Whiskers on Kittens

Today is an extremely bittersweet day. It is my last full day in Tanzania.

This experience was more than anything I could have ever imagined. And while I’m extremely excited to go home, I'm also extremely sad to be leaving Tanzania.

We spent the morning talking about our time here, the memories we made and the lessons we learned. It was really sad to hear the staff say goodbye to all of us, and I’m going to miss all of them more than I thought I would. I’m going to miss all my fellow students too. Even though I didn’t have the chance to get to know all of them super well, they are all such great people and I hope the best for them in their futures and careers!

After lunch, we passed around sheets of papers with our names on them and wrote down notes for every student, kind of like a yearbook. I thought it was such a great idea and I can’t wait to read what everyone wrote about me (we don’t get to see them until we get to the airport tomorrow)!

Later, a group of us walked around Moyo Hill, the namesake for our camp, and it was extremely beautiful. I’m sorry I didn’t walk the loop sooner. I’ll post pictures when I’m back in the states!

We took one last trip to the tailor to pick up the last of our things. I finally got the purse I asked for a few weeks ago! We flooded his business with orders and electricity isn’t the most consistent, reliable thing here, so he got behind. It sucks it took so long, but I’m grateful he was able to finish it before I left! We also ran into the little girl who wanted us to swing her in the air. Not long after she found us, 4 other kids found us and wanted to do the same thing. I’m glad we go to see her before leaving!

We talked a lot about reverse culture shock today and I know at first I’ll be excited about fast food and washers and dryers and warm showers, but after all that excitement subsides, I know I’ll start wishing that I was back in Tanzania!

Some things I’ll miss about Tanzania:

-The sunsets

-The stars

-The people

-The animals

-The mountains

-The friendliness

Some things I won’t miss about Tanzania

-Cold showers

-Eating rice/pasta every day

There’s not much to hate about this place. I’ll forever be grateful that this was the first place outside of the U.S. that I chose to visit, and I definitely plan on coming back. Whether it’s to Rhotia, or Serengeti, or Kilimanjaro, I’ll find my way back in the future.

While I am happy to be heading home, I am not looking forward to the long plane rides. Our plane leaves tomorrow around 8:00 pm but I won’t land in Ohio until 8:00 pm on Wednesday. It’s going to be a long safari, but I’m looking forward to buying chocolate in Amsterdam and buying American food in New York!

So, I’m not saying kwaheri to Tanzania, only baadaye (see you later)!

Thanks for following me and my journey! The support I received throughout this process was incredible and I’m forever grateful for it. I’ll probably post one more post when I get back to America, so be on the look out!