Saturday 31st of August
Wilson Shaw
With both house builds taken as far as we can help, and after saying farewell to the families, it’s time for some downtime whilst we await to travel home on Monday. The experience has been profound and touched me in ways I didn’t expect.
Whilst I was strangely able to compartmentalise and process the very challenging living conditions and heartbreaking back stories of the families we were helping, and those we were fortunate to witness getting the keys to the homes started by the high school visits earlier in the summer, it was experiencing the hand overs that had me in tears. Especially the two cases where the children only had their Grandmother who, in each case, had taken them on and got by the best she could until the Vine Trust and TAWREF were able to give assistance.
To share the happiness of the families, good will of their neighbours and general celebration of the openings will stay with me forever and I can’t wait to see videos of the day when Joyce and Amina get the keys to theirs.
In the photos below are the two awesome Mamas who we have had the opportunity to help.
I pray they will find happiness again in a secure and watertight home big enough, that the whole family can be reunited as some children were sent away to stay with relatives.
The last photo is Joyce’s (one of the beneficiaries) washing line with the working gloves Karen gave her washed and hung up to dry. On the first day Joyce looked embarrassed and uncomfortable in our presence, but throughout the work days, she got stuck in and by the end was even dancing to “Come on Eileen” and “Sweet Caroline”, and on the last day I’ll never forget her coming out of her mud hut home waving and smiling on our arrival, clearly pleased to see us. Touching lives is what it’s all about.
---
Friday August 30th The Ngorogoro Crater
The Crater was cold when we got there, wet and misty, with a cold wind.
It warmed up as we descended the 2000ft high rim of the 12 mile diameter. It is an incredible natural wonder. Zebra, Wildebeest, Girraffe, Hippo, Buffallo, Elephants and Lions to name but a few.
Highlight of the day was the lions pride, and watching 3 lions prowl on the hunt. Fascinating to watch for half an hour as the King of the Jungle eyed up and advanced on its prey.
---
Thursday 29th August 2024 The Spectacular Tarangire National Park.
Today we travelled 4.5 hours from Moshi to the spectacular Tarangire National Park.
Lovely meal at Eileen’s Trees tonight with most of the team staying there and a few at The Omega Hotel. A fabulous day.
Breakfast at 6am, so team are all away to bed. Tomorrow we visit the incredible Ngorogoro Crater, a UN Heritage Site.
---
28th August 2024
Goodbye, Farewell, Auf Wiederseh'n, Adieu.
An early breakfast at 8am meant we left Umoja at 9am on the dot and headed out on our last journey on our favourite bumpity, bump, bump road. One final visit to the Lower Moshi house and the family there. It was a bright sunny, hot morning as we turned along by the Maize fields and on and on out into the villages which surround the dry, arid, and dusty area. Drones were being used to irrigate crops as well as hoses. The bigger bus gave us a clearer view of our long route in, by the sugar cane Plantation. On out, through the raised arm barrier, beyond the paddy fields, passing massive BauBau trees and seeing the mountains of Kenya rise up into view on the horizon across the border.
The local dusty football pitch, where the Masai heard their cattle and goats, is the land mark we all wait for, as we finally arrive at the Lower Moshi house.
We find that the Fundi’s, with Online (Chief Fundi), have worked exceptionally hard to take the build on another view steps. The concrete floor is down, and the concrete render is on the walls, the concrete lintel is dry and the 3 levels of bricks that finish the walls are on. An exceptional effort from them, and a very satisfying point for the team to see reached before we say Kwahari.
We meet the Family and bring the team and Fundi’s together for our final formalities. Elly speaks on behalf of the beneficiary and TAWREF to thank the volunteers for their contribution, we thank the beneficiary and her family for welcoming us and working with us, we thank Online and his Fundi’s, and thank Elly and Nico for coordinating everything in Tanzania for us. Online says a few words on behalf of the family. The beneficiary is emotional, overwhelmed at the progress on her future, her secure home. We gather everyone in front of the home and take our final pictures to capture the moment, and our achievement. We hug warmly, we kiss cheek to cheek, we shake hands, and leave small gifts of sugar and laundry soap.
