The highlight of the trip so far......

It’s all been very exciting, challenging and different but the highlight (apart from going to paradise!)has to be – no, not the training or the more frequent praying or even meeting so many amazingly interesting people – but driving! I drove a huge 4x4 for about 300km through the countryside and I loved it! To be honest, it was easy driving as we were on the main tarmac roads most of the time but I did have a spell of driving along a mud road full of potholes and traffic coming towards me on all sides. The rule on these roads is to drive anywhere to avoid the huge potholes and not to worry whose coming towards you!

However, the traffic on the main roads is very orderly. The signing is good, though occasionally you come across a hump on a straight fast piece of road for which there are no signs. Usually there are a few raised lines either side of a hump which warns you to slow right down. There are police everywhere who generally stop the big trucks checking that they are not overweight. We were stopped about 6am as we were leaving Dar es Salaam. Augustine was driving and overtook a truck where there were double white lines; just as we drew over to our side in front of the truck, a policeman stopped us. He started writing a ticket and then as Augustine was protesting, suggested he pay him not to write it! After about 10 minutes of heated discussion – all in Swahili – we drove off without a ticket and without having to pay the bribe. It obviously helps being a priest!

Other highlights –

·         Playing draughts with some street vendors in Dodoma and being thrashed!

·         Working with the teachers here in Dodoma. I am now beginning to feel more comfortable and am beginning to understand their context, so can relax a little more. Shame we only have one more session to deliver!

·         Watching the children in Moshi playing games

·         Speaking to Form 4 (Year 11 students) about England and their perceptions of our country.

Experiences that have been challenging (but not challenging enough to call them 'lowlights'!)

• cockroaches in my bedroom in Moshi
• being given a bedroom in which there was no shower and nothing but a bed (but to be fair after a few hours we were moved to somewhere slightly better!)
• not being able to access the internet and communicate with people for a week or so
• the very early mornings - most days I'v ehad to get up between 6 and 7 and sometimes earlier  (5am) to travel.

But I am having the experience of my life and wouldn't change even the above. Talk to you all later.....