American Students Reflect on Studying in Tanzania

Last year, I wrote blog posts on a trip I took to Tanzania with students on the LCCT program. Read, for example, this post.

I was in Tanzania with these students for three weeks and then I left them at the University of Dar es Salaam, where they studied for one semester. That is how the program works.

Upon their return to the USA, the students get the opportunity to talk about their experiences in Tanzania to a gathering of LCCT program advisors. We met today at St. Olaf College, for this purpose.

We heard these students talk about the orientation I led, their studies of Swahili and other subjects at the University of Dar es Salaam, dorm life and life in general in Tanzania.

While enrolled at the University of Dar es Salaam, these students get the opportunity to volunteer as teachers at Mlimani Primary School, which is on the campus.

In August last year, during my visit to Mlimani Primary School to prepare for the students' teaching there, the teachers told me that the school appreciates the work of the American students. They pointed out, for example, how the American students help the Mlimani pupils to improve their English.

We as advisors of the LCCT program are used to hearing these students extolling the value of their study abroad experience as life-changing.











We are also proud of the fact that we offer them orientation before they start their studies at the University of Dar es Salaam. They read about Tanzania's history and its political, economic, social and cultural realities. We make sure that they gain some understanding of the thoughts and influence of Mwalimu Julius Nyerere. We seek, in these ways, to ensure that the students gain the most from their stay in Tanzania and their experience of culture shock is not too disruptive.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration at Concordia University, St. Paul

Janury 16 is Martin Luther King Day. There will be many commemorative events around the USA, and I will be at Concordia University, in St. Pau, froml 9:30am to 3pm with fellow authors, displaying books and talking with people.

Having done some homework, over the last few years, on the life and work of Martin Luther King, Jr, I have some understanding of the principles he stood for, especially around the issues of education, human equality and justice for all. When he said people should not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character, he wanted not only Whites but also Blacks and everybody else to abide by that principle.

As a writer and educator committed to such ideas, to making a positive difference in the world, I look forward to meeting people at Concordia University on January 16, and exploring the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr.

African Trickster Tales at Gustavus Adolphus College

Today I went to Gustavus Adolphus College to give a talk on The Trickster. Professor Paschal Kyoore is teaching a course on African Tricksters, and he invited me to visit the class, especially since they have been reading my Matengo Folktales.

I liked the fact that this was a two-hour class, plenty of time to raise and discuss some key issues. I dwelt mostly on conceptual issues and problems around the topic of trickster, starting with the Eurocentric orientation that drives our scholarly discourses. I stated that terms such as folktale, trickster, myth, and legend are themselves problematical.

There is something special about being in a small town in central Minnesota and discussing African traditions. I have experienced this before. I have given talks on Matengo Folktales at the College of St. Benedict, as I mentioned on my Swahili blog, at St. Olaf College, where I teach, at the School of Environmental Studies, and other venues.

Engaging students in reflecting upon human creativity in different cultures is surely one of the great joys of teaching, and I have always embraced that opportunity. Today, therefore, was another wonderful day in my life as a teacher.

Another Day With Gustavus Adolphus Students

Today, I met with students from Gustavus Adolphus College who are leaving for Tanzania this week on a January term program that has been around for a number of years. Professor Barbara Zust invited me to meet the students, as she has done in the past, as part of their pre-departure orientation.

Professor Zust had the students read my Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences". My meetings with the students enable us to reflect on what I say in the book. That is what we did today.


However, I first gave an account of the genesis of the book. Readers of the book will remember that I do this as well at the beginning of the book. I then summarized the main lessons I learned in writing the book.

After those remarks, we had a question and answer session, which took most of the time. Since the students had read the book, they had many questions which gave me a chance to elaborate on various cultural issues.

Our meeting today lasted about four hours, making it the longest book talk I have ever held.

As in previous years, the students seemed all excited about their impending trip. I told them how delighted I am that they are going to my country and how valuable such experiences in foreign countries are.