Then we all board the bus again, for the last bumpy leg out of Lower Moshi and onto the Banana Plantation. Today is no different. The bus bumps along, the back axel squeals as we rise up out of a massive divot, up on out and on our way. Back into Moshi. Passed Umoja. On. To the other side of town. Upwards. Into the lush lands of the Banana Plantation where maize, bananas and other crops grow together on the same plot, an interweaving complementary 3 way share of each other’s nutrients.
We park the bus and walk down the hill towards the house and all the ground we shifted sand from now leaves the road clear for traffic to the new home. Bananas are being harvested and the Fundi’s continue to render the brick wall. This home is one step behind, but the lintel is up and the last 3 layers of bricks are on.
The children we met there were great fun all week; favourites of many of the team; they always wanted to play with Millie, Anna, Emily and Cameron.
We draw the group together at the veranda of the house, and step inside for the final group photo. We work through the usual formalities and re-iterate the importance of all the work that Elly Kimaro does to identify the most vulnerable families across a 60 mile+ radius of Savannah and Cloud Forest. He is a hero and deserves our acclaim.
The beneficiary here is quiet, humble and thankful. There are many Asante Sana's. The photos here are full of joy and happiness and we depart leaving our best wishes for the family in their new home.
Approximately 4 weeks from now, the work our team began will be complete. The A - frame for the roof will be on, the corrugated roof will be up, glass will be in the windows, and the secure locking doors will be on. The houses will be painted in Tanzanian green, yellow and black and TAWREF will arrange opening ceremonies. Within 30 days of the formal house opening furniture and other essentials will be provided to the beneficiaries. The pit toilets will be finished. The family will have electric light, gas cooking, and a safe, secure space for education.
There is a real sense of achievement within the team, but also a deep, burning hunger to do more. To contribute again, in ways that are appropriate and respectful within the context of the Tanzanian situation and culture. We have much to share when we come home. Photo's. Videos. Stories. Our encouragements. Our New Connections. Our Fresh ideas. Our New insights. Many want to return. Many want to inspire others to come. Watch this space.
At 5pm we had a thorough briefing from KLM Safari before we head off on Safari tomorrow. The team are looking forward to spending Thursday in the Tarangire Park before going on to the Ngorogoro Crater tomorrow. Many pictures of Wilde Beast and Zebra bums to follow tomorrow.
We are up at 4:30 for breakfast at 5 and departure at 6am.
---
Tuesday August 27th
Larbert East Vine Trust Team
Opening 5 new Vine Trust Homes
What an absolute privilege today, to go and officially open the 5 new TAWREF homes, lead this summer for us by Doug Gillies and Katie Halliburton.
First up was the home built in June, by Galashiels Academy, in Kibosho. To get to the house the team had to climb down a steep slope. Seeing the beneficiary's, listening to their circumstances and stories, and seeing the homes they are leaving behind is always humbling.
The old home here was dark, and full of smoke from the open wood fire, the old mud walls were full of holes and there were holes in the roof.
The TAWREF staff team joined us at all the openings today, with Dafrosa Itemba chairing proceedings. The local village officials also joined the openings; they are responsible for providing the pit latrine and are a large part of the local community. One part of the ceremony that is hugely significant is the signing of the legal document of ownership of the house over to the beneficiary. Elly read out the terms and conditions of the legal contract, confirming the houses cannot be liquidated for capital by wider family members for financial gain. TAWREF provide legal support to all the families they support, including providing mental health services to re-integrate kids into families. This is especially important in circumstances where a child has been living on the streets etc. it helps them to cope with previous trauma and settle into their new home.
The 2nd opening was a short walk down the road to Mama Angels House which was Support by students from Perth Grammar. The Mama, has one child at home and a child who is currently living on the street. The local community were delighted and they sang and danced from the moment we arrived. Joined by the TAWREF staff, the family and the local community Millie joined and helped to cut the ribbon to this home.
The 3rd home was a 20-minute drive away, elsewhere in the banana plantation. This was the Home of the Mushi Family, which students from Milne’s High School worked on. Online (Frank) our Chief Fundi at Lower Moshi this week was attending as he had worked with the family and our students. With a count down from Dafrosa Daniel and the family cut the ribbon together for this home.
