Coming to an end... Costa Rica

We are spending our final night in Bahia Ballena. Tomorrow we are squeezing in one last surf - well attempt at surfing at our spot in Bahia Ballena.

It has been a great vacation. Since my last post, we did some ATVing where I thought that I would drive myself off of the mountain! I had never been on an ATV, and honestly the instruction could have been a little better. Our guides were great though. Initially, we got to do a little test run, where drove around this little dirt road to get a feel for it. For whatever reason, I panicked and drove myself into a ditch. It was pretty funny, but it wasn't so funny when I almost drove off the road again when we were drive through the mountains. I guess I just had a hard time avoiding all of the rocks and stuff, but then I guess you are suppose to drive over them. I rode most of the way in a jeep while one of the guides drove my ATV because I wanted to stay alive for the rest of my trip. I definitely want to do it again, but probably not up and down steep mountain roads!




If you need to make a call when you are in the middle of the mountains, there are telephone booths!



We also did some ziplining in the Osa Mountain Village. I had done this before, but the few first runs totally freaked me out. I quickly got over it and happily zipped through the next 9 lines.




At the end of the zipline, they have a a rope they call the "Tarzan rope." They clip you onto the rope and shove you off the platform. I was a little afraid at first, but then I saw a 5 year old girl do it. If she could do it and survive --I certainly can! It was pretty cool, you are swinging up pretty high, and you just hope the rope doesn't break. Luckily, it didn't and I am still alive...


That's me swinging around!






Today, we went to Dominical,which is approximately 19 kilometers from our house. It is a little surf town, where people who can actually surf go. Nate from our group could actually surf, so he wanted to check it out. Four of us made it down the mountain and 3 of us rented some fiberglass boards. Unfortunately, they did not have soft boards, and the board I ended up renting was too small and not stable for me because I am a beginner. The waves are much more powerful and well harder.

It reminded me something that Nate had told me the first day I took my surf class. He said that the waves are like life. You have to be patient and wait for the right wave. Sometimes you have to pass on a lot of waves until you find the right one. Sometimes you think you found the right one and then it ends up being wrong or just fizzling out right in the middle of it all. Sometimes the waves pound on you and offering little relief, but when you finally catch the right wave, the ride is incredible.

Today the waves of Dominical really just pounded on me and offer very little relief. Let's hope tomorrow the surf at Bahia Ballena National Park with its gentler and longer waves will provide me with some great rides :)

Bahia Ballena, Costa Rica

I am sitting on the porch of the house we rented and listening to the sounds of the jungle. The group is out kayaking and snorkeling, but I stayed behind to do a little work and to recover from my 2 days of surfing lessons.

If you get a chance, I highly suggest heading out to Bahia Ballena. It is super relaxing and beautiful. I am one of 8 people on this trip. It has worked out pretty well except that 3 people missed connecting flights and arrived a day later, but they made it.

I arrived the night of the 28th and met up with Kerry, the sister of a childhood friend, in San Jose. We stayed a pretty swanky hotel the first night and then set out the next morning for Bahia Ballena. Along the way we stopped off to see the location crocodile attraction - actually it is just a bunch of crocodiles hanging out by a river. It was pretty cool though. If you look closely, you can see a pair of shoes next to the crocodile -
I hope it was just coincidental :)



Most of the group arrived a few hours before the new years. Since no one brought speakers for our ipods, we had to improvise. We put my laptop in a bowl and others put their ipods in cups and it really works :)



The last few days, I did a surf clinic through Bodhi Surf - in Bahia Ballena National Park. It was pretty cool. I loved my instructors, Gibran and Adriana. I managed to ride the white water several times my first two days and even rode a small green wave at the end of my instruction yesterday. After the first day, I was sunburned and extremely sore. I thought there was no way I was going to make it through another class. I was wrong - once I got into the water, I couldn't help but attempt surfing again. My body is still sore, my face is a bit sunburned as well as my arms, and my knees are a little scraped up. But in two days, I am going to do it again :) I only wish the waters of San Francisco were as warm and gentle as the waves in Bahia Ballena.

My knees:


It is a bite strange to just be hanging out after living and working in Africa last year. I haven't had much contact with the local people except at the grocery store. I definitely miss that part of traveling, but I can't complain. I am fortunate enough to be able to come to beautiful place like Bahia Ballena, surf and just chill out. Anyways - I hope everyone is doing well and that they had a great New Year. Obviously - mine has been fantastic in Costa Rica.

Take care and if anything else exciting happens or I finally get around to taking some photos - I will update you all.

