Day 35

Some of the girls and I at Kunduchi Beach - when the tide is
out, we can walk almost halfway to the island!

Today marks five weeks since I have been gone. I know I've said this a million times before but it seems like time has gone by so fast! In only 7 weeks I will be leaving this place...gaah! and only NOW do I feel like I am  getting the hang of things. We are finally in a routine - on our days off, we go to Kunduchi Beach. On the days we go to Boona Baana, we either tan on the roof or do school work in a coffee shop nearby. It may sound like a vacation, but I am actually taking a full course load while I'm here! So it's not all lollipops and butterflies...although the rest of the group teases me about my daily routine and my constant sentences referencing orphans or rainbows....haha

This is how I do work - sea side with a
glass of bitter lemon ;)

Yesterday, most of us spent the day at a beautiful beach - our new favorite hang out spot - that is free! With Cherie gone, we are on our own for transportation, meals, and everything else, but we are pretty much doing what we did when she was here too. It's nice to be independent, yet still keep up with our morning coffees, "peaches and pits" at dinner, and school work. Last night we took a break and went to a pub in Dar for the first time (besides Heineken House, which doesn't really count cos we just watched the game). It was an Irish Pub turned karaoke bar on Wednesday nights, and it was so much fun! It was also right on the water, so I'm sure there was a gorgeous view during the day time. I sang "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen and "Summer of '69" by Bryan Adams. I tried staying up to watch the hockey game at 3am but I didn't even make it to the end of the first period!

Me, Sienna, Jesse, and Jennifer on our balcony

This morning we went to the office of a Canadian-based organization called "Under the Same Sun". I have talked about it on here before, but now I better understand the actual atrocities that people with albinism go through here in Tanzania. All but two of the employees that we met with at the local office were people with albinism, so it was really neat to see that they are advocating for themselves and their "brothers and sisters". I could hardly believe their incredible passion for what they were doing and I was so pleased to hear about their progress so far. I even decided to write my research paper about people with albinism for one of my classes here. I can't wait to learn more about it all, and to meet with those people again. They were the sweetest!