon eine ganze Weile mit ihrer ruhiger Art. Vorne rechts ist Hektor, wer findet die Gina?

Poletje je tu

Temperatura ob 11h dopoldne zunaj, na soncu: 47 stopinj Celzija
Temperatura ob 11h dopoldne znotraj, v hisi: 34 stopinj Celzija

V tej vrocini Lucia zelo uziva v svoji dnevni kopeli...

...kadar pa se zgodi najhujse, namrec da zmanjka elektrike in ostanemo brez ventilatorjev in brez klime, se umakneva v najino malo gnezdo na vrtu!

Graduation day

The other day Stefan and I went to Mlimani City, a modern shopping mall at our doorstep, where we buy the western stuff that we can't get in our small market. We were greeted by an unbelievable traffic jam extending km from Mlimani City, at a very untypical hour. What was going on? First we thought it was an accident that blocked the road, until we saw that the pavements were lined with people selling bright red, pink and yellow plastic flowers dressed into shiny paper, together with oversized congratulation cards. It was graduation day again!

When students graduate in Tanzania, they wear the nice black robes and hats, making the ceremony a very serious, magnificant and English affair. Since there are only a handful of modern shopping malls in Dar es Salaam, they have a cult status, signifying success, well-being and prestige. That is why Tanzanians love to hold not only graduation ceremonies, but also weddings in the shopping malls!

Good bye Uganda

Wir hatten eine schöne Zeit in Uganda. Wir haben die kühle Luft in Kampala genossen (wir können es mit dem Stefan kaum glauben, dass wir mal Kampala heiß gefunden haben - nämlich, als wir in Kabale gelebt haben) und alle unsere Kollegen und Freunde wieder gesehen.

Da unsere Organisation nur einmal pro Jahr ein Treffen für alle ihre Mitarbeiter in Ostafrika organisiert, war dieses unser letztes! So haben wir vorübergehend Uganda, diesem schönem grünen Land, Tschüß Pa Pa gesagt - wir sagen aber nicht nie wieder :)

Errinert ihr euch noch an den kleinen Timi, den Sohn von unserer ex-Chefin Katharina und ex-Chef Josua, der in Lake Nabugabo, auf unserem letzten Treffen in Mai, ein ganz ganz kleines Baby war (siehe Post Wieder in Uganda, Mai 2012)? Jetzt ist er schon ein echt großer Bursche! Seine Eltern haben wir übrigens auch verabschiedet, die fliegen am Ende des Monats wieder nach Europa :(

Wo alles angefangen hat

Liebe alle, Lucia ist jetzt ja schon drei Monate alt und es ist Zeit, dass sie sich ein bisschen mit Geschichte befasst. So fliegen wir nächste Woche nach Uganda, wo alles began... Wenigstens für Stefan und mich :) Also, wir lesen uns in einer Woche!

Oh this traffic

'Oh this horrible traffic' is one of our mantras when travelling through Dar es Salaam. Yet, things are getting better. You will be happy to know that our fine Austrian Strabag is on the plan with building a speedway accross town and even the town's own council came up with a promising plan: the old industrial railwayline crossing some of Dar's most populated neighbourhoods will be reinstated as a commuter train! It started operating a few days ago and we are all waiting in suspense to see if it will relieve the city centre's traffic jams... Since its route cannot be really called direct and since the tracks are old (so I guess the trains will not be the fastest) I have my doubts, but the city council definitely gets my thumbs up for being innovative for once.

Strabag in full power! www.africareview.com

Commuter train. www.in2eastafrica.net

On our doorstep

Dear all, guess what I found on my doorstep on Saturday evening when I went out to have a walk with Lucia? A couple of Massai men who were braiding some ladies' hair! Massai warriors are known for their long sophisticated braids and after loosing their macho inclinations many of them now earn a living by being hairdressers! The ladies of Dar es Salaam appreciate their services very much (read the article below). I guess they just thought that our doorstep with its oleander bushes and cemented veranda is as nice a place as any to do business :)

www.genderlinks.org.za/article

I might also add that there is no shortage of fine looking men in the neighbourhood these days. On the corner of our street a hotel is being built and as usually in Tanzania the youngsters are working only in their underwear. All covered in sweat and the fine dust, in the evening sun, they are a sight to see! But they make a hell of a sound when I walk by, so I don't think I will ever manage to get a photo of them. By the way, did you know that they level cement with their bare feet? They just tie some plastic sacks on them and off they go... Yes, construction can be as simple as that :)