Hasta luego amigos,

Michelle

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Busua, Ghana

I am sadly and excitedly counting my final days on the African continent. For the past two days, I have planted myself in a chair at my hotel next to the beach - reading and watching the local kids run around the ocean. I can't seem to motivate myself to do anything else, and it is actually the best way to wrap up my time here.

It has been over 5 months since I said goodbye to family and friends and boarded a plane for Ghana. Shortly before my arrival in Ghana, I recently learned that it was located in West Africa and little else. It seems fitting that my last days in Africa should end where it began - Ghana. Since I haven't been very good about blogging, I will try give a quick little run down of where and what I have been up to.

For the first two months in Ghana, I lived and worked in Kumasi, Ghana, which is located approximately 250 kilometers north of the capital city Accra. Kumasi wasn't an easy town for me as I had a terrible time with the local food and left Ghana ten pounds lighter than when I first arrived. Kumasi was also a bit lonely and boring, but it also gave me a wonderful opportunity to interact with my neighbors and other locals. I also had a chance to travel around to rural areas surrounding Kumasi, which was fantastic. You can't really say you have been to Africa until you head out to the rural areas where you see people living very modestly, but still very cheerful.

After my most unfortunate problems with the Ghanaian immigration officials (still don't know why they are so difficult!), I headed to Nairobi for a little rest and relaxation before my next placement in Dar es salaam, Tanzania. Although I did not do extensive traveling in Tanzania, I did head out to Zanzibar on two separate trips, which was nice. After hanging out and working in Dar es salaam for 2 months at two different partner microfinance institutions, I crossed over to Kigali, Rwanda. My previous blog was about my time in Kigali, so I won't repeat it.

From Kigali, Rwanda, I traveled by bus to Bujumbura, Burundi, where I spent a few days. I went to Lake Tanganyika and just sort of saw the countryside from the bus.

After a few more days in Kigali, Rwanda, I headed to Nairobi, Kenya to collect Rob. While in Kenya, Rob and I traveled to Masai Mara for a safari. Masai Mara is probably the most beautiful place I have ever seen in my life. A huge Savannah where lions, zebras, warthogs, impalas, giraffes, etc. hang out naturally and wildly about. From Masai Mara, we headed to Lake Naivasha and biked through the national park, Hell's Gate, where we met our new friends John (a local Kenyan) and Marin (a Dutch traveler). After Lake Naivasha we headed back to Nairobi and to a town called Murang'a where we met with a local microfinance institution who specialized in giving out loans to borrowers to buy dairy cows. We even met with a few borrowers, which was my favorite part of my fellowship.

From Nairobi, we next headed to the coast and the island of Lamu, which is a predominately Muslim area located in northern Kenya. Lamu is beautiful and historic. We spent a few days in Lamu town and a few days on Shella which is the neighboring village. In Lamu, we took two dhow rides (dhow is a traditional sail boat), and I even road a donkey. After Lamu, we headed by bus to Mombasa, which is another coastal town, but located in the southern part of Kenya. Mombasa wasn't quite as charming as Lamu, but I did get to ride a camel there. Therefore, Rob caught a flight back to the States and I continued my journey back to Ghana.

Since I have been in Ghana, I have spent most of my time in coastal towns - Accra, Cape Coast, Takoradi and now Busua. In Cape Coast, I went to the Kakum National Park which boasts the highest canopy bridge in the world. Also, I went to the famous Cape Coast Castle which housed several hundred African slaves prior to the departure to the Americas. It was a very surreal and sad visit, but also important for people to remember this history, so that it never happens again.

From Cape Coast, I traveled by tro-tro (a small mini-van) to Takoradi, where I had the most deliciously pain au chocolat at Bocadillos, which is run by a French/Nigerian couple. Realizing that I wanted to be right on the beach in a sleepier town, I decided to head to Busua.

I hitched a ride with two Ghanaians, who were friends of the receptionist at my hotel in Takoradi), who drove me the 45 minutes to Busua and dropped me off in front of my new residence for the next few days - Busua Inn. The Busua Inn is this little place located right on the beach owned by a French couple who have been living out here for the past 5 years.

And here I plan to be until at least Saturday before I head my way back to Accra, see my friend Richelle and collect my bag for my Monday morning flight back to the States. It has been an amazing year, and although I am not exactly sure what I will do when I get back, I am excited for what awaits me. I remember very early in my time here a manI met told me that people come to Africa to learn about themselves or escape themselves. I would like to think that I learned a lot about myself and what I am capable of. This will likely be my last post from Africa unless something really exciting happens. However, since I am sloth-like in Busua, I doubt much will happen. I will miss all of the wonderful people that I have come across during my life and travels in Africa, but I am excited to see my family and friends - especially my two sweet little nieces!

