Returning to Tanzania

It was nice to make it back to Arusha after two months of traveling. I have to say, when you come back after being away for a while, you always notice everything that has changed.

First, when I got home, we were having a good-bye party for my roommate Rose, which was really sad (glad I made it back in time to see her off). I was still kinda dazed from the traveling, and I realized that I only knew about a quarter of the people there. I definitely enjoyed myself at the party. But probably not as much as the Tanzanians who built a little grill in our yard and roasted some goat. They were incredibly triumphant about the whole experience.

That night I also discovered that we had acquired a new dog. My housemate Reuben had petted him once, and I suppose that act of kindness was so refreshing for the dog that he decided to take up a post as our guard. Unfortunately, he's a bit too aggressive and kinda rubs us all the wrong way, but he hasn't figured out that we'd prefer if he didn't spend time at our house. We call him Reuben, since we've had dogs named after most of the other occupants of the house.

I also noticed some changes in town. Gas prices have gone up about 10% and it's now over 2000 shillings per liter (about $1.25). Also, the exchange rate is going up again, and it's now over 1600 shillings to the dollar (it was just over 1500 when I left). Food prices are rising a bit more slowly (though some products have risen much more quickly).

It was also nice to see that the bridge near our office that they've been rebuilding for most of the year was finally finished. Some of the big construction projects in town have really come together quickly and are starting to look pretty impressive. But all in all, two months is a pretty short time, and things mostly stayed the same while I was gone.