The welcome at the 4th home in the banana plantation was beautiful. This was the home of Calvin and Amina. This was the second home which the students from Milne’s High School supported. The full village welcomed TAWREF and the team and put on a right good celebration. Jim Derby cut the ribbon with the family and TAWREF cheering on behind! The situation here was slightly different with the children being looked after by their Grandmother.
The final opening was a full hour away over at Lower Moshi along the bumpy road. When we got there, the sun was slowly beginning to set. Again, all of the senior village elders and officials had come out and Dafrosa and Elly did their respective parts to introduce the family and open the home. This home was the second site of the students from Perth Grammar. I thanked TAWREF for hosting us, and thanked the people for the kindness and warmth of their welcome, and emphasising Vine Trust’s willingness to continue to support TAWREF’s shelter programme in the years ahead. The visits ended with a photo with an ex-Tanzanian MP with the final family, myself and Neil Johnstone. The sodas the family offered us all as a parting gift were most welcome.
The day ended with our evening meal back at Umoja with a brilliant Tanzanian dance (Traditional ngoma) where the dancers gave us an incredible show, Dancing with, and eat, fire.
This set us up nicely for our Ceilidh. Dances were called and the festivities were enjoyed by the team and our TAWREF partners. The Gay Gordon’s started us off followed by the Military 2 step and a Canadian Barn Dance. The evening finished as all good ceilidhs do, with everyone joining hands to bounce around to Loch Lomond. A great evening was had by all.
Tomorrow we visit the families at the two homes we have built this week to say Au Revior. It is not good bye. We will meet again.
---
26th Larbert East Vine Trust team to Moshi, Tanzania.
Back to work on Monday.
Today was our final full day of construction work before we head out tomorrow to celebrate the opening of 5 homes built by 3 schools groups during the summer; Galashiels Academy, Milnes Academy and Perth Grammar. 4 homes at the Banana plantation and one at lower Moshi so tomorrow will be a long day.
I was at the Banana Plantation and this morning was a full on shift. It started fairly gently with moving rocks down the hill to the foundations for the out houses, with our little friend Sandy helping us to pick up the small ones.
Then we sieved sharp sand to remove wee stones. Then we moved the sieved sand to where it would be used later in the day to make cement. We repeated that process twice more and before no time it was lunchtime.
At lunch time, the Fundi’s prepared wire rods for cement pours to re-enforce and strengthen the build. The house is now developed up to lintel level and the Fundi’s prepared to pour concrete.
After lunch we repeated the sand, sieve process. Clearing the sand pile took me back to 1993, when Willie McPherson taught me and Dougie Adam to shovel dirt at Scoughall. He timed us both for a minute as we twisted and turned without shifting much earth. And then showed us how it was done as we timed him for a minute. Earth flying through the air faster. The best mentor we could ever have hoped for as bairns.
This afternoon we put that lesson into practice really effectively, using a line of ten buckets, and only shovelling forward. The sand filled the buckets effectively, and the ground was cleared quickly, moving the bucket line forward as we went. Millie, Anna and Cameron all picked up the technique easily, and appreciated how much more quickly it enabled us to clear the ground.
This meant we were able to help chain gang cement for the lintel concrete pour and our last hour of work saw the concrete lintel go up.
A really good point to reach on our last day of work on the building sites.
From here forward we go to the opening of the 5 homes built by schools teams this summer, have a ceilidh and then visit both sites for a fond farewell with each of the families and the children where we have built homes this week.
We head off on Safari for a couple of days before doing final visits and cultural activities next weekend. This trip has been wonderful and I have been very privileged to lead it. The mix of people has been fantastic and everyone has got on really well - special commendation has to go to our young people, who have absolutely worked their wee socks off. We’ve had no slackers on the team and everyone has been good fun. It has been an absolute pleasure.
Lower Moshi Update - 26 August
‐------
I volunteered to head to Lower Moshi site today. As the previous blogs have noted, the road is long and dusty with some serious ruts and bumps, and a broken bridge - yet there is plenty of interest. We were travelling through some glorious countryside with sugar plantations and rice fields as well as the local people going about their daily business in the villages and fields.