See you soon America!

Kigali, Rwanda

I started this blog about one month ago, but I have just been too busy to complete it and post it, so here i go. Kigali, Rwanda was my first stop on my African vacation. Kigali is a beautiful hilly town which is by far cleaner than most cities in America. Here is the view of the city from the house where I crashed one night. The city sort of reminds me of San Francisco.

My first night I had a homemade pasta meal from Iyanna (a Kiva fellow from my class) and went to the Goete Institute where I saw traditional Rwandan dancing and saw Nasar Abadey & Supernova, a US based jazz band -- thanks to the United States Embassy.

The next day, President Paul Kagame was inaugurated for his 2nd term in Kigali. We (Sara, Jonas, Iyanna and I) woke up at 6:00 a.m. and took motos to the stadium. We hoped we would be able get an actual seat in the stadium, but we were too late. We had to sit on the lawn outside the stadium with the other locals and wait for the President. Although there were plenty of mzungus (whites) inside the stadium, we were the only mzungus in the area outside of the stadium. We made a lot of friends and got a lot of assistance from the Rwandan National Police. I chatted one up, well I attempted to communicate with him but he did not speak English. However, the policeman later pulled us out of a crowded area and let us sit in the front row of our section. It was interesting because Iyanna is African American and she stated that she never really gets to experience "white privilege," especially in Africa where they assume she is a local. I never really thought about it before, but I definitely noticed that we were getting special attention and consideration from the National Police. Below is a photo of Kagama during his inaugural address and a photo of two young boys who sort of hung around us. The little one with the camera was especially sweet offering me a drink of his water, which I couldn't drink because it came from their local tap.

Kigali, Rwanda is an interesting place. Another fellow and I went to the Genocide Museum where we learned about the events leading up to the genocide and the genocide itself. It was weird to walk around Kigali afterward knowing that such atrocities occurred probably right where we were walking. Rwandans are also pretty reserved but friendly, and it seem unreal that such an event could have taken place 16 years ago.

Kigali is also a very orderly place in an almost unnatural way. The local population definitely respect the police. Street hawking and begging have been outlawed. A few times I was sitting at a cafe and watched people running down the street with a police officer walking calmly behind them.

Another interesting thing about Rwanda - being identified as Hutu or Tutsi has been outlawed as well. Kagame is trying to create a society where people do not identify by their "tribes", but identify through a national identity of Rwandan. I am interested to see how it works out for them. In Tanzania, the first President Julius Nyere (I believe that is his name), has been credited for helping Tanzanians identified with a national identity and not a tribal identity.

Finally, there has been recent accusations of a double genocide where Tutsis have entered the DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) and killed off Hutus. Kagame addressed it briefly in his inaugural speech and obviously very critical of such allegations from the UN.

I also crossed the border into Burundi, which is the total opposite of Rwanda. In Rwanda, you feel relatively safe, and in Burundi you have to look over your shoulder to make sure someone isn't going to follow and mug you. However, I also found some fantastic people in Burundi, especially a fellow named Cedric.

I went with another fellow to Burundi and silly us did not change money at the border. We were armed with a Lonely Planet map of the capital city, but soon discovered that it was totally incorrect. Using my horrible French skills from high school, I approached Cedric for directions to change money. Cedric kindly offered to pay for our bus ride to the money exchange location and he never even asked from payment in return. We obviously paid him for our bus fare and a little extra because he really did not have to help us.

That's the thing about being here in sub-sahara Africa. You can have several really horrible experiences with some people, but there are also so many kind people who help you along the way. I always wonder if I was in America and I was stranded somewhere without any money - would someone stop to help me. Especially someone who doesn't have much?

Thieves

It is most unfortunate, but in the last week I have either witnessed or heard about the robbery of mzungus. Since I have been in Africa, I make it a point to never carry a bag at night. If it can't fit into my pockets, it doesn't come with me. I figured especially after having a computer on the bus, I would like to leave with everything else that I came with. Also, it is just a good rule to follow whenever you are a stranger in a strange land and clearly stand out.

Last night I went to a phone center about a 5-7 minute walk from my flat. I needed to make some calls to America. It was evening and dark, and I usually walk down these streets but always at a rapid pace. People will say hello and I reply back, but I never usually stop because this is when things are go wrong for you here.


