Its All Unchartered

So, I’ve been in Africa for two weeks now. I’ve seen lions, cheetah, zebras, elephants, impala, giraffe, tortoise, and monkeys galore. We spent a couple days in the city, Arusha, and I learned the art of bartering for a price for everything you buy. I met a man who has 25 wives and 120 children. I’ve learned to identify over 60 species of birds, and I can say my favorite bird is the von der deeken Hornbill. I’ve learned the cultures of the Massai Tribes, and attended a very “interesting” Lutheran church ceremony. In only two weeks, I’ve begin to understand what it means to truly be a Tanzanian, and I’m starting to grasp what values they live by.

So last week, we attended a Lutheran church meeting in a Massai community. We were welcomed with open arms into their little church, complete with a tin roof and 14 rows of benches. The music in the church was particularly interesting. Unfortunately, most of the music was played on a small plastic keyboard, and all the singing involved pre-recorded keyboard tunes. But overall the music was so entirely unique. There was one part of the service where three women were chanting, two women were doing traditional Massai singing, which the children would repeat. The music was what I would call beautiful chaos. The speeches though I couldn’t understand them, were passionately expressed and once translated, I understood that each speech was about how you should always do good in your life no matter the hardships you go through. I sincerely enjoyed the respectful and open environment this church showed us. Afterwards we went to a bar and I tried some of the local brews, such as Tusker (which coincidently you can get in the united States), Kilimanjaro, and Safari.

This week, we spent at Tarangire National Park. We split up into three groups and left early in the morning to collect data on either ruminates, non-ruminates, and birds. I was in the group that researched the various species of birds in the grasslands and the riverhine. Once we compiled our data, we were able to run our calculations and report our conclusions to the rest of the group. This was excellent practice for our independent study projects that we will begin at the end of the semester. As well as collecting data, we were able to act as tourists for the afternoon. We saw wild dogs (which apparently our AD, Baba Jack, hasn’t seen in 5 years! So this was a rare occasion!) cheetahs, and lions on just the second day in Tarangire!

I’m off to Mozumbai, a tropical forest, tomorrow (an eight hour drive…) to do more research and then my homestay begins a week after that!! My homestay family has two sons, two daughters, and four cows! I can’t wait!

Hope all is well in America!

P.S. here are some pictures!!

I Can See For Miles Miles Miles

Speechless.
Truthfully. When we had to set up our tent around midnight, before dinner, on our first night, I was speechless.
As well as when I woke up to the sunrise over Mt. Kilimanjaro and ate dinner to the sunset over Mt. Meru. My experience in Africa so far has been more than I had ever expected. I've seen zebra, elephants, impala, been less than ten feet away from giraffes, and watched a baby wildebeest find its way back to its mother. I've watched the sunset from a tree house, hiked a mountain to learn about the Savannah, and purchased jewelery from Massai tribe women.
The campsite we stayed at during orientation week, Ndarakwai Ranch, is just beautiful, and as you can assume from the title, from my tent, in the middle of the field, I could see all the way to Kenya. seriously. The black hills of Kenya were just off to the distance in between Kili and Meru.
But we came back to Arusha after our week in the bush, and other than being a little overwhelmed I'm adjusting to the city well. At first I was concerned about food, theft, getting lost. But I'm happy to report that my second day in the city is going much smoother. I've acquired a cell phone (yay) and gotten somewhat used to the harassment from the Tanzanians who would like you to buy their products. Its very similar to cities in America in that respect. 
This morning we had our first Swahili lesson. The language isn't too difficult, but when you are trying to talk to the locals, and you screw up, I've found they just laugh and walk away. I guess right now, to you I would say Habari za mwema, because most of you are sleeping. (pretty sure its about 6:00 AM - which is the time we wake up every morning here...) Anyway, this means -- how is your night? Tanzanians don't usually use this phrase because you would only ask someone who is in the middle of the evening this question, and they would most likely be asleep...
Anyway, I've already made some really great friends on this trip. I'm sitting next to my friend Jenny in an Internet cafe right now. She is a singer too and she hails from Chicago. We're going to a karaoke bar tonight! So, there are twenty-eight students on our trip, and I've pretty much gotten to know each of them. We had some free time during orientation, and we would play games, cards, or just sit around and chat, which I think was a very effective way to get to know my new classmates. 
Okay well, Ill be on safari in either the Serengeti or Norongoro crater next week, so It'll be about a week until my next post. Hopefully Ill be able to do that on my own computer so I can post some photographs!!
I hope everything is going well wherever you are,
I miss you all!!
kwa heri!
Emma

It's About Time To Fly Away, But Wait...

Tomorrow's the big day!! We're leaving the house at around 1:00pm to get to the airport early ( three hours before my flight... my nerves are considerably out of control )

But Wait...
I discovered today I'm horrible at packing.
Especially when I only have one backpack and one carry on, for an entire semester. And for some reason, I can't seem to fit much more than my camping equipment in my bag. I also just realized I forgot to pack socks and a baithing suit. Those are going to need to fit somewhere as well. Luckily the resident expert in packing, my father, comes home around 5:30 and he said he would help me organize and pack everything. What a relief.