Once we arrived at the site, we were surprised [and pleased] to see that the Fundi’s had worked over the weekend and had completed concreting the floors and were working on the final courses of brickwork. We then set about moving a pile of course sand by chain to an area adjacent to the house where the sand was then sieved to remove small stones. The fine sand was then mixed with cement by the Fundi’s to make cement render which was used to coat the internal walls - first by throwing the render on to the walls with a shovel, followed by levelling off with a long metal pole before smoothing off by trowel.
The sun was baking hot but progress over the morning was good and allowed an earlier than planned lunch break.
The afternoon shift involved some final sand sifting and clearing of broken bricks and debris from the site before we said goodbye to Amina and the children about the site, feeling satisfied that a good job had been done.
The return journey was punctuated with stops to allow photos of birds and the local scenery before we were stopped in our [bumpy] tracks by a herdsman driving cattle and goats. Nevertheless, our day was shorter than expected and concluded with a welcome cold drink on our return.
---
Sunday 25th August 2024.
“What a day! Oh what a day!”
Boy, what a day! Today was Daniel Haggerty’s 17th birthday and boy did we have a great day celebrating with him. His day started with birthday cards from his pals Aiden and Cameron.
At breakfast he was then surprised with a rendition of Happy Birthday, a card signed by the whole team, and a Simba FC strip.
We were up early as we had a very busy schedule: English Language Church service at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre at 8:30am followed by a live link to Larbert East, lunch and an excursion, followed by a birthday party - a lot of logistics to bring together.
Again, the team went out on the big bus to KCMC and we got there just as the Kiswahili service was ending, they must have been at church at 6:30am by my reckoning.
The service was very moving, with some exceptional singing and harmonising. Gilly Kessy was there, so it was lovely to see him again today.
After the service, we came back to Umoja. Most of the team then went for a walk around Moshi town centre, while Alex, Fiona, Elly and I went to Tawref HQ to set-up for a live link with Larbert East. We had run a Zoom test with the church two weeks ago on 10th August. The church was brilliant today, we connected with them at 9:45am UK time (11:45 here) to do a sound check, and they then kept us online with Alan Belford chatting to us offline, whilst everything else was set up for the live link during the service. Twice Tawref’s WiFi dropped out but during the service it held long enough for the interview to work and for us to make the contribution we wanted to the joint service between Larbert East, Stenhouse and Carron, Larbert West and Airth Parish church. Needless to say, we were well chuffed that the link worked. Thank you so much to Callum and Martin Fairbairn and to Elly E. Kimaro for making it possible.
Next, a quick lunch at Umoja before our Sunday excursion.
First stop was a visit to the Marangu Waterfall. It is an interesting place. The waterfall, is beautiful, against the backdrop of the cloud forest.
The team then headed to the Chagga Caves and Coffee Tour. The Chagga Homes were fascinating, similar to a Scottish Cranog. We had a right good laugh going through the cave tunnel network - it was really good fun.
The highlight of the afternoon was the coffee tour. We saw Arabica beads growing, then being kernelled, then ground by hand, then roasted over a wood fire, then ground again, and mixed with sugar and milk powder and ground a third time to make a chocolate coffee. We then sampled the freshly ground coffee. It was awesome with a lovely aftertaste.
After a lot of fun with the coffee and caves we headed back to Umoja for Daniel Haggerty’s surprise 17th birthday party. We started with dinner, and then the Umoja staff all very excitedly surprised him with has birthday cake and a big rocket candle. Resident DJ Wilson Shaw took control of Elly’s boom box and we partied to the likes of the Slosh, Calvin Harris, Chelsea Dagger and YMCA with Daniel leading the dance moves. The night came to a fitting end with a whole team rendition of Loch Lomond.
A great day was had by all.
We’ve worked hard. We rested, worshipped and played hard this weekend.
---
Saturday 24rd August 2024
Climate Change, Tree Planting and Carbon Footprint.
Our day started with a visit to Umoja from an old friend, Dr. Gilliard Kessy, Tourism and Climate Change lecturer at Mwenge Catholic University.