On my way home from the phone center, I saw a couple walking in front of me. They were foreigners like me, and I had seen them for the past two weeks near my flat. I never spoke to them, but I watched them walk carelessly down the street. They both had bags and weren't really paying attention to the people around them. I have heard of cars driving slowly behind foreigners with bags and then snatching the bag and speeding off and I thought they were perfect candidates from such an event. Since I was walking quickly, I passed them. I stopped at the chicken barbecue place at the corner of my street where I often get dinner. Ali, the owner, is really nice and often watches out for me when I am on the street and some stranger approaches me.


I placed my order with Ali and took a seat to wait for my food. About 5 minutes later, I saw the couple pass me and the man was also carrying a 5 litre bottle of water. Again, I saw his bag just dangling off of his shoulder. About 20 seconds later, we heard this painful scream coming from down the road. I thought someone was hurt and everyone at the stand ran to the middle of the street where we all saw the man (without his bag) screaming and running down the street. Apparently, a car came next to him and a person snatched his bag and the car sped off. I felt really bad for the guy, and apparently he has been coming to Dar twice a year for several years which could explain his over confidence walking in the evening with a bag.

Also, this past weekend, I heard about an American heading to Zanzibar from Dar being held up near the ferry station from a man he struck up a friendly conversation with earlier in the day. He decided to walk alone through some alleys around the ferry. It was midday and so you would think it should be okay. Well the American guy's new friend pulled up in a car next to him with his friends and forced the American guy into the car at gunpoint. The thieves made off with all of his stuff, except for his passport, ferry ticket, his camera memory card and some money.


Thankfully I haven't had any weird and/or dangerous encounters recently unless you want to count my daily dala-dalah rides to and from work.:)

However, Dar es salaam is not more dangerous than San Francisco really. Most people here are really friendly, nice and helpful. But you can never get too comfortable here because someone may be watching you and waiting for to get careless.

My newest find...

Last night, I went out to dinner with my flat mate, Roberto, 2 Kiva fellows, Ann and Katie, and Roberto's friend, George, an Israel diamond dealer. We went to this great Ethiopian spot located in the Masaki area. And George actually had diamonds with him, which he happily let us look at. They were rough cut, unpolished small diamonds. I have never seen one before, and I probably still wouldn't know it was a diamond unless someone told me. Unfortunately, I did not get any diamonds last night, but I did buy an automatic bottle opener from the bartender at the restaurant. Here is it: (isn't it a beauty?)


I was so excited when the bartender opened our beer bottles with it that I told him that I really like it. He said he had an extra one and sold it to me for 5000 TSH, or roughly $3.30. Although I bought this lovely beauty here in Dar es salaam, it is actually made in China. They also had these neat toothpick holders, which I was also tempted to buy - I don't know why.

Things are going well here in Dar. I am finally settling in, and starting to make friends, which is really great. I am also starting to just settle in like the locals. For example, the dala dalah (bus) rides can be quite intense. The other day on my way home from work, I attempted to get off the bus at the last stop, but before I could get off, people were jumping through the windows and pushing through the door. I was tossed around quite a bit until I finally said "move!" and pushed my way out. Yesterday, I had to tell a few people to please not lay their bodies across my head and face. When I got home my roommate, Roberto, asked me if I got sunburned until I realized that my face was probably chafted from the backsides, purses and other bags that scraped across my cheeks on the bus. At one point, I just put my arm up as a barrier, it sort of worked :)

It is funny because the mzungu, or white people, here sort of complain about the bus, including myself. But I was thinking that the bus experience actually reminds me of trying to board the 38 Geary to and from the downtown area during commuter hours. I think people, like me, are eager to get home after a long day working, so they get super aggressive on the bus. My first two weeks, I was so polite, but as you can see from above, I am starting to just muscle my way on and off the buses now, just like the locals :) They don't seem to mind...

Some Photos

I don't really have many stories, so I thought I would just post a few pictures.

Here is a photo of a leaf that can be used to create hair extensions for ladies on Zanzibar island.












Here is a photo of me at Bjewuu beach located on the island of Zanzibar.








Here is a photo of a narrow street in Stownstown, Zanzibar. What I liked about this photo is that there is a Chinese restaurant across from an English flag, which is near an Italian scooter with three Canadians walking.









And finally - here is a picture of a Tanzanian sunset which I took from the backyard of the first house I stayed at in Dar es salaam.






A new fellow, Ann, just arrived 2 days ago. I am very excited to have another American around and I hope to explore more of Dar es salaam now that I have a companion. And hopefully, as a result, I will have more blog postings.

Asante sana (thank you very much).