LOUISE ALICE LÉ VAN NHÛONG

Volunteering Experience in Tanzanya

It was a short week, since Friday was a holiday and most of the volunteers were leaving for a safari on the mainland as early as Thursday. Anija and I decided to go explore Pemba Island.

We left at dawn on Thursday with Ibrahim, who was heading to Stone Town to do the shopping for the coming week for Assalam. He also kindly accompanied me to get my phone repaired, which had been broken for a week now.

We visited Stone Town in the afternoon, the historic city center with its varied architecture, a blend of colonial and Oriental styles. The atmosphere of the city at the end of the day by the sea is truly unique and pleasant.

Early the next morning, we took the ferry to Pemba Island. Upon arrival, we were immediately immersed in the island’s atmosphere, which is quite different from Zanzibar. There are already few tourists; the island is smaller, lush with a thick, rolling jungle.

We explored the island for nearly three days on the back of a “bodaboda.” In the north, we went snorkeling on the coral reef. And we swam in a fishing village where about fifteen children joined us. The landscapes were magnificent and unforgettable.

Week 3

After this wonderful weekend, we’re back in Assalam for another busy week.

At school:

This week, Teacher Khusaima asked me to lead an English class to teach the students how to tell time. It’s really not easy to teach, but I had a great time. The kids had a science lesson on plants, and we went out to the schoolyard to pick some plants to make the lesson more hands-on—it was really great. I also got back into learning division during math class; my elementary school days were way too long ago, and the students are much better than I am at this subject.

We participated in the school club in the afternoon; I was part of the basketball activity.

Humanitarian aid:

Food packaging on Tuesday evening to distribute surprise packages in Jambiani the next day. The distribution is great; the residents seem very happy to receive unexpected packages that clearly help ease their daily expenses and allow families to properly feed everyone.

We also distributed 50 chickens to families who had completed Assalam’s free training programs to learn how to care for chickens. Once the program is completed, families receive free chicken coops, chickens, and feed. This program is part of the “empowerment” initiative and helps ensure food security.

Permaculture :

I’m only moderately thrilled with this week’s permaculture project; we’ve turned an area into a field. The project hasn’t been clearly explained to us, and we always start working in the early afternoon under the blazing sun.

Week 2

The weekend before, we organized an orphan camp. We welcomed about a hundred children from an orphanage to spend the day playing games and doing crafts. The children arrived in the morning; they seemed quite sad, which was a bit unsettling. I helped out with the “cooking” workshop—it was really fun. In the afternoon, we organized various fun games; the children seemed delighted with their day and left with smiles on their faces.

On Monday, we chose the classes we’ll be in from now on. I’m with Teacher Khusaima in 5th grade. The children are between 8 and 10 years old. We distributed food in a village and started the permaculture program by clearing the area where we’ll be planting mushrooms.

We planted trees at a school outside Assalam to raise the children’s awareness of the need to plant trees, and the next day we distributed fruit trees to the villagers (coconut, orange, lemon, mandarin, papaya, mango…).