Gilly gave us a brilliant overview of how Climate Change is impacting the Kilimanjaro region. Africa is the continent most vulnerable to Climate Change because of a lack of adaptive capacity due to poverty. Gilly explained that precipitation in Tanzania has decreased steadily over time and that droughts are common place. Kilimanjaro is different to other glaciers affected by Climate Change. Instead of the glacier melting to water, the glacier loss is due to sublimation, where the ice turns directly into steam. So the water that irrigates the Kilimanjaro area does not come from water melt from the mountain but from the cloud forest and rain.
Gilly went into a lot more detail about the complexity of Climate Change, mentioning that Carbon Tanzania are the leading agency in the country who issue Certified Carbon Offsets.
After Gilly's overview, the team set off. Today is the first day that the full team have travelled together and it's a week since our journey to Tanzania began. We travelled on one bus, on smoother roads, back out to Hai District to plant 100 trees.
To plant a tree we had to pick axe out a hole of about a foot deep. My first few attempts at digging holes were brutal, the area was full of rocks and boulders and it took ages to get a good hole dug out. On rocky ground this relied on good method, raising up the long sharp end of the pick axe to hammer in deep and hard; the first cut is the deepest. 3 or 4 cuts were required to break the ground, then the flat end was used to clear out top soil and heavy rocks. Once the soil got darker, the hole was ready for the sapling. The hole was only lightly filled to cover the root ball, leaving a 6 inch bowl of soil above the root ball. This will be watered tonight until the bowl is saturated, leaving plenty of hydration to feed the plant.
The Rotary Club of New Zealand have a credit for providing the rest rooms here. Being in this place is like a desert scene from "No Country For Old Men". Hot, dry, arid, eery, with insect sounds and isolated bird noises, and the risk of scorpions, spiders and green snakes. Thankfully, there were no bites, tho there was a green snake. And 3 dogs and a pile of local children chasing a hare.
After our packed lunch the team headed for Tinga Tinga for some tourist shopping and then onto the Kilimanjaro Supermarket in Moshi to top up on snacks.
In the evening we went out to Jackfruit for dinner and a really relaxing time together in a lovely setting with some fabulous pizza.
Tomorrow morning, we go to church and connect live with Larbert East.
---
Friday 23rd August 2024
,
A full day on the building site and a first day building at the Banana Plantation for me. It was great to see first-hand the difference the first 3 days of building has made to the house. The journey is significantly shorter and smoother, on good roads most of the way, so it was nice not to be bounced all over the place.
This was the first day at Elly's site for me too, with the added bonus of his smart speaker and some Tartan Army tunes mixed up with some Saw Doctors. As is customary, the lyrics were suitably adapted, and we now have a new anthem:
"We're on the March with Elly's Army
We're going to the Plantation
And we'll really shake em up
When the house is going up
Cos Elly has a great construction team"
which we proudly blasted out as we made our way up into the cloud forest. A significantly shorter journey to get there, appreciated a lot by those who had only worked at Lower Moshi thus far.
First job of the day was to move a huge pile of bricks down a hill through the banana trees down to the edge of the new house, and this once again required the chain gang. A couple of water breaks later, the whole pile had been moved down successfully. This process was repeated with a massive pile of sharp sand which would be used to make cement.
Packed lunch as per with some tunes and the usual craic flew in and soon it was time to don our gloves again.
The sun began to break cover and our first job of the afternoon was to clear vegetation, from behind the veranda of the house. This is to make an area for new outbuildings.
Once the vegetation was cleared, the ground was broken with pick axes. The soil was loaded into buckets and moved to the side of the old house; this soil will be used to fill in the latrine hole for the old house.
The team cleared the broken soil by chain gang again and the work was completed by the end of the shift. A good day was had by all and we had great fun with all the local kids.
We ended with a customary photograph with the Fundi’s before heading back to Umoja.
Shower time, tea time, and hopefully, an early bed before tree planting tomorrow.
Lower Moshi Site
---
Thursday 22 August 2024 Larbert East Vine Trust team - In The Chain Gang.
Today was a good day. This was my 3rd day at Lower Moshi. The weather was better, bright from the off, but that meant sun protection and rehydration regularly was going to be critical.
From yesterday, the Fundi’s had carried on work to the extent that the first few levels of brick had been laid on the foundations.