So I'm starting to get pretty nervous. Neighbors, family, and friends keep calling and stopping by to wish me luck and safe travels. I can't believe this is all happening so quickly. I remember sitting in statistics last semester thinking how the next 54 days were going to drag by... they didn't. It's completely surreal.
But I'm ready for my adventure. It's going to be a semester I'll never forget.

Heres a quick list of things I'll most likely miss:
-family and friends obviously
-real showers
-my iphone (that's staying in america)
-being able to hop in my car and drive to the store when I need something
-easy internet access
-a real mattress/bed/sheets

One of my best friends always quotes Eleanor Roosevelt in saying: "Do One Thing Everyday That Scares You"
I think I have that covered for a couple months...

Well see you on the other side!
of the ocean that is.
-Emma

So Many Colors

FOUR DAYS!
This weekend I'm at Saint Michael's, saying goodbye to all of my friends from school. It's hard to think that I won't see everyone for a whole four months. And whats worse is I have to say goodbye to many of my senior friends who will be graduating before I return.
I've made some of my best friends at this school, and tonight I've been running from house to house trying to spend a little bit of time with each of them.
Well, off to bed, I'll write more in the morning, when I can actually compile full thoughts that don't include climbing into bed.
Hope you all had a great Friday night
Explore, wander, and discover,
Emma

Glory's Waiting Outside Your Window

15, 840 minutes from now (11 days), I will be on a plane, luckily in a window seat (especially grateful to my father for that), just beginning to grasp the grandeur of the adventure I am about to embark on.

But as for today, I’ve been cleaning and packing all day. And I mean all day. I spent a total of five and a half hours cleaning my room. You may ask how it could be possible to spend five hours cleaning, but when you have way too many pairs of shoes, and books overflowing from your bookshelf, it’s not too difficult to become cluttered. Who am I kidding; I truly have way too much stuff. But after much ado, everything is organized, my closet is color coded, and my bed is made.

The most rewarding part of the day so far has been packing though. I’m starting to put everything together outside in the hallway, and as I cleaned I found more and more of what I am planning to bring along. I have both of my cameras, the larger one for safari, and the smaller camera for short trips, and days I don’t want to carry a bulky camera bag around. I’ve also packed my tent, sleeping bag, sleeping mat, and water purifier. I got the coolest purifier from my grandmother for Christmas. It called a steripen and it purifies water with UV light!

Other miscellaneous Items I’ll be packing include binoculars, a head lamp, a plethora of medications, and gifts for my home stay family!

With a couple restrictions on clothing, my outfits for the trip will be an assortment of two skirts, two pairs of pants, shorts, a dress, and some tee-shirts. (you have to pack light when you're planning to carry everything on your back!) Prepare yourself for the same outfit over and over again in my photos. In Tanzania, it is a customary for women to cover their knees and shoulders. The only times we are allowed to wear shorts is in the national parks, and even then, our shorts must be knee length. At some points I’m told I'll even have to cover my hair. But even with restrictions, I’m really looking forward to discovering the cultural differences between the United States and Tanzania.

It strange the emotions I’m feeling right now. I’m scared, anxious, excited, uneasy, and restless all at the same time. It feels chaotic, and wrong, and I’m up half the night writing things down that I know in all reality I won’t forget (Or my family would never let me forget, like my passport or my camera). I can't believe it's so soon! These next eleven days are going to fly by.

Until then,

Wander, discover, and explore,

Emma

So Many Foreign Roads

Today is January 3rd ( Yay, Happy New Year ) and I am leaving in less than 25 days, 22 to be precise. I figure as I am preparing to leave, starting to pack my bags, organize my lists, and say goodbyes, I should tell you a little more about myself.

So as mentioned previously, I'm Emma. A junior mathematics major, biology minor, at Saint Michael's College. I swim on the varsity team at school, lead an A Capella group, and I am an active representative in the Student Association. I'm a member of the Student Athletic Advisory Committee, a peer tutor for various math classes, and I was an orientation leader this year. You could say I'm busy, but I've always found I do my best work when I have a full schedule.

Anyway, Today I should have been returning to Vermont for winter training with the rest of my team. They're leaving for the Puerto Rico training trip in two days. Since obviously I'll be in Africa soon, I'm done swimming until next season. It's actually kind of hard to see everyone travelling back up north, and not joining them. Though suffering through double sessions for two weeks isn't exactly what I call a fun, relaxed holiday break, being with the team is important to me. I've made some of my best friends on the Saint Mike's swim team, and I wish I were there to cheer them on through this tough part of the season.

Aside from school activities, in my free time, I read, listen to music, hang out with my sister, and just take time to myself.  One would probably say I read excessively. In the past week, I've polished off five books, and hope to finish a couple more in the coming days. For Christmas I received a Kindle Fire, and it hasn't left my side since I opened it.

