Double Take

These last few months, since arriving in Tanzania, have see me brushing up on the Swahili I had from when I lived in Dodoma before ... and for which both me and Mark are very grateful for! I love languages and while I make many many many mistakes I've been trying to give it a go when I get the opportunity.

We will have the opportunity to go to Language School but with Mark needing his TCAA (Tanzanian Civil Aviation Authority) Licence for our visas it has been put on the back burner for a while. In the meantime my teacher is my house mama, Maria and hopefully soon a local friend of mine who I knew when I lived here before. 

Maria has no English but is really good at teaching me new words when I try and use them with their plurals (as there are many noun classes with different plural prefixes). If I put a sentence together incorrectly, she will also repeat it but without the mistakes which is really helpful for me. She is always complementing me on my Swahili too but for me, I often feel like I'm faltering where I want to be fluent!! I know ... in time!!!

On our fridge door right now is a little list with some of the words I've been been trying to remember recently (it needs updating as I've mastered these few!) ... 

zambarau - purple

maelezo ya upishi - recipe

kutabasamu - smile

mjusi - lizard

kitunguu saumu - garlic

The girls are also picking up bits and pieces here and there, which is really cute! One thing that really amuses them, Abigail especially, is that many words are repetitive and so nice to say. They have a ring to them! 

So to humour them, myself and probably some of you reading this, here are just a few that we use ... and no you don't have to do a double take, each one really is repeated!!

mimi - I, me

wewe - you (singular)

yeye - he/him, she/her

sisi - we us

takataka - rubbish/garbage

mboga mboga - lots of vegetables

katikati - in the middle

pikipiki - motorbike

pilipili - pepper

wasiwasi - disquiet/problem

daladala - (mini)bus/local transport (See photo below)