This meant it was time for chain ganging all day long. After a good stretching session to limber up and loosen our muscles, our morning session was essentially getting in a line and moving the red mud clay bricks to where they were required, while the Fundi’s mixed cement, and their chief laid the bricks. The house level was rising quickly. The work gets rapid once the brick layer starts and today was no different. The floor on the inside of the house was levelled off once the first few levels of bricks were down, then the spaces for doors became clear as their gaps appeared whilst the walls went up. The space for the veranda was marked out and it also began to take shape.
In the intense heat of the midday sun, rest breaks at Lower Moshi to take on water (‘magi’ in Swahili) are critical, and the team sensibly broke the work up for them.
By lunchtime, 6 rows of bricks had been laid and a good few hundred bricks had been moved into position, with the chain gangs position moving to get the right piles in the right places.
Over lunch, it was slightly overcast, giving a welcome break from the sun’s intensity. Each day the team share food from our packed lunches with the Fundi’s, and also with the beneficiary family if they are around on site.
After lunch we returned to the chain gang. The pile of bricks we needed to move was rapidly diminishing. 500 > 400 > 300 > 200> 100 and before we knew it the pile was gone - redistributed around the plot of the growing house. Meanwhile, the Fundi’s cracked right on and got the building up to around 8 rows of bricks high.
A full working day was finished and it felt like loads of progress had been made. Teammates used long balloons to make hats and sausage dogs for the local kids. With the house taking shape, the team then posed for photographs with the Fundi’s, before a small pose popped up to see the old house which this new one is replacing.
Tomorrow is a time of change as I swap Lower Moshi for the banana plantation - I am hopeful it will be a great day there. Most members of the team are swapping around sites to ensure everyone has a fair and balanced opportunity to build on each one.
A fresh delivery of bricks will be taken tomorrow at Lower Moshi so that the build can be completed.
Wilson Shaw from the Banana Plantation Site- Another tiring but productive day starting with a human chain to move the 5 tonne or so of sand for the brick mortar from the top of the hill to the site. With tunes from the decades, the team danced their way through the task with a few belting out the chorus to ‘Sweet Caroline’, ‘Apache’ and ‘Mr Brightside’. Even Mama Joyce was joining in and clapping to ‘Come on Eileen’.
After a break, the team joined Elly (who had been working like a Trojan with a pick axe whilst we moved the sand) in levelling the ground around the back and far side of the house. This was very heavy work in the sun, as the team had to break the ground, cut the roots and shovel the spoil into buckets to be transferred by hand to a spoil heap at the other side of the house, ready to fill and cover the old latrine. Even Elly’s boom box ran out of battery due to the heat - or was it just to save us from Karen’s singing?!
At lunch, we had fun playing with around seven kids who had gathered giving out balloons, gliders and stickers. Their smiles really make it all so worthwhile!
On competing the days “cut and fill” exercise, we had some more time with the kids and the days most heart warming moment was when one of the little girls gifted everyone a piece of cake as a parting gift.
Representing the squad at the Banana Plantation, today Neil Johnstone said: "the enthusiasm remained high but first day at BP for us was notable for the input of Mama Joyce, the seamless integration with the “new” team colleagues, and the wonderful interactions with the children. Our younger members in particular bonded so well with Joyce’s children referring to “Teacher Millie”, and “Teacher Anna”. Daniel was always ready with his camera and delighting the children with the results.
Main differences in the physical site features was the need for earthworks to level the surrounding ground and the excavation of a new long-drop latrine."
The day ended well with Vine Trust publicising next year’s two adult teams.
---
21 August 2024, Larbert East Team
“Bump! Bump! Double and Treble Bump!”
This morning, I went to Lower Moshi again. Not long out of the main part of central Moshi, the road to the build site moves out into a much more rural and arid setting. The road is long, meandering and bumpy. Bumptity bump, bump, bump and triple bump! A long, and winding, dusty road, that Blair Drummond Safari park could only wish for. Who needs a rollercoaster when we have a Toyota bus bouncing along the happy road of Vine Trust love and life?