I listen to music as often as possible. Music has been a constant in my life since I was little. Starting with listening to the ABC's in the car with my parents and playing recorder in second grade music class. Then, progressing to playing violin from grades 4 to 12, and singing in select choirs throughout high school. Music has always taken up a decent amount of time in my schedule.

Cliché, I know, but I enjoy listening to all genres of music, from Classical, Jazz, and Oldies, to Indie and Blues. I guess violin has trained me to love classical, Vivaldi and Tchaikovsky being favorites. If asked to pick a favorite artist, I wouldn't be able to, but, in the past couple months, I've been listening to a lot from The Black Keys, Bon Iver, John Mayer, and Roman Holiday.

So, one of the books I recently read, gave playlists throughout the story, and gave me the idea of once in a while, giving a playlist in my blog. This is what I’ve been listening to while writing my blog. If you haven’t listened to some of these artists, you should.

Give Me Love - Ed Sheeran
Long Way Home – Roman Holiday
Moon River – Frank Sinatra
Skinny Love – Bon Iver
Something Beautiful – NeedToBreathe
Towers - Bon Iver
January Wedding – The Avett Brothers
In My Veins – Andrew Belle
You’re Nobody Till Somebody Loves You – The Rat Pack
The Stacks – Bon Iver
Lay ‘Em Down – NeedToBreathe
Way I Am – Ben Rector
Someday You Will Be Loved – Death Cab For Cutie
Won’t Turn Back – NeedToBreathe

If you didn't catch it yet, I'll let you in on the secret of this blog. Every post's title comes from song lyrics. Most of the songs have certain significance to me. Today's post is Bon Iver, For Emma Forever Ago. It’s one of my favorite albums. Not only have I had friends sing this A Capella (members of the Saint Mike's all male A Capella group, Mike Check) but it was also the very first Bon Iver song I ever listened to. And of course the obvious, it has my name in it...

Well, if I haven’t bored you enough with my excessive musical history, here are a some fun facts about myself:
I can whistle three different ways.
I’ve fractured my rib.
I am incredibly impatient, and I get that from my dad.
My sister and I named our first fish colorprinter...
I don’t have a favorite color.
and my favorite animals are elephants, big cats, and giraffes. Oh my.

Okay, well that’s enough for tonight, I hope this gave you a little insight into who I am, so you can understand me a little more when I write these blog posts.
Until next time,
Listen, explore, and wander foreign roads for me.
Forever Ago,
Emma.

'Tis the Season

Yes, ‘tis the season, the season of finals. final exams, final swim meets, final goodbyes to friends, final classes, final concerts, you get the picture. I’ve begun to feel a bit sentimental in saying goodbye to all my daily activities at Saint Mike’s. Last weekend, I participated in my final swim meet of junior year. Every year, the team travels down to Bentley University for the Bentley Invitational. I didn’t swim as well as I would have liked to, but I honestly felt that I’d worked my hardest. I’ve just had too much distracting me from swimming this season.
Speaking of distractions, Friday was the last day of classes this semester, and it was strange to be saying goodbye to some of my professors and classmates. I’ve sincerely enjoyed some of my classes this semester, so it feels unreal that I won’t see my classmates for eight months. I know I’m going to be making great new friends while exploring Tanzania, but I can’t say that I won’t miss all the good friends I’ve made at SMC.
Especially the girls I sing with, the Bellas. I’m a member of the all-female, A Capella group the Aca Bellas, and what a wonderful group of girls we are. I am so lucky to have 21 talented, amazing, and dependable friends. We had our final concert last night, and spent the whole morning baking treats for the concert, singing Christmas carols, and just enjoying our time together. Our concert was one of the best we have ever put on. We were all ready to sing, gave it our all, and had fun with it. I am going to miss these girls more than anything when I’m in Africa. They are some of my best friends on campus. I believe we’re all so emotionally close, because of the music that we share. Corny, I know, but there’s something in our music that I can’t explain. Singing with the Bella’s takes away from anything I had been worrying about or stressing over. If I’m upset before rehearsal, you can bet that I’ll be laughing by the time I leave. These girls are truly my best friends, and I can’t wait to hear everything they accomplish in my absence.
After the concert, last night, I went out to visit some friends, and say some final goodbyes. As finals week is in full swing, there isn’t a guarantee that I’m going to see everyone I would like to before I leave. This is upsetting because many of my close friends are seniors at Saint Mike’s and sometimes I worry that I won’t see them after they graduate!  It’s particularly hard to say goodbye to someone that you’re not sure when you will next see. I know all my friends are going to have a great last semester, and I’m going to have an amazing abroad experience, but it’s weird thinking that they won’t be here when I move in my senior year.
Well, to top it all off, I saw a shooting star when I was walking home last night. This shooting star made my night. It’s funny when something so little as a shooting star makes you smile. Makes you think of silly things like old friends and the end of a semester same little piece of the sky that you are. I’ve heard the sky in Tanzania is endless. I’ll take a picture and post it as soon as I confirm this, I promise.
Alas, finals aren’t going to study for themselves…Macro and Abstract Algebra here I come…
-Emma