We met at the Mount Olivet Conference and Retreat Center. Located in a rural area, it has excellent conference, lodging, and restaurant facilities.

Mmbuji Rock, Southern Tanzania

Southern Tanzania has what it takes to be an attractive destination for tourists, both local and foreign. Here lies the Selous National Park, one of the largest in the world, with an incredible variety of wildlife.

The famous Maji Maji uprising against German rule, 1905-07, centered on this region, and records of it can be seen in the Maji Maji Museum in Songea town. To the west lies Lake Nyasa, with its sparkling waters and pristine beaches.

The list goes on, but one of the most magnificent but hidden treasures of Southern Tanzania is Mmbuji Rock, in the Matengo Highlands. There are several ways to get to it. As the road from Mbinga to Mbamba Bay winds its way higher into the highlands, it hits a junction going right, towards Litembo. This road, passing through coffee farms and fields of maize, wheat and beans, leads to Mmbuji Rock.

You can see Mmbuji Rock from miles away. I took the photo on the left while traveling from Mbinga to Litembo, as the landrover was going up the mountain from Kindimba, towards Manzege. You can see Mmbuji Rock in the far distance, beyond mountains covered with fields of ripened wheat.

There is much folklore surrounding Mmbuji Rock, including legends and tales of supernatural occurences, which I alluded to in an earlier post. For people interested in the folklore and culture of this area, I recommend Matengo Folktales.










Mmbuji Rock dwarfs everything else around it. Next to Mmbuji Rock, the tall trees seem like mere potted plants.

One needs to see Mmbuji Rock from different angles, from close by as well as from a distance. As the photos on this page demonstrate, Mmbuji Rock has many faces, depending on the viewer's location.Those who have seen Mmbuji Rock will agree that it defies description, and I can only say that seeing is believing. (I would like to acknowledge the sources of the photos used here and will do so soon)

Batouala

I ordered a copy of Rene Maran's Batouala, and it arrived on November 14. I have known about this novel for decades. I am sure I first heard about it as an undergraduate student at the University of Dar es Salaam. I do not remember if I read it then or not.

About ten years ago, as I immersed myself in studying Ernest Hemingway, I discovered that Batouala had a significant impact on Hemingway. As a young man in Paris, Hemingway reviewed this novel favourably in the Toronto Star in 1922. This was Hemingway's first published book review. It is clear that this novel helped define Hemingway's ideas about writing, as is attested by this well-known paragraph from the review:

You smell the smells o of the village, you eat its food, you see the white man as the black man sees him, and after you have lived in the village you die there. That is all there is to the story, but when you have read it, you have seen Batouala, and that means it is a great novel.

The more I have immersed myself in Hemingway, especially his African connection, the more I have felt the urge to read Batouala, knowing that it will aid me in my effort to gain a deeper insight into both Hemingway's writing style and his life-long fascination with Africa.

Batouala was written in French. Published in 1921, it won the prestigious Prix Goncourt and sparked off a storm of controversy. I know that there are several translations of it. As I prepare to read the English translation by Barbara Beck and Alexandre Mboukou, I want to try and follow the French original at the same time, since I have a smattering of French for reading purposes. I have gone through the first page, and I am moved by Maran's writing.

Another Day at the School of Environmental Studies

Today, I went to the School of Environmental Studies in Apple Valley to talk with Mr. Todd Carlson's students. They are studying indigenous philosophy.

Over the years, starting in the early nineties, Mr. Carlson has invited me to speak in his class, my focus being traditional folklore.






In preparation for my visits, Mr. Carlson introduces the students to my book, Matengo Folktales. They read parts of it. As a result, they have many questions for me, which are thoughtful and engaging. They ask about such issues as recording and textualizing oral folklore, translation, folklore performance, and the meanings of the tales in Matengo Folktales.

During every visit, I tell a tale or two from Matengo Folktales. Today, as in the past, I told the "The Monster in the Rice Field," which everyone finds most intriguing.