Along the way some fascinating sites; sugar cane plantations, joyous young children waving on their way to school, maize, termite mounds, and paddy fields. Masai Mara and cattle droving of sheep, cows, and goats. Rivers, and bridges without parapets. Loads of wildlife, and a lot of buzz in the small rural villages as the day sprang to life.
The journey to lower Moshi took over an hour and we arrived there just after 10:15am. Since yesterday, the fundi’s had finished off our foundations trenches to the point where they were ready for the first concrete pour. Buckets and spades were swiftly grabbed, cement was mixed, and the unmissable trademark Vine Trust chain gang was off and running, moving bucket loads of cement across the site for the Fundi to pour concrete into the foundations.
Bricks were moved into position by the chain gang as well and we learned to count in Swahili: Moja, Bili, Tatu, Nah, Sita, Saba, Nani, Tasi, Kumi (I think).
A half days intense work went quickly and achieved a lot. Similarly, at the Banana Plantation, swift work was made, laying bricks to level 3. Lunch was a quick affair as we had to leave at 13:30 to arrive at HAI Vocational Training Centre for a tour at 14:30.
The centre is an incredible place, teaching carpentry and joinery, electronics, masonry, bricklaying, welding and fabrication, design sewing and clothing technology, food production and computer applications.
The kitchen was particularly impressive, as is their pipe organ. The site tour involved a fair bit of walking, and so everyone was a bit tired by the end. We got our second wind in the HAI VTC shop - if only it had a coffee shop!
Then it was back into the bus tin for the bumpity, bumpity, bump, bump and triple bump run back from HAI VTC to Moshi.
Pre-dinner there was a power cut at Umoja, so most of the team had a cold shower in the dark!
After dinner the team gathered up and sorted all the clothes, games and school supplies donated to TAWREF by our very generous supporters - thank you one and all - you know who you are.
The team worked really productively in sorting gifts for the Mamma and each child at both homes. The team will give out these gifts to the families benefitting from these new homes when we leave these sites next week.
So, a busy wee day. Enjoyable, encouraging, and very, very bumpy!
---
Tuesday 20th August, Larbert East Vine Trust trip. Update from Neil Graham.
Today has been another really good day on the team in Moshi.
First thing this morning we headed off in the vans to the TAWREF office. When I first visited Moshi in 2011, Dafrosa Itemba was working for an organisation called Kiwakukki (Kilimanjaro Women Against AIDS) before she moved to run TAWREF (Tanzania Womens Research Foundation). TAWREF started in December 2011 with a handful of staff. Under Dafrosa’s guidance, TAWREF now employ 23 full time staff to support their HIV support and education programmes.
This was the first time I had visited the current office which opened in 2016 and it is a vast improvement on the previous office in central Moshi; spacious, slightly out of the town centre, and away from the traffic buzz of Moshi.
It was great for both teams to meet, and we got a lovely welcome. It was the first Vine Trust adult team to return to the shelter building programme since 2020. This team was due here in October 2020 but Covid-19 has delayed us until now. Dafrosa gave us a lovely vote of thanks today for managing to get this team out. I am hopeful this will enable us to begin to get many more adult teams back to Tanzania. Watch this space.
It was great to see the HIV KPIs TAWREF track on the wall, and to appreciate that they monitor data on a weekly, monthly and quarterly basis. As a previous sexual and reproductive health statistician for NHS Scotland, it was hugely encouraging to see good information on family planning and infection control protection.
The team had an opportunity to go to the TAWREF shop and many folks took the opportunity to buy Tanzania football shirts, Big 5 ornaments, clothing, and other merchandise.
The highlight of the visit was a sing song, with both teams, TAWREF singing Jambo Jambo Bwana, and Vine Trust singing Flower of Scotland (at TAWREFs request).
The teams then split up again, with 10 going to the Banana Plantation site and 10 to lower Moshi site.
The road to lower Moshi was a bumpy ride. The site there is much more arid than the site at the banana plantation. We met the widow beneficiary and paid our respects at her husband’s grave, just yards from the building plot. She is clearly still coming to terms with the loss of her husband in 2016. We also met neighbours and children from families next door.
The sun was hot, and the sky was clear and it made for hard work. We risk assessed the site, and determined actions to minimise risk, and communicated these to the team (use sun cream, use Deet for mosquito protection, drink loads of bottled water, use personal protective equipment - good working boots, masks, goggles and rigger gloves.
