Little Tweaks

I'm back! As promised the blog looks a little different now ... but to be honest it is essentially the same. Hope you like the changes! (Those of you who get the posts emailed directly to your inbox may not even notice anything different at all!)

Ever since I started this blog I've wanted to put more of a personal stamp on it but wasn't sure if it would last the distance (which I'm very excited to say it has!) and also I just haven't had the opportunity. These last couple of weeks I've enjoyed playing around with all kinds of things to make it look like this and had lots of frustrations too! I have also found lots of other little things that I want to adjust here and there. They will only be little tweaks now that I'm up and running again and you may not even notice them but it is still a work in progress, even if the majority of the work has been done!

I've also been thinking a lot about how life in Tanzania feels quite normal to us now. There are lots of little tweaks and adjustments that we have learned as a family to make over these first few months, allowing a lot of our day-to-day stuff to feel familiar ... although like the blog, life does 'look' totally different out here. 

I thought I'd share just a few of of our little tweaks with you!

• Before you leave the house, either lather up with sunscreen or bug spray (depending on the time of day/activity you are doing)
• Freeze Weetabix, crackers and other dry goods for 24 hours after purchase to kill off any weevils before you eat them
• Remember to keep the water filter topped up at all times ... it's amazing how much water we get through and all the different things you need to use clean water for
• Don't get frustrated when post (mail) takes weeks to get through/gets returned/doesn't make it at all, just appreciate what does make it when it does arrive
• As certain things aren't available in the shops, add extra steps to every recipe ... like chopping your own chocolate chips before making Banana and Chocolate Chip Muffins

• Keep your mosquito nets closed at night so no little bugs can come and get you
• Put the solar powered bedside lights out to charge once a week so that they don't run out of charge and you can read in bed or use them when the power goes out
• Float your eggs after purchase to check for rotten ones ... they don't come in packaged, dated packs here!
• However naturally it comes to stick your toothbrush under the tap to wash it out DON'T (I can't count the number of times I have automatically gone to turn the tap on in the morning or last thing at night!)
• Be content with or without electricity and internet ... sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't ... life goes on!

Watch this Space

This week things haven't been going quite to plan.

One of the things we knew to be prepared for when we signed up to this kind of life was flexibility. Whether it be to the culture, the lifestyle, the climate ... or the sicknesses.

Both me and Abigail have succumbed this week to a little something nasty ... although in much milder doses than some of our friends here. So things have had to change a little to compensate. Missing blog posts, unanswered emails, to name just two.

Before it all hit though, I was working on something new. I am not all that clued in with technical blog type stuff. Yes really, I know some of you think I know what I'm talking about but I only know the basics and writing bits, not the design stuff!

So, I plan to take a few weeks break from writing in order to use the time in tweaking a new look for The Missionary Mum blog. Here's a sneak peek ...

It's something I've wanted to do for a while and I figure that when our container eventually arrives in Dodoma, spare time will be few and far between! So 'Watch This Space' and take a last look at the old style blog as it won't be round for much longer!

More Traffic Jams

This morning I was sitting in my car on a dual carriageway in a traffic jam! Not moving an inch!

While it may be standard practice for many of you, in your day-to-day commute or simply just getting from A to B ... it really is not the norm here in Dodoma. It's a busy town, much busier than Coshocton where we last lived but everything flows and there is not an excessive amount of traffic or even a rush hour or anything.

With one exception ... when there are VIP's here everything and I mean EVERYTHING stops. The Tanzanian Parliament is here in Dodoma and all the top politicians have residences both here and in Dar Es Salaam. You know when parliament is in session as police and military appear everywhere stopping traffic and you could be waiting for anything from a few minutes to twenty or more!

Then at some point you are treated to a 'car parade' as Abigail calls it. The cavalcade speeds through fast but is motorbikes, cars, 4x4's and they go on and on and on! Usually you hear the presidential or other jet first ... then you know there is a chance of getting stuck on the roads. The President of Tanzania has the longest entourage but other VIP's come with their own train of vehicles too.

This weekend, as a family we avoided town completely. There were way too many VIP's around for the installation of the new Archbishop of Tanzania and it would have taken forever to get anywhere. The only person we really had any interest in seeing was the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, who flew in for the occasion. 

Lucky for us, he flew into Dodoma via MAF and so right at airport, on arrival, we were able to see him before all the craziness really set in!

He was given quite the welcome. Bishops and clergy, politicians, tribal dancing ... the list goes on! This was his first visit to Tanzania since becoming the Archbishop of Canterbury and he really was treated like royalty.

Thankfully, the weekend went off without incident, although there was some concern before and now all the VIP's are heading out again. There isn't much here worth sticking around for to be honest! 

That means that as this week progresses there will be less and less reason for all the traffic to be stopped again and life for the rest of us lesser beings will go on without sitting in anymore jams ... until the next time!