Anne Johnstone lead a good session first to get us all limbered up and ready for the pick axing and shovelling to follow. Under the guidance of the local builders (fundi) and following standard string plumb lines, together we began to dig foundation trenches, marking out the house boundary, the living room and the two bedrooms.
It was heavy work. The soil was hard, and difficult to break. But the team and the local fundis got stuck right in to break the back of the job. Either side of our packed lunch, each trench was finished, and filled with large, granite rocks, the base for the house foundations.
Tomorrow half the team return here to complete the concrete pour, the backfill, and to begin the brick build. The houses are rising!
It was really good to finally get working.
This evening the team are tired but very satisfied. A lovely meal was enjoyed by all at the local Blossoms restaurant.
---
19th of August from team leader, Neil Graham:
This trip has been a long time coming, with original recruitment beginning pre-Covid in early 2018, so arriving into Kilimanjaro airport yesterday morning was very satisfying.
Yesterday was a rest day, as Groups 1, 2 and 3 arrived into Moshi. An opportunity for us all to share our travel experience and catch up on our various Vine Trust Connections. For me, that meant catching up with a good, old friend, Ian Hiscutt, from Portsmouth with whom I am sharing a twin room here. Ian and I first met on a KLM flight to Peru in November 2000 when I did an initial recce on the possibility of Vine Trust taking volunteer teams to Peru. We had a lot of laughs on that team and we have been great pals ever since. Ian is acting as my points man on this team - helping me to take the teams questions at times when I’m not around.
Today has been really good. Early this morning we headed up into the banana plantation in the cloud forest, a lush and verdant area, that is blessed with incredibly fertile soil and a regular supply of irrigation from the glacier on Kilimanjaro.
Our first stop was in a small area of forest where we saw banana plants, an avocado tree, a vanilla tree (with fresh vanilla pods), a mango tree, a papaya tree and coffee plant. Quite incredible!
This was on our way to visit the home of Mama Rosa. Mama Rosa is the recipient of a home built by Vine Trust volunteers in 2018, which 4 of our current team helped to build, and the 100th home which Vine Trust built in partnership with TAWREF.
When Mama Rosa spotted the team coming, she came dancing up the path, singing her enthusiastic welcome in Swahili, letting out the occasional characteristic whoop!, and greeting old friends with big hugs and many ‘Karibu Sana’s’ (very welcome).
The team were delighted to meet her and to see the impact that the small home has made for her and her family. Two bedrooms, a living room, glass windows, and a corrugated iron roof provide a safe, warm home, and space for the grandchildren to study and do their school work.
Six years on, the family are proud of their goats. By the goats voluminous bleating, it certainly sounded like the Billy goat was proud of the family! Selling goats brings an income, and growing crops like maize enable the family to sustain themselves. Sponsorship is provided to TAWREF by a donor in the US for the eldest granddaughter (16) to go to school, providing hope and a future.
Next up was a visit to a new plot, at the site where TAWREF and Vine Trust volunteers begin to build a new home tomorrow. The old home consists of an indoor kitchen, and a small bedroom. The home is made of mud, and the lady recipient is a widow with two children. Representatives of the local authority were on site today. The family cut the first ground for the foundations, something which is done on each site. The local authority’s commitment to TAWREF is to pay for and provide the labour for the toilet hole (which has capacity for 20 years of waste). The team were humbled by the circumstances, and genuinely moved. The lady whose family will benefit from the home cannot afford to feed her children. She goes without breakfast and lunch, and has one meal per day, generally consisting of rice, beans or gruel.
Tonight, we had the privilege of out TAWREF partner, and Vine Trust team co-ordinator Elly E. Kimaro leading us in a Swahili lesson, getting all of the volunteers learning useful phrases for the building site, and getting us all clapping along to some Swahili songs.
It’s been a good day, and a good start.
The team are all off to bed now. We breakfast at 8am. Tomorrow we visit the TAWREF HQ and to learn more about their shelter programme and their HIV education programmes.
Two new plots await us. 10 of the team head back up to the banana plantation and 10 head for lower Moshi.
Comments